Hey readers! So, I read all of the reviews I got for the last chapter, and I was so encouraged by the number of people that wanted me to update that I decided to write this as soon as possible! I hope you like this chapter too, readers!

Enjoy!

Andy sighed as he lay across the back seat of the NCIS Charger, his arms wrapped around his ribs as he groaned quietly. He was in so much pain…

Tony just stared at the person. "Andy…?"

Andy opened his eyes before turning his head. His eyes were wide in shock.

"Tony?!"

Tony just continued to blink, still in a state of shock. He could not believe this. Just after he had been going on about how he had lost Andy, and there was no chance of getting him back, the teenage boy had appeared out of nowhere.

Yes, he had been bruised, cut, and probably had some broken bones, but he was alive.

Alive.

The freaking boy was alive.

Forgetting about what Andy had said earlier about something hurting, Tony quickly reached over and pulled the beaten and battered boy into a hug.

Andy hadn't been expecting the hug, so he was too shocked to protest when he actually received it. Instead he leaned into the embrace, missing the feel of such human contact, and closed his eyes, tears beginning to form.

He just didn't know whether the tears currently rolling down his cheeks were from relief at his own safety, or pity for Alex's recapture.

"God, Andy…"

Ziva walked over to the pair and knelt down beside them before hugging them both.

Andy moved to bury his face in Ziva's shoulder before beginning to sob, everything overwhelming him.

Ziva rubbed Andy's back slowly. "Let's go home," she told him quietly, a small, rare, loving smile on her face.

Andy nodded before pausing, a sudden thought hitting him. "What about Alex?" he asked quietly, barely able to trust his voice.

Tony frowned. "Alex?" He looked around desperately for the other teen. "Where is he?" he demanded.

"He… he got recaptured whilst we were trying to escape…" Andy explained.

There were gunshots coming from just around the corner of the building, and both Field Agents' eyes widened.

Ziva stood. "Let's go," she commanded, the warm smile that was once on her face immediately disappearing.

Andy frowned. "But Alex—" he started.

"You are in no condition to be of any help to him at the moment, Andy," Ziva pointed out. "Let's get you patched up and then we can come back for him."

Andy voiced his fears. "What if it's too late?"

Ziva paused for a few seconds, contemplating how to answer. "It will not be." She helped Andy to his feet. "Trust me."

Andy seemed to doubt her for a few seconds before nodding. "Fine…"

Tony stood and brushed himself down before smiling at the two. "Let's go." His eyes widened when he heard more gunshots.

Ziva nodded as she began to pull Andy in the direction of the gates our of the warehouse and the car. "And let's hurry."

"We'll be back at NCIS in no time, Andy," Tony said as he looked back at the teen. "Just hang in there, okay?"

The only reason why Tony had said this was because Ziva was driving, and she wasn't just driving at her regular speed.

No, she was driving at double the speed.

Tony closed his eyes tightly as she swerved around a corner at top speeds, the tyres smoking and skidding as she attempted to keep the car upright.

Andy managed to nod as he groaned quietly. His ribs were killing him now… and not only that, but the sudden exposure to the light had given him a headache that wouldn't go away. He gripped his ribs tighter as his eyes closed tightly. "Uhhhhh…" he groaned.

Tony opened his eyes to glance at the teenage boy, who was now getting paler and paler by the minute, before looking over at his co-worker/girlfriend. "I think he's getting worse, Ziva…"

Ziva nodded and floored the accelerator, making them go even faster as they headed back to the base.

Tony winced before picking up his phone and dialling number 5 on speed dial. He put the phone to his ear and waited patiently, smiling when the other person picked up. "Hey, Duck? We need you to get to NCIS a.s.a.p. …" He bit his lip and glanced back at Andy. "It's an emergency."

Andy managed to crack open one eye. The pain was beginning to overwhelm him…

He didn't remember when he passed out.

When Andy next woke up, he found himself lying on one of the tables in Autopsy. He had a pounding headache, and his chest hurt terribly as he lay weakly on the table. He wasn't wearing a shirt, and he looked down to see that his chest was wrapped with a bandage. He carefully began to sit up.

"Woah, there, my lad!" A hand came down on his shoulder and carefully began pushing him back down… the shoulder that had been dislocated.

Suffice to say, it was still a little sore.

Andy winced as he was pushed back down before he lay there patiently, looking up at the M.E. in slight annoyance.

Ducky just smiled softly at the teen. "How are you feeling, Andrew, my lad?" he asked Andy.

Andy took a deep breath before wincing and closing his eyes. "Great…" he lied.

Ducky nodded before going to pick up his clipboard. He read through it as he returned to Andy. "From what I have observed, you have some broken ribs, many bruises and cuts, and a concussion…" He raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything else that I should add?"

Andy looked up at Ducky before sighing. "I had my shoulder dislocated… but Alex popped it back in…" His eyes widened and he sat up quickly. "Alex! Ow…" He winced and wrapped his arms around his ribs.

Ducky frowned. "Slow down, my lad! You aren't fully fit yet! In fact, I was the one who suggested we take you into hospital!" He sighed. "You are lucky Anthony and Ziva stopped me from doing so!"

Andy blinked at Ducky, only just registering what he said, before moving to stand up. "I need to get back to Alex! He's still in there!"

"Still in where?" Ducky asked curiously as he pushed Andy back to sit him on the table.

"The warehouse! They recaptured him! And—"

Suddenly the doors to the Autopsy room opened, and both males turned to see Gibbs storm in, anger in his eyes.

