Gibbs tried to keep his face passive and not let them see how Tony's words affected him. Truthfully, they hit hard, almost like someone had just dumped a bucket of ice water on him. The older man couldn't even find any words to ease the moment.

"Wait! You know something, Gibbs! I know that look!" Abby accused. "What AREN'T you telling us, Gibbs?" the Goth demanded"

Now all eyes were on him. Unfortunately, not only could he not lie to them; but he couldn't keep them in the dark either. However, he could make sure they didn't make it worse for Tim.

"Tim's been seeing someone." Gibbs explained quietly.

"WHAT?" Abby reacted without thinking

"WHEN? Tony's shock guided his rapidly fired question

Is it serious, Gibbs?" Ziva asked much more calmly than her counterparts.

"HEY!" Gibbs barked until they all snapped their mouths shut and waited for him to speak.

"He came to me; let me in on it three months ago." Gibbs advised.

"Why would he do that, Gibbs?" Ziva questioned.

"Amanda." Gibbs let his answer speak for itself. Unfortunately, it did all too well.

"If he came to you, Boss, he must have been serious." Tony reasoned.

"He came to me because he was thinking about becoming serious." Gibbs corrected.

"But, why didn't he tell us?" Abby demanded. "Why did he keep it from us; from me?"

The conversation he'd had with Tim about it came back to haunt Gibbs now:

"I also don't want to have this relationship under the team's microscope." .
"Cant' say that I blame you. Who says you have to tell them?"
"How am I supposed to keep everyone out of the loop without being seen as being deceptive or a liar? Tried it before, with my book, Boss. We both know how well that turned out! I can't go through that again. It almost did me in the first time."
"Don't worry bout the team's need to know. They don't. You're entitled to your private life."
"Thanks. It'll be easier knowing that you know about it."
"Won't feel like you're hiding."
"Yeah."

"Do you really need to ask that question, Abby?" Ziva asked her in return.

"What? Why? What are you getting at, Ziva?" Abby demanded.

"Hey! Focus!" Gibbs barked. "Let's get this out, now! Then we won't be talking about it anymore, clear? He didn't' tell any of you because he wanted his personal life to remain private. I accepted that and so should you! Now is not the time to be raking him over the coals about anything!

"You sanctioned him keeping secrets from us, Boss?" Tony asked in surprise. He wasn't upset about it; after all, who was he to cast any stones in that arena, right?

"Yeah, Tony, in this case, I did."

"Why? I mean I thought we are all for not keeping secrets from each other." Tony tried to reason. "And if he didn't want us to know, why did he tell you?"

"He wanted the okay from me to keep his private life private, after the beating he took from all of you the last time he tried to have a private life. Wanted to make sure he wouldn't be subjected to that again. I told him he was entitled to keep his personal life to himself. Now, can we get back to finding this woman?" Gibbs said with the drill instructor tone they loved so much.

Before voicing his next thought, he looked at Tony. "My gut says she's behind this."

"Oh, No! Not again! Oh, poor Timmy!" Abby cried.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Tony exclaimed angrily.

"Gibbs, you are thinking she pursued McGee as payback for something you did?"" Ziva asked in confusion.

"Yeah, I do. Which means, she's familiar with this team. Since Tim's never brought her here or even talked to her about his work, she must have an inside source. The photos we recieved had no sign of a girlfriend even though he's been dating her all this time. Abby the help Leon left you, they get the phone records sorted out on the three cell phones?" Gibbs turned the subject back to the case before any of them could get bogged down in what this meant on an emotional level.

"They tell me they'll have it all compiled within the hour, Gibbs."

"Any prints from the car that didn't belong to McGee?"

"None."

"Got the bullet trajectories yet?"

"Based on Timmy's injuries and the bullet holes in the car ." Abby said sadly as she clicked her remote for the plasma TV in her lab. "We're looking for two shooters, Gibbs."

As the team watched, her computer program ran through its' simulation of Tim's shooting. Even as a mock-up, it was sobering to watch what Tim had to have gone through out there alone. Abby wiped the tears from her face and let her head fall down to her chest for a minute. Ziva squeezed her arm in an effort to share in the sadness they felt for Tim.

Tony's anger rose as he stood there watching the simulation. Someone did this to get back at Gibbs and it was just wrong on so many levels that it came down, once again, to Probie and his good heart being taken in, used and broken; not to mention his life almost being snuffed out; again. As hard as it had been for the kid to recover from the last nightmare, Tony doubted the outcome this time round would be so positive. Fear began to climb into the mix. Tony shook his head slight. Fear had no place in the middle of an investigation. He had to stop thinking about Probie's future and catch this witch!

"What was said here doesn't leave this room!" Gibbs ordered. "Any of you even think of ever giving him a hard time about this; you're gone!" Gibbs warned all of them.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Boss." Tony said defensively

"Gibbs! I would never be that cruel!" Abby defended her own character.

"Surely, Gibbs, you do not believe I would be so hurtful." Ziva declared just as outraged at the suggestion.

"Good. Back to work! Let's go, we need to find this woman and get her in here! Gibbs directed. "No one tell her anything about Tim's condition or his whereabouts!"

Flipping his phone open, Gibbs called Ducky for a progress report on Tim. "He's still sleeping peacefully, Jethro."

