Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
A.N.: Thank you to Mrs. Elizabeth Gibbs, LadyJibbs, black widow mistress, sn855850 and YourFavoriteLabPartnerEver for reviewing!
Jenny, Gibbs, Tony, Ziva, McGee and Ducky stepped out of their cars, glancing up at the small building in front of them. This was where the Sec-Nav had hidden Leon Vance. Jim Spence, the second of the Sec-Nav's guards, had given them directions to this building, along with a detailed description of the layout and the key to let them in. The lock on Vance's cell was digital, so he had told them the number and they had given him the deal they had promised him. He was on his way to a state prison at that very moment. Tony and Ziva looked around the building for security measures or guards, while McGee and Gibbs walked up to the door. Ducky waited by his van, not wanting to get in the way of the rescue mission. He would be there if he was needed, but he hoped he wouldn't be.
Jenny stood with him for a moment, vacillating on whether she should follow or not. Gibbs hadn't wanted her to leave NCIS, her status as 'back from the dead' could have given them more trouble than it was worth if she had been spotted leaving with them, and the last thing they needed was the press present when they were rescuing Vance. She had popped on some sun glasses and twisted her hair up in a knot, putting an NCIS cap on over it to hide her hair and borrowing Ziva's NCIS jacket to look like a normal Agent. The press didn't know every Agent, so they hadn't had any reason to look too close at her. They probably didn't remember her telling them she had been a field Agent, so they were waiting for a well dressed and immaculate lady to step out of the building and address them.
She watched as Tony and Ziva finished scouting and rejoined Gibbs and McGee by the front of the building. They spoke and then the team all got into their positions and she decided that she couldn't just stand around and do nothing, she had been a great Field Agent; she could do what she wanted. Technically she had no rank now, so she wasn't any more important than the others. She could go with them and they couldn't complain about her putting her life in danger. She smiled at Ducky and he rolled his eyes, sighed and then waved her off after Jethro. Her mind was made up, and she wouldn't change it.
Jenny followed the team, ignoring the looks that Gibbs was giving her. She wasn't sitting this out; she needed to do something and saving the man that had taken over her Agency upon her 'death' seemed like the thing to do. Gibbs moved up to the door and Ziva took point at the other side of it. McGee produced the key that Jim had given them and turned it in the lock, and then retreated back so Gibbs could push open the door. Ziva entered first, then Gibbs, guns drawn and pointed in front of them. Tony went in next and Jenny followed him, pulling out her own weapon. Well, the backup gun that Ziva had passed to her while Gibbs wasn't looking. It was small, but then it didn't need to be a big gun to kill someone.
They leapfrogged down the corridors, checking each room as they passed them, but they saw no one. It was quite a shambles on the inside. The windows were boarded up so very little light was getting in, and water dripped from holes in the ceiling. The plaster was crumbling off of the walls, leaving bare brick in places and the floor was covered in debris, but that was why the Sec-Nav used it. It looked so run down and uninhabitable no one would think of looking in it for a cellar; which is where Vance was being held. They followed the directions they had memorized from the layout Jim had drawn for them, thankful he had been so attentive to detail. They would have missed their doorway if he hadn't told them it was covered by planks of rotten wood.
Tony pulled some of the planks away, the Woodlice (also known as Pillbugs), Termites and Springtails all ran from the disturbance, some burrowing into the wood, others dropping off and disappearing in the detritus covering the floor. Tony ignored the bugs, but Gibbs watched the termites carefully, glaring at the ones that moved in his direction, practically daring them to try and latch onto his boots for a ride home. No power on this earth would keep them alive if he found termites in his boat. Vance had damn well better be alive. He wasn't risking the life of his 'Kelly' for the guy to be dead. The doorway was uncovered quickly, and Ziva ducked through first, then Gibbs, then Jenny, then Tony. McGee stayed at the doorway as a sentry, should anyone stumble upon them.
In the room past the freshly uncovered doorway, was a relatively cleaner room with a trap door in the floor. This was where the rundown building showed the gems it was hiding. Ziva pulled open the trapdoor and Jenny and Gibbs pointed their weapons down the hole. There was no one there and they moved closer, shining a light down. A flight of wooden stairs greeted them and they looked at each other, both noting the clean floor. Someone was keeping this place clean. Were they in at the moment? Jim had told them of the security measures; the cameras and the occasional guard to feed the prisoners, but he had only been to the place three times, so he didn't know much about it. There were supposedly two men being held, one was Vance, the other was none of Jim's business, so they were clueless as to his identity and/or crime. They were walking in blind.
