Thanks to Vertizart for the beta'ing.
Warning: This chapter contains both language and violence.
II
"I'm going for coffee," Gibbs said as they pulled into the parking lot.
"Sure thing, boss. I'll go check in with McGee." Tony stood next to the car and watched Gibbs walk away. His walk was slower then usual, the signs of exhaustion clear. Tony knew better then to suggest sleep, though. It would be quite a while, he was afraid, before any of them would be seeing a bed. Fortunately for Tony, like Gibbs he had learned to survive on caffeine and cat naps.
When Gibbs rounded the corner of the building, he purposely averted his eyes from the domed windows that lined the sidewalk. Abby loved her windows. When it was slow he would sometimes catch her looking out them. One time she had laughed, and told him that it amused her to think that the feet of people walking by were at the same level as her head. "It's like they're walking over my grave, and don't know it." That was before Ari. Before Mikel. Before windows were anything to fear. Pulling up his collar against the wind, Gibbs walked down the street to the familiar cafe. Inside it was quiet, the morning rush long past.
"Hello Agent Gibbs." Martha, who had been at the cafe longer then Gibbs had been at NCIS, greeted him. She gave him a warm smile as she removed the largest size cup from the stack and filled it with his favorite blend of coffee. "How are you this afternoon?"
"Fine," he said as he accepted the liquid caffeine.
"I haven't seen Abby around for a couple of days. She hasn't given up on the Caf-Pows, has she?" Martha asked casually.
"She..." Gibbs didn't know what to say. Not the truth, he decided, but more of a gentle lie. "She's out for a couple of days."
"Not sick, I hope. I worry about that one. Too much caffeine and not enough sun; she needs a vacation on a beach somewhere." Never having had children of her own, Martha took it upon herself to 'mother-hen' those around her who she liked. More then once, Gibbs had found himself being offered advice, cookies, and even once a home made scarf.
"I'll tell her you said so." He wished he could say the word and grant her request. He would like to see Abby on a beach, her black parasol protecting her from the sun's rays. He's like to see her anywhere but where she was now.
"Maybe you should go with her. You look like you could use a vacation too," Martha suggested.
"I wish I could," Gibbs muttered as he tossed a five dollar bill on the counter and left with his coffee.
II
"I need to use the bathroom again." He had only been gone a few hours this time, but Abby had formulated a Gibbs-worthy plan. At least she hoped so. She wasn't sure how long it had been since she had been taken, but it was more then a day. Through the crack in her blindfold she had watched the sunlight fade, and after a few fitful hours of sleep she had seen the sun return.
"You bladder is smaller then..." he stopped, but Abby understood that he was thinking of his daughter. If she was lucky, his being lost in the past would give her the extra moment she needed.
When he loosened the robes she fained weakness, allowing him to pull her up. She focused as hard as she could on where he was in relation to her, and the instant she was stable on her feet, she jabbed her elbow into his side as hard as she could. With the ball of her foot she kicked his knee, then ran her boot down his shin and stomped on his foot. While he was swearing and clutching his side, Abby ran for the door. She pulled it open with one hand and with the other she tugged her blindfold, forcing most of the material onto her forehead. A freezing winter wind blew, and never had the resulting shiver been so comforting. It was a step towards freedom.
"You little bitch!" A hand grabbed at her ankle and she was falling forward. The side of her face hit the rough wood of the porch railing. She kicked and squirmed, trying to get away, but she was being dragged back into the cabin. Going limp, she let him thing he had won. When he let go to readjust his grip, she pushed against him with everything she had. Scrabbling up she half stumbled and half ran out the door.
She might have made it, if the steps hadn't been covered with ice. Moving too fast she tripped and fell, landing with a sickening thud on her left arm. The pain was so fierce she didn't even protest when she was yanked up and carried back into the cabin. She bit her lip when he dropped her onto the chair, and couldn't stop a moan from escaping when the rope was jerked hard against her arm.
"That's the last time," Watson barked. "From now on, you don't move."
She might have been afraid of his threat, but everything was clouded by the pain throbbing in her arm. She had broken a leg once, falling from a tree, and it had felt like this. She couldn't focus on anything, and for the first time was relieved when her kidnapper left. She didn't want him to see how weak she really was.
II
"Do you thing she's okay?" Tony was the only other person in the squad room when McGee asked the question no one had yet dared to ask. They had already shared the information they had gleaned in the last hours, and it wasn't much.
"Of course she is," Tony answered.
"Do you really believe that, or are you just saying it because you want it to be true?" McGee looked at the digital numbers in the corner of his computer monitor. It was after 3 in the afternoon now. Abby had been officially missing for thirty two hours. He was all too familiar with crime statistics; forty eight hours was the magic number and it was swiftly approaching.
"Look at the facts, McGee. We're talking about Abby here. Do you remember what she did to my good friend Chip?" Tony couldn't help grinning at the memory of Abby pointing to the Caf-Pow! drenched man duct taped to the floor. "And then there was that hired assassin last year. I think we rescued him from her, when we caught up to them at the van. Abby can take care of herself."
"Yeah." McGee agreed, though he still wasn't convinced.
"What you really should worry about is what Gibbs is going to do to you if you don't have anything for him when he gets back," Tony cautioned.
"I've gone over everything I can think of. Watson doesn't have any bank accounts of his own except for one set up for retirement, and that hasn't been touched. The one he shared with his wife has only been accessed by Mrs. Watson, and the account activity looks normal when compared to the last year. He has no other family, and no friends that I can find. Do you think his wife is helping him?" McGee flipped through the pile of papers in his hands, double checking every fact.
"No, she's clean. She said she hasn't seen him since he was released from prison, and the daughter told Gibbs the same thing. She has nothing to gain from helping him."
"Speaking of gain, what is Watson hoping to gain from kidnapping Abby? And why did he take Abby instead of one of us?" The fact that they hadn't received a demand yet bothered McGee. All they had was a vague threat with not enough clues to tell them anything.
"Abby was easy," Ziva commented as she dropped an evidence box onto her desk. "She doesn't carry a gun, she lives alone, and she's small. If I were after this team, she's the one I'd go after."
"Or he could have done his homework, and found out that Abby was the one who tracked the money," Gibbs offered as he walked into the squad room carrying a cup of coffee.
"Or maybe he-" Tony began.
"He wants two million dollars and safe passage to Cambodia," McGee interrupted.
"You're the one who posed the question, Probie. You can't answer it," Tony snapped.
"I didn't. Watson did. He just sent us an e-mail with his demand." McGee sent the image to the plasma screen so they could all read the communication.
"Two mill I understand, but he can't possibly think we'd let him escape to a country without an extradition treaty," Gibbs said, his eyes narrowing as he read the demand. The word 'attachment' at the bottom of the screen caught his attention. "What's AVI mean?" he asked.
"It's a file extension for a video image," McGee explained.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Play it," Tony demanded.
"Let's see what this bastard has to show us." Gibbs waited impatiently for the file to download. The video, he was certain, would show them Abby. If they were lucky it might also give them a clue to where to find her.