OMG I don't think i've ever updated this quick... Ever but this seems to be the story my plot daemon is happy to play with at the moment so I think that's why. I just want to let you all know that I should be revising for an exam i have tomorro but i finished this instead and it felt better than staring at notes i don't understand lol. So I hope you all enjoy.

Disclaimer: The plot is mine and i wish Tony was... But no..

Warning: If you haven't seen the warning before now then i don't know what to say this will eventually be a Tony/Gibbs SLASH Story though not for a while if this aint your thing go find another ship to sail i don't want you on mine.

Reviewers:

Liveforthemoment-13: Again thanks for the reivew this is up much faster than i thought it would be which is good for you guys out there so i hope you like it

Lulu: Thanx for the review. Yes i plan to make this a Tony/Gibbs story eventually. Hope you like the next chapter

The Swordsman: Thanx for the review! Gibbs reaction won't be long away hehe but not quite yet. I hope you like the new chapter.

Richefic: Thanx for the review! Oh believe me it will be fun but we're not quite there just yet. I hope you enjoy the new chapter.

Superem: Thanx for the review! Here is the new chapter!

Princessfiona: Thanx for the review! Tony has a few secrets and he's not ready to give them away just yet but don't worry you'll find out more soon!

SparkingCatseye: Thanx for the review! Here is the next chapter!

MC: Thanx for the review! Ooo good guess...And it's... Well actully i'm not telling whether it's right just yet. Hope you like the new chapter!

Irreparabile Tempus: Thanx for the review! And yes believe me the fun and games will start soon we all know how much Gibbs likes being in the dark... Er... Anyone wanna hide for cover?

Okay so here it is guys! The next chapter!


Don't Say A Word

Chapter Two: Stalling For Time

Gibbs made it to the hospital in record time parked the car and flashed his badge Kate following close behind. Gibbs walked up to the ward with practised ease he'd been here before to check on Merry. He walked up to the nurse's station and saw one of Merry's friends Louise on duty. "Special Agent Gibbs." She smiled.

"Hi Louise." He smiled. "Is my God-Daughter around?" Louise shook her head. "No we haven't seen her since she left suddenly yesterday." Gibbs picked up on that. "She didn't ring me is she okay?" Louise nodded. "I think so. I spoke to General Blake this morning. He said she's ill." Gibbs could tell Louise wasn't buying it and was scared for her friend.

"I need to know what happened yesterday." "Why is Merry okay?" Louise said sitting up straighter. "She's fine." Jethro said. "She just needs my help and I can't get hold of her. Did she leave anything or write anything before she left yesterday?"

Kate watched with interest as Gibbs seemed to say more than his sentence revealed and Louise got up and retrieved a file from the shelf and flicked through it. "Here." She turned it round.

Kate moved in expecting to see numbers but only saw a progress report Gibbs however seemed to see more than that. "Kate. Copy that." He said quickly and quietly. "Just the last part dated at 11.30 yesterday morning make sure you get Captain Blake's signature." Kate did as she was told.

At that point another nurse came round the corner and Louise looked up. "Julia!" Julia looked at Gibbs and then back at Louise. "Special Agent Gibbs." "Good morning Julia. I was looking for my God-daughter but apparently she's ill." Julia nodded. "She didn't ring you?" "I haven't got her new phone number." Gibbs shrugged.

Julia came around the desk and said, "Well maybe I can help you she left with a girl with really blonde hair, must have been died dark eyes. Really nice looking, pale. She was wearing jeans and a white t-shirt. I'm sure Merry said her name was Tina. Didn't get a second name. She left with her but she didn't seem all that pleased to see her before that."

Gibbs nodded. "Thanks girls." They nodded and Gibbs and Kate left Gibbs pulling out his phone. "DiNozzo I need a progress report." "Meredith's record is clean boss." "There are no complaints against her. All I see is recommendations in this file." That didn't surprise Gibbs anyone that new Meredith well enough knew she was a damn fine officer and a damn fine nurse.

Tony seemed to stall for a moment. "I didn't know whether too but I pulled them anyway and I'm going through them now. I pulled General Blake's file to see if this was against him and not his daughter. So far nothing." Gibbs smirked. He knew Tony was a damn good investigator. "I want a profile on them both by the time I get back."