"Good, Duck, don't' disturb him." Gibbs ended the call. "Okay, back here in an hour with a progress report! Let's get to work, people." Gibbs ordered as he headed out of the lab ahead of Tony and Ziva.

"Tony!" Abby cried as she grabbed his hand before he could get away.

"Abbs." Tony answered her as patiently as he could under the circumstances.

"We have to find this witch!" We can't let her get away with this!"

"Trust me, we won't!" Tony promised. He kissed her cheek and headed out in pusuit of the woman who'd dared to tear his Probie's life apart like this.

An hour later found Tony thoroughly frustrated with his search for a case that had anything to do with the wording in the notes. Gibbs watched the younger man struggle with dealing with what this all meant for their teammate, as well as try to figure out the clues.

*ding*

Gibbs' attention snapped to his monitor the sound of another email.

"So, Special Agent Gibbs, looks like you're not the crack agent you lead everyone to believe!
How is your injured Squid , I mean agent by the way?
You figure out how it feels to be unfairly targeted yet?
Guess, maybe you'll think twice before ruining another innocent person's life in one of your investigations, now, won't you?

Gibbs growled low in his throat, his frustration and rage steadily climbing back toward the roof.

"Tony, get over here and get this put into the case file." Gibbs directed as he took himself out of the squad room for more coffee.

The words of the latest note and the words from this new email ran through his brain on repeat The more he heard them, the more his brain concentrated on the one word that seemed out of place.

"Squid"

Where had he heard that used before? What case was it?


I think I found someone.
Someone?

Yeah. A woman. A really sweet and wonderful woman. We've been dating for three months now.

And this has you staying late and looking like the world's on your shoulders?

I can't handle another 'Amanda', Boss

Checked into her?
Yeah. She's clean.

Good for you, McGee.

Don't worry bout the team's need to know. They don't. You're entitled to your private life.
Thanks. It'll be easier knowing that you know about it.
Won't feel like you're hiding.
"Didn't wanna hide, Boss."


Trust your instincts, McGee.
I'm not sure my instincts are trustworthy anymore in my personal life, Boss.
"Instincts weren't trustworthy, Boss"


You haven't had a repeat occurrence have you?
"Was a repeat occur… Boss"


… your instincts are working just fine. Maybe even better than you think.

"Instincts not fine, Boss."

"Glad no one else…hurt."

"Eliz… Quickmart…Nowhere…river

Headed back…

**Crack****

PAIN!!!

**crack**

MORE PAIN!!, his chest felt like it had just been set on fire now; excruciating pain robbing him of his ability to think or even breathe evenly.

the car was airborne. Reacting in reflex to the pain, his body jerking, had attempted to stretch away from the pain

as the air left his lungs in one last moment of lucidity surrounded by pain and fear; ; blackness sucked him under

************

"Didn't wanna hide, Boss."

"Instincts not trustworthy"

"OW!"

"Was a Repeat occur… Boss"

"Instincts not trustworthy, Boss."

"Glad no one else…hurt."

"OW!"

Ducky's heart bled as Timothy's sleep became troubled and the words came out amidst the young man's obvious pain. When Timothy cried out in pain, Ducky gave serious thought to waking the young man from his nightmare. The best he could bring himself to do was lay a comforting hand on the lad's up his cell phone, the M.E. called the man so obviously on the injured agent's mind, even in his sleep.

"Ducky? Everything okay?"

"Jetho, Timothy is quite diistressed in his sleep and you seem to be a part of whatever it is that is causing him this distress, if his words are anything to go by. Perhaps he would be able to get back to the peaceful healing sleep he needs if you can get to the bottom of whatever it is that's causing it."

"I'll be right there, Duck." Gibbs vowed.

As he hung up, he heard Tim's cries "Ow! Not good, Boss." His heart tripeed over the guilt that somehow found it's way there. Hurrying back to his stressed agent, Gibbs hoped things could be brought under control with this case, soon; questions answered, proof discovered, Tim recovering nicely.

"Talk to me, Duck." Gibbs said quietly as he entered the room.

"He's somewhat calmer now, Jethro, but he was extremely agitated; speaking of instincts not being trusthworthy and being glad no one else getting hurt. He spoke of an Elizabeth, the river, the quick mart. It sounded to me like he was repeating a conversation he may have had with before he was shot, Jethro. Was he conversing with someone named Elizabeth?"

"It's beginning to look that way, Duck. We'll know when his phones' dry out or when he tells us, which ever happens first." Gibbs told him. "He say anything else?"

"Only that he didnt' want to hide and something about a repeat occurrance." Ducky revealed. "Jethro, what is it it? You look quite..."

"It's that damned assasin all over again, Ducky! Tim was scared this was gonna happen to him again. Wanted me to tell him he could to keep it to himself, three months ago." Gibbs said quietly but with much anger.

"A new relationship?" Ducky asked in surprise.

"Yeah, Duck. Took him six months to get back in the ring and even then he only lasted three months before he doubted himself enough to come to me for advice. Hell, Ducky! I told him his intincts were working fine if her background checked out. He said it did. I encouraged him. Look where that got him! Why the hell didn't I follow through?"

"Jehthro, you've never had reason to doubt Timothy's work on background checks before. Somehow she must have been prepared for such an occurance." Ducky reasoned. "It is not your fault."

The tortured, pain filled voice came from the bed behind them: "I shoulda...checked...better."