Cherished Agony
While getting her morning coffee an unsuspecting Kate is kidnapped and terrorized. Who is her captor and what does he want? Gibbs and the team work frantically to save her from the imminent danger. Please review!
Disclaimer: Let's face the music, shall we? I don't own NCIS and never will. Oh, well, neither do you, so we can suffer together.
Chapter 3: Harder to Breathe
"You can't identify with your captor in a couple of hours," Kate said incredulously.
"Sure you can, Kate. It's classic Stockholm syndrome," Tony replied.
The conversation echoed in Kate's mind. She tried to look at her situation from a clinical point of view, that way there was a smaller chance of her getting in over her head. Kate stared out the second floor window into the oncoming twilight. She had been MIA for going on nine days. Ari hadn't done anything to make her fear for her safety, but there was an ominous film clinging to her like a second skin. She spent most of her time in that window trying to distance herself from the circumstances. It was a coping mechanism. Kate was beyond tears. All she wanted was to go home to her own bed and collapse among her overstuffed pillows and down duvet. She tried her best not to think about Ari. She knew that if she did, she would end up doing something stupid. That was not something she could afford to do in her situation.
Meanwhile Gibbs stood in his basement, punching more holes into the now almost shredded picture of Ari he had pinned to his dart board. Kate had been missing for longer than ever before. Gibbs was beginning to wonder if he'd ever see her again. No, he wouldn't let himself think like that. He would get her back if it meant trading his own life for hers. Gibbs was getting increasingly pessimistic. He had never been an optimist, and this was certainly not the right time to be Panglossian, but his outlook was unusually somber, even for Gibbs.
Kate heard a voice calling her from somewhere downstairs. It was Ari, undoubtedly. She turned away from the window and walked down the stairs into the entrance hall. Ari was waiting for her in the living room. He was seated on one side of the couch and motioned for Kate to join him.
"Come, Caitlin, let us call agent Gibbs, let him know that you are still alive," Ari suggested.
Kate walked over to the other side of the room and hesitantly took her place on the couch beside Ari. Kate was uncomfortable, at best, but decided that if she was submissive then perhaps she could wake up from the nightmare sooner. Ari picked up Kate's cell phone and turned it on. He waited a few moments before speaking.
"Caitlin, you will undoubtedly notice that I am using your cellular phone rather than the house phone. You will also know that in the time it will take me to finish speaking your coworkers will have triangulated in on our location. Once they know where we are, they will be here in a matter of hours. I have decided that keeping you here any longer will neither benefit you nor amuse me. This is it, Caitlin. Why don't you just relax for a moment while I make the call," Ari suggested.
At first, Kate couldn't believe her good fortune. She was finally going to see everyone again. She would finally be free. Then, she the more rational part of her brain took over. Kate had to wonder. Was Ari really going to let her off the hook that easily? Was he going to kill her? Kate suddenly wished that it hadn't been so easy. At least that way the suspense wouldn't literally kill her. Kate watched Ari as he dialed Gibbs' number and waited for the other man to pick up.
Gibbs picked up his bottle of beer and took another swig. His aim was no less accurate than when he was sober. Each time Gibbs still managed to hit his choice of body part on the picture of Ari he had taped to his dart board. Suddenly, Gibbs' cell phone rang. He picked up on the first ring.
"Gibbs," he barked.
"Agent Gibbs, how good it is to hear your voice again," Ari said politely.
"Who is this," Gibbs growled menacingly.
"All in good time, agent Gibbs. First I want to tell you that I have decided to allow you to finally come and collect Caitlin," Ari stated.
"Where and when?" Gibbs asked apprehensively.
"Whenever you find the time to make it in to the office to check the GPS screen. I will leave Caitlin's cell phone turned on until the batteries run out, so you have plenty of time. The time is entirely up to you, agent Gibbs," Ari said lightly.
"Let me talk to her," Gibbs demanded.
Kate continued to stare at Ari as he talked to Gibbs. She willed herself not to cry. Kate was torn between euphoric joy at the fact that she would be seeing her team again soon and irrational fear that she wouldn't make it out of this alive. At that moment, Ari handed the phone to Kate.