"On it Boss." Tony said before hanging up. Gibbs closed his phone and looked at Kate. "Anything you want to say Kate?" He asked lightly. He knew she was desperate to ask about Meredith but he knew she was wondering if the merits of letting him know she didn't think him working the case were worth facing his wrath.

"No."

She said at last knowing it probably wouldn't make a difference anyway. Gibbs had claimed the case as his own now and he would solve it. He was probably more determined if the link between he and Merry was true anyway. So Kate let it slide and Gibbs turned and got in the car without saying anything else.

When they got back to NCIS however, Tony did no such thing. "So you're Meredith's God-Father?" He asked. "You sure we should be taking this case boss?" He asked lightly.

Gibbs had to hand it too him, Tony was one hell of an investigator and he never allowed Gibbs to make him feel cowed. He towed the line and followed orders but he also had the guts to stand up to Gibbs and though Gibbs would never say he liked that about the younger agent.

"Do I have to answer that DiNozzo?" He said quietly. "Yeah that's what I thought." Tony said without a batting an eye. "So I compared any of the people both Meredith and her father worked for and you're the only common ground in the Military records so that's a dead end."

"I never worked with Meredith Tony." Jethro said. "I know." Tony said. "But you're the only military connection between the Captain and her father. So if it's against her father personally they've got no connection to Merry herself."

"Perhaps it's random for the money." Kate said and both Tony and Jethro said, "No."

She looked at them both. "You two know something I don't?" "My Gut." They said at the same time. Jethro looked at Tony who broke the gaze by looking down at the files again. He was saved from having to answer any of Gibbs' questions when Gibbs' phone rang.

"Yeah." He listened for a moment and then said, "Good work Abby." He closed the phone and said, "Abby and McGee have got something for us in the lab." He turned and headed for the elevator with Kate and Tony following behind.

When they entered the lab Abby and McGee where in the middle of one of their finish each other's sentences conversations and sharing the keyboard. "What you got?" Gibbs asked putting a Caf-Pow down in front of Abby.

"We got the surveillance up and running in General Blake's office. At that moment Abby pressed a button and Jon's lab appeared on screen. "And we can talk to him." McGee said.

"How?" Tony demanded. "We hacked his computer. There's nothing in there the surveillance on the General, if any isn't through his computer." "No whoever is doing this is doing this the old fashioned way. It doesn't change the fact that his daughter's life is on the line here."

"Never said it did Boss." McGee said. "Wait, You said you can talk to him." Tony said watching the office. "How?" Abby smiled. "I knew I liked you Tony you're always interested. Tony grinned. "As long as it doesn't involve Geek-Speak."

"As we said we hacked the computer and we can send messages to the computer." "That's not safe." Tony said at once and the others looked at him. "Explain DiNozzo." Kate said. Tony pulled a hand through his hair a sure sign he was trying to figure something out in his head.

"Well if Gibbs is right then someone is doing this the old fashioned way there will be a camera somewhere in that room probably locked on him. If you send messages to the computer what's to say they won't be able to see them?"

Abby smiled. "You're right Tony but we thought of that. We've designed the messages to pop up like an incoming email." Gibbs smiled. "Nice work Abby." "We need an ear piece in there." Tony said looking at the screen. "It's great that we can see and hear what's going on now but he needs to be able to hear us." "I agree." Kate said. "Kate when you were in there did you see any place where a camera could be stashed?"

"Tony if it's a micro-dot camera it could be anywhere." McGee said turning from the computer. "Still it wouldn't hurt to look." "I can't go." Gibbs said at last "If it someone attached to Jon or even Merry then they may recognise me.

"Well I can't go again because they've probably already seen me." Kate said. "We can't raise suspicions that they might work out the General has contacted anyone."

They turned and looked at Tony and Gibbs frowned when he thought he saw a flash of what looked like fear in Tony's eyes before it disappeared and Tony smiled. "McGee you sure you're not going under this time?" McGee raised an eyebrow.

Gibbs answered for them. "Tony you're dropping the bug off." Tony nodded. "You got it Boss." He looked at Tim. "You got a bug for me Probie?" McGee nodded. Abby bounced round the lab and said, "Of course we do." She handed him a small earwig.

