[The Meat Puzzle 1]

3rdPerson POV:

Dr. Mallard was walking around examining three different bodies. Nothing too out of the ordinary for a medical examiner…the catch, all the bodies had been sliced and diced into 'meat puzzles'. The faces and fingerprints sliced off to prevent identification and everything else sliced and diced into hundreds of pieces. Ducky examined the second body once again before moving on to the third. He paused midway and noticed something out of place. Turning back around he peered down at the second body to examine the hand. Realizing the oddity he sighed and rolled his eyes at his morgue tech, who was listening to his IPod, observing something under the microscope at the desk.

"Mr. Palmer?" he asked. Palmer just continued bopping his head to the beat of the music coming through the headphones. Ducky walked over and pulled out one of the earbuds.

"Mr. Palmer?" he asked again.

"Yes doctor?" Jimmy shouted, still hearing the loud music in one of his ears. Ducky flinched briefly before staring down at the young man in disapproval.

"As a serious and dedicated student of anatomy…You are a serious and dedicated student of anatomy are you not?" he asked pointing at him questioningly. Palmer quickly nodded. Ducky gestured for Palmer to follow him. Jimmy Palmer set the iPod down and did just that.

"Well then Mr. Palmer are you up to the task of identifying the reconstructive blunder that has been foisted upon our deceased?" Ducky asked standing next to the second body.

"Uh….um…" Palmer was at a loss for words and looked at Ducky in question.

"Would you call this a thumb?" Ducky asked him, pointing to the appendage attached to one of the victim's hand.

"Um, I would call that a toe." Palmer told him, walking around to that side.

"Tell me then, why did you place it with the other digits of his right hand?" Ducky asked him, picking it up.

"Because that's where it belongs." Palmer explained. Ducky looked at him for explanation.

"If you look at the scar line it matches perfectly. Plus his right foot had a cleanly amputated right toe." He pointed out to his mentor.

This guy lost his thumb in an accident or something and had surgery to replace it with his big toe." Jimmy elaborated. Ducky got a far-off look in his eye as he remembered a man he once knew that had this exact same feature. Ducky gasped in realization.

"My god, I think I know who this is…" Dr. Mallard told him.

Claire's POV:

I saw Tony come in from the corner of my eye, as he was slowly eating a cup of ice cream. It's a little early for ice cream isn't it? He stopped by my desk but I continued typing up reports on my computer, ignoring him. Tony sat down on the edge, facing me while he placed another spoonful in his mouth. It was obvious that he wanted to gain my attention.

"Mmmmm. I love Philomena's ice cream." He commented pointedly. I looked up at him with a small smile at hearing the name.

"Philomena's in Georgetown?" I asked curiously. He nodded.

"My standard first date place." He elaborated. Huh that's interesting. I chuckled at the coincidence.

"I went there on a first date Saturday night." I told him. That was a great date.

"Yea?" he asked me wide-eyed.

"After dinner I like to stroll the lucky lady down Wisconsin to this pretentious art gallery called…Impressions. They really eat it up." He told me. I looked at him quizzically. There's no way this is a coincidence….Gibb's key rule.

"That's where we went after dinner." I told him shrugging off my hunch. It was probably nothing.

"Really?" he sounded mock shocked.

"Huh?" My smile dropped hearing him say that. He didn't!...I stared at him, and he just glanced over at me curiously.

"You've been following me." I accused. Is nothing sacred?! Why does he have to snoop around in my personal life?

"Me? Follow you on a Saturday night?" he said trying not to laugh. Leaning forward seriously he added,

"I'm not that desperate Claire." I crossed her arms over my chest. Since when?

"I don't believe you."

"Well, I swear on my mother's life I was not following you." He told me. Gibbs walked in behind Tony.

"Your mother is dead." Gibbs and I deadpanned at the same time. He wasn't fooling me, did he think I would forget something like that.

"I didn't follow her boss." He defended, leaning his head back to watch Gibbs walk over to his desk. Tony smirked.

"I do know her boyfriend, Steve Adler." He slyly commented popping another scoop into his mouth. I scowled at him.

"He's not my boyfriend!" I quickly protested. Yet…Tony chuckled with a childish smile that I was tempted to smack right off his smug face.

"I don't believe this." I said looking at Tony. He gave me an innocent stare.

