Kate led her son down towards Autopsy at NCIS. They had just gotten off the elevator when they ran into Jimmy Palmer "Hey, Palmer. Ducky's still here, right?"
"Yeah. Agent Gibbs called just as we were both leaving and asked him to stay. He's waiting for you," Jimmy said before glancing down at the little boy who was sticking very close to Kate, like he was afraid.
"Jimmy, this is my son, Tim. Tim, this is Jimmy Palmer," Kate introduced. She could see the curiosity on Palmer's face and knew he would ask if she didn't offer the information.
Jimmy looked more than a little surprised. He had no idea that Kate had a child. Although, he hadn't been with NCIS very long and he wasn't very close with the agents on Agent Gibbs' team. "Hi, Tim."
"H...hi," Tim stuttered as he leaned into his mother's side.
"As you can see, he's not wild about strangers. Uh, is everything put away in there?" Kate asked. Her son had had a traumatizing day already. The last thing she needed was for him to be introduced to his first dead body.
"Oh, yeah. Like I said, we were just about to leave," Jimmy said.
"Thanks. See you later," Kate said before walking with her son into autopsy. Ducky was there waiting.
"Hello, Caitlin. Jethro said you would be joining me. Can I assume this young lad is the reason?" Ducky asked before smiling at the young boy.
"Yeah, this is my son, Tim. This is Ducky, Tim," Kate said.
Ducky looked at Kate astonished. He never knew she had a child. He didn't doubt there were things about his coworkers that he didn't know, but he never would've assumed a hidden son would be one of them. "You've managed to shock me Caitlin. I didn't know you had a son."
"I know. It's nothing personal. I just don't like to mix my work and personal lives," Kate said. Actually, it was really that she just didn't trust Tim with people so easily after finding out that her husband was abusing him. She'd even done extensive background checks, as well as performed an interrogation on the woman who watched him every day.
"Of course. I can only assume something happened that left you no choice," Ducky said.
"Yeah. Tim went missing today. We just found him lost in the woods. I was hoping you'd check him out for me. I just wanna make sure he's okay," Kate said.
"Of course. Hop up on one of the tables, young man," Ducky said.
Tim looked at his mother pleadingly. He hated doctors and strangers. This man fit both categories.
Kate shook her head. "Nope, that won't work. We're not leaving until you have a full bill of health," she said before grabbing a stool from a few feet away and bringing it over to the table. The table was just a bit too high for her son to get up without assistance. "Go on."
Tim groaned stepping up on the stool and then jumping onto the table.
"There's nothing to worry about, Timothy. I promise I am gentle," Ducky said before grabbing his bag off of one of the tables and pulling out a stethescope. "You know, I got lost a few times myself."
Tim flinched as the man places the stethescope against his chest.
Kate put a hand on her son's shoulder and squeezed it. "It's okay. You know I won't let anyone hurt you."
Ducky glanced between the two. He suspected there was something more to the child's fear than just not liking doctors, but he would not pry into their business. "Yes, I got lost one day while I was with my father. I wandered off while we were in town. It took two hours for him to find me."
"Your father must have been terrified, Ducky. I certainly was," Kate said.
"Well, times were different back then. People didn't worry as much about something happening to their children. I was more worried than him and only because we were in a part of town I didn't know and I wasn't sure how to get home from where I was," Ducky said as he began taking Tim's blood pressure.
"Still, I'm sure he was happy when he found you," Kate said.
"Of course. He's perfectly fine, Caitlin. The only problem I see is that his stomach is growling. I'd wager it's been a while since you've had a meal, hasn't it, Lad?" Ducky asked.
Tim nodded.
"Okay, let's go yet you something to eat and get home," Kate said.
"I have a solution to the first problem," Tony said as he entered the room with a fast food bag and a drink.
Kate turned to him. "You didn't have to do that, Tony."
"I know, but I knew he was hungry and I figured you'd wanna get home right away," Tony said as he made his way over and held the bag and drink out.
Tim immediately grabbed the bag. He took out a couple of fries and ate them.
"What do you have to say?" Kate asked her son before talking the soda from Tony.
"Thank you," Tim.
"Your welcome, buddy.
"Okay, let's go. You can eat in the car. Tony, you mind giving us a lift since you drove?" Kate asked.
"Nope, that was the plan. Gibbs is gonna meet us there. Hell, he'll probably be there before us," Tony said.
Kate frowned. "Why?"
"He's putting a new lock on your door," Tony said.
"He doesn't have to do that."
"But he is. Come on, let's go," Tony said
Kate motioned for her son to come before turning to Ducky. "Thanks for looking at him, Ducky."
"Of course, Caitlin. Goodbye, Timothy," Ducky said.
Tim jumped down and waved before the three of them left.
