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You're to Blame

You are to blame for anything that is good in my heart. You are to blame for this change that has taken me by storm. - Mercy Me

Chapter Twenty-one – January-July 2002

Saturday January 5, 2002

It wasn't very common to share your birthday with a parent, but Kristina and Jeremy were such people. Turning thirteen was a big deal to Kristina. Jeremy's thirty-second wasn't so much... well, except for Abby who made every birthday into something that had the be celebrated.

Kristy wasn't really that into celebrating her birthday. A lot of the time they were away from the family and it was just her, her dad, and Uncle Tony. Often her gifts were usually sent to Grandpa Jethro's house for safe keeping until she came home to open them... it was the same with the two adults as well. That was just how life was when you are constantly moving.

Alice had once asked her if growing up like that was lonely. But that wasn't the case at all. Kristy had a lot of friends. Granted she only spoke the via IM, chat rooms, and e-mail. It depended on what timezone she was currently in. Though it was near impossible for her to see them again since they didn't actually know her name.

She liked having her small family dinners. It wasn't as though she was very extroverted or that she lived to he the center of attention. Not that she was shy. She just didn't like everyone's eyes on her. It was part of her 'training' when she found out about the family's greatest secrets. 'Lesson one' was don't use names when talking about the family unless the outsider knew about the familial bound. Such as Abby and Ducky knowing that Kristina thought of Tony as an uncle. They didn't know that he was her godfather. Not that it would have been a huge deal if they did know.

Abby didn't get that memo and started asking how many guests they were expecting at the party she didn't know she was having. The goth deflated slightly when she was told that only family was going to be there. But Abby got her enthusiasm back when she was told that she invited as well as Ducky.

It would just be trickier with the younger two. Only Addison was old enough to understand the 'lessons', not to be confused with the Gibbs' family rules... which was an odd thing to call them since only two of them were actually Gibbs and one of them was pretending that he wasn't. Peyton was intelligent like everyone else in the family but he was still very young. It was a lot to ask from to not call Jethro 'grandpa' in front of outsiders. Fortunately, Darby wasn't that much of a talker in front of strangers. And Abby was a strange as you could get from her preppy little world.

Jeremy had to explain explain to Abby and Ducky why they were having a family gathering at Gibbs' house. Though all he had to say was that Jethro had the biggest house that hadn't been taken over by toys. That appeased Ducky's curiosity but Abby still thought that it was a bit odd.

Laughter was heard from the house when Abby and Ducky arrived. It wasn't usually a sound that they associated with the hard nosed Gunny they knew. Not that they thought that he was an unhappy person. That was the furthest from what they believed.

For Abby, it was the first time she seen Gibbs in a domestic setting. She heard stories from Stan Burley and Ducky about how he was like around kids but to actually witness it... it fit. She had never seen him so relaxed. Of course they were usually hunting down killers and other bad guys but she had seen him during his down time as well. But this was different. This was, in all the ways that she witnessed, was family. It was a little shocking to say the least.

"The difference in him is remarkable, isn't it, my dear?" Ducky said from behind her, causing Abby to jump.

"Gees, don't sneak up on me like that. It's bad enough that Viv is the only agent on Gibbs' team that can't do that to me. I don't need you to do it as well."

"I apologize." He smiled in amusement. She was right. Quite often he would find one of the men on Gibbs team in autopsy or in his office and not know that they were there unless they said something. It was very discerning since he had pressurized doors. They did tend to announce whenever someone entered his domain.

"You are right though. I have never seen Gibbs like this before." She did feel a little jealous.

"I can say the same." Abby quirked an eyebrow. "I have seen him happy, especially around Anthony and you. But now, he seems to be in his element." They watched as he tossed Darby into the air. The tiny girl squealed in delight. Ducky's smile softened. "He does seem to be a natural with her."

Little did they know, Tony heard everything that they said. He now knew that they had to be a little more careful around them. He knew that he could trust them with his life but it was too much to ask him to trust them with something personal... at for now it was. Tony didn't care that he was under orders from the director not to say anything, not anymore.

