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Episode: Hiatus, Part 1 |3.23|, Season 3
Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS. Part of the dialogue is taken from the episode.
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Explosion
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It's a quiet night, Kate thinks, but despite that, she can't shake the uneasy feeling that has settled in the pit of her stomach since morning. She looks through the binoculars around the port from her position at the back seat of the car, searching for any suspicious movements, but finds nothing.
McGee is sitting beside her in the back while Ziva is sitting in the driver's seat and Tony in the passenger's seat next to Ziva.
She takes a deep breath and looks through the binoculars again, this time scanning the ship they are supposed to be watching. Gibbs is on it, seeking vital information about a terrorist attack. If their info is correct then this has the potential to be as bad as 9/11; and they need to stop it.
She scans the ship, her eyes run over every man on deck, but everything seems normal. Why can't she shake that damn feeling that's been bothering her all day long then? She needs a distraction; she can't keep on thinking about it.
"This is so 'Usual Suspects'…" Tony comments, catching her attention and making her lower the binoculars.
Ziva grabs the other pair of binoculars from him and looks at him with raised eyebrows.
"Tony, your dying words will be: 'I've seen this film'," she comments, looking at the ship in front of them.
"Gibbs even looks a little bit like Gabriel Byrne," he adds and turns around to look at Kate for confirmation but she just frowns.
"No, he doesn't," she states.
"Do you even know who Gabriel Byrne is?" he asks, looking at her with narrowed eyes.
She tilts her head to the side as she looks pointedly at him.
"Yes Tony. You made me watch that movie, remember?"
"Huh, right… It was a great movie night!" He grins widely, reminiscing that night but Kate snorts.
"It was a boring movie night, I only stayed awake because Abby kept making hilarious comments," she contradicts.
"Yeah, I'd have to agree with Kate…" McGee adds making Kate smile.
"Blasphemers! Both of you!" Tony exclaims, clearly appalled by their opinion but they don't seem to mind that much.
"You started this," she points out with a shrug "You said he looked like Gibbs when he clearly doesn't."
"Says who?" he inquires.
"Me! Gibbs is a lot more-"
"Please don't say sexy," Tony almost begs, interrupting her.
"I wasn't going to say that, but, yeah, that too." She smirks devilishly at him and he groans in disgust, covering his face with his hands.
"That was a mental image I didn't need in my head, Kate." Tony says, his voice muffled by his hands.
"You were asking for it Tony," McGee says with an amused smile.
"Okay. Who is Gabriel Byrne?" Ziva finally asks, clearly confused by the whole conversation, and Tony uncovers his eyes and looks at her.
"An actor who boards a mysterious ship like this one searching for Keyser Söze," he explains to her, sending a glare at Kate who just smiles sweetly at him.
"Another actor?" Ziva inquires.
"No. Keyser Söze is a character in the film who may or may not exist."
She glances at Kate and McGee, both of them smiling in understanding at her, before turning back to Tony.
"I'm confused," she states.
"So was I before I saw it," Kate tells her.
"I still am and I saw the DVD twice," McGee says, poking his head between the front car seats.
"The Sound of Music confuses you, Probie," Tony says disdainfully, not even looking at Tim.
"I love that movie!" Ziva exclaims happily and is ready to start singing but DiNozzo almost jumps out of his seat and covers her mouth with his hand before she utters one syllable.
"One note and I will lock you in a room and make you listen to 'It's a Small World' for twenty-four hours straight! Do we understand each other?" he warns in a low tone.
Ziva's muffled reply makes Tony pull back and take his hand off of her mouth, satisfied that she won't start singing any time soon.
They all fall silent after that for a while. Ziva and Kate observe the ship in front of them while McGee just leans back, his head against the headrest as he closes his eyes for a few moments. Tony keeps on tapping his fingers on his knee, clearly thinking about something he wants to say and they all have a pretty good idea of what.
"Probie!" he exclaims suddenly and McGee opens his eyes to look at him, a questioning look on his face.
"Why on earth did you find it confusing? The ending made everything perfectly clear!" he states incredulously, not being able to hold it in any longer "Kate got it, didn't you Kate?"
"Yes, DiNozzo, I got it…" she mumbles in exasperation, her eyes always locked on the ship.
