AN: Thank you so much for all your nice comments. I'm so sorry about the delay between chapters. Real life has just been very busy.

Enjoy the chapter :)

xxxxx

Tony's legs weren't really working properly, having been tied up for so long, but Gibbs helped him along as they literally began to run for their lives...

When the explosion finally came, the sudden impact threw both men roughly to the floor. Gibbs took a few moments to get his bearings, then slowly sat up as he took a mental inventory of his body. He was pretty sore and his right shoulder was a little bit banged up, but in general, everything seemed to be okay. He looked over at Tony who was breathing heavily and seemed a little bit dazed. "You alright, DiNozzo?" he asked softly.

"I'm okay, boss," Tony replied, trying to get both his breathing and his heartbeat under control. "How about you?"

"I'm fine, just a little bit sore."

"Man...I really thought I was done for...I really thought that was it..." Now that it was over and everything that had happened was beginning to really sink in, he found himself to be almost more shaky than he had been while waiting for the bomb to go off.

"So did I, Tony...So did I..."

"I owe you big time, boss. You really saved my ass." He shuddered slightly as he realized just how close he had come to dying.

Gibbs could see Tony was a bit shaken and he helped him to sit up as he studied him closely. "You sure you're okay?"

Tony nodded. "Yeah...he knocked he out when he first grabbed me, but I'm okay."

"Well, you're taking a little trip to Bethesda just to make sure."

Tony was about to protest, but the determined look on Gibbs' face told him that would be unwise. In any case, after what had just happened, he supposed a quick trip to the ER was a small price to pay, when it could have been so much worse.

Gibbs notified Ziva that Tony was safe and then helped him get to his feet. "Come on...let's get the hell out of this place." The two of them then slowly made their way out of the building. Ziva and McGee were waiting for them right at the entrance when they got outside.

"Tony, I was so worried. Thank God you are safe," Ziva said as she gave him a hug.

"Are you hurt?" McGee asked, looking at Tony with concern.

No, I'm alright," Tony said, shaking his head.

"But, he's going into Bethesda just to make sure," Gibbs added

"Should I call an ambulance?" McGee asked.

"No," Tony answered quickly.

Gibbs hesitated, carefully considering McGee's question.

"Oh come on, Boss. I definitely do not need an ambulance." Tony gave Gibbs a beseeching look.

Gibbs was tempted to ignore Tony's request, just to be on the safe side, but decided to give him a break. He did seem to be okay and he didn't really want to cause him any undue distress after what he'd just been through. "Okay, Tony...I'll take you in. McGee, Ziva. I want you to go photograph and bag and tag the scene of the explosion. I'll keep you informed." He knew they needed to question Tony thoroughly about everything that had happened, but first he wanted to make sure everything was physically okay with his agent. He led Tony over to where his car was parked and headed towards the hospital. Tony was uncharacteristically silent during the drive. "You okay?" Gibbs asked, shooting yet another look of many he had shot in the younger man's direction.

"Yeah, boss...I'm fine." Fine enough not to have to go to the hospital, he added mentally. He wanted to get back to headquarters and hopefully get a lead on who this guy was. At least Tony knew what he looked like now.

They arrived at the hospital and Gibbs dropped Tony off at the entrance to the ER then went to park his car. A few minutes later, Gibbs entered the crowded ER and scanned the room, searching for his agent. Finally, he spotted him, sitting in a chair, leaning back against the wall with his eyes closed. Gibbs sighed deeply and ran his hand back through his hair as he took a few moments to collect his thoughts. He'd almost lost him today...had come closer than he ever would have wanted. He was so thankful that he had found him in time. He walked over to where Tony was sitting and quietly took the seat beside him, taking care not to disturb him, unsure if Tony had fallen asleep or was merely resting his eyes.

In truth, Tony was not sleeping or really resting either. He was mentally going over everything that had happened, trying to recall details of the man's description and commit them to memory. He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't even hear his name when it was called. "Tony? Come on, Tony. They're calling you." Gibbs gently shook his arm and Tony opened his eyes.

Tony opened his eyes and stood up a little too quickly, causing him to stumble slightly.

"You dizzy?" Gibbs asked as he grabbed Tony to help steady him.

Tony shook his head. "Just got up too fast is all. I'm alright."

They followed the nurse into the ER cubicle area where Tony was asked to change into a hospital gown and started on an IV. He then patiently went through a physical exam and numerous tests. Finally, the doctor returned with the verdict. "Well, Agent DiNozzo, you sustained a moderate concussion. "I'd like to keep you overnight for observation."

Tony shook his head. "I really don't want to do that, Doc. I'm not going to be able to get any rest in this place."

"You'll do what the doctor says, DiNozzo, or you'll have me to deal with," Gibbs ordered sharply. Tony had almost died. He wasn't about to let him jeopardize himself even further.

The doctor gave a sympathetic look to the miserable-appearing young man. "If I was to release you, do you have someone to stay with you?" he asked, glancing over at Gibbs.

Gibbs nodded. "I can stay with him. Are you sure its okay to let him go though?"

"I'll give you a list of things to watch out for. If any of them occur, you'll have to get him back here right away. Wake him up every two to three hours just to check his mental status."

Gibbs nodded again. He'd been through this drill before.

"Okay then, once you finish the IV fluids, I'll get you released. I'll be back soon."

Tony watched as the doctor left then covered his mouth as a yawn escaped him. The adrenaline that had kicked in with the events of the day was finally starting to wear off and he was beginning to feel pretty drowsy.

