Not Beta'd; Standard disclaimer applies

Science Doesn't Lie, Chapter 21 F.B.I. (Friends, B** hm, to keep rating down we'll use Harpy instead, Idiots)

Tony had spent most of the morning glancing between Tim's empty desk and Gibbs's occupied one. Of course, whenever he looked in his boss's direction it was usually accompanied by a glare. A fact that Ziva noticed and, surprisingly, that Gibbs had not. The obvious preoccupation of Gibbs, and the fact that he would often stare at Tim's desk, an unreadable expression on his face, was the main reason why Tony hadn't yelled at Gibbs and ask him what the hell was going on. Well, that and the matter of his promise to Probie to not spread this around NCIS. Of course, that didn't mean that Tony hadn't thought about cornering the older man in his office. It was an idea Tony was keeping in reserve. He figured before he did anything, he would give Gibbs a chance to act on his own.

This was Gibbs, he rationalized, he would do the right thing, and surely there was a rule that covered this type of situation. Of course, that didn't stop him from glaring at the older man or mentally yelling at him.

"Tony," Ziva softly called, not looking up from her screen. Gibbs had gone to get some coffee for lunch, leaving his two agents to working on their assigned task.

"Yeah?" came the casual reply.

"I think we have a problem."

"Oh, god," Tony muttered, leaning back in his chair in shock. "Kelsey is Kelly," he whispered. How the hell was he going to tell Tim and Gibbs about this?

She shook her head, "I do not know about that yet," she replied.

Tony breathes out a sigh of relief. "Then it's not a problem. Nothing is a problem, except for that."

Ziva rolls her eyes. She admits that if Kelsey is Kelly, she wouldn't want to be the one to inform Gibbs, but that doesn't mean it would be a problem. Yes, it would probably make things a bit tense and uncomfortable around the bullpen. At first, Gibbs would be angry, and no doubt the person or people responsible for the miscommunication-assuming that's what it was, would be drawn and quartered. Understandably, Gibbs would also be upset about all the things he missed out on, her first date, her graduations, the anticipation of becoming a grandfather for the first time. Well, as a small consolation, at least he was around for that, even if he didn't know it at the time. Tim would be nervous and anxious. Who wouldn't be after discovering that your boss was your secret girlfriend's father and the grandfather to your children?

But in the end, she knew that Gibbs would be grateful and glad that his child lived. Knowing that that they both spent all those years missing and mourning each other and the relationship they should have had was tragic. Ziva blinked, at that heartbreaking image, before deciding to think about the positives if her theory was proven true.

Obviously, the first one was that the connection between Gibbs and the twins would be known, she thought. Which meant that these last few difficult days had a purpose, everyone would soon be able to work through things and the bullpen could get back to normal.

"Ziva. Ziva," Tony continued to call, about to stand up and walk over to her when her thoughts returned to the present and she looked at him. "What's our non-problem?"

Ziva barely refrained from rolling her eyes. "Someone else is looking into Kelsey's background."

"What?" A startled Tony questioned, getting up out of his seat. "Are you sure?"

"I would not have said anything if I was not," she replied.

He looked at her before pointedly looking at the work they had done the last few days, and sitting back down.

"That is different," she huffed. "We were assigned to look into her background, I had to give you a full disclosure of my theories."

"Uh-huh," Tony smirked in reply.

This time Ziva did roll her eyes. "I thought I noticed something before, so I did a few things to determine what was going on. Someone else, someone outside of this office," she clarified, "Is definitely looking into Kelsey. I was just able to confirm it, and since Gibbs is away from his desk right now…"

Tony gave Ziva a scrutinizing look. 'Did a few things' could be booby trapping the files, electronic surveillance, or using one of her numerous and secretive contacts to gather the information. Either way, he knew that if it was just a suspicion, she would have phrased it that way.

Still, he had to confirm it, "You're sure it's not just my search you're seeing?"

"I am," she replied, a bit insulted that he asked.

"Then whe-"

"I cannot tell where it is originating from," she admitted, knowing what he was about to ask. "They are good, definitely much better than me or my resources. I thought about contacting McGee or cybercrimes to"

"McGee," Tony carelessly repeated out loud before he could stop himself, and prompting Ziva to stop mid-sentence. Probie had no reason to look into Kelsey's background, not when he knew the truth.

Ziva glared at him. "You are not getting him to do this work for you on his time off. Especially not this. Not with why he is out."

"I wouldn't, I wasn't," the SFA objected to her accusation. "Just, for a second, I had the stupid thought that maybe he was behind the other search."

Ziva looked at him, "Had? Stupid? Meaning you know he is not. Why not him?"

