Chapter Twenty One
Jenny sat on the edge of Noah's bed stroking the little boy's hair as he slept. Gibbs stood over her watching, his hands resting on her shoulders. There was something peaceful about watching a child sleep that couldn't be explained. It had been a wonderful Friday night filled with fun and laughter. Noah was really starting to settle in and beginning to realize that Gibbs was on his side and wanted nothing but the best for him. He was learning what it was like to have a mommy who loved him and a family that supported him. For the first time in his life people actually cared about him.
"I need to talk to you about something," Gibbs whispered as he gently squeezed Jenny's shoulder.
Jenny nodded and brushed her fingers through Noah's hair once more before following Gibbs down to the living room. She was a little nervous about what he was going to say. Was it bad news? Was something wrong with Noah? Did he not want to work things out between them anymore? She sat down next to him on the couch and relaxed slightly when he took her hand in his. She thought that was a good sign. People normally didn't hold hands with the one they were getting ready to break up with, or did they? Was he just trying to let her down easy?
"Jen, are you with me?" Gibbs asked, noticing the distant look in her eyes.
"Yeah," Jenny said meeting his eyes, "sorry."
Gibbs watched her for a moment, making sure she was okay before he broke the news about Joshua. "I had lunch with Fornell on Wednesday."
"Yeah?" Jenny turned and smiled at him. Fornell was good. It meant nothing was wrong between them or with Noah. "What's he up to?"
"He just closed a case he thought I might be interested in," Gibbs said. "Brock Ellis was shot and killed last weekend when he broke into a house in Maryland and tried to rape the woman who lived there."
"Brock Ellis?" Jenny asked shaking her head as she couldn't place the name.
"Noah's biological father," Gibbs said.
"Oh," Jenny said stopping to think. "Noah just turned five. That means he would've been conceived nearly six years ago. Ellis is still out there after all that time?"
Gibbs nodded. "That's not all," he said. "Noah has three half-sisters and one half-brother."
Jenny searched Gibbs' face, unable to comprehend the news. "What?" she asked, sure she'd misheard him.
"All by different mothers," Gibbs said, "the women Ellis raped."
Jenny's eyes narrowed as her mind filled with questions. "Where are they? What happened? Does Noah know? What's— I don't…" she was finding it harder and harder to complete her thoughts.
Gibbs rested his hand behind her neck and started gently squeezing, trying to calm her. "The three girls were all given up for adoption when they were born," he explained. "They're all happy and healthy and neither them nor their adoptive parents know how they were conceived. The boy, Josh, is seven years old and he lives in a foster home nearby. D'Arcy said his mother could hardly take care of herself, let alone him. She says he's a great kid, smart, happy, eager to please. She said he's kind of like Noah, trying to learn how to be a kid again."
"Was he…" Jenny couldn't finish her thought. She really didn't want to say the words.
"No," Gibbs answered, knowing what she was trying to ask, "he was never molested or physically abused. He was neglected though. He became a ward of the state after being found scrounging through garbage cans looking for food. That was about a year ago."
"Have you met him?" Jenny asked. "Or, are you planning to? What are you thinking about doing?"
"I haven't met him yet," Gibbs said. "I have talked to D'Arcy though."
"Are you going to adopt him?" Jenny asked. There were so many questions spinning around in her mind. The news had caught her completely off guard. "Does Noah know?"
"Noah doesn't know yet," Gibbs answered. "I wanted to talk to you first." Jenny looked over at him, surprised by the statement. "I know things haven't gotten too serious between us since Paris but I don't see any reason why they won't and if you're going to be part of my life then I feel like we should talk this over."
"Wow," Jenny said. "Wow, I uh, if he's Noah's brother then I definitely think it's something you should consider. Rapist father or not, they're family. What do you think?"
"We're thinking along the same lines," Gibbs said starting to play with her fingers. "The fact that he's Noah's biological brother and living in foster care is a big deal for me. The girls are fine, they're happy and well cared for. I don't see any reason to disrupt their lives but if Joshua doesn't have a permanent family I'd like to give him one as long it's not going to have a negative effect on Noah."
"I agree," Jenny said. "The family you've built for yourself has so much love to give. I think that would be beneficial for Joshua and I couldn't think of a better father for a kid to have."
Gibbs smiled at the compliment as he snaked his hand around to her face, brushing his thumb lovingly across her cheek. Jenny leaned into his touch, bringing her hand up to rest on top of his. The two leaned closer until their lips met. Jenny's hands found Gibbs' face as she leaned into him and their kiss turned passionate. Their make out session didn't last long, both knowing they wouldn't stop if things went much further.
Gibbs loaded Noah in the car early Saturday afternoon after the chores had been done and the two headed for the Tidal Basin. It meant Noah would miss his nap but at five years old he was starting to outgrow naptime anyways. Gibbs wanted to take advantage of the last days of nice weather and explore some of the historical monuments in the area, knowing Noah had spent the majority of his life hiding in closets and under beds. The park was filled with other people, some tourists, some locals but it was big enough it didn't feel crowded.
Gibbs and Noah stopped at a concession stand and bought a couple hot dogs for lunch before starting their exploration. They headed for the Jefferson Monument and admired the statue with the others who had gathered. Noah was in awe of its size and listened carefully as Gibbs explained how it was a statue of a man who used to be the president long ago. Once they were done at the Memorial, they found a quiet place to sit alongside the water and rest their legs while Gibbs changed the conversation to something a little more important than the small talk they'd been passing the time with.
