Chapter 10
Tim felt like he saw his whole life go by. He remembered the same feeling a couple of times in the course of the job and also when he had his car accident. He heard the shot and he felt the pain but he wasn't dead or dying. He gripped where the pain was coming from and saw that he had been shot in the shoulder. It took a moment to register that he had been hit. The blood came through his fingers as he gripped his right.
Tim looked at Ray who was motioning to the one who shot him. "Simkins, stop."
Simkins pointed the gun at Tim but this time pressed on the wound that had just been made. Tim tried not to grunt in pain at the pressure. He managed to grunt out, "Don't do it Ray."
Simkins applied more pressure and looked at Ray. "Looks like your baby faced partner has finally grown a set. Of course it's a lot different after a bullet rips through your body but then again you also know about that too huh Sahib? Now open it or the next one is going to be through the head."
Tim knew the threat was serious when he felt the muzzle being pressed to the side of his head. This was also serious. He knew that if Ray helped them, he would be adding and abetting and that would be a problem for him. Yet within the two days of meeting the guy, he learned that he wasn't one to let anyone he was teamed with flounder; even if he had only known them for a couple of hours. "Ray… don't."
Ray looked at Tim who was grunting in pain. He wasn't going to risk it and he wondered what was taking the others so long. They should have been there by now.
"If you're wondering about your backup, we've left them a few surprises. I can imagine that it would take some time to get through," Simkins spoke as if he knew what Ray was thinking. "Now make this easy on everyone Sahib and open the safe. Then maybe this will end well for everyone."
Ray felt that his hands were tied. He wasn't going to let anything happen to Tim since he was his responsibility. He sighed, "Alright."
Tim watched in pain and in sorrow. It was also mingled with anger in that a new friend was being made to do something that could end his career. From his view, he thought that Ray looked worn down, like he was being beaten into submission. His gaze shifted and it was then he noticed movement and recognized it for what it was. He would remain quiet for the moment.
Ray didn't see the movement as he went forward. The others cleared the way and stood up with their guns poised. He sighed as he looked at the work that was being done. It was simple since Ringo had gotten through the hard part. It was the homestretch that needed to be played out. He slowly reached out with his hand towards the keyboard that was set up and hesitated.
"Don't punk out on me now Sahib. Not if you don't want pretty boy's brains splattered everywhere."
Ray didn't appreciate the taunt and turned to look back. It was then that he caught sight of Ziva. She made a motion to indicate that Gibbs and Tony were also around and ready to go. He willed himself not to react as his hand hovered. He made a slight motion that wouldn't have gotten Simkins' attention and reached over and made a couple of keystrokes. He slowly stood up as the safe clicked and opened and gave an almost sullen look at Simkins.
"Now that wasn't so bad, was it?"
Ray looked at Tim. He had been let go since it was assumed that he wasn't going to be much trouble but he still had an eye kept on him. He looked at Simkins and replied, "Like pulling teeth you fucking asshole."
Simkins' reaction was how he had hoped. Ray felt himself get shoved and he bumped hard into Tim. It was not the best plan but it allowed him to sneak something out and palm it while he was grabbed and made to stand still. He glanced at Tim who was holding his shoulder and wincing in pain. He gave a slight nod to indicate that he was sorry.
"Don't fuck with me Sahib. This would have been much easier if you would have said yes earlier. Then maybe you wouldn't be in this position." Simkins motioned for Ringo to move in to get the prototype and the files.
Ringo made his way into the vault and looked for what they were looking for. He carefully placed his hands on it and lifted it. "Got it."
"Move out," Simkins replied. He pointed his gun at Ray and Tim. "You know I could just let you go but where's the fun in that? Better that I just kill you and make you a hero. Then again it would be interesting to see what you'll do when word gets out that you aided and abetted this. It would be like old times wouldn't it?"
Ray looked at Simkins. His hand manipulated what he had in his hand and held it ready. He knew that this would be momentary but it would provide enough. He replied, "It would. The difference is though that last time I took the heat for your fuck up. This was coercion."
Simkins laughed, "Trying to argue semantics Sahib?"
"Just making a point." With that Ray threw what was in his hand towards Simkins. He had a split second before it exploded.
The movement startled Simkins since it was unexpected and he fired but the shot went wide. The next moment an explosion sounded as the flash bang went off and blinded nearly everyone in the room. That was the moment to move.
Ray made a lunge for Simkins and gave a punch and disarmed him and got his gun back. He whirled to duck since he saw the one that had been covering Tim raise his weapon. He was relieved that Tim distracted him and managed to get his weapon back. By that time though Simkins was back up and had pulled another weapon out and started firing.
