A/N Thanks for all the feedback! As always, special thanks to my beta "Gotta" for giving me a head slap when I needed it! You're the best!
Tim was thoroughly enjoying his bubble bath and stuck his bottom lip out in a pout when Gibbs announced it was time to get out. Even though he was shivering and his skin resembled a prune, it didn't stop him from wanting to stay in the tub. "Come on big boy, let's get you warmed up." Gibbs said as he reached into the tub to grab him.
However, Tim had another idea and before Gibbs could get a grip on him, he tried to scoot back further into the tub. As he did so, his tiny hands slipped on the bottom of the tub causing his whole body to slide forward. Before he knew it, a wave of water rushed over him, as his upper body slid under the water as well. After what seemed like ages, but in reality was only a matter of seconds, Tim felt a pair of strong hands pull him out of the water.
All he could think about was how difficult it was to breathe. Gibbs raised him over his shoulder, forcefully patting his back in an attempt to clear the water from his lungs. At one point Tim was coughing so hard he began gagging.
The older man winced as his little boy struggled to breathe. The exertion from coughing was becoming too much for his little lungs to handle. After several tense minutes, and a litany of "Attaboy" and other endearments Tim was able to get a majority of the water out of his lungs. His breathing began slowly improving once the coughing subsided.
Gibbs took a deep breath and exhaled as he sat down on the toilet seat and wrapped Tim in a towel. Tim kept his gaze on the floor as he began shivering, most likely from shock and not from being cold. "Shh Timmy it's okay, I'm right here, I gotcha." Gibbs soothed as he wrapped his arms around the youngster to calm him down. They sat there for several minutes, Tim still refusing to look at Gibbs. "Hey kiddo," Gibbs whispered as he used his hand to tilt Tim's chin up so he could make eye contact. "You scared me to death, don't ever do that again!" Tears welled up in Tim's eyes, he felt horrible for scaring Gibbs like that.
"Sorry Gib," Tim sniffled as he buried his face into Gibbs' chest and started sobbing. Gibbs tightened his grip and slowly rubbed his hand up and down Tim's back. "It's okay son, I just love you too much to see something bad happen to you." Gibbs could feel the little guy nod against his chest so he picked him up and carried him back to the bedroom. After he got Tim dried and in a fresh diaper, he pulled out the sleepers they bought earlier that morning. "Hey sweetie, which set of jammies do you want to wear tonight?" Tim blushed and pointed to the camouflaged sleeper, Gibbs laughed, "You're a smart boy, trying to get back in my good graces?" Tim smiled and nodded, "Work?" Gibbs raised his eyebrows, "Of course it worked; now let's get these on, it's time for bed."
After he had dressed Tim, he leaned out the door and called down to Tony and Ziva, "Hey, can one of you bring me a bottle?"
"Sure Boss, I'll be right up." Tony replied from downstairs.
Gibbs carried Tim over to the recliner while they waited for Tony. He began rubbing his tummy, "You look so cute! I'm glad you let me pick out a pair for you." There was a quiet knock on the door as Gibbs settled back into the recliner with Tim cradled in his arms. "Come in" he ordered as Tony stepped into the room and laughed. He grabbed Tim's leg and shook it, "Nice pajamas, Probie" Tim blushed and buried his face in Gibbs' chest. "I'll have you know, that I picked out this pair, DiNozzo." Tony gave a sheepish smile and laughed, "Hmm…I would have never guessed it boss." Gibbs took the bottle from Tony and held it to Tim's lips. He began sucking, immediately closing his eyes and snuggling closer to Gibbs."
"Tony, first thing tomorrow morning I need you and Ziva at the jail. We need the security footage to know what the Greys talked about. I want to see the tape, so call me when you've returned to NCIS." Tony nodded and closed the door to head back downstairs. Gibbs turned his attention back to his baby and began running his fingers through his silky soft hair. Tim was relaxed, but not asleep as he contently nursed on the bottle. Gibbs began slowly rocking the chair back and forth, hoping the motion would allow Tim to drift off to sleep. His thoughts gravitated to the situation in the bathroom earlier. There were only a few times in his life when he had been that scared. He wouldn't have been able to live with himself if something bad happened to Tim. He knew the youngster felt bad enough; Gibbs was not going to punish him further. After all Tim was just a little guy, more importantly his little guy.
