Chapter 21

The ceiling swirled, refusing to give him anything to fix on. He knew someone was talking but the muffled noise just made it sound like his head was immersed in water. His eyes closed as the sickness swirled in his stomach.

He didn't know how long it was before they opened again; pulled unwillingly out of slumber by a voice he now recognised. This time the pine ceiling at least stayed still for a few moments before going out of focus.

"Tony, you've got to wake up!"

"What happened?" Tony mumbled. He tried to ease himself into a sitting position but stopped when the realised his hands were bound behind him.

Before he had time to think further, he rolled over and vomited into a bucket, placed on towels on the floor. He heaved some more before sitting back up, sweat coating his forehead.

Memories started connecting together like a jigsaw. He recalled driving to the lodge, talking to Steve and then... The next recollection was being face down on a bed, unable to move. His heart pulsed like a rapid drumbeat in his chest, as he recalled being paralysed; his mind still fully functioning, his body unable to move and his friend standing over him with dead eyes and a syringe in his hand.

Tony slowly turned his head to look at Steve who was sat in the armchair, his head resting on his hands.

"What happened?" Tony demanded.

"I couldn't do it."

"You expecting me to be grateful?"

"No, but I wanted to let you know my side before you got the chance to kill me." Steve's chuckled. His attempt at humour fell on deaf ears.

"I need to take a leak." Tony said.

"I'll give you a hand. You wont be able to walk properly yet." Steve got up and moved towards the bed.

"If it's all the same to you, I'd rather you didn't come anywhere near me." Tony awkwardly manoeuvred himself to sit on the edge of the bed. He bent his head down briefly as the room started spinning around him.

"Come on Tony!" Steve got his flick knife out, and noticed the involuntary flinch from Tony as he moved behind him to cut through the plastic binding, releasing Tony's wrists. He moved in front of him. "I know you don't want to hear it, but I had no choice." He was expecting Tony to be mad at him and use every expletive ever invented and probably a few extra, what he wasn't expecting was for Tony to launch himself at him. Fortunately for Steve, the drugs still inside Tony's system stopped him doing anything but fall into his arms. Steve eased him back onto the bed. Tony immediately stood up, using the bed as support. "Come on Tony, let me give you a hand." Steve said, as he went to grab Tony's arm. Tony tugged it back.

"Have you any idea how friggin terrifying it is to be paralysed like that?"

"Tony, if you'd just let me explain!"

"Explain what? How you were seconds away from putting a bullet through my head?"

"They've got Ali and Chloe."

Tony stopped. "What?"

"They're holding them hostage."

"Who?"

"You should have just done as they asked and let this go."

Tony ran his hands over his face and rubbed his eyes. "Steve, I'm sorry."

Steve returned to his seat, despair etched onto his pallid face. "Please tell me I made the right decision not shooting you. Tell me they're not going to kill my wife and daughter." A stray tear was quickly wiped away.

"Who are they?"

"I don't know. I didn't ask. When they have a gun pointed at your five year old daughter and have your wife tied, half naked to a bed, you tend not to ask anything other than, 'what do you want me to do?'" Steve looked up at Tony, his red rimmed eyes wide. "You gotta help me Tony. I don't know what to do."

OOO

Nova and Dorneget scuttled out of the conference room where Rosemary Sinclair and Kellock were sat waiting.

"Director Vance." Nova said, as he saw the Director walking towards the room. "Mrs Kellock's threatening us with personal legal action unless I tell her immediately why she has been asked to come in. I really think it would be wise to await the arrival of her attorney before attempting to speak to her." Nova expected Vance to readily agree with him, but instead he patted Nova on the shoulder and smiled.

"I have an outstanding debt Agent Nova." Vance said, as he moved to the door. "And I'm not letting these two stand in the way of me repaying it."

"Senator Kellock, I'm Director Vance." Vance walked up to Kellock and shook his hand, before taking a seat opposite. "And this must be your wife, Mrs Kellock." He turned to her.

"Also known as Rosemary Sinclair." She snapped. "What are we doing here Director Vance? Your agents were very non-committal, even when threatened with legal action."

He turned back to Kellock. "It's a rather sensitive matter Sir."

