Chapter 31

Tim went to NCIS and headed up to Jenny's office, hoping that she hadn't already been inundated with requests for details that she couldn't give. He knew he should have come sooner, but this was one time when he had focused on himself and what he had needed.

He got to Cynthia's desk and smiled.

"Good morning. Is Director Shepard in her office?"

"Yes, but she's in a meeting. Is it important?" Cynthia asked.

"I just need to give her a full report of what happened yesterday so that she's ready for..." Tim trailed off at the expression on Cynthia's face. "Who's in there?"

Cynthia's eyes widened slightly, but she didn't answer. Instead, she picked up her phone and called into the office.

Someone important, then. That made Tim nervous. Perhaps it was a bit self-centered to think that all important people were talking about him, but it was the way his mind tended to go.

"Director, Agent McGee is out here. He wanted to give you a report on the operation yesterday."

There was a brief silence.

"Yes, ma'am." Cynthia hung up. "You can go right in, Agent McGee."

"Who's in there?"

Cynthia kept her voice low.

"FBI."

Tim nodded and suppressed the desire to run in the opposite direction. While he recognized that the entire FBI was not to blame for Jorgenson's actions, his mind didn't really distinguish between the former director and the organization. He took a breath, squared his shoulders and walked into the office. Jenny was sitting at her desk, opposite the new FBI director.

"Agent McGee, I'm glad you're here," Jenny said. There was no warning in her voice and Tim allowed himself to relax just a fraction.

"I'm sorry I didn't report in last night, Director," Tim said, "but it was late when I got back to D.C."

"That's all right."

Tim forced himself to look at the FBI director.

"Director Norton," he said neutrally.

"I wasn't aware that we'd met, Agent McGee," Director Norton said.

"We haven't," Tim said. "I just make a point of knowing who all the directors of the federal agencies are, at least the ones associated with law enforcement in any way. It's safer."

"Well, why don't we just get it out in the open, Agent McGee," Director Norton said. "You're more than a little gun-shy about anyone affiliated with the FBI, with the possible exception of Agent Fornell and Agent Sacks. I understand why, but I do hope that you'll give me a chance to screw up before you assume that I will."

Tim smiled a little. "Oh, I don't necessarily think you'll screw up, Director. For me, it's a personal thing. It's how you plan on dealing with me that makes me nervous, not how you run the agency."

"Understood." Director Norton look at Jenny. "Now, would you like me to leave while Agent McGee gives his report?"

"No," Jenny said. "You need to hear this as well."

Tim was surprised and it may have shown on his face a little because Jenny only glanced at him briefly, but she smiled and nodded slightly. He was supposed to tell them both at once. Okay, then.

"Well, yesterday, we received a tip that a former CIA operative had been spotted in southern Virginia."

"From whom?" Jenny asked.

"I can't tell you that, ma'am. This help was contingent upon my not telling anyone. I haven't even told Agent Gibbs."

"Very well. Go on."

"We decided to check out the tip as much as we could before heading down there, and at that point, we were joined by Agent Worthing, from the CIA. We ran a joint operation and managed to take down Marc Logan, the former agent. Two others were killed in the take down as well. One surrendered and is in custody."

"Where?" Director Norton asked.

"Currently in southern Virginia but arrangements are being made to have him transferred. He was also promised some leniency because he gave us important information."

"What information?"

"That they had all been hired by someone else. That was Dire..." Tim quickly stopped himself and dropped the title. "Claude Jorgenson."

"As in the former head of the FBI," Director Norton said, sounding a little skeptical.

"Yes. And I was not the one questioning this man, nor was I expecting him to give this information. I'd had some suspicions before, but I did not mention them to him. And about half an hour later Jorgenson showed up at the house, claiming to have business with Logan. He was arrested and will also be transferred up here. Also, during the course of the operation, we found Levi Carew in the basement of the house." Tim paused and looked at Jenny. "He'd been tortured and probably would have died in another day or two. He is currently in a hospital in South Boston being treated. Agent Gibbs, Agent DiNozzo and Agent David are all still down with the prisoners, and Levi Carew's wife is with him in the hospital."

"Do you have any questions, Director Norton?" Jenny asked.

"Just one for the moment."

"Yes?"

"Why was NCIS involved?" he asked, bluntly. "You have no reason. Nothing you have said involved the Navy in any way, shape or form. This was not your job to be doing. If anything it should have been the FBI, working in concert with the CIA. Not NCIS."

Tim glanced at Jenny, silently asking permission to tell the truth. She gave him a questioning glance back, but he nodded. Reluctantly, she nodded back.

"That would be because of me, Director," Tim said. "When Levi was abducted, they also tried to kill his wife. She managed to get away and she came to me, asking me for help in finding her husband. I suggested that the police could have been involved and probably should have been, but she was adamant that this was not something for the police, and she was likely right. But she didn't want to trust anyone else. I asked my team for help. Later, when it became clear that there was a CIA connection to this case, I began to work with Daniel Worthing, someone I had met before."

"And you permitted this, Director Shepard?"

"Yes, I did."

"Why?"

"Because Agent McGee can be very persuasive," she said. "And like it or not, things have played out to the point that the normal rules don't apply to him. For that, you can mostly blame your predecessor who tried to make that change, only with a different desired outcome."

"I do understand that you can easily claim jurisdiction in this case," Tim said. "And very likely, once Jorgenson and the mercenary are transferred to D.C., we'll make arrangements to transfer them to FBI custody, but my intention was not to do something and keep the FBI out of it. The plain fact of the matter is that I asked for help from people I already know and trust and, as you said, I'm gun-shy when it comes to the FBI, and I wouldn't want to get Agent Fornell, one of the few FBI agents I do know and trust, in trouble by asking him to do something that he probably shouldn't be doing."