Tim shifted in his arms; causing Gibbs to glance down, he was relieved to find Tim finally asleep. He kissed his forehead, held his boy tight and closed his eyes, enjoying the quiet time between them. Gibbs woke up an hour later, realizing he fell asleep in the chair. Tim was buried against his chest, sucking his thumb. He stood, groaning, as his entire body reminded him that he was no longer a spring chicken.
He carefully laid Tim in the crib, covering him with the blanket before going into the bathroom to get ready for bed. As Gibbs went about his business, he stopped dead in his tracks when he heard mumbling coming from the bedroom. He peered over the crib to see Tim rolling back and forth, 'fighting' an imaginary foe. He leaned over and laid his hand on Tim's back, hoping that his touch would reassure him that he wasn't alone. Sure enough, as soon as Gibbs touched him, Tim sighed and settled back into a peaceful sleep. Relieved, he finished up in the bathroom and hit the sack.
It wasn't until a few hours later when Tim's sobbing awakened Gibbs. He rushed over to comfort his little boy who was sitting in the middle of the crib rubbing his eyes. "What is it, baby?" he soothed as he reached over and picked him up. Tim's face clenched in pain, "Hurt Gib!" Gibbs turned on the bedside lamp and sat Tim in his lap. "Where does it hurt sweetie?"
A single tear trickled down Tim's face as he opened his mouth and pointed to a particular area. Gibbs took a closer look and noticed there was a small tooth just beginning to break through the gums. "Ahh kiddo, I found the culprit it looks like you have a tooth trying to come through. I'm going to go down and get the Tylenol. Sit tight I'll be right back, honey." Gibbs quietly made his way downstairs; Tony was asleep on the couch while Ziva stood guard. She stood up, hand already going for her gun when he waved at her to stand down. "Everything alright Gibbs?" She asked with a hint of apprehension in her voice. Gibbs sighed, "Everything is fine Ziva, looks like Tim is starting to teethe and is in pain. I came down to get him some medicine." Ziva followed him into the kitchen, "Aww poor little guy, is there anything I can do for him?" Gibbs shook his head as he grabbed the medicine out of the cabinet. "Hopefully the Tylenol will hold him over until Ducky can give me some ideas in the morning." Gibbs collected his supplies and headed back upstairs. "See you in the morning, Ziva. Thanks for being here, watching over Tim." Ziva nodded and returned to her seat in the family room.
Gibbs grabbed a fresh washcloth out of the linen closest and went back into the bedroom. Tim was lying on the bed, chewing on his fingers trying to soothe the pain in his mouth. Gibbs walked into the bathroom, wet the washcloth with cold water and headed back to Tim. He sat him up, measured the medicine and gave it to him without any objections. He folded up the washcloth and pulled Tim's fingers out of his mouth. "Here baby, why don't you try and chew on this washcloth instead of your icky fingers. The cold should make it a bit more soothing." Tim nodded as Gibbs put a corner of the cloth into his mouth, turned off the lights and propped himself up against the headboard with Tim resting comfortably against his chest. Within fifteen minutes, Tim was asleep once again as Gibbs removed the washcloth and slid them down so they were lying comfortably. The rest of the night was uneventful and the pair was able to make it to the morning without any other interruptions.
***NCIS***
Gibbs cell phone rang, waking the both up. He reached over, looked at the caller ID and sunk back into the bed. "Abby, what do you have for me?"
"Gibbs, it took all night but I was able to figure out who hacked into your personal files. Let me say, you're not going to like it."
Gibbs sighed, "Let me guess, one of the Greys? Could you tell which sister it was?"
