Spoilers: For "See No Evil"
Disclaimer: These characters belong to DPB, CBS, Paramount, et al. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: Un beta'd, because I really wanted to get this posted and no one seems to be around today.
IIIII
i "This is Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS. If you can hear me, cough once." When his request was met, Gibbs continued. "We are changing the game plan, Skipper. If he contacts you again, tell him you want a good faith gesture on his part. Tell him that you want your daughter returned now. Tell him if you don't get her back, you're gonna take your chances with the FBI. He'll try to intimidate you. We have to call his bluff. Rub your brow if you have the courage to go this route." /i
Abby had felt so bad for the Captain as she watched Gibbs talk to him through the computer screen. His wife and daughter were missing and he couldn't do anything but stay at his desk and trust that complete strangers would be able to save his family. She had felt the weight of that trust, and worked so hard to crack the firewall that would get her into the Captain's computer. A few hours later her resolve had doubled, as she had felt the tearstained cheeks of Sandy Watson press against her skin.
It had been such a relief when the case was over and the family was together again. Even then she hadn't been able to let it go. For eight hours she and McGee had sat in her lab, hitting wall after wall as they attempted to find out the identity of the mastermind behind the kidnapping. She couldn't keep the grin off her face when the money had been routed back to DC and Gibbs had left to catch the man.
She had been about to leave for the night when Gibbs had returned from the bust. It didn't take more then a glance at his face to see that something had gone wrong. He didn't want to answer her when she asked, but after the third time questioning him, Gibbs had had barked at her that the man behind the kidnapping had been Captain Watson himself. Abby had been shocked; how could a man do that to his wife and child? She was less surprised now, to learn that such a man was
capable of kidnapping her.
II
"Captain Watson was arraigned in October of 2004. The charges were conspiracy, theft, and kidnapping," McGee read off the computer screen, mostly for Ziva's sake since the details of the case were unknown to her.
"Get to the part where he's walking around free instead of being locked behind bars." Gibbs hands were curled around the edge of the desk, his knuckles white with tension.
"He was in prison." Tony peered over McGee's shoulder to read the file. "Served the first year of his sentence before petitioning the court for a mistrial."
"His motion was granted, and the case was heard again four weeks ago," McGee resumed the narration. "Two and a half weeks ago the court ruled a mistrial due to a legal technicality and the charges were dropped. Watson was released."
"The hell he was." Gibbs kicked the side of the desk hard enough to leave a dent in the metal. Captain Watson was, in his opinion, the lowest form of scum. If he had had his way, the man would have been locked in a dark room with a pair of speakers playing nothing but the cries of his daughter all day. The fact that Watson was free was unconscionable.
"I'm afraid so Boss." Tony didn't even flinch when Gibbs hit the back of his head.
"McGee," Gibbs said as he went to his desk and removed the gun from the top drawer. "I'm going to need..."
"Mrs. Watson's address?" McGee guessed. He looked at the computer screen and jotted down the information. "Got it."
"Now I need you to do a complete history on Watson. I want an accounting of every moment since he left prison; has he accessed any money, does he own any property, or have any friends? Anything that could tell us where he is and where he's keeping Abby." Gibbs snatched the paper out of McGee's hand. "DiNozzo, You're with me."
"Gibbs?" Ziva questioned. "What would you have me do?"
"Pull the original case file and read through it. Find anything that might help us. And help McGee."
Ziva waited until the elevator doors closed before muttering that she hated paperwork.
"Well that's just too bad. If doing paperwork is what you need to do to help find Abby, then that's what you are going to do." McGee spoke with more anger then Ziva ever remembered hearing from him. He apologized almost immediately.
"No," Ziva said as she shook her head. "You were in the right. Now, how shall we best divide the work?"
II
Mrs. Watson did not live in the same house she had two years ago, and Gibbs wondered if that was by choice or necessity. This home was smaller, and not in the best part of town. It was well tended though; the clapboard painted a cheerful yellow and the grass cut.
"Do you think he's here?" Tony questioned as they walked up the sidewalk and knocked on the front door.
"That would make our job easy," Gibbs remarked. "Ya think Watson is going to do anything to make this easy for us?"
Tony was spared having to answer when the door swung open.
"Hello Sandy, is your mother here?" Gibbs asked. The girl was taller then she had been two years ago, but other then that she looked very much the same.
"I know you." The girl's brow wrinkled in concentration. "You're Gibbs. You found my mom."
"I did, with your help." i I also arrested your dad /i , Gibbs thought, but he didn't say so out loud.
"There's someone else with you."
"I'm Agent DiNozzo," Tony introduced himself.
"You're the funny one. You flirted with the other girl. Is she here too?" Unlocking the screen door, Sandy stepped back to allow the agents to enter the house.
"I didn't..." Tony started to defend himself out of habit before he realized whom 'the girl' was that Sandy was talking about.