Xxxxxxxxxxx
Kate was outside her apartment with Gibbs watching as he finished installing the new locks. "I appreciate this, Gibbs, but you didn't have to."
"You need locks, Kate. That SOB comes back, I want it to at least be difficult for him to get in. Not that he'll get anywhere if he does," Gibbs said.
"No, he won't. I'll shoot him if he tries to take my son," Kate said firmly.
"You won't be the only one to try. Tony's on protection detail. Don't argue. Let's not take chances here," Gibbs said.
"I wasn't gonna argue," Kate said. Honestly, if it were just her, she would argue, loudly, but her son was the one at risk and she wouldn't take chances with his safety. She'd come way too close to losing him today.
"Good. Locks are done," Gibbs said before standing up. "The keys are on the table."
"Thanks," Kate said.
"Need you to bring your son in tomorrow. We need a statement from him," Gibbs said.
Kate immediately opened her mouth to protest.
"You can stay with him," Gibbs told her before she could argue. It wasn't normally how things went with witnesses, but he could see how freaked out this kid was around people he didn't know. He'd seen it personally when the boy looked at him. It was alright back in the woods, probably because the kid was just so happy to see his mother, but when he saw him when Kate brought him home, Tim looked very frightened.
"Okay," Kate relented. She knew it had to be done if she was going to stop John.
"See you tomorrow," Gibbs said before walking away.
Kate walked inside her apartment and found her son on the couch next to Tony. They were playing a video game. Her son actually looked pretty relaxed, which surprised her. Well, okay not really relaxed. He still looked a little uneasy, but nowhere near how he usually was with people. Her son did not like strangers. Then again, most strangers he met didn't sit and play video games with him. Also, Tony rescued him and had been extremely nice to him since then, so that probably helped.
"Oh, come on!" Tony whined.
"I won," Tim said with a grin.
"Rematch," Tony challenged.
"I don't think so. It's time for bed, Tim," Kate said.
Tim looked stricken. He didn't wanna go to sleep. He was afraid to sleep. What if he went to sleep and his dad showed up and took him away?
Kate sighed. She knew the problem right away. "It's gonna be okay, Baby. Nothing's gonna happen while you're sleeping."
"But what if Dad comes," Tim asked.
"Then we will stop him. You know I won't let him hurt you. Tony's going to stay too to make sure of it. He's my friend and he's here to help me keep you safe. I promise it'll be okay," Kate said.
"I'm scared," Tim said in a shaky voice.
Kate went over to her son and knelt beside him. "I know you're afraid, Sweetie. I'm sorry. Look, nothing bad is going to happen. I will not let anyone hurt you. You have to go to sleep, Tim. You can't just never go to sleep again."
"Why does Dad want me? He doesn't even like me," Tim said.
Tony shook his head in disgust. No kid should ever have to say those words. No kid should ever have to be so afraid of their father that they were afraid to go to sleep either. This little boy truly had a terrible father.
"It doesn't matter why Dad wants you. He's not going to get you. He will never touch you again," Kate promised.
"Your mom's right, buddy. You don't have to be scared to go to sleep. I'll stay up and make sure no one hurts you," Tony promised.
"You will?" Tim asked.
"Yeah, I promise," Tony said.
"Okay," Tim said after a minute.
"Alright, go get ready for bed. I'll be there in a minute," Kate told her son.
"Okay," Tim said before getting up and heading for his room.
Kate stood up. "Thanks, but you don't have to stay up all night."
"Yes, I do. I promised. It's clear that kid doesn't trust easily and he's trusting me to keep my promise. I will do that," Tony said firmly.
"Thank you, for everything you did tonight. You found my son and you brought him back to me," Kate said.
"You and Gibbs would've if I hadn't. Why didn't you tell me about him?" Tony asked. He'd wanted to ask since he found out, but was much more concerned with finding Tim. Now he was home, so Tony could ask.
Kate sighed. "You're gonna take this the wrong way. I am very overprotective. I don't trust many people with him."
"You thought I'd hurt him?" Tony asked in hurt and disbelief. He couldn't believe it. He had worked with Kate for over a year. She should know by now that he wouldn't hurt her child.
"No, I didn't, but I didn't think his father would either. I found my husband beating my son. I don't trust my judgement after that. So I don't trust my son with people until I've learned every single aspect of their lives. I mean, I'm forced to trust him to teachers and to someone after school because I can't let his life by affected anymore than it has, but other than that, who I trust him with is a very short list. I'm sorry if this upsets you, but trust is just something that doesn't come easy to me anymore," Kate said.
Tony nodded. After hearing the explanation, he did understand more. Tim wasn't the only hurt by her husband's actions, though he was the most important and prominent one. Kate was affected too. He'd taken her ability to trust away. "I understand, but I'm going to say again that what happened isn't your fault."
"I need to go tuck my son in. I'll be right back," Kate said before quickly leaving the room.