Submerged
Horatio laid in his hospital bed. He had finished the lunch the nurse brought him, but he continued to stare at the plastic cup sitting on the tray. It looked so disgusting.
Anger suddenly bubbled up in him. He drew his hand back and swung at the plastic cup. It flew across the room and hit the opposite wall just as the nurse who had brought him lunch walked in. She stared at Horatio and then at the wall, watching the green goo slide down the beige colored walls.
"I hate green jello!" Horatio snapped, pushing the tray away from him. "Why can't anyone ever remember that?"
"Well I guess it's a good thing someone's going home tomorrow," Alexx said as she walked in.
"I'm sick of being in the hospital," Horatio grumbled. "I'm sick of being bandaged up. I just want to go home and spend time with my family."
"I think we're going to try a different antibiotic," Alexx commented as she jotted down notes on his chart. "This one's making you a little too grumpy."
"I'm not grumpy," Horatio muttered under his breath.
"You just assaulted your lunch," Alexx retorted. "If that's not grumpy then I don't know what is."
Horatio groaned as Jessica helped him lay out on the couch.
"But I don't want to stay at home while everyone else goes to work," he muttered.
Jessica chuckled as she spread a blanket out over his body.
"Sorry, Dad, doctor's orders- stay at home and relax while your face heals."
"But what am I going to do all day?" Horatio continued to grumble.
"I don't know, maybe relax?" Jessica sarcastically responded
Horatio groaned as Jessica tucked another pillow under his head.
"But who's going to take care of the lab?" he continued to protest.
"The same people who have since you were kidnapped, but with another addition." She smiled towards the door that led out to the hallway and Horatio followed her gaze. Gibbs was standing in the doorway, no longer confided by his back brace. He smiled as he walked over to Horatio's couch and knelt beside it.
"I swear, Caine," Gibbs said, "McGee and I will stay as long as we're needed. I got you into this mess. I'm the reason your face was destroyed. The least I can do is pay back my debt to you."
"Gibbs, you don't have to-" Horatio began to protest but was silenced by Gibbs raising his hand.
"Horatio Caine, if you're anything like me, which I hear we are very similar from a certain blonde woman," his eyes darting towards Jessica, "then I know you'll work yourself into a tizzy and your body won't be able to heal as well. You just stay here and let your new second in command work through all the problems."
"Second in command?" Horatio repeated with a light chuckle. "You're making it sound like you're moving in, Jethro."
"Oh, I wasn't talking about me." His gaze drifted to Jessica once more, his blue eyes telling what she had kept from her father.
Horatio slowly sat up and looked at his daughter.
"Jessie," he whispered, "what's he talking about?"
"I was promoted while you were in the hospital," Jessica quietly said. "I'm now a Sergeant. I'm the officer in charge of the lab. I have my own office and the same set of keys you have."
A smile played across Horatio's bandaged face. He reached out and pulled her slender body into his arms. He kissed her cheek and held her face in his hands.
"My baby," he whispered, "is the new Lieutenant."
"I'm not the Lieutenant, Dad," Jessica corrected, carefully pulling her face away from his grasp. "I'm just a Sergeant, the officer in charge. I take command when the Lieutenant's unavailable or otherwise incapacitated."
"Which I certainly am right now," Horatio said with a light chuckle. He slowly leaned back onto the pillows piled on the couch and sighed. "I'm tired again. When will I stop being tired?"
"When you're off your medication," Sami said as she walked into the room carrying a glass of water and a few pill bottles, Lucy following behind her. "You need to sleep, Horatio. Healing is taking a great deal out of your body. You'll feel more like yourself in a week and you should be able to return to work then."
"Fine," Horatio muttered as his eyes drifted shut. It seemed that he was going to protest when he began to snore lightly.
The Jessica chuckled lightly as she stood. She smiled at her best friend and held her hand.
"Thanks for staying with him, Sami," she quietly said. "I really appreciate you and Nate doing this for me."
"It's not a problem at all, chicka," Sami smiled. "Nate's picking up a few more patients at the hospital who've heard that the infamous Dr. Nathan Friedman is in town."
