"Jackson, I'm going to put you on speaker phone, so Dr. Mallard can hear you."
"All right."
Tim put his iPhone on speaker and set it on the lab table. They all gathered around it.
"Okay Jackson, you're on speaker."
"Leroy had an older sister, Vivian. She was a year older than him, and they were inseparable. He was fiercely protective of her. One day, when Leroy was about nine years old, I saw them to the bus stop at the end of our street, and drove up to the store. About an hour after I got there-"
Jackson paused for a moment, clearly upset by the memory.
"Are you all right, Jackson?" Tim asked gently.
"Yeah, I'm all right. I haven't had to remember this in over 50 years. It's something I've left behind."
"It's all right," Ducky said reassuringly.
"About an hour after I opened the store, I got a call from the police. They-they'd found Leroy on the side of the road, about two miles from the bus stop. He was beat up, and terrified. I got down there as fast as I could. He was in the Sheriff's office, wrapped in a blanket. When he saw me, he jumped up and clung to my leg, crying hysterically."
Tim and Tony exchanged glances. They knew what Jackson was about to say next.
"It took twenty minutes to calm Leroy down. When I asked him why he didn't get on the school bus with Viv, he went ballistic again. He screamed at the top of his lungs. He said he had to help her… that she was hurt."
"Mr. Gibbs," Ducky said, when Jackson paused to catch his breath. "What happened to your daughter?"
"The Sheriff put a search party out on Vivian. They searched the entire area for two weeks. She was just-gone."
"She was never found?" Ducky asked gently.
"No. I like to think she's out there somewhere, with kids and grandkids of her own, but I'm just a foolish old man, Dr. Mallard. My daughter died 55 years ago."
"What happened to Jethro, after the search was called off?"
"He was depressed. He wouldn't go to school, barely ate, and had nightmares almost every night. I could hear him screaming for his sister. He never did tell me what happened to him that day. Whatever did happen, it scarred him, bad."
"Whatever did happen is still affecting him, after all these years," Ducky said. "Holding in a memory like this one for so long has finally taken its toll on him."
"I'm coming down there. If he's as bad as I think he is, he's going to need me there."
"Why don't I send Timothy to pick you up, Mr. Gibbs," Ducky offered.
"Y-yeah. That would be better. I'm not very good behind the wheel these days."
"All right, he'll be leaving straight away for Stillwater."
"Thank you for helping my son, Dr. Mallard."
"You are most welcome. We will see you soon."
Tim disconnected the call.
"I'll be back soon. Keep me updated."
"No worries, Probie."
Tim left, and Tony turned to Ducky.
"We have to get him out of the elevator, Ducky."
"Can security unlock the elevator when someone has it stopped?"
"It takes a lot, but yes, I think so."
"Let's get down to the lobby. If we can get it down there, I can attempt to coax him out."
"I'm coming with you. If he pulls out that gun, I want to be there."
"Well come on then," Ducky said, leaving the lab. Tony scurried out behind him as he got out his phone to call Security.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Security was ready and waiting when Ducky and Tony arrived.
"I'm ready when you are, Agent DiNozzo," said the security guard, waiting with his hand on the switch.
"Unlock it. As soon as it opens, lock the doors so they don't close."
The guard nodded, and hit the override for the emergency switch.
Ducky stood in front of the elevator as the numbers started to descend. Tony stood by his side. Everyone held their breath as the elevator dinged, and the door slid open.
Gibbs was curled up in the corner, knees up to his chest. He was shaking like a leaf. Ducky signaled for Tony not to move, and took a couple of steps toward the elevator.
"Jethro? Do you remember me?" he asked gently.
Gibbs shook his head furiously.
"Don't come in."
"I'll stand right here, at the doorway," Ducky said, stopping at the entrance. "I'm Ducky. Dr. Mallard. You are at NCIS, in the elevator."
"NCIS?"
"You are a federal officer, Jethro. You have solved many crimes, and helped a lot of people."
"Viv…need to find her… she needs me."
"We can go and look for her. You have to come out of the elevator, though."
"Don't wanna."
"You must come out. You can't stay in there forever. People need to use the elevator, to get upstairs."
Gibbs shook his head as he buried his face into his knees.
"Why do you want to stay in there?" Ducky asked him.
He raised his head to look at Ducky, fear still evident in his eyes.
"I can hear her, Ducky," he said, in a small voice that sounded nothing like the Gibbs they knew. "She's calling me, but I can't see her."
"If you come out, I will help you find her."
"Is that a promise?"
"Yes, Jethro. It's a promise. We will find Viv. Now, will you please come out of the elevator?"
Gibbs nodded slowly, and pushed himself to his feet. He made his way toward Ducky's outstretched hand, and after a few awkward moments, put his hand into Ducky's and stepped out of the elevator.
Ducky turned to Tony, mouthing 'find Vivian' as Gibbs wrapped his arms around his friend in a hug. Tony nodded and boarded the empty elevator to go back to Abby's lab.
"Are you hungry?" Ducky asked his friend when Gibbs finally let him go. Gibbs nodded. "Why don't we go and get something for breakfast?"
