Capturing Colin Maxon was something of an anti-climax. The passions of Kate and Gibbs were at such an intense pitch that finding their quarry calmly drinking a latte felt slightly unsatisfactory. Maxon submitted quietly and managed a polite apology to the other person at his table. As Gibbs frogmarched him away, Kate took the details of his companion who she suspected to be his next victim.

The observation room was crowded when Gibbs and Fornell began their interrogation. The Director was joined by Faith, McGee and Kate. Maxon had arranged for a lawyer to be with him but didn't ask her for any advice.

"Mr Maxon," said Gibbs, "We believe you are responsible for a number of investment frauds in the DC area."

"Yes?" said Maxon.

"Among others, we suspect that you persuaded James and Cynthia Villeneuve to invest $35000 in a fund which didn't exist. And we are aware of others who you duped," said Gibbs.

"I see," said Maxon.

"And we also believe," chipped in Fornell, "That you were responsible for a fraud perpetrated on Nicholas Villeneuve in Baltimore ten years ago."

"Hmm," said Maxon.

"And we will be contacting other police departments around the country to see if they have any similar unsolved crimes," continued Fornell.

Maxon nodded calmly.

"You had a good thing going," said Gibbs. "Picking your victims carefully. Making sure they invested money they could just about manage without so they'd be more likely to be too embarrassed to admit they'd been conned. You cultivated such a pleasant, down to earth persona that they couldn't help but trust you."

"Thank you," said Maxon.

"What?" demanded Fornell. "What do you mean, thank you?"

"What I said," said Maxon mildly. "I'm glad you appreciate the artistry of what I did."

"You admit it?" asked Gibbs in surprise.

"There seems little point in denying it. You already have James and Cynthia to identify me as their adviser and no doubt you will find other clients to testify."

"Clients?" hissed Fornell, "Is that what you call them?"

"In one sense of the word, they are," said Maxon earnestly.

"You seem very calm for someone facing a lengthy prison sentence," observed Gibbs.

Maxon leaned back in his chair. "You know, I suppose I am," he said ruminatively. "It has become a little boring."

"Boring?" asked Fornell.

"Yes, boring. Projecting this friendly, trustworthy face. Never doing anything outrageous, never doing anything which might make me stick in people's minds. You know, I couldn't even wear a brightly coloured tie or wear a distinctive cologne? And I couldn't stay in one place for too long because people might begin to remember me. I was always having to move on. It was quite unsettling."

"But rewarding," said Fornell.

"Yes. It was lucrative," admitted Maxon. "But I've never had a chance to spend any of it, you know."

"My heart bleeds for you," said Gibbs.

"Somehow I don't believe that," said Maxon. "But I thank you for the sentiment even if it is not sincerely meant. I will plead guilty. Offer to make reparation. Somehow I don't think I will be looking at the lengthy sentence you predicted."

"He may be right, Jethro," said Fornell.

"Yeah, Tobias. A good lawyer, a friendly judge, a sympathetic jury. Who knows, he could be out in a couple of years?"

"Guess so," said Fornell with a resigned shrug.

"Of course," said Gibbs, "Kidnapping a Federal Agent will add to the sentence. A lot!" He banged the desk and Maxon looked alarmed for the first time.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"We believe you sent emails to Commander Faith Coleman and Anthony DiNozzo Senior demanding that they do what you wanted in exchange for Anthony DiNozzo's freedom," said Fornell circling menacingly around Maxon's chair. "We think you saw Agent DiNozzo interviewing the Villeneuves. You recognised him from your days in Baltimore and you were afraid that he would have a head start on solving the case."

"So, you found out where he lived and that he was married to a JAG lawyer. And you found out she was defending a case very soon … you shouldn't have used your own phone to call JAG, you know," said Gibbs.

"You decided you wanted to get Agent DiNozzo out of the way," said Fornell.

"He might have killed him," said Gibbs thoughtfully.

"No!" said Maxon hastily. "I didn't kill him … I wouldn't do that; you have to believe me. I didn't kill him."

"I don't have to believe you," said Gibbs. "Tell me what happened. And we'll see what we believe."

"You're right," said Maxon. "I saw DiNozzo. I only just got out of Baltimore in time all those years ago – he was close to nailing me. I decided I needed to get him out of the way. Just for a couple of days; I had three really big clients waiting to sign on the dotted line and I didn't want to lose them. I found out where he lived, that he was married to a Navy lawyer. Looked up her cases and saw this Sutton one coming up. I figured a fake kidnapping would work two ways … DiNozzo would be out of the way and you'd all be too distracted to be investigating me."

"What do you mean – a fake kidnapping," said Fornell. "You saying that Agent DiNozzo hasn't been taken?"

"No," said Maxon. "I meant that I wouldn't have checked that Mrs DiNozzo had done what I asked."

"But then you found out that Sutton had pleaded guilty after all," said Gibbs.

