A/N: I thought I was getting close to the end, but my muse had other plans and encouraged me to keep going! Positive reviews from you lovely people had an influence too, of course. Thank you. I hope I haven't gone too far with this story now that I'm taking it in a different direction than originally planned. As always, feedback is appreciated! Usual disclaimers apply (I don't own NCIS and I'm not an expert on anything), and that being said I hope you enjoy this chapter! -abby
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In the short time that Gibbs was inside the bank the parking lot had become remarkably empty, especially as compared to the previous hours. Metro had pulled so many units in during the standoff that once it ended, they returned to their other duties immediately.
The SWAT van had disappeared, along with several police cars and the vast majority of the officers that had been milling around earlier. The ambulance carrying McGee and Ziva had already driven away. A handful of uniformed cops were wrestling the cuffed suspects into the two remaining patrol cars and a few other Metro officers were still inside the bank along with Lieutenant Keller.
Gibbs stayed right by his senior agent's side, continuing to hold onto the younger man's arm as the paramedics rolled his stretcher toward the ambulance. The EMTs were being careful not to jostle the injured man unnecessarily. Tony was fighting sleep, eyelids fluttering open and closed as he checked to make sure Gibbs was still there.
"Don't worry, Tony," the lead NCIS agent leaned in close so that DiNozzo could hear the quiet words. "I'm not leaving. I've always got your six." Tony sighed in response and relaxed a bit, allowing his exhausted body to finally doze off.
At that same moment Gibbs was distracted by chaos erupting nearby. He let go of Tony's arm and drew his SIG at the shouts of the Metro police officers. Gibbs had a hard time believing the scene that was quickly unfolding before him. It appeared that somehow one of the bank robbers - the leader, unbeknownst to Gibbs - had managed to get out of his handcuffs.
The newly-free suspect overpowered the cop standing nearest to him with a sudden and brutal blow to the head. The officer dropped like a stone and Bossman grabbed his weapon in one swift movement.
"NOBODY MOVE!" The gunman's voice was thunderous as he pointed the gun at the fallen officer's temple. Bossman seemed unworried about the number of weapons - five of them, including Gibbs' - trained at his own head. "I will kill him. Do not force me."
One of the unis spoke up. "What do you want?"
Bossman had the audacity to snort at the question. "What do you think I want?! I want out of here! Drop your weapons!!" With the gun still held firmly against the unconscious officer's head, the gunman looked around wildly. His eyes finally settled on the two NCIS agents. "That one-" Bossman indicated the blissfully unaware DiNozzo, "-is coming with me."
Gibbs bristled as his protective instincts came to the fore. "Like hell," the lead agent snarled, his SIG never wavering from its target.
Bossman smiled evilly in response. "Oh, that's nice. Looking out for your man, huh? Well, you don't know about my ace in the hole. I figured it might come to this so I have a backup plan. You know that busy little coffee shop across the street? It's wired to explode." The gunman produced a remote detonator from somewhere up his sleeve. The look on the man's face was a frightening mix of amusement and self-satisfaction.
Gibbs' icy blue eyes narrowed in fury as he wondered how exactly the police had missed that while patting down their suspect. A tiny handcuff key was one thing, but a detonator was much larger. Lieutenant Keller's men would be getting a piece of Gibbs' mind about the error once this was all over. In the meantime, however, the lead agent could only observe as Bossman pointed toward a nearby sedan and continued giving demands.
"You're going to load your man into that car over there. Then I'm going to drive away. And no one is going to follow me. Once I get out of sight, you can call in the bomb squad." He looked at Gibbs menacingly. "NOW!"
Bomb or no bomb, Gibbs wasn't about to give up DiNozzo so easily. He stared Bossman square in the eye as the unis looked on in bewilderment. "He's injured. Take me instead."
The armed assailant briefly appeared to be considering the suggestion before refusing. "No, I don't think so. I would really prefer to take him."
Out of the blue, Tony regained consciousness and lifted his head wearily. "Boss? What's going on?" His voice was muffled by the oxygen mask still covering his face, but he did sound significantly more lucid than the last time he had awakened. The senior field agent tensed when he saw that Bossman was again armed and now engaged in a face-off with Gibbs.
The lead agent did not look away from the gunman or lower his SIG as he replied, "Don't worry, DiNozzo. Everything's under control."
Bossman had lost patience. He spoke calmly and coldly. "Either your agent is in that car within sixty seconds or I will shoot this man and set off the bomb. Just try me." The stolen weapon was still pressed roughly into the side of the unconscious policeman's head, and the gunman's other hand held the detonator at the ready. The four other uniformed officers kept their weapons carefully trained on Bossman, but were clearly unwilling to risk the life of their colleague – or the lives of the many people across the street.
Gibbs had a similar thought process to the officers. Obviously his agent needed medical attention, but if the coffee house was truly wired with explosives then Gibbs was between a rock and a hard place. He did not see an alternative course of action that didn't risk a lot of civilian lives. The lead agent came to a decision. If this bastard is going to insist on taking DiNozzo hostage again, then I'm going too, he thought furiously.
"I'm going to put my weapon down, and I'll help him to your car. But I'm going too. I go where he goes. Just take it easy." True to his word, Gibbs slowly lowered his SIG and placed it carefully on the ground. He lifted his hands in the air and turned to DiNozzo.
"Tony, we have to go. I'll help you, come on." Gibbs pulled the oxygen mask off of his agent's face and placed an arm under his shoulders after releasing the stretcher's restraining straps. The paramedics silently assisted Gibbs as he lifted Tony forward and swung the injured man's long legs off the stretcher. Tony coughed a few times and trembled slightly in his superior's strong grasp.
"Ready?" The lead agent asked, as he wrapped one of Tony's arms around his own shoulders, preparing to help the taller man stand up.
"Let's do it," DiNozzo whispered softly. At the agreement, Gibbs and the EMTs carefully helped Tony to his feet. He leaned heavily into his boss for support, but did manage to stay upright.
Bossman, the paramedics, and the uniformed officers watched as Gibbs and DiNozzo slowly shuffled toward the small sedan. Once there, Gibbs opened the door and gently lowered his fragile agent into the backseat. Once Tony was settled and securely buckled in, Gibbs closed his door and got in on the other side.
The gunman took that as his cue. He pointed his stolen weapon at the Metro cops as he backed toward the car, remote detonator firmly clutched in his other hand. "No one move a muscle or I'll press this button!"
Bossman ran the last few steps to the sedan, started the engine and peeled out of the parking lot in a cloud of burning rubber before the cops even had a chance to react.