Kate entered the lab and Abby piped up, Hail, the conquering Heroine!
Pardon me?
Tony told me about your capturing Emily Pederson. And the possible DNA samples. Great work, Kate! She grinned at her friend.
Thanks, Abbs. Where'd they go, anyway? Kate had hoped to find both the men here. She had an idea she wanted to bounce off them.
I thought they went to find you, but I'm not sure.
Kate went to reach for her cell phone just as it rang. Todd... I'm in the lab looking for you... Quit shouting... Fine, I'll come back down there... Yes, now. She slammed the phone closed and looked back up at Abby. He's lucky I like my job. Otherwise, I'd go postal on his ass.
You know, it's only because he cares, the dark-haired girl soothed.
Yeah, I know, Kate sighed as she headed toward the doors. But sometimes his caring is hard to take.
The elevator doors opened to Gibbs' ice blue glare boring into her. I thought I told you to stay put down here.
No, you told me to come have my ribs looked at, and I did. While Ducky was developing the x-rays, I decided I'd look for you because I had an idea. She brushed past him and strode into Autopsy, firmly ignoring the pain it caused her to do so. She saw Tony leaning on one of the tables with a neutral expression on his face. As she glanced in his direction, however, one eyelid fluttered almost imperceptibly. It made it nearly impossible for her to hold onto the indignation that had carried her into the room. Smothering the grin that threatened to break out, she turned to Ducky who was carrying in Kate's newly developed x-rays. Speaking before Gibbs could, she smiled at the doctor.
So, Ducky, just how banged-up am I?
Ducky had caught the undercurrents as he'd entered the room. Smiling at Caitlin and understanding her desire to remain in control of her body, he directed his answer to her and not her fuming superior.
Let's take a look, shall we? He flipped on the light boxes and slipped the film of her ribs on to them. As the other two men drew nearer, he began to examine the x-rays. The lengthy pause wore on the waiting individuals. Gibbs was irritated, but more than that, he was worried for Kate. When he could take the silence no longer he snapped,
Ducky eyed his friend, but gave his analysis to Kate after another moment of study. I believe that you are very lucky indeed, Caitlin. You have a hairline fractures here, here and here, he said, pointing out nearly invisible shadows on three neighboring ribs. Well, that and a very nasty bruise. From what I can tell here, however, the ribs don't appear to have moved unnaturally. It could have been much worse. You could very easily have had a ruptured spleen and torn some crucial chest muscles as well. Seeing some alarm on Kate's face, he switched off the light box and patted her arm. You'll be fine, my dear. Take extra care not to jar your ribs unduly over the next few weeks. And I would like to see you get a little extra rest for the next couple days. You're going to have difficulty breathing and you'll tire quickly. The doctor directed this last statement to all in the room, as he wanted them to understand the gravity of her condition.
Tony was glad to hear that her injury wasn't as serious as it could have been. He'd seen the pain in her eyes for the few moments she'd let her guard down; he'd been worried. She'd said it last night, she was a tough girl and he loved her for it. And though he would never try to change her he also couldn't deny the deeply hidden primitive desire to protect her. Later, privately, he would tell her how relieved he was that she wasn't hurt worse. For now, he simply stood back and said nothing, keeping the same neutral expression on his face.
Kate nodded as she listened to Ducky's diagnosis. One more thing to thank Pederson for. She'd have liked to have had Tony's knife with her earlier. Which reminded her of why she went in search of her teammates. Thanking Ducky for taking the time to see to her ribs, she turned to face the men behind her. Listen, I have an idea, but we need to go see Abby first. Oh, and does any one in the office have a hunting knife? Preferably one about -- say eight or nine inches long?
Tony, getting an inkling of what Kate had in mind, started to laugh. Oh, Kate! You're mean. You're going to try and scare Martin into talking, aren't you? His eyes sparkled as he looked over at his partner.
Kate's expression remained serious however, as she turned to Gibbs. Remember this morning when you said we hadn't found Martin's lever? I think I may have.
Gibbs looked at the wounded brunette in disbelief. Kate, you cannot walk into Interrogation wielding an eight-inch hunting knife. Aside from the fact that the suspects generally scream brutality, the Director takes a very dim view of that sort of behavior. Besides, he's the one we have physical evidence against.
Tony smirked, Yeah, just ask my landlord. He's pretty pissed about the bullet holes.
That's what I want to talk to Abby about. Kate responded as the agents reached the lab. I want to know if we have anything that can link Pederson to the apartment. Then I want her in Interrogation. I don't think she's going to give us anything, I just want to push on her for a little bit, just for form's sake. But I need Martin to see her being led out of the room, so he knows we have her. And hopefully she'll look a little worse for wear. Then I'll see if I can get the uncooperative Larry Martin to talk.
Abby looked up and listened to the end of Kate's comments. Before Gibbs could say a word, she jumped in. Well, I didn't hear the whole plan, but it sounds good to me. How can I help?
Gibbs sighed. Why did it seem that he was less and less in charge of his team on this case? Hey!
The three younger people all looked at him in surprise. Tony spoke up for all of them. Yes, Boss?
Pleased that he had their focus back, he stepped around Tony and Kate and spoke to Abby. What do we have that can tie Emily Pederson to the apartment?
The lab tech shared a quick grin with the other two agents before answering Gibbs. Luckily we requested info on Emily before the power went out, so we have her fingerprints. One of the ones that Kate lifted from 2F matched. Also, a couple of the hairs that Kate picked up from 2F match some of the ones taken from her clothes. That's all I've had time for so far.
What about DNA? Gibbs paced around the lab.
Gibbs, DNA takes time, you know that. And I need something to match it to. While Abby watched Gibbs and waited for the next question, Kate broke into the quiet.
Say, Abbs, you wouldn't happen to have a hunting knife, would you?
