Tony shrugged off Ducky's supportive arm as the three of them walked up to Gibbs's house. He knew the elderly man meant well, and only had his best interests at heart, but the constant attention was over bearing. It was Ducky's way of showing Tony how much he cared, and while he didn't want to hurt the old man, he also didn't want Ducky looking at him so much. He could see in the ME's eyes that he was trying to see beneath the outer shell Tony wore. Tony did not want hat to happen. The shell had already broken once this week. It had taken everything he had to build it back up. Beneath it lay a whole lot of hurt and fear that he was just not ready to deal with himself, let alone reveal it to anyone else.

"Please, Ducky." He said, putting a tender tone in his voice to ease the obvious hurt he saw in the man's eyes. 'I can walk. I'm a big boy."

Ducky nodded, stepping back with an unhappy frown, but Tony could feel his assessing gaze on him, waiting for the first sign of any distress.

Gibbs at least knew to keep his distance. Oh, Tony was sure his Boss would be there in an instant if it looked like he was going to fall, holding him up and practically carrying him the distance he needed to travel. That was Gibbs. Always there, by his side, on his six. Gibbs hadn't forced Tony to talk any further about 'the incident' as he was now referring to it to himself. He was grateful. He knew if he was made to face up to it right away, he might completely loose it. He couldn't do that. Not in front of anyone.

Gibbs opened his perpetually unlocked front door. Tony felt a twinge of fear about that. A door that was never locked meant anyone could come in. THEY could come in. He pushed the thought away. Of course no one would come in. It was Gibbs's house. Who in their right mind would try to steal something from Gibbs? He was safe here. He always had been.

Tony walked through the threshold, Ducky close on his heels. He momentarily wondered why the lights were off…discounting the theory that Gibbs had suddenly decided to go green…when a loud shout made his heart stop.

"Surprise!" Voices yelled in unison.

Tony dropped Bert and let out a yelp. Gibbs grabbed his arms to keep him from running, forcing him to look directing into his eyes. They were calm, protecting, letting him know that no harm would come to him as long as Gibbs was there. All was well.

He took a deep breath and looked around the now illuminated room.

Someone had decorated Gibbs's living room with purple and black crepe paper band balloons. Abby for sure. He laughed a little. Balloons. Abby had brought him balloons. He flashed back to an earlier moment, a different time, a different sort of pain… "What? No balloons?"

"Tony?" He heard her trembling voice near him. With a shaking arm he drew her close and she threw her arm around his neck. "I'm so sorry, Tony. We didn't mean to scare you. I thought it would make you happy."

"It's okay, Abs." He said, stoking the back of her hair. "I was just surprised is all. I wasn't expecting this."

"That's the point of a surprise party, silly." She still looked upset, but nothing could keep Abby down for long. He let her lead him by the hand to the living room where Tim, Ziva, Jimmy and Jack waited to welcome him home.

Fate must be smiling down on him, Wes mused as the elderly man led him through the small 3 room apartment above the garage that just happened to be across the street from the house of Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

Wes saw the FOR RENT sign and thought it must be his lucky day. It even came fully furnished. This old man had obviously put some money in to making a comfortable place for someone to live. The furniture was in good condition, if not new, and the small kitchen was fully updated. He likely expected to make back his investment in rent money.

Wes handed him the three hundred dollar deposit the man asked for. Easy come, easy go, and it was worth it for the view out the front window. Wes could see right down to the front door of the house across the street. Anthony was in that house. He wanted to go over there right now, storm the place and drag Anthony back here, killing anyone he had too.

God, the king size bed that took up most of the bedroom space looked like it could have some interesting uses. It had a brass head and foot board. He could imagine tying Anthony to it, his arms and legs spread eagle cross it.

Wes grew hard. He'd have to bring Anthony here before the trip to the cabin, just to try out that little fantasy.

The old man was saying something about water, electricity, and cable. Wes just nodded, not really listening. He wouldn't be here long enough to worry about paying any bills or rent.

As soon as the old guy had left him to 'get settled', Wes pulled a chair up to the window and looked down on the house where Anthony was. He could see shadows as they moved by the curtains of the house's front windows. None were Anthony's. He would know. He recalled everything about the man. His figure, his scent, the way he would cry out in pain. Wes could not wait to hear it again.

He curled his fingernails into his fist as another wave of longing rushed through him. It was going to be a very long wait.

Gibbs kept an eye on Tony as the dinner dishes were cleared. He seemed in good spirits, if a little detached from the goings on. He laughed where expected too, teased McGee, traded one liners with Ziva. He was the Tony they all knew and loved. And yet, he wasn't

The Tony who sat across the table from him between Abby and Jack was far removed from the Tony he knew. This Tony seemed to fold in on himself. He squeezed his shoulders together, trying to create space between him and his two neighbors, as though he did not want them to touch. Gibbs thought that strange, as Tony had been accepting of touch from everyone.

