And the plot thickens...dun dun dun...

Thanks for the reviews...they truly encourage me.

Stay warm! Its a frosty -30 here in Ontario, not counting the wind chill. Burrrr...

The doors to the elevator closed, hiding Tony, Makayla and Gibbs discreetly inside. The elevator was the one place in the whole building that lacked surveillance of any kind, outside of the bathrooms of course. Gibbs hit a button on the control panel and faced the front, breathing heavily, his mind spinning in a thousand different directions. He refused to make eye contact with his protégé. From the corner of his eye, he saw Tony draw a frightened Makayla into an embrace. Gibbs' heart hammered in his chest as he did his best to clear his thoughts and calm himself down. He was going by his gut and his gut told him he needed privacy to talk with Makayla. The FBI agents' presence with Jenny had set the fine hairs on the back of his neck on end. Something was off. He didn't know what but from here on in, he wasn't working with the FBI and certainly not the President. Something was awry and until he knew what it was, he didn't trust anyone outside his team.

"Boss, what's going on?"

Gibbs looked sideways at Tony and his heart ached when he caught a glimpse of Makayla's frightened face.

"It's okay, Mak," he whispered, turning and placing his hand on her head.

"I'm sorry, Agent Gibbs…" she managed, choking back a sob.

"Aww, kid, you have nothing to apologize for. I'm sorry I scared you. I can't explain everything to you, Mak, but I need you to trust me. Can you do that?"

Makayla sniffed and nodded.

Gibbs turned his attention to Tony. "McGee blocked the phone line upstairs."

Tony's eyes widened.

"Only outgoing calls can be made by that line."

In that moment, Tony understood why Gibbs had reacted how he did. McGee was good; graduated the top of his class at MIT, and if he'd blocked Gibbs' line, there was no way anyone but someone above NCIS could secure the line.

"What are you thinking?"

Gibbs mulled over things for several seconds before messing up Makayla's hair playfully.

"You okay?"

Makayla managed a weak smile and nodded.

"Did you hear any of Aimee's conversation with the caller?"

Makayla sniffled and pulled away from Tony. "Not exactly."

Gibbs reached out and stopped the elevator from moving further. The lift shuddered to a stop and pitched the occupants into darkness.

"I need to know everything, Makayla." Gibbs' voice was soft but firm.

The emergency lighting came on casting shadows in the elevator. Tony and Gibbs exchanged a look over Makayla's head.

"I just heard him say she wasn't allowed to take anything with her…when I came into the room, she covered the mouthpiece and the rest was garbled." Tears swam in her eyes once more and escaped down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Agent Gibbs. At first, I thought it was just a game. I didn't know…"

Gibbs brushed his hand across her cheek. "It's okay, Mak. You couldn't have known." He winked at her kindly in a sorry attempt to comfort her. "When we reach the next floor, I want you to go back to the lab and stay with Abby. I mean it! No wandering off. Remember your promise to me."

Makayla nodded. "What shall I say to Aunt Jenny?"

"You tell her the truth but wait until she is alone, understand?"

Makayla sniffled and nodded again. Gibbs pulled her into a hug. "Everything is going to be fine, kiddo." He reassured her.

Reaching out, Gibbs started the lift once more. The elevator jerked to a start and proceeded to the next level, stopping at level B1 where Abby's lab was located. The door opened to a surprised and worried Abby standing in front of it.

"Makayla!" Abby cried, pulling Makayla into her arms like a long lost friend. "I was just about to go searching for you. Where did you use the bathroom? In Japan?"

"Keep a better eye on her, Abbs," admonished Gibbs, coming out the elevator while Tony held the door ajar. They weren't staying long to chat.

Abby looked chagrined but knew better than to argue based on Gibbs' pinched expression. "Any leads on Aimee?" Abby asked, looking at Gibbs first then shifting her eyes to Tony. Gibbs' was expressionless which wasn't unexpected; Abby was used to the elder man choosing to keep her in the dark about things. Tony shook his head while Gibbs remained selectively silent in response to her question.

"I need you to keep Makayla with you," was all he said.

"Where are you going?" questioned Abby, her face growing pale. While she was used to being in the dark, Gibbs was acting mysteriously strange, even for Gibbs. "What's going on, Gibbs?"

Continuing to ignore Abby's line of questioning as only Gibbs could, he turned to Makayla once again. "I'm trusting you to keep your promise, Mak."

Makayla nodded. Without another word, Gibbs planted a kiss on Abby's brow and stepped back into the elevator.

Once inside the elevator again, Gibbs hit the button for the garage. Tony leaned against the cold steel wall and stared at his bosses back.

"So, what now?" Tony asked.

Gibbs turned to Tony with an anomalous expression settling on his face. Tony felt his heart rate pick up. Suddenly he felt like he'd been cornered and he didn't like it.

"What's up with Senior?"

Tony blinked. It wasn't a question he'd expected. Gibbs had about a hundred other things looming larger than life and Tony never expected that Gibbs would choose now to get personal.