"Why don't you try to rest until he lets you leave, Tony," Gibbs said softly, noting his agent's weary appearance.

Thinking that wasn't such a bad idea, Tony allowed his eyes to close and dropped off to sleep almost immediately. Gibbs fussed around with Tony's blanket, pulling it a little bit higher and tighter around the younger man. He rarely thought of DiNozzo as being vulnerable, but right now he did. He couldn't help it. Tony was the third of three highly skilled agents to have been grabbed by this freak and was very lucky to still be alive.

xxxxx

With Tony safely seatbelted in the passenger seat beside him, Gibbs headed towards his home. He had debated on going to Tony's apartment, but thought his own home might be safer for the time being. "Where we going, boss?" Tony mumbled, only half awake.

"We're going to my place, DiNozzo," Gibbs replied.

"Okay, sounds good," Tony managed to say before drifting off again.

Before too long, Gibbs pulled up at his home and turned towards the sleeping man next to him, gently shaking his shoulder. "DiNozzo? DiNozzo, wake up. We're here."

"Here?" Tony asked sleepily. "Where are we?"

"We're at my house. Come on, Tony, wake up." Gibbs shook Tony's shoulder a bit more forcefully and finally managed to rouse him. He then was able to get Tony into the house and into bed with a minimal amount of trouble. "Sleep well," Gibbs said softly, taking one more look at his agent before closing the door.

Xxxxx

The first time Gibbs checked on Tony during the night was uneventful. Tony correctly answered Gibbs' questions and swiftly fell back asleep. The second time was a different story. When Gibbs entered the room, he found Tony thrashing about on the bed, the sheet and blanket tangled up around him with one pillow on the floor. "Let me go! Get away from me!"

Shit. Gibbs rushed over to the bed and placed his hand on Tony's shoulder. "NO! I said get away!" Tony frantically tried to get away from Gibbs, coming dangerously close to toppling off the bed.

"Shhh...Tony, Tony...it's okay. You're alright. You're safe now." Gibbs gently soothed the distraught man, trying to ease him out of the nightmare.

Finally, Tony opened his eyes and stared up at Gibbs with a bewildered expression on his face. "Bo...boss?"

"Yeah, its me. Do you know where you are?"

Tony looked around for a few seconds then nodded. "I'm at your house." He slowly sat up and shakily ran his hand back through his sweat-soaked hair. "Man...that was some dream..."

"You want to talk about it?" Gibbs asked, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

"No." Tony quickly shook his head.

"How about some water?"

"Yeah, okay...water would be good, boss."

Gibbs left the room for a few minutes then returned with a glass of cold water which he handed to Tony. "Thanks." Tony took a few sips then placed the glass on the nightstand next to the bed.

"You sure you don't want to talk, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked sitting back down on the bed.

Tony shook his head, a look of frustration on his face. "About what? About how stupid I was to get caught by this guy?"

"Are you calling those two agents who were killed stupid too?"

"No. Of course not, boss. But, they didn't know there was a pattern developing. I did know, and I was careless. Almost got myself killed...and you killed as well..."

Tony looked down at the bed, but not before Gibbs glimpsed the guilt in his eyes. "This isn't going to help, DiNozzo. You need to let go of all this guilt that you're feeling and focus on catching this guy."

He glanced at his watch. It was almost 5:30. He knew he wouldn't be getting any more sleep, but he wasn't sure about Tony. "You want to try to get back to sleep?"

Tony quickly shook his head. "I'm not tired boss. I want to get started on tracking this guy down."

"You're feeling alright? How's your head?"

"I'm fine." He had a slight headache, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. "Can we stop by my apartment? I need to get a change of clothes."

"Sure, but breakfast first. You need to eat something. What would you like?"

Tony shrugged. "It doesn't matter. Whatever you're having is fine."

"Come on, DiNozzo," Gibbs coaxed. "I'm actually willing to cook for you. How many chances like this are you going to get?"

"Probably not too many," Tony admitted. He really didn't want to put Gibbs to any trouble though.

"There must be something you'd like."

"Blueberry pancakes?" Tony finally asked, with a hopeful look in his eyes.

Gibbs nodded, a faint smile on his face. He'd been pretty sure that was what Tony would say. He had made them one other time when Tony had stayed over and he'd put away an impressive amount of them.

"Thanks, boss. I do love your blueberry pancakes." Tony said with a grin.

"I'll meet you downstairs." As Gibbs headed down to start making their breakfast, he had to wonder about the almost child-like glee Tony sometimes displayed over the simplest little things. He didn't think his agent had had the best childhood and probably only rarely, if ever, been given little treats when he was a child. He figured that might be why Tony took such delight in certain things.

A short time later, Tony joined Gibbs in the kitchen. "Anything I can do?" Tony asked, watching as Gibbs mixed the pancake batter.

"No, that's okay. Just make yourself comfortable. These won't take long and we have a long day ahead of us." He couldn't help still being worried about his senior field agent. Not only his current physical condition, but possible ramifications that might occur as a result of Tony having survived the attempt on his life. It was very worrisome to say the least.

xxxx

"In a narrow escape, Agent DiNozzo was rescued only moments before the bomb went off. He's the first victim of the so-called NCIS killer who has been able to get away."

The man seethed as he stared at the smiling picture of the young agent on his television screen. He couldn't believe they had found him in time. That wasn't supposed to happen. No matter though. Next time, the agent wouldn't be so lucky. "Smile while you can, Agent DiNozzo." The man sneered as he continued to stare at the screen. "You won't be smiling for long..."