AUTHOR'S NOTES: Okay, show of hands: Who honestly thought I was going to kill off Gibbs? Really. I mean that's like… killing God. No offense to any religious readers.

A few notes on this chapter, specifically on the 'Pretender' crossover aspects. At the end of season 3 Jarod finds out he has a clone who was unnamed in canon but in this story is named Jay. Also, Miss Parker's first name is a mystery but I decided to use the name 'Nadine' which is French-Slavic and means 'hope'.

I know that some readers are wondering when I'm going to write the last couple of episodes of the season on this story and I am trying to get the DVDs from my library network. (It's just the best way to reference the episode. Watching online can be a little hairy.)

Chapter 25

When Gibbs found Rocky Caroll's trailer, he paused for a brief moment before pounding on the door. "Open up! NCIS!" After hearing someone moving around inside, Gibbs barged in and turned to see Caroll standing at a sink in jeans and a flannel shirt.

"Hey, man," Caroll said, drunkenly. "You can't… you can't just barge in here."

Grabbing the front of the other man's shirt and slammed him against the wall. "The only reason you are still alive is because I didn't know about what you did to my daughter until yesterday."

"Hey, man," Caroll said, the drunken smile still on his face. "I-I-I don't do little kids, okay? I mean… I admire—"

"9 years ago…" Gibbs said, his voice the low, deadly tone he saved for the most heinous of criminals. "Detroit, Michigan."

Caroll actually seemed to think and after a moment, his eyes widened. "Hey, look, I… I didn't do anything, man, I swear. Sean Murray's the one you want, pal. I'm telling ya."

"I am not your pal," Gibbs said, quietly.

"Maybe… I… tried to hook up with her," Caroll admitted, starting to be afraid.

Throwing Caroll against the opposite wall, Gibbs pulled his weapon and said, "How many others? Was Commander Sasha Alexander your victim, too?"

"It's all that kid's fault," Caroll said, standing and staring Gibbs in the eye. Caroll showed no fear now; rather he was confident and ready for a fight. "Before your daughter, I never gave redheads a second thought. Blondes are more fun, by the way. But after her… Oh… You want a little spitfire in the sack, you gotta get that red hair, man. But I guess you already know that. Your kid probably got her red hair from her mama. Am I right?" With a perverted grin, he said, "I even remember your little girl's name…. Kelly."

Gibbs couldn't remember what happened next. One minute he was pointing his gun at Caroll, and the next he was pressing the blade of his knife to Caroll's throat. "I swear on my daughter's life, I'll kill you!" Gibbs shouted, his mind not registering any of his actions. Throwing the rapist-murderer against the wall again, Gibbs aimed a kick to the man's side before stomping on his fingers.

"Yeah, kill me!" Caroll laughed as he slowly got to his feet, grabbing Gibbs' gun before Gibbs could react. "Just try it, old man!" But he wasn't laughing when Gibbs hit him in the face, breaking his nose. "You shouldn't have done that," Caroll said, quietly as he threw himself at Gibbs.

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"What do we have?" Dr. Neela Munro said as the paramedics came into the emergency room.

"50-year-old male," one of the paramedics said as they took the bleeding man into a trauma room. "Gunshot wounds to the right arm and clavicle. Multiple lacerations and contusions…. Stab wound to the left thigh… Name's Gibbs. He's an agent with NCIS."

"Page surgery and get Dr. Thorton," Neela said quickly. "And contact Agent Gibbs' family." Looking at Gibbs, she checked for pupil reaction before having the nurses remove the man's clothing and going to work.

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Pacing the surgical waiting room, Kelly wished that her mother was with her… that Jenny or Kate were there…

"Kelly?"

Turning to Holly, Kelly hugged her as she started to cry. "I don't want to lose him!" Kelly sobbed.

"Me neither," Holly replied, holding Kelly. "I love Jethro."

The two sat down and Kelly buried her face in her hand. "This is all my fault."

