Chapter 7:

As soon as the car turned the corner, Tony flew from the window into his bedroom, where he grabbed a black bag out of the back of his cupboard. He threw clothes in, nothing with logos or bright colours (goodbye Ohio State shirt), nothing that would stand out in a crowd.

He then moved to the other side of his closet and reached as far back as he could, with a few grunts and sharp tug, a panel at the back became dislodged and he removed from it a burner phone with only one number in it, twenty thousand dollars in cash and a licence and passport with his new identity. He looked at them now, 'Hello Jason Miller' he thought to himself.

He then went to his bathroom and removed the top of the toilet cistern and removed a plastic bag taped to the inside and removed an unregistered and untraceable gun. He prayed he would never need to use it but being in law enforcement for so long, the idea of not actually having a gun with him was inconceivable. He threw the money and new identities into his bag and put the phone in his pocket and the gun into the back of his belt. He would call his dad as soon as he was on the road and let him know he was done. He looked around at his apartment, he would take nothing of Tony DiNozzo with him; that was the rule when you changed - nothing from your old life could come into your new one, nothing and no one. He stopped and looked at the framed photo he had of his girlfriend Zoe on the top of the piano. That was going to hurt, he had come so close to being able to settle down and live a normal life. Honestly after thirty years he had fooled himself into believing he was free, that his past could never be discovered after so much time. He was wrong. He placed the photo back on the piano and walked to the door. Goodbye Tony DiNozzo.

He flung the door open.

"Going somewhere DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked. He and McGee were both standing outside his door, obviously waiting for Tony to do exactly this.

The jig was up; Tony knew it. There was no way Gibbs was going to let him out of his sight now, not without knowing everything. Goodbye Tony DiNozzo, hello Hazelton State Penitentiary. He threw his bag down on the floor in frustration and walked back into his lounge room. "I thought you left."

"We did, and then we did the block and came back," McGee advised.

"Why?"

"Gibbs' gut."

Tony snorted, "Of course, so, what did your famous gut tell you today?"

Gibbs had made his way into the lounge room behind Tony, pulling Tony's gun from his back ad grabbing the gym bag. He placed it on the table started going through it, "Just that there was more; something you weren't tell me. How about you tell me the rest right now, Jason Miller." He held up the new licence and showed it to McGee before putting it in his pocket. He then handed the gun to McGee who unloaded it and placed it in his pant belt for safekeeping. He noted the cash and the clothes. He then came over and patted Tony down, finding the burner cell in his pocket. "Take a seat Tony."

Tony stood where he was, arms crossed over his chest and jaw clenching and unclenching.

"SIT!" Gibbs yelled.

Gibbs watched at the fight went out of Tony. He made his way over the couch and slumped into it.

"McGee, go and make a pot of tea will you."

"Boss, are you sure you want me to leave you alone? I mean…"

"McGee, it's Tony, he's not going to do anything, now go and make the damn tea."

"Ok…" McGee left to go to the kitchen but turned back around, "Do you mean tea or do you want coffee because you don't drink tea."

"It's for Tony, not me."

"Oh, OK." McGee went back into the kitchen.

"McGee!" Gibbs yelled.

McGee flew back into the room, hand on his gun, "What?"

"Actually, I will have a coffee."

McGee sighed in annoyance and walked back inside.

Gibbs turned back to Tony and took a seat again on the coffee table. He placed his elbows on his knees and leaned in to Tony, not in an imposing way, but in a supportive way. "Why did you want to run Tony?" he asked the younger man quietly.

Tony just shook his head and remained silent.

"I can't help you if you don't tell me."

"You can't help me," Tony spat.

"Try me."

Tony once again shook his head and remained silent.

"Tony, I have known you for 14 years. You are a good man. You have successfully lived as Tony DiNozzo for over thirty years, so whatever this thing is that seems so big now, happened when you were a kid. Between that and the fact you have been an upstanding citizen, a decorated law enforcement officer who has a presidential award thanks to your fight against terrorism. Is what you did so bad that all of that would count for nothing?"

Tony remained silent, but Gibbs could tell he was mulling over what was said. Gibbs couldn't help but wonder what he was running from. He had assumed that Senior was the issue, but maybe it wasn't. Maybe Senior had been protecting Tony.

"Don't you want to get it off your chest?" Gibbs asked. He didn't often play good cop, and to be honest he wasn't playing. Tony was like a son to him, and if he could do anything to help him he would. "Talk to me."

Tony finally nodded, his jaw clenched, a sign he was fighting to ensure the slight shimmer in his eyes didn't become full blown tears, "Ok, but promise you won't hate me."

"Never. What did you do?"

"I murdered someone."

Damn! Gibbs thought, it was bad as he had feared.

McGee had come in and overhead Tony and was frozen in his steps, stunned at what Tony had just confessed to, "What do you mean you murdered someone! Who!" McGee demanded.

Tony hung his head in shame.

"McGee, just calm down and take a seat before you spill my damn coffee."

