Gibbs had expected the same 1930's style hospital that he had known from his childhood. Instead he found a building that was no more than five years old when he parked his truck in the hospital parking lot.

Once he walked in, Gibbs walked straight to a desk where an admitting nurse was typing at her computer. A wall of glass separated him from the nurse. Gibbs had to get her attention because she didn't seem to hear him come in.

"Excuse me; I need to go to the morgue."

The nurse looked at Gibbs like that was a strange statement, but pointed down a hallway toward the elevators.

"The morgue is in the basement."

Gibbs said nothing in reply and instead just walked to the elevator.

As the elevator lowered to the basement, Gibbs stomach dropped and Gibbs felt tears forming in his eyes. He shook it off though, he didn't want the coroner to see that he was about to cry.

When the doors opened Gibbs found a small hallway with chairs lining the wall. It was a waiting area Gibbs figured as he opened another door straight in front of him. There he found a set up almost identical to the one at NCIS. The ME however was a tall burly man who was no older than 45 years old. The ME looked up from his sink and turned to Gibbs.

"Can I help you sir?"

"My father was brought here this morning."

The ME looked at a clipboard hanging on a hook on the wall. "Jackson Gibbs?"

Gibbs nodded gently. The ME coughed and walked to ward the wall lined with body coolers. "If you give me a moment I can lay him on one of those tables."

Gibbs looked at the body table closest to him and then brought his attention back to the ME. "No this is fine."

The ME gave Gibbs a look similar to the one the nurse gave him, but pulled open the body cooler and brought the slab halfway out. "I'll give you some time alone." He said and walked away.

Gibbs watched the man leave the morgue and then looked down at the body lying on the coolers slab. This was the first time his attention was completely on his father. Gibbs tried to form words but couldn't. Instead he just stood there with tears rolling down his cheeks.

At the Navy Yard Bishop, Tony, and McGee stood in front of the plasma screen closes to Gibbs desk. The case that they thought would be a cinch turned out to be a head scratcher.

"So we have a dead Admiral shot once, in the forehead with a clean shot. No witnesses." Tony said.

McGee added. "He was last seen alive with a woman at 10 pm. No one saw the woman leave."

Bishop continued, "The motel room is covered in multiple finger prints any of which could belong to our shooter. The weapon wasn't found and we have absolutely no incriminating evidence because everything we found is circumstantial and we didn't recover a bullet that we can match to a weapon we don't have. Has this happened before?"

McGee shifted his weight. "Not really. Gibbs wouldn't allow it."

Tony clicked the clicker and a picture of the crime scene appeared. "Where is Gibbs?" Tony tapped the clicker on his chin. "Walking campfire!"

Bishop looked at McGee quizzically. McGee just rolled his eyes and started to follow Tony who was walking to the back elevator to take it to Autopsy.

When the three entered Autopsy they found Ducky looking at the X-Rays on the light board attached to one of the walls.

"What do you got, Ducky?" Tony asked walking faster than his fellow agents.

Ducky had his hand on chin and his full attention on the X-Rays. He was muttering something inaudible. Ten seconds of silence followed and finally Ducky spoke loud enough for all four to hear. "It doesn't make any sense."

"Yeah we have two boxes of evidence and none of it is incriminating. We we're hoping you could help us out with that." McGee said, walking around an autopsy table.

Ducky walked from the wall closer to the group. His accent sounded stronger than usual as it normally did when he was frustrated. "I was hoping that too. However our Admiral was in perfect health for a man of his age, and the trajectory of the bullet wound suggests the shooter was roughly five eight. The pooling of the blood also suggests that the body was moved forward. That would explain the missing bullet."

Bishop raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me, Ducky. Are you saying you think that the shooter moved the body forward and took the bullet?"

Tony looked down at Bishop and then at Ducky. "That bullet would have brain matter and blood on it."

Ducky shook his head. "It would be a gruesome sight."

"Got to hand it to the shooter, they were certainly dedicated." McGee said sounding slightly impressed.

