Disclaimer: Nothing's mine

A/N: Sorry for the ridiculous long delay. There were many things going wrong the last two months. First, my grandfather died and it was a rather stressful time. It still is, trying to take care of my grandmother now, who is a bit... well, lazy, and wants us to do everything for her, even the things she could do herself.

Update 2010-04-11: My beta is alive and well! Yay! This chapter is now beta'd!!!

A big thank you goes to Hermiones's Shadow for her encouragement and support. You are great.

Their Day in Balitmore

Chapter 11

If there was one thing Gibbs hated more then anything, it was going into a situation without knowing exactly what to expect.

Shannon had always mocked him about that, calling him control freak and worry-wart. But even as she said those things there had been that soft smile on her lips and love shining from her eyes. A look that said 'I think you are a stubborn idiot most of the time, but for some reason I love even that about you'.

And maybe he was an idiot, but if being an idiot meant being prepared, he would gladly claim that bad title.

He liked to be prepared and honestly believed that there was nothing wrong with that. If he wanted to use his security clearance to check the playgrounds for any child molesting predators living nearby, so what?! He had gladly accepted the 'Look' on several occasions if that meant his daughter was safe.

'But that hadn't really worked, had it?' the little voice whispered from the back of his mind. The voice that had been born, the day his daughter had died.

A voice that he hated with a passion, since it told nothing but the truth. No matter how much it hurt.

In the end it hadn't mattered how much he wanted to protect his child, how many precautions he'd taken to ensure her safety.

Because, in the end, one pathetic drug addict with one deadly gun, had destroyed everything.

A single shot had destroyed the illusion of safety. Had burst his bubble like a little kid with a needle. A single second had turned everything upside down, had set his world on fire and changed him irrevocably. And he hadn't even been in the same country when it happened.

But despite everything he had never doubted that, if you were just prepared enough, the odds tended to play in your favor. Sometimes he could even admit that his need for control was almost compulsive and that that obsession was probably his attempt to fill the hole Shannon and Kelly's deaths had left in his heart. Not knowing all the facts, being aware that there were factors in the equation that were missing or just didn't add up, left an almost physical pain in his gut.

He was aware of all that and so it really didn't surprise him that, after he'd agreed with Tony's insane plan, he reached for his cell and called the only person he knew could get him the facts he was still missing...

Abby Sciuto rocked in her chair and bobbed her head to the music that blared out of her stereo equipment. That thing was worth a fortune and had eatentwo and a half checks but the sound – oh the sound! – made it so goddamn worth it. When she closed her eyes she could almost believe that she was in the concert hall, listening to her favorite band live. If she concentrated just a little bit harder she could almost smell the beer and sweat, and feel the other fans bump into her while they danced.

Eyes closed and a blissful smile on her lips, the Goth almost didn't notice that her cell had begun to move on its own, the vibrations carrying it over the table top towards the edge. Only when the offending item landed in her lap, was she startled out of her little daydream. Abby frowned at the cell for a second before she saw the caller ID. Gibbs almost never called her on his own so it had to be important and besides, she always loved to talk to her grumpy boss.

She lowered the music to a more manageable level and accepted the call with a wide smile.

"You are speaking to the glorious and mighty Abby Sciuto, goddess of the lab. How may I serve you?"

She noticed that Gibbs didn't even pause anymore like tons of others did when she answered her phone like that. She had trained him well, hadn't she? Now, if she could only convince him to hug her once in a while...

"Abs I need your help with something."

"Oh, don't they all." She made a show of leaning back and inspecting her fingernails, totally ignoring the fact that no one was around to see and admire her show. "You know, I practically drown in work here. Everyone wants a piece of Abby and not in the nice, kinky way, if you know what I mean. And I haven't had a single Caff-Pow since since you abandoned me and took off with the duck-man. I'm already experiencing withdrawal symptoms. Just a minute ago I had a hallucination of my old sports teacher, demanding sit-ups. I tell you, that old hag never liked me-"

"ABBY!" Gibbs voice was unnaturally loud and exasperated and Abby assumed that it wasn't the first time he'd tried to get her attention. She was immediately contrite and guiltily kicked the empty Caff-Pows various employees had brought her during the day under the table.

