Tony had thought living on the top floor of the apartment was a stupid idea when he first moved in. Sure he didn't have a lot of stuff, but lugging what boxes he did have up all those bloody stairs made him reconsider his apartment choice, even if it was the only one he could afford. Especially since there was no elevator.

Days like today an elevator would be nice.

Days where there was blood dripping in his eye and everything was spinning so that the world looked like it was tipped on its side. Every breath he took sent shooting pains through his torso, he had broken a rib once before and it had felt similar to this. His head was pounding and his eyes refused to focus. This really sucked.

Tony paused on the stairs to lean on the wall, they had half a staircase to go, and Abby was all but bouncing with the desire to get him somewhere where she could survey the damage inflicted upon him.

Tony was not looking forward to that.

He really didn't want her to know how bad he was hurt. She was okay, that much was easy to tell and he would feel a lot better if she would get somewhere safe and leave him to a night of Tylenol and hopefully sleep. But if she caught a glance at how bad things were underneath his smile and fast words there was no way he was getting away from her.

He had to convince her he was fine, but first he had to get himself off the wall.

Abby looked over at the man she had found herself taking care of. He looked like he was hanging on to the wall for dear life, his eyes closed tight, lines of pain framing them. His face was pale, and there was still blood dripping down his from the cut above his eyebrow. She felt her stomach clench just looking at him. He really needed a doctor.

"Tony? We're almost there, are you okay?"

Tony forced his eyes back open and blinked at her a couple time, trying to keep his thoughts in some reasonable order.

"Convince her you're fine."

He smiled brightly at her, ignoring the nausea forcing its way to his throat.

"Yeah, thanks Abby. I'm fantastic, we're just about to my apartment."

She nodded worriedly, not convinced. Together the two made their way up the last few steps and started down the hall. The crooked numbers on his apartment door had never looked as welcoming as they did then.

"Here we are, this is me."

Abby pulled Tony's keys out of her pocket having refused to move from the alley until he had handed them over earlier. She pushed opened the door and gently pulled her new friend inside. He gasped in pain as her arm bumped his throbbing ribs. Abby cried out when she realized she was hurting him and pulled her arms away. Tony managed to smile at her and patted her arm with a shaky hand.

"I'm okay Abby, just tired. Are you alright?"

She gasped a halting laugh as tears slipped down her face. He was hurt and asking about her.

"I'm okay Tony. Thanks to you. I'm just fine."

Tony grinned and carefully made his way to the couch trying to keep his feet on the ground and the rest of him standing up. Abby quickly closed the door behind them, sliding the two dead bolts and the chain lock, taking a moment to marvel at the number of locks on her rescuers door. This neighborhood wasn't that bad. Was it?

She turned back to Tony and began to ask him what she could do to help but stopped the question in her throat when she saw he had passed out a foot away from the couch.

"Tony!"

She rushed forward and carefully rolled him onto his back.

"Tony? Tony please wake up!"

He didn't move.

Abby looked around herself and got to her feet. Hurrying down the hallway she found what she guessed to be Tony's bedroom and grabbed a pillow and blanket off the surprisingly neatly made bed. Rushing back to Tony she placed the pillow under his head and covered him with the blanket.

"Okay, you're going to be okay. Don't worry honey, I'm going to get you help. I'm going to get you the very best kind of help there is."

Abby pulled out her phone and was rewarded to see that there were full bars.

"Of course. Now you want to cooperate."

She pressed the waiting speed dial.

"Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up."

The gruff voice coming over the line almost dissolved her back to tears.

NCISncisNCISncis

Gibbs was sitting on his couch reading.

Sometimes he was unsure why he had a couch. He never used it. Actually other than the kitchen, he never used much of anything that wasn't his basement. He had lost track of how many times he had fallen asleep on the hard cement floor underneath his boat, it had gotten to the point where having a bedroom was pointless.

If it wasn't for the fact his gut was still churning like the time Abby's super-secret-if-I-told-you-I'd-have-to-kill-you chili gave him food poisoning, he's still be in the basement trying to sand and drink away his precious free time. He just couldn't shake this feeling.

If only he could figure out what was going on…

Ring ring ring

Gibbs hand moved on its own will, snatching the phone off the handmade coffee table.

