-Screw regular intervals, I'm terrible with them anyway. :P I'm glad you liked the other chapter guys, it probably is my favorite of all of them. This chapter swings between interrogation with Gibbs and the hospital with Ziva and Abby, I hope you like it! I had the most trouble with this chapter while writing, so I hope it's effective and doesn't seem too rushed. I know I keep saying this, but it's very true, you guys encourage me so much. *Gives hugs* Thank you.
- And did anyone see last nights episode (Ha, silly question, eh?)? Not terrible, though the ending was pretty bad in my opinion. :P
Chapter Thirteen
"Here, we'll switch in a bit. See you soon, Ziva." Abby gave the nurse a dirty look, as if blaming her for the 'one visitor at a time' restriction placed, gave Ziva a small smile and wave and took off down the hallway. Ziva's mouth twitched upward, she looked to the nurse who had a slightly frazzled expression.
"Thank you." Ziva gave the nurse an apologetic smile.
"Call me if you need anything." The nurse's expression said, strongly otherwise but it softened as she gazed into the room. Sympathy inking into her face, she opened her mouth but then shut it and left. Ziva took a seat next to the bed and the prone figure lying in it.
"Hello, McGee." A beep from the monitor, a wheeze from some machine, a soft click from the clock. "It...it is Ziva, McGee." You idiot, he's unconscious. He doesn't know nor care you're here. Ziva bitterly chastised herself.
Squeezing her hands tightly in her lap, Ziva wished Abby was here, or Ducky. Even Jimmy would be something. But Ducky and Jimmy had gone off to track down and speak with every doctor and every nurse Tim and Tony had and would come in contact with. She was alone here. Except for of course, Tim. She was no good at bedside manner, her skill level in that area was right about at the level of comforting crying women.
With lack of anything else that could seem natural in this situation, she reached hesitantly over and took Tim's limp left hand and cradled it in her own.
"I am so, very sorry, McGee."
o-o
"Claire Parkinsom."
"That's a bit unfair, I don't know your name." Claire looked to the folder in Gibbs' hand. "And I don't have a file either." His features hardening, Gibbs sat down at the table, facing Claire. Who smiled sweetly at him, and then looked to the two-way glass behind his head before returning to him.
"So, what would you like to start with? The kidnapping and assault of my agents, or the four murders you committed in the last five days?" Gibbs tone would have frozen the water in the water bottle sitting on the table, if it had been any icier.
o-o
"We should have found you both quicker. Perhaps, then, both of you would be in better shape."
The beep of a monitor, tick of a clock, soft footsteps from outside the hospital door. But no response from the man lying in the bed. Ziva sighed.
"But, I guess it is like what my mother told me as I child, 'Worry about the things you can change, and live with the things you cannot.' She was a wonderful woman; I think you would have liked her, McGee. She loved to read." Ziva squeezed Tim's hand, but he was clearly still unconscious. Ziva sighed again.
o-o
"Will anything I say change your mind? Should I even try?" Claire gazed at Gibbs, his expression didn't change. "I see. Well, I'll try anyway. I did not murder anyone, my boyfriend attacked me and I shot him. Self defense." Claire knew she was fighting a losing cause though, clubbing the bastard on the head would have been a better choice but she couldn't go back now. "I didn't kidnap your agents, I didn't commit any murder."
"Of course not. My agents just happened to be on your property, their guns and badges in your possession, and your fingerprints at the scenes of the crime. It's all just coincidence. And we can't forget the murders of those other men." Gibbs smiled as her eyes widened slightly. "Guess you didn't know that one, did you?"
"I didn-"
"Those other murders, your 'boyfriend' committed, there were unidentified fingerprints found there. Guess who they belong to."
Claire didn't answer.
"Would you like your lawyer now?"
"Wouldn't do me much good, would it?"
"Nope, you're screwed."
o-o
Abby, once entering Tony's room, had made herself at home. Twenty minutes later, Abby was sitting next to unconscious Tony chatting animatedly about her last bowling game and whatever else popped into her head.
Talking kept the fear at bay. The paralyzing panic and sadness that threatened to overwhelm her every moment that she paused speaking and Tony just lay there with white bandages wrapped around his head. Not smiling and laughing, just lying there. So still, so different than the vibrant personality she knew.
A nurse and the doctor entered the room.
"Ma'am." The doctor nodded to her. "Special Agent Dinozzo needs an MRI. He'll be back in about fifteen minutes though."
"And I'll be here." Abby stuck her chin out, and released Tony's hand. She reached out and ran her finger on his cheek. Wake up, Tony. But he didn't open his eyes. She felt tears brim against the bottom of her eyelids, but they didn't spill out. Tony was wheeled out of the room.
o-o
Gibbs just watched Claire now, didn't speak, just watched.
"No more questions?"
Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "No."
"No? Don't even want to ask me why I did it? How I could do 'such a thing'?" She air-quoted the last few words.
