Heya! An extra-long chapter after the extra-long wait. I hope you enjoy. THANK YOU, to all my reviewers! I made my hundred reviews (everybody do a victory dance) and I got it before New Year's! Let's see where we can go with the reviews?

Oh, a big shout out to my wonderful beta, C. Nicole.

Abby was making everyone in the bullpen crazy. She was pacing up and down, asking McGee every two minutes if he had heard from Tony. He'd gone to help Gibbs after the phone call a couple of hours before. The whole team, including Ducky, Abby and Jimmy Palmer, was there awaiting Gibbs arrival. They wanted to give him a proper welcome back before they got down to business. Instead of Gibbs arriving, he phoned Tony saying that he was in a car crash and he needed help. Abby didn't know what scared her the most- Gibbs in a car crash (on his first day back) or Gibbs phoning for help.

"Have you heard anything yet, Timmy?" Abby asked for the second time.

"No, Abby. Not since you asked me," he looked at his watch, "three minutes ago." Abby's only reply was a sigh and she continued pacing. Jimmy was quiet, stuck in his own thoughts as he sat behind Tony's desk. Ziva was tapping her fingers on her desk, but her face was calm. McGee was tracking Tony's GPS on his computer. He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw them heading to NCIS headquarters.

"Where's Gibbs?" Vance spoke from the edge of the bullpen. Nobody heard him come down the stairs or walk up to them. They were just too worried about their fearless leader. Ziva was the one, who answered,

"He was in a car accident on his way to work. Tony and Ducky went to fetch him." Ziva's calm control wavered as worry slipped through in her voice.

"What?" Vance asked. His face had gone very pale causing Jimmy to jump from his chair and quickly push it behind Vance so he could sit down.

"Are you alright, Sir?" McGee asked. Before Vance could answer, the unmistakable sound of the elevator echoed through the office. Everyone looked over to see a very worried Tony walking out, followed by a pale Gibbs who was supported by Ducky. The trio walked over to the bull pen. Without saying a word Ducky helped Gibbs to sit down behind his desk; Tony didn't take his eyes of them until Gibbs was settled. When Ducky moved away, Abby got her first look at Gibbs.

He was pale and had a bandage over his left eye and a shiner that would be sore for weeks. He held himself stiffly- he probably hurt his still tender ribs-again. He had a cut on his arm and his left knee was so swollen, it could be seen through his torn pants.

"What the hell happened?" Vance finally found his voice. He jumped up to glare at Gibbs. "You forget how to drive?"

"Oh shut up, Leon!" Gibbs said almost violently. "Your friends gave you a message. I wonder when the fuck you planned on coming to terms and letting the rest of us in on what these fuckers want- before they get lucky and kill me. You know what they say about the third time," Gibbs almost spat the words.

"What…..what are you talking about?" Vance asked shakily, suddenly very nervous.

"Jethro, maybe you…" Ducky didn't get to finish his sentence, because at that moment Gibbs slammed his fist down on his desk. Everyone jumped, but kept quiet. Gibbs struggled to his feet and pegged Vance with a steely glare.

"I want to know why somebody thinks trying to kill me is a good way to get to you! If they try again, and I guarantee you they will, I want to know why someone wants me dead!" Gibbs was shouting. His rant was followed by a soul-shattering silence. Gibbs was breathing hard; Ducky was worried about his friend. As usual he refused hospital treatment and the old doctor was sure his ribs were broken, again. Even though Ducky could get Jethro to do more things than anyone else, save from Jackson, he wasn't suicidal enough to try and get him to see reason at the moment.

The silence was broken by the elevator signalling an arrival of someone else. Nobody in the bull pen moved, the entire office was staring at the scene, no one paying attention to the man walking from the elevator. The man stopped dead in his tracks as he felt the tension in the air, moving a little further into the office, he noticed the scene unfolding.

"I think the show is over people." Secretary Jarvis said loudly, causing agents to scramble around and avert their eyes. No one moved in the bull pen. Clayton Jarvis looked at the scene in front of him. Gibbs was staring down Vance and even from a distance Jarvis could see the fire in Jethro's eyes. The man looked like he got hurt again. Vance was standing his ground, but he was paler than usual. Dr Mallard was close to Gibbs and his gaze was fixed on him. Tony was standing slightly behind Vance with a look on his face that was positively murderous. McGee was behind his desk, with Abby next to him, a protective arm around her shoulders. She looked scared, flicking her gaze between Gibbs and Vance. Ziva and the other guy from autopsy was standing behind DiNozzo, both had confused looks on their faces. Jarvis took a deep breath and walked into the fire.

"What. The. Hell. Is. Going. On. Here?" Jarvis asked, giving everyone a stern glare. Tony spoke up not taking his eyes off of the scene in front of him.