Andy's eyes widened and he paled. Oh no…

"Where the hell have you been?!" was the first thing he exclaimed as he stormed over to Andy, who was still sitting on the table.

Andy stared at him wide-eyed. "Uh…"

"Do you know how worried I've been?!" Gibbs exploded. "I've been searching for days, Andy! Days! Day and night! Do you know how little I've slept?!"

"Missed you too, dad," Andy muttered, just loud enough for Gibbs to hear.

Gibbs froze, the words just registering. And then it clicked.

Andy was back.

His son was home.

He ran over to the boy and pulled him into a tight hug, his eyes closed tightly as he relished in the fact that he was able to hold his boy again.

Andy's eyes were wide, but he melted into the hug, hugging his father back and burying his face in his shoulder. He didn't even try to hold back the sobs that escaped as he cried into Gibbs' shoulder.

Gibbs rubbed Andy's back gently before kissing his hair in a fatherly manner. He buried his face in his son's hair – it was filthy, but it was Andy's. He had missed touching it…

The two embraced each other tightly for a few minutes before Gibbs pulled away, looking his son straight in the eye.

"Right. Let's get you to a hospital," Gibbs said, beginning to pull Andy off the table.

Andy's eyes widened, and he pulled out of his father's grip. "No."

Gibbs frowned as he turned back to face Andy. "'No'?" he asked. "Whad'ya mean 'No'? Do you know how many injuries you have, how terrible you look?"

"And do you know how many injuries Alex has?" Andy retorted. "Alex is stuck in there, dad! He gave up his freedom to let me escape! I'm not letting him die for something that was partly my fault, Gibbs!"

Gibbs tensed. It had been a while since Andy had referred to him as Gibbs… over a year, in fact. And that meant he was serious. He sighed. He really wanted his son to be safe before he did anything drastic…

"If you save Alex, you can get the guy who murdered the Petty Officer too," Andy pointed out, a small smirk on his face. He knew Gibbs couldn't resist catching a killer.

Gibbs' ice cold eyes hardened and he stared at Andy. "You know how to get to the place?"

"Everyone knows how to get to the place," Andy shrugged. "It's just getting in and manoeuvring that I have as an advantage."

Gibbs noticed the glint in his eyes and smirked.

Andrew was out for revenge.

Alex hung his head in defeat.

He was tied to a chair in the middle of a plain white room.

White floors, white walls. White everything.

The only thing that wasn't coloured white was the metal door in the corner, which was a dark silver that stood out from the rest of the room.

Alex looked around the room, taking his surroundings into account.

There weren't any windows in the room that led outside, which crossed out that form of escape, but there was a ventilation system. This one seemed far newer than the one that had been in the cell room, and much cleaner too.

It was a shame that he was tied to the chair.

There was no way that he could get out.

He sighed.

Just as he ended that train of thought, the silver metal door – which was heavy from the sound of it – was opened and some guards walked in, all looking as burly and threatening as ever. Not long after they had entered, Walker followed, holding his favourite weapon – his whip – and cracking it against the harsh white floors. A faint trail of blood was left behind where the whip had hit the ground, and then it was wiped away with Walker's foot as he walked over to Alex. He put his hand under Alex's chin and tilted his head up sharply so that their eyes met.

"Ah, Alex…" he smirked evilly, "…it seems like your little… friend has ditched you." He squeezed Alex's jaw tighter. "I guess that means you're all alone… not that it's anything new, right? You've always been alone in this world…"

Alex tensed, trying to keep his mind straight and away from temptation, or depression… or hurt…

The blinding floors and walls were off-putting, and the fact that Walker was gripping his chin tightly and forcing him to look into his crazed eyes didn't make it any easier for him to control his feelings. So, he did what he did best.

He spat in Walker's face.

Walker reeled back, wiping the teen's slightly bloody saliva from his face before glaring at him harshly. "You will pay for that, Alex Rider," he snarled, his face dark. "You will pay." He turned on his heel and headed out of the room. Just as he was about to exit, he turned to his guards. "Show him no mercy," he commanded before slamming the door shut behind him.

Alex tensed even more as the door slammed shut, and the guards turned on him, sinister smiles on their faces. He narrowed his eyes at them challengingly, forcing confidence into his eyes.

"Bring it."

Gibbs sighed as he watched his son get up from the autopsy table and walk around, muttering to himself.

"We need to get to the compound… but we need to be prepared… we need backup… and weapons…" Andy muttered, thinking deeply as he paced.

Gibbs sighed. "Andrew…"

Andy continued to pace and mutter.

"Andrew…"

"Maybe we need a whole squad…"

"Hey! Parkson!"

Andy froze before turning slowly to face Gibbs. "Yes, sir?" he asked, frowning a little.

Gibbs smirked. "Chill."

Andy snorted. It had to be the first time that he'd heard Gibbs use slang… and it would probably be the last. "How can I 'chill'? My friend… my best friend… is captured! He's probably being tortured! No, he's definitely being tortured! And he's probably being all smartass in the process!" he snapped. "We need to get him out!"

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at Andy. He'd never really seen Andy this agitated about anyone's safety before… other than Jessie's. "And we will, Andy."

"How?!" Andy demanded. "How will we?!"

Gibbs smirked and walked over to his son, his hands in his pockets.

"We send you in."

A slow grin spread across Andy's face. "Dad… that is the best idea you've had all day."

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