Truths and Covert Lies: Chapter 38
A/N: A few of you asked about the timeline for Eli David's assassination and Tony's call to Gibbs (ie, why ZNN arrived before DiNozzo called), and the reason is that Tony was busy securing the scene until the Austrian federal agents could arrive, and then had to give his statement, listen to Ziva give her statement, etc. By the time he was done with that, the cameras were rolling. He called Gibbs as soon as he was able to.
Getting to Austria was easier said than done, as the United States had removed their military presence from the alpine nation not long after the conclusion of the Second World War. McGee didn't know Gibbs had managed to swing it, but there was an Air Force brigadier general on his way to Germany to visit airmen being treated at Ramstein Air Base, and at 0400, he found himself following Gibbs onto the general's C-20B, the Air Force version of the Gulfstream. The one-star general turned out to be a pretty nice guy, having no problems with the two NCIS agents joining his entourage. Unfortunately for McGee's plans to spend the first leg of the trip sleeping, the man was also a Thom E. Gemcity fan, so instead of curling up in one of the plush leather seats, he was sitting next to the general discussing something Agent Tommy said in Rock Hollow and explaining why it had been so long between the publishing dates for Deep Six and Rock Hollow and how long it would be before the next installment would be out on the shelves. Considering his increased duties as Gibbs' senior field agent and the fact that he hadn't written a single page of the novel that was just beginning to form in his head, it might be awhile. He still had to find out if Ziva would kill him or merely send him to intensive care if he added some sex scenes between Officer Lisa and Agent Tommy.
Fortunately, the general did have some work to do, leaving McGee to take his nap before they arrived at the Air Force base. From there, it was into a helicopter to take them to Mauthausen, where a bored-looking customs agent stamped their passports without a second glance and waved them to a waiting Chevy Suburban. McGee frowned; not quite the vehicle he would have expected to see in Austria.
The area where Ziva's father—Director Eli David—had been killed that morning still looked the same as it had on ZNN, with the exception of the change of direction of the shadows from the late afternoon sun. McGee glanced around, trying to get a feel for the area and wishing that he understood the German words that were flying between the men and women wearing windbreakers marked '.BK'. He figured they were the Austrian equivalent of the FBI and wondered who exactly was running this investigation.
Apparently, Gibbs was wondering the same thing. "Who's in charge here?" the supervisory agent asked loudly, holding up his credentials. Immediately, all German stopped as they turned to stare at him.
"That would be me," one man finally replied in a thick German accent, stepping forward. McGee blinked in surprise; the tall, lean, gray-haired man was the European version of Gibbs, down to the cup of coffee in his hand. "Harmon Diederich, Bundeskriminalamt. You are?"
"Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Naval Criminal Investigative Service."
"Ah, NCIS. The same as Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo?"
"And Officer Ziva David," Gibbs added. He glanced around, a frown appearing on his face. "Where are my people?"
"Mossad security took Officer David and Special Agent DiNozzo to an undisclosed location near Wien several hours ago," Diederich replied. "Much to Special Agent DiNozzo's protests." A snort escaped McGee's lips; that certainly sounded like Tony. Both senior agents turned and stared, and he felt his face flush.
"Don't you have something to do, McGee?" Gibbs snapped.
"Uh, actually, Boss…" He trailed off at the look on Gibbs' face. "I'll go take some pictures," he said quickly. He placed the camera bag on the ground and began assembling the Nikon, keeping one ear on the conversation between the two other men. At the moment, they were locked in a silent staring match. McGee considered pulling out his phone to take a video of 'Gibbs vs Austrian Gibbs' to send to Abby, but decided it would be a waste; the outcome was pretty much already set. Austrian Gibbs may be scary in his own right, but there could only be one Gibbs.
"I do not understand what your stake is in this, Agent Gibbs," Diederich was saying. "This was a crime on Austrian soil, against a director of a foreign intelligence agency. There is no indication that your Agent DiNozzo was a target. We have already committed to working with Interpol on the investigation, and as you would say it, too many cooks in the kitchen ruin the pie."
"Soup," McGee corrected without thinking. Again, both men turned their glares to him. "I'll, uh, get to those pictures now, Boss," he said quickly. He snapped a few half-hearted shots at pretty much nothing to make his point, but remained close enough to continue to eavesdrop.
"Those are my people," Gibbs said, returning his attention to the Austrian agent.
"There is no indication that either was a target," Diederich repeated.
"They called me."
"And if you would like Mossad to take you to where they currently are, I am sure that can be arranged. However, this investigation is off the limit to you and your people." McGee had to bite his tongue to resist the temptation to correct him. Maybe the English language was as difficult to fully grasp as Ziva made it seem.
Gibbs gave a slight smile, telling McGee that, as always, he knew something that nobody else did. Sure enough, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "This says it isn't." He handed it over without saying anything further.
"A request from Mossad to have you join the investigation," Diederich finally said. "I do not understand why a deputy director of Mossad would request the assistance of a relatively unknown foreign agency."
"Could be because the daughter of their late director specifically requested it," Gibbs replied. "Or it could be because said director was a close friend of my director. Or, because we're that good." He smirked slightly. "Now, where are we on the investigation?"
Austrian Gibbs glared for another minute before he finally spoke. "The shooter was Klaus Öggl," he began. "His background is still unknown to us, but his body art suggests affiliation—"
"Neo-Nazi," Gibbs interrupted. "Who's he with?"
"We are still looking into that."
"How'd he get into a closed Holocaust memorial?"
Now Diederich was beginning to look uncomfortable. "We are still looking into that," he reluctantly repeated.
"McGee," Gibbs barked, not glancing up from his notebook. "Work with the Bundes-people—"
"Bundeskriminalamt," Diederich corrected. McGee wondered if the Austrian knew that that particular look meant that Gibbs didn't care.
"Work with them on Oogle's—"
"Öggl," Diederich interrupted again, emphasizing the first syllable. This time, Gibbs gave him a brief glare. McGee wondered if any Austrian federal agents should make an appearance in his next book. Maybe Special Agent Tibbs could finally snap and take out a 'cooperating' agent. Then it would be up to Special Agent McGregor and the rest of the team to clear his name… No, that didn't work. If he wanted to make it realistic, he'd have to have someone frame Special Agent Tommy for the murder. That, he could work with. They'd have to come up with a list of suspects, people who would want to get back at Agent Tommy for something. Officer Lisa could run the names of women in Agent Tommy's past. She would get frustrated with the seemingly-endless parade of one-night stands and casual relationships and would confront him about it in a seemingly innocuous place, such as in front of the copy machine. He would realize the depth of her feelings for him… He shook his head; too obvious, too 'shove the relationship in the readers' faces'. Things would have to be more subtle—
"McGee!" He blinked at the harsh tone of Gibbs' voice and looked up sheepishly. "Why are you still here?"
"On it, Boss," he replied automatically, before realizing he didn't know what exactly he was on. The look on Gibbs' face told him it wasn't the best time to ask. He hoped he hadn't missed anything after Gibbs' request to have him look into Öggl's past, because that's where he was going. "Uh, Boss?"
Gibbs glanced up, an unreadable expression on his face. "We'll meet up with Ziva and DiNozzo when we're done here. And McGee? She's fine."
"Of course she's fine," McGee replied, giving a smile he didn't feel at all. "She's Ziva." To be honest, it was Tony he was worried about. Being confined in a safe house with a trained assassin after someone had taken out her father literally right in front of her eyes? Sure, the senior field agent was tough and could roll with the punches, but he couldn't help but wonder if anyone was that tough.