"Gibbs." He barked out in his customary manner.

"Gibbs, Gibbs, Gibbs! I need your help!"

"Abby? Are you alright?" Hearing Abby's voice he sat up straighter.

"No! Well yes I'm okay, kind of. Well I'm fine I suppose, I'm not the one who's in trouble anymore, but Tony is, he's really hurt! He's just not admitting it but now he's passed out so he can't even hide it any more. I'm okay, just a little jumpy but that's not new, it could be so much worse. It would be so much worse if it wasn't for Tony. He needs help Gibbs and he won't go to a hospital. I need you and Ducky to get down here now!"

"Wait, Abby, what? Who's Tony? What happened to Lottie? Where are you?"

Gibbs stood, trying to sort Abby's rushed and confusing explanation.

"Gibbs! We don't have time for this! Tony doesn't have time for this, he's really hurt! I'll tell you the whole story when you get down here! Now get Ducky and hurry up!"

She rattled off an address and hung up the phone before Gibbs could ask another question.

He stared at the phone for a moment in shock.

Abby never ordered to do anything.

Not like that.

She was big on saying please and teaching him all about manners and patience. That was one of the delightful quirks of Abby. She never let his gruff attitude effect her, she always kept her cheerfulness, but right now there was no niceness, only a demand. A desperate demand. She was in trouble. And so was Tony. Whoever Tony was.

Gibbs held down one of the few speed dials programed in his hated phone, waiting for three rings before a chipper Scottish accent answered the phone. Well, chipper for one thirty in the morning. Hearing the voice he grabbed his jacket and car keys, pulling the door shut behind him.

"Hello?"

"Duck it's me. Abby's in Baltimore and needs our help. I'll be by your place in twenty minutes. Is there someone who can take care of your mom?"

NCISncisNCISncis

The older man with shaggy brown hair studied his driving companion with curious eyes as the two drove down the dark highway at breakneck speeds. He had attempted to draw the other man in conversation for quite a while now but this friend had been distracted trying to call back Abby. Hitting redial once again, Gibbs was greeted by her voicemail for what felt like the one hundredth time. Cursing in frustration he threw the cell phone towards Ducky's feet, wanting it away from him, but close enough that if Abby happened to call back, someone could get to it.

Ducky could sense the frustration coming off his colleague but couldn't stop his desire for knowledge from forcing out the question.

"So what did our dear Abigail get herself into this time?"

Gibbs swerved passed a semi truck, narrowly keeping his precious charger from clipping an oncoming SUV.

"Don't know Duck, but she was really upset and she won't answer her phone. Apparently someone named Tony is in some kind of trouble and she is wrapped up in it."

"Hmmm…. Didn't she come down to Baltimore to meet an old college friend? A girl named Lottie? I don't recall her mentioning an Anthony. Do you know an Anthony?"

"Nope."

Ducky sighed and rubbed his chin, ignoring Gibbs' obvious want of silence he began reminiscing.

"You know this reminds me of a time when an old friend of mine went out clubbing and got herself embroiled in a full fledged brawl involving three policemen, a bar tender, fifteen patrons of the bar and a goat. She met her third husband there, but she didn't realize until the fourth year of their second go at marraige. She was a peculiar sort. I always had a fond spot for her though, we did have a brief tryst during a trip we took to Africa learning Aids back in the late 70's. She was quite the-"

"Duck! We're here. Keep an eye out for the apartment building, Abby said it was pretty run down."

Gibbs had never been so happy to see the downtown of any city in his entire life. He did not want to know where that story was leading to. Seeing the building Abby had quickly described, Gibbs pulled his car into one of the few open parking spaces and the two men jumped from the vehicle. Together the two quickly made their way to the front of the building and found the front door opened without problem.

The two exchanged glances as they looked around the dingy abandoned lobby. The Ritz this place was not.

"What room and floor Jethro?" Ducky said, wondering what kind of person Abby had found herself with this time. She had a habit of taking on strays and it looked like tonight that habit had gotten her into some trouble.

"Abby said 407."

Nodding the men headed to the stairs while Gibbs tried Abby one more time wondering what on earth they were all about to get themselves into.