Down the Rabbit Hole

Jethro sat on the sofa the next day. Lainy had gone to work and he had slept in until 0800. The storm promised had been delayed hanging out in Georgia and now was creeping up the coast toward Quantico and DC. Lainy had promised to be home by 1800, the storm would only be just starting by then.

He was sipping on his coffee and looking through the newspaper. The TV was on low in the background on CNN.

Tony and all the other team members had called to check on him. Vance had called too, wanting to know when he would be back at work. Gibbs couldn't help but smirk when that phone call ended. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. His vision was still occasionally doubling but only twice today. He had skipped all of workout today on the orders of the doctor and his own admission to himself of fatigue. The house phone rang and he reached over to the coffee table and picked up the unit.

"Hello?" He rubbed his eyes and stifled a yawn. A nap was likely today.

"Agent Gibbs? This is Ivy. How are you?" There was static on the line. The storm must be interfering with reception on the portable unit he thought.

"Doing better Ivy. How are you doing?" He was surprised to hear her voice. He was wondering how she got the unlisted number for his home when she answered his question.

"I thought of calling you on the cell phone number on your card but I realized you'd be home today. Is your headache better?" Her voice sounded alternately normal and then far away.

Jethro ran a hand over his hair and winced as he hit the stitches. He had to learn to control these habits he thought irritably. For the life of him he couldn't figure out when he had given her a business card.

"Yeah, it's doin' better. You have my business card?" He listened intently to the crackles.

"Yes, I got it when I was in your room the other day. I hope you don't mind me checking on you. I kind'a feel like we are two survivors in a storm. I really need your support. You are the only one who can help me do it." Her voice was beginning to fade again.

"Do what Ivy? You haven't made it clear to me what you think I can do." He swung his legs off the couch and stood up beginning to pace. His head was beginning to ache from concentrating to hear her clearly. It irritated him to be weak.

"I have to find him Gibbs and you are the one who can do it. You're the one I can see. They are all looking in the wrong place." Her voice was almost indecipherable now.

"You're fading out Ivy! Find who?" Jethro stood near the bay window now looking out at the darkening storm clouds. Snow would begin sooner than they thought he noted. A part of him was separate, the trained experienced interrogator trying to determine if someone was in reality or somewhere 'off'.

"The third man Agent Gibbs. There was a third man at the bistro. You must have seen him, didn't you?"

The phone went dead in his hands. His jaw dropped in shock.

Jethro stood at the window trying to clear his thoughts. The phone in his hand forgotten. A third man? He didn't remember a third man…

Reaching an impulsive if direct decision he tried to check for the incoming call. Star69 produced no result. He called McGee.

"McGee, I need you to check a recent incoming call on my phone here at home."

"Hi Boss! Are you feeling a little better?" Both Ziva and Tony perked up and Tony moved over to stand by Tim's desk.

"Yeah. Listen I'll feel even better if you tell me who just called this phone! Or do you need a blow by blow picture of my entire day?" Gibbs growled.

"No! No Boss, here we go… The last number called into your house was from Atlanta, Mrs. Mimmett Douglass. 404-555-3214 last night at 2400hrs." Tim rattled off the information.

"That's got to be wrong McGee. I just got off the phone. I need to call the person back." Gibbs rubbed his face and his thoughts were slow and confused. How is this possible? He had just spoken with her! His limitations were driving him nuts.

"Could the weather have affected the reception? It was very full of static. It is a hand held unit." Gibbs grabbed at the thought.

"Er… No Boss, not really. Most of the lines are weather resistant or even underground. Are you sure it was a completed call?" McGee instantly felt Tony's hand hit the back of his head.

"No McGee!" Gibbs snarled. "I talked to myself! I was shot McGee, not made mentally ill!" He began to rapidly pace.

"What about a name Boss? I could run a name for you." McGee quickly put his fingers over the key board. Ziva was listening as well now.

"OK right. McGee the name is Ivy Stuart. Check home and cell numbers."

"B..Boss?" McGee looked helplessly up at Tony.

"Boss," Tony spoke up loudly. "You're starting to break up! I will be over to bring you the information! You got that Boss? I'm coming to you!"

Tony cut the connection. "Don't go there McGoo. I'll deal with it." He turned and moved back to his desk.

Gibbs stared at the phone in disbelief. Then with a curse he threw the phone across the room. His head began to throb. With a groan he went back to the couch after picking up the phone. He put the phone on the table after checking for a dial tone. Lainy might call him and he didn't want her not to be able to speak to him. She would become frantic and the drive home would be bad enough as it was. The throbbing intensified.

