Here's chapter 15, sorry it took so long to get it up. A big thank you goes out to CelticCrossings, my beta, she does a great job with what I send her.

Gibbs stared at Tony for a few seconds while the news sunk in.

"Boss, I'm sorry." Tony apologized.

Gibbs gave Tony a smack on the back of the head. "You said you wouldn't apologize."

"Thank you, Boss."

"You did your job DiNozzo." Gibbs said, anger festering under the surface as he thought that Jenny had left their Caitie, their little girl. "And it sounded like you did a good one." There was a pause. "Who else knows about this?"

"I think it's only SecNav and I." Tony said, "If more people know, I wasn't told."

Gibbs nodded and looked over at DiNozzo. "Where is she?"

"She said she got an apartment in DC, I'm not sure where it is, she said she'd call my cell with the address tomorrow, or later today. I thought it best to tell you as soon as possible."

"I understand DiNozzo, and I'm not mad at you for keeping this from me."

"Dad?" Caitie's voice made him turn. "Is something wrong?"

Gibbs was speechless for a moment, how was he going to tell Caitie? "I just had to talk to Tony about the case Caitie; I didn't want to wake you." He finally said. Locking eyes with Tony for a moment he hoped Tony knew that he would tell Caitie in his own time.

Tony nodded quietly and got up. "We're done Caitie; I need to get going anyway. Boss, Vance said since I was working late tonight I could come in later tomorrow."

"That's fine DiNozzo. I won't even be in tomorrow. Thanks for telling me, about the recent developments in the case."

Tony nodded and walked down the hall of the hospital towards the entrance.

Gibbs got up and led Caitie back into the hospital room; they went to their separate beds and lay down. Gibbs looked over to his daughter as she went back to sleep. He mentally cursed Jenny and the spot she'd put him in. The fact that Jenny was still alive was bound to hurt Caitie.

"Dad?" The irony struck Gibbs at that moment; the day Caitie finally trusted him enough to call him Dad was the day Jenny came back.

"Yeah Caitie Cate?"

"Can you tell me a story?"

"A Princess Story?" Gibbs asked, Kelly had loved princess stories.

"No," there was a long pause. "About something else."

"Like what?"

"Not sure." Caitie yawned and he could hear her turning over in the cot.

"Well, there was once a Marine." Gibbs started. "Who had the best life, he had a wife, a little girl and he had a job he was proud of."

"What were his wife and daughter's names?"

"Shannon was his wife and Kelly is his daughter."

"What happened?"

"The Marine was deployed and life went on for Shannon and Kelly. Kelly had ballet lessons. Shannon had her knitting club, Kelly went to school, Shannon went to her job. Life was good."

"Why do I get the feeling something bad is about to happen?"

"Because it is." Gibbs said, "One day while Shannon and Kelly were on their way to Kelly's ballet lesson and Shannon witnessed a murder."

"That's horrible!" Caitie said, Gibbs ignored it, figuring her comments were just punctuation in his story.

"Shannon was really brave and reported the murder, but because of who committed the murder Kelly and Shannon had to go into Witness protection."

"What about the Marine, did he come back to find his family gone?" Caitie was sitting up now.

Gibbs took in a breath. Now he was getting to the hard part. "Shannon and Kelly were placed in witness protection but they were found and…." Gibbs couldn't say it.

"They died?" Caitie guessed after a long pause.

"Yeah. But the Marine, when he came home, he found out who killed his wife and daughter. He made him pay for his family's death."

There was a long pause, and Gibbs wondered if he'd scared Caitie with the story. But she finally spoke, with no fear in her voice. "Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"By made him pay, do you mean that you killed the man who killed Shannon and Kelly?" Gibbs was speechless for a few moments. "That's who Kelly is, isn't she? Kelly's my sister, right?"

Gibbs smiled to himself. "You're a lot smarter then you let on, you know that?"

Caitie laughed, "Yeah, Mom was the only one to know how smart I was and not expect the world of me."

"What do you mean?"

"When people know you're smart, they expect more from you, which is fine, but it's just hard when everyone expects more of you. It feels like you have to be someone else. With Mom, she knew how smart I am but she didn't expect me to get all A's or to be a few grades ahead of the kids I go to school with."

"Sounds like Jenny was a good mom." Gibbs said quietly.

"She was."

There was a long pause, about the time that Gibbs figured Caitie was asleep she spoke. "Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it weird that I already have a name picked out for my future daughter?"

"No, Shannon had Kelly's picked out since she was about your age." Gibbs said, he paused. "Although Tony would say that it might be weird depending on the name you like."

"Amelia Jennifer, with the nickname Amy." Caitie said, "Jennifer after Mom, and Amelia after a neighbor I had in Baltimore. Amy was her nickname."

"Was Amy in your grade?"

"No, she….she lived next door with her husband." Caitie said, regret plagued her voice, he could hear her sigh. "The home Grandmother lived in was one of those duplexes, where it was like two houses shoved up against each other and they shared a wall. My bedroom shared a wall with their bedroom." There was a long pause. "I could hear him, he yelled at her a lot and threw stuff." Another pause. "She died a few years ago, she finally succumbed to the beatings."

Gibbs' heart clenched, his daughter had been scared and he hadn't been there to help her. You're here now. His conscience surprisingly sounded like Samantha Ryan.

"Caitie, come here." He moved over as far as he could on the bed.

"Where?"

"The bed."

"Why?"

Because we never got to experience you climbing into bed because of nightmares. Gibbs thought, surprised at his sudden anger at Jenny. It seemed that he was less angry at her if she was dead. "Because when you're feeling sad you shouldn't sleep alone." He finally said.

"Okay." Caitie got up and climbed onto the bed, he could tell that Caitie was laying on top of the covers instead of getting under them. Caitie snuggled up next to him and sighed happily.

"Goodnight Caitie." He whispered.

"Goodnight Dad."

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