Ok, well, personally, I like how this chapter turned out, and I really hope you like it too. I know a lot of people are getting annoyed with the cliffhangers and taking so long to end this, but quite frankly considering all the build up I did to this, if I just ended the story, I think it would be a bit of a letdown. I mean, if I just ended it, how much of an anticlimax would that be? But then again, I'm exhausted and I have a headache, so I could very well be missing a huge mistake or plot hole. I apologize for that. But because I'm so tired, I'm keeping this short.

26

The group crowded around Jethro, ready to kill him. If any of them were armed, they would have. Damn, that bitch was good.

He couldn't hear what anyone was saying, they were all just yelling incoherently at the same time. One guy tried to punch him. He ducked and charged at the guy's gut. He landed a solid punch to his face before he pushed away and ran for the stage. He needed to get to Tony. But the crowd wouldn't let him pass. They just kept pummeling into him.

He raised his wrist to his mouth and tried to yell through the din, "Move in. Move in now!"

"He has a microphone!" some bitch yelled into his ear.

The next thing Jethro knew, his arms were being grabbed and a fist was slamming into his abdomen. Somebody ripped the mic off his jacket sleeve and stomped it on the ground.

Shit, he thought. Where were his agents? Why weren't they storming this place already? Why wasn't security trying to put him out of his misery?

He blamed the hectic situation for why he didn't figure it out sooner.

"The FBI and NCIS will be here any second!" He shouted, hoping to get everybody's attention. "And instead of running, you're wasting time with me?" That got everyone's attention. "Amalea and her people already ran, why the hell aren't you?"

Some of the group began to falter. They looked around, suddenly second guessing themselves and their hosts. His arms were still being held, now stronger than before. And one guy, somebody he recognized as a Marine Officer, stepped forward. He had a look in his eye that Jethro didn't like. A look that said he knew he was going down, but he was going to make sure somebody went down with him.

He grabbed Jethro around his head and panic struck the agent. He was a trained Marine, he knew what this meant. He tried to kick, push the guys away from him, anything to keep from having his neck snapped, but there were just too many. And as some people started to run away, more people got pushed into him, making moving almost impossible. The entire place was a mad house "DiNozzo!" he called, hoping his agent could still help him. But his call went unanswered.

But then the doors swung open and a swarm of FBI and NCIS agents filled the hall, all screaming "Federal Agents!" or for their respective agency. Kate and Fornell led a group towards him, guns raised and ready to shoot every single person here.

But Jethro noted that the guy in front of him looked even more determined than before. He didn't care if he died or not. He was still planning on killing him.

"Shoot him!"

A single bullet ripped through the man's head and splattered Jethro with his blood. Everyone else finally began to back away.

"Where's DiNozzo?" Kate asked as she handed him his sidearm.

"Stage." He grabbed the gun and started running, but the crowd was still too dense, he had a hard time making it through. Then he heard gun shots.

He stopped, fear overwhelming him. He expected the worst. Tony was shot by security for bringing Feds here. Or they found the earwig that Jethro gave him.

But then he saw Amalea come back on stage, Tony in toe. She held a gun to his head.

"Back the fuck off!"

Jethro didn't hesitate. He raised his gun and took aim. He had a better angle than the others and he knew he could blow the bitch's head off without hurting his agent.

She shouted for them to put their guns down again, she was getting more frantic and Jethro knew that in only a few short moments, she wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger. He needed to take the shot now.

But just as his bullet ripped through the air, Tony pushed her back behind the curtain on the stage. Jethro cursed under his breath. What the hell was he thinking?

Shots echoed across the hall and at least five agents went down. Jethro automatically ducked for cover before he took off towards the stage.

He knew he should have checked on the fallen agents first, but he couldn't, there was someone he had to check on first. He needed to get to Tony.

Gun drawn, he neared the stage. But when he got past the curtain, he only found Amalea. She was shaking.

He kept his gun pointed at her as he approached. "Where's Tony?"

She looked up and glared. "You betrayed me."

"Where the hell is my agent?"

