AN: Thanks as always for all your comments and reviews. I really appreciate them and they are very motivating. Just a warning, this chapter is another cliffhanger. Sorry - I can't seem to help myself. Thanks for reading :)

xxxxx

"Hey Duck? Can we make a quick detour to headquarters?" Gibbs asked. "I called in to requisition new weapons and cell phones for me and Tony. We need to be able to protect ourselves, especially after what just happened."

"Certainly, Jethro," Ducky replied as he steered the car down a side street in order to change direction.

The side trip to NCIS headquarters didn't take long and after Gibbs had handed Tony his new weapon and cell phone, they were on their way to Tony's apartment once again. Lulled by the soothing motion of Ducky's car, Tony drifted off to sleep in the back seat shortly after they left the building. Ducky glanced at him through the rear view mirror then turned his attention to Gibbs. "So, how are you holding up, Jethro?" he asked softly.

"I'm fine, Duck. It's Tony I'm worried about."

He would likely say the same about you."

Gibbs sighed wearily as he gazed out the window. "I'm not the one who has killers after him."

"No, but you've been through a life-altering event as well. You cannot deny that."

"I'm not trying to deny it. I'm not going to sit around and cry about it either though. My main priority right now is making sure he's safe and that these guys are put away."

"Its only been a day," Ducky persisted. "You need to give yourself time to grieve."

"Nobody died,and I'm going to make sure nobody does."

Ducky realized that Jethro wasn't going to admit to what he was feeling and the remainder of the drive was conducted in silence. Finally, they arrived at Tony's building. Gibbs twisted around to look at Tony who was still sleeping soundly then turned towards Ducky. "I'm going to take a quick look around to make sure there no one's waiting for us," he said quietly. "Stay in the car. I'll be right back."

Gibbs walked through the parking lot and found nothing amiss. Satisfied that the area was safe, he returned to the car and opened the back door. Tony immediately jolted awake. "Guess we're here," he said as he got his bearings. "You coming in, Ducky?"

Ducky shook his head. "Another time, my boy. I have some things I need to attend to. But please, don't hesitate to call if you need anything at all."

"Thanks, Ducky." Tony gave the man a small smile as he got out of the car. Gibbs said a quick goodbye, deciding to leave his belongings stowed in Ducky's trunk for the time being. The two men waved as Ducky drove off and then started walking towards Tony's building.

"I'm going to stop by the super's office to get an extra set of keys," Tony stated. They walked over to the office which was situated, with a separate entrance, at the side of the building. A few minutes later, with keys in hand, Tony and Gibbs entered the building. Tony retrieved his mail from his box and they walked down the long hallway to Tony's first floor apartment. They were very careful as they entered the apartment but there was no one inside.

"Can I get you a drink or something to eat, boss?" Tony asked.

Gibbs shook his head. "No thanks. I actually need to make a few phone calls." He had to call the insurance company and get that process started.

Tony nodded. "Okay. Your room is right over there. There are fresh sheets on the bed, t owels in the linen closet outside the bathroom. You're welcome to whatever I have that you might want to wear. I didn't know if you wanted to go shopping or something maybe tomorrow," he finished, feeling awkward. He could only imagine how it felt to be Gibbs right now. Almost everything he owned had been destroyed and he had to depend on others for pretty much everything. Tony knew it had to be killing him even though he was refusing to show it.

"Thanks. I'll just go in the bedroom to make my calls," Gibbs stated.

Tony watched as Gibbs went to the guest room and closed the door behind him. He sighed softly as he went into the bathroom and took a bottle of ibuprofen out of the medicine cabinet. His head and arm were both throbbing pretty good, but he was reluctant to take the pain pills he had gotten from the hospital pharmacy. He wouldn't have even filled the prescription, but he had known Gibbs would kick up a fuss if he didn't. He shook four tablets into his hand and gulped them down with some water. He then wandered back into the living room and flopped down on the couch. Picking up the remote control, he turned on the television and started flicking through channels. He was still pretty tired though and it didn't take too long before he had fallen asleep.

xxxxx

Gibbs rolled his eyes as he continued to remain on hold. He had been going back and forth between various insurance company personnel and was starting to get a little bit aggravated with the runaround he was getting. Finally, Mrs. Young came back on the line and this time they actually made some progress. Gibbs hung up the phone and looked around the room. Although he had been to DiNozzo's apartment on several occasions, he had never actually stayed overnight before. The room was a nice one. There was even a small flat screen television and a dvd player. Gibbs wasn't really sure why the agent paid for a two bedroom apartment when a one bedroom would serve his purposes, but in this case it was going to work out well. The building itself appeared to be secure, but Bittner had found his way into Tony's apartment so it probably wouldn't be too difficult for the convenience store robbers to do so as well if they wanted to. Gibbs still didn't know if they knew Tony's name, but unfortunately, though he hadn't been named in news reports in connection with the hold up, he had been named in connection with the fire and the capture of Bittner so it wouldn't be too hard to connect the dots if Tony's picture had been shown.