"Did you tell her about your fraternity brother yet?" McGee excitedly asked behind him as he joined in our conversation. I scowled. He was in on this too?! I work with sneaks.

"I was just getting to the good part." Tony told him. Kate glared at him on my behalf from her desk.

"Steve Adler is your fraternity brother?" she harshly asked him.

"I would show you the secret handshake….but then I'd have to kill you." He whispered threateningly. I rolled my eyes.

"I already knew that Kate, it's no big deal." I told her looking at Tony. His eyes widened in surprise. I guess he didn't realize that.

"You knew Steve was my Frat brother?" he asked.

"Yes Tony, I knew Stephen was a Frat brother. I knew a lot of your Frat brothers. We met at a party back in college. A few weeks ago we bumped into each other and we've kept in touch since then." I said not looking him in the eye. He was weird about me dating his friends.

"And you were going to tell me this when?!" he asked, looking flustered. I just sent him a devious smirk and dismissed his question. I glanced around seeing if anyone was looking before asking Tony something that had been bothering me.

"He told you about our date?!" I asked him quietly as I leaned forward so no one else could butt in on the conversation. Tony scrunched up his face in thought.

"Well, not the intimate details…until I asked and….then he had to." Tony told me. McGee beamed over at his desk hearing this. I shot him a murderous look and he looked away quickly.

"It comes with the oath." Tony explained and quickly jumped off my desk before I could do anything. Like smack the living daylights out of him, as I so desperately wanted to. I closed my eyes in exasperation.I'm going to kill Stephen….

"Gibbs!" I shouted, very aware I sounded like a tattling child.

"DiNozzo." Gibbs called. Before he could get an answer Ducky came up to the bullpen.

"Jethro I need to talk to you." He urged, waving his hand for Gibbs to follow. Gibbs instantly walked over, following the doctor. I crossed my arms and glared over at Tony. Tony however was focused on where Gibbs and Ducky had gone off to. I wonder what Ducky's problem was.

3rdPerson POV:

Gibbs and Ducky quickly made their way into autopsy.

"What he had was a great big toe transplantation." Ducky told Gibbs walking over to the second body.

"An incredibly arduous surgical procedure. Nerves smaller than a human hair are connected using microscopic sutures." Ducky pulled up a stool to sit on by the 'body' and held up the 'new thumb' and a piece of the hand to show Gibbs, who was patiently listening to his friend.

"They sewed his toe to his hand?" Gibbs asked leaning to look at the pieces.

"Exactly…..in a catastrophic injury when the thumb is lost, the patient's hallux or big toe is removed and attached to the hand." Ducky explained. He held up the two pieces together as a demonstration. Palmer who had been standing at the end of the metal table spoke up.

"You know the opposable thumb is one of the most important parts of human evolution. It's what makes us, us." He rambled looking at his thumbs and wiggling them around. Ducky glanced up at Gibbs with a miffed look while Gibbs smirked, seeing the similarity between the two medical examiners. Oblivious to the looks he was getting, Palmer continued.

"Our ability to make tools, a defining element that separates us from the animals, comes directly from THIS dexterity." Palmer told them while holding up his thumbs and moving them around in circles. He finally looked at the other two in the room and noticed their facial expressions.

"Drawn out digressions is a privileged earned, Mr. Palmer." Ducky told his assistant irritably. Palmer put down his hands.

"Sorry doctor." He mumbled. Gibbs turned back to Ducky.

"If I'm right, the victim's name is Michael Grant. He was a Baltimore District Attorney. 10 years ago I testified at several cases he was prosecuting." Gibbs walked over to another body in the room.

"What about the other bodies Duck?" Gibbs asked.

"Well at this point I still have no idea who they are." He answered. Ducky turned to face Gibbs.

"We need positive IDs Duck." Gibbs told him. He walked to the other side of the room to look at the third body.

"The flesh was peeled off the pads of the fingers." Ducky explained.

"That rules out fingerprinting." Palmer pointed out. Gibbs looked at him, causing Jimmy to look down and avoid eye contact.

"And the skin of the face has also been removed so photographic identification won't be possible either." Ducky told Gibbs who now stood across from him.

"Dental records." Gibbs suggested. Palmer tried to comment but thought against it, seeing the other two were in their own conversation.

"Unless we can find a record of Michael Grant's DNA, dental records will have to do." Ducky shook his head. Gibbs stood up straight.

"Do it" he told Ducky before walking away.

