Chapter 3: "And my dear, we're still goodbye'ing…"

- - - - -

Ducky ran to the front of the line, slapping outstretched hands of people on the rope as he passed them. That wasn't anything planned; it was a spontaneous act and a means of not veering off course. Jimmy, right behind him, followed suit.

"Oh, dear," Ducky said on seeing Tim, causing even more worry in the people nearby.

"I can't find a pulse, Duck," Gibbs said, his eyes grey and watery.

Ducky didn't reply, but checked for himself. He didn't find one, either. Then, after a moment's thought, he tugged on the closer of Tim's arms, and pulled it away from his body. Then he let it go. It returned to its former position at his chest.

At this Ducky smiled. "He's alive. That's a reflex action when the body becomes severely hypothermic. If he were dead, the arm would not retract. Mister Palmer! The body wrap."

"Right here, Doctor." Jimmy handed over one of the hyperthermia wraps he was carrying. Under Ducky's instructions, he pulled off Tim's sports coat.

"He's soaked clear through—he must have gone into the water, too," said Ducky. "Well, it's not advisable to remove all his wet clothing here. We'll have to make do with a thin layer of dampness for now. Ziva, pay attention to what I am doing, and help Jimmy tend to Abby.

"We have to keep the core body temperature from dropping any further. This is to protect the organs. The thermal wrap, ideally applied when a person is dry, reflects their own body heat back to them and gradually warms them—or keeps them stable until they can be brought to hospital."

Gibbs and Tony moved Tim onto the stretched-out wrap. "No, don't fold the arms in. Put them outside the wrap," Ducky directed, and glanced at his assistant, nodding in satisfaction that Jimmy was aware of this.

"But Ducky; the frostbite—he needs to warm his hands," Tony protested.

"His extremities will survive. They're not as important as the torso. Cold limbs, including hands, placed close to the body core could cause the heart to stop."

"If there's no pulse, Duck—"

"He has a pulse, Jethro. The heart rate has just slowed tremendously; down to about three beats per minute. The respiration has slowed as well. It's enough to keep him alive for now. But he can't continue like this for long." As he talked, Ducky worked, wrapping the material around Tim. He then gestured to Gibbs and Tony to put Tim on one of the stretchers. He then turned toward Abby.

"Stay awake, Abby," Ziva was saying. "Talk to me."

Abby's eyes were closed, and her voice had dropped to a murmur as Jimmy tucked the wrap around her.

"Well done, Mr. Palmer," said Ducky. "Let's get these two inside. Jethro—"

Gibbs clicked his phone shut, frowning at it. "Ambulances will be here when they can. The snow has reduced traffic to a crawl. It could be more than an hour until they get here."

"That's not good," Ducky said with a sharp intake of breath. "That's not good."

- - - - -

Tony and Gibbs would be bearing Tim's stretcher back to NCIS; Jimmy and Ducky would do the same with Abby's. "We must take care not to veer away from the rope," said Ducky. "It would be too easy to get lost, just as Timothy and Abigail did." It was true: with their hands full, they wouldn't be able to slap the hands of the rope bearers.

"I have an idea," said Ziva, at the lead of the rope. "Do not get ahead of me." When Tony and Gibbs were ready to start out, Ziva pulled the rope line with her, heading back to NCIS, keeping Tony (who was at the front of the stretcher) no more than an arm's length apart, on her left. She could see him that close. He nodded in understanding, and kept the people on the other part of the rope, on his left, no more than an arm's length apart as well. In that manner the head of the rope (Ziva) pulled the rope formation back to NCIS in a U-shape, herding the two sets of stretcher-bearers.

Within 15 minutes the stretchers were inside; in another five minutes the last of the NCIS employees were in, too. After a nod from Gibbs, Ziva raided the storeroom for the coffee percolators to make coffee and hot chocolate for everyone. Gibbs looked around for Ducky, but the ME was gone.

Gibbs found him in Autopsy. True to form, Ducky was doing what he felt necessary, without asking permission. He'd had Tony and Jimmy lay out Tim and Abby, still in their wraps, on two tables. It seemed…gruesome, but it was the best action.

"You're sure about the heart rate?" Gibbs asked. Tim and Abby were so still.

"Most assuredly. They are alive. Abigail's breathing rate is 1 per 20 seconds; Timothy's is a little less. Nature built humans to be relatively hardy, you know; our forebears lived in caves. Their hearts now are in a state of hyperexciteability, though, and mucking with them could lead to fibrillation, and death."

"But you want to warm them."

"Yes, but very, very carefully! No extremes of heat, and warming of the core only. A shock to the system caused by warming of the limbs could cause a condition known as afterdrop."