Gibbs was tired and almost gave in to his desire to lie down, but decided if he did, he wouldn't be able to sleep that night. Instead, he stood up and went back to Tony's living room where he found his senior field agent stretched out and asleep on his sofa. Gibbs stood and studied him for a moment, noting the telltale dark circles under his eyes which seemed to be deepening daily. He really needed to start sleeping and eating better. There was a throw on the top of the sofa which Gibbs unfolded and gently placed over Tony's sleeping form. He then went into the kitchen and investigated the contents of the refrigerator. He found some fresh chicken, a package of egg noodles and some other ingredients and set to work, chuckling softly to himself. It seemed he was always cooking for DiNozzo in much the same way as his own father did for him when they were together. DiNozzo definitely brought out his own fatherly instincts. He supposed it was because the younger man's own father wasn't much of one to him. He finished putting together a simple casserole and put it into the oven then went back into the living room after setting the timer. He settled down in the recliner, which was exceedingly comfortable and before long he drifted into a light doze.

xxxxx

"What the hell took you so long?" Lou snarled into the phone.

"I have a job. I can't just yap on the phone all day long," Warren retorted. "What's your problem now?"

"I tried to take him out today, but it didn't go very well."

Warren shook his head in dismay. He could feel the beginnings of a knot developing in his stomach. It was becoming a very familiar feeling. "So now what?"

"They could be on to me. I need to stay at your place until I get this bastard."

"What? No! How am I supposed to explain that to my wife?"

"I don't care how you explain it. Tell her I'm getting my apartment fumigated. Say whatever the hell you want, but I'm coming. Deal with it." Lou hung up the phone and continued to drive. He pulled up in front of a newsstand, then went inside to buy a pack of cigarettes and a newspaper. He returned to the car and glanced down at the paper. He hit pay dirt in only a few seconds. The front page contained an article about the NCIS killer. There were photographs of the convenience store guy as well as the other guy who had been at the scene of the fire. Special Agents Anthony DiNozzo, Jr. and Leroy Jethro Gibbs. His heart fell with the realization that both men were federal agents. Damn...that wasn't good. It made things a lot more difficult, but he was more determined than ever to get rid of this guy, federal agent or not.

xxxxx

Tony stood still, watching in shocked horror as the fire engulfed the house. He was totally helpless and could do nothing at all but look on as the flames greedily consumed Gibbs' home. He felt utter despair at the total destruction he was witnessing. His attention was distracted by the appearance of three figures who were slowly approaching him. The first one he recognized was Gibbs. Then, with a sick feeling in his stomach, he recognized the other two people with him from photos he had seen. Gibbs' wife and daughter. Gibbs looked angry whereas the other two almost looked zombified. Tony felt an irresistible urge to run, but he found himself unable to move. He just stood there watching as they got closer and closer to him.

"I...I'm really sorry, boss...I never meant for this to happen."

"You have destroyed our home," Shannon said tonelessly. "Now you must pay."

"Now you must pay,"Kelly echoed her mother.

"You reap what you sow, DiNozzo."

"You reap what you sow," Shannon and Kelly echoed eerily.

"You burned our family home and now you must burn too."

"What? No." Tony shook his head and began to back away, but they surrounded him. Shannon and Kelly enveloped his wrists with their icy fingers and started to lead him towards the flames. He tried to escape but they were supernaturally strong and he couldn't budge. "No...please. I didn't mean it. I'm sorry, boss. I'm so sorry." He gazed pleading at Gibbs, but the older man's eyes remained angry and cold.

"Sorry doesn't bring our home back. Apologies are a sign of weakness and they don't help at all."

He could feel the heat rising as he was led closer and closer to the flames and he knew there was no escape.

Tony's screams startled Gibbs out of his light sleep and he rushed to the other man's side.

"DiNozzo! Tony, wake up." Gibbs shook Tony's shoulder as he tried to awaken him.

"No! No! I'm sorry, boss. I didn't mean it. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Come on DiNozzo. Wake up," Gibbs urged, louder this time. Finally, he succeeded in rousing his agent. Tony looked scared and confused as he slowly came out of the dream.

"Wh...what's going on?" he asked Gibbs, a tremor in his voice as he ran his hand through his sweat-soaked hair and a visible shiver ran through his body.

"I think that's my question," Gibbs said as he took a seat on the sofa beside Tony. "That was some nightmare you were having."

"Yeah...yeah, I guess it was," Tony admitted shakily, unsuccessfully trying to block the images of the dream from his mind.

"You want to talk about it?"

Tony slowly shook his head. "No...not really."

"It might help," Gibbs persisted.

"I doubt it." He didn't think telling Gibbs his dream had consisted of his wife and daughter looking like zombies and trying to kill him would be very helpful to anyone, least of all Gibbs.

