A/N Thank you for the reviews, story alerts and favorites.

Sorry for not posting for a while, spent some quality time with my daughter, (OK I'll admit i do like Harry Potter but back to back movies and she knows all the words! going slightly crazy. :P)

Had a storming session with the bunnies and their wrangler. so pulled in some good ideas for the rest of this story and the next one. so my time away was not entirely misused.

Disclaimer as chapter 1

Chapter 5

Abby was in her Lab, Android Lust cranked up to full blast as she bent over her computer double checking all the results she had knowing that in a few moments Gibbs would walk through the door demanding results on the evidence she had been given to test.

"What ya got Abbs?" Came Gibbs' usual question, she turned with a smile to answer him and was surprised that he had been accompanied by not only Vance but Dave Franklin as well.

Gibbs turned off the music as Abby turned to give them the information she had gathered.

"The sample you gave me was definitely Cyclotetramethylene-tetranitramine but it was hinky." She said.

"What's cyclo…..whatever you said?" Gibbs asked.

"Cyclotetramethylene-tetranitramine is High Melting Explosive also known as High-velocity Military Explosives - HMX." She told him.

He nodded he knew what that was, "And what was 'Hinky'?" he asked.

"It had none of the usual Tags that are imbedded in HMX, so it looks like it was homemade." Abby said.

"You're kidding!" Dave exclaimed, "But it's only made at the Holston Army ammunition plant the formula is secret."

"I know," Abby said "I called Holston; they have none missing from their inventory and it isn't found naturally in the environment so someone has to be making it."

"So what you're saying is that Varano has to have access to a scientist to be making this stuff." Gibbs said. He grinned handed Abby her Caf-Pow and kissed her cheek, "Thanks Abbs," he turned and headed to interrogation.

Tony walked into the bullpen as McGee looked up from his desk.

"You didn't find her?" He said despondent.

"Nope," Tony said

"What did you find?" Tim asked

"Evidence is with Abby," Tony said and started typing up his report on the computer.

"Tony?"

"I'm busy," Tony snapped knowing his feelings weren't Tim's fault but he wasn't ready to let them go just yet.

"Tony!" Tim pushed "Talk to me….please."

Tony kept typing and Tim placed his hand on the monitor causing it to go out.

"CUT IT OUT!" Tony yelled.

"Just talk to me!" Tim said.

"Why, you don't need me to talk to, just talk to Abby." Tony looked at the ground he couldn't look Tim in the eye as he didn't want his friend to see how much this hurt him.

"I was in a relationship with Abby, She met my parents….I had to tell her."

"I thought you trusted me Tim. I told you about …." His voice dropped, "I told you about my dad and about Wendy before anyone else, well except Gibbs. I thought you trusted me to have your six."

He didn't know how else to tell Tim how he felt. "I trusted you…..and I only trust you and Gibbs. Now …..I don't think I can trust you….." Tony looked away.

"Tony….. I do trust you, I told Abby because I had to and she had to sign a confidentiality agreement. The President kept what Sarah and I can do a secret. If I could have told you I would have."

"STUFF…..stuff the President, I thought of you as my little brother."

Tim was stunned; he took a step back at that, after all the years of Tony's teasing that was how he thought of him.

Tim placed his hand back on the monitor and Tony's screen came back on.

"I….I'm sorry Tony." Tim said quietly and walked off to see Abby leaving Tony to his work.

Varano sat in interrogation he knew he was close to McGee all he needed to do was push the right button and he would get to see him face to face.

Gibbs walked into interrogation and sat opposite Varano.

"Where is Sarah McGee?" He asked.

Varano sat there not talking with a smirk on his face.

"We have the HMX, we know your group is planning on building a nuclear bomb…you're not getting the plutonium you need, now tell me where is Sarah McGee?" Gibbs sipped his coffee and sat there.

Varano still said nothing and Gibbs could feel the smugness rolling off the man and had to fight the urge to hit him.

"You want information out of me…I'll only talk to McGee." Varano said.

Gibbs sat back looked at him incredulously, got up and walked out of the room.

Ziva walked out of observation and stopped Gibbs. "You have given up?" She asked him

"Nope, going for coffee." He said. He figured after a few more hours of sitting there and sweating might loosen his tongue.

Ziva went to Abby's lab to see if there was anymore information and saw Tim, "Are you ok Tim?" She asked.

"Yes," He said although the conversation with Tony was playing in his mind and he could feel Sarah's thoughts comforting him.

"You looked thinking full." She said

At that Tim smiled, "It's thoughtful Ziva, and yes I was a bit."

"I know having Varano in interrogation seems to have Gibbs on edge too." She told him.

Tim did a double take "Oh he's here?" He said trying to keep his voice level.

"Yes, Gibbs has gone for coffee he is letting him wait."

Tim nodded and changed direction.

Sarah drank the last of her water, she could feel different emotions coming from Tim and knowing she wasn't in immediate danger sent him calming thoughts.

She could feel his hurt as he'd had the conversation with Tony and she mentally hugged him 'It's ok Tim, he does care and you will both be ok just give him time.'

She felt him mellow, 'thanks sis,' he sent. She relaxed.

A while later she started to feel waves of panic, she knew it wasn't her and she tuned into Tim again, this time she felt him shut her out.

'Tim?' she sent.

'I may have a clue to finding you, just trust me.' He sent back.

She nodded to herself trusting in her big brother and went back to the task at hand trying to figure out where she was and how to get out of there.

She stood by the door and concentrated hard and felt the bolt finally move.

Quietly she pushed open the door; she saw two guys sitting at a table and quickly sent a mental image to Tim. She made it about halfway to the door when she was spotted by Rob.

She froze. He got up and gave her a menacing smile, "He said you'd be a handful, come on girly back you go." He pointed a gun at her and she turned and walked resigned into her prison.

'Sorry Tim, they caught me, did I send you enough to find me?' she sent his way as she sank back onto the threadbare mattress on the floor.

'I'll use it and find you.' Tim sent and Sarah could feel the love behind his words.

'Tim, Someone knows about us…. The guy that locked me in here said HE said I'd be a handful.' Sarah sent worriedly.

Tim lent against the wall near the elevator with his eyes closed assimilating the information Sarah was sending him and sending waves of reassurance back to her.

He took a deep breath and got into the elevator and headed to the bull pen to give the others the information he had received.

As he exited the elevator he saw his dad and Gibbs waiting to go down.

"Boss…Dad! I just heard from Sarah, she got out, but they put her back in the room, I have some images, I'm not sure what they mean." Tim stopped to take a breath.

"Sit down son," Dave ordered planting Tim in a chair.

"There were at least 2 guys there. They had Chinese on the table," Tim drew a logo on a pad. Gibbs picked it up and gave it to Ziva, "Find this." He said and Ziva nodded and got on it.

"She also heard something, I know she's near the beltway I could hear traffic and one of the guys said that they had been told that Sarah would be a handful…..Dad that means someone knew about us." Tim looked his adoptive father in the eye.

Dave's blood ran cold, he had a suspicion who it could be but he didn't want to tell his son. There were some secrets that should remain a secret and unless it was absolutely necessary he wasn't going to say anything. With all the emotional upheaval his children where going through he didn't want to even suggest it and be wrong, neither of his children would be able to cope with that.