Wednesday January 16, 2002

Tony was once again going through the Holocaust murders. He still winced at the name. One time he went to Morrow to get the file name changed since they victims really weren't Jewish anymore but that was a total failure. All that matter was what these people once were and Tony thought that was wrong.

Reading the files he noticed something that he missed before. He didn't have a name but he did have an idea about who it could be... at least a job title anyways. The families never got a name of the victims new 'Christian friends' but they all seemed to have that in common. The chance that they were the same friends in each case seemed to be unlikely. Tony wasn't so sure of that anymore. He, nor did his dad, believed in coincidences. It was all the more likely that one of those 'Christians' was a chaplain. Finding the right chaplain was going to be the problem.

Now all he had to do was find some proof.

Monday January 21, 2002

Tony's research had to be put on hold again. Another mass grave had been found. Fortunately, if you could find anything fortunate in murder, there were only five bodies in this grave instead of the twenty-three that were found in the first mass grave. Unfortunately, each body had a crumpled sheet of paper that had a typed note. Each one said the same thing, 'Don't try to find me. I doing this for the greater good. It will all work out for the better if you leave me alone.'

"He's taunting me." Tony slammed his fist against the ME's truck. Luckily he didn't cause a dent or Ducky would have been

"HEY!" yelled Jethro. "You need to calm down. I can't have you on this case if you're going to react like that."

Tony hung his head, properly chastised. He didn't apologized. "I know, Boss. I can do this. I have to be on this case."

"Why this case? Why is this one so important to you?"

He looked around making sure that no was around to listen in on them. No one knew about what he was tell him. "I never really told you what it was like living in Israel. This was the kind that happened all the time over there. People were constantly being killed or targeted because they were Jewish. Back here, at least until recently, it wasn't all that obvious that people were targeted for their religion. Sure, I noticed racial prejudice, experienced that myself, being called a mafia wannabe from time to time since I'm only half Italian." That was news to Jethro. "But no one really cared is someone was Jewish or converted from Judaism. I had always hoped that I wouldn't have to experience all of this again.

"Please, don't take me off from this case. I know that I'm about make a break through... I just need a little time to go through the list.

"Alright. Keep your head on straight and you can stay on this case. We all know how useless Blackadder can be."

Tony let out a small chuckle. "Still trying to get rid of her. You know that she isn't that bad. Ducky seems to really like her. She probably has some issues." Tony narrowed her eyes. "You know what they are."

"Yep."

"Going to share?"

"Nope."

Tony stuck out his tongue earning himself a head slap. "I'm really getting too old for those."

Monday February 5, 2002

For the first time since getting the Holocaust case it seemed as though they finally had a lead that was worth following. Tony found a name for the possible chaplain that befriended the dead sailors. Lieutenant Nikolaas Timotheus Alders was a Dutch national based at Oceana. His father was a very strict pastor of a tiny Lutheran church. He grew up in the Netherlands during the 1950's. The late Grandfather Alders was also a pastor that remembered the Holocaust very well and told stories to his grandchildren. Lt. Alders was expected to follow the same path as the other men in his family as he was the oldest son but confused when he joined the Navy. They were appeased when he became a chaplain's assistant and then a regular chaplain after he finished college.

Now all they had to do was find the man. It seemed that he went on leave and didn't tell anyone where he went. Not willing to wait until he got back in case he decided to start killing again, Tony and Viv were given the task to track the chaplain down.

Things like that were always easier said than done.

Thursday February 7, 2002

It was by pure coincidence (though Tony would never say that to Jethro's face) that finally caught up to Lt. Alders. They had been keeping taps on the Lieutenant's mother's phone. He finally caller her and they got his address. He was holed up at a hotel in Tega Cay, South Carolina, which was only twenty miles south of Charlotte, North Carolina. They had no idea why he chose that particular suburb. It wasn't all that close to any bases.

Now though, Lt. Alders was cooling off in the interrogation room. The three agents and Jeremy were watching him from observation. His head was bowed and his hands were folded in prayer.