"Correct El Jefe, based on my research it was Lucy. She didn't do a very good job of hiding her identity."
Gibbs ran his fingers through his hair, "Or she wanted us to know it was her."
"But Gibbs, why would she want that?"
"She's got a plan, Abby. I'm not sure what it is, but I intend to find out. Good job, get some sleep and we'll see you in a few hours."
"Thanks Gibbs, I'll see you guys soon."
Gibbs turned over to see Tim staring at him intently. "Hey baby, how is your mouth feeling? Do you need more medicine?"
Tim sniffled, "Hurt" as he scooted over, closer to the older man.
Gibbs pulled him against his chest and rubbed his back. "Let's get you changed and get some breakfast. Then we'll get you some more Tylenol. We need to go into NCIS today."
Tim frowned and shook his head.
"Listen kiddo, nobody has any idea this happened to you. If anyone asks then I'll just tell them you're my godson, like I did at the store."
Tim nodded, "That's my boy; now let's get ready so we can take care of that mouth."
Tim closed his eyes, trying to concentrate on not letting the pain bother him. His fingers instantly went to his mouth, until he felt Gibbs remove them and insert a cool washcloth. He sighed, as the cold caressed his aching mouth. After Gibbs was done dressing him he patted Tim on the belly and told him to stay put. Tim quietly lay on the bed sucking on the washcloth and before he knew it, he dozed off. When he woke up, he was being carried into the kitchen for breakfast. Tim whined as Gibbs set him down in the chair and ruffled his hair "Come on kiddo you can sleep later, after we eat." Tim slowly opened his eyes to see Jethro sitting next to the chair. While he waited for Gibbs to finish making breakfast, he gently ran his fingers through the dog's fur. A few minutes later, Gibbs brought breakfast over to the table. It once again consisted of oatmeal with a dash of cinnamon and a banana. He inhaled the oatmeal and started on the banana while Gibbs sipped on his coffee. Just as they were wrapping up, Gibbs' phone rang.
"Yeah, DiNozzo what is it?"
"Uhh boss" he stuttered then was quiet.
"Tony, what's wrong?"
"Sorry we were just watching the footage we got from the jail, and you really need to get down here as soon as possible."
Gibbs sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, "How bad is it?"
Tony was quiet, which he knew wasn't a good sign, considering Tony could never keep his mouth shut.
After a second Tony finally responded, "It's best you see it for yourself Gibbs."
"Fine, we'll be there in a half an hour."
After Gibbs hung up with Tony, he was careful not to show too much emotion around Tim. He was uncertain of what they were dealing with and didn't want to worry him for no reason. He packed up the diaper bag, got their coats out of the closet and brought them into the kitchen. "Alright kiddo, let's get you all bundled up." Tim looked at the coat Gibbs had in his hand and raised one eyebrow, with a certain look in his eye. Gibbs smirked at the eloquent look, so reminiscent of his grownup agent, and started to put the sensibly warm coat on him. Tim huffed at him and began squirming, making it extremely difficult for Gibbs to accomplish anything. He was becoming irritated at Tim's behavior, he understood that the baby's mouth hurt and he wanted something, but he was impatient to get to NCIS and just the simple task of putting on a coat shouldn't be this hard. After multiple attempts and multiple failures, Gibbs knelt down and rubbed Tim's back. "What's wrong with this coat?" Tim twisted his lips, shrugged his shoulders, "other" and pointed toward the family room.
Gibbs finally realized that Tim wanted to wear the black leather coat they bought the day before. He went to the closet, took it out and brought it back into the kitchen. Tim began clapping his hands and had a huge smile on his face. Gibbs ran his hand down his face, "Buddy it's a little too cold to wear this one." Tim frowned as tears welled up in eyes, "Pwease Gib" he pleaded. Gibbs had an idea, "How about this, you can wear this leather coat but only if you wear the heavier coat over it. That's the only way I'm letting you wear it. Do we have a deal?" He could tell Tim was mulling over the options carefully before he slowly nodded his head in agreement.