"I don't care." Gibbs looked down at her file and began to read. He looked up again. "But apparently, you do." Red spots appeared on her cheeks.
"Why do you think I did it?"
"I thought I already told you, I don't care."
"Power, I guess."
Gibbs ignored her.
"There was a certain rush, I determined who lived or died. And I had Daniel there to take the fall, poor fool. Then it went all wrong."
"You lost the control you held." Claire hadn't noticed Gibbs now sat straight in his seat, slightly inclined toward her. His eyes looking, seemingly, through her. She didn't notice his voice, as if it were her own illustrating her story. Behind the glass, Vance narrowed his eyes in disbelief and respect. There was a reason Gibbs was one of the Agency's best interrogators.
"Daniel got caught."
"But you broke him out."
"Yes."
"And you killed Petty Officer Stephenson."
"It was an accident." Gibbs wasn't expecting that sentence to come from her mouth, but he didn't allow that to stop him.
"How?" He whispered softly, gingerly.
"The idiot came over, probably to ask me out. He'd been hitting on me since he arrived. He glimpsed Daniel, recognized him, probably from the news or something. Tried to attack him, and Daniel stabbed him. I just finished him off." She paused. "That's where everything stopped being normal. The kid had family close by that he was staying with, people he probably told where he was going. We couldn't risk it though."
"So you killed the Brents."
"Yes. Those agents just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"Why didn't you just kill them then?"
"Because they ruined everything, we could have gotten away. And I always liked a good bit of revenge."
"Why did you kill Daniel Hart?" Gibbs held his temper under wraps.
"He let them go. He chose a fine time to grow a conscious." Claire said bitterly.
o-o
A nurse walked into Tim's room, Ziva looked up from Tim's pale, drawn face.
"Hi, I'm just here to do some checks. It's alright," He motioned for Ziva to sit back down; she had been preparing to leave the room. "I won't be long, you can stay." He gave Ziva a small smile and began to check the machines.
"Will he be alright?" The nurse looked up at Ziva's hesitant question.
"He looks better than he did when he came in. And it looks like his condition is improving." The nurse grinned awkwardly at Ziva, and turned back to Tim. "There's a good chance he'll-" He stopped. "That's...that's not supposed to be-" He stopped again. He looked up as the beeping of the heart monitor began to increase rapidly. Ziva stood and drew closer to Tim noticing his lips had begun to develop a bluish tinge.
"What is-?" Ziva began. The nurse jammed the call button and then he called out into the hallway.
"Collapsed lung! We're going to need a CAT scan!" He turned back to Tim and began to feel his chest. "Quickly! Where's his doctor! Call Doctor-" He hurriedly glanced at the chart. "Cassirer!" He turned to a shocked looking Ziva. "Ma'am, I'm sorry, but please leave. We'll need the room.
A few other nurses rushed in and Ziva was pushed unceremoniously out of the room, after a few seconds Tim's bed was rushed out into the hallway and down a side corridor.
o-o
"The results aren't good, Ms.-"
"Scuito."
"Ms. Scuito. The swelling isn't as severe as it could have been, considering the trauma, but...a few key centers of his brain are swelling and are possibly damaged. We won't know the consequences until he wakes up. If he wakes up. I'm sorry, the chances are about 70% for some sort of brain damage."
"Doctor Cassirer, please, we have a collapsed lung a few rooms down. It doesn't look good." A nurse had popped her head in the door, her face was grim.
"Of course." Touching Abby's shoulder gently, Doctor Cassirer swiftly left the room. Breathing heavily, trying to hold back the tears that blurred her vision, Abby stumbled blindly into the hallway toward Tim's room. Ziva was there. Ziva would...do something...something. It couldn't be like this. Her vision cleared momentarily, and saw Ziva being pushed from Tim's room looking helpless.
"No." Abby whispered under her breath. A bed with a still figure was rolled out of the room and run out of site, with several panicked nurses and Doctor Cassirer pushing it.
Abby ran to catch up but was too late, she came up to Ziva, who turned around to face her.
Tears now cascaded down Abby's cheeks, she faced Ziva, who looked just as devastated and they embraced in a hug. Though, no one could tell who clung the most desperately to the other, Abby's shoulders shaking with the sobs, Ziva's face screwed up in the effort to hold back her's.
Why them?
o-o
"We're done." Gibbs said finally. Scooping up the file Gibbs headed out of interrogation, and into observation. Vance nodded to him.
"Nice job." Gibbs allowed himself a slight smile, at Vance's comment.
"Decided to venture from seclusion, Leon?"
"I get cabin fever from time to time."
Gibbs opened his mouth to respond when his phone rang. He answered, and froze.
"I'll be right there."
"Something wrong?" Vance tilted his head slightly to the side, but Gibbs didn't answer. Dropping the files to the floor, Gibbs sprinted out the door, hoping to God, he'd make it in time.