Disclaimer: Standard disclaimers apply, NCIS is owned by other people, no copyright infringement is intended, no money is being made.

A/N: Many thanks go to my beta Rinne, for her patience; ZivaFan and ResearchGeek for their suggestions

Chapter Six

Tony groaned; his head was throbbing. He reached up to rub his temples, but found he couldn't move his arms.

"What the…"

"Special Agent DiNozzo," a silky voice came out of the darkness. "I'm glad to see you're awake."

Tony squinted to try to make out the figure in the shadows. "Who are you?"

"I'm you, Agent DiNozzo," the man said, "in just a few years, maybe less."

Tony tried to shake the cobwebs from his head. Bad idea, the throbbing got worse, making him feel nauseous.

"What are you talking about?" Tony tried distracting the man, while he surreptitiously worked to loosen his bonds.

"We have a great deal in common, Agent DiNozzo. Poor little rich boys, cold fathers, social-climbing mothers, denied access to our rightful fortune… shall I go on?"

"Please do, this is fascinating. You seem to know so much about me, why don't you tell me something about you."

"You know all about me, you've read the FBI's profile, you've probably come to a few conclusions on your own." The shadow moved further into the darkness.

Tony smiled. "I have my theories."

The man laughed. "I'm sure you do, Tony. Do you mind if I call you Tony?"

Tony shrugged. "If you tell me your name, sure, go ahead."

"Fair trade. It's William."

"Mind if I call you Billy?" Tony asked.

"Whatever floats your boat, Tony."

"So, what do you want… Billy? Why are you here? Better yet, why am I tied up?"

Billy came forward out of the shadows, his face hidden behind a ski mask. "You and I are kindred spirits, Tony. I know you, what you're like inside. You're seething with pent-up resentment and rage. You're angry at the world that won't give you the love and respect you deserve. The love and respect that your parents denied you."

Tony's calm voice disguised his growing unease. "You don't know me."

"Oh, but I do, Tony. All I have to do is scratch the surface and I see myself, three years ago." Billy laughed. "You play a role to make people like you. You're so starved for attention you'll play any role, just to get them to notice you. It doesn't even have to be positive attention, just something to acknowledge that you exist, that you're not just a convenience brought into the world because it was expected of wealthy families. An heir born out of tradition and responsibility rather than love."

"Is that what your childhood was like?" asked Tony, trying to keep his anger down. "Were you just a little show dog, trotted out to perform for the country club members?"

Billy burst into laughter. "Yes, Tony! That's exactly it. We both were, weren't we? Good little sons, doing whatever our parents wanted us to do, hoping that we'd get at least a pat on the head, but learning that the pampered family dog got more love than we did."

"We didn't have a dog," Tony said sarcastically.

"We are alike Tony, whether you want to admit it or not."

"We're nothing alike, Billy. You're a cold-blooded murderer."

Billy moved closer. "You kill in the line of duty. The only difference is, your murder is sanctioned."

"I think you have a twisted view of law enforcement, Billy." Tony continued to work at his bonds, with no success.

"You will too, you'll eventually see what I saw."

Tony squinted at the man. "You were a cop," he said.

Billy threw his head back and laughed. "Excellent! You are good. I was one of those sworn to protect and serve. Until I got smart."

"And now you murder innocent young women."

Billy shook his head. "They all left with me, willingly. Nobody is truly innocent, Tony. Except maybe that sweet little girl. She seemed to be quite taken by you."

Tony's blood ran cold. "You've been following me."

"Ever since I gathered information on your team. I was drawn to your history, the similarities between us," Billy acknowledged. "I followed you before I killed that pretty petty officer, Victoria. I knew that if my victim was in the Navy that your team would be put on the case, especially with the string of murders already under my belt."

"You killed a Petty Officer so my team would start tracking you?"

Billy nodded. "Not just your team, Tony. You."

"What do you want with me?"

"I want to see how alike we are. How far you'll go to stop me. I'm good, Tony, very good. Are you good enough to outsmart me? Are you going to rely on your boss, the mighty Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and step back and defer to him?"

Tony remained silent.

"What if you can get into my head, figure out what I'm going to do," continued Billy, pacing around the room. "If you understand me, my motivations, my plans, wouldn't that make you," he stopped in front of Tony and leaned forward, putting his face inches from the bound man's, "just… like… me?"

Tony surged forward, bringing the chair he was tied to with him. Billy was momentarily stunned by the head butt. Tony struggled to escape his bonds, freeing one hand, but the killer had regained his senses and was immediately on him, striking Tony's face repeatedly. Before Tony began losing consciousness he caught a glimpse of Billy's exposed arm. The tattoo of the snake was the last thing he remembered before everything went black.