"Okay, okay Boss-man you got me." she groaned. "I'm booored! Nobody needs me except for stupid finger prints or other work that's so beneath me. I mean, I like doing what I do but come on! Where are the exiting cases like serial killers and the like? Where is the challenge? This crime fighting girl needs something to keep her on the run. I can practically feel my brain cells wasting away. Please tell me you got something exciting for me to do?!"

Abby could practically see how Gibbs rubbed the bridge of his nose and that brought a tiny smirk to her lips.

"I would if you'd stop babbling and let me get a word in."

"Okay, sorry. No more babbling. Tell me what you need and I'll see what I can do."

"I need you to find out anything you can about a man called Anthony DiNozzo."

Abby immediately straightened in her seat, her eyes wide with excitement. "A little hacker work huh?! I like it. Who is this guy? A deranged killer and psychopath? Or just someone who pissed you off? Although I guess anyone who dares to do that must me a little bit psycho..."

There was amusement in his voice when Gibbs answered. "No, none of that. He's one of the detectives here."

Something clicked in her head and Abby put on her resolve face; the one that said, 'There's a secret here and I'm going to find out what it is'.

"That wouldn't happen to be the handsome devil with the great taste in movies that I spoke to earlier, would it?"

"What makes you think he's handsome?" Gibbs evaded.

"I am Abby Sciuto. I can sense things like that, even through the phone. And besides, his voice was kinda sexy." She shook her head to get back on track. "But seriously. Who is this guy and why do you want me to hack into his files?"

"I just do Abs." Gibbs sighed. "Can you do it or not?"

Abby puffed her cheeks, insulted by Gibbs lack of confidence. "Of course I can. Give me an hour and you'll even know what kind of toilet paper he uses."

"Not necessary Abs." Gibbs said and Abby was able to hear the smirk in his voice. "Just get me the basic facts."

Abby beamed. She loved challenges and although this wasn't really a difficult one, it was at least interesting.

"Will do, Boss-man." Abby cheered but she needn't have bothered. All that met her ears was the dial tone.

Abby wasn't offended. He did that with everyone and she'd long since decided to not let it bother her. In a way, she found that quirk of his quite charming. But she wasn't too far gone to not acknowledge that she admired Gibbs to much, that nothing he did would ever seem completely wrong to her.

This Anthony DiNozzo – or Tony, as she already dubbed him in her mind – must have been something special to catch Gibbs' interest. Special enough to require a background check.

Abby was no fool. A background check could mean that Gibbs had decided to finally bring another teammate home. A one man team just wasn't effective enough and Morrow was ambushing Gibbs daily to demand that the ex-marine already chose a senior agent.

Just a few months ago that aspect would have made her jealous. She was embarrassed to admit it but she had been very proprietary with Gibbs. She'd always had this irrational fear that she would somehow loose Gibbs trust and affection as soon as someone else tried to compete with her. Gibbs was an ex-marine after all and to top it all off, it wasn't exactly common that a lab rat and a Special Agent shared such a familiarity with each other. Abby had always enjoyed their friendship with a grain of salt, thinking it could end as abruptly as it'd had begun.

All that had changed, however, with the arrival of Special Agent Hanson

Hanson had been a brilliant agent and the first one Gibbs had been somewhat pleased with. His quick wit, physical shape and the black belt in karate were just a few of his amazing traits. Hanson had been most charming and friendly, and everyone had liked him, men and women alike.

Everyone except Abby Sciuto, that is.

He had been painfully polite when he was down in her lab but Abby hadn't missed the contemptuous glances he shot her when he thought she wasn't looking. One day she hadn't been able to ignore it anymore and confronted him about it. And that's when charming and friendly Hanson had told her point-blank that 'punks' and 'abnormal personalities' had no place in NCIS and that she'd do well to think about a change of career.

