Gibbs was hearing voices now. Or was he? With nothing in his room to occupy his mind, his thoughts chased around in his head until he was no longer sure what was real and what wasn't.
"Tony? You out there?" His voice sounded odd, hollow, and suddenly he wasn't even sure he'd spoken aloud. He shook his head to clear the fog, and was sharply reminded of a lingering pain behind his eyes, making his stomach roll with the sudden intensity of it.
Refusing to be held prisoner by his mind and body, he took a breath, as deep as he could manage against the sharp pain in his ribs, and blew it out slowly and deliberately. As stability returned, he lifted his head as far as the biting leather straps across his body would allow. He cocked his head and listened intently; that was Tony out there, he was certain of it. He was just about to call out to the younger agent once more when a white-coated figure slipped into the room, closing the door behind him. The man turned warm, kindly eyes toward him and smiled. "Now, Jethro, how are you doing?"
Gibbs blinked at the man in confusion. "Ducky? I swore I heard Tony out there… I know I didn't mistake him for you." He let his head drop back onto the pillow and his eyes drifted closed. "Duck, I think I'm losin' it. I'm hearing voices now."
Ducky strode briskly to the bed and laid a hand on his friend's forehead, startling Gibbs' eyes open. "No fever," he murmured. "And no, you aren't losing anything, nor are you hearing things. That is Tony at the Nurses Station."
"What's he doing out there? Get him in here now! I need to talk to him!"
"Jethro, just lie still. He's… occupied at present," the doctor began to explain as he reached for his patient's wrist and encountered the heavy leather restraint. "Damn! Sorry, my boy. Slipped my mind… Carotid will serve for the moment."
Gibbs eyed his friend as the man pressed gentle fingers to his neck and peered at his watch for a few seconds. "A bit fast and threadier than I'd like. Hm, I wish I had your chart here," the doctor muttered. He patted Gibbs' shoulder then examined the IV bags hanging at the patient's side as Gibbs caught up with Ducky's earlier words.
"Wait, what do you mean Tony's occupied? What's he up to now? He better not be hitting on a nurse!" he growled.
Ducky chuckled as he replied. "Well, not the way you think. He – that is to say, we – are facilitating your hospital discharge." He spoke the last two words in the barest of whispers, his eyes darting back and forth as if he were portraying a spy. "Tony and Nurse Bradford have staged quite a scene, so I'm told, so we mustn't waste their performance." Gibbs watched as Ducky moved to shut off the flow of IV fluid and medication, deftly removed the cannula from his arm and applied a pressure bandage.
"Sorry about this, Jethro. This will be a bit uncomfortable," Ducky apologized as he reached beneath the sheets to release the catheter.
Gibbs blew out another painful deep breath as the distasteful business was completed. He felt cool air on his body as Ducky slid the blanket and sheet to the bottom of the bed and worked at the restraints on his hands.
"None of this makes any sense, Duck. God, my head is spinning!" He laid one just-freed forearm across his eyes trying to block out the conflicting images. "I can't keep any of this straight. Why is Tony out there with Laurie? And what are they doing? Why aren't they in here helping us? For that matter, why are we sneaking out of here? What about Ari? Does Tony know about him? And where's McGee? And what about that jerk of a doctor?"
Ducky pulled Gibbs' arm from his face, forcing him to focus his disjointed thoughts. "Jethro, don't take this the wrong way, but do shut up." As Ducky released the final strap, Gibbs, anxious to be away, rose quickly from the bed. And nearly fell flat on the floor.
"Easy, Gibbs! You need a hospital bed, just perhaps not this one."
Gibbs took a labored breath and clung to Ducky, hating the weakness that made it necessary. "How bad am I and what are you going to do with me?"
"Right now, we're going to get you out of that terribly unfashionable gown and into something less noticeable. Then once I can examine you, I'll decide whether or not you need to go to Bethesda." Ducky directed his new patient into the small attached bathroom and handed him a large black medical bag.
"Change into these and yell if you need a hand."
Gibbs was slowly regaining his equilibrium. At the doctor's words, he gave the other man a look. "Duck, I've been dressing myself for a very long time. I think I can manage."
Ducky chuckled and closed the door behind him as he left the injured man to "manage".
Gibbs reached over his head for the first time in two days and untied the hospital gown. As it fell to the floor, he caught sight of the colorful bruising on his body in the mirror. What did the doctor say his injuries were? Did he remember hearing? Cracked or broken ribs? That explained the tape job. Concussion? Lovely purple lump on the forehead. Caffeine overdose? He hadn't had that much coffee before the accident.
I know I only had two cups, he told himself.
So where did all that caffeine come from?
He pulled a pair of navy sweatpants and a plain gray tee-shirt from Ducky's bag, slipped them on, and walked gingerly out of the bathroom. Ducky was waiting just outside the door.
"Okay, we're just going to walk out of here. Halfway down the hall there's a wheelchair; get in it and no arguments. I can't have you passing out on me before we're safely out of here. Then you're just along for the ride."
"That's it? Don't you think someone will notice us?" Gibbs almost shook his head in disbelief, the pain from earlier made him hesitate.
"Not if we go now." Ducky reached into the medical bag that Gibbs set down on the bed. From it he pulled an Ohio State ball cap and a pair of sunglasses. "From Tony; now put these on. Oh, and put these on your feet." He handed Gibbs a pair of slippers that had obviously been tucked in the very bottom of the bag. Then Ducky, with a huge grin on his face, handed Gibbs the medical bag, slipped an arm around the injured man's waist and walked him down the hall.
Gibbs eyed the scene at the Nurses' station as Tony prepared to read Laurie her rights before taking her in for questioning. Everyone on the floor was watching the drama unfold; only the tall man reciting the Miranda warning noticed as he and Ducky disappeared down the hallway to a wheelchair and then into the elevator.