"Someone ran Gibbs of the road this morning. The same people who kidnapped and almost killed him two months ago. Oh, and they seem to know Vance pretty well. Gibbs is pissed because he doesn't know why someone wants him dead." There were no sign of the usual playfulness in his voice. Jarvis felt the anger rise in his chest.

"Everyone in MTAC, now!" he yelled.

"Why?" Gibbs growled, the anger still evident in his voice.

"We are going to get to the bottom of this whole thing," he looked at Vance, "there are some questions that need answering."

With that he turned around and walked up the stairs. Gibbs limped forward before Tony put his arm around Gibbs' waist to help him up the stairs. The rest followed slowly. Vance looked at the people on their way to MTAC. Steeling himself, he took a deep breath and walked up to MTAC as well. They were going to put an end to this today.

NCIS

Michelle was busy making her second cup of coffee. Lectures were cancelled, so she had the whole day to kill. Making her way to her stereo, she picked a cd her mom had sent her for Christmas. It was one of her favourite South African artists, and not long after, the sounds of Juanita du Plessis filled the small apartment. Michelle smiled as she listened to the songs; she closed her eyes and let the memories fill her mind. She could see her mother making her famous Monkey gland steak (even with the recipe, Michelle couldn't make it quite the same), her father on the tractor as he ploughed the fields on their small farm, her older brother coming from work in his uniform and rushing out when someone needed the ambulance. She could see her other brother going to his work at the local furniture store and she could see herself coming from school in her navy blue school dress. One of her classmates lived on a farm close by and she used to get a lift to and from school in their light blue truck. She suddenly wondered if that particular truck was still running- it was falling apart even then.

Unfortunately, with the good came the bad. She remembered her father dying; she and her mother moving away, then her brothers following one by one. Coming back to reality, she wiped a tear from her eyes; there were things that were not meant to be remembered. Although moving to the city opened more doors and gave them more opportunities as a family, it was still a very hard thing to do.

Before she could fall deeper into her thoughts, there was a knock on the door. Frowning, she got up and turned the music lower before going to answer the door. She looked through the peephole and swallowed the rising anger at the man on the other side of the door. For a second she considered not answering, but then caved and opened it slowly.

"Special Agent Dinozzo," Michelle greeted him formally, not moving to let him in.

"Michelle, can I come in please?" Tony asked. Something wasn't right, he looked troubled somehow. Michelle had a good mind to say no, but she couldn't deny the feelings she had for the man in front of her. When she walked out on him, she hoped that he would follow, that he would track her down somehow, but he never came- he never came so she could explain why she had to leave. She moved out of the way and wordlessly invited him in.

"Thank you." He smiled, making her heart skip a beat. That smile melted the last bit of anger and she returned it with one of her own.

Michelle didn't know it, but Tony felt his knees go weak at the smile. He swore that his heart had stopped for a minute. He cleared his throat; it was now or never.

"We need to talk," he said softly. Michelle only nodded. They stood staring at each other, drinking in the sight. Michelle made the first move.

"Want some coffee?" she asked tentatively, moving to the kitchen.

"Yes, please." Tony followed her. "Nice place, a little small, but nice and cosy."

"Thank you, it's big enough for me," she said with a small smile, "besides, if it was any bigger I'd be missing my family more." Why did I just say that? Michelle thought to herself angrily.

"I can imagine. I didn't have a big family, though. I had a dad that wasn't always there and a bunch of nannies, but not a big family." Tony saw a flicker of sadness in her eyes.

"I had a big family; we lived on a small town in the heart of South Africa. One day, a jackass made my father an offer, my father refused. Nothing happened at first and we thought that was the end of it." She fell quiet for a minute, Tony waited patiently for her to go on.

"I don't know why I'm telling you all this," Michelle chuckled wryly, "I guess it's time I got it all out."

"It wasn't the end of it, was it?" Tony prodded softly. She smiled that sad smile again.

"No, it wasn't. He came again with the same offer and again my father refused. Another few days had past when a group of them came along. We were sitting on the front lawn eating watermelon, it was summer. They tied us up and made us watch while they beat my father." Michelle stopped unable to continue. Tony got up and pulled her into a hug. She melted into his arms.

"What happened to your father?" Tony asked after a while.

"He survived," Michelle answered softly, "but when Pieter Duvenage came to collect again, and my father refused again- he killed him."

"Wait," Tony looked down at the woman in his arms, "Pieter Duvenage? The man who hired that other guy? The man who tried to kill Gibbs and Vance?" Michelle sighed and nodded.

"I recognised the name, but before I could tell you about it, we had that little tiff in front of the elevator and I guess…" Tony put his finger on her mouth.

"Shh, it's ok. I know now. Problem is that Duvenaghe guy is back and he tried to….." He stopped when he saw Michelle trying to hide a laugh, "What?"

