Gibbs was heading up to the car again, angry at himself for letting Thorn give them the slip.
"Now now now, Agent Gibbs" Said Thorn rounding the corner.
Both men now had guns held at each other in a pointless stale-mate. Alarm bells began to ring in Gibbs' head when Davis rounded the corner too.
"The gun is pointless, you can't arrest both of us" Said Thorn
"Oh I'm sure we'll think of something" Said Gibbs.
His words betrayed the feelings inside him.
"Where's my partner?" Asked Gibbs.
He tried to hold off asking that question, fearing it would give Thorn a psychological upper hand to go along with his clear tactical advantage.
"Not here, he's not the greatest partner in the world is, he need firing agent Gibbs" said Thorn mockingly Gibbs wasn't a stupid man, one against two wasn't going to happen. A bullet scraped past Gibbs arm causing enough incapacitating pain for Davis and Thorn to get away. Again.
Gibbs arm burned with pain. He cursed Dinozzo for letting his guard down, figuring that he'd been caught from behind and knocked out cold by Thorn. He got up and gingerly went up the slope. When he found Tony just about standing against a car on hand on his lower back. Gibbs strode over to him not realising the extent of the injury.
"I could have used your back up then"
"Right back at you, boss" He said weakly, the world around him began to start getting distant and he collapsed to his knees
"Whoa, you OK?" Said Gibbs grabbing him under the arms and lowering him gently to the floor.
However he needed no telling when he put a hand on Tony's back and felt a warm, sticky patch.
"He stabbed me, Boss" Said Tony, he collapsed completely into Gibbs arms as he said those words.
"Tony, stay with me, come on" He lay him onto his back and placed his own rolled up jacket behind the wound.
"We're going to sort this out, you got to keep you're eyes open...think of Ziva"
It was useless, his eyes began to close and he lost consciousness.
It was now Gibbs who was thinking of Ziva, he prized Tony's wedding ring off of his cold left hand and placed it carefully in his pocket.
Ziva had made the dinner to the best of her ability and added the finishing touch by lighting two candles, she heard a small 'clang', and stooped down to pick up her ring that had just unusually fallen off her finger. Time was ticking by and no sign of Tony coming home prompted her to call his desk phone at the office, needless to say nobody answered.
Jeanne couldn't miss her fellow physician and best friend Matt coming down the corridor of Monroe University Hospital's corridors, his shock of bright red hair was a dead give away. He was just coming on shift, she'd returned to Washington following her spell with 'DiNardo', figuring, it was a big city, she'd never see him again. She couldn't have been more wrong.
"Trauma en-route" Said Matt "Thought I'd give you the head's up"
"What kind of trauma?" She asked professionally.
"Stabbing" He declared.
"Where are the cops when this sort of stuff happens?" She asked rhetorically
"Patient's a fed"
"Wow, who, FBI?"
"NCIS" He answered.
She swallowed hard. It had been a while since she'd heard those letters uttered, she took a deep breath supressing the memories.
Matt remembered all of what she had told him about her relationship with the undercover agent that had broken her heart.
"It's a big agency, Jeanne, it's highly unlikely it's your guy" He reassured her
However professional she was it couldn't prepare her for who she saw rushed in by the paramedics, her heart did a skip and her world froze.
"Take a break, Dr. Michaels and I got this one" Said Matt
She felt physically sick but her training took over when she saw Gibbs. He clutched his injured arm and she ushered him into an exam room.
"This can wait, I need to call the rest of my team"
"No...What is your name?"
."You should be in there saving him not me!" He yelled.
"Calm down" She said sternly "Now what happened here"
Gibbs took a deep breath, realising that he was no good to anyone injured
Matt took all the pesonal items from the victim and headed to Gibbs where Jeanne was just finishing dressing his arm.
"Dr. Benoit, can I see you for a second" He said, peeping his head through the curtain.
"His arm was grazed, should be okay though." She reported.
He showed her the bag of personal items, she looked at the weapon in there.
"God, it's like I never even knew him." Then she remembered she'd said it out loud "It was him, Matt"
"Jeanne..." He didn't quite know what to say.
"I'd better give these to Agent Gibbs" He said.
Jeanne walked away and Matt entered the examination room.
"How's my partner doing?" Asked Gibbs
"He's stable enough to go up to surgery but we won't know the extent of the injury until later" Matt reported "Is there a next of kin you need to inform?"
"There's a wife" Said Gibbs, deflated, but he knew the challenge of facing Ziva when she found out would be hardest.
As Gibbs headed outside, Matt was left somewhat shocked that Tony had a wife, he had no idea how he would tell Jeanne, she was clearly still in love with this man.
"I think we're finshed here, Abs" Said McGee.
His phone rang in his pocket and he struggled to reach it before it rang off.
"McGee" He answered "Everything okay, Boss?"
Gibbs told McGee everything, and he tried to keep his best poker face on for Abby's sake, but as soon as he hung up she saw straight through it.
"Tim, what happened, what did the bossman want?" She asked.
"Thorn stabbed Tony, it sounds pretty bad, they're not sure he's going to make it."
Abby grabbed Tim and placed a head on his shoulder.
"He can't die, Timmy" She Said "He, can't, he can't he can't"
Then he remembered the job he'd been given to do.
"This is a nightmare, McGee" She said looking into his eyes.
"Abby...Gibbs wants me to tell Ziva. I've got to tell her in person, I'm not calling her."
"What shall I do?" She asked
"Get Ducky, and go support Gibbs" He said "I'll meet you there"
He had a sense of impending doom as the prospect of facing Ziva came closer as he drove nearer and nearer to her home.