Abby had been truly shocked. She'd always been confident, and that certainly hadn't been the first time some ignorant jerk had dissed her about the way she dressed; but to encounter something like that in her own lab, her safe haven, had completely thrown her. When she'd finally been able to open her mouth, she'd said the first thing that had come to mind: "I'm not a punk. I'm a Goth, you jerk."

Before Agent Hanson had been able to launch into another attack, Gibbs had appeared out of nowhere, startling even Abby who was usually always able to sense him. Her stomach had dropped when she'd seen his icy eyes in the otherwise blank face. She'd prepared herself for a dressing down a la Gibbs for insulting his best agent, but to her surprise, he'd turned his glare to Agent 'Golden-Boy' Hanson

"You are off my team."

Hanson had paled and gulped and stammered and pleaded, but Gibbs hadn't budged.

"I don't need an intolerant 'jerk' on my team. Abs is part of the team and she's more worth than you."

Which had been a total lie of course. Hanson had been the best thing that had happened to NCIS since... well, since Gibbs. Morrow had bitched and even tried to force Gibbs into taking him back, but in the end, Hanson was never seen near the ex-marine again.

And that was the moment Abby realized that, as long as she did her work and was just who she was, Gibbs would never abandon her. He may get angry with her, he may deny her Caff-Pow, but he would never simply cast her aside.

So while she set to work she didn't hope to find something bad. She only hoped that this DiNozzo would turn out to be the agent Gibbs needed by his side and that he would like her as well. Gibbs and Ducky were fun, but sometimes she missed the easy going friendship with someone more her age. They could watch movies all night long and eat junk food and make plans on how to annoy Gibbs without sending him over the edge and all the other fun things that she could do with no one else at NCIS.

Maybe she was getting ahead of herself, but the nuns always told her that she was a bit too enthusiastic at times.

And maybe she really ought to find out more about her new best friend, before she rented the movies and ordered the pizza...

Music and new stereo equipment forgotten, the only sound that filled the lab were her long fingers flying over the keyboard.

An hour later she stared at the screen and decided that – friends or not - as soon as she met this Tony she would give him the hug of his life.

The hour was up and Gibbs was already reaching for his phone to call Abby, when the Goth beat him to it.

"Okay first," she began without bothering with a greeting, "you've got to be more specific. I wasted good ten minutes on the wrong DiNozzo. You could have told me that you were talking about Junior."

Gibbs had to admit that he hadn't thought of that but he also realized that that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

"And what did you find out in those ten minutes?"

Abby didn't seem surprised by the question. Gibbs heard the rustling of paper and knew that she'd already expected something like that. She really was the best.

"There's not much about 'Daddy Dearest'," her words dripped with sarcasm and the little tight ball in Gibbs stomach grew even heavier. "He's the head of DiNozzo Enterprises and his career is the well-known story; Grandfather Giovanni comes to America with nothing but the clothes her wears and his dreams, establishes his own little business in the slums of New York and BAM! almost 100 years later his grandson is one of the most successful and wealthy businessman New York has to offer."

"You don't sound like you are very impressed."

"Because I am not, Special Agent Gibbs." Abby barked in her best Tom Morrow imitation. "DiNozzo Sr. is a mean old man and I want you to punch him for me because you are going to get away with it. I mean, maybe I could too since I'm cute and some judges like that, but you can cause more damage with your manly fists and mad marine fighting skills. Not that I'm weak or anything but-"

"Abby!" Gibbs interrupted her with force. "You gonna tell me why DiNozzo Sr. is a mean old man?"

The rustling of paper grew more loud and frenzied and suddenly Gibbs wasn't so sure he wanted to hear the answer to his question. He couldn't help but think that he was about to open a can of worms. That there would be no turning back when Abby finally spoke.

"Oh, I'll tell you why Boss-man! I mean, who the hell disowns his own son? Okay, if Tony were a total jerk or something, I would totally understand. But he is isn't, right?!"

"Right." Gibbs agreed absentmindedly. His mouth was dry and his thoughts were swirling.