Jessica giggled. She looked at Gibbs and smiled.
"Shall we, Special Agent Gibbs?" she said, extending her arm.
"Indeed we shall, Lieutenant Caine," he said, returning the smile and linking their arms together.
"Geez, I'm never going to get used to that," Jessica muttered as they left Horatio's house. "And I'm not the Lieutenant!" she playfully added.
"As of right now, since the current Lieutenant for the crime lab is incapacitated, you are."
McGee felt like his eyes were crossing as he stared at the computer screen. He looked over the evidence one more time with Eric, trying to officially close the case.
"Something's not adding up here," McGee muttered as he rubbed his sore eyes. "We're missing something."
"But what is it?" Eric asked as he shuffled through the case file once more.
"I don't know," McGee muttered, "I just plain don't know. It's like there's a missing link."
"Oh these guys are definitely a missing link," Eric chuckled, "and I don't really believe in evolution."
"Silly Catholic," Gibbs said as he meandered into the room. "What are you guys trying to figure out anyways?"
"There's something we're missing from the wolf men case," McGee explained to his boss, "but neither of us can figure it out."
"Well I might have your answer," Natalia smiled as she walked in. "Turns out our Marine and the wolf men aren't full brothers. The three wolves have a different father then the Marine."
"So Mama slept with the big bad wolf and was cursed with three cubs," Gibbs speculated. He shrugged his shoulders and turned to leave. "Oh well, have fun. I have to go find the boss so we can go check out a scene again. She thinks we missed something this morning, too."
Gibbs strolled through the crime lab. He couldn't help but secretly enjoy the looks he was still receiving from female staff members and patrol units, and the occasional look from a male staff member. His first wife had always told him he was dashing, but he was surprised he still had it at his late age.
He rode the elevator downstairs and walked to the Hummer lot, where Jessica said she and Ryan would be waiting for him. Gibbs walked over towards the Hummer. He could see Ryan sitting in the front seat alone. His eyes were closed, his head leaning back against the headrest, and a strange expression on his face.
"Wolfe!" Gibbs called out to him. "Hey, Wolfe, where's Caine?"
Ryan's eyes snapped open and she stared at Gibbs with a panicked expression. One hand flew to his lap while the other gripped the steering wheel.
"I was, um, I, uh," Ryan stuttered, lost for words. His face was flushed and he fidgeted uneasily.
Gibbs shook his head and just stared at him as he leaned his forearms against the window frame of the Hummer.
"Wolfe, is something wrong?" he inquired.
"No," Ryan said in a straggled voice. A thin layer of sweat had begun to form along his hairline and he twitched his left arm.
Gibbs stared at him for a moment before he noticed something move by Ryan's leg. He looked down and his eyes locked with Jessica's. She shrunk beside Ryan's seat as Ryan attempted the close his jeans around his hard erection.
"Oh dear," Gibbs muttered as he stepped away. "I thought we were going back to the hotel scene, but never mind. I can see you're busy."
"No, wait!" Jessica called out to him. "Just give me like twenty seconds."
"Twenty seconds? I don't think even you could finish him that fast, Jess," Gibbs teased.
"Fine then, two minutes," Jessica said as she began unzipping her jeans. "And you better turn around, you dirty old man."
Gibbs chuckled and turned his back. He idled about ten feet from the Hummer, watching the second hand tick on his watch. He listened to muffled moans and the sound of the Hummer shaking. Just before it made its second round, Ryan's straggled voice cried out a wordless call.
"Ok, you can come back!" Jessica yelled to him.
Gibbs laughed and returned to the Hummer. He was still laughing as he climbed into the backseat with Jessica and Ryan's crime scene kits.
"Not going to lie, Caine," Gibbs said as he continued to laugh, "I'm impressed. Finishing out a blow job in two minutes flat."
"Oh I didn't finish with my mouth," Jessica said with a sassy expression. "I'm not into swallowing."
Gibbs laughed loudly again, throwing his head back against the headrest. "Oh my dear lord," he said as he dialed a number on his phone.
"Caine," the voice on the other end answered.
