"Perhaps this would be better explained in person." Ducky added after a few moments of uncharacteristic silence.

Gibbs expressions could've burned a hole into the floor before he looked up at Tim and Ziva. He took in a breath to control his anger. "We'll be at NCIS in two hours." He closed his phone and it was all on eyes on him; literally. He gestured for Franks to follow, but was met face to face by McGee.

"He's alive isn't he?"

"Seems that way McGee…but he's in trouble, I can feel it in my gut." He tried to step past him but Tim stayed in his path.

"Ducky let us believe he was dead all this time?"

Gibbs simply nodded and dead panned to Ziva; then back to McGee. "He's not the only one…"

Jen approached just as Ducky set down his phone. "I'm afraid I have some bad news."

"Welcome to the club."

"DiNozzo has gone off grid, he hasn't checked in since yesterday evening."

Ducky slowly rubbed his temples. "Not possible he's just gone off on a midnight rendezvous is it?" He examined her eyes. "No I thought not."

"Director Higgins is to keep me informed, but it's possible his cover…"

"Was compromised..." He interrupted. "Now my worst fears have come to pass. My only hope in ever receiving forgiveness from Jethro has now been jeopardized…"

Jenny placed a hand on his shoulder. "Tony is resilient; unorthodox and fully capable; whatever's happened, he can handle it."

Ducky almost smiled. "He is Jethro."

Jen tried to ignore the comment and stepped towards the door. "I'll be preparing for the briefing."

"You may also want to prepare something else…"

"What's that?"

"Their re-instatement papers."

Gibbs slipped into the car and was happy to have a passenger who he knew wouldn't do much talking. But he spoke too soon.

"How in the hell could you let this happen under your nose Probie?"

Gibbs turned the ignition with force; and threw the car into drive. "Gee Mike, I don't know. Guess I was fooled. And I don't need a lesson, so spare me."

"Don't make me slap you."

Gibbs snapped his head towards him. "Give me your best shot."

Mike lifted his arm up; but soon met the expression in Gibbs eyes. "You blame yourself don't you?" Gibbs didn't have to respond. "Good, you should. But you don't have time to wallow…we get to NCIS… listen to what that ME has to say, and I'll hold him while you pop him a few times…"

Gibbs almost smiled. "As much as I'd like to, I can't…"

"What the hell do you mean, you can't?"

"He's my friend…"

Mike shifted his eyes back to the road. "Some friends you made after I left Probie…"

"Listen, he had as good a reason as any."

"Yeah and why not run it by you? His trusty and loyal sidekick…"

Gibbs welcomed the sarcasm. "I don't know."

"Well you better find out. Cuz if you don't hit him…I will."

After making the necessary arrangements for Archibald; Tim and Ziva were headed back to NCIS as well, only this time Tim elected to drive.

"I could've driven." Ziva chimed in before letting her window down a bit.

"Yeah and I could've been an astronaut."

She hid her smile. "You have become more and more sarcastic lately no?"

"Wow, you must be a detective or something right?"

"You are not Tony, McGee. You do not have to be."

He hit the gas pedal with a little more force. "I'm not trying to be. I'm just a little conflicted at the moment. Can you blame me?"

"Blame you? No. But be aware, that the only way we are going to get Tony back is as a team. And the team includes the real Timothy McGee."

He shook his head. "Yeah Ziva, I know. I just…I'm…"

"Angry?"

"I was gonna say livid. But angry is a good synonym."

"Synonym?" She questioned.

"Like the same word for the same meaning. For example, how I feel…angry, annoyed, irritated, mad, irate, heated, furious, incensed, enraged, outraged, infuriated, betrayed, perturbed, agitated, disturbed, aggravated, upset…"

She thought for a moment. "And it's any wonder I have difficultly with your language…"

Gibbs thoughts were bouncing back and forth through his head like a pin ball machine. Why hadn't Ducky confided in him? How could he let him think Tony was dead all this time? All the while knowing the truth? And in the back of his mind he wondered if their friendship would ever be the same. And in a car ride that Gibbs hoped would be relatively silent; he was once again proven wrong. His cell phone was in the middle console; and its ringer had awoken an annoyed Franks who had fallen asleep against the window sill.

"Ah hell Probie, answer that will ya?" Gibbs sifted around and picked it up. Letting in ring just a couple more times than he needed to. "It's probably that bouncy forensic scientist checking up on ya."

Gibbs gazed at the caller ID. He was right.

"Hey Abs…" He heard Mike groan and ignored it. "How you holding up?"