Director Norton was quiet for a few seconds, leaving Tim worrying that something would really go wrong here. It was his first time interacting with the FBI in years and he wasn't particularly happy about it.

Then, to his surprise, Director Norton smiled.

"Agent McGee, you are amazingly adept at trying to smooth ruffled feathers, whether they're actually ruffled or not."

"Thank you?" Tim asked.

Director Norton turned his attention back to Jenny.

"If you do intend to transfer your prisoners to FBI custody, as you should, I will expect to be informed of their arrival in D.C., and I will expect to get copies of the information you have so far. If this mercenary is willing to cooperate, we'll be happy to support the plea for leniency. Is that satisfactory, Director Shepard?"

Jenny glanced at Tim and he nodded slightly.

"With the stipulation that whatever happens to Jorgenson will be shared with us," she said. "He has proven himself to be dangerous whether in the FBI or out of it, and the last thing I want is to have him free out there and determined to get revenge because Agent McGee managed to beat him yet again."

"All things considered, I can see your point. You do realize that a trial is unlikely, given the circumstances."

"I realize that," Tim said before Jenny could. "I hate it, but I get it. I just want to know that I don't have to worry about him. Director, I'm married. I already have my wife with protection 24/7 because I don't know who else might come after me, but I already know that Jorgenson has come after me before and likely would again if he had the chance to do it. Until I'm obsolete or dead, that's my life and reducing the number of people I know are after me is just going to make it easier."

Director Norton paused for a few seconds and then nodded.

"Understood. I'll have to give it some thought, but rest assured that I will think about it and you'll know."

"Thank you."

"Now, I have another appointment this morning before I get to my regular duties. Is there anything else, Director?"

"No, Director Norton."

"Good." He stood up and left the room without another word.

"I'm sorry to put you on the spot like that, McGee," Jenny said. "Director Norton has been busily berating the people who have kept him in the dark about what was going on. Apparently, he was receiving calls from other important people wanting to know what had happened and why he hadn't been given any information. I wanted to demonstrate that it wasn't out of malice."

"I understand."

"Is there anything you left out?"

"Well, Marc Logan is dead and the CIA have disposed of his body. They plan on this just being gone. No mess. The FBI is welcome to deal with the other bodies and with Jorgenson as far as the CIA is concerned."

"And you?" Jenny asked. "Can you let the FBI deal with everything else?"

"I think I'll have to. Director Norton is right. We can't be the ones holding Jorgenson. We can't be the ones pursuing charges against him."

"But you're right, too. You need to know where he is."

"I'll have to hope that Director Norton is a better person than Jorgenson ever was."

Jenny smiled sympathetically.

"How was Carew?"

"Almost dead. They broke him."

Jenny just nodded.

"How are you doing?"

"I'm okay. I'll be better when I know more how this is going to play out, but Gibbs made me go home last night and that helped. That's why I was later coming in this morning. I was home."

"No need to apologize, unless it becomes a habit."

"It won't."

"I know." Then, Jenny took a breath and became more professional. "All things considered, Agent McGee, it would be better if you weren't present when Jorgenson arrives. However much publicity there is with this, we don't want you associated with him or his arrest. The transfer to FBI custody will happen fairly quickly, but I think you should make yourself scarce. I'll give you advance notice of their arrival and then you should be conspicuous by your absence."

"I can do that."

"I know. One thing more."

"Yes, ma'am?"

"You shouldn't have involved NCIS in this."

"I know. If I had thought I could do it on my own, I would have."

"You shouldn't have been involved," Jenny said.

"Yes, I should have. I know you don't understand. I know no one understands, but I had to be. From the moment Tamara Carew asked for my help, I had to be. Even if it had led to me losing my job. I would have given it up to do this."

"You'd give up your job to save Levi Carew?"

Tim smiled a little. "I'd give up my life to save him if it was necessary."

"Why?"

"I wish I could explain it in a way that people would understand, but I've tried and not even Gibbs is willing to understand it. He's accepted it because he has no choice, but he doesn't understand because no one here can look beyond the past. I think it's sad, but it's true. So I hope you'll forgive me, Director, if I don't try to tell you. I'll accept any kind of punishment you think I should have if that's what you want to do, and while I'll apologize for making your job harder to do, I won't apologize for what I did. Jurisdiction or not, it needed to be done. And no one else would have done it."

"No one?"

"No one. Because Tamara came to me, and she was terrified of being found. We didn't know who was to blame. The CIA couldn't legally do it. The FBI... should have done it. But I could do it. Like you said, the normal rules don't apply to me anymore."

And suddenly, Tim was struck by what he'd just said. He was in the gray area here. He had used his ability to move into the gray area to make sure they had the time and the ability to find Levi. No one else could have done what he did.

Because he could be gray when he wanted to be.

"Agent McGee? Are you all right?"

Tim blinked and looked at Jenny. He nodded.

"I was saying that I'm not going to give you any punishment for this, but you need to be aware of how this could have ended."

"I am."

Tim knew that Jenny wasn't satisfied with that response, but what else could he say? That he regretted his decision? That would be a lie, and he wasn't going to lie about that.

"Very well. Go tell who you need to tell about this and then make sure you're elsewhere when Jorgenson arrives."

"Yes, ma'am."

Tim nodded one last time and then left the office. He walked past Cynthia and gave her a smile, but then, he walked to the elevator and got on. He sent it down to Autopsy.

...but he stopped it mid-descent.

And he sat on the floor of the elevator, thinking about what he'd realized.

How did he feel about knowing that he really wasn't living the black-and-white life he'd thought he was?

"I'm gray," he whispered into the empty elevator.

"I'm gray."