Chapter 10

Tim sat silent in Gibbs' living room, listening to the sound of Tony coughing from upstairs. He grimaced, feeling ill himself at the sounds of Tony in such pain and not being able to help him. Ducky took a sip of his tea and placed a reassuring hand on the young man's knee. McGee nodded. He had come over after work to bring dinner for Gibbs, Ziva, and Ducky. Working on paperwork all day had been torture with only receiving a few updates that Tony was getting worse. He wanted to be there to support his partner, but he didn't realize that it would be this hard. The sound of Tony's coughing stopped and he found that he could take a deep breath now, not realizing he'd been holding his.

"Do you think he's strong enough to fight this?" McGee asked.

"Anthony has a disadvantage because of his lungs, but his advantage is his family is supporting him and helping him through this period," Ducky replied.

It wasn't exactly no but it wasn't a yes and Tim quickly picked up on it. He remembered Tony's fifteen percent chance of survival from the plague. It had been come and go for a while, which scared McGee. He hated seeing Tony so weak and vulnerable. It was like seeing it all over again, but this time he wasn't in a hospital and there was no suicide chain to stop this virus from multiplying.

"Jethro won't let anything happen to him," the ME comforted.

Gibbs came into the living room and observed the two just sitting. McGee tried to cover a yawn, rubbing his hand down his face. There was the sound of Tony coughing again upstairs, but it didn't last long. His team was suffering along with Tony and Gibbs didn't like it. McGee had spent the entire day covering everyone at work and wearing himself out before bringing over dinner, sitting with Tony for a while, and then talking to Ducky. The young man needed to go home and rest before he collapsed from exhaustion.

"McGee, Duck, you can head home."

McGee quickly got to his feet. "Boss, I don't mind waiting with Tony."

"It's late. Go home," he repeated, using a soft voice to let him know that he wasn't ordering him but was serious.

The young man opened his mouth to protest, but Ducky came up beside him and spoke up.

"Call me if anything changes. I will check on Anthony in the morning."

"That sounds good, Duck. Get some rest."

"Night Boss," McGee mumbled. "Make sure Ziva gets some rest too. She's been with him the longest."

He walked out to his car, quickly getting inside to avoid being soaked in the rain. Tim slammed his hand down on the steering wheel in frustration. There was no way he could go home right now and fall asleep. McGee decided to take a drive out of the city to relax. He turned on some quiet music and pulled away from Gibbs's house. The drive out of the city was short, due to the lack of traffic and his lack of focus. Trees passed on both sides as the rain poured down from the sky, making it seem even darker. Thoughts ran wild through his mind and he couldn't stop them. Tony was coughing in a hospital bed, unable to breathe as his nose and lips turned blue. His fever was too high and the doctor couldn't help him. Kate was sitting beside him and holding his hand with a mask on her face. It was like looking at death.

But it wasn't like that. Tony was NOT going to die; Gibbs wouldn't let that happen to him and Ziva wouldn't let him go. Ducky would do everything medically and Abby would create something to help him if she could. What could he do to help Tony? He thought of heading to Tony's apartment and collecting more of his movies to bring to Gibbs's house and sitting to watch with him. Tony had been complaining about not seeing the golden bikini from Star Wars in a long time. It would make him smile.

McGee slowed down his car and turned around, feeling the exhaustion of the long day and restless night beginning to affect him. Lightning flashed as he drove back towards the city. He didn't even see what was coming. A car swerved around the corner, hydroplaning on the wet pavement and driving into McGee's lane. McGee slammed his foot down on the brake and tried to swerve away from the oncoming car. His vehicle hit a puddle of water, sending his wheels spinning too and sending him off the road, slamming his car into a tree. Everything came to an abrupt halt. Tim opened his eyes, unsure of what happened or how long he had been unconscious. It took a moment before the pain registered in his mind. His head was pounding and there was an intense pain in his left shoulder, radiating down to his fingers. The world was spinning. McGee lifted his hand and touched the warm, sticky liquid flowing down his forehead. His fingers came back covered in blood. Trying to focus, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed.

"What is it McGee?" Ziva answered softly. It didn't sound like she had gone to sleep yet.

Tim swallowed, trying to find his words.

"McGee?" Her voice became anxious.

He couldn't speak as spots appeared in his vision and he felt like he was going to throw up.

"Tim! What is going on?"

"Ziva… I got in an accident," he slurred. "Don't tell Gibbs… I don't… want Tony to be upset."

"Where are you?" she demanded and he could hear Ziva moving around in the background and the sound of keys. "McGee, I need you to stay with me."

"There was another car… I'm gonna be sick."

"Tim, stay with me!"

"Can't… so dizzy… it hurts."

The phone fell from his hands as he started to fade. Every part of his body was in pain and he couldn't stay awake. McGee didn't know when Ziva arrived after getting his location from the GPS in his phone and calling 911. She made it to the scene before the ambulance and tried to stop the bleeding and get McGee to focus, but he couldn't. By the time the ambulance arrived, McGee was unconscious and covered in his own blood. Ziva watched in horror as they loaded him into the ambulance and there was nothing she could do to help. With shaking fingers covered in Timothy's blood, she dialed Ducky's cell number to let him know what had happened.

"Ducky," she spoke, wiping her hand across her mouth as the rain water soaked her clothing.

"Ziva, what's wrong? You sound upset," the older man answered.

"Timothy was in a car accident. They are taking him to Bethesda, he is in critical condition. There was so much blood coming from his forehead and his shoulder was dislocated. I could not see his other injuries. I need your help."

"Of course, what can I do?"

"I need you to go to Bethesda and find out his condition. I was not allowed in the ambulance, but I will be there as soon as I can."

"Would you like me to call Jethro and inform him of what has occurred?" Ducky asked.

"I do not think that would be a good idea, but he will be angry if we do not tell him. I cannot make that choice right now, I need to get to Bethesda and check on McGee."

"I understand. And Ziva, drive carefully."

Ziva hung up her cell phone without answering and stared at the remnants of McGee's car. There was no sign of the other vehicle that McGee had mentioned on the phone. It must not have been damaged. But what kind of person wouldn't stop after running someone off the road? Ziva ran her fingers through her hair as she blinked at the moisture forming in her eyes. She looked up at the sky as the tears falling from her eyes mingled with the rain.

Gibbs hung up his cell phone, standing up and walking over the window, staring out into the storm. McGee was on his way to the hospital and in critical condition, but he couldn't get to him. Tony needed his attention and there was no way he was leaving him alone. There was a groan behind him and he saw that Tony had sat up and was trying to throw his legs over the side of the bed. Gibbs came back to him as he started to fall forward.

"Tony, lay back down," he requested.

"What's going on?" Tony gasped.

"There was an accident."

Tony leaned on Gibbs's shoulder, trying to breath in deep.

"Who was it?"

"McGee was in a car accident, he's on his way to Bethesda. Ziva and Ducky will meet him there."

Tony tried to get up again, but was caught off guard by a coughing spell and it caused him to fall back. Gibbs helped him sit up and whispered softly to him. He couldn't leave. Another member of his team was in danger, but Tony came first. He could see the pain on Tony's face and knew that the young man would blame himself if McGee didn't make it through this. Gibbs sent up a silent prayer as he covered Tony with the blanket again. Tony sighed, closing his eyes as he did the same.

Thank you for all of the lovely reviews last chapter! I hope you can forgive any typos in the chapter; it's late but I wanted to post it for you. :)

There's no development with my internship situation and I'm becoming even more stressed with people demanding answers to questions that I can't answer at this time. But I'm just hope that it starts to make sense soon.

Anyway, please review!

Emma