"Jeremy, Viv, you two stay in here. Tony this one is yours." Jethro clamped a hand on his shoulder and steered him toward the door.

"Really!" smiled Tony. Doing an interrogation was a rare treat. Jethro only glared at him. "Of course I'm going it. You wouldn't tell me that unless you meant it, Boss. I'll be going now. Yeah, I'm gone." Jethro only shook his head at Tony's ramblings. That did seem to happen a lot.

Jeremy was worried about letting Tony do this interrogation. He kept his mouth shut in front of Vivian but he knew that Jethro could sense his unease. He knew that if Jethro thought Tony could handle it then he had to have faith that he could.

It was only a few minutes later that Tony entered the room. He sat down across from the suspect. Alders didn't even look up. Being so close, Tony could see the man's lips move. He tired to read them but they were moving to fast.

"If you want to talk you have to speak up," snapped Tony. Viv was surprised with the behavior she usually associated with Gibbs. It wasn't as stern and gruff but she could see it. "Well, what were you saying."

"My words were meant only for the Lord." Alders finally looked up.

"Then say something that isn't meant only for the Lord. Like why you killed all of these people." He opened the file Jethro had given him and pulled out the list of all victims' names and stats. He slide it under Alders nose.

"This isn't all of them." The confession surprised the four of them. None of them thought it was going to be that easy. But the fact that there were more frightened them. "These are only the salilors that converted. I remember many more."

"How many more?" demanded Tony.

"Three more graves sites. Each had twenty-three bodies. My last one was interupted. I'm that it was you." Tony didn't confirm or deny it even though it was him who put a stop to the murders. "Twenty-three is a very powerful number."

"Why did you do it?"

"I was saving them. My grandfather did so much for the Jews back in Holland. He risked everything so that they could worship their god. They should be thankful that they could and leave mine alone. The Jews have a god, they don't need ours as well. I need to complete my mission so that they can be worthy to go to heaven. The converters need me to save them."

"It's the same god." He did believe that the Jews and Christians believed in the same god. Jethro taught him that a long time ago. "It isn't up to you to decided if those people lived or died."

"You're right it wasn't up to me. The Lord told me to look for converters."

Jethro looked over at Jeremy to get his thoughts on Lt. Alders.

"If he thinks God is talking to him, he needs to get looked at. Mental illnesses aren't my strong point. If I have to hazard a guess, it not psychopathy. Psychopaths don't usually show empathy. This man thinks he's saving his victims."

Jethro glared at him before he started spouted off information that really wasn't relevant to the case. Besides, he knew what a psychopath was. He didn't need Jeremy reminding him in front of Blackadder. She already thought that he wasn't book smart enough to be an agent. "I don't care what it is. Will it cause be enough get JAG to ask for a insanity plea."

"I don't know for sure. It will only be decided once he's diagnosed. That won't be by me. He needs to see a specialist."

"I want this man in jail. He's killed nearly a hundred people. Tell JAG that I don't care how they do it." but they will do it."

Saturday March 17, 2002

No one was quite sure how the Hayes could afford their new home. Neither Alex nor Samantha came from wealthy families like Tony and Jeremy had. In fact, Alex was a elementary teacher for Special Education students and Sam was a nurse. However, despite that they were moving into a large house with seven bedrooms and three bathrooms, that included the master rooms. Tony wasn't sure what they were trying to prove with moving into such a large house.

Sam wanted to move into a bigger house before the baby was born. It didn't matter to her that the baby wasn't due until the end of June. She had to get everything done before then.

Which explained why she had everyone come over to help organized the new house, especially the nursery.

Tony didn't know how wise it was for Sam to let the kids pick out their own bedrooms. Peyton may have been very protective of his big sister but that didn't mean he wasn't equally competitive with her. He wanted the same room as Addison, not because he genuinely wanted the room but because Addison claimed it first. He had just turned seven the week before and thought that even though it wasn't his birthday he still had the right to use that to make demands. It was Alex that came to the rescue.

"If you two can't stop fighting then I'll make this the baby's room. So I make myself clear."