Tony avoided her gaze, "As you said he's off? Oh, and has his hands full with a pair of infants?" he offered, both suggestions coming across more as questions than statements. Damn, he really wished he hadn't mentioned Tim.

"And that is the only reason?" she pressed.

Tony didn't have an answer for her. He could evade, but not outright lie to Ziva; she caught him every time.

Ziva sighed and dismissed her question, there were more important things to worry about right now. "I am sure it is not McGee," she agreed. "The search is mostly for current information," she continued, "McGee would know how to get in touch with her."

"Yeah, McGee knows everything," Tony replied, much more assuredly than his earlier statements, earning another strange look from Ziva.

"You know something," Ziva suddenly stated, distracted by that realization. "Tell me," she demanded, standing up and moving to the front of her desk and leaning against it as she stared at her teammate.

"I know that the timing of this isn't just a coincidence," Tony offered, determined to get her off that topic. "What I need to know is who else would have a reason to pry into her background? And the skills to do this?"

Once the questions were out there, it didn't take long before they each reached the same conclusion.

"Abby." They stated in unison, staring at each other in horror.

"Hey! You're not paid to stare at each other all day, get to work," Gibbs ordered as he reentered the bullpen, a few minutes later

With Gibbs back at this desk, it was impossible for Tony and Ziva to continue their conversation. However, a few looks and gestures from Tony had Ziva agreeing not to say anything at this time.

"Just when you think things couldn't get worse," Tony muttered, automatically looking up when the elevator dinged and the doors opened. At least he was alone, Tony quickly realized, grateful for small favors.

Tobias Fornell whistled an annoying tune as he turned into the bullpen.

"Gibbs, my old friend," he began, casually taking a look around. "What is going on a-" He stopped speaking once he caught sight of Timothy McGee's empty desk. No, he thought, it was beyond empty, it was spotless, making it obvious that the young agent hadn't been in all day. He quickly took another look around and noticed the tension that felt so thick it could be cut with a knife. Tony was glaring at Gibbs, Gibbs was avoiding everyone, and Ziva's gaze observing it all. This wasn't the fun-loving, jovial bullpen he usually entered into.

"Office," he called to Gibbs, as he retraced his footsteps.

"I don't have time, Fornell," Gibbs replied, not moving.

Fornell turned and glared at his friend. "Make time. Now, come on."

"Boss, you want me to go," Tony offered.

"Nah, I got it," Gibbs commented, reluctantly agreeing as he followed the FBI agent and entered the elevator.

As soon as Gibbs was ensconced in the elevator, Ziva turned to Tony. "As you wanted, I did not tell Gibbs that someone was looking into Kelsey's file, nor did I mention that we suspected it was Abby," she began. "But I need you to tell me why or else I will tell him as soon as he comes back."

"We can't,"

"We can't hide this," Ziva protested. "I will not be an accomplice by covering it up and protecting her."

"Dammit, Ziva, it's not Abby I'm trying to protect!" he vehemently protested, even though he tried to keep his voice from being overheard.

Ziva snorted in disbelief, "Then what are we going to do?"

"I've been thinking about that," he shared, "and I think we need to go straight to the Director." While normally, he wouldn't cut Gibbs out of the loop like this, this was not a normal situation. Telling Vance was the only thing he could thing to do. The last thing he wanted was to give Gibbs something else to focus on right now. Gibbs was like a dog with a bone, and going after Abby instead of thinking about or doing something about the recent revelation regarding Tim could have a negative impact on the father-son relationship it might not be able to recover from.

"Why? When?" she asked.

"Because he is Abby's direct supervisor, Gibbs should not be involved, not wi-" Tony stopped before he let something slip to Ziva. She was suspicious enough already. "with what we suspect," he lamely improvised. "As for when? No time like the presence," he added.

"Now? Shouldn't we make an appointment?"

"Rule 18, better to seek forgiveness than ask permission," Tony quoted. "But hey, if you want to call and make an appointment, risk Gibbs returning and either stopping us or following us, well, then who am I to stop you," he finished, staring at her.

Ziva huffed, picked up the file of proof she had collected and indicated for Tony to lead the way.

"What the hell is going on here?" Fornell demanded to know as soon as he stopped the elevator's motion.

"Work," Gibbs snarked at him, "I know it's kind of a foreign concept to you guys at the Hoover building."

"Cut the crap," Fornell growled, not fooled for a moment that everything was well in the land of NCIS. "I'm talking about you and your people. I already knew something was going on. The fact that DiNutso didn't make any snide comments about my presence proved it."