Ziva was just getting out of a cab when Gibbs and McGee screeched to a halt outside of Tony's building. Foregoing the elevator, the three ran up the stairs to Tony's floor, cautiously approaching the door to his apartment. The door was open a crack, revealing the dark foyer.

Nodding to his two agents, Gibbs kicked the door open and, keeping his body low to the ground and his gun out and ready to fire, rushed into the apartment, followed closely by McGee and Ziva.

A quick sweep of the room revealed no immediate danger, just the sight of Tony lying motionless on the floor, partially tied to a chair. Gibbs sent McGee and Ziva to check the rest of the apartment while he went over to Tony and checked his pulse.

"The rest of the apartment is clear, Boss." McGee turned on a floor lamp as he entered the living room. "Is Tony okay?"

"Yeah, he looks a little banged up." Tony began stirring as Gibbs untied the ropes.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs turned Tony's face toward him, "wake up, DiNozzo."

Tony groaned. "Boss?"

"Yeah, what happened?"

"He was here, Boss." Tony struggled to sit up, but held his head and lay back down. "My head..."

"Lie still, Tony, we're taking you to the ER."

"No, we have to go after him."

Gibbs held the younger agent down. "We will, we just need to make sure he didn't crack that hard head of yours open."

Lying flat, Tony kept his eyes closed as he started to explain what happened. Gibbs listened grimly, eyes narrowing at the news that the first petty officer was killed to bring them into the case.

"He killed Petty Officer Turner, too, Boss," Tony said softly. "He's got a new agenda. He's not just killing young women, he's killing Navy personnel to bait us. To bait me."

"He told you that?" Gibbs asked sharply.

"Pretty much," acknowledged Tony. "He talked about how similar we are, how we come from the same background and that he used to be just like me. He's an ex-cop of some sort. He says I'll be just like him in three years."

"He's playing with your head, DiNozzo," warned Gibbs. "Don't let him get to you."

Tony opened his eyes and looked up at Gibbs, his face distraught. "He knew all about me, Boss. He said things that were so true, I... I don't know, what if he's right?"

"You are not like him, DiNozzo," said Gibbs. "You have a conscience, a sense of justice, and you have a great respect for life."

Tony remained unconvinced.

Gibbs narrowed his eyes. "Do you mean to tell me that sometimes you feel like killing women you date?"

Startled, Tony opened his eyes. "No!"

Gibbs sighed. "Tony, I don't know what your childhood was like, but I think it's a safe bet to say that you didn't get the support or encouragement that you should have received from your parents. Hell, cutting you off when you were twelve is one sure sign, not to mention disowning you when you became a cop."

Tony nodded.

"You've got a lot of baggage," Gibbs continued, "but I saw something promising when I first met you, that's why I wanted you on my team."

"You did?" Tony asked in surprise.

"I did," confirmed Gibbs. "You've done nothing but improve since you came to NCIS, you must know that. I trust you with my life, and there aren't many people I trust that much. You've proven to me that with support and guidance your natural abilities shine. "

"And an occasional slap to the head?" Tony asked.

Gibbs chuckled. "You all require a little tough love." He turned serious again. "You can let this psycho mess with your head, or you can beat him at his own game. If he knows you, then you know him. He isn't like you, he has no soul. You can beat him, Tony. We'll get him before he kills anyone else."

"Thanks, Boss." Tony closed his eyes wearily, the pain in his head easing a bit. "Oh yeah, he said his name was William. And he had a tattoo of a snake on his right forearm. OW!"

"You couldn't tell me that earlier?"

"What if I have a concussion?"

"Then I guess it's a little worse now, isn't it?"

"Yes, Boss."

McGee came in with the EMT's who checked Tony over. After several minutes of arguing and whining, complete with hopping up and down to prove he was okay, Tony convinced them that he didn't need to go to the Emergency Room. He signed an AMA form, under the disapproving eye of Gibbs, and the EMT's left.

Ziva had gone to talk to the building manager and came back to report that somehow William had convinced him he was an old fraternity brother of Tony's and got the manager to let him into the apartment.

"I'll have to have a talk with Mr. Menendez," muttered Tony.

"Okay, everyone get some rest," Gibbs announced.

"But Boss..."

"No, but's," Gibbs said firmly. "Tony, I'll stay here and wake you up every few hours. McGee, Ziva, you go home. We'll start again early in the morning."

"That's 4 hours, Gibbs," Ziva said.

"You need more than that?"

"No."

"Good. McGee, drive Ziva home. I'll come in to work in the morning with Tony."

Gibbs practically pushed the two out of the door, then turned and ordered Tony to bed.

"What about you, Boss?" Tony asked. "You need sleep too."

"I'll sleep, now get some rest."

Tony shuffled off to bed reluctantly, while Gibbs settled himself on the sofa, setting his internal clock to wake him in an hour to do a concussion check on the younger agent.

To be continued…