Ducky shifted the clipboard in his hands. "Have any of you spoken to Jethro today?"

The agents looked at each other. McGee was the first to answer. "No we haven't. We're starting to get concerned."

"Join the club. Of all of Jethro's personality traits I find this particular one the most frustrating."

Bishop looked at everyone in wonder. "This has happened before?"

Tony looked at the probie. "It occurs about twice a year sometimes three depending on whether or not Jupiter is in retrograde."

Jackson's house was so quiet that Gibbs could only hear his footfall's on the floor. The house was the house he grew up in and he knew every inch of it the way he knew his own. Gibbs walked into the kitchen and surveyed it as if he were at a crime scene. One thing that stuck out to him was the cabinets. They were the same type of wood, Oak and the same color, stained dark brown that Gibbs knew from his childhood. Only the doors on the cabinets had different indentations and carvings. The edges were pointed and sharp whereas the ones from Gibbs childhood had rounded edges. Gibbs found himself wondering why it was that his dad had to replace the old doors and also how he was able to match the rest of the cabinets so well.

Matching wood color for color and wood was not very easy especially when you're trying to match old with new.

DiNozzo and McGee had run out of theories and possibilities and decided to go back to the Park Place Motel. Bishop had gone home because her husband wanted her to go out to eat with him and two of his clients.

The two agents staged the crime scene photos around the room where they found every piece of evidence. Also they had one of Abby's forensics dummies laying on the blood in the same way they found the Admirals body the first time around.

"Okay Tim let's look at this crime scene like it's the first time we've been here. If we missed something the first time we should re-go over everything"

Ducky went home at the same time that he always did unless work prevented it. His new house, the one he moved into after his dear Mother passed, was the way he left it. Yet as Ducky took off his coat he couldn't help but have the eerie feeling that he wasn't alone.

Stepping lightly and with caution, Ducky eased into his kitchen.

Quickly he turned on the light switch to his right and gasped, caught off guard.

"Jethro!"

Gibbs sat at Ducky's kitchen table with a file lying in front of him. Gibbs had his left elbow on the laced table cloth and his hand placed on his head, lining the span of his cheek.

Ducky cocked his head wondering if his friend realized that he was there or even that the light was on. While thirty seconds ticked by Ducky studied Gibbs and recognized an expression that he had seen on Gibbs only once before; the same expression Gibbs harbored after waking from a coma with no recognition of who Ducky was. A combination of fear and confusion.

When the time passed, Gibbs finally moved as though he moved his feet under the table. He lifted his head and took his hand off his cheek.

"My dad died, Duck." He said, forcing the words out.

Ducky tensed, and let out a sigh. "I'm so sorry, Jethro."

Gibbs nodded. "I knew it would happen. But I didn't think it would be this soon." By now Gibbs was choking up. Ducky went to his friend and put his hands on his shoulders for comfort. Gibbs put his own hand on Ducky's left hand. Ducky stayed silent, as he knew that is what Gibbs wanted.

After a few minutes Gibbs finally spoke again. "How did you take it so well? When you're mom died?"

Ducky took his hands off Gibbs shoulder and pulled out the chair next to Gibbs and sat down. "I don't think my mother's death can be fairly compared to your father's, Jethro."

Gibbs swallowed but then gave Ducky a look that said that he wanted an explanation. Gibbs was good at that, saying anything with no words and just a look.

Ducky added, "My mother's Alzheimer's was almost unbearable for me to even see. I shudder to think what it was like for her in her last year on this Earth. When she died I found solace in the fact that she was free of that terrible disease again. You can find no such solace, Jethro."

Gibbs picked the file from in front of him and handed it to ducky who took it curiously. "It's the report from the County Coroner. The ME could use a fresh set of eyes."

Ducky opened the folder and gave it a glance, "This is the ME's copy."

Gibbs flashed a super quick smile. Ducky knew Gibbs was feeling better. The look on Gibbs face now was the look of deviousness. It was a quick look of deviousness but deviousness nonetheless.

Please review.