Brad wheeled Tony up to a ward. He had a private room, courtesy of NCIS' money. He had taken off all of the monitors after doing the x-rays, which had made Tony a very happy patient.
"Go and have a shower," said Brad. "I'll go and let Gibbs know what's happening and bring him up here afterwards."
"Thank you."
"If you need anything, Emma's already on the way in to your room. She's more than happy to help you."
Tony grinned. His face wasn't sore, thanks to the pain relief he had been given, and the swelling had gone down more with the ice pack from Brad. "My friend? Emma the nurse?"
"The very same. She's missed you. Apparently, you haven't spoken to each other in a few months."
"We've both been very busy."
"I know. Make sure you spend a bit of time with her in the coming weeks, okay?"
"I will." Tony thanked Brad and headed into the bathroom. As soon as the warm water hit him, he felt better.
Brad entered the ER waiting room and found Gibbs sitting there, head in hands. He looked exhausted and scared.
"Gibbs," said Brad softly, wishing to not scare anyone.
"Where's Tony?" Gibbs asked immediately.
"Upstairs. He's having a shower right now. If you come with me, I'll tell you about his injuries."
Gibbs was up in a flash. He followed the doctor into a private room.
"How bad is it?" he asked.
Brad sighed. "Bad doesn't even describe what Tony's been through. He didn't tell me anything, but from the injuries he's got, and the pain he was in, I'd say that he's gone through hell and back. How long was he missing for?"
"Five days."
"That would make sense. When the paramedics picked him up, they found a slight wheeze whenever he exhaled. He still had that wheeze up until roughly two hours ago. I am happy with his breathing right now, but it's something that I want to keep an eye on."
"What about his blood pressure? It tends to become very high whenever he has breathing problems."
"His blood pressure is normal, as are the rest of his vital signs."
"Injuries?"
Brad grabbed a notepad out of his coat pocket. "Where do I start? Tony's got injuries to almost every part of his body. His face is swollen, though not as bad as it was when he came in, and bruised too. His vision has cleared up without any medical interventions, thankfully. He has a minor concussion, though I'm not worried about it."
Gibbs nodded. "Go on."
"Tony's got electrical burns to his arms and legs. They're minor, but are still something I want to watch. He has first degree burns on his chest, stomach, arms and legs. There are some scratches on the backs of his legs, which are healing quite well. He has bruising on his legs and arms from being hit with belts and whips- that is something he told me. He has cuts on both wrists from tight leather straps. Both wrists are bruised from those same straps. His left wrist has bruised tissue in it. He has a few bruised ribs."
"Is that it?" Gibbs asked incredulously.
"As far as I can tell, yes. I'm waiting on his blood test results to come back still. And there are a couple of other injuries, but I promised Tony I wouldn't say anything about them. They are something that Tony will tell you when he's ready to explain. I dare say he's probably ready now to tell you what he's been through, but don't push him."
Gibbs nodded. "Thank you, Brad. When can I take him home?"
"Not for a few days. I want him to get as much rest as possible first. He's suffering from exhaustion and a lack of nutrition. He's dehydrated. He did tell me that he drank water, but it was mostly dirty water. I won't be surprised if I find some kind of water borne problem in his blood test. He also has a very low temperature, not to the point of hypothermia, but it's close."
"Can I see him?"
"Of course. Come with me." Brad led Gibbs up to Tony's room. He waited while Gibbs called McGee and filled him in on Tony's current condition, leaving out the injuries, then led him inside the room.
Tony smiled when he left the bathroom and found Emma sitting on his bed.
"Hey, Tony," said Emma brightly. She had read Tony's file and Brad's notes, but she wasn't going to let Tony know how scared she was for him.
"Hey, Emma." Tony stepped forward, grateful that he could still walk.
"Are you feeling alright?" Emma asked worriedly.
"Brad gave me some wonderful pain killers. I can't feel any pain at all right now."
Emma laughed. She waited until Tony was on the bed, then she covered him carefully with the blankets. Once they were snug around Tony's body, Emma took a seat too, making herself comfortable.
"Are you on a break?" Tony asked hopefully.
"Sorry, no. But I promised Brad that I'd stay with you until Agent Gibbs comes in."
Tony's face fell. "Oh."
"I'll be on my break in two hours," said Emma, checking her watch. "I'll come and join you at that time."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Tony's face lit up and he hugged his friend just as his boss entered the room.
"Hey, Tony, how are you?" Gibbs asked gently once Emma and Brad had both left.
"I could be better," mumbled Tony.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really."
"Alright. When you're ready, you just have to tell me."
"Thank you boss." Tony looked up with a smile. "You know, I think I can tell you now."
"I don't want you to talk until you're ready."
"I know. And that's why I can tell you now. Because I know you aren't going to force me to tell anyone anything."
"Okay. I'm listening." Gibbs sat in the chair that he found nearby. He had a notepad out, but he wasn't going to use it without Tony's permission.
"You'll need to take notes if you want to remember everything," said Tony wryly.