Gibbs had been surprised to see one of the intruders gagged and handcuffed to the stairwell. He recognized them as Tim's and silently gave a thought of praise to his agent. His gut had been telling him that he should follow the route that Tim and Ray had taken instead of the direction he said that he would take.
It didn't surprise him that these guys rigged certain traps around the place. They were easy to disable. He knew that Ziva would cover Tony on their end if she spotted anything of the sort. He ignored the grunting of the prisoner and continued up. He slowly opened the door and immediately spotted the light coming from one area. It was accentuated with a muzzle flash and the shot rang out.
The sound was enough to make Gibbs think the worst. He heard Ray telling one of them to stop and Tim was holding onto his arm. It was all too clear to Gibbs that this group knew what they were doing. The leader was telling Ray to open the vault or he was going to put a bullet in Tim.
Gibbs knew better than anyone that Ray would do what he could to save his crew. He had saved his life when they first met and ended up with three stitches in his head and a mild concussion. They were not officially teammates then but he behaved that he was. It was a quality that Gibbs knew the bad guys would exploit to the fullest if they knew what kind of person Ray was. That was what worried him and that was what happened to get Ray exiled. Here it was replaying again.
As he inched forward, he noticed Tony and Ziva come in. He motioned for them to approach slowly and quietly and to stay low. Gibbs made sure that they could be seen by their people to let them know that help was there. He got a slight motion from Ray and he recognized the flicker of his finger. He knew Ray had something that could give them a hand up.
Gibbs motioned for the rest of the team to stay still when Ray agreed to crack the safe. He saw the reluctance in his probie's posture but he also could detect that edge he got when he was ready to go. It was almost comical if there weren't guns involved when Ray taunted his ex-teammate. It was part of the plan since Gibbs saw the movement and what came out.
The explosion he anticipated and he motioned for Tony and Ziva to cover up. When it was over they had their chance but Tim and Ray needed to get out of the line of fire. He brought his weapon out and called, "NCIS, don't move."
By that time Ray had tackled one and Tim did another and they were out of the way. Gibbs anticipated the gunfire and ducked behind where he took cover. He peered over to make out five total. The one Tim handcuffed made six. They odds were made somewhat better. Gibbs brought his weapon over and looked for a target. He fired and ended up drawing fire. He ducked just as the glass objects above shattered from the shots.
Meanwhile Tony and Ziva were exchanging fire. Tony was trying to see if he could see Tim or Ray. "I don't see them."
"Neither can I," Ziva replied as she aimed. She hit one but he was wearing Kevlar and he was momentarily stunned but he ducked back down and continued to fire. "They're wearing Kevlar."
Tony made a slight movement with his head. That was just great. That means that they had to get in close but that was after they disarmed the suspects. He knew Ziva wouldn't have a problem with that. She was like a ninja and could take down two before he could barely get to one. "Can you get in close?"
The gunfire was coming rapidly and with the glass shattering all around, it was difficult to say. Ziva tried to assess her position before giving an answer. Finally she replied, "I am not sure. I can try."
Tony was going to tell her to get moving when there was a sudden crash. It wasn't caused by shots fired. It was someone ramming someone else into something. "Looks like someone already got started."
Ray had rolled behind a desk to avoid getting hit. The glass exploded around him. This place had too much damn glass. Then again it was a lab and glass was the requirement and it didn't matter if it was a computer lab or not. He peered around and spotted someone firing at Gibbs or one of the others. He took a couple of shots and ended up drawing fire so he ducked for cover.
Ray looked around and noticed that Ringo was still near the vault. He had the nanites. An idea formed. They couldn't let the nanites be taken. He couldn't see much but from the looks of things he was clear. He stayed low and crept until he was within tackling distance and rammed Ringo into a lab table. He didn't see the case with the nanites fly out and slide underneath a table.
He wrestled with Ringo and they exchanged punches. He made contact and he grunted, "Damn it Ringo. I trusted you."
Ringo dealt back the punches but managed to get in, "You still can Jay Bird. Working with the Agency on this."
It took a moment for it to sink in. By that time Ray had been rolled over and pinned by Ringo. "Spook?"
"You know we both are," Ringo replied. He gave another punch to stun Ray since this was a cover. "Just stay out of trouble Rook. Let us handle it." He then got up and went to look for the case leaving Ray to collect his thoughts.
Ray felt the sting of glass as he rolled over to get to his feet. He managed to get to a position to see Simkins get up and fire. More glass started and a fire started to burn. It lit up the place more and Ray decided to make a move towards Simkins. He would ignore Ringo and there was the other guy that he couldn't see and there was Wilkins.