McGee just stares at Tony and Ziva ignores him so he has no other option but to return his attention to the ship too.
"It really was the perfect ending," he says wistfully, mostly to himself, "Especially that last scene where everything runs through Kujan's mind and suddenly something clicks and everything makes perfect sense. Gibbs does that, by the way," he says to Kate who just waves him off and he sighs.
"You can see it in his eyes the exact moment he figures it out; the coffee cup slips from his hands and it shatters on the floor. He looks from the broken coffee cup on the floor. He looks to the photo on the wall. Looks…"
Tony's words die in his throat as the bright light and deafening sound of an explosion catches them completely of guard and all they can do for a second is stare at the ship, all of them wondering what the hell just happened. It's one word from Kate's lips that sets them all in motion.
"Gibbs…"
Ziva starts the car immediately while the other three agents reach for their mobile phones.
"I'm calling Gibbs to see if he answers. Tony, call the Director. McGee, call for an ambulance just in case." Kate instructs, already dialing Gibbs' number.
She prays he will pick up, that it will turn out that he was nowhere near the explosion and he was at a completely different part of the ship but that dreadful feeling in her gut tells her a completely different story.
Her call goes straight to voicemail and she takes a shaky breath as she closes her eyes. This can't be happening...
She listens to Tony and McGee's frantic voices as they talk on their phones and she redials Gibbs' number, just in case, but she gets his voicemail again. Suddenly Ziva's fast driving doesn't seem fast enough, and although the rational part of her brain tells her they can't possibly go any faster, the part that wants to reach Gibbs right now tells her otherwise.
It doesn't take them long to reach the part of the port where the ship is docked and the moment Ziva kills the engine they all get out of the car and they run at full speed towards the ship.
They demand to get on the ship, identifying themselves as federal agents, and ask to know where the NCIS agent who was on the ship is. The answer they get isn't the one they would have liked as they inform them that their agent was at the part of the ship where the explosion happened, shattering their hopes that Gibbs would be somewhere else.
They are led to the site quickly and they all stop dead in their tracks when they first see the place. This can't be real, it's just a bad nightmare and they are going to wake up soon, back in the car. No matter how bad they want it to be a nightmare they know it isn't.
"Jesus..." the single word escapes Tony's mouth, still not being able to comprehend how this happened.
Kate steps tentatively inside and starts looking around, searching for him. The place is so badly burnt that she wonders how someone can survive something like this. She can hear the other three following her inside and inspecting the cabin.
Her heart is hammering in her chest since the moment of the explosion and she isn't sure it's going to return to normal anytime soon but then she thinks it stops altogether for a moment when she notices a body on the floor.
Panic overtakes her immediately. The body is so badly charred it is unrecognizable, and she tries hard to stop the tears from gathering in her eyes and remember how to breathe as she looks away, not bearing to look at it any more.
Ziva is by her side in an instant, noticing that Kate has gone pale as a sheet, and she places a comforting hand on her shoulder. She turns to face the Mossad Officer and that's when she sees something moving slightly at one of the corners at the back and she walks swiftly, followed by Ziva who calls out to Tony and McGee.
In the dim light she recognizes Gibbs. He is lying there, on the floor, covered in blood and dust from the explosion, barely conscious, his eyes red and bloody. She kneels down beside him without a second thought, checks his pulse and breathes a huge sigh of relief when his eyes find hers and she sees recognition in them. They can all tell that it looks serious but, considering the alternative, they are thankful he is alive.
"Kate…" her name is a hoarse whisper from his lips but it's enough to give her some hope.
She gently takes his hand in hers, holding it carefully in order not to cause him anymore pain.
"Shhh, don't try to talk, it's going to be ok," she tries to reassure him "The ambulance is on its way."
He nods in understanding and he squeezes her hand softly, his eyes remaining locked on hers. A fit of coughing rocks his body, forcing him to close his eyes as pain shoots through his whole body. She prays that the ambulance won't take long to arrive.
"Jethro, look at me." Her voice is steady despite how panicked she is and he opens his eyes again at her request.
"Just keep your eyes on me, you can do it." She reaches out with her free hand and tentatively brushes his hair away from his forehead.
"McGee, where is the ambulance?" she asks through gritted teeth, trying to keep her voice calm.
"On its way Kate, it won't take long."