"Horatio, do your daughter and her fiancé often have sex in the Hummers?" Gibbs asked as he continued to laugh.
"In the Hummers, in the locker room, in the shower room, in the restroom, in the interrogation room, in my office, in the ballistics lab, the fingerprint lab, the break room, probably her new office," Horatio rattled off in a tired voice. "Yeah, they've had sex everywhere but the morgue."
Ryan cleared his throat and, though his ears were burning red, displayed a proud smirk on his face. Gibbs laughed again and shook his head.
"Sorry, Wolfe just confirmed that location," he said, trying to maintain a professional manner.
Horatio groaned and sighed on the other end. "I should have known," he muttered.
"Just marking the territory!" Jessica exclaimed loudly enough for her father to hear.
"Tell her to shut her face," Horatio retorted.
Horatio walked through the crime lab for the first time in almost two weeks. His face was still sore and battered, but it was healing faster then the doctors had expected. The only bandage he wore was a brace on his nose.
He sighed as he walked into his office and found a mountain of paperwork waiting for him. He grumbled as he sat down and began looking over case files.
Jessica wolf whistled as she walked into his office. "Looking good, Dad," she said with a smile.
"If you can even see me from behind this stupid mess," Horatio grumbled. "Why couldn't the new Sergeant have worked on some of this?"
"I did," Jessica replied with a light giggle. "We've just been crazy busy."
"God, I hate doing paperwork," Horatio complained as he began looking over various forms that needed his signature. He smiled briefly when he found the request form for a new Sergeant, his daughter's name printed in the candidate section.
"Well if it makes you feel better," Jessica said, "there's someone here who wants to keep you company."
"Please don't tell me Gibbs had DiNozzo fly down here to help," Horatio playfully retorted.
Jessica laughed and shook her head. "No, someone you like a whole lot more."
Tiny feet pattered against tile as Oliver toddled around Horatio's desk. Horatio smiled at the sight of his squealing grandson. He lifted the small child onto his lap and kissed his forehead.
"Uncle Ron's out of town again and Rachael has two sick children," Jessica explained. "We kind of ran out of options."
Horatio smiled at her as he gently stroked his Grandson's brown hair.
"I'd be happy to care for Ollie, Bug," he said.
"Well if by chance you need to go anywhere," Jessica said as she stood, "just ditch him with someone around here. There's bound to be someone who could handle him."
Horatio chuckled and held his Grandson close.
"I'll keep that in mind, Bug," he said with a bright smile.
"Ok, so we've got a small problem," Jessica explained in the layout room. "With half of them in shop, we've got more cases then we have Hummers."
"Wow, that is a problem," Walter commented.
"So here's what we're going to do," Jessica continued, ignoring the interruption, "Eric and McGee need to stay here and keep working on whatever it is they're doing with the wolf men and the dead Marine. Calleigh and Walter have a double homicide in a pizza shop. Natalia, you've got a suicide at Dade University. Gibbs, if you don't mind, I'm going to send you with Frank to do a follow up on a robbery from yesterday. Ryan and I will head back to the Coastal Hotel and try to get a hold of those damn security tapes."
"You still haven't got them?" Walter asked as they began to disperse.
"No, Wally," Ryan retorted in an annoyed voice, "We haven't."
"And since our case is just a quick trip we're going to take my car to the hotel," Jessica continued, "given that we probably won't need any of the equipment right away. I'm leaving a Hummer for McGee and Eric and one for Horatio or Gibbs, if they need it. And if you all finish on time, I'll take you guys out to lunch."
"Lunch on the new boss?" Walter speculated, "I like it!"
"Yeah, well don't get used to it, Wally," Jessica retorted. "You're already getting on my nerves."
Jessica looked at the truck in her rearview mirror again. It was a Chevy Silverado, forest green with an extended cab. She turned onto a different street and the truck followed, staying hot on her heels.
"Something bothering you, Jess?" Ryan inquired from where he sat in the passenger seat. They were headed back to the lab with the security footage from the hotel.
"Yeah, this guy's been following me for the last ten minutes," Jessica said.
"Maybe he's just headed in the same direction," Ryan suggested.