"Jethro!" Ducky called to him. Gibbs turned around and Ducky walked up to him.

"A barrel that's left at Bethesda, in my jurisdiction, containing dissected bodies, one of whom I knew. This isn't a coincidence, is it?" Ducky told Gibbs. Gibbs just patted him on the shoulder as an answer.

"I didn't think it was." Ducky sadly stated. Gibbs then walked out of the room to the elevator. Ducky let out a heavy sigh. This was clearly bothering him. What was going on here?

Claire's POV:

Gibbs walked back up to the bullpen.

"Possible ID on one of the meat puzzle bodies." Gibbs told us.

"A DA named Michael Grant." He explained as he walked over to his desk.

"Hey cool, after 6 months we finally got a lead huh?" Tony commented positively.

"Find out if he's been reported missing." Gibbs ordered while checking his computer. Tony started looking it up.

"Kate, you and Claire pull cases where Ducky testified where Michael grant was the attorney." Gibbs added, glancing over at Kate.

"On it." She replied. I nodded and quickly got to work. Out of the corner of my eyes I noticed that McGee glanced over at Tony who then sent him a mischievous smirk before getting my attention.

"Pssttt!" he whispered across to me. I slowly looked up at him.

"Hey it looks like we're gonna work late…..so do you want me to call Stephen and cancel your dinner reservation?" Tony asked me, still whispering. I ignored him and glared down at my work. I was not going to let Tony get to me.

"This is a nightmare.." I mumbled miserably. Tony heard it and grinned broadly at McGee, who sent him an approving look. Tony sighed happily to himself, going back to work. I'm gonna get him for this.

3rdPerson POV:

In autopsy Ducky was getting x-rays of the body's teeth.

"If you ever thought of continuing your genetic line, I would suggest a change of position." Ducky casually pointed out to Palmer while setting up the x-ray machine. Palmer looked up at him confused and looked at where the x-ray machine was pointing. He was standing on the other side of the person's mouth and it was pointed directly at his….. 'stuff'. He quickly covered it with his hands and scurried over to where Ducky was, behind the machine. The machine made a beeping noise and clicked off, signaling the picture had been taken.

"Jaws expand and contract Mr. Palmer. Teeth ware, but fillings, crowns, and bridges remain." Ducky told him. After printing off the x-ray of the teeth Ducky pinned it up to look at it and compare the picture with previous ones from Michael Grant.

"Let's see….4 fillings on the lower left bicuspids, crowns on the upper left molars." Ducky commented checking the similarities.

"It's him." Palmer said.

"Yes…it's he." Ducky agreed. Body number 2 was Michael Grant.

"Um, Dr. Mallard on a more personal note…" Palmer started but Ducky dismissed him.

"Not the time Mr. Palmer." Ducky scolded.

"I just want you to know that I am determined to learn from you." Palmer continued in a stronger voice.

"Your point quickly." Ducky told him, taking his gloves off and trying to leave. He was anxious to inform Gibbs of his findings and get this case over with.

"Um..it…it's important for me to know that, you know that even though there are nearly 2,000 pieces of tissue on these tables that I…I…" Palmer stuttered, trying to convey his point.

"Please get to the point Jimmy." Ducky huffed, standing at the open doors.

"I know the difference between a thumb and a toe." Palmer finally got out. He didn't want Ducky to doubt him and his medical skills. Ducky just looked at him blankly. He sighed and gave Palmer a dramatic thumbs up before walking to the elevator. Palmer watched with a frown on his face.

"He called me Jimmy…." A small smile appeared in place of the frown.

Claire's POV:

"Michael Grant disappeared 8 months ago hiking the Appalachian Trail." Tony told us, pulling up a picture of the deceased on the big screen.

"His body was never found. Local Leos could never determine if he got lost or killed." Tony told Gibbs from his desk.

"Definitely killed." Ducky announced walking into the bullpen. I looked up at his sudden entrance.

"The poor fellow was then dissected into small pieces, put into a barrel of alcohol along with two other bodies, and deposited in a dumpster behind Bethesda Naval Hospital" Ducky continued, walking over to Tony. Ducky's being rather grim and bothered by this case…..Tony looked up at him clicking a pen in thought. Gibbs looked over at the two of them.

"Dental records matched?" Gibbs asked.

"I'm afraid so Jethro." Ducky answered with a sarcastically chipper voice. Something is definitely bothering him, Ducky is not normally like this at all.