She has a weird sense of déjà vu, although this time the roles are reversed and he is the one lying injured on the floor.
She tries to stay calm, for his shake. She can't break down right now; she won't allow herself to do it. He needs her and she is going to be by his side for as long as it's necessary. From the corner of her eye she sees Tony crouching down next to her, looking at her, but her gaze remains locked on Gibbs'.
"The ambulance is close," he whispers, for her ears only, and she nods.
Tony's eyes land on their boss but he has no idea what to say. The whole scene seems so surreal to him. Gibbs doesn't get hurt, he never shows pain; he is always strong and in command no matter what happens. And yet here he is, lying on the floor severely injured and it suddenly feels that the whole world is upside down and Tony doesn't know how to react.
He looks around him, surveying the place and notices that Ziva is already securing the scene, like this is their usual case, while McGee has disappeared and is nowhere to be seen. Kate hasn't moved an inch from Gibbs' side since they got in here, and although she tries to look composed for their boss' sake Tony knows better; he can see the fear and uncertainty in her eyes.
Gibbs tries to talk but it comes out as a groan of pain and Kate stops him again.
"Hey, don't worry about anything now, we'll figure everything out," she says, her tone soothing, as she caresses his hand softly.
"The paramedics are here!" McGee's voice reaches their ears and both Tony and Kate sigh in relief.
"I'll get them." Tony stands up, squeezing her shoulder as he walks away.
"Just hold on a little longer, they are almost here," she says to Gibbs, who struggles to keep his eyes open.
She hears Tony's voice as he informs the paramedics of everything they know, which isn't nearly enough, and the next moment he is helping her up while the paramedics load Gibbs on the stretcher, put an oxygen mask over his mouth and do a preliminary check.
She catches Ziva's gaze, her well constructed mask momentarily slipping as she watches them from the corner of the cabin, and Kate can see the concern and worry on her face but Ziva is quick to cover it again.
Kate's attention returns to Gibbs and finds his eyes on her. She moves swiftly to be by his side again, trying to stay out of the paramedics' way.
"I'm going to the hospital with him," Kate states, her eyes darting to Tony momentarily "You'll be alright here?"
"Just go Kate, we'll be fine," he reassures her "Call us when you have news." She nods in confirmation.
"We're all set to go. Follow us, Agent Todd," one of the paramedics instructs and they all start walking back to the ambulance, Tony following them too.
They spot McGee still outside of the cabin, watching them worriedly but not being able to face their boss who is carried away on the stretcher.
"Probie, go help Ziva!" Tony yells and he sees McGee nod frantically but he stays rooted to the spot.
"Yelling at him won't help," Kate tells him but Tony just shakes his head indignantly.
"What am I supposed to do then? Sit around and watch? This is serious Kate!"
"Don't you think I know that?" she asks angrily, not being able to control herself any more. This is getting too much for her and she doesn't know how long she'll manage to keep it together.
Tony looks away and mumbles an apology. If he is affected so much by this he can't imagine what she must be feeling right now. She takes a deep breath, trying to calm down a bit before talking again.
"Talk to him Tony, you know how McGee reacts."
"It works when Gibbs does it," he says, stubbornly.
"You are not Gibbs…" she points out, shaking her head.
"I am the Senior Field Agent though."
"Don't pull rank Tony, it's only going to make things worse."
They both fall silent while he mulls her words. What is he supposed to do? He is the senior field agent damn it, he must do something, he can't just sit around watching their team! Kate is after him in seniority but she won't be there, she'll be with Gibbs, and he has to find a way to figure out what he'll do.
The moment they reach the ambulance the paramedics do quick work of putting Gibbs inside and Kate follows immediately, getting in next to him.
"I'll call as soon as I know something," Kate reassures Tony who nods.
"Where are you taking him?" he asks one of the paramedics.
"Portsmouth Trauma," he replies and gets inside the ambulance too, starts the vehicle and drives off, leaving Tony behind looking at the retreating ambulance.
His mind travels to a different ambulance, not so long ago, and he hopes this will be the last time he has to watch an ambulance driving off with his boss and partner inside.
Now he has to find a way to deal with this case without them. He takes a deep breath and he starts walking back to the ship with only one thought in his mind: What would Gibbs do?