Jessica shook her head. "No, this is something else." She turned down an alley and watched as the truck followed her. Her heart hammered in her chest as she watched the truck follow her ridiculous path. "No, this guy is definitely following me."
"Can you see him?" Ryan asked, turning in his seat.
"No, and don't look back at him. I don't want him knowing I know."
She pressed her phone to her ear and listened to it ring before someone picked up.
"Delko," Eric answered.
"Eric, its Jessica, I think I have a problem."
"Ok, what's going on?"
"This guy has been following Ryan and me for the last twenty minutes or so. I try to shake him but I can't get him to cut loose. Can you meet us over by the shipping bay? I don't have a Hummer so I can't use the sirens."
"Yeah, sure, McGee and I were just going to head out on a lead now."
"What did you get?" Jessica inquired, not really wanting to hang up just yet.
"We think the wolf men's father is still out there."
"And you're thinking that's your missing link."
"Yeah, exactly. Hey, Gibbs and Horatio are going to come along, too. H's leaving Ollie with Frank. We'll come get you guys and then head out to lunch or something. You know, not lead him back to the lab."
"Yeah, sounds great. How long till you guys can meet us there?"
"Give us like ten minutes. We'll use the sirens to make it faster."
"Great, because this guy is giving me the creeps."
Jessica hung up her phone and watched as the mysterious truck continued to follow them.
"Can you see his face in your mirror?" Jessica asked Ryan.
"That's a negative," Ryan said, "tinted windows."
"Damn," Jessica muttered, "We need to try and loose this guy."
"Yeah really, I want that lunch Eric was talking about."
Jessica's brakes groaned slightly as she stopped at a red light. The truck pulled right up behind her. His engine revved as he inched closer to Jessica's Audi.
"Get off my ass, dirt bag," she muttered, looking at the dark windows in her rearview mirror.
Suddenly her car lurched forward as the truck slammed into her bumper. The smell of burning rubber filled the air as the truck tried to push Jessica into the intersection.
"Oh hells no, bitch!" Jessica snapped as she hit the accelerator. She dodged several cars as she sped off from the red light. The truck took off after her, missing more cars as he swerved to catch her.
"Call it in!" she ordered Ryan as she zigzagged through traffic.
"Dispatch, this is CSI Wolfe," Ryan rambled into his phone. "CSI Caine and I are being pursued in our civilian vehicle by an unknown driver in a green Silverado! Requesting backup immediately!"
"Copy CSI Wolfe, units are headed your way."
Jessica's phone rang and Ryan was quick to answer it for her.
"Yeah, H, it's the same guy that's been following us. He tried to push us into oncoming traffic, but Jess sped off. Yeah, I think we're still headed for the shipping bay. Alright, we'll lead him your way."
Ryan hung up her phone and held on as they sped through the Miami streets.
"H said to get him over to the bay. He and Eric will take care of this asshole."
"Got it," Jessica said as she hit the gas again.
Jessica sped along the road, trying to shake the large truck following her and Ryan. She cut through traffic and the entire SUV shook as she plowed through the bay. The truck was ruthless. He rammed against her bumper and caused their bodies to lurch forward.
Her tires squealed as she rounded a corner, nearly flipping her blue Audi. She looked in her rearview mirror to see a bronze Hummer following close behind the green Silverado.
"We just need to shake him," Jessica said as she took another sharp turn.
"I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon," Ryan said as he held onto the car frame.
Jessica looked in the mirror again just in time to see a muzzle flash.
"Oh shit, gun!" she exclaimed as she swerved to the right. Her left side mirror shattered as she narrowly dodged the bullet. "Shoot him!" she yelled at Ryan as she continued her attempt to loose the truck.
"What if I hit the Hummer?" Ryan asked as he fumbled with his glock.
"Don't aim for it!" Jessica ordered as she took another sharp turn. Her car skidding on two wheels before it straightened back out and she sped back in the direction she had come from. "Aim for his grill and tires!"
Ryan opened the sunroof and stuck the top of his head out just enough to aim at the truck. He fired three times and watched as one of the truck's front tires blew out. The Hummer slammed into and caused it to spin out of control as the driver attempted to maintain control with his remaining three wheels.