"Why the fuck would I tell you? This is all your fault, my men are dead because of you. And what good did it do, Director," she said the last part with a sneer. "Do you think anyone here is ever going to see the inside of a jail cell? This is going to go away and you 'll be left with nothing. All because of a cheap fuck."

He stepped closer till his gun was pressed against her forehead. Her breath hitched but otherwise stayed calm.

"If I can't arrest you, I will kill you where you lie unless you tell me what the hell happened to my agent. Now!"

Listen, thou mayest yet return

"There is a mole in our organization. And it is that man, Director Tom Morrow!"

Tony felt all the blood drain out of his body at Amalea's words. How did Gibbs even get made? There was nobody more careful, this was just impossible. Getting made was screwing up, and Gibbs never screwed up.

He saw the crowd going for Gibbs. He wanted to help him, but his hands were bound in front of him, he had no weapon, and he still had that stupid collar around his neck. The only time Amalea took the damn thing off was during his many free trials. Not to mention the amount of pain he was in. No, he'd be more of a hindrance at this point than anything.

One of the security guards approached him, holding the damn remote to his collar and a gun. "You're coming with me."

Tony gave the guy a long look. This wasn't about the safety of the ring, this was just a pervert. Well he was sick of perverts.

"Move that ass or I'll-" before he could finish, Tony charged at his gut. The man went down with a groan. For added measure, Tony punched him in the face to knock him out.

He grabbed the gun and a knife to cut the rope around his wrists and took off after Amalea. He should have watched where he was going, but that sentiment was becoming the story of his life. After everything he'd been through over the last two weeks, he wasn't thinking like a cop anymore. He was back to being that fifteen year old boy, the murderer who killed his teacher when the prick bent him over his desk and shoved a hot poker up his backside. He wasn't thinking logically, he was thinking out of anger. And his feet, his bare feet paid the price.

Somebody kicked over a vase. It shattered, and left small sharp pieces all over the floor. Tony managed to step on them.

He screamed in agony as he fell to the floor. Ceramic pieces were stuck in the pads and heels and it hurt like hell. The blood wouldn't stop flowing and he knew it would be a bite to walk on. But he had to do it. Amalea might be his only chance to make sure he and Gibbs got out of here alive. And better he catch her than another agent.

He pulled the vase pieces out of his foot and tried to stand. It took him three tries before he was actually able to keep his weight up. By then, he started to hear the panic rise as agents swarmed the compound. He had to move fast if he was going to get to Amalea first.

He ignored the pain as best he could as he limped after her. The gun was raised in front of him. He wasn't going to make another mistake. He was a Federal freaking Agent and damn it he was going to act like it.

He didn't have to go too far when he finally found the woman. It looked like she was heading for the emergency exit. Typical. He figured out where that was when he was twelve.

He cocked the gun and made sure it was off safety before he spoke.

"Federal Agent. Turn around and put your hands on your head."

They didn't listen. But he didn't expect them to. There were three security guards with her. All three pulled a gun. He fired six shots and double tapped each one in the chest. They fell to the floor in a heap. Now it was just him and Amalea. He held a gun, she had a remote.

"Are you really going to shoot an unarmed woman, Agent DiNozzo." She said his name with a sneer.

"The last word I would ever use to describe you is unarmed."

She smiled. "You're absolutely right." She hit the button.

Pain ripped through him, sending him falling to the ground. The gun slipped out of his grasp and slid across the floor. Amalea slowly approached him, still holding down the button. Tears leaked out of Tony's eyes. But she didn't let go until the gun was in her hand.

"You're weak. You should have just shot me."

He laughed. "Yeah, I could say the same about you. Why don't you just shoot me?"

Her smile turned into a glare. "After what you did to me, you deserve worse."

"I think you're bluffing. I don't think you have the stones to kill me."

"Would you like me to prove you wrong?" Her grin was back, along with a sing song tone to mock him. Tony swallowed a lump in his throat. He knew Amalea, he grew up with her. But she wasn't the same girl anymore. She was completely broken. He honestly wasn't sure what she was capable of anymore.

