Chapter 20
DISCLAIMER:- I do not own NCIS or its characters and no copyright infringement is intended.
Gibbs walked quickly from the bullpen and took the stairs to the Directors office. He nodded a greeting at the Directors' secretary, Cynthia.
"You can go right in Agent Gibbs," Cynthia advised politely, "The Director's waiting for you."
Gibbs opened the door and walked into Jenny's office, taking a seat in front of her desk while waiting for her to look up from the file she was reading. When Jenny didn't immediately fix her attention on him, his usual impatience took over.
"You wanted to see me Jen? Cause if you're too busy, I can come back," he said with not quite enough sincerity.
Jenny looked at him over the top of her reading glasses.
"Yes, Jethro," she replied, "I need an update on the Barnes and Cortez files."
"I sent you an update report on those files!" he was annoyed as he anticipated where this conversation was leading.
"That was a almost week ago, Jethro!" Jenny countered. "Are you telling me that there have been no leads since then."
"We've had leads," he said defensively. "Just no viable ones."
"I see. Are you following any viable leads now?"
Gibbs didn't answer, he just fixed one of his famous don't go there stares on her.
Jenny had known Gibbs for too long to let his stares intimidate her.
"Then, I'm going to have to insist that the files be marked as 'cold cases.' Our caseload has improved during the last fortnight but we have other cases to attend to. Your team has been working incredibly long hours for the last 14 days straight - take the weekend off, I need your team back on rotation on Monday."
Gibbs rose to his feet. "Jenny, you know this is not just any case," he argued, "You know we have a personal stake in this one."
"Yes I do, Jethro," she answered, "and believe me, I don't like this anymore than you do. However, without any new leads and with SecNav breathing down my neck, I simply don't have the resources to allow my Major Case Response Team to continue to work on this case!"
A moment of silence passed between them. He knew she was right - they'd had no new viable leads on the Barnes and Cortez files for over a week. Somehow, he was going to have to find the words to tell DiNozzo. Jenny seemed to read his mind.
"You're worried about Tony's reaction," she said simply.
"This will hit him hard. He won't like it."
"He doesn't have to like it, Jethro, hell, I don't like it either but I have no choice. We have other cases pending and we have a directive from SecNav." Her voice softened as she continued. "As soon as anything new breaks on either file, you're free to keep investigating, but until then….would you like me to tell him?"
"He's my Agent, Jen, I'll tell him myself," he said more harshly than he intended as he turned towards the door and left the office.
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Gibbs stood on the landing above the bullpen, watching his team below. Ziva and McGee were standing in front of one of the large plasma screens. They were crosschecking data to a separately sourced list Ziva had in a file. They were working hard but occasionally exchanged a grin or participated in a playful banter that was vital to maintain a semblance of sanity in this line of work.
DiNozzo was another matter and Gibbs was worried. Becky's death and the on-going investigation had been extremely hard on the younger man. There had been none of his joking or casual conversation for weeks. No flirting with Ziva or torturing of McGee. None of the usual DiNozzo style that counter balanced his own so well. It threw off the dynamic of the whole team. Tony was withdrawn and no one, not Gibbs, not Ducky or his teammates, could draw him out. Even Abby, who had always been able to cut through Tony's defences, could not get him to open up. Gibbs had never seen him so determined and so dark, for so long. It seemed the longer they went without a viable lead, the angrier, more reckless and more introverted he became.
DiNozzo's desk was completely covered in documents from both the Barnes and Cortez files, as he checked and re-checked for anything they may have missed, any new lead that could break the cases open.
Gibbs returned to the bullpen, stopping to collect the now cold cup of coffee from his desk. He walked past Tony's desk without slowing.
"DiNozzo, with me," he said, heading for the elevator. Ziva and McGee shared a brief questioning look then shrugged and returned to their work.
Tony was up and falling into step behind Gibbs almost immediately. They waited in silence for the elevator to arrive, and then entered the car. When the doors had closed, Gibbs hit the emergency stop button.
"Something wrong, Boss?" Tony asked. The muted light of the elevator car, accentuated how exhausted Tony looked. The lines and creases of sleepless nights marked his face.
"The Director has instructed us to mark the Barnes and Cortez files with cold case status. We're back on rotation on Monday," Gibbs said flatly, noting Tony's entire body tense and his normally expressive, green eyes appeared dark and flat. He had known this was coming.
"We don't have any viable leads and.."
"I can find one, Boss," Tony interrupted "I know I can. We can't walk away from this case while Becky's killer is still out there!"
"No-one is walking away, Tony," Gibbs stated, "The minute any new evidence comes to light, the case will become our highest priority, you have my word. But, in the meantime, we have other cases that deserve our attention."