Tony flashed a grin and then was gone. Gibbs frowned unable to shake the fact that Tony hadn't seemed as eager as he usually would to go undercover and turned and followed Tony out.

He ran to catch up with the younger agent and when he did he realised he was on the phone speaking in Italian. Tony must have heard him coming because he turned and flashed a grin before saying something and closing the phone. "Sorry Boss personal call."

Nothing else. He was almost daring Gibbs to ask who was on the phone but Gibbs wouldn't pry he also knew Tony knew that. "Don't let it happen again DiNozzo we've got a time sensitive case here." "Of course Boss." Tony flashed his grin again.

"Check in." "Yeah." Tony said before setting off towards the Garage. Gibbs watched Tony leave and then returned to the lab. Gibbs looked at his watch they had twenty hours left.

Tony swore as he headed for the Garage. He knew he would get the planting the bug assignment usually he loved undercover work it was what he excelled at. What Gibbs had hired him for but he didn't want to do this.

He knew he didn't have a choice, Meredith's life was on the line and that was something he just couldn't and wouldn't jeopardise despite everything else that could go wrong.

He grinned. He was just going to have to use some of the initiative he had for under cover work with some extra help.

Gibbs watched the screen Tony had called to say he was entering the building and now they were all waiting to see Tony appear on the screen and interact with General Blake. They had sent a message embedded in the email for Jon to expect the agent at anytime.

They all tensed when they saw Jon look up and speak. "General here are your files for today." Abby looked at Kate and McGee. They had been sure that it would be Tony he should be at the office now. But the voice they heard was not Tony's. The voice had a thick southern accent, maybe Atlanta.

"Thanks Captain." The General said smiling the Captain put the files down and came into the picture. The four of them in the lab stared as they looked at the Captain. Because it was DiNozzo after all. DiNozzo but with different coloured eyes and his hair tamed.

If Gibbs hadn't been working with Tony for so long he would have been fooled. He guessed that was the point and he was reminded once again at how well Tony fell into roll and how good he was at undercover work.

At that moment Ducky came into the lab. "Jethro I heard about Meredith I'm sorry is there anything I can do to help?" "Not at the moment Duck." Gibbs said his eyes glued to the screen.

Ducky looked at them all Gibbs' face was unreadable but his eyes were glued to the screen McGee's mouth was on the floor and Kate and Abby where openly staring.

"What are you all staring at?" He asked and then turned and followed their line of sight. "Well doesn't Anthony clean up well?"

Yes he does...

Gibbs thought before he could stop himself. Tony looked better in a navy uniform than anyone had any right too and what was more he looked like he belonged in it. Gibbs closed that thought down before he could think it any further this wasn't the time.

"He looks hot." Abby said bluntly and the whole team stared at her. "What?" She asked. "He does." "And he knows it." Kate said staring at the screen.

They watched as Tony indicated a file on the top. "This has some interesting reading in it. "Oh is that your daughter?" He picked up the frame. "Yeah but hands off Captain she's out of your league." Tony laughed. "Duly noted sir."

Tony turned as if to leave the office and knocked a vase of roses off. The vase smashed when it hit the floor and Tony's face was comical it was so shocked and horrified.

"Oh Sir I am so sorry. Let me clean that up before I leave." He proceeded to clean up the mess disappearing from the camera view. "Captain let me help you with that. No harm done. They were from my daughter. I'll just get another vase."

"Again I'm so sorry." Tony said standing to leave. He looked like he'd just been stood to attention instead of kneeling on the floor. Yeah there was no doubt about it the uniform suited Tony DiNozzo.

He saluted and turned and left. They watched as Jon picked up the file but didn't seem to pick anthing up from it he pulled the file closer rubbing his hand across his eyes before typing into his computer.

Abby had Gibbs' email open on the screen and a new message appeared in it. Gibbs read though the message and smiled Abby only looked confused.

"General Blake says that Tony is a natural for under cover work and that he can how hear us. He also says that he has one half of the ransom ready to send when they contact him again in the hopes that we can buy Merry more time as time is running out."

