Gibbs sat in the waiting room at Bethesda with Ducky.
He was exhausted, and very worried. He kept getting up to pace around, sipping coffee, then sat a minute, just to do it again.
Ducky remained seated and still, eyes following Gibbs' movements.
In his mind, Gibbs played Tony's words, "I trusted you," over and over, sad about the look in the younger man's eyes, as he succumbed to the drugs given to him in Kuwait.
"It's my fault, Duck, I should never have let him come on the mission. He wasn't right. And I knew it…" guilt ate away at him.
Ducky sighed. "Jethro, there is no way you could have known what was going to happen. And it was so very important for him to see some resolution to things…after what he went through. You did what you thought was right. And in the end, I know he will thank you for it."
"I don't think so," Gibbs said, looking down and picking at his coffee lid. "You should have seen him, when they came at him, with the shot to sedate him. He completely freaked out, Duck...I had to hold him down."
"Ah, well, it would be extremely surprising if Anthony remembers any of it clearly. I wouldn't assume the worst about his reaction. The trigger in his mind had just been sprung, Jethro. He may just need time to come back to himself…I'm sure the doctor will let us know what's going on soon."
They were quiet for a bit.
"Ziva and McGee were wiped, but they wanted to stay here with DiNozzo. I had to order them home." He smiled a little at that. "I told em' I'd call when I knew somethin'."
Ducky nodded. "How was Ziva's shoulder ?"
"Twenty stitches, no real damage. Luckily."
Ducky nodded again.
After some more silence, Ducky asked, "Stratton?"
"Was reported lost at sea by Latham. But...I can assure you, he's gone for good."
Ducky nodded. "May there be a special room in Hell for both of them."
"Copy that," Gibbs said softly.
Out of the fray of hospital staff walking back and forth, someone finally stepped towards them. It was Tony's admitting Doctor.
"Agent Gibbs, Doctor Mallard," she greeted them as they stood up quickly.
"He alright, Doc ?" Gibbs asked anxiously.
"Well, I believe that likely in time he will be. But, let me explain what I think is happening." The doctor seemed to pause, focusing, pushing her glasses up on her her face. Dr. Maung was an extremely attractive Asian woman, in her late thirties.
"After discussing a bit of what Agent DiNozzo has experienced with you upon admission, and after talking with him as best I could, I feel a diagnosis of Brief Psychotic Disorder is appropriate. I believe that within a few weeks, he should for the most part be back to normal. If after that, he maintains more serious symptoms, I would treat him for PTSD. Flashbacks from the drugs that were introduced to his system should generally fade over time as well, and I don't see that as a root cause for any of this. The main thing is the trauma, but because he is somewhat responsive, I am confident it's not a true psychotic break."
She paused as Gibbs let out a shaky breath, feeling a bit relieved.
"Ah, Doctor, may I ask, will you be administering any drug therapy, and when will he be released?" Ducky looked at her intently.
"To be on the safe side, yes, there will be some medication management, for now, along with therapy. I'm prescribing Ativan to control anxiety, and his psychiatrist can work out if he needs an antipsychotic. I feel one like Seroquel would be recommended, however, I would like to see how he does by tomorrow with just the Ativan. If he seems delusional, I will prescribe Seroquel then. And as long as he seems calm and responsive, he may go home tomorrow afternoon, but I won't release him unless someone is going to look after him for a few weeks and make sure he sees a psychiatrist. We have some very good ones-"
"Rachel Cranston," Gibbs cut her off. "She has experience working with our team. I called her already but she's out of town for two more days."
"She's very good. I would be very comfortable releasing him under her care. Will either of you be looking after him until he's back on his feet ?"
"I will," Gibbs said affirmatively.
"Well, I have some literature on BPD for you. Agent DiNozzo's case is rather unusual, so though most of my diagnosis applies, some things could come up outside the expected symptoms. Please don't hesitate to call me or Doctor Cranston if that happens." She handed her card to Gibbs, and then one to Ducky.
"May we see him now, Doctor?" Ducky asked.
"Yes. But, don't be alarmed if his reactions are still limited, or if he doesn't seem to make sense. The BPD can cause disorientation, and we already gave him the Ativan. Stop by the nurse's station, Agent Gibbs, and I will leave the information for you on the disorder."
"Thanks Doc," Gibbs said and headed to Tony's room while Ducky continued talking with her.
Tony was on his good side, still likely feeling the mending ribs on his other. He was asleep, or so Gibbs thought, as he pulled a chair up and sat next to the bed.
He noticed the green eyes, half way open, looking at him languidly.
Gibbs gave him a wan smile.
"How you feeling, DiNozzo?"
Tony just continued to gaze at him sleepily.
"Doc says you're gonna be okay, it's just gonna take a little time."
Tony looked away from him.
Gibbs sighed.
"You really scared me today. But, in case you don't know it, you never pulled that trigger, and those bastards didn't win. You came through, and I'm so, so proud of you, Tony." Gibbs' voice had become a hoarse whisper by the end, as he picked his hand up and stroked Tony's head.