"Ducky, remember Judge Roland Davis?" Kate asked him.

"Of course." Ducky answered with a chuckle.

"A man of small stature and enormous ego. A competent jurist non the less." Ducky told her.

"He was the judge of the two cases you testified where Michael Grant was the lead attorney." Kate informed him.

"And what is the significance of that Caitlyn?" Ducky asked.

"He was reported missing 7 months ago." She told him.This isn't good. A look of understanding crossed Ducky's face.

"I'll run a dental comparison. The judge with the other two bodies." Ducky told Gibbs.

"Pull up the case, Kate." Gibbs told her getting up to look at the big screen behind him while she clicked the button to bring it up. The picture of the case and man on trial was brought up.

"Oh yes of course…." Ducky murmured apparently remembering it.

"Who could forget him? Vincent Handlin, a medical school washout. He was studying to become a…"Ducky stopped. Gibbs glanced over at him and they made eye contact. What?

"A medical examiner…." Ducky slowly told us.

"He was accused of raping and murdering a navy lieutenant who worked at Bethesda hospital's pathology lab. I performed the autopsy. She was a beautiful girl. I believe her name was lieutenant Sylvia…"Ducky started.

"Sylvia Waxell" I finished for him, reading off the file.

"Yes, that's right. She was working late one night. Vincent Handlin stalked her, with the intention of raping her. The speculation was that, he was unable to perform the rape. His impotence so enraged him that….he proceeded to beat the poor girl to death." We were all listening to him intently as he paced up the middle, reflecting on the case.

"When it went to trial, Michael Grant was the prosecuting attorney. Judge Davis presided, and I testified. The evidence was all circumstantial, so when the judge offered the jury second degree murder, they accepted it." Ducky finished.

"Vincent Handlin served 8 years in the Maryland Correctional Adjustment Center." I read off the file.

"Kate, start building a profile on Vincent Handlin." Gibbs told her. She nodded and got to work.

"Tony."

"Find everyone involved in the prosecuting of Vincent Handlin fast." Tony filled in for Gibbs, picking up the phone.I still don't know how he does that….

"McGee, I need the last address for Vincent Handlin. I'm bringing him in." Gibbs said grabbing his gun. McGee didn't answer.

"McGee!" Gibbs said again.

"Um…umm…I'm sorry boss..I…I've already found him." McGee told Gibbs.

"Give me the address." Gibbs said.

"It's 22 Victor road, Mt. Ephram Cemetery…."McGee answered.

"He's been dead over a year." McGee said looking up at Gibbs. Gibbs looked up in exasperation at the bad luck. Well this is problematic…now who's the suspect?

3rd POV:

Ducky was checking the dental records of Judge Davis with the other two bodies.

"Crown, crown. Match, match. Filling, filling…match" he concluded sucking in a breath of air. He let out a harsh sigh and turned to Gibbs who was standing next to him.

"As we feared. The second corps is Judge Roland Davis." Ducky gritted out, crossing his arms. The automatic doors opened and Tony and Claire walked in with frowns.

"Any guesses on number three here?" Gibbs asked.

"Carl Foss." Tony answered, sticking his hands into his jacket pockets. Gibbs looked up at him. Ducky turned to look at them in question.

"The jury foreman." Claire answered his unspoken question.

"Of course!" Ducky realized.

"Missing since last summer." Tony told them as he and Claire made their way over to the body and Gibbs.

"His x-rays are on their way over from their family dentist." Claire told her boss. Ducky crossed his arms tighter and frowned down at the corpse.

"Are you ok Duck?" Gibbs asked his friend.

"I assume this play is being put on for my benefit." Ducky grimly suggested.

"My testimony was key in putting Vincent Handlin in prison. I was able to lift a partial print of Vincent's off her body. You know thinking back I think I was slightly unnerved by Handlin during the trial." He told them looking Gibbs in the eye grimly.

"How so?" Claire asked. Ducky closed his eyes in thought.

"Well he just…seemed…particularly agitated….when I was on the stand." Ducky told her, remembering the trial.

"You were the medical examiner he was never going to be." Claire told him with sympathy.

"I was using his failure against him." Ducky added. Gibbs thought for a moment before speaking.

"You'll stay at NCIS as much as possible. Other than that one of us will be with you at all times." Gibbs told him, leaving no room for argument. Ducky chuckled.