Gibbs put the mike on that Abby offered and spoke into it. "Jon, stretch if you can hear me." Jon proceeded to stand and stretch. Have they contacted you again?" Jon sat down and pulled up a new programme and typed some figures into it and another email appeared in it. "No." Gibbs said.

At that moment Tony appeared already out of the uniform though his hair was still in place. Abby turned and whistled. "Tony what the hell have you been hiding under your suits?"

"More to the point where did you get that uniform from?" Kate asked. "It worked." Tony said closing down the questions. "It doesn't matter how I got it." "Of course not my boy." Ducky said smiling. "You did well."

"Did you find the camera DiNozzo?" "I found two." Tony said holding up an evidence bag with them in. They weren't as tiny as the two techno geeks had thought but they were small enough to have done the job of hiding them well enough.

"I don't think there are anymore but I can't be sure."

"Where were they?" Gibbs demanded. "One was one the frame of the photo of the general's daughter and the other was in amongst the roses. They seemed to be placed in or around things that were associated with his daughter. Baiting almost tainting her memory."

He looked up at the screen is the bug working okay?" "It's working great." "Ask him if other than his photo and the roses there is anything of Meredith in that room."

Gibbs pressed the microphone to his mouth and asked the question. "Stretch if the answer is yes. Cough if not." Gibbs added. Jon coughed. "Then we're clear but we'd better be careful in case they've been sneaky." Gibbs said. "We have no idea what we're dealing with here people so let's be vigilant.

Gibbs looked at the screen again. "Jon if you know what will happen now if we've taken out their camera's then they will ring. You have the upper hand now." Jon leant forward and typed some more and another email appeared in the inbox. Gibbs read through it an then said, "Oh very funny."

Jon coughed but every person in the room now thought it was to cover a laugh. At that moment the phone began to ring and the mood was broken. Jon casually pressed loud speaker but McGee broke in with he's recording now.

"General Blake."

Jon said. "Well, well. A voice came across the line by pure accident you managed to take out some of our eyes I am impressed General." "I want to speak to my daughter." "Oh you know things won't happen that way General." "Our word is law now unless you want you be the reason your daughter, what was the phrase she used? Oh yes Crash and burned."

Watching Jon pale again Gibbs couldn't shake the feeling that he was missing something important and the phrasing was important. "Gibbs!" Gibbs looked at Abby. "Tell the General to keep talking McGee and I are trying to hack the mainframe. We might be able to get the location of where they're calling from. It's taking longer than usual coz we're hacking the Pentagon."

"John you've got to keep them talking." Gibbs said into his ear. Jon make no motion to have heard but he did try and bait them more. Unfortunately it didn't seem to work. Whoever was on the other end of the line they were cool and they knew what they were doing.

"You're running out of time General. You've got by our reckoning nineteen hours left can you come up with a miracle in that time?" "I've got half if you give me more time I can get the other 1.5 million." Jon said his voice harsh with anger yet calm at the same time.

"You've had your time limit you either keep to it or you loose your daughter the choice is yours. Oh you may want to look at those files those may give you a bit of incentive." The line went dead and McGee let out his frustration to show they hadn't quite managed it.

"We managed to narrow down the area." Abby said quickly bringing up the map. What they brought up showed Virginia. "Too bigger scale I want that narrowing." Gibbs said turning.

"Hey Boss where you going?" Tony yelled. "Coffee." Gibbs yelled back. "Get me something I can work with when I get back." He left the lab and Tony turned and looked at Kate. "You stay here with Abby and McGee." He gave her the bag with the cameras in them. "See what you can pull off them. I don't know how damaged they are. I dropped them in the water. I'll be back with the files."

Without waiting for them to reply he left and Abby looked at Kate. "Whoa." "Whoa is right." Kate said her eyes following the path Tony had taken. "You can help me with this voice comparison. You and Ducky both." Abby said downing the last of her Caf-Pow. "Timmy you keep on with that hack. And see what you can pull off the cameras."

McGee looked at Abby. "Abby you know as well as I do that you can't close the feed until they ring again." "I know that." Abby said. "But are you going to be the one to tell Gibbs?"

McGee said, "I'll just get on with pulling the images off the camera." Abby smirked leading Kate and Ducky away. "That's what I thought."