Ryan sighed and slid back into his seat, closing the sunroof as he tried to calm down.
"I think we lost him," he said as he looked behind them.
"I don't even see the Hummer," Jessica said as she continued to speed. She drove along the fence that overlooked the bay, trying to find her way back out.
Suddenly something slammed against the back left side of her car, causing her to loose control. The SUV spun and broke through the chain link fence. Jessica and Ryan screamed as her Audi rolled over the side of the retaining wall and fell into the water nose first.
Eric slammed into the side of the green Silverado, pinning him between the Hummer's grill and a cement wall. He leapt from his vehicle as he and McGee drew their weapons.
"Get out of the car!" Eric commanded. "Get out or I'll shoot your ass!"
The man chuckled as he climbed from the driver seat. He was hideous. His eyes were different sizes and lopsided, his teeth small and pointy, and his entire face was covered in a fine, light colored hair.
A second Hummer pulled up beside them. Tires squealed and brakes groaned as the Hummer was slammed into gear. Horatio and Gibbs leapt from the vehicle and rushed over to them. They looked at the gruesome man and shuddered at the sight of him.
"Lieutenant, Special Agent," the man said in an icy voice as Eric placed him in handcuffs, "Glad we could finally meet. I know you met my sons, but we haven't had the pleasure."
"Bastard," Gibbs muttered as he walked over to him, "You thought you could get away from us."
"Eric, McGee," Horatio quietly said, "Where are Jessica and Ryan?"
Eric's face went pale and he looked towards the water.
"Oh god, no," Horatio muttered, his entire body beginning to shake.
Gibbs suddenly ran to the edge of the retaining wall and dove over the side. His body sliced through the water's surface as he began swimming downwards.
Jessica and Ryan struggled to unclasp their seatbelts inside their sinking car. Jessica crawled into the backseat and began looking through her emergency kit.
"Shit, shit, shit!" she exclaimed. "Damn it! There's nothing in here that'll help!"
"I wouldn't think you'd have anything for a sinking car!" Ryan snapped. He suddenly hit the ceiling as the car shifted in the water. He pulled out his phone and growled in frustration when he discovered he didn't have service. "Damn it!" he exclaimed throwing the useless phone to the floor.
Jessica crawled into the front seat with him and looked out the window. Water was seeping into the car and it was already up to their knees. She pulled her glock from her holster and held it above the water.
"There's only one way out, Ryan," she quietly said. "How long can you hold your breath?"
"Not as long as you," Ryan said as a dark shadow filled their windshield.
The salt water burned his eyes and he could barely make out the shape of the blue SUV as it sunk to the floor of the ocean. He grabbed the trailer hitch and held on as the car began sinking faster. He pulled himself along the top of the car. He pounded on the glass and the dome light turned on inside.
Jessica and Ryan looked at him with panicked faces. Jessica pressed her hand flat against the glass and waved him to the side using her glock. Gibbs held onto the side mirror and braced for impact.
Jessica pulled the slide back on her glock and checked that the chamber was loaded. Her hands shook as she lifted her glock and aimed at the windshield.
"Hold your breath, Ryan," she quietly said.
They each inhaled as deep as they could just before Jessica pulled the trigger.
Glass shattered and water flooded into the car. Gibbs held on as tight as he could as the car suddenly sank lower into the water. He pulled himself along the empty frame of the windshield and searched through the wreckage. He reached in and felt someone grab his hand. He pulled the person out and held Ryan against his body as he tried to retrieve Jessica. He pulled on her arm but she didn't move. He tried again but nothing happened. She waved him off as she pulled at her right leg.
Gibbs kicked with every ounce of strength he had. It seemed forever but they finally broke through the surface. They gasped for air as they swam towards where Eric and McGee stood on the lower level, waiting for them. They pulled Ryan from the water and he shivered when the cold ocean air hit him. Horatio came rushing up and wrapped a blanket around him. He looked from Ryan to Gibbs, pain in his eyes.
"Where's Jessica?" he asked panicked.