He went to the kitchen and got a bottle of cold water from the refrigerator. He turned the coffee machine off. The doctor had advised limiting the caffeine. Gibbs hadn't really listened but right now he was more interested in ridding himself of the headache. He took 2 of the headache tablets the doctor prescribed and lay down on the couch with a cold cloth on his forehead.

He fell asleep.

He woke to an early darkness outside. Snow was falling, hard. He glanced at the wall clock. It was 1600hrs. He rubbed his eyes and face. The headache was a dull throb now. He made his way to the bathroom. On return he reached for the phone to check on Lainy. As he sat down there was a loud knock on the front door. Opening it, Tony was standing there.

"Boss we need to talk." His expression was serious. He stepped in on Jethro's gesture of welcome.

"C'mon in DiNozzo. Whad'ya got?" Gibbs returned to the couch, turning on the end table lamp. Tony sat down next to him. He took a folder, relatively thick and opened it on the table.

"This is the bistro file Boss. We took control because you were severely injured. DCMetro didn't want it. It seemed open and closed."

Tony was watching Gibbs face while he looked through it. Gibbs looked through the photo's of the crime scene. He stopped and looked stunned. Tony reached for him as he saw the color drain from his face.

"This isn't possible…" Gibbs said hoarsely and looked up at Tony who kept his grip on Jethro's shoulder. The photo in Gibbs hand shook. He was bewildered.

Tony squeezed gently.

"It's true Boss. Ducky's autopsy report is in there. It's Ivy Stuart."

After Tony had left, Jethro leaned back into the couch trying to think. Was it possible these real seeming conversations and visits were just products of his injured brain? Jethro gave this line of thought some free rein. After 10-15 minutes he shook his head. No, he decided. He either trusted his own perceptions or he didn't. He decided he was not going to believe himself impaired. That meant what had happened to him was somehow real. Just then

Lainy keyed open the door and came in.

"What is it?" She quickly took off her coat and came to sit beside him and take his hands.

"Lainy, I need to talk something out with you…" He began from the beginning.

"Jethro. I believe in things like this. You know that. With a mother who is a well known psychic and growing up mainly in Ireland how could I not?"

"I know" he said and ran his hands threw his hair wincing when he hit the stitches again. "I guess I wanted to know what you think because of it, and because I know you have gifts yourself."

"I think Ivy is trying to lead you to this third man. Why, we can't know unless she tells you. If she calls or comes while I am here I might be able to see and talk with her. But you are far from mad Honey." She squeezed his hands.

He nodded and then embraced her.

"Thanks Babe." They kissed.

"I'm going to get dinner ready, OK?" She stood in front of him and smiled warmly.

"Absolutely!" He smiled.

This time he saw his hand reaching out to open the door. He was aware he was in a bit of a hurry so as to get home to his wife, his own bed. He was so tired. He needed her. He needed a nights sleep to look at the Marston case in a new way in the morning. The smells of the bistro moved over him as he entered. He moved toward the counter. There was a couple in scrubs that had been in front of him to his right. They were talking intently and the woman waved an arm in punctuation to her low words. There was a young woman on his left at the table near the side door. She was drinking something and had a bag of chips. He stepped up to the counter and Fred was there smiling at him in a way that seemed wrong.

"Hello Agent Gibbs. The usual?" There was a fine sheen of perspiration on his forehead as he grinned. Jethro eyed him uneasy.

"My wife said I should try the Jamaican Mix. I'll take that." He reached to his money clip.

"I have the Kona she ordered." The man was grinning like a lunatic and sweating. His eyes moving to the door on his left.

"Oh it came in?" Jethro continued reaching for his clip and loosed the safety strap of his Sig. His thumb released the safety too as he spoke.

"Oh yes! It came in earlier today! Do you want it now or tomorrow?"

Jethro saw a slight movement of the door and his suspicions were confirmed.

"I'll get it tomorrow morning." Turning as if to go he whirled and shouted

"Down! Everybody down!" His weapon to hand he saw the door open as the man fell to the floor.

The short but intense battle happened over again. In slow motion this time. He saw the desperate expression on the faces of the robbers. The one behind the counter was screaming incoherently as he opened fire. There was a knowledge of death in his eyes as Gibbs shot him.

As he fell to the floor and crashed into the table and chairs he saw a face, a furious face through the broken door, in a black truck or SUV. The face suddenly looked resigned and looked forward and drove away.