McGee placed the coffees and tea on the table but didn't know if he should sit next to this man who until two days ago had been like a brother to him. He now realised he didn't know this man at all. He took a seat on the couch, but at almost the opposite end, keeping a physical distance between them that matched the emotional distance he now felt.

Gibbs took a sip of his coffee and winced. Damn Tony and his smooth blend. This conversation called for hair sprouting, bitter, hot coffee. He put the cup down and put his hand on Tony's knee. Tony had remained with his head in his hands, trying to control tears that threatened to spill. 'DiNozzo's don't cry.'

"Ok, from the beginning."

Tony lifted his head and quickly wiped his eyes.

"Well like I was telling you, Dad would wake me in the middle of the night and tell me we had to go. So this night we were up and packing the car and I had just run inside to grab my bag when this guy came up to dad in the garage. I walked out and heard him saying that he knew what my dad had done to Wanda and he wasn't going to get away with it. He said he had called the cops and they were on their way. I panicked… I mean Dad was the only person I had in my entire life and I was scared I was going to lose him; that I would go to foster care or juvie or something. Anyway, this guy didn't see me so I came up behind him, grabbed a hammer off the bench and hit him. He dropped to the ground dead."

"Who was he?" Gibbs asked.

"I'm not sure, it was dark and he had his back to me. After I … hit him I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I asked my father who it was but he said I didn't need to know."

Gibbs nodded, "Ok, go on."

Tony took a breath, tried to calm himself before continuing, "So dad gave me this look … it was the worst look I have ever seen, it was like he couldn't believe I had done it … like he was disgusted with me. Anyway, he told me to grab his legs and together we put him in the trunk, hoped in the car and took off.

"We drove all through the night and just before dawn we drove into a forest near some marsh. We grabbed him out, and dad dragged him into the bush and got rid of him. I don't think we spoke to each other that entire drive other than him asking if I needed to stop for food or toilet. Anyway, we hopped back in the car and drove again and dad found an old flooded quarry. We got our stuff out of the car and he rolled it into the water. We waited to make sure it sunk and then walked back to the nearest town."

"My god!" Tim said, stunned at what Tony had just confessed to.

Tony looked at Gibbs, hoping to not see the same revulsion in his eyes that he had seen that night in his fathers, "I'm fucked aren't I?"

Gibbs remained silent, thinking about what he had just heard, trying to put his protective father like feelings for this man aside, and look at it like an investigator.

"OK, so you were sixteen when this happened?"

Tony shrugged, "I'm not sure. I mean if Tony DiNozzo did it, he was sixteen at the time, but I don't know how old I actually am. I could have been older … an adult maybe."

"Or you could have just as easily been younger," Gibbs said. Tony nodded in agreement.

"How did you end up at Remington?"

"About a week or so after … well just after, Dad informed me that my name was now Anthony DiNozzo and that he said he had arranged for me to be sent to a military academy. I assumed it was because he didn't want to turn me in to the police but figured I was beyond his help if I killed someone. Anyway, he dropped me off, told me a quick backstory and said I had to make up the rest. 'Remember the Devil is in the details. Know your backstory and make sure you never slip from it … not even once'." Tony said in his best Senior impression. "He then said that he was sorry he put me through this and that I would never see him again, it was for the best for both of us. And I didn't … until he turned up in the squad room six years ago."

"That was the first time you had seen him?" Gibbs asked stunned.

Tony nodded.

"Why did he come back?"

Tony shrugged, "He said he had missed me and wanted to know what I had done with my life … then asked me for money. Not surprising considering the life he lived."

"He must have been surprised to learn you have gone into law enforcement," McGee said.

Tony snorted, "At first he was disgusted, until he thought that I might be able to help him out with some stuff."

Gibbs quirked an eyebrow, "Did you?"

Tony held his hands up and shook his head adamantly, "Absolutely not! He tried to hint at needing some help and I shut him down. Told him I had turned my life around and I wasn't about to jeopardise my career over a man who dumped me on the side of the road and disappeared for the next twenty odd years. He finished off his scam, and then talked me into paying his bill. I'm still paying off his credit cards to this day. He blows back into town every now and then, but other than that I don't have any contact with him."

Gibbs was sure Tony was being truthful, after all the information he volunteered matched what they had discovered in their exploration of Senior. However he wasn't about to let Tony out of his sights.

"OK, we need to look into this and see if there are any crime reports on this. Do you know if his body was ever discovered."

Tony shook his head indicating that he didn't know. "I never checked. I didn't want to know."

"And you didn't know his name?"

"Nope."

"Do you know where you were at the time?"

"Yeah we were in Tampa Florida."

"Do you remember the address where you lived?"

"Yep, I think so."

Gibbs got up and looked around before heading to the sideboard and grabbing some paper and a pen.

"I want to you write as much information about where you were, any names, dates, any information that could help us find out what the hell happened."

"Ok. But if we look into this and find out there is an open murder investigation, then what?"

"I honestly don't know."