AN: Thanks so much for all your nice comments and reviews. I very much appreciate them. Just a warning, this chapter is a cliffhanger. I know, I'm kind of evil that way.
xxxxx
Ducky made his way to Jethro's room and was pleased to find him sleeping soundly and apparently peacefully. He knew that the loss of his home was a devastating blow, but he had confidence that Jethro would overcome it as he had so many other challenges in the past. Satisfied with Jethro's condition, Ducky secured the blankets around him a bit more tightly and then took his leave. Under different circumstances, he would have stayed with Jethro through the night, but he could not leave Tony on his own for too long. He stepped into an elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. When he arrived back in the area where he had left Tony, the agent was nowhere to be seen. Trying not to panic, Ducky checked the men's room and the vending machine area, then walked over to the cafeteria, but there was no sign of him. Sighing heavily, Ducky realized he had been duped and that he had no idea at all where Tony could have gone.
xxxxx
Tony wandered the streets aimlessly. He paid no attention to where he was going and was only vaguely aware of how cold it was and that he had no jacket. All he could think about was Gibbs' home burning down and the way the bright flames had lit up the night sky. He still couldn't believe it had happened. He felt sick to his stomach over it and he knew that Gibbs would never forgive him. He might as well have torched the place himself. He finally began to feel the cold and realized that he was shivering. As he walked along the deserted streets, he started to feel guilty for what he had done to Ducky, on top of his guilt over the fire. The man had only been trying to help him and Tony had blatantly lied to him and then just taken off. He knew that Ducky would be beside himself with worry. What he had done was unfair and it didn't even make sense. He couldn't just roam around all night long. He found himself in front of a 24 hour convenience store and went inside.
A bored-appearing elderly cashier looked up as the bells on the door jingled. Henry Sawyer glanced curiously at Tony, mentally noting his unkempt appearance and the fact that he was not wearing a coat, but made no comment. He had worked the overnight shift in this store for almost 10 years now and during that time had seen all kinds of people. He had retired from his job as a stockbroker with the intention of spending his golden years traveling with his lovely wife, Helen, but fate had been cruel. Helen had suffered a sudden heart attack only six months into his retirement and had passed away. His children and grandchildren had rallied around him, but Henry had never been able to bear the long nights alone and had taken the job as a night clerk to help ease his pain.
Tony felt immediately better as he stepped inside the store and the warmth embraced him. "Hi," he greeted the man behind the counter. "Do you have a phone I can use?"
"Run into some car trouble did ya?" Henry asked with open curiosity.
Tony nodded. "Yeah, something like that. I need to call someone to pick me up."
"Pay phone is over there in the back of the store," Henry said, pointing.
"Thanks." Tony smiled at the man and headed towards the phone then realized he had absolutely no clue where he was. He walked back to the cashier. "Hey, what's the address of this place?" he asked.
"209 Willowbrook Road," Henry replied, then realized that the young man might not have change to use the phone. "Do you have money to make your call?" he asked.
"Uh, no, I was just going to call collect,"" Tony answered sheepishly.
"No need for that." Henry reached into his pants pocket and dug out some change which he handed to Tony. "This should be more than enough."
"Thanks a lot. I'll pay you back," Tony said gratefully. His stomach suddenly rumbled loudly and he realized he was starving.
"No need for that, its only some pocket change," Henry laughed. "Now go make your call, young fella and then you can grab yourself a package of Twinkies or something while you wait, on the house."
Tony grinned. "Thanks, I might just take you up on that."
xxxxx
"Damn bitch." Warren Albright slammed the top of the steering wheel wheel with his hand. He was so sick of his wife nagging at him about money. He worked hard and had a right to buy cigarettes and beer. If she didn't like it, she could get off her lazy ass and go get a job.
"You need to show her who's boss," Lou Reynolds drawled from the passenger seat of the car. "I would never let my old lady talk to me like that."
"Yeah well, your old lady has a job, its different. Mine is grabbing for my paycheck the minute I get the damn thing. She tries to get her hands on every penny I make. The kids are always needing new shoes or clothes and the price of food is through the roof."
"What you need, my friend, is a second income."
Warren gave Lou a look of disgust. "Are you kidding me? No way in hell Angela is gonna get a job until Billy's in school. She refuses to work nights and I sure as hell ain't working two jobs."
"I didn't say you needed another job. I said you need a second income. Big difference," Lou smirked. He spotted the convenience store up ahead and he decided to give Warren a much-needed lesson in the fine art of income supplementation. "Pull up over there. I want to get a soda."
"Soda? Whatever." Warren shook his head, but did as his friend directed. He sure as hell could use a drink too, but soda definitely would not be his beverage of choice.
xxxxx
"Hey, Ducky, its me..."
"Anthony," Ducky felt both relief and a burst of anger to hear the voice on the other end of the phone. "I could wring your neck. Where on earth are you?"