"Agent Gibbs would like to speak with you," Ari said softly.
Kate took the phone and put it up to her face.
"Gibbs?" She asked tentatively.
"Kate, are you alright?" Gibbs asked worriedly.
"I'm fine," Kate replied.
"Good. We're coming to get you soon, I promise. Just hang on," Gibbs said firmly.
"I will," Kate said quietly.
"Let me talk to the bastard again, Kate," Gibbs instructed her.
Kate sighed shakily and handed the phone back to Ari. He took it from her grasp and put it back up to his own face.
"Yes, agent Gibbs?" Ari inquired.
"I swear to God that if you do anything to hurt her before we come get her I will hunt you down and personally send you back under the rock from which you came," Gibbs threatened.
Ari laughed lightly.
"Tarry not, agent Gibbs. I promise that no harm will come to agent Todd," Ari replied. "Goodbye for now."
Ari put the phone down and hung up on Gibbs. True to his word, he left the phone on. Ari turned to look up at Kate.
"How does it feel to know you are finally going home?" Ari asked.
Kate stared at him blankly for a moment before finding it in herself to reply.
"I don't know. That depends on whether or not you actually plan on letting me go home," Kate said indifferently.
"I assure you Caitlin that this time you are really free to go, no strings attached. I won't bother you any longer after this," Ari said honestly.
Kate sighed. She had believed it before and look where it had gotten her. Would she really be free to go this time?
Meanwhile, Gibbs had phoned the team, gotten dressed, gotten in his car, grabbed a cup of coffee and made it down to NCIS headquarters in all in the span of less than twenty minutes, breaking several traffic regulations and almost mowing down numerous pedestrians along the way. When he reached NCIS headquarters he only had to wait a few minutes for the rest of the team to arrive. He didn't explain why he wanted them all out of their pajamas, into their work clothes and ready for action at NCIS as soon as possible, so they were all curious when they arrived.
"McGee, pull up the GPS screen and triangulate in on Kate's cell phone. Tony, gas the truck. Abby, run another voice recognition on the conversation saved on this phone. Ducky, you're coming with us just in case this bastard decides to break his promise and Kate needs medical attention. Come on, hop to it!" Gibbs instructed.
"On it boss!" McGee, Tony and Abby all said simultaneously.
"God I need more coffee," Gibbs growled to himself. "I'll meet you downstairs, Duck."
Ducky nodded and headed off towards the garage as Gibbs went to refill his coffee cup. Sure, office coffee tasted like sludge, but at this point Gibbs couldn't care less as long as it was caffeinated. Gibbs quickly made his way downstairs, grabbing his SIG out of the top drawer of his desk on the way out. Gibbs walked into the garage and got into the truck next to Tony and Ducky.
"Drive, DiNozzo," Gibbs ordered.
Tony nodded and pulled out of the garage. Gibbs fiddled with the GPS screen in the truck and connected it to the main GPS back at NCIS. Tony watched the dot blink on the screen as he drove. It looked like they were in for a fairly long drive. Gibbs pulled Tony's cell phone out of the younger agent's pocket and dialed McGee's private line. The young agent picked up immediately.
"Yeah boss?" McGee inquired.
"What kind of a situation are we looking at?" Gibbs asked.
"Well boss, Kate's being held at a cabin just east of Salem, Oregon. The cabin is owned by a lieutenant commander Mathias Jawhari. He was a naval pilot and was given a dishonorable discharge two years ago for a friendly fire incident during training. He bought the cabin a year ago and has kept up to date with all of the utility bills. Criminal record check came up clean," McGee relayed.
"Good work, McGee," Gibbs replied. "Run a license plate check on his applications, just in case we need it later."
He hung up and sat back trying to ease his nerves as they drove. Gibbs prayed that the bastard who had Kate was going to be a man about it. Gibbs had recognized the voice on the phone but not the name. Of course he could have forgotten a name, but Gibbs doubted that there was any margin of human error present with him. Gibbs flipped open the cell phone again and called Abby. The lab tech picked up half way through the fourth ring. Gibbs could hear the loud distorted music in the background.
