Gibbs slammed the receiver down in frustration, nearly breaking his phone. He had been trying to get the local sheriff's department on the phone all evening, with no luck.

"Still can't reach the local police?" asked Ziva.

"No." Gibbs scowled at his phone as if willing the elusive man to call him.

"Corporal Turner said that Tony left his house around noon. He didn't say anything about stopping somewhere first, there wasn't any reason to check in with the local authorities," Ziva said.

"No," agreed Gibbs, "but most of Tony's drive would have been through Dawson County. If he was in an accident they would know about it."

"He could have had an accident anywhere, Gibbs," Ziva pointed out.

Gibbs glared at her. "Which is why we have a BOLO out on the car, Officer David," he said with exaggerated politeness. He looked up as McGee came rushing off the elevator and into the squad room. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Abby called and told me Tony's missing," McGee explained. "I came back to see if I could help. It's okay, Boss, I'm not getting sick anymore, I'll be fine."

Gibbs nodded shortly. "Okay, see if anything has come up on the inquiries to the local hospitals. Also, find out everything you can about the Dawson County Sheriff's Department. They've been giving me the runaround, I've got a bad feeling about them."

"On it, Boss." McGee powered up his computer. "I should have gone with him," he muttered to himself.

"No, you were too sick. I should have put off my personal business and gone with him," Ziva replied.

"Then we'd be missing two agents," replied Gibbs. "There was no way to anticipate something like this happening. Second-guessing what could have or should have been done doesn't do us any good. Hell, Tony could be stuck on a country road with car trouble. We've just got to find him."

"And then give him hell for worrying us like this," Ziva said with a smile.

Gibbs headed down to Abby's lab while McGee and Ziva continued to call the local hospitals.

"No sign yet, Gibbs," Abby said, as Gibbs entered the lab. "I'm really worried. Tony would never be out of touch for so long."

"I know, Abs." Gibbs gave her a comforting hug. "We'll find him."

"No sign of his car either?"

Gibbs shook his head.

"Wait a minute," Abby exclaimed, rolling her chair over to her computer excitedly. "Didn't they start putting GPS locators in the company sedans?"

"Good thinking, Abs," Gibbs said, coming up behind her.

"I should have thought of it sooner," she said, shaking her head.

Gibbs squeezed her shoulders. "We should have thought of it sooner."

Abby worked feverishly, screens flashing on her computer. "Okay, luckily the car Tony took was one of the ones that was fitted with a GPS locator. Now, I just need to find the signal and...damn, there's nothing! That's impossible!"

"Not impossible if the locator is damaged," Gibbs said, grimly.

"But, Gibbs," Abby said worriedly, "you said there hasn't been any report of an accident involving a car fitting that description."

"No, there hasn't, but there are other ways a signal could be cut off." Gibbs turned to leave the lab.

"You think someone did something to Tony and the car?" Abby called out.

"Maybe."

Early the next morning the team was gathered around the plasma screen in the squad room. They had worked through the night trying to track down their missing agent, with no luck.

"Sheriff Robert Nelson," McGee read information from his PDA. "He's been sheriff for the past two years. Before that he was in the Army, Special Forces. Served in Desert Storm, honorably discharged, received some commendations for bravery. I couldn't find out much about him as a sheriff, though, we'd have to ask around locally. There have been complaints of 'excessive force' used by some of his deputies."

"McGee, I want more history on this guy. Ziva, you're with me."

"Where are we going?" asked Ziva, gathering her things hurriedly.

"Dawson County."

Tony fell to the floor as the chains holding him up were released. He tried not to cry out, but couldn't help himself. Sheriff Nelson and his deputy were standing over him, glaring down at the injured agent.

"Your boss has been calling my office," said Nelson, giving Tony a sharp kick. "It looks like we're going to have to cut this short."

"I'm disappointed," Tony said wryly. "We were just starting to get to know each other."

Nelson laughed. "You are a smart ass, aren't you?"

Johnson grabbed Tony's hair and pulled him up, backhanding him sharply. Thrown back, Tony lay on the floor of the barn, his head spinning. Before he could get his equilibrium back he was dragged out of the barn and thrown into the trunk of a car. He must have passed out because the next thing he knew he was being dragged out of the trunk and into an abandoned mine.

The two men dragged the bound agent deep into the mineshaft until they reached a small cavern. Once there, they pulled a long chain that was bolted into the wall and attached it to the cuffs that Tony still wore.

"You've done this before," observed Tony.

"We've entertained other guests," confirmed Nelson. "No one remembers about this mine, and this is private property, so there's no chance you'll be found. If you're still alive when your boss gets tired of looking for you, maybe we can pick up where we left off."

"He won't be so easy to get rid of," Tony said. "The guy's an ex-Marine, he's like a pit bull."

"Is that right?" Nelson grinned in anticipation. "This could be interesting."

Johnson leaned down, grabbed Tony by the throat and pulled him up. "I hope you do live. I want to come back here just to watch you die."

Tony fell back against the wall of the cave. "I'll try to wait for you," he said sarcastically, coughing.

Darkness enveloped Tony after the two men left, the light from their flashlights trailing off with them. As his eyes got used to the darkness, he could tell that he was just as helpless as he had been in the barn. The heavy chain was firmly bolted into the cave wall, nothing short of a pickaxe would loosen it. His shoulder was either dislocated or broken, he couldn't quite tell, and his hands had gone numb from the tightness of the cuffs. There was no way he was going to get loose on his own. He thought about an earlier case, one where he had almost ended up keeping company with a corpse and a half-dead Marine. The memory of the desiccated corpse made him shiver. He hoped that wasn't what Gibbs found, if he was even able to find Tony.

Gibbs was on his way and knowing him, he wouldn't be satisfied with whatever line of bull the sheriff was going to feed him. All Tony could do was sit and wait. He was weak from the blood loss and trauma he suffered, plus he was dehydrated. He was already feeling the cold. It was going to be a long wait.