Jenny nodded to Gibbs and he moved down the stairs, Jenny close behind him. She wanted to be close enough to shoot at anyone that tried to kill Gibbs, but not too close so he couldn't fall back into cover. A fine line, but one they had walked many times. Jenny felt her heart rate increase as the thrill of the investigation really took hold of her. Maybe she could be an Agent again, maybe she could work with Gibbs… the thought was gone before it fully formed. She wasn't an Agent anymore, she was a Director. What would she do now? What if Vance was alive? She couldn't be Director again unless he gave it up, and that was highly doubtful. He had worked hard to get there, just like she had. She shook off her thoughts and brought her mind to the present.
Ziva and Tony followed her and Gibbs shortly after they disappeared from view, leaving the trapdoor open so they could get back out. For all they knew it only opened from the outside. They walked along a corridor that, quite frankly looked like it was straight out of a science-fiction movie. It was all shiny steel walls and floors, with block lights overhead, casting an even glow across the floor. The doors were unmarked so only people that knew where to go could make head or tails of the layout. It was very effective, since every now and then they passed a set of wooden stairs that looked exactly like the ones they had come down. They were to catch out trespassers; there was nothing above them, just a panel that looked like a trapdoor.
Gibbs counted each set of stairs, not needing to, because he had memorised the layout, it was just to keep himself calm. He didn't rattle easy, but the corridor looked exactly the same, like they were walking in a huge circle. Counting them made it easier on his mind because he had something to focus on. They were close, seven sets of stairs, not including the real ones, and then the room immediately right. He counted the seventh set with a small breath of relief, not wanting to actually sigh since it could rattle his team. Jenny made eye contact with him and widened her eyes in a tense way, showing she was relieved to have finally found what they were looking for. He returned the gesture, glad to have someone around that would understand him without asking.
Ziva and Tony took point around the door and then Ziva turned the handle, pushing the door open slowly. Tony ducked through and then Ziva. Jenny and Gibbs followed, and not a moment too soon. A shot impacted a few inches from Gibbs' head and he pulled Jenny through the doorway with him as he ducked and spun. She did the same and then laid on the floor next to him. They both ducked around the doorway and fired, their different heights making them more able to shoot without worrying about one of them not getting cover. The guard dropped his weapon as a bullet tore through his shoulder and then dropped to one knee as another tore through his calf. Once the threat was neutralised Gibbs helped Jenny to her feet and they both walked over to the guard. They secured him just as Tony and Ziva burst back through the door, coming to an abrupt halt once they saw the emergency was over.
"Argh… I told you it was nothing!" Tony grumbled.
"I would rather be thorough from now on Tony." Ziva said to him quietly, and his demeanour changed instantly. He didn't want to remember the things he had thought up as excuses to stop him and Ziva from looking for Jenny in LA. It had been stupid and unprofessional of him. He was ashamed of his behaviour and could very easily identify with how Ziva was feeling, that was why he had come running back too without complaint. He was very glad to see they were unharmed.
"Stay here with this guy; we'll go on to get Vance." Gibbs said, passing Tony and Ziva and walking through the door. Jenny walked with him, eager to get this job over with. They looked around the corner cautiously, looking at the steel room, with glass fronted cells. They all had digital locks with red lights on, showing they were locked. Jenny walked into the room first, looking carefully in each cell before moving on. Gibbs took the other side and together they looked through the twenty five cells. Vance and the mystery prisoner were right on the end, in the last two cells.
Leon looked stressed. His shirt was dirty, with small droplets of dried blood on it, his lip swollen and his eyes blood shot. He hadn't wanted to sleep, preferring to keep watch and try to take advantage of the guard's visits. Once he saw Jenny and Gibbs however, his eyes widened and then cleared. He knew he was rescued.
"I have never been so happy to see your sorry butt, Gibbs." He said, good naturedly. Gibbs nodded to him and tapped in the release code. The red light flashed and then went out, a green light flashed on and the mechanism released. The door opened and Vance walked out. "Well, I never thought I'd be seeing you again, Shepard." He said. Jenny smiled at him and then let out the other prisoner. She kept him at gun point and the four of them rejoined Tony, Ziva and the guard, then left the cellar. Going out of the trapdoor and then meeting with McGee was the high point of the trip. It was the moment all of the claustrophobia disappeared and they made their way out of the building.
Gibbs and Tony carried the guard to Ducky, while McGee cuffed the mystery guy and Ziva escorted Vance to a car. Jenny thought about going with Vance, but she couldn't face being trapped in a car with the smug man. She waited for Gibbs to finish with the guard and then approached him, wringing her hands slightly. She had a dilemma still. She needed to get changed into clothes that she hadn't been wearing for two days, but she had none, nor a house, nor any money. Until she got her life sorted out, starting with her job, she had nothing. She could only hope Jethro was serious about taking her home, so she could wash her clothes for tomorrow at the least.
A.N.: I think that the epilogue will be next. Thank you for reading and reviewing!
