Endless footage of ordinary parking lot activity played on the video monitors. Three figures sat studying every nuance and every shadow each frame had to offer. Suddenly, the ringing of the cell phone shattered the strained silence in the forensics lab. Tony pretended not to notice the relief on McGee's face as the young agent rolled his neck and sighed.
"DiNozzo…" He could not keep his fatigue and irritation from coloring his response.
"Mr. DiNozzo? My name is Laurie Bradford and I'm one of the nurses assigned to Mr. Gibbs. You're listed as a contact for him." Tony listened to the quiet feminine voice and felt sweat begin to prickle along his scalp.
"Is he okay? Has something happened? I can be there in under thirty minutes," he responded instantly. As he spoke, he watched McGee gather up his PDA and jacket, while Abby waited for a gesture from him, fingers frozen in place on her keyboard.
"Yes, but don't worry, he's all right for the moment." The woman kept her voice light as she continued, "He's been asking for Tony, is that you?"
"Yes, and I'm on my cell phone, so I'm on my way. Now, tell me what's going on." He motioned for McGee to follow him as he nodded reassurance and held up the universally accepted thumb-and-pinkie phone sign to his other ear for Abby. As soon as they were clear of her lab equipment, Tony tossed the other man a set of keys.
"Mr. Gibbs was apparently drugged while in his room. He says he saw the man, claims it's someone named Ari. Does that make sense to you?" The two men maneuvered quickly through and out of the building while Tony listened to the brief explanation.
"Yes," he ground out, following McGee across the parking lot. "Go on. What was he drugged with?"
"It was an anti-psychotic, something that might be typical to calm an agitated patient, such as Mr. Gibbs with his high level of caffeine. However, this particular medication in overdose levels can cause confusion and agitation itself, which is exactly what happened. He's been given something to counteract those symptoms, but the best thing for him is to rest undisturbed and let these chemicals pass out of his system." Tony knew there had to be more and wished she would just tell him the whole story.
"What aren't you telling me? Is this going to do any permanent damage?" He gestured to McGee to drive when the other man gaped at him after they had settled themselves in the vehicle.
"No, there's no risk of permanent damage, and he's resting quietly for now. It was touch and go there for a while, though," she sighed. "Whoever did this knew exactly what they were doing to him. As he comes out of this, he's likely to experience periods of confusion and agitation. He may be difficult to deal with at times."
"And that would be new in what way?" Tony muttered. "Sorry. You said 'touch and go'. What happened?"
She paused for a moment. "As I said, whoever did this knew exactly what they were doing. Mr. Gibbs received enough of this drug to cause some cardiac distress. But I assure you he's stable now."
Tony clenched his jaw briefly before continuing. "Is there anything else? Did Gibbs say what he wanted from me?"
"Yes, and it's the same thing I want. I could lose my job for this, but I want you to get him out of here. Unnoticed. He needs a safe place to recuperate from this attack." Laurie blew out a breath then continued in an aggravated tone. "Look, short version is that whoever's out to get your man has somehow dragged me into it, too. I've been accused of drugging him, taken off his case and God knows what else while I've been on break talking to you." Finally, the last of the faint hesitation Tony felt in her voice was gone.
"Is that everything? Where are you now?" Tony checked the mirrors as McGee drove, looking for signs that they were being followed.
"At a gas station pay phone. It's about a half-mile from the hospital. As soon as I got the call from my friend in the lab with the blood analysis results, I knew I'd been set up too. I had a dinner break coming, so I excused myself for a personal errand. It's not uncommon, so hopefully I haven't been missed."
"And just what makes you so sure that you were set up?" Tony tried to keep the skepticism from his voice. He couldn't understand why this nurse would be involved.
"The drug that Mr. Gibbs was given was Stelazine. Same thing my mother was on before she died three months ago."