Chapter11
Tony was brooding. He had been for a few days. He had tried not to let it affect work. And it hadn't. But, Sally cold not help but notice something was no right with him.
"Sir…Di…Tony." Sally was still having trouble calling Tony by his first name. She had gotten up from her desk and went over to where Tony stood, looking out the window. "It's none of my business."
"But,…"
"But, I'm gonna ask anyway." Sally stated. "Something's wrong. What's going on?"
"Things are happening back where I used to work." Tony explained. "My leaving had a ripple effect that I was not expecting."
"It happens. You were pretty important to a lot of people in D.C." Sally stated.
Tony stared at her for a moment.
"I always check out the people I work for and with." She explained.
"Good practice."
"Plus…." Shelly had something to add. She was not sure how Tony would react.
"Plus, what?" Tony asked, slipping into detective mode.
Sally sighed. "I meant one of your…former coworkers…a particular gothic…."
"Abby?!" Tony replied. "You know Abby?"
Sally nodded. "I met her at a forensic science convention about 5 years ago. We paled around all weekend. It was a great time. She's a sweet gal."
Tony nodded. "…she tell you about her coffin?"
Sally shook her head. "Her coffin?"
Tony grinned. "She uses it as a coffee table. But, if a drunk friend stays over…."
Sally chuckled. She was trying to get a mental picture.
"Didn't happen." Tony said. "Too tall…I fell out and ended up on the floor."
Sally burst into laughter at that point.
Tony grinned, again, at the memory. "Abby and I had a great time together."
"Had?" Sally stared at her boss.
"My boss could do no wrong, in her eyes. I had problems with my boss, so…."
"So, you were wrong."
Tony nodded.
"She didn't strike me as someone who would be like that."
"You…don't know Gibbs. He had Abby had a very strong relationship. It's just …." Tony shook his head.
"Abby talked about you a lot." Sally admitted. "You were…."
Tony interrupted. "When was the last time you talked to Abby?"
"Usually every month or so she or I will pick up the phone." Sally stated. "I talked to her a month ago. I told her I was transferring to a new location. They gave me a couple of choices. I hadn't really decided yet."
"So, you couldn't tell her who you would be working with." Tony surmised.
"I was told I made my decision before you made yours." Sally replied.
"You probably did. I wanted to the very last minute of the deadline Vance gave me." Tony replied.
"Why? It sounds like you knew you were leaving."
Tony nodded. "I did. But, it was a huge shocker to the rest of the team. I just didn't want to deal with it all."
Sally opened her mouth and then closed it. She had gotten a nice going-away party. People had shed tears, and they gave her gifts. She got the feeling had people known Tony was leaving, he wouldn't have gotten that.
"I don't mean to bring up things. It's…sorry about that." Sally stated.
NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS
Tony was not sure he should have been so open with Sally. He was not ashamed of what had happened at NCIS or anywhere else. He just was not sure how she might take what she'd learned.
Tony didn't want to have to deal with the ridicule or the judgement. He didn't want these agents to act the same way towards him that David and McGee had. He was good enough to have his won team. His former team members were finally seeing that. Tim had seen it, with him wanting to reach out, same thing with Abby. Jimmy, Ducky, and Vance had already seen it. And they were so glad that Tony had stepped up and taken on new responsibility. Ziva would never see anything, beyond the image she had set in her mind. And Gibbs…. Well, Gibbs was another matter, altogether. Tony had no idea where his former bosses' head was these days. And, he was rapidly finding that he did not care. Tony had finally grown tired of being Gibbs' lapdog. But, he had been in too deep to realize that that was what he had become.
Tony stood, staring out the window of their offices. They had a great view of the beach, and he could stand and watch the waves for hours. He was also finding he was getting tanned and toned in Hawaii. Tony liked to run on the beach in the morning. The cool air and the water lapping up onto his feet and legs as he ran…. And, he loved their gym. He worked out in the evenings right after work, on Mondays and Tuesdays. There was never a lot of people there at that time.
NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS
Harley and BJ were sitting at their desks working. They had heard snippets of conversation. But, Tony didn't have to worry. They all had done their research on their new leader. Stuff happens. They had heard of the infamous Leroy Jethro Gibbs. They had been surprised that Toy had lasted on his team as long as he had.
The Lead Agent that they saw was competent, tenacious, and loyal to his team. They knew of Tony's past. But, they all had a past. They all had things that they shouldn't or wouldn't have done, had they known better. They each genuinely liked Tony for Tony. They were glad he was their leader. They enjoyed the levity. Crime scenes were horrendous, on their best day. They needed something to take that edge off. Tony's humor was just what was needed.
"Let's roll, Boys and Girls." Tony said as he hung up the phone. He smiled as he watched His Team get ready to go out into the field.
It had been almost a month. But, it still gave him a little rush to give the order to 'his' team. He smiled as they all jumped into action and followed him out the door.
Their M.E., Dr. Hilary Michelle Kingston-Gray, was a mixture of Ducky and the M.E. on Bones. She was in her early 40's. She was stocky. She had some tats, and she looked as if she would be more comfortable on the back of a Harley then in a morgue. She was also the wife of a cop, Officer Theodore Allan Gray, who just happened to be a Harley enthusiast. Like Ducky, Hil's stories are long, but instead of childhood memories and life stories, they were full of the cases she's worked. Never anything current and never any identifying information. But, she included every gruesome detail.
Hilary walked onto the scene. She sighed as she looked at the body, as if she was hoping that was not the case.
Tony looked up at her and then grinned and shook his head.
"What?" Hilary asked as she bent down beside Tony. "I didn't used to be a ghoul, you know. I used to deal with live patients."
"I didn't say anything." Tony said, replying in his mind what he may have said to cause her to think that.
"Your…team seems to think that I enjoy my job way, way too much." Hilary explained.
Tony grinned and shock his head. "You're a contradiction in terms, Hil. You look like a Hells Angel and you speak as if you have a medical dictionary coming out of your mouth. It's safe to say they have never met anyone like you." He paused. "I have never met anyone like you."
Hilary nodded. "I can see that. The people I talk to usually don't care what I say or how long I talk about it."
"Speaking of which," Tony said, the conversation reminding him. "I'll talk to Jimmy if you're interested. I don't think he wants to stay in D.C. anymore. Actually, I think the only thing keeping him there is Ducky. After Ducky retires, he'll probably quit."
The doctor thought about it for a moment. "It would be great to have an assistant."
"I talk to him regularly. I'm sure he will be glad to email a resume." The agent replied.
Hilary nodded. "Have him do that."
END NOTES: I am not sure how many more chapters I have to go. But, I think the next chapter will be Gibbs and Tony. I am finally ready to write it. Sorry it took so long, it just took me longer to think it all through this time. Thanks for your patience, JL