After bundling up, they headed out to the car. Tim yawned as Gibbs buckled him in the car seat. "That medicine must be kicking in kiddo." He ruffled Tim's hair before kissing his forehead, "Go to sleep sweetie. I'll let you know when we get to work." Tim nodded as his thumb slowly crept up to his mouth. Gibbs laughed as he started the car and took off toward the office. Twenty minutes later, Gibbs' stomach was doing somersaults as they pulled into the parking deck. The cryptic conversation he had with Tony was weighing heavily on his mind. He spent the whole drive deciding if he was going to let Tim see the tape from the jail. The reaction Tim had yesterday to the picture was terrible; he could only imagine what kind of metal state seeing this footage would put him in. Gibbs wanted to protect his little boy, but the other part of him knew that if he didn't let Tim see the tape he would be contradicting everything he told him and the team over the past few days. He parked the car and took a moment to collect himself. Tim was still sleeping so instead of waking him, he gently lifted him out of the car seat and carried him inside. Gibbs got a few odd looks from co-workers as they made their way up to the bullpen but nobody commented. They had worked with Gibbs long enough to know when he was in the mood for questions.
***NCIS***
Tim didn't stir as Gibbs walked into the bullpen, greeting both Tony and Ziva. Tony got up from his desk and walked over to the pair, "Hey boss, Timmy is knocked out I see." Gibbs nodded, "Poor guy is teething and it's causing him a lot of pain. I've been giving him Tylenol, but that seems to make him sleepy." Tony smiled as he gently rubbed his hand down Tim's back. "Would you mind if I took him boss? I really want to hold him again; you know - take Probie around and let him be my "wing baby", women love babies!"
Even though he knew Tony was joking, he couldn't help but laugh at the visual of his two boys picking up woman together, especially in Tim's altered state.
Gibbs nodded before quietly handing Tim off to Tony. The youngster barely opened his eyes as he was passed from one strong set of arms to another. Once Tim realized it was Tony that was holding him, he instinctively buried his face in the crook of Tony's neck and sighed. Tony smiled and rubbed Tim's back until he felt his breathing even out and he was asleep once more.
Once Gibbs was content Tim was back to sleep he turned his attention to Tony and Ziva. "So where's the tape? I need to see it right away." Tony and Ziva exchanged glances before Tony whispered, "It's down in the lab right now, I'll stay up here with Timmy if you want to go and look at it." Gibbs nodded as he and Ziva headed down to visit Abby.
They strolled into the lab as Gibbs deposited a fresh Caf Pow into Abby's hand and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Great job figuring out who hacked into our personal files, Abs!" Abby smiled; relieved to find that if she did what Gibbs asked he would slowly begin to trust her again. "Thanks Gibbs, but I know you didn't come all the way down here to thank me. I've got the tape cued up to the beginning of their conversation. They only spoke for a few minutes before Ella left."
Gibbs' heart was in his stomach as Abby started the tape. As the conversation started, he was stoic as they talked about how their plan was successful and how Tim had received a double dose of the drug, ensuring he would be a toddler much longer than a week. He cringed when Ella proudly described how she got close to them at the store. He wanted to slap himself up side the head for not realizing sooner the so-called "employee" was a threat. However, the part that bothered him the most regarding the sister's conversation was how Ella said she couldn't wait to hear Tim scream. Gibbs felt like he was going to lose it, before the tape finished he dashed out of the lab in search of the closest bathroom. By the time he reached it, he was sweating, light headed and hyperventilating. He steadied himself on the sink with two hands, praying for the room to stop spinning. While he worked to control his breathing, he was surprised when he looked in the mirror to see several tears running down his face. Can't remember the last time I cried he thought. Not wanting anyone to see him that vulnerable, he quickly turned on the faucet and splashed several handfuls of water over his face. After a few minutes of deep breathing, Gibbs composed himself enough to rejoin the girls in the lab.