"What are you talking about?" Holly asked, puzzled.

"I told Dad about what Caroll did to me," Kelly said, looking up. With a wry sigh, she stood and began pacing. "Dad promised he wouldn't do this again."

"Do what?" Holly said, puzzled.

"It… was after Mom died," Kelly said, quietly, as she stopped pacing. "Dad… went after the guy who killed Mom."

"He killed him?" Holly said, surprised and yet not surprised at that news.

"I found out about it a few years later," Kelly went on. "I made him promise he'd never do something like that again."

"Kelly, you're his little girl," Holly said, standing and giving Kelly a look of consolation. "What else could Jethro do but—"

"You don't understand," Kelly said, her voice filled with fear and anger as she started pacing again. "When I was 8 Dad swore that he would never break a promise to me."

"Jethro's strong, Kelly," Holly assured the younger woman. "He'll be just fine."

"Kelly Gibbs?" One of the doctors said as he came into the waiting room.

"Is Dad okay?" Kelly asked, hoping that it wasn't bad news.

"Your father's going to be fine. He's in recovery if you want to see him," the doctor replied, smiling.

Kelly dashed out of the room and headed for the recovery room where Gibbs was still unconscious. As Kelly took her father's hand in hers, she lightly smacked the top of his head before whispering in his ear, "That's for breaking Rule #25."

"What's rule 25?" Holly asked as she joined Kelly.

"'Never break a promise to Kelly'," Kelly replied, pulling a chair over and sitting down to keep an eye on her father.

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Down in Gibbs' basement, Tony sat by the workbench, staring at the unfinished boat. As an NCIS agent, he knew that there should be an investigation into the death of Rocky Caroll and that Gibbs should be arrested for murder.

But as a father, Tony couldn't imagine acting any different if someone had sexually assaulted Jen or Kate.

No, Tony thought after a few minutes. He would have acted differently. He would have just kicked the door down and shot the bastard.

Finding Gibbs' supply of bourbon, Tony didn't even bother finding a glass or empty jar. He just opened the bottle and took a long drink.

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Once Gibbs had been moved to a regular room, and she'd been assured he'd be just fine, Kelly went to NCIS and down to Abby's lab where the goth forensic scientist was waiting with a stack of papers. "What's this?" Kelly asked, looking over the papers. Pulling out a case report, Kelly's eyes widened and she set everything else aside. "I remember this case," she said, looking it over. "Sailor was killed on a destroyer. Intentional gas leak." Reading over the reports, she stopped and looked at Abby. "Navy Commander Jarod Forrester was the one who discovered the truth." Tossing the report down on the desk, Kelly started pacing. "After NCIS found out about the criminal activity, we did a cursory investigation and Dad wrote up the report." After a few moments, she grabbed up the papers. "Come on."

"Where are we going?" Abby said, scribbling a note to Gibbs before grabbing her coat.

"Coral Hills," Kelly said, succinctly.

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"Jarod?" Nadine Michaels—formerly known as Miss Parker—said as she walked into the kitchen of their home in Coral Hills and sat down at the table opposite her husband. "You're thinking about Zoe, aren't you?"

Jarod nodded, still staring at the photo in his hands. After someone had leaked damning information about the Centre to the FBI, CIA, NSA, and other federal agencies, Jarod had thought he'd finally be able to have a life with Zoe. They'd gotten married, and had even had had a son, Jacob Thomas Michaels.

But four years ago, Zoe's cancer relapsed with a vengeance. And despite a valiant fight, Zoe passed away, leaving Jarod completely brokenhearted and a single father.

After hearing about Jarod's loss from Sydney—her friend, co-worker, and confidant at the Centre—Miss Parker had paid a visit to Jarod who was a deputy in the small town of Coral Hills, Virginia.

Nadine Parker had fallen in love with Jarod's son the first time she saw the 2-year-old boy with Jarod's eyes and Zoe's red, frizzy hair.