The fire beginning was a problem but that wasn't the case since the missing man popped out of nowhere and grabbed Ray's firing arm. They wrestled with each other and Ray took a shot to the gut from the guy's knee but he didn't let go. Instead he rammed the guy into another table and that shifted things. Ray felt a hand on his throat and his wrist was being held. He felt his air getting cut off but he managed to push off and in the process they collided with Ringo. It was enough to allow Ray to punch his way out. The result was his attacker colliding with Ringo in a tangle of limbs.
Twisting, Ray saw the case. He slid out and made a grab for it. The slide carried him behind some tables and he found that he was close to the vault. He heard the shots and then Simkins shouting at his men to be careful with what they shot at. Ray could make the flames out as they rose and frowned at the fact the sprinkler systems weren't going on. He looked down at the case and had an idea.
Simkins was trying to get towards Ray since he had spotted that he had the case. This was going to be much more difficult than he had anticipated but at least he could be prepared for other things and he was sure that Sahib wouldn't remember. The guy was good but not that good. He decided to play with the weakest link and like a predator, he started stalking him out. First to have fun and he brought out something guaranteed to make these odd more in his favor.
Ray finished what he was doing and turned to look for a way out. If they played keep away until they subdued them, then there was a possibility of nipping this in the bud even if Ringo was on another team that wasn't the enemy. He slid along the ground while pushing the case ahead of him. He then heard the unmistakable sound of an M4.
It was extreme duck and cover to avoid getting shot. For Ray, he was already under cover and was trying to find a better opening. They needed to take down these guys, alive preferably but maybe it wouldn't matter. Then again if they were going to sell to the highest bidder, the Agency would want to be able to nab both seller and buyer. They would just have to do what they could.
It was then that Ray saw one of Simkins' men. They had managed to flank Ziva's position, though he wasn't sure at the time. He pushed the case underneath a desk and crouched and brought his weapon up. He stood up and fired.
The shots didn't hit since the guy ducked at the last moment. However the guy turned and pointed his gun at Ray but Ray was quicker and squeezed off two rounds that hit in the shoulder and they guy went down. It was a split second later when he felt the burning sting of a bullet hitting his right upper arm but he didn't flinch. He pivoted but it felt like slow motion and managed to squeeze off the last of his clip. It felt embarrassing when the click came but he had to react quick to avoid getting mowed down.
Ray felt in his bag for a spare clip. He was surprised that Simkins didn't assume that he had a backup piece. Not that it would have mattered in this fight anyway. It was a bit hard to put the new clip into his Sig with blood leeching down his arm and he could feel the muscles strain and gritted his teeth against the pain. He was no stranger to getting shot though and worked his way through it until he got the clip in and was locked and loaded. He turned to pivot and crouched to look for a target.
Meanwhile Tim had been beaten off by the guy that had caught him in the first place. He did manage to find a position and changed in order to make sure that his flank was covered. The recoil from his Sig made his arm ache but at the moment he couldn't and didn't think about that. He looked to see Ray take down one of them and saw one firing at him. He discharged his own weapon to draw fire.
It was a mistake since the guy turned and began firing an M4 assault rifle at him. He went to the most secure place and now he was like a trapped rat in the vault. He still kept up the fire to give Ray time to reload since he could barely make out the telltale click of an empty clip. The M4 was still firing and Tim was conserving what was left in his clip before reloading. He peered and nearly frowned before he realized what was going on.
Ray saw that Tim was trapped and with the barrage of M4 fire, it was going to be difficult getting out. He managed to make out Tony, Ziva and Gibbs and they were busy with Ringo and Wilkins and Simkins was firing at everything but mostly at Tim. One was down, Tim cuffed one so that left one more and he was somewhere in there. It was a risk.
It was stupid but it would work. Ray popped up suddenly and threw what was probably a beaker at Simkins. He then took off running to provide a moving target and drew Simkins' fire. He ran away from the vault and behind a glass wall that shattered the moment it was hit. He ran into an arc before he ducked to catch his breath. He peered around the corner just in time to see the sleeper he knew was there take a shot and hit Tim square in the chest.
Ray was too far to jump and grab Tim but he retaliated by shooting the sleeper. He put three taps into the guy. Two in the chest and one in the head. He was down and Ray didn't care. He duck out of sight to get to Tim and noticed that the others were moving to try and help their fallen agent. Ray decided the direct approach and it was one that Simkins wouldn't expect.
He holstered his weapon and got into position. He gave a tentative poke to his arm and made a slight face before turning back to the scene. He gave a quick breath and took off. He was running on the furniture and running where he leapt off and tackled Simkins hard to the ground. They rolled with momentum and the M4 slid from Simkins' grasp. Ray was back on his feet and was going to charge when he was tackled by Wilkins.
The momentary distraction allowed Gibbs and Tony to get off a couple of shots at Simkins and Ringo. Ziva had been trying to reach Tim but couldn't since her way was blocked by the fire that was starting to spread. She was cut off.
