It was taking too long. Gibbs knew it. Every second he delayed looking for Tony was a second closer to the young agent's death. But he couldn't leave McGee. McGee was his responsibility, too.

He could see the same fear in Kate's eyes as she watched him watching the paramedics work on McGee. He could see the accusation she would never speak. If they found Tony dead, it would be his fault.

He kept an eye on the emergency workers as they took care of McGee. He was conscious but he wasn't really with it. His brush with death had left him groggy and confused. He kept trying to see past the oxygen mask and the people surrounding him, his forehead creased as he tried to make sense of the confusion.

Gibbs knew how he felt.

While the paramedics worked on McGee, Gibbs flicked the beam of his flashlight around the area trying to find some idea of what had happened to DiNozzo.

Some local cops hadarrived and they were continuing with the search for DiNozzo, but Gibbs needed to be involved. He needed to be doing something himself to find his missing man. Why had Leo killed one man and taken the other? It didn't make any sense.

His cell rang and he moved back a few steps, keeping McGee in sight. "Gibbs," he spoke into the phone curtly.

"Gibbs, this is Abby. Have you found them?" He could hear the anxiety in her voice.

How did he tell herwhat he'd found exactly? He knew how Abby felt about McGee. It was his job to know. How was he going to tell her this? "What do you have, Abs?"

There was a pause as if she wanted to say more, but then she continued, "Okay, Gibbs, I pulled up the files on this Leo Morgan guy."

"What did you find?"

"Nothing past when he was supposed to have died back in the Gulf war, but did you know he had a wife and son?"

The words echoed in his head, and the last piece of the puzzle fell into place. Gibbs finally saw the whole picture, "Nancy and Ben Morgan," he nodded although Abby couldn't see it.

Leo had never mentioned having a wife and a kid, but he'd been a lost minute insertion into their team when their own fourth member had broken his foot. There had been no time to get to know him before his 'death.'

"How do you do that?"Abby complained in his ear. "And yes, Nancy Morgan was his wife. Benjamin Maxwell Morgan aged thirteen, is his son." There was a pause and she asked again, "Gibbs? Tony and McGee, have you found them?"

Thinking furiously, he told her, "Listen, Abby, we found McGee."

"You did? Gibbs, where? How?"

"Listen to me, Abby, I don't have time for this. McGee's been injured. I need you to meet him at the hospital. Get a guard on his door and do not leave him alone for anything. Do you understand, Abs?" No way was Leo getting another chance at his people.

Gibbs had to give her credit, she didn't ask what or why, she just said, "Will do, Gibbs. Tony?" Her voice was barely a whisper.

"We'll find him, Abs, don't worry. And Abby, take Ducky with you. I want him to look at McGee and give me an assessment."

"I'm already there, Gibbs." The phone went dead in his hand.

"Gibbs," Kate called out to him from McGee's side."McGee wants to talk to you."

The injured man was loaded on a gurney now, snugged in for transport. Even in the dim light provided by flashlights and emergency lights, Gibbs could see the bruises beginning to form around McGee's throat, dark and ugly purple.

"McGee."

"Tony." McGee's voice was a bare whisper.

"Sir," one of the paramedics protested, "he shouldn't be speaking."

"Please," McGee pleaded, his eyes flicking from Gibbs to the paramedics and back again. "Got to."

"It's okay, McGee," Gibbs told him. "Take it easy. Where's Tony? Do you know?"

McGee tried to sit, but failing that, he pointed. "Gotta get him. Hurt… bad."

"We'll get him, McGee," Kate said from behind him. "We've got to get you to the hospital."

"No," the man said stubbornly. "Tony. Gotta get Tony."

Gibbs liked his determination. "You're going to the hospital, McGee, that's an order. Kate and I will get Tony."

That seemed to reassure him. McGee's eyes began to flicker and then shut. Gibbs nodded at the paramedics to take him away. He watched until they disappeared into the darkness.

"Gibbs?" Kate asked quietly.

"Abby called." He waited until all it was just the two of them again. The area around them was trampled, impossible to find a trail, but he flicked the beam of his flashlight around anyway. His thoughts were going in circles trying to track sight-lines and retrace his agent's steps.

"And?"

"Nancy Morgan is Leo's wife." He began to cast about in a wider circle.

"As in Tony's little brother?" she asked incredulously.

"That would be the one." He nodded, "I want you to get someone on her door, round the clock guard. Then you and I are going to check out a hunch."

He stopped as he found the spot where a body had sat. He knelt, touching the packed earth. He held his bloody fingers up for Kate to see.

She didn't flinch, her mouth just tightened as she flipped open her phone.

There was another set of prints next to where Tony had sat. A set of prints that wasn't McGee's.

Leo had DiNozzo, Gibbs was certain of that.

They had to hurry, Gibbs was certain of that, too. DiNozzo's time was running out. Even if Leo didn't kill him, blood loss was going to do it for him.

To be continued...