"Yes, Daddy." In the end, neither of them wanted the room. Addison found one that had walk in closet and Peyton's new room had a bench that could act like a toy box. Darby's room had a huge (for the species) Persimmon tree outside her window.

Tony and Alex were in charge of the baby's room. Since they wanted the gender to be a surprise, they kept the walls white. The other kids all had their own color of blankets from when they were newborns so Sam wanted this one to be the same. Addison had yellow, they were lucky to have picked green for Peyton, and Darby's color was orange. Not that many colors were considered to gender neutral so it was hard to pick a color for this one. It was Jethro that suggested that they used creams. He said that he was inspired when he saw Blackadder pouring a creamer in her coffee. He may like his coffee black but he had to admit that it was a nice color for a baby's blanket, not that he would.

It wasn't that often anymore that it was just the two of them. More often than not, Jeremy would be with them. Alex didn't mind but he did enjoy his time alone just the two of them. Though he would never say something like that out loud.

Sunday March 31, 2002

The team had the day off. After having back to back cases and solving two cold cases they were glad to have a break. Some days they even had to spend the night. During those cases Kristina would occasionally come to the office to bring the team something to eat. It was a shock for Blackadder the first time she did that since she still didn't know she existed.

It was Easter. That morning Tony and Jethro went to Arlington to place a stuffed animal on gravestone. Tony picked out a little bunny that bore a striking resemblance to the one that Shannon got her that first Easter they spent together.

When they got back they called Jeremy and Kristina. It wasn't a day that spent with the rest of the family. No one really knew why, it was just how things were. Tony thought it might have something to do with the fact that they didn't get to spend that last Easter with the girls.

Ducky had invited them over once again but they both refused. They didn't give any excuses other than they preferred to be alone at Easter. They didn't even care that it was odd that gave the same explanation.

Instead, they worked on the boat. It was finally beginning to show as though it had a frame. None of them were attached but it was a start. Like every other time they worked on the boat they didn't say much unless they felt they had to.

Friday June 28, 2002

Alex was anxious that his wife would go into labor at any moment. Samantha was already three days past her due date but she didn't seem as though she was going to be going to the hospital anytime soon.

Even Darby was getting impatient that she didn't have a new sister yet. They tried to explain that she might get another brother but she wouldn't hear anything of it. It was going to be a girl and that was that. Everyone thought that her stubbornness was cute, well everyone but Jeremy who knew that in a few years that would be more of a headache inducer in the form of a teenager.

Sunday July 7, 2002

Being over a week late was starting to get a little uncomfortable. Sam was at least a week early for the other three so she wasn't sure what was making this one want to wait. Finally, at 9:23 that morning, Sam's water broke as she was finishing her breakfast.

Monday July 8, 2002

It was shortly after midnight that Alex came out to tell them that they had another girl, Riley Taylor Hayes. She was born at 12:01. Tony laughed because the kid shared his birthday. Alex and Jethro groaned when they realized that fact. Jethro looked as though he was ready shoot Tony as he was still laughing when he told the group that he was going to call G and tell him that he was a godfather again.

A/N It was still Sunday when I posted this. I was really busy this past week.

I'm not really that much of a case writer, that much is kinda obvious. So I figured that I skip ahead to Ice Queen and Melt Down... not really sure how I'm going to do those. I may have to change format a little but that isn't likely to happen. I still have to watch the episodes but I finally found them on the internet so it will be canon.

I am a Christian. While the beliefs in this chapter are displayed on the show they aren't necessarily mine... think the scene between Gibbs and the victim's father in Faith. I definitely don't want to kill anyone for converting. I just thought it would make an interesting story arch considering Tony's new history.

Plus, I didn't pick the number 23 randomly but it'll take too long to explain why I chose that number. I did look it up on Wikipedia... I know, that was a bit odd but I love research.

I also want to thank those that voted for my poll. I was a little surprised by the results. Nearly everyone voted for the same name. Though the review count has gone down for the last few chapters. To those few that did, thank you.

To those that care, though most of you probably don't, I had a wonderful twenty-third birthday. Lunch with daddy is always fun especially when trying some place new.