He was saved from having to figure that out when he heard shots fired down the hall, the same way she was headed.

It was his turn to smile. "That'll be the cavalry."

Amalea fired blindly towards the approaching agents as Tony slowly climbed to his feet. As soon as he was standing, Amalea grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back towards the auction hall, still firing behind her.

"FBI, freeze!" Somebody who Tony didn't recognize shouted in front on them. They were standing back near the broken vase, only this time, Tony made sure to watch where he stepped.

Amalea grabbed his throat and pulled him against her, her gun raised at his head. "Drop it or I kill him!"

"It's over! Now drop the gun."

"Here's how it's gonna work. I'm walking out of here, and he's coming with me!"

"Give it up, Amalea," Tony said, "They'll shoot you if you even think about shooting me."

Amalea laughed. "I'm not an idiot, Tony, they aren't gonna risk the death of one of their own."

"I don't know, I'm not really on good terms with the FBI. The might let me die if it means killing you." The entire time he talked, Amalea moved backwards, towards the stage. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw agents swooping in to collect the auctioneers. He saw the people trying to escape, some tried to talk their way out of it.

He smiled. "Take a look. You're not gettin' outta here. The only way you'll live is to turn yourself in now."

He could feel her heart pounding against his back. Agents were pressing her, and she knew her world was about to crumble.

Shit. This might have worked with the scared little girl he knew when he was a kid, but that girl was gone. She shut down to survive and now... She would rather die than go to jail. And Tony was the one who did it to her.

"Amalea, I am telling you, they will kill you. You will die if you don't put that gun down. Don't do this. Please."

"Listen to Agent DiNozzo, Amalea," one of the Feebs shouted. "You don't wanna die."

Tony tried again. "Amalea, please I'm begging you, put the gun down!"

"What do you care? You left me here! You could have taken me with you and you left me here!"

"Amalea!"

"Back the fuck off!" she screamed to the Feds. Crap, Tony knew she was losing it. She was going to shoot him.

He tried to rearrange his body without her noticing. If he was going to get out of this alive, he had to act quick.

But as he was turning, he saw Gibbs. His gun was raised up and he was aiming at Amalea. Gibbs was a better shot than anybody he knew, and he had a clearer shot than anyone else.

Tony couldn't wait, Gibbs wouldn' couldn't think, he could only react. He pushed the gun away from his temple and threw his body back, taking Amalea to the ground as the bullet flew through the air at the exact spot Amalea's head was moments before.

The gun flew out of her hand and slid across the floor. "Don't shoot! She's unarmed," he screamed.

"Get off me!" She struggled underneath his weight, but he wouldn't budge, it was the only way to protect her. That was the most important thing right now. Keeping her safe. He failed her once and he wasn't going to do that again.

The agents approached, guns still raised, in case she tried something. But they didn't get far. Only moments later, an automatic weapon erupted and took them all down.

Tony felt panic rise in him. Shit, he thought. "No!" He tried to get up and check on them, but somebody grabbed him and pulled him away. "No! Let me go!" He didn't see who had him, but he knew it was more than one. No matter how hard he struggled, they wouldn't let him go. "Get off me. Boss! Gibbs!" he kept screaming, kept trying to get away. He already survived two weeks like this, he couldn't take more, especially now. This was his fucking rescue mission, for crying out loud!

Then he felt the shock. The pain shot through him once more. Damn he was getting sick of that.

When the pain finally stopped and he hung limply in his new captor's arms, someone finally stepped into his line if sight. He almost expected to see Daddy. He always had a thing for him, if that's what you want to call it. That bastard took Tony's virginity when he was only nine years old.

But the man standing in front of him was definitely not Daddy, but that didn't mean Tony didn't recognize him.

"Hello, Agent DiNozzo," he said with a grin.

See? I told you last time this was a worse cliffhanger. But good news! There is only like four chapters left of the story (and no, they are not all climax chapters, there is a couple resolution chapters). So this disaster is almost over! So close! So close!

Bob