"Jethro! My mother is 96 years old, she suffers from dementia. She gets very nervous when I'm not home in the evenings." Ducky told him walking to his desk.

"Tony, you'll take the first shift." Gibbs said looking at his agent. Tony nodded.

"With his mother…." Gibbs clarified. Tony's face dropped.

"Uhhh…..doing…doing what boss?" he carefully questioned.

"Whatever she wants." Gibbs answered. Claire smirked up at him. This was just what she was waiting for, revenge.

"Yes it would be helpful if you could assist with the dogs." Ducky told Tony when he had walked back over to the group. Tony's eyes widened and mouth dropped. Claire's devious smile widened.

"Ohhhh….guys…" he breathed out in dismay, looking desperately to Gibbs.

"I'm not really an animal person." Gibbs didn't respond so he turned to Ducky.

"Ducky I just haven't spent a lot of time with them lately." He tried to plead his case to get out of the protection detail. Claire just kept looking up at him, amused at his situation.

"The yappy creatures are all she has in this life. Well except me of course." Ducky told Tony as he maneuvered around him to look at something. Tony grimaced, knowing he wasn't going to win this.

"If Vincent Handlin is dead, then who is getting revenge?" Gibbs asked getting back on topic.

"His family." Claire suggested.

"Find them, Claire." Gibbs said walking out of the room.

Claire's POV:

Gibbs, Kate and I were heading off to see the family. Kate grabbed her coat and PDA following us to the elevator.

"According to their tax returns, Vincent Handlin's parents are both morticians. They've run a funeral home for the last 13 years." Kate told him reading off the PDA.

"Siblings." Gibbs prodded. I pushed the button for the elevator.

"One brother, who's a taxidermist." Kate said. Gibbs and I looked at her.

"Mortician, taxidermist, and a wanna-be medical examiner." I commented. Gibbs shook his head at the family jobs and took a sip of his coffee.

"Yea the death obsession pretty much runs in the family." Kate said with a nod. We got on the elevator. What kind of sick family was this guy coming from.

We arrived at the quaint little funeral home and went inside. We were walking through the coffin showroom talking to the father. He was a very soft spoken man who seemed nice and sweet.

"Vincent's conviction tore the family apart. His death pretty much put us under." He told us.I almost felt bad for him…if his son wasn't a crazy rapist. He led us to a door.

"Through here." He motioned to a set of doors and led us in. Mr. Handlin opened up another door and peeked inside before showing us in. Inside was Mrs. Handlin preparing dead body for a funeral. She was caking on some type of goopy concealer onto the woman's face, and had her picture beside it so she could make it look like her. Gross.

"Mary." He said getting her attention as we walked in. She looked up over her round glasses with a sour face.

"Get these people out of here." She snapped. Well someone's in a foul mood.

"They're federal agents…" he tried to explain to his wife.

"I don't care!"

"They're here about Vincent."

"They're not authorized!" she snapped. She looked at us with a nasty gaze.

"Get out!" she told us pointing to the door. I get the strange feeling that we aren't wanted here.

"Individuals involved with Vincent's prosecution have been found murdered." Gibbs told her. She just looked at him bitterly.

"Good" was all she said as she went back to working on the dead woman.

"Good?" I asked her sharply. No wonder her son was crazy, she's a sick woman. She slowly looked up at me and I tried not to shy away from her hatred filled eyes.

"Vincent was innocent, he was a good boy. He was in medical school." She told me. Like that means anything.

"Jack the Ripper went to medical school." Gibbs pointed out.Beat that crazy lady. She glared at him.

"When my son got out of prison he had nothing left. No hope, no promise. They labeled him a sex murderer." She angrily continued gooping up the woman's face.

"What was he doing when he got out of prison?" Kate asked.

"Well he was drinking….a lot." Mr. Handlin answered kindly from behind us.

"Oh that's all you have to say about your dead son?!" she snapped at her husband, giving him a murderous look.

"That isn't what I meant. I was just trying to explain how difficult his life was." He calmly told her.How did they end up married to each other? This sweet man and rotten witch.

"What happened the night he died?" Gibbs asked him.

"He was driving with his brother and they hit a tree." He sadly said.

"Can you think of anyone who would try to get revenge on the men that put your son in jail." Kate asked.