"Uh, what do you mean, Boss?"

Gibbs reached out and stopped the lift yet again. "Just what I said. You deaf, Di Nozzo?"

"No, but I didn't think…"

Gibbs took a few steps closer, encroaching on Tony's personal space. "Are you purposely pissing me off?"

Tony gulped, taken completely off guard. "I can handle it, Gibbs."

"You can handle it." Gibbs' echoed.

"I can handle it."

Gibbs' cobalt eyes bore into Tony's emerald green ones. "I have no idea where all this is going to take us, Tony. I need to know you can handle it because if you can't… if you're somehow off your game, I need to know right now. So, I'm going to ask you one more time. What the hell is going on?" Gibb's voice was dangerously low.

Tony swallowed slowly, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down vigorously. Gibbs stared him down, knowing something was off. Tony fidgeted under the intense stare and broke the trance by looking at the floor and taking a step sideways.

"He wants me to back him."

"Back him?"

"He has a business opportunity he'd like to pursue and he hasn't the capital he needs."

"So you told him no, right?"

Tony turned his back to Gibbs and rubbed the back of his neck. Gibbs clenched his jaw in anticipation of the answer. For some reason, Tony could not physically say no to his father about anything.

"What did he say to you, Tony?" asked Gibbs softly when Tony didn't answer his question.

Tony shook his head in response making Gibbs' temper rise. Gibbs grabbed the younger man by the arm and forced him to face him. Tony 's jaw was clenched tightly.

"What the hell did that man do to you to make you so afraid of him?" Gibbs' voice was almost a whisper.

Tears shimmered in Tony's eyes but Gibbs saw him stubbornly blink them back. Tony stood to his full height, several inches taller than Gibbs. He cleared his throat but his hands were visibly shaking. "I said I can handle it. Gibbs."

Gibbs dropped his hand from Tony's arm and nodded. There wasn't any way he could force the younger man to talk when he didn't want to. He had to trust that Tony knew his own limitations. Aimee's life might depend on it. Gibbs narrowed his eyes and gave Tony one last paternal glance before turning away. He heard Tony heave a sigh of relief as he started the lift again. Gibbs had a foreboding feeling hovering in his gut. Any business opportunity Senior was interested in was either illegal or sketchy. Gibbs made a mental note to look into it. If Tony wasn't able to stand up for himself, Gibbs was prepared to stand in the gap.

"Okay then, let's go see Eve."

Tony's eyes widened. "Eve, Boss?"

Gibbs remained quiet as he faced the front of the lift. When the door opened, he strode out on a mission. He didn't feel the need to answer Tony about Eve. He knew Tony knew who she was.

xXx—NCIS—xXx

Makayla chewed a hangnail on her thumb as she watched Abby dash around her lab. Music, better yet, sound pollution, blared in the room but she didn't hear the lyrics. Abby had asked if she minded the genre—heavy metal—and, maybe, under normal circumstances, Makayla might have objected but in the moment her head was too full to protest. Abby seemed less jittery when she had her music to keep her occupied. Makayla doodled on paper, feigning boredom so that Abby would leave her alone in her thoughts. Makayla knew Abby had lots to keep her busy with an NCIS case still looming large. Every once and a while, Abby would try to interest her in something she was doing but Makayla shrugged her off pretending to be disinterested. Luckily enough, Abby didn't seem to mind.

Makayla stared at her paper, not really seeing it but remembering her conversation with Aimee before the young girl had run off. Her conscience needled her when she thought of the lies she'd told Gibbs and her aunt. She said she'd organized the pantry but she hadn't. She fully intended to do it later because she felt she would owe that to Gibbs. The truth was she would own him a heck of lot more than a simple chore once everything was said and done. A part of her was terrified to face him. Gibbs was intense. And he intimidated her. But he was also her friend and in some ways, he seemed to understand her more than anyone else. She appreciated that about him.

Aimee had been the first to catch her in a lie, and Makayla had tried to clarify things but her plans sounded too weird. It wasn't that Aimee was going to rat on her or anything. She was fairly certain Aimee wasn't like that but still, she didn't want to take the chance of anyone finding out. Not before she could accomplish what she set out to do. When she'd found out her parents and sister would be away for an indiscernible amount of time, she knew it was the only opportunity she'd have to travel to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. It was a four hour trip from DC. She figured she could do the whole round trip in one day. Her aunt would be angry with her but not like her parents would be, especially her father. She shivered at the thought of his disappointed face.

Makayla quickly discovered that Aimee had secrets of her own to keep. Aimee was more secretive than she but Makayla selfishly promised to keep Aimee's secret until she was gone. Guilt gnawed at her now as she replayed the scene over in her mind. Aimee's so-called friend had sounded gruff and mean, making Aimee look terrified. Tears burned in Makayla's eyes as she remembered telling Gibbs that she hadn't overheard much when the truth was she'd heard everything.