"No, she's not here," Gibbs said. There was no reason to tell the girl any more then that.
"She came once, to see me and my mom. It was a couple of weeks after, you know, that day. She brought my mom flowers. The other girl, the one with the pretty voice, came with her and gave me a tape recorder and some tapes."
"I didn't know that," Tony said thoughtfully. It was just the sort of thing Kate and Abby would do, though. They used to do so much together; he had forgotten that. He hated that those small facts about Kate were beginning to slip away. The same wouldn't be true of Abby, he vowed, because they weren't going to loose her.
"My mom's in the garden. The rain gutters are clogged." Sandy led the way through the house, her fingers occasionally skimming the walls as a guide. "Mom, we have company."
"Sandy Christina, what did I tell you about..." Whatever admonishment she had been about to give her daughter was cut off when she saw the two men walk through the door. "Agent Gibbs, what a... surprise."
"Hello Mrs. Watson."
"Jill, please. When you rescue a person from a madman, I think you earn the right to call them by their first name." Jill stood up and brushed her hands on the ragged shirt she was wearing before joining the agents on the covered porch. "Please, come inside. Can I get you something? Coffee or tea? Sandy and I made some cookies this morning."
"No thank you ma'am." Gibbs answered before Tony could say anything.
"Do you mind if I change my shirt real quick? I wasn't expecting company."
"Go ahead. We're in no hurry," Gibbs lied. In his head he heard the sound of a clock ticking. Abby had been missing for more then 24 hours now.
"You're not here to visit, are you?" Sandy asked when her mother left the room.
"What makes you say that?" Gibbs asked.
"You're worried. I can hear it in your voice. You sound the same way my mom does when too many bills come at the same time."
"Yeah," Gibbs admitted. "I am worried."
"Is this about my dad? Did he doing something bad again?" Her voice held a note of resignation, as if an answer of yes would not surprise her. Gibbs hated that. A daughter should be able to trust her father.
"Sorry about that." Jill walked into the room as Gibbs was deciding how much of the truth he should give the girl.
"I'm going to my room," Sandy announced abruptly. As she left she looked straight at Gibbs, her gaze so intent that for a moment he forgot she was blind.
"Jill, Agent DiNozzo has some questions for you. Do you mind if I use your bathroom?" When Tony shot him a look, Gibbs tilted his head slightly in the direction Sandy had gone. Tony nodded in understanding, and retrieved the pad of paper from his pocket.
"Not at all, Agent Gibbs. It's down the hall, the second door to the right." Jill bustled around the kitchen, filling a teakettle with water and placing it on the stove. Gibbs left her with Tony and walked down the hall. Passing the bathroom, he stopped at the door that was painted a pale pink.
"May I come in?" He asked the girl who was seated on the bed. She was playing with something in her hand, but he couldn't make out what it was.
"I kept this," Sandy said instead of answering. She opened her hand to show his the miniature golden badge that was nestled there. "Whenever I get scared, I hold it and it helps me feel better."
"Are you scared about something now?" Gibbs knelt down at the edge of the bed and deliberately softened his voice.
"Uh huh," Sandy nodded. "You wouldn't be here if nothing was wrong. Is this because my daddy called?"
"When did he call you?" Gibbs asked.
"A couple of days ago. Sunday night, maybe, or Monday. Mommy doesn't know that I know. I was supposed to be asleep. I heard her talking and I crept into the hallway to listen. He hasn't called us in a long time. He writes letters and mommy reads them, but I can tell that she leaves pieces out."
"It must be hard not to talk to him," Gibbs empathized.
"He did something very bad, but mommy won't ever tell me what. She gets real quiet when I ask, and latter I can hear her crying." Sandy rolled the badge between her fingers. "When he called, he asked mommy if he could see me. He said that I was his daughter, and he deserved that much. She said no, and hung up on him. I went back into my room before she knew I was there."
"Did you hear anything else?"
"Mommy asked where he was. He wouldn't say, but he said that he was close."
"Good job, Sandy. You've been a big help." Gibbs stood up to leave, but Sandy tugged on his hand.
"Is my dad in trouble?" she asked.
"I'm not sure," Gibbs evaded. He squeezed her shoulder and left the room.
"You ready to go, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked from the doorway of the kitchen.
"Yes, boss." Tony set down his coffee cup and picked up his backpack.
"You did get a phone number, right?" Gibbs asked as they sat in the car.
"She's not really my type." The restraints of the car kept Gibbs from slapping the back of Tony's head, but he flinched anyway. "Yeah, I got her number. She wanted to stay at her sister's but I convinced her that was a bad idea. She's going to a hotel."
"Good." They sat in silence for the next ten minutes, watching the house. When the garage door opened, they followed the sedan for a few miles to make sure that the Watson's weren't being tailed by anyone else. Vaguely disappointed when there was no sign of anyone, Gibbs drove back to NCIS.