"Me." Mrs. Handlin immediately answered. The three of us sharply turned towards her curiously. Was she confessing? She just looked at us.

"…but I don't know anything about it…" she softly and mysteriously told us.This lady was giving me goosebumps….she was hiding something.

"So why don't you get yourselves out of here, before I call the authorities and have you arrested. And maybe you'll go to prison." She said with sarcasm and contempt, pointing her tool at me. I glared at her in surprise. Was she threatening me?...Mrs. Handlin looked back at her work.

"Bastards" she mumbled loud enough for us to hear. Gibbs looked at her husband. He just gave him a look that said 'I know'. This family was messed up.

3rdPerson POV:

Ducky was holding up another dental x-ray for body confirmation.

"Two bridges, ten crowns, and seven fillings." He sighed and looked down at the body.

"Not exactly a peregrine of oral hygiene my dear fellow." He continued talking to the body. He handed the x-ray to Palmer who held it up to the light to look at it.

"Is it Carl Foss?" he asked.

"Was there any doubt." Ducky sharply told him. He sucked in a breath and got up looking at the bodies.

"Well that's all three. The prosecutor, judge, and now foreman of the jury." Ducky said pointing to each body as he addressed their title. Palmer looked worriedly over at his boss.

"Are you scared Doctor Mallard?" he asked, sounding like a curious little child.

"Madam Curie, one of the world's most brilliant thinkers, once said 'there is nothing in life to be feared…it is only to be understood'." Ducky told him pacing around the room and walking back over to Palmer.

"I think it's safe to say Madam Curie never set her eyes on a meat puzzle." He took a breath.

"Yes I'm scared." He finally answered. He looked around at the bodies in the room, shallowly breathing.

"Scared as hell." He added. Palmer turned to face him, a worried expression on his face.

"Put them away Jimmy. They're tired of talking, they need to rest." Ducky told his assistant before entering through a steel door connected to the autopsy lab. Palmer looked down sadly.

"Yes doctor…." He whispered.

Tony's POV:

I arrived at the Mallard home. It was a good sized, antique looking, two story home. Overall not bad digs, Ducky has good taste. I got out of his car and walked up to the front door. I knocked a couple times and looked around to make sure no one was outside. I heard yapping from inside the house. Why did it have to be little yappy dogs?...but no one came to the door. I turned back to the door and looked down at my watch, raising my eyebrows in exasperation. Just waiting on the old woman to answer the door. The yipping got louder and I heard a woman mumbling something to them after a few more moments of silence. The door opened to reveal a very elderly lady with a flowery dress, frock….thing peeping her head out of the door.

"Yes?" she asked looking at me curiously.

"I'm Anthony DiNozzo, Mrs. Mallard. I work with your son." I told the obviously confused woman. She squinted at me.

"He called and said I'd be coming over." I continued, shouting a little bit so she could hear.

"You're Italian!" she chirped, her confusing fading away. I chuckled uncomfortably.

"Yes I am." I confirmed with a smile. She opened the double doors wide open.

"You're a gigolo." She said with a smile. My face dropped and I licked my lips. A man whore…..why is that her correlation with Italians. But I'm not one right? I mean I enjoy a variety of women, but I'm not that bad right?

"Uh….well I wouldn't exactly call myself….." I started.

"You move furniture." She said, in 'realization'. I looked at her and squinted my eyes in confusion at her random statements.

"I could…" I said glancing around. Gibbs did say whatever she wanted…..

"I have a commode that has no business being here. It belongs in the lounge." She said pointing her cane to the lounge off to her right. I leaned forward and looked in seeing multiple little dogs sitting in there.

"I've told Donald this, he never listens." She said mildly distressed. I paused and gave her a confused look. I really don't know how to handle bi-polar, demented, old ladies.

"I understand" I quickly told her before stepping inside and trying to get started.

"Ok.. if you'll just show me where you want the.." I took a step, but she quickly lifter her cane up and hit my shins. I flinched back in surprise. She had an angry look on her face. What the?! The dogs growled from the lounge. I stood up straight and looked at her wide eyed.

"Who are you?..." she lowly asked me.

"Anthony DiNozzo" I said pointing at myself. She didn't understand and kept staring.

"Everyone calls me Tony." I added.

"That's an Italian name." she said with the same low voice.

"Yes it is?...so if you just show me where you…" I started to reach for the seat she wanted moved but she held her hand out.