Ziva and Abby had never witnessed Gibbs react that way to any of the cases they had investigated over the years so when he left the room in a panic they knew he was really upset. They were both worried when he returned to the lab looking like he had just seen a ghost. "You okay, Gibbs?" Abby asked as she put her hand on his shoulder. He gave her arm a squeeze, attempting to reassure her that he was fine. "I'm good, that was just very disturbing. Now I know why Tony wanted me to see it in person. Is there anything else between the two of them that I should know?" Ziva sighed, "The only other important information is that if Lucy does not get out on bail tomorrow, Ella has promised to still carry out the plan." Gibbs nodded, "Well after this conversation between the two of them, I plan on doing everything in my power to make sure she is not getting out. All right let's go back up to the bullpen and figure out a plan. Abby have you found anything useful in their emails, cell phone records or bank statements?"
She began clicking through numerous pages of emails and credit card statements. "I'm still looking Gibbs, but you'll be the first person to know, actually you'll be the second person to know because obviously I'll be th…"
"Abby!" he cut her off before she could continue babbling.
"Sorry Gibbs, I'll let you know if I find something."
He nodded as they left to catch the elevator up to the bullpen. When they arrived, Gibbs was relieved to find his little one still asleep, but Tony had removed his coats and Tim was lying in the crook of his arm. Tony was lovingly stroking his thumb across the top of Tim's forehead. "Did he wake up?" Gibbs asked as he gave the youngster a once over. Tony nodded, "He complained that he was hot so I took both of his coats off and he fell back to sleep fairly easily. Why was he wearing two coats anyway, boss?" Gibbs smiled as he thought back to earlier that morning when they had the argument regarding the coat. "Tim wanted to wear the leather coat we bought yesterday and I told him it wasn't warm enough so we compromised."
"Our little Timmy, trying so hard to be fashionable." DiNozzo cooed as he gently tapped Tim on the nose.
"So what is the plan Gibbs? We need to find Ella before she can get her hands on Tim. I have tracked down every lead we have on her, but it seems she has disappeared."
Gibbs was quiet for a moment while he gathered his thoughts. "We know that Ella has abandoned her house but did anyone bother to check Lucy's home?"
Tony and Ziva exchanged worried glances, before Ziva spoke. "No Gibbs we did not, do you think she could be staying there?"
Gibbs shrugged his shoulders, "It's worth a try. I doubt she would be that dumb as they supposedly already have a plan in place, but it wouldn't hurt to go look. In the meantime, I'm going to have a little chat with Vance about bringing Lucy Grey over here to interrogate her. I'm guessing once her bond is denied tomorrow, Ella is going to make her move to get Tim and I'll be damned if I let that happen."
Tony stood up, kissed Tim on the forehead and carefully handed him over to Gibbs. Before they turned to leave he whispered in Tim's ear, "Don't worry Probie, we won't let anything happen to you."
Gibbs smiled as he watched the two agents leave, then walked over to his desk and arranged Tim comfortably in his arms. He looked around to make sure nobody was watching before he leaned down and whispered, "I love you Tim, I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you safe." Not expecting a reply, Gibbs was shocked when Tim mumbled, "Lube you" before covering Gibbs' hand with his own and immediately falling back asleep.
Ella hummed while she tidied up the nursery in preparation for their newest arrival. She held up a pair of bib overalls and squealed with delight, "Agent McGee is going to look so adorable in these!" Ella continued to sort the clothes into different piles, each pile based on hanging or folding. After she finished with the clothes, she moved on to stocking the changing table. She opened a fresh package of diapers and stacked them neatly followed by a new container of baby wipes and powder. This nursery is so cute; our new baby won't want to be with Agent Gibbs anymore. In a few weeks time, he will have forgotten all about them and we'll be his new family she thought excitedly. Satisfied the nursery was ready to go, she pulled out the brown paper bag her 'contact' gave her the previous night. Ella's adrenaline pumped as she dumped the bag on the counter in front of her. Meticulously she lined up the handful of pre-filled needles and smiled as she ran her hand over each one.