Gibbs just glared at him.

Fornell snorted, "Must be a something big if you're remaining silent and resorting to glares. Either that or you don't know a damn thing about what's going on."

The two friends stared at each other for several moments, neither one speaking a word.

"We done?" Gibbs asked, moving to restart the elevator.

"Not even close," Fornell smirked as he leaned against the wall. Not only did it block the control switch from Gibbs, but it gave him a better vantage point to observe the other man.

"McGee," Fornell began, pausing at the change in demeanor that uttering that single name had wrought. For a moment, the stoic mask on his friend's face disappeared before it was once more firmly in place. The change happened so quickly, that Tobias was unable to identify the emotions that had quickly been covered up.

"Interesting," Fornell murmured softly to himself, now even more curious about what has been happening.

"What about McGee?" Gibbs asked at the same time.

"He wasn't at his desk."

"Personal days."

Fornell paused, the younger man had just returned back to work. What could possibly make him take additional time off? He thought back to the somber atmosphere of the bullpen. The glances everyone else had shooting at his friend and their team. Something like that usually only occurred when someone was sick or hurt. Was one of the looks that fleeted across Gibbs's face earlier sadness? Could McGee be hurt? Was one of his kids sick? "Is he okay? Are the kids sick? Emily hadn't mentioned anything, though that would explain the rumors."

"Kiva and Shane are fine, as is Tim," Gibbs reassured him, as he processed the rest of his friend's words. "What rumors?"

Fornell shrugged, "That McGee was looking for a change because of a family situation. I didn't place any stock in it," he added.

Gibbs nodded. He knew Tobias had the same attitude regarding scuttlebutt that he did, which basically meant ignoring it until it was presented as fact.

"But with him not being here and taking personal leave," he continued before letting his voice trail off and giving a shrug, silently admitting that he didn't know what to think. "I wonder if he's thinking about leaving the team and field."

Gibbs tensed at that idea, "Why the hell would you think that?" He demanded to know.

"Because he's a single father with two infants and could be worried about leaving them orphans."

"Oh." Gibbs sadly recognized the truth and wisdom of those words. Shaking his head, he then dismissed it. Surely Tim would talk to the team and the director before taking those steps.

"Wait…" Gibbs glared at Fornell again. "Why are you here? You said you already knew something was going on, that Tony's attitude confirmed it. You didn't know Tim was absent until you entered the Bullpen. What made you think something was going on around here?"

Fornell tensed, knowing how protective Gibbs could be. If he reacted too much to the questions about McGee, who knew how he would react regarding the original topic. It was one of the reasons why he mentioned McGee's absent first.

"Abby," he began.

"What about Abby?" Gibbs hissed.

"Whoa, ease up there, papa bear," he teased. "I'm sure she's fine. In fact, as soon as we're done, you can visit her in the lab and check in on her."

"What about Abby?" Gibbs repeated, not bothering to mention that the forensic scientist had been suspended and isn't in the building.

Tobias shrugged before admitting, "She's been putting out feelers about positions at other agencies. She's also been talking to some of our lab techs about rushed DNA testing."

"What the hell?" Gibbs barked, trying to reach around Tobias to restart the elevator car. This was something that had to immediately be shared with Vance.

"Hey! Calm down," Fornell began, worried about his friend. He knew he could be protective, but he had never seen him like this before.

"You don't understand," Gibbs growled. He continued to reach for the elevator switch, despite Fornell pushing him back, mumbling the entire time.

Fornell couldn't hear everything, but a few words, 'Abby', 'Tim' and 'breaking rules' gave him a good idea about what was going on.

"Oh, I think I do," he smirked knowingly. "McGee and Abby are together again and breaking rule 12."

"The hell they are," Gibbs denied, as he repeatedly tried to get the elevator to restart by pressing the button for the mezzanine.

"It was only a matter of time before they started dating again. It's hard to let go when you remain so close," Tobias observed, amusement lacing his tone.

"They're not dating. Aren't even talking," Gibbs continued. No way had Tim already forgiven Abby and even if he had, Gibbs knew Tim would never trust her again, let alone date her. There was also the fact that Abby had been ordered to have 'no contact' with anyone at NCIS as part of her suspension. It was the fact that Abby was still trying to find out what was going on that worried him.

Fornell rolled his eyes, there was a lot of things you could do without talking, not to mention fighting was the perfect cover for a secret liaison. "You can't keep them from dating, regardless of your rules," he warned. "You, the Director, no one has a right to tell them that they can't be together, they are both adults."

"For the last time, my son is not involved with that treacherous harpy," Gibbs spat.