"Noah, what would you think about having a brother?" Gibbs asked, unsure about how to get the conversation going.
"Tony and Timmy are my brothers," Noah said picking at the grass in front of him.
"Uh-huh but what about a brother who was closer to your age?" Gibbs asked.
Noah scratched his head and thought about it. "I can have another brother?" he asked. "You will buy me one if I want you to?"
"You can't buy brothers, Baby Boy," Gibbs said running his hand through Noah's hair. He paused before continuing. "You have another brother, Noah. Your dad had another child."
"My other dad?" Noah asked. Gibbs nodded, watching his boy closely. "Mom sayed him was a bad guy and her sayed that I am just like him. I'm a bad guy too."
"You're not a bad guy, Buddy," Gibbs assured him. "Your mom was pretty sick and she should've never said those things to you because they weren't true."
"Where my brother is?" Noah asked.
"He's living with another family right now," Gibbs answered.
"Is him old like Tony?" Noah asked trying to comprehend why he'd never met this brother. "Does him has his own house?"
"No, he's seven years old," Gibbs said, "just a little bit older than you. He's living in a house where some other people are taking very good care of him."
"Why him don't live with me if him is my brother?" Noah asked.
"Nobody knew you were brothers until a couple days ago," Gibbs explained, wondering how much of this Noah was actually comprehending.
"I can play with him?" Noah asked.
"Do you want to play with him?" Gibbs asked.
Noah thought for a minute. "Is him nice?"
"Well, I've never met him but Ms. D'Arcy says he's very nice," Gibbs said.
"Is him gonna live with us now?" Noah asked. "Are you gonna be him's new daddy?"
"Would you like him to come live with us?" Gibbs asked.
Noah stopped to think again. His piercing blue eyes met Gibbs' and a serious expression spread across his face. "Will you still love me?"
"Noah, I will always love you," Gibbs said. "Nothing anybody ever does will change that."
Noah smiled as Gibbs pulled him into his arms and kissed his head. "I thinked that him can come and live with us if him is nice."
Gibbs smiled and kissed the top of Noah's head again. "I'll go talk to Ms. D'Arcy next week. There's some complicated adult stuff we have to work out but we'll see what we can do. Okay?"
"When him is coming?" Noah asked.
"It's going to be a little while, Buddy," Gibbs said.
"We can go picked him up today," Noah suggested.
"I need to talk to Ms. D'Arcy first," Gibbs said. "We need her to help us with some paperwork."
Noah nodded as if he understood even though Gibbs suspected he didn't. "Is him lookin' him's family?" Noah asked.
"I don't know, Kiddo," Gibbs said.
"I think that I can share my new Mommy with him," Noah said.
Gibbs smiled as he wrapped Noah tighter in his arms. "You are such a sweet little boy," he whispered into his hair. "I think I'm the luckiest daddy in the world."
After spending a good part of the afternoon exploring the Tidal Basin on foot and skipping his naptime, it was obvious Noah was struggling to keep his eyes open. The two of them headed back to the house, stopping to pick up a pizza on the way. By the time Gibbs parked the car in his driveway, Noah was nearly asleep in the backseat. Gibbs put the pizza on top of the car then got Noah out and they headed into the house.
"Take your shoes off, Buddy, then we'll have some pizza."
"A pizza smells yummy!" Noah said starting to wake up again.
"It sure does," Gibbs said toeing off his shoes then walking into the kitchen with Noah following close being him. He pulled out two paper plates, helped Noah wash his hands in the kitchen sink then the two sat down at the table and devoured the pizza. The hot dog they had for lunch didn't do much to fill them up and all the walking around and playing in the park had made them very hungry. Gibbs even let Noah have a Pepsi with his dinner, thinking the sugar and caffeine wouldn't have too much of an effect on the tired little boy.
After getting their fill of pizza and soda, Gibbs put the one leftover piece in the refrigerator and cleaned up the trash. Noah had found his second wind and was ready to play some more. Gibbs decided they could have a campout in the living room. He and Noah built a simple version of a tent with a large sheet and spread out a couple sleeping bags under it. Gibbs retrieved a flashlight for each of them then built a fire in the fireplace and collected everything they'd need to make s'mores. He knew he might regret giving Noah more sugar when bedtime rolled around but he was willing to take the risk. He wanted it to be a fun night.
They both changed into their pajamas then spent the evening making s'mores, telling silly stories and making shadow puppets using their flashlights. When Noah started slowing down again Gibbs knew it was a good time to start thinking about bed.
"Do you want to sleep down here in our tent or upstairs in your bed?" Gibbs asked.
"Will you sleep down here too?" Noah asked not wanting to be left alone.
"I sure will," Gibbs said, "I bet Scout will too."
Noah smiled and crawled into his sleeping bag. He was having a blast camping out in the living room with Gibbs and Scout and didn't want to go to sleep yet. He decided to just lie down for a couple minutes to watch cartoons and relax until he felt like getting up again. "You has to get in your 'leeping bag too, Daddy," he said.
Gibbs smiled as he scooted into his sleeping bag then kissed Noah's forehead. He knew the little boy didn't plan on falling asleep yet but he also knew how exhausted he was, despite all the sugar he'd had that evening. Sure enough, a short time later Noah was snoring softly while Goofy was attempting to learn how to ski on the TV screen. Gibbs stopped the movie, checked the fire that was dying out then climbed back into his sleeping bag and grabbed his book to read until he fell asleep.