Looking up at his second wife, Jarod smiled at her and nodded. "I think she would have liked you," he said, looking at the picture of Zoe holding Jacob after he was born.

"I think I would have liked her, too," Nadine said, putting her hand on Jarod's. "Are your parents coming for dinner tonight?"

"Dad's bringing Jay and Emily over at 7," Jarod nodded. "Mom's coming tomorrow for dinner."

"Work?" Nadine asked, smiling. "The idea of the Centre becoming a children's home…" Laughing, her eyes twinkled as she said, "Mom's probably proud of me."

"But I bet Raines is rolling over in his grave," Jarod replied with a grin.

"Daddy?" Jacob said as he came into the kitchen. "There's two ladies asking for you at the door."

"Go," Nadine said with a smile as she got up from the table as well. "I want to check on Catherine anyway."

At the door, Jarod was surprised to see Kelly and a young woman with black hair and dark makeup. "Kelly," he said, stepping aside to let the two women in. "How can I help you?"

"Who are you, Sherriff?" Kelly asked, bluntly. "Really?"

Jarod sighed and led the two into the kitchen. "Have a seat."

Kelly sat and pulled out the papers she'd brought with her. "Navy Commander Jarod Forrester. Lieutenant Jarod Patton… Army Intelligence… So who are you, really?"

"Jarod?" Nadine said, coming in holding her 1-year-old baby girl. "Is everything okay?"

"This is my wife, Nadine," Jarod said as she sat down. Looking at Abby and Kelly, Jarod said, "When I was a child I was taken from my family. I was raised in this place called the Centre."

"The children's home in Delaware?" Abby asked, confused.

"It wasn't always a home for children," Nadine explained. "When I worked there 11 years ago it was a think tank. We… solved problems." Looking at Jarod, she added, "At least that's what I was told."

"The Centre was in the business of playing God," Jarod said, darkly. "They made me perform simulations. Told me it was in the interest of saving lives."

"But really it was a place where innocent lives were lost," Nadine said, sadly. "Because of the people who ran the place, I lost my parents, my baby brother… Jarod lost his brother."

"That still doesn't explain this," Kelly said, gesturing to the papers.

"Jarod is a Pretender," Nadine replied. "A genius who can… step into any position or job he wants to. Engineer, pilot, doctor…"

"After I found out what the Centre was doing with my simulations," Jarod went on. "The people that were being hurt, I escaped. And I've been trying to… right the wrongs I caused by trying to help people who had been hurt, abused, or wronged."

"And it was my duty to catch Jarod," Nadine added. "My father, who ran the Centre at the time, wanted me to bring Jarod back. But once Jarod was out, he… He started to dig for information about his past… and mine."

Kelly leaned back in her chair. "So how did you end up here?"

"My first wife and I moved here about 8 years ago," Jarod replied. "At first I was just a deputy. But when the previous sheriff retired, I took over."

As Nadine and Jarod proceeded to tell Kelly and Abby about life in the Centre, Kelly found it harder and harder to remember who she'd come here in the first place.

"So what happened to the people who used to work at the Centre?" Abby asked, interested. "I wasn't able to find any real information on anyone. Except that the Centre is a home for orphaned, abandoned, and abused children."

"My mother died when I was a little girl," Nadine said, sadly. "She was my whole life and… when she was murdered…"

"I know how it feels," Kelly said, sympathetically. "My mom was killed in a car crash when I was 8. She was murdered, too."

"My father ran the Centre for years," Nadine went on. "Later on, when I led the hunt for Jarod, I found out more about my past, my mother's…"

Getting back to Abby's question, Jarod said, "Sydney—a friend—works at the Centre now as a counselor and psychologist. Another friend, Broots, teaches computer courses."

"Sounds nice," Kelly said with a smile.

"It is… now," Nadine said, sadly. "I just wish it had always been like that."

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