"Go on." Kellock said, raising an eyebrow.

"We're investigating the suspected murder of a Navy chaplain, by the name of Langton Mahoney. Our research indicates that he worked for your father when he was director of the Department of Health and Human Services."

"There must have been thousands of people working for my father, I doubt he met even half, never mind knew them."

"That's the conclusion we came to; it was a dead end, no need for further enquiry." Vance paused. "Only another recent suspected murder has is been linked to a programme your fathers department ran."

Vance noticed Kellock stiffen. His wife remained unchanged.

"What exactly do you want Director?" Rosemary asked. "Conrad's father is barely coherent, he certainly wouldn't be able to assist you in your investigation."

"I understand." He smiled at her, before again turning his attention to the senator. "What I was hoping was that you could tell me a little more of what he was involved in. We know Mahoney worked as a psychiatrist on the Second Chance Progamme and we know the other dead man, Colin Caller, was a participant."

Rosemary stood up. "We would really like to help Director, but Conrad's father never spoke of his job and we've never heard of Mahoney. Come on Conrad, the Director's wasted enough of our valuable time."

"Sit down Mrs Sinclair." Vance ordered. Vance retrieved a see-through evidence bag from his inside pocket. He lay it on the table, a sepia image of the White House clearly visible within.

"Is that card supposed to mean something to me?" She said, still standing.

"Maybe not you, but your husband?" He noted the subtle look of warning Rosemary gave her husband.

"I, I." Kellock stumbled over his words. "I don't check everything which goes out of my office."

"Who would think to send a condolence card reportedly from you, to a Navy Chaplain?"

"I don't know. I will need to speak with my secretary."

"We already did; she knows nothing about it."

"Your questions are bordering on accusatory and disrespectful Director. We will not assist any further, until we have our attorney present." Rosemarie said.

"Very well." Vance said as he stood. "Just before you go, I think I should make you aware that we also know of Mahoney's and Callers involvement in Project Sesen." Their sudden stillness and silence told him all he needed to know. "I'm sure I don't have to tell you what the publication of this information would do for both your careers." He turned to go. "You both had the motive and means to kill these two men, all I need now is to find out where you were when they were murdered. I suggest you take some time to consider your options." He stood in the doorway. "I'll make sure your attorney is called."

OOO

Tony took a sip of water, the nausea still swarmed in his stomach. "How long have you got?" Tony asked, placing the empty glass on the bed next to him.

"I need to call them in forty minutes with photographic proof that you're dead. I needed to make it look like suicide; something to do with you killing a woman and not wanting to go to prison."

"I didn't kill anyone!"

"I know. They promise to release Ali and Chloe as soon as they know your dead. Only I couldn't even get a damn signal here. I'd have needed to go to the local diner, about a mile back."

"We need to call Gibbs."

"No! No Tony." Steve shook his head. "It's too dangerous."

"We're never going to get back to your place in time. It's at least an hours drive. This is the only way."

"You didn't trust him to tell him what was going on with you, why should I?"

"Because I'm an idiot and you're not." Tony said. "I should have told him, actually I should have just left it, but they weren't telling me anything. I guess in the end curiosity got the better of me."

"And you know what curiosity did."

"Killed the cat."

"Or Ali and Chloe." The tears were now coating both of Steve's cheeks. He quickly tried to wipe them away, only for them to be immediately replaced by new ones.

Tony got up, swaying slightly. He walked over to Steve and gripped his shoulders tightly. "We call Gibbs, he'll get the FBI over there, they'll get Ali and Chloe. I promise."

"You can't promise that." Steve said, looking up at his friend, with red rimmed eyes.

"It's the best chance they've got. If you don't call them in forty minutes, it's over. You need to let me call Gibbs." Tony stepped back. He could see Steve toying with the options. He saw him slide his hand to the SIG sitting on the table.

Tony tried to grab it, but the nausea swept over him again. He dropped to his knees and vomited, this time missing the bucket completely. He regained control, wiped his mouth and looked up at Steve. He saw the weapon pointed at his head.

"I'm sorry Tony. I don't think I can take that risk."