*Yes,* that voice in his mind said, *He will accept the touch when he invites it. He does not want any accidental, or uninvited touching.*

Gibbs had also noticed that while Tony seemed at ease with him, Jack and Ducky, he appeared to keep his distance from McGee. It seemed a little irrational to Gibbs. McGee was not the sort to cause fear upon looking at him. It was only when confronted that McGee could be intimidating. Yet still Gibbs would catch Tony jumping slightly whenever Tim came near him. He had casually moved away when Tim had greeted him, he had ducked his shoulders out from under Tim's hands and made some silly joke that had the whole room laughing.

It was not until he thought of Tony's description of his one kidnapper that Gibbs thought he understood.

Average height and build. Brown hair. Wearing a suit and tie.

"He looks like the Dad on a sitcom, Boss." Tony had said. "Like Ward Cleaver. So normal. So nice."

McGee was the quintessential 'nice guy', and although he looked nothing like Wesley Milson, Gibbs could see how Tony's currently irrational mind could make the connection.

Seeing that McGee looked slightly hurt by Tony's rebuffing of him, Gibbs pulled him aside to explain.

"Oh, geez, Boss." McGee said, a blush staining his cheeks. "I didn't think…he just seemed to be doing so good."

"He is. Or, he will be. Just be sure to dress a little more casually when you see him. That might help."

"Okay, Boss. I don't want to upset him."

"I know." He watched to make sure Tony was occupied. He again sat between Abby and Jack, this time on the couch, a large photo album spread open across his knees. As he turned the pages, Jack would point something out, to which both Tony and Abby would smile with glee.

*Those better not be my baby pictures.* He thought darkly, before catching Ziva's eye and inclining his head in invitation for her to join them.

"What's the word on Olinski?" He asked in a low voice once the three of them where alone.

"His CO was very forthcoming." Ziva reported. "Olinski was…how did he put it?" She asked, looking at McGee.

"Liked to play both sides of the field."

"Yes. That was it. I took that to mean Olinski was Bisexual. Was I wrong?"

"No." McGee said. "That's what it means."

"Yes. Well, it would seem they had been willing to over look that. The whole 'Do not ask, do not tell' thing, yes? But it seemed Olinski could not keep his fingers out of the bread box."

"Hands out of the cookie jar." McGee corrected.

"Yes, that. There where several complaints from petty officers about Olinski. They managed to…sweep it under the rug?" She threw a questioning look at McGee, who nodded. "Until a female petty officer went to the CO with a complaint of rape. It was, of course, her word against his. There was no real evidence on either side, but with his past…"

"They were certain of the charges, boss. But couldn't make them stick. The best they could do was a dishonorable discharge." McGee finished.

"So Olinsi has a history." Gibbs said, his gaze steady on Tony as he and Abby giggled over a picture that he hoped was not of him as a 3 year old, naked in the bathtub. "And we can connect him to Milson. Any word on where either of them are?"

"His former bunkmate had an address for him, but the place has been abandoned."

"There's a BOL out, Boss. If he's out there, we'll find him. Both NCIS and the FBI are looking."

"I want both of you, " Gibbs said, leveling each of them with a stern glare, "out there. I don not want this guy to get away, and I defiantly don't want him to hurt anyone else."

"Major Hendricks, his former bunkmate, has agreed to call us if Olinski contacts him."

"We should be so lucky."

Tony looked as though he was going to fall asleep right there between Abby and Jack on that couch. Ziva and Tim followed the direction of his gaze to watch as Tony's head nodded forward, only to have him jerk it back up, blinking the sleep away from his eyes.

Ducky, noticing the younger man's fight against sleep as well, reached Tony at the same time as Gibbs. "This has really been too much for the boy." Duck said to Gibbs over Tony's nodding head. "It was his first night out of the hospital We shouldn't have overdone it."

"M' 'kay, Ducky." Tony mumbled.

"Quiet, DiNozzo."

Gibbs looked down at the album laying open across Tony's lap and saw his 5th grade Little League photo. Frowning at his dad, who sat there looking the picture of innocence, he bodily hauled the young Italian man to his feet.

Tony moaned. "Aw, Boss, don' wanna."

"Yes you do."

Between him, Ducky, and Jack they managed to somehow get Tony to bed. He was out like a light before he was even fully in the bed.

Jack pulled the covers up over his young friend and smoothed the hair back from his forehead.

"I don't know what to do for the boy, Leroy."

"You're already doing it, Dad."

Jack smiled sadly at the sleeping man. He looked far younger then his age would suggest. Right now, he looked nothing more then a child to Jack.

"Dad?" Gibbs cleared his throat. He didn't know how to do emotional moments. His emotion scale usually had two settings. Calm indifference and anger. Emotions of the heart he'd stopped displaying a long time ago. "I just…I wanted to thank you for…"

"Leroy, you don't need too. There's nowhere else I need to be right now then here. I love Tony a lot."

"Yeah, I know you do."

"And I love you, son."

Jackson Gibbs wrapped his arms around his boy and held him tight. Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the tough former marine and harass NCIS special agent, allowed himself to forget his image and for just one moment became his father's child.