Ray kept a tight grip even though Wilkins was pummeling his injured arm. He managed to get him to back off when a sharp pain hit his hip. He realized that Simkins had gotten the M4 back and was firing at them and he got hit. He fell at an odd angle but he managed to scurry out of the way and it was luck that he was closest to Tim.
It was pure adrenaline as Ray came out hobbling slightly and grabbed Tim by his good arm and pulled him behind the overturned table that they had taken cover. Ray pulled Tim close and said, "Gotcha McGee. Just stay with me."
The firing continued and it was becoming apparent that the three remaining suspects were engineering their escape route. The fire that had started was to their advantage and with the barrage of fire, they pinned the agents in their spots.
Ray was breathing heavily when he heard, "You sure you want to continue this Sahib? We've already won."
Ray peered around his table and saw Ringo disappearing through a door with the case. Damn it. He thumped the back of his head on the table in frustration as he checked out Tim. The chest wound wasn't too bad since he wasn't having a hard time breathing. Still Tim was going to need a doctor's care and the sooner the better. He replied, "This isn't going to end well for anyone Simkins. It's not worth it."
"Now you see that's where you're wrong, Sahib," Simkins replied. He was motioning to Wilkins quietly and he was rushing to obey the orders that were being relayed by hand signals. "Ask Agent Gibbs there. Even he knows you're out gunned on this one and we have what we need."
Ray felt a buzz and pulled out his cell. It was a text message and was actually surprised that Gibbs knew how to use that function. Two more came and he knew that Tony and Ziva were okay. He texted back while saying, "Yeah but you know how it ends in terms of that."
"Oh I'm sure. You know I really wanted you in on this and give you a chance to prove that you were right."
"You know me. I'm the guy that follows orders and per standing order, the captain goes down with the ship," Ray replied as he looked in his pack. He didn't have much and it wasn't like he carried grenades. That was just stupid. He did have one thing that he was adamant about since Gibbs schooled him in that one. The beauty of it was that he had not one but three.
"And I'm sorry," Simkins replied while he glanced at Wilkins finishing what he needed to do.
"No you're not. You never were," Ray replied. He looked at Tim who nodded that he was still with him and added, "Tell me something, before you shot your piece there, did you say your customary blessing?"
It was totally random to anyone not familiar with the situation but Ray knew what he was doing. He knew that comment would make Simkins freeze. He took the chance and stood up. "You probably didn't which is why you missed."
The knife hit where it was supposed to… well it was heading that way. Simkins managed to see it and bat it away from him while at the same time firing at Ray who dove for cover only to pop up and throw a second knife at Simkins.
Wilkins finished what he was doing and signaled to Simkins. He got up and picked up his weapon and also unearthed an assault rifle and held it ready to fire. Simkins said, "That was very impressive but your aim is off Sahib."
"On purpose."
"Not likely and now I regret to inform you that we now must be leaving. This has all been a great experience and maybe you might figure out the next step."
Ray was on his feet and made to charge at Simkins while firing but something exploded in front of him. Too late he realized it was a smoke grenade and he couldn't see a damn thing and he was a sitting duck. He coughed and tried to clear his eyes to see.
"You might want to make sure you keep your charge close. You never know what might happen but then again you would remember that part."
Ray was still coughing and could hear gunfire. It was the rest of the team covering his stupid ass and allowing him to dig for cover. He dropped to the ground and took a moment to clear his lungs even though there was smoke in the area. It was then that he turned his head and noticed something nearby. His eyes opened wide at what it was and turned in time to see Simkins exiting and giving a taunting wave.
Ray shouted, "Everyone out! Get off this floor!"
It was sheer effort and willpower for Ray to hobble since his hip was on fire. More likely he had been hit by the M4 there. Yet he had to get to Tim who was struggling to get up. He grabbed Tim by his upper body and said, "I gotcha Tim. Come on we gotta go."
It was awkward since his right felt like it was dangling deadweight and he was hobbling. He knew it was excruciating for Tim since he was pulling on his injured arm and there was the hole in his chest. Ray kept muttering though to keep Tim moving but it was slow and they had to go a different way since they were cut off by the fire that was spreading.
Tim coughed, "Go the way they went."
That made sense since that was their best option. They had to hurry though. Ray put an extra spurt into his injured leg and hauled Tim. "Come on McGee. Even McGregor was able to get through something like this. Scuito Bug is going to have a field day."
That seemed to spur Tim into action. He did his best to help Ray as they were almost to the door. Ray turned to look and saw the light. He went with instinct and found himself flying through the air. He hit something but didn't feel the full effect since he passed out while holding onto Tim. The world had gone black as the whole third floor windows blew out.
TBC...
A/N: Now that was something. What did happen to the team? Stay tuned for next time...