"You know they'll kill them anyway; you're not naïve Steve." Tony knew he was pleading, not only for himself but for Ali and Chloe. There was no way they would be kept alive to tell the police what their captors looked like, smelled like, sounded like. He took a deep breath to try and regain his composure. "They'll kill them Steve. People like that don't leave any trace of where they've been or what they've done. Their only chance is if they're rescued." Tony heard the trigger being pulled back. He turned to look Steve in the eye. "You pull that trigger, it's over, for all of us."

Steve's vision blurred from the tears now filling his eyes. He was wrestling with his conscience; berating himself for not just pulling the trigger and saving his wife and daughter. But this was his friend, he loved the man like a brother.

His hand started to shake, as his finger pushed back further on the trigger. He screamed as he released it, the bullet firing from the cylinder straight into the mattress, just a foot to the left of Tony.

Tony let out an audible sigh as he swiftly took the gun from his friends open hand.

He needed to call Gibbs quickly if he had any chance of keeping his promise to Steve, and not make his friend rue the day he'd allowed him to live instead of his family.

OOO

Gibbs sped towards Fredricksburg, with McGee to his right and Ziva at the back. She was on the phone to Vance, while simultaneously hanging on to the door handle, as Gibbs shot another stop sign and made a sharp right.

She ended the call and tried to regain her equilibrium as her stomach felt like it had been left back at the other street.

"What Vance say?" Gibbs asked.

"He has left the Kellock's to consider their options, but he is hopeful that they will provide useful information."

"Is he bringing Corby in too?" McGee asked, keeping his eyes firmly on the road, as they approached a set of traffic lights at alarming speed. "Boss, please can you at least try to stop at one set of traffic signals?"

The vehicle came to a thundering halt, less than a foot from the line. "Good enough for you McGee?" Gibbs asked, as McGee turned white and bounced back into his seat.

"To answer your question McGee, while I am still alive to do so," Ziva said, "the Director does not yet have sufficient evidence to question Corby, but he believes the Kellock's will soon be implicating him, giving us reason to bring him in."

They continued on, soon passing a sign showing Fredricksburg in five miles. They'd moved out of the town, with it's traffic signals, and street signs every few feet, in what seemed like a determined attempt by the state to stop driving being in any way pleasurable or efficient. They were now cruising on open roads, with nothing but trees and the occasional building to break the monotony.

"Let us hope Tony has been keeping a low profile here." Ziva said. "This is starting to look like the kind of place where they like to deliver their own form of justice."

Gibbs phone rang. "Gibbs."

"Is that Agent Jethro Leroy Gibbs?"

"Close enough. Who's this?"

"My name's Steve Buchanan. I'm a friend of Tony's."

Gibbs veered towards the grass verge, causing a pick-up truck to swerve out of the way. The horn could be heard over the phone.

"Where is he?"

"I need your help Agent Gibbs. Tony told me to call you."

"Well that's the first smart thing his done for the last few weeks." Gibbs replied.

"They're holding my wife and daughter hostage. Tony said you'd help rescue them."

"Give me the address!"

"122 Collingwood Avenue. My wife's name is Ali and my daughter's Chloe. She's only five." Steve choked out the words. "There's three of them and I need to call them in twenty-five minutes otherwise they'll kill them. You've got to get there quick."

"Where's Tony?" Gibbs cut in.

"A cabin in Huntersville. If you meet me at DB's Diner on Huntersville Street, I'll take you to him. He's a little groggy from something I gave him, so he's sleeping it off."

"We'll be there in twenty."

"They'll be okay right?"

Gibbs hung up before dialling Fornell. "Need a SWAT team to 122 Collingwood Avenue. Mrs Alison Buchanan and her daughter Chloe are being held hostage. Alison's husband is a friend of DiNozzo."

"It's not DiNozzo holding them hostage is it?" His question was met with silence. "Okay, stupid question. I'll have a SWAT team there in fifteen. Keep you updated. Oh by the way, DiNozzo's become public enemy number one. Everyone's looking for him. If you haven't found him already, I suggest you hurry up and do it."

"Working on it."

Gibbs sped back onto the road and off in the direction of Huntersville, wondering if this day could get any worse.

End of Chapter 21