Chapter 6
"Why aren't you at the courthouse, picking up the autopsy report?" Gibbs asked as he rounded the corner.
"They don't open for another hour, Boss." McGee replied.
Gibbs just stared at him.
"I will be waiting at the door when they open." McGee said as he stood up and grabbed the keys off of Gibbs' desk.
"Ziva." Gibbs said.
As McGee walked by her desk, Ziva stood to brief Gibbs on what she found about Garrett's record.
"A solid performer from the start." She began. "Graduated Naval Academy in 1989 and rose quickly through the ranks. All of his evaluations show a dedicated Naval Officer. He is at the top of the list in consideration for the next Navy Chief of Staff.
Gibbs strummed his finger on his desk for a few seconds.
"Something troubling you?" Ziva asked.
"And yet his daughter is accusing him of murdering her sister." Gibbs said.
"How seriously are we going to take the accusation?" Ziva asked. "By the daughter's own admission, the mother was having problems."
"I've already thought of that." Gibbs answered. "That's what's troubling me. I guess we just have to wait and see what Ducky has to say about the autopsy report."
Ziva looked over at DiNozzo, who appeared to be about to say something. She gave him a steely-eyed stare.
"Can we at least go half a day without mentioning him?" She pleaded as she sat back down at her desk.
DiNozzo cocked his head to the side. "Who?" He asked.
"You know very well who I am talking about." She said.
DiNozzo just stared at her.
"Hitchcock!" She practically screamed.
DiNozzo assumed a faraway look. "I wasn't going to mention him…but since you brought him up," He said. "I thought he would be proud of this case."
Ziva grabbed the edge of her desk and growled.
Gibbs visited Ducky just after lunch.
"Have you had a chance to go over the autopsy report, yet?" He asked.
"A preliminary look." Ducky nodded. "I'm doing a more thorough examination of it now."
"Anything out of the ordinary?"
"Afraid not." Ducky told him. "A cut and dried drowning."
"Accidental?"
"My preliminary look suggests so." Ducky confirmed. "Nothing to indicate that she might have been held under water. Unless I find something to make me question that, I will have to agree with the official finding."
Gibbs just nodded.
"And keep in mind." Ducky continued. "Even if I do find something suspicious. Unless it is an obvious error by the original M.E., it would be very difficult to make a case out of it…it's a fifteen year old report, and, with the current condition of the body, it would be impossible to verify any discrepancies."
"Already thought of that." Gibbs told him.
"So, am I to assume that I am reviewing the report merely as a formality?" Ducky asked.
"Gotta cross the "T's" and dot the "I's"." Gibbs admitted.
"What about the fact that the body was buried in the back yard, and not at the church?" Ducky asked.
"The mother insisted on a closed casket funeral." Gibbs replied. "We're assuming that it was so that she could sneak in and steal the body, then bury it after Garrett had left."
"Pretty morbid of her, if that is the case." Ducky said.
Monday morning, Gibbs walked into Vance's office and placed his report on the desk.
"The Garrett case?" Vance asked as he picked it up.
"Yep." Gibbs replied.
"What was final outcome?"
"Ducky didn't find anything to refute the M.E.'s report." Gibbs shrugged.
"What about the body being buried in the back yard?" Vance asked.
"Mom was having "issues"." Gibbs said. "We believe she stole it from the church and waited for her husband to leave so she could bury it herself."
"What happens to it now?"
"We've turned it back over to the church." Gibbs told him. "They will bury it where it should have been in '96."
"And the daughter?"
"Getting released from the hospital as we speak." Gibbs said. "Rachel is there with her."
"Has Admiral Garrett been notified?" Vance asked.
"I wouldn't want to steal your thunder." Gibbs laughed as he headed for the door.
Vance watched him go, then chuckled as he picked up the phone.
"Boss?" McGee began as he returned from lunch. "You have got to talk to him."
"Who?" Gibbs asked.
"Tony." McGee answered.
Gibbs gave him a puzzled look.
"He is driving us crazy with his Hitchcock paranoia." Ziva added.
"Just be thankful that the Marine's name wasn't Stephen King." Gibbs laughed.
Ziva and McGee looked at each other for a few seconds, then both nodded in agreement.
Gibbs looked over and saw Rachel walking past DiNozzo's desk. When she saw him looking at her, she cocked her head in the direction of Vance's office and headed up the stairs. Gibbs got up and followed her.
"I'm on shaky moral ground here." She began when Vance's door was closed. "But I have no other choice…I'm worried about him."
Vance motioned for them both to have a seat.
"Although he hasn't made up his mind yet," She said as she sat down, "he is leaning towards the idea of returning…but it will be a long time before I clear him for field work."
"What's the issue?" Gibbs asked.
"Some would call it a blessing, some a curse," she began, "but he has been mentally preparing for this day since the accident…he knew it would come, but he still wasn't ready for it. And it has affected him even more than he realizes."
"Is he a danger…?" Vance asked.
"If I even thought he might be," she shook her head, "he would be in a hospital right now."
"Then…what?" Gibbs asked.
"A cop has to see things in black and white." She said and started shaking her head. "He no longer does. Everything is filtered through Sarah's death…even to the point of, if he sees a reckless driver on the road, he is seeing the person who ran into his wife."
"I can see how that would be a problem." Vance conceded.
"Look. I'm not saying this could escalate…In fact, I don't believe it will." She continued. "But I'm also not going to take a chance on it, either…I am scheduling him for three sessions a week until further notice…whether or not he comes back here."
Vance nodded. "Thank you."
"Just as a precaution," she added, "does he still have his weapon?"
Vance looked at her suspiciously. "And you're certain he's not a threat?" He demanded.
"Like I said…" she repeated. "at this point, he isn't one…but I will not take any chances until I see him a few more times."
"Standard procedure is to take it after a traumatic event until they are cleared." Vance told her.
She nodded. "I have to get back to my office for another patient." She said, standing up. "And I've probably said too much, as it is."
"Abby?" Gibbs asked.
"Right now, his best therapy is to spend as much time with her as possible." She said. "She'll be fine."
"Not enough evidence to accuse anyone." DiNozzo said. "All circumstantial "Daughter said that mom said that dad did it."…fitting for a Hitchcock plot."
"The case is over." Ziva replied "Can we please stop talking about Hitchcock."
DiNozzo gave her a smug look.
"Make no mistake about it." He answered. "This story is far from over, there is at least one more chapter…expect the Hitchcock twist any minute now."
Ziva and McGee looked at each other, rolled their eyes, and sighed.