I unfortunately have a set a new personal record. Longest time between postings. Don't be mad…I have no intentions of doing it again and the story should be wrapped up in a few chapters anyway.
If any of you haven't given me up for dead yet, then thanks for sticking with me. :)
Gibbs entered Abby's lab and found her in her inner office, looking more than a little shaken. She had her arms wrapped tightly around Burt. Her music was off. Abby looked up at Gibbs and he silently held out his arms to her.
She flew into them and sniffed into his shoulder.
"Is everybody ok?" She asked, her voice muffled.
"They'll live."
"This is horrible, this is just awful."
Gibbs released her and led her back to her computer.
"I know Abs. Listen, video footage from the CIA will be here soon. Cal Baird will be on the tape though I doubt you'll be able to tell anything from it. I want you to look though and see if you can find out anything about him, any physical characteristics, whatever."
Abby nodded tearfully.
"You ok?" Gibbs inquired gently
"Yeah, I just need everybody else to be ok too. Where is everybody, I need to see them."
Gibbs kissed her temple.
"After you've reviewed the footage, you can go down to autopsy, but," her face lit up, "you'll need to be calm, don't jump anybody."
"Of course not!" She shook her head vigorously. Gibbs smiled as she got back to her computer to work.
"Yes, sir Mr. Secretary." Vance paused and looked up at Gibbs standing in his doorway. He waved for him to come in as he continued his conversation. "I know, sir. Yes, sir. Thank you."
Vance hung up and rubbed his eyes. "Sec Nav has given the green light to release the Bairds. He'll also push the paperwork though."
"Cal wants it by tomorrow." Gibbs said sitting down.
"We'll have it by the end of the day."
"I thought he would put up more of a fight."
"Yeah, me too. He doesn't really have a choice though, not with stuff like this happening."
"I talked to the officer where Mrs. Baird is being held. Her lawyer called Cal. Apparently they've been in contact."
"Waste of time to trace the number?" Vance said without any real hope.
"I'm sure it would be." Gibbs confirmed.
Vance sighed.
"I'm about to call the lock up to have them released. Any message you want me to relay?"
Gibbs rose slowly and headed to the door. "Tell Mrs. Baird this isn't over." He said opening he door to the outer office and leaving.
Gibbs entered Abby's lab again to find her music blaring once again and her staring intently at the screen.
"Find anything?"
He asked looking over her shoulder. Abby jumped and let out a little squeak.
"Gibbs! You scared me to death. Knock before you sneak and lurk." Gibbs smiled. "And no, I didn't find anything. I mean he dodged the cameras pretty well and the ones he couldn't dodge he hid his face from. I can give you height, weight, dress, but that's about it." She said dejectedly.
Gibbs nodded and steered her away from the computer.
"Where are we-?"
"I'm taking you to make sure everyone is ok."
Ducky lifted his head from the paperwork at his desk when he heard the door to autopsy swish open.
Abby rushed in followed by Gibbs. She looked around frantically
"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!"
"Here's Abby." Tony commented, bracing himself. He was lying on one of the table, under duress from older medical examiner, of course, trying to rest. Ziva was pacing and McGee was asleep and bandaged on the other table.
For a few seconds though, Abby appeared to short circuit, not knowing who to go to. She was almost turning in circles, then quickly threw her arms around Ziva, who was closest to her, next Tony. Then just as quickly she pulled back and ran to hover over McGee. She reached out her hand, but didn't touch him as though he might break.
"Ducky?" She said her voice quivering.
"He'll be fine my dear." He said coming to stand next to her.
"What's the verdict?" Gibbs asked Ducky.
I've bandaged everyone as best I can. I'll keep a close eye on Timothy, to make sure his head and burn wounds don't cause any problems. Is there any news on the shooter?"
"They're releasing his grandmother and brother right now. We'll deliver the papers exonerating them in the morning."
Ziva snorted in disgust. Gibbs turned to her.
"Problem, David?"
"I do not like giving in to terrorists." Ziva said stiffly.
"What are we supposed to do, Ziva?" Abby snapped still hovering protectively over McGee. "Wait until he kills someone?"
"I do not-."
"He won't be getting away." Gibbs said interrupting.
"You have a plan?" Tony asked.
"Working on it." He replied. "Abby go back to your lab and trace out the metro bus route of 2578. The papers have to be on there tomorrow and I want to know any place this guy can hide. Any place we can catch him."
"Ok." She said quietly, heading for the door, but not before giving Tony and Ziva quick hug.
Ziva started to follow her.
"Where are you going?" Gibbs asked catching her arm.
"Upstairs to work." She replied. "I am fine Gibbs." She said cutting him off before he could say something. She looked meaningfully at Ducky.
"I have to agree, Jethro. Ziva is certainly well enough for desk duty, assuming that is what she intends." He said giving her a sharp look. She raised her hands innocently.
"Of course."
"Fine." Gibbs conceded.
"Let me know if anything changes." He called over his shoulder as he left.
Ducky nodded, checked on his patients and went back to paperwork.
Gibbs and Ziva were met by Agent Shelby as soon as they arrived in the bullpen. Ziva glanced at him briefly before going to her desk. Gibbs sat down in his chair and pointedly ignored him.
"You still pissed at me?" Shelby asked coming to stand directly in front of his desk.
Gibbs didn't reply. Shelby sighed.
"I heard your Director is letting the Bairds go and providing them with exoneration papers." Gibbs looked up this time.
"That's right. Do you have a problem with that?"
"A little, yeah." Shelby said angrily
"I have two men downstairs who could have been killed by this guy and he has no plans of stopping." Gibbs said in a low voice.