"It's not a soft 'g' – it's hard, like you're clearing your throat." He smiled down at her.

"OK, that dude," Tony went on, earning another giggle from Michelle, "is back and he tried to kill Gibbs this morning again." Michelle sobered up immediately and looked at Tony with concern in her eyes.

"Is he alright?" she asked, noticing a look of anger in his eyes.

"A little worse for wear, but he will be fine." Tony moved away from Michelle and walked into the living room, the coffee forgotten.

"You care about him," Michelle said and Tony nodded.

"He's like a father to me. He taught me more than my own father did, and if I could choose anyone I want to be when I'm older – it's Gibbs," Tony spoke honestly.

"Then we need to stop this fucker before he takes the same thing from you that he took from me." Michelle reached for her coat and purse and shoved Tony out the door.

"We?" he asked sceptically.

"Yeah, you need someone who knows him and can speak Afrikaans and I can help, so let's go." Michelle answered with a smile and Tony nodded.

"Ok, then." Tony said, leading the way to the car.

NCIS

Gibbs was sitting behind his desk waiting for Ducky. He was going home. The car crash this morning hurt him more than he admitted, but knowing Ducky he probably knew. As he waited, his eyes drifted over the empty desks of his agents. Tony went to the Afrikaans girl's house (he couldn't remember her name) and Ziva and McGee were following a lead. Abby was helping Ducky collect some things before they both came to take him home. Gibbs was too tired to argue. His mind drifted to the conversation in MTAC earlier that day.

***Flashback***

"I don't know who this guy is, but I think I knew his son," Vance had said, shocking everyone in the room. Jarvis had asked everyone to be quiet and just listen when he told Vance to explain about the Thor project and how it was linked to what happened to them.

"The Thor project was a research project. We trained young people from all over the world to become researchers. They would go in, apply for jobs at suspected criminal businesses and then collect intel. One of the men was an eighteen year old boy from South Africa. His name was Bertus. I never knew his surname. He got into this business and got caught. I thought he was dead and I ran to protect his partner, Louis. I only found out a year later that Bertus was still alive and was tortured to death for over a month. The project was shut down and the information about it is now only accessible with a code. This code is known only to me, Secnav, the chief of staff and the President."

"If this guy were to get the code- he would get the details of the project and we could lose valuable people. Some of the trainees from the project are still in operation and some are in very compromising positions – if they get caught, they will be killed."

Now it made sense and everyone nodded. They understood why Vance didn't want to say anything earlier and why he still blamed himself for that young man's death. Duvenage knew Vance because he had flown all the way to South Africa to speak to his mother. One more thing needed to be cleared up though,

"Leon, you need to stop blaming yourself." Gibbs voice was soft, the anger from earlier completely gone, "not just for what happened to that boy, but also for what happened to me. No matter what you did, you couldn't have prevented this."

"I know, Gibbs, I know."

"So, how do we put an end to this asshole?" Jarvis asked.

"Michelle," Tony said and explained who she was and how he thought she could help. After getting permission, everyone went about their business and Gibbs went to lie down on Abby's futon, back in her lab. After a while Ducky came in to say he was taking him home and so he made his way over to go check up on his team.

***Flashback***

Ducky's Scottish voice calling his name pulled him back to the present and he made to get up. His phone rang, stopping him in his tracks.

"Gibbs," he answered as usual.

"I know you want to go home, but I need to speak to you urgently. Come alone," Vance said in a clipped tone. The phone went dead and Gibbs stared at the phone in his hand.

"Vance wants to see me alone. Think something is wrong though." Gibbs turned to Abby.

"Jethro, I will help you up the stairs and to the director's office, then come back to wait for you here," Ducky interrupted.

"That's fine, Duck. Abs, I need you to call Tony and the rest of the team. Tell them to come back, and quick. I think we have guests." Abby gasped and went pale.

"You really think it's a good idea to go in there, Jethro?" Ducky asked sceptically.

"If I don't they will kill Vance; can't take the risk." Without saying another word he leaned over to give Abby a kiss on her cheek and Ducky helped him up the stairs, while Abby grabbed his desk phone to call the team.

It was a slow, painful journey, but eventually they got to the door. Ducky was about to turn around to leave when the door opened and the two friends found themselves staring into the barrel of a gun.

"Why, Gibbs, you brought a friend. How nice of you! Now get inside before I start shooting you all," a cold voice said from within.

Before I go, there is really a great South African singer by the name of Juanita du Plessis – you can find her on Google. Michelle is loosely based on my cousin (she wanted Tony for Christmas and since I don't own them, this was the best I could do) and Michelle's family is my own. I love bringing my family into my fics if I can; it's my way of honouring them. Thanks for reading, till next time, CSIflea.