Gibbs walked back into the Bull Pen as the phone on his desk started to ring he picked it up and answered it. "Yeah Gibbs." "Gibbs this is security." "Aidan." Gibbs acknowledged. "There's a young lady down here demanding to see you." "Her name?" Gibbs asked but he had a pretty good idea.

"Her name is Anita Kensington and she has two young gentlemen with her. A Dean Cortez and Wyatt Mitchell." Gibbs sighed. "Tell them I'll be down to see them in a few minutes." "Will do." Aidan said before hanging up.

Gibbs sighed but he honestly hadn't been surprised. Wherever Meredith was Anita wasn't usually far behind and she had to be worried. He made his way down to security to try and calm Meredith's sister in every way but blood.

As soon as he was out of sight of the lab Tony took off in the direction of the garage where he had said he would meet Fornell briefly.

Tobias was waiting for him. "What the hell Tony?" He asked as Tony approached. "This case I'm on could blow our cover. Hielo is on his way here now." Whatever he was expecting Fornell certainly wasn't expecting that his eyes bulged.

"WHAT?" He all but yelled. "I couldn't stop him." Tony said pulling a hand through his hair. "This is going to blow our cover wide open and He refuses to be anywhere but here while the case continues."

Fornell sighed and closed his eyes rubbing a hand across his face. "Do I want to know why you're both willing to collapse everything you've worked for so suddenly?" "You could guess." Tony said unhelpfully.

"Look this is just a heads up it's going to happen anyway." "I know no one could ever change Hielo's mind not if he had already made it. Okay when he gets here come and find me."

Tony nodded and then walked away and straight into the person he had just been talking about. "Hielo!" He said. "Fuego." The person replied before pulling Tony into a tight hug.

"You shouldn't be here Hielo." Tony said quietly. "Tell it to someone who cares Tony." Tony's companion said waving his hand in a dismissing manner. "So you going to get me inside or not?" Tony smiled. "Do I really have a choice?" "I can get in without you if you'd rather." His companion offered.

"No. I'd rather not." Tony smiled. "Come on. I'd rather not get caught out pulling this off." He led his companion back into NCIS and though it was a secure building Tony wasn't pulled up for bringing someone unknown into the building.

Somewhere Underground…

The captor put the phone down and smiled. "I feel that there maybe a hack on that line? It's just as well I hung up before they could get a fix. Just in case." Her captor paused. "Finn's work perhaps?" He was talking to Merry who though had been allowed to move from the chair to a small cot once they had finished having their fun with the camera was still blindfolded.

"Perhaps once." Merry acknowledged with a cool that her captors couldn't help but be proud of. "But as I've said before Finn died along time ago and it was your fault."

"Besides," She added thinking about what they had been talking about. "That would mean my father had contacted someone else to have the phone hacked. He wouldn't do that. He wouldn't risk me that way. You'll get your money."

"My dear Meredith I've told you before I had nothing to do with the demise of the twins and as I've said before you're very wrong. They are not dead and your current predicament should bring them right to us." Then her captor smiled. "We both know your father wouldn't follow the rules. I'll be severely disappointed if he has." "So it's as I thought you have no intention of letting me go." Meredith said the black fear that had occupied again rising and taking over her.

"I am more than willing to hand you over if the twins rejoin us." Merry laughed hysterically fighting to stop them turning to sobs. "I'm dead then." She said the tears were stopped by the blind fold.

Almost as though they new of her internal battle the blind fold came off and her tears fell. "Now, Now Meredith Finn can't have changed that much in the eight years he's been away from you. You're the one person he truly loved and I think we both know he'd die to keep you safe. Exchanging you for the twins isn't that big of a deal."

"I'd never expect them to give up everything they've built up for me I didn't expect it then and I wouldn't expect it now if they were alive. I'd rather die than let them come back to you."

"Then I think it's time that I give them incentive." Her captor smiled. And before Merry could move though where she could have moved to she wasn't sure. Her captor slashed her shoulder and snapped a photo of her face. Merry gasped as she felt the knife bite into her skin but other than that didn't make a sound.

Her captor looked at the photo "would have been better if you'd screamed but this will do for now there is always next time." Then she was left alone and only then she did she let out the silent scream she had been dying too since they had taken off the blindfold.