Tony shook his head. As much as his own experience dictated that SecNav's mandate could not be avoided, he could not bring himself to accept it.
"She can't do this, Boss," he said, his anger building and his voice rising. "The Director can't do this to Becky! I promised Pete and Helen that we'd get this guy! I can't walk away from this – I won't."
The look of unmitigated defiance that appeared on Tony's face and could be heard in his voice stunned Gibbs a little. He had always liked that, when it mattered, the younger agent spoke his mind. Even if that meant the two occasionally butted heads, but this was not a difference of opinion, this was much more.
Gibbs walked directly into Tony's personal space, backing the younger man up until his back was against the elevator wall. His blue eyes hardened and narrowed as they burned into Tony's.
"If you intend to defy me, Special Agent DiNozzo," he hissed, "you tell me now and I'll have your transfer papers done in an hour!"
They remained in an uneasy, tension-filled silence for an uncomfortably long minute, with neither man backing down. Finally, Gibbs slammed the start button with his fist, signalling that their discussion was over – at least for now.
As they walked back into the bullpen and went to their respective desks, Gibbs snapped at Ziva and McGee.
"We're marking the Barnes and Cortez files with cold case status. Make sure your file notes are up to date. It's Friday afternoon - we're back on rotation on Monday".
Surprised by the news, both Ziva and McGee looked at Tony for his reaction, realizing how hard this would be for him. Tony did not meet their gaze. His head was down as he organized the documents on his desk.
"Now!!" Gibbs barked, sending Ziva and McGee scurrying to their desks.
Still reeling from the news, Tony had placed the remaining documents in the file on his desk. He closed the file and gently traced his fingers over the name "Rebecca Barnes".
"She can't do this," he whispered almost inaudibly. Suddenly he was on his feet and headed for the Directors office.
"God dammit DiNozzo!" Gibbs muttered before pushing back from his desk and following after Tony. He took the stairs two at a time, feeling the groan of his bad knees.
Tony had made it as far as Cynthia's office and Gibbs stood at the door, out of Tony's line of vision. Cynthia looked confused.
"I'm sorry, Tony," she said checking her diary, "was Director Shepard expecting you?"
"No, she wasn't expecting me," Tony replied, exasperation evident in his tone "I need to speak with the Director now Cynthia, it's very important!"
Cynthia chanced a quick glance to Gibbs, still standing in the outer doorway. He was firmly shaking his head, no.
She returned her attention to Tony. Her face took on an unusually guilty expression as she explained, "I'm sorry Tony. The Director's on a conference call and can't be disturbed"
Tony looked back at the doorway and saw Gibbs standing there. He immediately knew that Cynthia had been lying. His fists clenched in anger and he turned towards the door of the Director's office.
"DiNozzo!" Gibbs shouted. "You knock on that door and you can kiss your job good-bye. Is that what you want?"
Tony turned to face him, anger and frustration flushing his face with colour. "You know what I want!" he replied through his clenched jaw.
As Tony turned back towards the Director's door, Gibbs stalked across the office in three quick strides, placing himself between Tony and the door.
"Stand down, DiNozzo!" he barked in his best DI voice.
Tony gave Gibbs a mutinous look but stood still. Gibbs' voice took on a more patient tone as he explained.
"Tony, I know how hard this is. But we were given a directive, like it or not." He pointed to the Director's office. "If you ever try to go over my head again, I'll kick your ass back to Baltimore. Go home, Tony – get some rest. We'll see you on Monday."
Tony opened his mouth to say something else, thought better of it and turned on his heel and left.
Jenny had finished her telephone call and stood listening from the other side of the door. She wanted to speak with Tony, explain the situation, offer her sympathy but she knew that Gibbs would not thank her for it. As he'd told her many times, he could handle his own agents. She heard Tony walk away and opened her office door, inviting Gibbs in.
"I expected that Tony would not take the news well, but I must admit I didn't think he would ever come so close to defying you," she said softly.
"These people are his friends, Jen," Gibbs said in reply, "Becky was their life. I know what this case means to him."
Gibbs turned to look at Jenny and she saw a brief flash of hurt in his eyes. She knew he was close to DiNozzo but there was something more.
"How can you know what this case means to him?" she asked, immediately cursing herself for her momentary lapse in sensitivity.
Gibbs took a deep breath before answering. "Because I know what it's like to bury an eight year old girl," he said softly.
Jenny grasped his hand tightly for a few seconds before letting go. As she watched him walk from her office, a few traitorous tears were starting to sting her eyes, and she clenched them tightly shut for a moment until she regained her composure.
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