Tony looked back at him, blinking, and said sadly, "Stratton...I saw him...but...I killed him. Isn't he dead? And... the bird...Boss...I saw it again too...can't let it...can't..." his voice trailed off as his eyes closed, falling asleep.
"No," he said with a shaky sigh, "Stratton is gone for good, Tony. Stratton and Latham, they're both dead. And the bird is gone too." He wasn't sure what the bit about the bird meant, but reassured him anyway, assuming it was connected to the lethal trigger phrase they tried to program him with.
He looked at the pale, drawn face.
Gibbs was trying to picture they way Tony had looked before all of the business with Jarvis and Latham.
He missed the large, genuine grin, and the eager, humorous expression he carried.
He sighed and shook his head.
"We'll get you back there, Tony. We will. Not gonna' let them win a damned thing," Gibbs promised.
He felt Ducky's hand on his shoulder.
"No, we're not."
Gibbs fell asleep in the chair in Tony's room after Ducky went home.
He didn't wake up even when the nurses came in to occasionally check on Tony.
The next morning, in Director Vance's office, Ziva, her arm in a sling, and McGee sat, tiredly going over the account of the mission.
"Gibbs is still at the hospital with Agent DiNozzo, who I understand may be released today."
"Yes, Director," Ziva said.
"It was good news we got, David, that DiNozzo will make a full recovery, given some time. Agent Gibbs will be taking leave for a few weeks, along with Agent DiNozzo, and you two will be temporarily assigned to another team until they're back."
They nodded.
McGee looked worriedly for a moment between Ziva and Vance, "Ah…Ziva, I mean Agent David, her shoulder-"
"She has a few more days leave as well after this, Agent McGee."
Ziva rolled her eyes in disgust at McGee, but secretly liked him looking out for her.
Vance leaned back in his chair.
"You two and the rest of the team, did an excellent job in stopping Latham, and helping us get the information needed to recover the microchips. I am confident that we will get them back."
He looked down and sighed, "The cost of all of this, was several lives, including that of Secretary Jarvis. Since I have yet to get my full debriefing from Gibbs, either of you care to recount what happened? Ballistics already showed Latham's gun shot the bullet that killed Jarvis, and Gibbs shot Latham."
"Are you saying there is a doubt cast on whether or not it was necessary for Gibbs to shoot Latham?" Ziva's eyes flashed dangerously.
"No," Vance shook his head. "Agent Gibbs is a seasoned professional, Agent David, and I am just trying to make sure I understand all the facts completely before I explain it all to our President."
She turned color a little, realizing she had been hasty.
"There were two shots fired, that we heard from outside the warehouse, and they came in rapid succession. I was unable to go to the warehouse because our men, Prince Ibn Alwaan and his men, and I, were pinned down by enemy fire." She gazed at him steadily.
"And before that, what did you see going on in the warehouse?"
"Gibbs…Agent Gibbs and Agent DiNozzo had Latham subdued, and Secretary Jarvis was talking with Latham. The Prince had gone back to his men at their vehicles."
"And…."Vance was trying to understand, because Gibbs had only skimmed over it, "how did Latham get the opportunity to shoot the SecNav, and what happened that caused Agent DiNozzo's…condition?"
Ziva's gaze did not waver. "I do not know, exactly, Director Vance."
"Try a little harder, Agent David."
"Somehow, Latham shot Secretary Jarvis."
"Yes, Agent David, I think we have established that fact already." Vance eyed her suspiciously. He knew Gibbs would never let Latham get the jump on him, and that DiNozzo had some kind of episode. He wasn't trying to crucify anyone for Jarvis' death…but he would be expected to explain it. It was likely, in his mind, DiNozzo's episode distracted Gibbs and things got out of hand.
McGee shifted slightly in his seat. He knew it might not be the best idea to have it in any reports that Tony had almost succumbed to brainwashing. If he stood any chance of coming back to work, he'd still have to pass a psych evaluation. And they didn't want to make it worse for him.
Vance sighed.
"Agent McGee, I know you were at the base, and on your way to the location when all this went down. Is there anything you care to tell me?"
"Uh, well…I think it's probably that Tony seeing Latham cause him to have a stress reaction. But after what they did to him…" McGee knew Vance needed some kind of explanation for his reports.
Vance stared at McGee for a while, while McGee did his best not to nervously look away.
Ziva tried not to smile because of how proud she was of McGee protecting Tony.
"Alright," Vance said, deciding to let them off the hook, "you two can go. I'm going to have a long day. And I need to talk to Gibbs before I'm in the hot seat again today."
As they got up, McGee hesitated.
"Director?"
"Yes, Agent McGee?"
"What about Kort?"
"After he departed with Latham's private chopper, we lost him in Kuwait. However, Kort apparently had his name on two of the LLC accounts connected to Latham, and immediately managed to get his hands on fifteen million, calling it in before he probably even left Kuwait. CIA is trying to track it now."
Ziva and McGee both looked angry.
"Ohhh, don't look so glum," Vance said, "slimy characters like Kort always turn up again, like a bad penny."