DiNozzo had been disowned? Sure, his father hadn't seemed like the hug-and-love kind of father, but disowning your own son? He couldn't imagine anything Tony could have done to deserve that.

"Doesn't your father support you?"

There was a stunned silence before Tony began to chuckle. It wasn't a very nice sound.

"He wasn't exactly thrilled with my choice of career."

Gibbs hand clenched around the phone when a horrible suspicion took root in his head.

"Gibbs? The Agent Gibbs? Dio mio! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"You know me?"

"Not really, no. But when Bambino was first hurt after he moved here, I asked him why he became a detective and he went on and on about you. You should have heard him. Agent Gibbs here, Agent Gibbs there."

Gibbs forcibly relaxed his grip on the phone. He didn't want to break another one just yet.

"Abs, how old was he when he was disowned?"

Abby sniffled and Gibbs knew that it wasn't an act. The lab rat was a very compassionate young woman and if what he assumed was right, she had every reason to cry.

"He was only twelve Gibbs, just a baby, and his father practically said 'You are dead to me' and sent him to military school. You really really have to punch the mean old man for that and give Tony a hug. Will you do that for me Gibbs?"

The Agent didn't answer because he didn't even hear her question. He was too upset to listen to Abby after she'd told him the age.

Twelve.

Tony had been twelve when they'd met.

Tony had been twelve when he'd decided to become an investigator.

Tony had been twelve when his father had disowned him because of that.

And Gibbs hadn't known a thing.

The gunny was suddenly incredibly furious. He was furious with Tony's father, for being such a jackass and throwing this wonderful boy away just because the kid had his own dreams. He was angry with himself, for not keeping up with the boy, as he had promised himself and for being indirectly responsible for his lost childhood.

But he was also furious with Tony. He had given the kid his number, hadn't he? He had told him to call him if he needed anything, hadn't he?

Then why the hell didn't he?

Why had Tony decided to suffer alone when there was someone out there who was able and willing to help? What could have happened to him that he didn't even allow himself to call for help?

And suddenly he remembered everything about the time they'd spent together 15 years ago. But above all he remembered his and Ducky's suspicions and their discussion in the hospital hallway when they had more or less discarded them.

Gibbs thought he was going to be sick and although he really didn't want to ask he knew that he needed to know. Even if it would make everything so much worse, he needed to know.

"Did you find his hospital records?"

"I couldn't find any. But DiNozzo Sr. has enough money to make them disappear, and Tony probably had a personal physician anyway."

Gibbs cursed under his breath. If there were no records, there was no way he would ever get an answer to his question. Tony could tell him of course, but he doubted that the man would tell him anything. If he hadn't back then, why should he now, after Gibbs had acted like a total bastard.

No way in hell would he let this just go however. Now, that the doubt had taken root in his mind, there was no way that he would be able to ignore or forget about it. He had done that once, many years ago, and now it seemed that he'd made a big mistake by doing so. That wouldn't happen again.

But he also knew that he wouldn't get any answers now so he changed the subject to something he hoped would be a little less depressing.

"What about his career?"

"Well, like I said, he attended the Rhode Island Military School. He's got a Major in Phys Ed and graduated the police academy as the valedictorian. From there it gets a little strange. He went to Peoria and made detective there but, although he was very successful and received many decorations, he only stayed two years and then went to Philly. Same there. Was one of the best, but left after two years. Well, and now he's in Baltimore." After a few seconds she added. "Next month he'll have been there for two years."

Gibbs didn't acknowledge her words and what they implied.

Instead he grumbled a quick "Thanks Abs." and hung up on her.

He had all the facts now - or most of them anyway - but somehow, he still doubted that he knew anything at all.

He had a lot to think about.

TBC

I actually planned to not let Gibbs suspect anything until the third part of this trilogy but it just wouldn't have been believable, right? I mean, Gibbs is smart enough to make the connections after learning that Daddy DiNozzo disowned his son, even if he doesn't have any prove yet, right?

Well, hope you liked it. I won't wait so long with the next chapter, beta'd or not.