"You think you're the only person to ever lose a man to him, Gibbs?" Shelby yelled slamming his hands on Gibbs' desk. "How self absorbed are you? I lost two agents to this guy in the Horn of Arica so believe me when I don't care how or who catches him as long as he's caught!"
"This will draw him out." Gibbs argued.
"You think he won't be watching! You think he won't know!"
"Think like he does, be one step ahead of him for once."
Shelby shook his head.
"I can't believe…is the Director in his office now?"
"Far as I know."
"I'll try to reason with him." Shelby glared before heading to the stairs.
Gibbs watched him walk away and then noticed Ziva searching her desk.
"Whatcha looking for?"
"My phone…oh! I left it in autopsy." She said rising. "I will be right back, Gibbs."
"Ducky! He's waking up. Come on, Probie." Tony coaxed, turning back to his friend. "Open your eyes."
McGee slowly blinked awake and let his eyes slide around, taking in the surroundings.
"What happened?" He asked softly.
"Do you remember the explosion?" Tony asked hesitantly, hoping he didn't remember yet what had happened right before said explosion.
Ducky tutted around while McGee brow furrowed.
"Yeah…I remember."
Tony swallowed. "I don't know what else you remember, but…"
McGee looked at him, puzzled.
Tony swallowed again. "I'm sorry, Tim that I…told Gibbs about…you know." McGee looked at him but Tony couldn't read his expression.
"It was my fault." A voice said behind them, causing the three men to jump.
"Jeez, Ziva!" Tony clutched at his heart. "We're going to have to get you a pair of heels so you can click around or a bell to tie on your shoes or something. Man!"
Ziva smiled evilly, then got serious again as she looked at McGee.
"It was my fault Gibbs knows, McGee. I spilled the rice."
"Beans, my dear, spilled the bean." Ducky patted her arm and headed back to his desk to give the three agents some privacy to mend their fences.
"How did you know?" McGee asked slowly. Tony winced. "I sort of…asked for her advice."
McGee eyes blazed with anger. "Why didn't you just take out an ad in the paper, Tony? Would have been just as fast!"
Tony looked down at his hands at a loss for what to say. Ziva winced, realizing she could have just made it worse. Still she plowed on.
"Tony and I were talking, looking for a way to help you," she said pointedly, "and Gibbs overheard us. Tony did not break your promise intentionally."
"He shouldn't have said anything, to you or anybody". McGee said stubbornly.
"He thought he was helping you, McGee." She said softly.
"I didn't ask for his help. McGee yelled.
Ziva studied him.
"I do not think you are not angry at Tony." She said suddenly. Tony's head shot up.
"What do you mean?" McGee asked. "Of course-."
"You are a little, but the majority of your anger is coming from somewhere else." She said cocking her head slightly to the side.
Tim didn't say anything for several moments.
"What is wrong?" Ziva asked quietly
"Gibbs." McGee replied.
"You are worried about what he will think?"
"Wouldn't you be?"
"Gibbs usually seems to know what I am thinking anyway." She shrugged.
"Putting it into words makes me sound…weak."
"No, it doesn't, McGee." Tony said quietly.
McGee shook his head. "Tony…I know…I know you didn't do it maliciously, but you don't know how important it was for Gibbs not to know that." He said desperately.
"Why?" Ziva asked bewildered.
"He's just too much like my dad. I didn't need him to know I was that needy."
"McGee, I do not know your father," Ziva said slowly, "so I don't know how he would feel, but I do not think that is how Gibbs will view the situation."
McGee sighed. "We'll see."
Shelby came back down from the Director's office looking more angry than when he went up.
"Let me guess, he said no." Gibbs smirked.
Shelby glared. "Would it be rude for me to tell you to shove it?"
"Yes. Come with me." Gibbs got up and headed to the elevators.
"Where are we going?"
"My team is downstairs, we're going to figure out exactly how to pull this off."
Gibbs made a call and a few minutes later his three agents and Abby were sitting around a table in autopsy looking at the route for the bus they would leave the papers on tomorrow.
Tony and McGee were both sitting in chairs pulled up to the table and McGee's arm was back in sling since his collar bone has been jostled in the explosion.
"So what are our options?" Tony asked.
"We can't have anyone anywhere he thinks they should be. It would be like suicide, not to mention bring the wrath of Cal Baird down…again." Shelby said. "As for him…he will mostly like be here, here or here." He circled promising hiding places with his pen.
"What about a tracking device in the briefcase?" Abby suggested. "Then you could just pick him later."
"Yeah like that won't be the first thing he looks for." Shelby snorted.
"They make them small enough that they are difficult to trace." McGee pointed out.
"They can all be found, or jammed, if you try hard enough or know where to look. Plus it wouldn't have a very long range." Shelby shook his head. "We could probably put agents here and here", he said pointing to the route, "with the least chance of detection."
Tony's face suddenly lit up. "We need to make sure he doesn't even look for the tracker."
Shelby threw up his hands. "We're done with the tracker. Of course he's going to look for one. Probably the first thing he does."
"What if he finds one?" Tony said mysteriously, still grinning.
"What is he talking about?" Shelby asked bewildered, looking at Gibbs who shrugged.
"Probably a movie." McGee offered.
"Bite your tongue, Probie! Not a movie." Tony said with mock offense. "The greatest prison film of all time!"
Any guesses as to which "film"? Thank so much for reading!
FYI: My inspritation for Cal was kind of a cross between the A-team, Burn Notice and Human Target. I'm just fascinated by characters who are so good at reading and manipulating people that they know what their target will do even before the target has made that decision. Always a plan. Anyway I hope that is how the character of Cal has come across.
P.S. I prefer it when said character uses that skill for good, hence A-team, but it makes pretty good villain too.