"Yes," said Maxon bitterly. "That was bad luck. He'd held out for months. Why give up then?"

"So you decided on another approach?" asked Fornell.

"I knew you'd go all out to try and find him once the Sutton scenario failed," said Maxon, "I knew DiNozzo's father was a bigshot in New York so I figured a ransom demand to him would muddy the waters even more."

"But first," said Gibbs, "You had to kidnap Agent DiNozzo."

"I didn't do it," protested Maxon.

"No," agreed Gibbs. "But you got someone else to do it for you."

"It wasn't a kidnap," said Maxon.

"What was it?" asked Fornell leaning in closer.

"I just wanted him temporarily out of the way. So you'd stop your investigation," said Maxon.

"So, what did you do? Put the word out on the street?" asked Gibbs.

"Something like that," said Maxon. "I said he needed to be out of reach for a while. That's all."

"Enough!" roared Gibbs. "You hired Harry East to do it. We've got evidence of you together. And you paid him $5000 to do it. You knew him from Baltimore. You knew he had history with Agent DiNozzo. You found out where DiNozzo lived so East could stake out nearby and wait for an opportunity, didn't you?"

Maxon's self-assurance crumbled. "Yes, all right. But I wasn't there. East texted me to say he'd been lucky. He parked up somewhere out of the way and DiNozzo came out to run in the park. He grabbed him."

"Where is he now?" asked Gibbs.

"I don't know," said Maxon.

"You want to try that again?" asked Fornell.

"I don't know," repeated Maxon. "I didn't want to know. I just told Harry to take him somewhere for a few days."

"Why didn't you want to know?" demanded Gibbs. "Was it because you thought East might get his own back on DiNozzo?"

"I didn't ask him to do that," said Maxon firmly. "He was to keep him out of the way for a few days. I thought that, as he knew DiNozzo, he'd agree to do it for less money than other people. I said it would be best for him not to contact me."

"So, no violence?" said Fornell gently.

"No," agreed Maxon. "No violence."

"So tell me, Colin," said Gibbs silkily, "How did East get Agent DiNozzo into the van?"

"He hit him over the head," said Maxon reluctantly.

Faith gasped in the observation room. Kate patted her shoulder in sympathy.

"Where did East take him?" asked Gibbs.

"I don't know," said Maxon. "I'm telling you, I don't know. Look, I've admitted to the fraud. I've admitted I arranged for Harry to take Agent DiNozzo. But I don't know where Harry took him."

Gibbs and Fornell continued to press him but it seemed clear that Maxon was telling the truth when he said he had no idea where East might have taken Tony.

NCISNCIS

"McGee," said Gibbs when they reassembled in the squad room, "Background on East. Any clues where he might have taken Tony?"

"He was born and raised in Pennsylvania," said McGee. "Dropped out of high school. He did some work with a local veterinarian but he was sacked when he was done for shoplifting. Parents are deceased but he has an uncle living near Parenville."

"The van was stopped on the 1-70 West," said Kate, "That's the road to Pennsylvania."

"Does he own any property anywhere?" asked Gibbs.

"No, Boss. Not that can I see. He hasn't got much of anything."

"Keep looking. Both of you," said Gibbs.

Evening was drawing in on the second day of Tony's disappearance. Commander Coleman had just brought Tilly back from Day-care when Gibbs' phone rang. The others watched his face grow more and more stony as he listened to his caller.

"Send me the details," he snapped. "We're on our way."

"Gibbs?" asked Kate even as she reached for her gear.

"Patrol car spotted the van. Near a place called Laystoke on the edge of the Allegheny National Forest."

"That's great!" said Tim.

"East must have spotted them. He was spooked in some way and tried to get away. It was raining, the road was slippery … he went off the road and crashed," said Gibbs.

"Is Tony all right?" asked Faith.

"As far as they can tell, he wasn't in the van," replied Gibbs.

"Have they asked East where he is?" asked Faith.

"They can't," said Gibbs. "He's unconscious, pretty banged up. They've taken him to St Mary's Hospital in Pittsburgh. We'll go there now."

Faith looked around distractedly, trying to decide what to do.

"Go home, Faith," said Gibbs gently. "You can't do anything here. Matilda will be better off at home."

Faith looked as if she wanted to argue but she knew that Gibbs was right.

"All right," she agreed. "But do me a favour. Don't tell Anthony that I've gone. I can't cope with him as well." Gibbs nodded. "And call me when you know something."

"I will," promised Gibbs.

"Agent Gibbs," said Faith as he turned to go, "Are they sure Tony wasn't in the van? He's not lying in the road somewhere …"

"They looked," confirmed Gibbs. "And we will too."

Faith watched them go. "Come on, sweetie," she said smiling down at her daughter, "Let's go home. We'll watch Sesame Street."

"Twiddlebugs? Yay!" said Tilly.