"Abby, turn that music down!" Gibbs shouted into the receiver.
He heard the music soften noticeably as the lab rat complied.
"Thank you," he said lightly.
"What do you need, boss man?" Abby inquired.
"Have you gotten any results on that analysis yet?" Gibbs asked.
"I've run it through twice already and there's too much interference. It's hard to run a voice recognition on a cell phone conversation, Gibbs. I'll try again but I'm not promising anything. I've run a few of the snippets through the system and haven't gotten an answer yet, so don't hold your breath," Abby explained.
"Okay, thanks anyway Abbs," Gibbs replied.
He shut off the phone and slipped it back into Tony's jacket pocket as they drove. Gibbs unconsciously had one hand poised on the SIG Sauer at his hip, ready to fire at any moment. He didn't now if he could make it all the way to Salem before killing someone.
Kate sat on the couch, watching the second hand of the click slink by. It was going so slowly that Kate could have sworn it had stopped or even gone backwards. Ari would walk through the living room occasionally as he packed some things and carried his bags out to the car. Kate decided that this was it. One way or another, this part of the whole ordeal was over. Kate sat on the couch, unmoving, for another hour. Ari came into the room, carrying something behind his back. Kate couldn't see what it was. All of the muscles in her body tensed up in anticipation. Ari sat down on the couch beside her and reached one hand around, laying it on his knee.
"Well, Caitlin, this is it. I must be going now. This is where I leave you. When agent Gibbs comes for you please, give him my regards, won't you?" Ari stated.
He reached out a hand and Kate took it. They broke the handshake and Kate looked down at her hands, which were knotted in her lap. Ari put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. Kate didn't even see him pull out a syringe full of sedative. He quickly jabbed it into her upper arm and pulled away before she could fight back. Ari didn't want Kate watching him as he drove away. If she got the license plate numbers off of the car he had he may as well kiss his freedom goodbye. This way, by the time Kate was awake and well enough to speak again Ari would be south of the border and sipping tequila on a beach somewhere in Mexico. Kate hissed in pain and grabbed her arm.
"What the hell was that?" She asked Ari.
"Just a little something to help you sleep. It will make the time until agent Gibbs arrives go by faster. Goodbye now, Caitlin," Ari said warmly.
"Go to hell," Kate spat angrily.
Ari smiled at her as she drifted off into unconsciousness. Ari brushed a stray strand of hair back from Kate's face and kissed her lightly on the cheek. He left the room without a backward glance and drove off into the night.
Tony drove well over the speed limit and it still took them several hours to reach the cabin. Once they arrived, Gibbs was the first one out of the truck. Tony shut off the ignition and joined him outside. Gibbs had his headset on, as did Tony and Ducky.
"Duck, I want you to stay there and out of sight until I give you the all clear. Tony, I need you to cover me. I'm going in first," Gibbs instructed.
He saw the younger agent nod and heard Ducky's affirmative reply. Gibbs approached the front door and realized all of the lights in the house were turned off with the exception of what he took to be the living room light. Gibbs signed the count of three to Tony and broke down the door. The two of them made their way through the house, looking for Kate's captor. They checked the entire first floor and there were no signs of life. At first glance neither of them noticed an unconscious Kate slumped over on the couch. Gibbs headed upstairs while Tony headed down to the basement and together they checked the remainder of the house. It was completely empty.
"All clear down here, boss," Tony relayed.
"Clear up here, too," Gibbs replied.
He switched off his microphone and walked around the second storey, calling Kate's name. Tony did the same on the main floor. The young agent walked around the house and found no signs of his female counterpart until he reached the living room. Tony found Kate unconscious on the sofa and knelt down next to her, trying to rouse her.
"Come on Kate, wake up!" Tony encouraged.
He tried a few more times, unsuccessfully, to wake Kate up from her deep sleep. Tony quickly checked her pulse at the neck and was relieved to find it strong and steady. It was then that he noticed the syringe still partly full of a cloudy liquid on the table. Tony flipped his headset back on and spoke into it.