"You're a gigilo.." she said mildly alarmed this time. I looked at her wide eyed. This lady was crazy. She is even more bi-polar than I thought. She stood up straight.

"If you look down my blouse, I shall disembowel you." She sternly told me. I continued to stare at, unsure of how to approach the situation. I chucked, glancing at her small and frail frame.

"That's funny." I told her.

"I have a knife in my brazier." She whispered with a crazy glint in her eye. My smile dropped.

"I'll keep that in mind." I answered.

"Good." She happily nodded, before her smile dropped and she looked at me questioningly.Uh oh…..

"Who are you again?" she asked. I leaned my head forward, completely baffled. Not this again! Claire was always better with old people…..and dogs. This was going to be a long shift….

Claire's POV:

Gibbs, Kate and I had gone down to visit the brother at his taxidermist shop. He was tall with dark hair and glasses, and was very awkward. His shop was creepy too. Gibbs was looking closely at a stuffed badger. Jonathan, the brother, was working on his panda.I'm pretty sure that they are endangered…and stuffing them is illegal…..

"Couldn't there be another case, where these men worked together?" Jonathan asked, not looking away from his project.

"I haven't found one" Gibbs told him, still looking at the dead animal. Kate walked around behind them.

"Your brother's case is the common link." She explained.

"I would love to have stuffed Vincent." He commented wistfully. I whipped around and gave him a incredulous stare. What is it with this family?! Are they all psycho?

"He would have liked that." He chuckled. Yea cause every normal person wants to be stuffed and posed. His smile dropped and he continued working.

"Had a good sense of humor, Vincent did." He said sadly.

"But it's against state law." He continued, referring to stuffing his brother. Gibbs stood up and looked over at him.

"Oh!" he suddenly exclaimed and walked over to a stuffed jaguar.

"Best mammal at the regionals lasts year." He showed us. Kate smiled kindly and walked over.

"Like anything else, you get obsessed." He joked.

"It becomes a way of life." At this point I was feeling really uncomfortable, he severely creeped me out. He nudged his way back to his panda, not looking any of us in the eye.

"I thought pandas were endangered" Kate commented, pointing to the bear he was working on. Oh so I wasn't wrong in thinking that.

"Oh they are…recreation category." He explained.

"I took two black bears, I bleached one, and then I sewed them together in a panda pattern." He told us. Kate and I warily glanced at each other. Gibbs looked at the side of Jonathan's head, since he was so preoccupied.

"You miss your brother?" Gibbs asked. Jonathan paused momentarily.

"He's my brother." He simply said and continued brushing the 'panda's' fur.

"You two get along?" he asked. Jonathan glanced up at him.

"When he got out of prison he was depressed. He couldn't go back to school, he couldn't get a job. He started drinking heavily." He told Gibbs.

"You didn't answer the question." I reminded him. He was avoiding direct answers. Jonathan looked back down at his work.

"We were close." He simply said.

"And I have no idea who killed the men that put him in jail." He added.

"What happened the night he died?" Kate asked. He looked up at her.

"Vincent was driving. He lost control. We went off the road into the woods… My head hit the dash….. hard. …I stumbled out of the car, fell to my knees. When I got my bearings I saw the car was on fire." He told her with a somewhat haunted look on his face.

"Do you feel guilty you didn't pull him out?" I asked. I would be devastated if I had let my brother die in a car accident when I could have done something.

"I was told he died instantly from the impact…..that he never felt the flames." He told us. He zoned out for a few seconds, deep in thought.

"I think he felt the flames….." he said. He stood with a dazed look on his face before snapping out of it.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, rushing off to another stuffed animal. The three of us watched him with curious eyes. I looked over at Kate and make a circular motion next to my head saying 'he's crazy'. She lightly smacked me in an attempt to get me to be polite.

"Second place nationals…small animals division." Jonathan pointed out to us.

"African Sivit." He informed us, patting the animal. Gibb's phone rang.

3rdPerson POV:

"Yeah Gibbs." He answered.

"Boss, I've been running down other people involved in the Vincent Handlin case. I got something good." McGee told him.

"Spit it out McGee." Gibbs told him, while touching a posed raccoon.

"The lead detective in the case was a Baltimore officer named Marco Cesaretti. He retired in '96. Missed his last rent payment, no one has seen him in three weeks." McGee told him. Gibbs hung up the phone. Another victim he assumed.