"The heat packs, Doctor," said Jimmy, carrying a small load.

"Thank you, Jimmy. Jethro, if you and Jimmy could unwrap Timothy and get his clothes off, I'll heat these up."

"Can I be of help?" Ziva asked, coming in.

"Yes, my dear; you can help me with Abby," said Ducky, pulling her away. She was looking a little too interested in the men's undressing of Tim. "We're professionals, but these are our friends, and we should allow them some dignity."

"Dignity! Here?!" Tony hooted.

"DiNozzo, go get a cup of coffee," Gibbs ordered. "You look cold. Don't come back until you've had at least three cups." Tony took the hint and left.

Heat packs, once warmed, were placed at the sides of the neck, in the armpits, and at the groin. The arms were left dangling at the sides. Then once more, the victims were wrapped in the thermal wraps, arms out.

The next step was to slowly rewarm the extremities. Basins were brought out, and water carefully heated to 105 degrees F. The victims' hands were allowed to soak in there; the water being frequently replaced as the cold hands cooled it. "Good," pronounced Ducky when one of Abby's hands had regained its normal pinkish color. "Though it's fortunate that she's not conscious; it would be quite painful now."

"Will they make it, Duck?" Gibbs asked quietly.

"It is to be hoped," Ducky said. "Women stand a better chance than men do. They have more subcutaneous body fat."

"Do not tell Abby she has fat," Ziva laughed bleakly.

"All this, from leaving the Yard for lunch," Gibbs sighed. He then helped Ducky and Jimmy dry Abby's and Tim's hands and then wrap them in gauze. There were still frostbite patches on their ears and faces to deal with, but that would have to wait for the hospital.

- - - - -

"Do I have to get out there and drive an ambulance myself??" Ziva said in frustration. It had been over an hour since Gibbs called 911.

"Like that would get them there safely," Tony jibed. He was on his fourth cup of coffee, and had brought a tray of cups down for everyone.

"I'm surprised the Yard doesn't have its own ambulance," said Jimmy. "There are enough people working here to warrant one."

Gibbs and Ducky exchanged amazed looks. "There is one," Gibbs said, snapping his fingers. "I'd forgotten about it. It's seldom used. It's at the Marine compound." He pulled out his phone and turned aside to make a call.

He turned back a moment later, sighing. "They don't have anyone to drive it, or a medical corpsman to go along with it."

"I said I would drive," Ziva insisted.

"Oh, no you don't," said Tony. "I'll drive. You can navigate."

"And I'll play corpsman," said Ducky. "It's been awhile since I've done that. Good fun."

- - - - -

Shortly the Marine ambulance was loaded with the patients, and with Ducky, Gibbs, Tony and Ziva in cramped quarters, they set off. Mercifully, the snow dwindled to flurries, and the journey to the hospital took no time at all.

- - - - -

Hours later, Gibbs sat in Tim's hospital room, his chair drawn up close to the bed. "I still can't decide if you were commendably brave, or utterly foolish today, Tim."

Tim winced. The painkillers took the edge off the fire in his body, but he still hurt. "There was no choice, boss. I had to jump in after Abby."

"I'm not disagreeing with you there. I'd knock your block off if you didn't do that. No, I meant not being upfront with me when you called to say Abby had fallen in. You didn't say you were wet, too."

"What could you have done?"

Tim had him there. "Eh…," Gibbs said. "You did your best to keep her warm, and alive, at the near loss of your own life."

Embarrassed, Tim tried to joke. "Is there a medal in that for me?"

"I'll check the qualifications for the NCIS medals. But even if there isn't, you have my thanks…and respect. You're a true hero."

Tim tried to cover his face with his pillow, but this only made his facial frostbite burns hurt. "Ow. Go see Abby, and let me get some rest."

- - - - -

In her hospital room, Abby was saying, "Tell me again how it happened! The rope, the wrap...everything! Only this time, do it in a Bugs Bunny accent."

Tony looked ready to do so, but Ziva put her hand on his arm, laughing. "Tomorrow, maybe. You should get some rest now. Good bye, Abby."

Gibbs came in as Tony and Ziva were going out. "You look pretty good, considering," he said to Abby.

"It's that subcutaneous fat," she said, glowering.

"Ducky's term, not mine."

"Gibbs…so Tim really is a hero, isn't he? He saved me, both from the water and then out of it?"

"Looks that way." He gave her a quizzical look, and decided not to ask her about her smile. Giving her cheek a kiss, he said, "I'll come see you tomorrow."

When he had gone, she smiled again to herself. My knight in the light grey coat of shining armor…

- END -