"You need to let this go," Gibbs said softly. "It wasn't your fault, Tony."

Tony sighed. He really didn't want to talk about it. He suddenly became aware of the aroma of something cooking in the kitchen. "You know...you really don't have to cook for me all the time, boss."

"You need to get something decent into your stomach. We both do."

"Yeah well, I'm not all that hungry."

"But you'll eat anyway." Gibbs' tone left no room for argument.

"Okay...I'll eat." It definitely wasn't worth quarreling about. He was just so damn tired, but if sleeping meant more nightmares, it wasn't any more appealing than eating was.

The oven timer went off and Gibbs went out in the kitchen to get the casserole out of the oven as Tony trailed along behind him. "You want me to make a salad or something to go with that?" Tony asked as Gibbs put the casserole on the counter top.. It looked pretty good. Tony was beginning to feel hungry in spite of himself.

"Might be kind of hard to chop up vegetables with one arm," Gibbs commented. "I can do it."

"No. Its no biggie. I just thought you might want some. I don't really care about it."

"Its a good idea. Won't take long at all."

Tony sighed as he went to get some salad items from the refrigerator. He hadn't even thought about his arm when he offered to make it. He had just thought Gibbs might want it. He hadn't cared one way or the other. In any case, Gibbs quickly prepared the rest of their dinner and they sat down to eat. The casserole was really good and Tony ate a healthy amount before declaring himself to be full. "That was really good, boss. Thanks for making it.

"Its the least I can do. After all, you're giving me a place to stay."

"Yeah well... that's the least I can do as well..."

Gibbs sighed heavily. He wasn't sure what he had to say or do to convince DiNozzo that he wasn't to blame for what had happened.

"Why don't we try to relax for a little while," Gibbs suggested. "You can introduce me to one of the movies you're always talking about."

"Alright, that's a good idea," Tony said, his expression brightening as he contemplated which of his many movies Gibbs would like. He'd make him into a movie aficionado by the end of his stay.

xxxxx

"You need to make other arrangements," Warren hissed at Lou. "This isn't going to work out." They had just spent a long and uncomfortable dinner with Warren's family. His wife had spent almost the entire meal shooting dagger eyes at Lou and the children had quarreled incessantly. Warren had been on edge since Lou had informed him that the man in the convenience store was a federal agent. He was beginning to rethink his position on trying to kill the guy. Maybe he could work out some kind of a deal. He waited until Lou had settled himself in the den to watch Jeopardy and then he crept off to his bedroom. He then called Directory Assistance and nervously held his breath, praying the agent would answer.

Tony got up off the sofa to answer the ringing phone. Gibbs' insurance company had called him back and he had retreated to the bedroom to talk to them privately. He glanced at the caller ID which read restricted. "Hello?" There was silence at the other end of the line and Tony rolled his eyes in annoyance. Probably a telemarketer. "Hello," he repeated, on the verge of hanging up.

"Agent DiNozzo?"

"Yes, this is DiNozzo," Tony replied warily. "Who is this?"

"Never mind my name," the man replied shakily. He was very obviously nervous. "I'm one of the guys from the holdup. I didn't know he was going to shoot you guys. Honest I didn't. I...I want to make a deal. I'll tell you everything you want to know."

Tony glanced at Gibbs' door which remained shut and went into his own bedroom. "Come to NCIS headquarters. You can talk to my boss. We can see what we can do for you."

"No way! Only you. I want to meet you first. Then we'll discuss it."

Tony hesitated briefly. He knew it wasn't a good idea, but he wanted this to be over with. "Alright, where?"

"The old McAvoy Theater. You know it?"

"Yeah, I know it." The theater had closed down years ago and was basically a decrepit eyesore that needed to be torn down.

"Meet me out back and come alone or I'm gone."

"Okay, okay. I'll come alone. Its going to have to be later though. I can't meet you now."

"Midnight."

"Okay, but..." Tony realized that the guy had already hung up. He went back into the living room and saw that Gibbs' door remained closed. He knew he could very well be walking into a trap, but he refused to risk Gibbs' life. He had already caused the man enough grief. He would take his chances and go alone.

xxxxx

Lou left the kitchen with a bag of Cheetos and shoved some into his mouth. Warren's prune-faced wife had shot him yet another dirty look when he took them, but he really didn't care. He had no idea why Warren didn't just kick her to the curb, but he'd been acting weird too, ever since the shooting. He paused outside Warren's bedroom door when he heard the other man's voice and pressed his ear up against the door. What he heard caused his face to redden with anger. He should have known better than to try to include Warren. Oh well he had done him a huge favor. Now he would have the federal agent served up to him on a silver platter. Only now there would be two more dead bodies, not just one. It made no difference to him. There were definitely more than enough bullets to go around. He smirked as he stuffed some more Cheetos in his mouth and went off to watch the rest of Jeopardy. Tonight was going to be a very memorable night, indeed.