"She was stuck," Gibbs said as he started to swim away back towards where he had emerged. "I have to go back."
He dove under the water and swam as fast as he could. He could see the hazard lights flashing on the SUV as it faded from his vision. He felt around until he found the jagged edge of the windshield frame.
Jessica was floating in the water, her eyes closed and lips parted slightly. Panic swept through Gibbs's body as he grabbed her upper arms and pulled as hard as he could. She didn't move. Gibbs pulled harder, but she was stuck on something. He reached down and felt around. The bottom of her jeans was hooked on something. Gibbs tore her fly open and pulled her free from the denim confines.
He held her close to his body as he fought to the surface. Black spots began to fill his vision just before he broke through the surface. He gasped for air as he fought against the current to the retaining wall. He was at least thirty feet from where the others stood. He struggled to place Jessica on the ground and pulled himself from the water. He pressed his head to her chest. She wasn't breathing.
He began pushing against her chest, trying to get her to start breathing again. When nothing happened he pressed his lips against hers and blew air into her lungs. Jessica was still silent as Gibbs stared down at her lifeless face.
"Why aren't you breathing?" Gibbs said as he continued to perform CPR on Jessica. He pressed harder against her chest, trying to force her to breathe again. He blew air into her lungs again, but was still met by nothing.
"Come on, Jessica, breathe!" he screamed as he continued to pound on her chest. "Please Jessica, breathe!" He pushed with all his strength against her chest. He pressed his lips to hers once more and blew as hard as he could into her mouth.
Jessica suddenly coughed and water came spewing from her mouth. Gibbs rolled her onto her side and rapped her on her back. She gasped for air as her entire body shook. She looked at Gibbs.
"Jethro," she quietly gasped.
Gibbs wrapped his arms around her and held her close to his body. He held back the sudden tears he could feel forming in his eyes. He stroked her hair and back, trying to calm her shaking, panicked body. He held her and was thankful she was alive.
Horatio came rushing over to where they were. He collapsed to his knees and gathered her soaked body in his arms. He held her close as he began to cry.
"I saw Marisol," Jessica whispered, "She told me I had to come back."
He buried his face into her hair as he cried uncontrollably.
"Thank you, Jethro," he whispered through his tears.
"Not a problem, Horatio," Gibbs said as he continued to gasp for air. "You would have done the same if it was my daughter."
Horatio turned and faced Alexx as she walked into the hospital waiting room.
"No matter how many times I tell those two," she began, "they never seem to understand that I have a set limit to the number of times a patient can come to this hospital."
Horatio couldn't help but laugh at her humor. "So how are they?" he asked.
"Jessica and Ryan are going to be just fine," Alexx said with her warm smile. "Just a little water in their lungs, but nothing major."
"What about Jethro?" Horatio inquired.
"Special Agent Gibbs didn't quite fair as well," Alexx explained as she led Horatio back to where Jessica and Ryan were being held. "He fractured his vertebra again. It wasn't quite healed up, those things take a little time, but he's going to be back in his brace again, and he's going to hate it."
"He's going to be alright, though, right?" Horatio quietly asked.
"He'll be sore, but he'll be just fine in a few weeks. He's just going to need more rest, and maybe just go home already."
They walked into a room and Horatio smiled at the sight of the pale Jessica and Ryan, each lying in their own bed with an oxygen mask. He sat on the edge of Jessica's bed and smiled at her.
"Hey Bug," he whispered, gently wrapping his arms around her. "How do you feel?"
"Tired," Jessica quietly said, pulling her oxygen mask out of the way, "and it's really hard to breathe."
"You drowned, Jessie Bug," Alexx explained. "I wasn't there, but from what Gibbs told me you were dead in the water."
Her eyes seemed hazy as she looked at Alexx. "How is he?" Jessica asked.
"Fractured that vertebra again, but he'll be just fine," Alexx told her.
"When can we leave?" Jessica asked.
"Tomorrow morning," Alexx informed them. "I want to keep you two overnight, just in case."
Jessica groaned and placed her oxygen mask over her face again.
"I hate the hospital," she grumbled.