"We have to find Viv!" he said stubbornly. "You told me you'd find her!"
"We will, Jethro. Tony has gone to start the investigation. We can go and get a bite, and then we'll go check on Tony. How does that sound?"
"All right."
Ducky took Gibbs to the diner he knew his friend to frequent every morning. They were greeted by a plump waitress, who beamed upon seeing Gibbs.
"In for your morning coffee, Jethro?" she asked with a smile.
"Gonna get some breakfast today, Emma." he replied.
"Have a seat! I'll bring ya'll some menus."
They found a booth and got comfortable, and Emma brought them each a hot cup of coffee. They ordered breakfast, and the waitress smiled at Gibbs as she took the menus and walked off.
"Would you like to talk about Vivian?" Ducky asked gently. "I would love to know more about her."
Gibbs took a big sip of his coffee, and shook his head.
"I can't. I'm sorry. I just can't."
"All right. We don't have to talk about her."
Gibbs had calmed considerably, and sounded more like his old self again, but he was still very fragile. The intensity in which the memory was re-surfacing was causing enough emotional turmoil to nearly drive him to the brink of insanity. He wanted to know more about Vivian, but he would wait until Gibbs was ready to talk.
Breakfast arrived, and they ate in companionable silence. When they finished, Emma brought Gibbs a coffee to go.
"On the house, Sugar," she said with a wink. He smiled at her, his cheeks turning a slight pink. Ducky smirked at him as he handed over his credit card, and the bill, to Emma. She took it and returned quickly.
"Ya'll are all set. See you tomorrow morning, Jethro," she said with a grin. He smiled back and got up to leave with Ducky, who was grinning widely at the exchange.
Gibbs was antsy on the ride back to NCIS. Ducky knew he was anxious to find out how Tony's investigation was going. As soon as they arrived, he jumped out of the car. Ducky killed the engine and got out after him.
"Jethro, slow down!" he shouted. "I can't move as fast as you!"
Gibbs slowed to a stop and waited for Ducky to catch up.
"Sorry, Duck. I got a little excited."
"Understandable. Let's go down to Abby's lab, shall we?"
They took the elevator down to Lab level, and entered the Lab together. Abby rushed over to hug him, but Ducky stopped her.
"Go easy on him, Abigail."
Abby gently hugged Gibbs.
"I'm glad you're safe."
Suddenly, Gibbs was thrown backward into another memory.
Leroy and Vivian ran through the woods, as fast as they were able. Leroy had his hand clasped in hers, and had no intention of letting her go. The men weren't far behind. Suddenly, Vivian jolted to a stop, and Leroy nearly ran into her.
"Why'd you stop!" he said nervously.
"We're trapped," she said with a quiver in her voice. There was a large tree lying on its side over the path. "We'll never get over this tree. It's too big!"
"We can go around it," Leroy said, pulling his sister toward the tree's root system.
"Stop, Lee! I'm never going to fit through those roots!"
"You have to! You can't let them get us!" Leroy cried, close to tears. Vivian grabbed her brother's hand and pulled him to the edge of the tangle of roots.
"Climb through, and run as fast as you can. I'll get around somehow, and come find you, okay?"
"But Viv-I don't wanna leave you!"
"Just go, Lee! Please! Then I know you'll be safe. Please! Do it for me! Climb through and run back home, get Daddy, go to the Sheriff. I"ll be right behind you. I promise."
They heard the crack of twigs, which meant the men were getting closer.
"Go! Hurry!" She pushed him forward. Leroy climbed through the mess of roots, and after a lot of struggling, popped out on the other side. As he brushed himself off, he heard his sister scream.
"Vivian!"
"Vivian!" Gibbs screamed as Tony and Ducky attempted to subdue him. He was on his knees, arms flailing, as it he were trying to get to something. "Vivian! No!" Abby scrambled backward, and latched onto Ellie, who was just as scared as she was.
"Jethro! Come back to us! It's all right!" Ducky shouted as Tony tried to subdue Gibbs. Gibbs whipped his arm backward and hit Tony square in the face. Tony stumbled backward, holding his bloody nose.
"Eleanor, in my medical kit there's a syringe with a sedative in it. Bring it here."
Ellie nodded and opened up the kit. She found the syringe and gave it to Ducky. Tony managed to pull Gibbs' arms behind his back, to keep him from hitting anyone else. Ducky injected the syringe into Gibbs' arm. Abby ran over with her futon and laid it out as Gibbs gradually faded into sleep. Tony and Ducky laid him on the futon, and Abby supplied a pillow and blanket.
"Ducky, what happened?" Abby asked nervously when they finally got Gibbs situated.
"When you told him you were glad he was safe, it seemed to have sparked another memory related to his sister."
"I wonder what terrible thing happened to her," Abby said softly, looking down at her sleeping Boss.
"He isn't ready to tell his story. When the time is right, we'll know."
Abby nodded and she and Ellie resumed the investigation into the disappearance of Vivian Gibbs. Ducky pulled up a stool to start his vigil as Gibbs slept. They still had a long way to go, to find out what happened to Gibbs and his Sister.
TBC