"I'm going to grab a Caf-Pow, Makayla. Do you want anything?" asked Abby, startling Makayla out of her reverie.

"No, I'm good."

Abby looked uncertain. "You promise you won't wander off while I'm gone? Gibbs was none too happy with me when you took your sweet time finding a bathroom…"

Makayla smirked. "Never takes much to make Gibbs grouchy."

Abby returned the smirk. "True, but with Aimee missing, we can hardly blame him."

Makayla nodded in agreement and her conscience chewed at her even more. Gibbs was beside himself with worry over Aimee. Adding to his worry was a crummy thing to do. She should come clean and tell him everything she knew. Biting her lip, Makayla grimaced feeling nearly sick to her stomach. She was being a self-centred brat and there was no excuse for it. Aimee could freeze or worse and she knew information that could help Gibbs find her.

Abby lifted a brow. "Are you okay, Makayla?"

Makayla swallowed. "Uh, yah, I'm okay, just thinking about Aimee. I'm worried about her, Abby."

Abby hugged Makayla making her feel even more horrible for keeping secrets and making her own schemes more important. The timing couldn't be worse but the diversion was perfect.

"We need to think positively. Close your eyes," Abby demanded.

Makayla looked at Abby from the corner of her eye like she'd lost her mind.

"Close your eyes!"

"Why?"

Abby put her hand over Makayla's eyes. "Imagine Aimee safe at home with Gibbs. Imagine she is curled up on his sofa, drinking hot chocolate and watching kid t.v."

Makayla wrinkled her nose.

"Are you imagining it?" asked Abby, closing her own eyes tightly as well.

Makayla sighed dramatically and played along. "Alright, I'm imagining…"

"Good! Can you see her?"

"Yes, I can see her."

"Okay, just hold her right there, Mackie." Abby removed her hand from Makayla's eyes and moved it to her chest. "Hide that hope in your heart."

Makayla held her hand over Abby's and tried to imagine it.

"We have immense power if we stay positive. God can work miracles but we need to believe in them."

Makayla nodded and was quiet for a moment before saying, "I wouldn't mind a hot chocolate."

Abby stared blankly at her for a second before breaking into a smile.

"That's the spirit, Girlfriend. I'll be back in 10 minutes. Do I need to tell you not to touch anything while I'm gone?"

Makayla cast a dirty look in Abby's direction.

Abby winked at her with a chuckle. "Just checking." With those words, the Goth disappeared from the room leaving Makayla alone with her thoughts.

Never before had Makayla felt more torn to shreds over a decision. She had to admit she was truly concerned and worried for Aimee. She'd only just met Aimee and Janessa and she'd fallen in love with them. She'd never had the privilege to have younger siblings, being he was the baby in her family. She'd really enjoyed staying with Gibbs and spending time with the younger girls. It had felt genuinely fun to be part of a large family, even if the weekend had been chaotic. Makayla stood up and found herself walking towards the door, but wringing her hands in despair at the same time. She hated feeling so unravelled.

Makayla peeked out the door and saw that the hallway was empty. It would be easy to escape down the stairs unseen by Abby, but it would be very difficult to get out of the building with security being so tight. Makayla secretly hoped Sundays were laidback. She'd already noticed that the building was devoid of people other than Gibbs' team. Perhaps, security personnel would be sparse as well.

Makayla swallowed hard and started walking briskly towards the stairwell, her heart hammering briskly in her chest. She grimaced as her conscience berated her.

"Stop feeling so guilty," she admonished herself out loud. "You promised Aimee you wouldn't tell on her. A promise is a promise."

Aimee had insisted that she needed to see her father. Makayla didn't know much about Aimee's father at all, and Aimee said she would keep her secret if she kept hers. They pinky promised and Makayla felt desperate. She felt like all her options were running out and she was going to be doomed to a life of endless monotony. Makayla continued towards the stairs, determined to do what she set out to do. She'd made a promise to herself as well. She wasn't going to allow people to push her around and tell her what to do. She didn't want to attend Xavier preparatory school like her sister. She wanted to attend the Fine Art Institute in New York affiliated with the Metropolitan Art Museum. This was her chance! Everyone was occupied searching for Aimee. She could slip away undetected.

"I need to do this," she mumbled to herself, working hard to push away her guilt.

So what if she'd lied to Agent Gibbs. She had told him more than she was sure Aimee wanted her to. That had to count for something, right? She was keeping her promise to Aimee. Keeping promises was important. Tears pricked her eyes as she pushed open the door to the fire escape. An unsettled, almost paralyzing guilt washed over her causing her breakfast to trundle dangerously in the pit of her stomach. Makayla took one last look towards Abby's lab, considering for a brief moment returning and forgetting her plans but the fleeting moment passed as quickly as it came. If she didn't go now, she'd give in to her all-consuming guilt and find Gibbs and tell him the whole truth. She couldn't do that. She couldn't risk losing her chance to go to New York. It was now or never. Letting the door close behind her, Makayla escaped up the stairs.