"Gibbs, I found Kate," Tony began.
"Where are you? How is she?" Gibbs asked.
"I'm down in the living room. It looks like she's been drugged, boss, she's alive but she won't wake up," Tony relayed.
"I'm on my way," Gibbs said to Tony.
As Gibbs walked downstairs, he changed the frequency on his headset to match Ducky's.
"Hey Duck, we need you in the house. The coast is clear. Tony found Kate and she's unconscious. He said it looked like she had been drugged," Gibbs explained.
"I'm on my way, Jethro," Ducky replied.
Ducky grabbed his bag and rushed toward the house. He stepped in through the remains of the splintered doorframe and walked into the living room where Tony and Gibbs had gathered around Kate's lifeless form. Ducky immediately checked her pulse and much like Tony was relieved to find it stable. He lifted her eyelids and examined her pupils. At least it seemed that she hadn't been poisoned by any sort of common street narcotic.
"Wake up, Caitlin," Ducky coaxed.
The other two agents watched Ducky as he tried to rouse Kate from her slumber. The older man pulled out a blood pressure cuff and his stethoscope. He wrapped it around Kate's arm and took the measurement. He folded the equipment away again and turned to face the agents.
"Her blood pressure is low and her breathing is slightly suppressed. She should be fine once she wakes up. However, I can't be sure of when that will be. Anthony, may I ask why you suspected that Caitlin had been drugged?" Ducky inquired.
"I found that," Tony replied, pointing to the needle on the coffee table.
Ducky's brow furrowed in concern as he examined the remaining contents of the syringe. There were only a few sedatives with the same distinct milky color as the one contained in the phial. Ducky sighed.
"From the looks of this she was given a rather high dosage of triptophan, a sedative used mainly to suppress enraged psychotic patients. It might be as much as a few days before our young Caitlin wakes up," Ducky explained.
"Is there anything we can do for her? Should we take her to the hospital?" Gibbs asked.
Ducky considered the questions for a moment.
"Unfortunately there is no way to get the drug out of her system any faster. If we took her to the hospital she would only wake up and be more traumatized. You know our Caitlin. I think the best thing would be to take her back to NCIS and have Abby watch her for a few days. I would come by regularly to make sure nothing was wrong. The only thing a hospital stay would change would be the fact that she would be laying in a cold, sterile isolation room all alone rather than a more cozy bed surrounded by dear friends," Duck replied.
"Let's get her into the truck. Tony and I will look around a little longer and try to gather some evidence and we'll meet you back there in a while. Tony, why don't you carry Kate back to the truck," Gibbs suggested.
Tony nodded and stood up. He very carefully picked Kate up off of the couch and carried her slowly out to the truck. Once they got inside, Ducky sat down first and Tony carefully arranged Kate's lifeless body next to Ducky so the doctor could support her on the ride back. Tony returned to the house with Gibbs and the quickly, albeit meticulously collected all of the evidence they could find. Hairs, fibers, fingerprints and others all went into the investigation kit. Once they were finished, the two agents headed back to the truck. They drove off back to Washington.
Gibbs sat in the back with Ducky, supporting Kate from the other side as Tony drove. Gibbs had made it his mission to find out who this bastard was and what he had done to Kate. When he got his hands on whoever had captured Kate, Gibbs would do the unspeakable. He would kill the bastard and pick him apart on Ducky's slab personally, just so he could have the pleasure of weighing the bastard's liver. Gibbs could almost taste the revenge.
He would finally exact payback on the bastard that had caused him so much grief and when he did it would be the ultimate glory...
A.N.: Thanks for your great reviews so far! I'm glad I have Ari's cadence down! I'm sorry there's not a lot of tormenting, but I can't stand writing stories like that. It's just not my style. Now then, moving along. How was that chapter? I know it took me forever to write, but I've had more stuff to deal with lately than I would have time to finish in five years. Seriously. Anyways, tell me what you think. I hope it was worth the wait! I made it longer than usual to make up for lost time. Please review! Thanks! -Julia-