"I'm really sorry, Ducky. I don't even know why I left the way I did. I just wasn't thinking. I really am sorry." He glanced towards the front of the store as he heard the jingle of the door, but he couldn't see who came in over the highly stacked shelves. He turned his attention back to the phone.
"Its alright," Ducky replied. He had been about to make calls to members of the team in order to organize a search for Tony and was relieved that he no longer had to. The most important thing right now was to get Tony home and into bed. "We'll talk about it tomorrow. Now where can I pick you up?"
Tony gave the address to Ducky and hung up the phone, then started walking back towards the front of the store. He stopped short in shock as he saw the elderly cashier slumped over the front counter . One man was pulling money from the cash register while his companion looked on, seemingly horrified.
"What did you do? What the hell did you do, Lou?" Warren cried out in absolute panic. He had heard no shot, hadn't even realized what had happened until the old man fell forward with a gaping wound in his chest.
"Shut up! You heard him. He fucking defied me. Nobody EVER defies me!" Lou turned away from the register. His eyes lit up as he spotted Tony and their eyes locked. Smiling maliciously and without missing a beat, he pointed the gun and pulled the trigger.
Before he had a chance to move, Tony felt a sudden, searing pain in his head and dropped heavily to the floor. He briefly thought that this was definitely not how he had pictured his life ending, not very heroic at all...he then succumbed to the irresistible darkness that beckoned him.
"Come on Warren," Lou snarled as he headed towards the front door, grabbing a couple of bags of chips on his way out. "I don't think you want to be here when the cops arrive."
They fled to the car and Lou grabbed the keys out of Warren's hand. "I'm driving." His tone left no room for argument. His whole body shaking, Warren did as the other man said. He was in no shape to be driving anyway.
"Why...why did you do that?" Warren stammered as Lou pulled the car out of the small parking lot and sped away from the scene of the crime. "You...you killed two people...how...how could you do it? How?"
"Will you shut the hell up," Lou snapped. "You sound more annoying than your friggen wife. Anyhow, I didn't kill them...WE did."
"What? I...I never...You're the one who did it. I didn't know...I didn't know."
Yeah, well you just try to tell the cops that one. No one is going to believe you. They'll throw your ass in the slammer before you can get the words out of your mouth." He flung the cash at Warren. "Here. Count it."
Warren counted the money, his hands trembling as he did so. "Seventy eight dollars," he whispered. Two men were dead over seventy eight dollars. He couldn't believe this was happening.
"Well that kinda sucks, doesn't it?" Lou laughed. "I was hoping for more. I'll tell you what, though. You can keep all of it. Kind of an opening night bonus. Next time we'll try a liquor store or something like that, much more profitable."
"Next time?" Warren asked, unable to hide the tremor in his voice.
"Yeah, next time," Lou stated self-assuredly. "I'm in need of a new partner. My last one..." He paused for dramatic effect. "Shall we just say... died in a rather unfortunate accident..."
Warren couldn't miss the implied threat in Lou's tone. His heart sinking, he realized that he was in a whole world of trouble.
xxxxx
Gibbs awoke with his head pounding mercilessly. Massaging his temples gently, he looked around and found himself in a private room, for which he was grateful. He certainly didn't feel like making conversation. It took him a few moments to recall exactly what had happened and then came the realization that his home, and likely everything inside of, it was lost forever. His thoughts turned to Tony and he vaguely recalled that he had sent his agent home to rest. He hoped DiNozzo had done as requested. The more he thought about it though, the more he realized that in Tony's frame of mind, he would likely perceive his request as a punishment and not concern for the younger man's well being as he had intended. In a startling moment of clarity, Gibbs knew that Tony would be beating himself up over what had happened and Gibbs sending him off would have only served to reinforce his guilt.
Damn...This wasn't good...it wasn't good at all...
xxxxx
Ducky pulled his car into the parking lot of the convenience store. As he got out of his vehicle, he had a sudden feeling of foreboding. He scanned the dark parking lot with his eyes, but no one seemed to be around. He then headed towards the front entrance and opened the door. As he entered the store, he immediately spotted a man lying across the counter. Apprehensively, Ducky approached him and tried to find a pulse, but couldn't. The unfortunate man was dead. His heart pounding uncontrollably, Ducky turned away from the victim as he searched for Tony. It only took seconds to spot the still figure lying on the floor about 12 feet away. His thoughts turned back to that other fateful day when they had thought Anthony had been blown up in the car explosion. This time, there was no doubt to the identity of the man lying on the floor. His body suddenly icy cold, Ducky walked over to Tony and knelt down beside him. He was lying on his side with a badly bleeding head wound, his right arm twisted in an awkward angle underneath him. Ducky breathed a huge sigh of relief when he discovered that Tony was indeed breathing and his pulse was strong.
"I'm going to get you some help, my boy," Ducky said as he pulled out his cell phone and dialed 911. "Help will be here soon..."