Fornell staggered in surprise, something the other man was quick to take advantage of by restarting the elevator.

He had never heard Jethro refer to his agents with familial terms, even though he suspected that was how he felt about them. He had also never heard his friend sound so angry and upset. But the fact that he spoke so negatively about Abby, that was probably what shocked him the most.

"What the hell has been going on around here?" Fornell asked again as the elevator doors opened on the mezzanine and Gibbs dragged him towards the Director's office.

Tim tensed once more as the phone rang. This time, he made sure to look at the number before answering it, not that it was much help, the number displayed on caller ID was the main switchboard number for NCIS.

"McGee," he said, as he answered the call.

"Agent McGee, it's Leon Vance."

"Director," Tim respectfully replied. "Er, hello."

"Hello, Tim. I hope I am not calling at a bad time."

"Um, no, of course not."

"Good. I just called to see how you were doing."

"Er, fine, um, how's everything there?" Tim asked before closing his eyes and shaking his head. What kind of idiotic question was that? It's not like Tim thought they would fall about without him there for a day. Hell, they just survived months with him either working reduced hours or not at all.

"Quiet," Vance dryly commented.

"Oh." Tim replied non-committedly, even as he wondered what 'quiet' meant.

"Listen," Vance continued, "The reason I'm calling is because I wanted to let you know,"

As the director talked, Tim tensed, did this mean that the Director already figured out what he was going to do regarding the MCRT and Tim's job. "Yeah?" he couldn't help ask.

"That I understand and know what prompted you to submit your resignation."

"You know?" he repeated.

"I know about the results of the DNA test," he confirmed.

Several moments of silence lingered on the line.

"Does this mean that you accept my resignation?" Tim finally asked.

"No," Vance firmly retorted.

"But,"

"Tim, I told you to take a few days to think about it and I meant that. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet," Leon dryly pointed out.

"Yeah, but I don't kno-" Tim began to argue. After all, if he and Gibbs weren't speaking, how could they work together.

"Tim, it's okay," Vance reassured him. "I know that this is a shock to both of you. It is not an easy situation to deal with. No one will force you into anything."

"I really think it would be best if I just resign," Tim persisted.

"And I disagree," Vance countered. "We will work things out," he promised, once more shaking his head at the stubbornness of his agents. "You are still a great agent and a valuable asset to NCIS, I am not going to lose that due to something you had no control over."

"But,"

"Tim," Vance injected, stopping his agent from speaking. "Spend some time thinking about what you want. Not what you think would be best for the agency or everyone else; not what would be easiest, but what you want."

"I want this entire thing to never have happened," Tim said before he could stop himself.

The words and tone used caused Vance to pause, he really wasn't sure how to respond to that statement. This was a situation he never thought he would be in when he became the Director of a Federal agency. "I wish it didn't happen this way, but unfortunately it has, we just have to adjust and carry on. I will do what I can to help you through this situation.

"Again, I know that it will take some time, but avoiding it, ignoring it, pretending it hadn't happened will only make things worse," he added. "This week has held many shocks for you, it is best that you not act impulsively. That is one of the reasons why I will not accept your resignation."

"But regulations,"

"We will find a way," Vance promised, once more cutting the younger man off.

Tim shook his head, still not seeing how that was possible.

"Ah, who else knows?" he asked instead, wanting not only to change the subject, but to begin mental preparation for any fallout that might occur.

As Tim waited for Vance to answer, he could hear some muffled voices in the background, making him wonder if the Director was alone when he made this call.

"I have not informed anyone, if that is what you are asking," Vance stated. "I do not know who you or Gibbs have told."

"Ju-"

"Nor do I need to," Vance injected. "This is something regarding your personal life, you do not need clearance from me to talk about it."

"But"-

"We'll talk some more tomorrow, Friday at the latest," Vance promised, his firm tone indicating that it would be useless arguing with him on this topic.

Tim sighed as he reluctantly agreed and moved to end the call, his scrunching in curiosity as he hears the Director mention 'Gibbs' before the call is disconnected. Was Gibbs in the director's office? Had he been in there the entire time? Was he the muffled voice he heard?

3-30-2020

So, we might have a clue of what Abby is up to...

Wanted to post earlier (a day or two ago), but had some trouble. I had accidentally hit some keys on my computer and it went into some strange mode. When I tried to copy/paste to post, I was getting on the coding for the formatting. I was so occupied with fixing that, that I didn't think about creating this chapter as a separate file and uploading it instead of copy and pasting...oops

Had trouble naming this chapter...

Hope all is well with you guys and that you are keeping safe, health, and occupied! Would love to hear from you via reviews..