"Do you even have to ask that question? I've been waiting for you to call, to me what Ducky told you, after you told me to tell him to call you."

Her mannerisms seemed to calm him a bit. "Are you sitting down?"

"Am I ever sitting down?"

"Listen Abs…"

"Tony's alive isn't he? I knew it, I knew it, I knew it. I knew you wouldn't give up till you found him Gibbs…did you tell McGee? If you haven't you should. He felt terrible; not that you don't know that, cuz you kind of helped that along…not that you're not compassionate, cuz you are but…oh Gibbs, he's alive!!"

He tried to smile. "He was kidnapped to do some undercover work."

"Kidnapped? By the Director…oh Gibbs, I've been practicing those moves you taught me, I can take her…"

"I can handle it Abs, but I need you to do me another favor."

"Anything."

"Look into Ducky's past…I want to know everything from how much he weighed when he was born to what he had for lunch today."

She nervously reached for her Hippo who was near by. "Are you gonna tell me what I'm looking for?"

"I don't even know myself Abs."

"Um, okay. But I feel kinda weird you know…spying on Ducky."

"Don't think of it as spying Abs, you're helping to find DiNozzo."

She gave her hippo a squeeze. "But what does one have to do with the other?"

He listened to another annoyed groan from Franks. "I'm on my way to NCIS right now, ETA less than two hours."

"Oh yay, you're coming back home!"

Franks couldn't help but over hear the high pitched voice and let out a loud sigh.

"I'll come by to see you after we get briefed."

"Okay…and um, Gibbs…"

"Yes Abs?"

"You okay?"

He had to smile. "Yeah, Abs, I'm okay…now get to work. Better have that stuff when I get back." He hung up the phone and heard a resounding bout of joy from his counterpart.

"And here I thought every conversation with you lasted less than thirty seconds."

Gibbs shrugged. "Yeah, well there's an exception to every rule."

Mike sat up momentarily and eyed Gibbs. "Something you want to tell me Probie…"

Gibbs put his eyes back on the road and watched Mike lay back down without a response. It was about a minute later that he reached for the volume dial on the radio…

"Oh sorry boss…thought that controlled the AC…"

Tim and Ziva arrived almost simultaneously with Gibbs and Franks. Their entry into NCIS had been fast tracked by the Director; leaving no doubt their reinstatements would soon be forthcoming. They headed up the stairs and into the Directors office in silence. Jenny stood at the head of the conference table; Ducky to her left. Four sets of files were stacked neatly in front of their chairs and it didn't take long before Gibbs gave the okay to sit down; his eyes not leaving the path of one Donald Mallard.

"Before we begin, I believe I should say something…" Ducky began, but was soon cut short by an unexpected voice laced with anger.

"Who the hell do you think you are?"

The unexpected voice was Timothy McGee.

"Timothy I…"

"Do you have any idea what I've gone through over the last month? How many nights I've spent awake, torturing myself? What gave you the right to put me through that?" He was now standing and it didn't take long before the rest of them were as well.

"You're out of line Agent McGee…" Jen tried to back him off.

"I'm not one of your Agents anymore." He took a step towards Ducky to which Ziva immediately stopped him.

"McGee, sit down." She spoke firmly.

Tim tried to calm himself and watched as Gibbs now stood in Ziva's place. "This isn't going to solve our problem McGee." He placed a hand on his shoulder. "What happened that night…wasn't your fault."

And it was then you could hear a pin drop. It was as if all the pain of the last 31 days had been lifted from Tim's shoulders. One simple phrase; from the one person he needed to hear it from the most.

But it wasn't long before the silence was broken. "Now that that's settled; I believe the resident betrayer has some explaining to do…" Franks gestured to the Doctor and watched as the four slowly sat down in agreement.

But not before Gibbs said one last thing to Tim. "He's right…right now DiNozzo is our number one priority…mission now, feelings later."

With that Tim took his seat beside Ziva, and waited for what the ME had prepared to say.

"I realize that none of you have any reason to trust me at the moment. But I assure you that if anything should happen to Tony; no one will be more to blame than myself." He cleared his throat, and was quickly interrupted by Gibbs' gut feeling.

"Something went wrong with the assignment…" Gibbs began, now shifting his eyes to Jenny. "You lost DiNozzo didn't you?"

Jenny slowly nodded and met Gibbs eyes. "He went off grid fourteen hours ago."

It was then Gibbs put out his hand and watched Jen stare back at him confused. "Give them to me."

"Give you what?"

"My badge and weapon…and while you're at it, a round trip ticket to Scotland."

Franks agreed. "And first class sure as hell wouldn't hurt…"