Jethro woke up in the bed next to a sleeping Lainy. He felt unbearably tired. He was sick and tired of these damn dreams! He looked at the ceiling for awhile and then slowly sat up. He waited for the dizziness to come. It didn't. He got slowly to his feet. He felt a little lightheaded but it passed quickly. He made his way to the kitchen and drank two full glasses of water. He stood quietly and thought back to the dream/vision. Everything was the same but with a heightened awareness of minute information. The man's face…he could make a composite of it, it was that clear. He began to tremble. Then his head began to ache.

He made his way to the couch and lay down. It passed after a half hour and he made his way to the bay window. The air seemed somehow supercharged and heavy. He looked up at the sky and wondered as he saw lightning. Lightning and snow. Very unusual. He couldn't figure out why Ivy came to him. She was somehow with him every time he remembered more. He didn't believe in coincidences. The suggestion of the third man had triggered this vision. He needed to know more about her.

Gibbs fell back to sleep on the couch. Lainy found him there the next morning. It was still snowing heavily and after looking outside and seeing how high the drifts were she called the Admiralty. Her boss and adoptive father Admiral Horowitz was not coming in that day. She decided to stay home rather than fight her way through what was threatening to be a blizzard on the TV weather station.

She went about getting breakfast together for them. Jethro was still having headaches. She admitted to herself she was worried. He didn't admit to more than "mild" headaches but she was very sensitive to him and his body language. He often said she "was inside" his skin. She would laugh and tell him she simply tuned in on his "fey signals". An eye roll was always her answer.

She knew he was in more than 'mild' pain.

After cutting fresh fruit and some cheese, she sliced some of her home made blueberry bread with an appreciative sniff. She loved having the bread maker Liz gave her last Christmas. Saved so much hand work.

She moved toward her husband on the couch. She drank him in with her eyes. He looked so care free when he slept. Leaning over him she pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth.

"Múscail ionúin gaiscíoch…" (Wake beloved warrior), she murmured in a husky voice.

She kissed his lips very gently as he began to stir. Jethro instantly responded to her kiss. He opened his eyes after the kiss and smiled up at her. He slid his hands up into her hair and drew her back down for another kiss. Their tongues danced and Lainy cupped his jaw as she sat down on the edge of the couch. He looked up into her emerald eyes and smiled again.

"Hi! Nice way to wake up." He gently smoothed stray hairs back from her temple.

"Well, I found your side of the bed empty so I came looking. How 'bout some breakfast?" She looked deeply into his azure eyes. One sooty brow arched in question. He sighed and stretched avoidant of her look.

Jethro knew he wasn't fooling her. He didn't want to tell her of the headaches. She nodded then rose and went out to the kitchen and poured coffee for them while he got up slowly. After making sure he wasn't dizzy he sat on one of the stools at the breakfast bar and picked up a grape. Lainy sat down across from him and sipped from her mug.

"I'm fine Babe." Jethro said irritably and stabbed up a piece of melon with his fork.

"Well and I'm sure you are an' all." Lainy said in an Irish brogue and shrugged. She had spent every summer of her youth there visiting her mothers large family. Her Aunt 'Mim had adopted her after her mothers death and she then lived in Ireland until college. The Gaelic and brogue came naturally to her.

"Well, I will be anyway. It's no where near the way it was, the pain I mean."

He looked at her trying to make eye contact.

"I'm sure." She said noncommittally. She opened up the newspaper and folded it. "How 'bout those Packers?"

"Damn!" Jethro said and tossed his fork and napkin down in aggravation. The fork bounced onto Lainy's plate. He stood up and gestured forcefully.

"I don't want to dwell on being sick Lainy! I have things to do, a job to concentrate on!"

"It's a damned blizzard out there Jethro! You're allowed a chance to rest and recover. If you don't allow yourself time to do that you won't have a job. I'm not asking you to stay sick. I'm asking you to tell me the truth about how you really feel so I can help you. By the way ,if you're going to throw anything else I suggest you make sure it doesn't bounce this way again or I will use it to give you a new asshole." Lainy didn't look up and took a bite of her bread and butter.

Gibbs facial expression was astounded. He flushed, his mouth opened then shut. Stunned momentarily he sat back down. He was silent for a beat or two. Lainy was munching on a piece of pineapple and turned a page.

"Jesus Lainy, that was a kick. Sorry." Jethro picked up his coffee and waited.

"Alright then. Let's try again." Lainy turned toward him. "How are you?"

"Better." He quickly raised his hands in surrender. " Really! I feel better this morning than I have. Not 100%, but not seasick sitting here."

She eyed him. Then she nodded and separated the newspaper and gave him ½.

"Moving on." She said to him. "I expect you to eat today if you're so much better."

"Aw geeze…" He sighed. He hadn't had a chance of winning. He picked up the newspaper and his fork. Lainy smiled and drank some more coffee.

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