"Or Grundgetta," said Faith who had an unlikely affection for the character with a fondness for trash.

NCISNCIS

Kate, McGee and Fornell were grateful they didn't have to endure Gibbs driving for 250 miles as they were able to talk their way on to a military flight to the Pittsburgh Air Reserve station. Kate and McGee had barely put their feet to the tarmac before Gibbs and Fornell were striding away.

"Tobias, you and McGee go to the crash site," said Gibbs. "Kate and I will go to the hospital." Fornell looked puzzled at the assignment. "McGee and Kate are both Probies, can't send them on their own," Gibbs explained.

"OK," said Fornell, "But why do I get McGee and you get Todd?"

"You can have Kate if you want," said Gibbs easily, "But she's argumentative. And she's got pointy elbows. But it's your choice."

"McGee," called Fornell, "You're with me."

Gibbs grinned as he saw McGee scuttle after the FBI agent but the smile faded when he saw Kate looking at him quizzically.

"Come on," he said.

It wasn't long, however, before Gibbs and Kate were on their way to join the others at the crash site. Harry East was still unconscious and, as far as his doctors could tell, likely to remain so for some time. Gibbs left a Pittsburgh police officer in attendance with strict instructions to contact him if East woke up.

Unsurprisingly, Gibbs and Kate reached the crash scene before the more careful Fornell and McGee.

"Boss?" said McGee when they arrived to find Kate and Gibbs already investigating the vehicle. "How did you get here before …" he trailed off when he encountered Gibbs' raised evebrow. "Sorry," he muttered, "Stupid question."

The rain which had contributed to the accident was still falling and the temperature was dropping as night fell. It was difficult to see much in the darkness but the MCRT concluded that Tony had not been in the van when it crashed.

"Any signs of where East's been?" asked Fornell.

"Some takeout coffee cups," said Kate, "and I think this is a wrapper from a burger." She held the greasy paper gingerly by two fingers before dropping it in an evidence bag.

"Some receipts from a drive through," said McGee, "near Parenville."

"OK," said Gibbs reluctantly. "We're through here." He nodded to the PA State Troopers who were waiting for NCIS to finish their inspection. "Police Department are going to tow the van to their HQ. Their forensics team will go over it."

"What will we do?" asked Kate.

"Find somewhere close to stay," decided Gibbs. "Tim, can you set up your computer here?"

"So long as there's wife," confirmed McGee.

"Good. You do searches to see if East has spent any money around here. Hotel rooms, gas stations – that sort of thing. Tomorrow, we'll drive around and see if we can find anyone who's seen East. We'll start on the road between Parenville and Laystoke."

"Good thinking, Jethro," said Fornell.

Gibbs nodded and led the way to their cars. They all left reluctantly, feeling uneasy about leaving the vehicle which had contained Tony sometime in the last couple of days.

NCISNCIS

Harry East had hit Tony hard when he jumped him soon after he started his morning run: this meant that it was late in the day before Tony began to come round properly.

Tony opened his eyes and groaned. His first thought was to wonder why he was so cold; perhaps they had left their bedroom window open too long or Faith had stolen his share of the comforter again. He groaned again as he realised he was lying on the hard ground rather than being in his bed at home … and that he had no idea where he was or how he had got there.

Tony lay there trying to remember what had happened. He remembered having a wakeful night with Tilly and finally deciding to cut his losses and go for a run in the hope it would wake him up a little. He recalled going through the gates of the park but things were a blank after that apart from some blurry memories of waking up fleetingly in a van which was on the move.

Trying to work out where he was, Tony listened hard. He could hear no traffic sounds and that suggested that he was somewhere off the beaten track. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness he was aware of a wall of bars in front of him. Tony struggled to his feet and lurched forward, puzzled that the room he was in was so big. It was only when he reached the bars that he realised that he was in some sort of outdoor enclosure. High above him the roof was covered over with a wire mesh.

"You're awake," came a voice from the other side of the bars.

Tony peered through trying to see who was talking but the figure was shadowy and the face seemed to be covered by a balaclava.

"Let me out," he ordered.

"Yeah. Sure," came the reply.

"Why am I here?" asked Tony.

"Don't you like a taste of your own medicine? Finding out what it's like to be in prison."

"You're in trouble, you know," tried Tony.

"Doesn't feel like it to me. I've been treated like an animal most of my life. It's your turn now." He turned and walked away.

Tony was alone again in what he now recognised as some sort of animal enclosure. He shivered again as he realised that his feet were bare and he was only wearing his running gear of tee and shorts. He walked to the rear of the enclosure and saw that a more sheltered area for the animals to sleep in had been closed off so he had nowhere to take cover from the weather. There was a trough which had some water in but there was no food.

Tony slumped to the ground as he tried to work out how to make his escape.

By mid-afternoon the next day, he still hadn't found a way out. His captor had appeared briefly in the morning but had just stared at him and walked away. Tony had thought he heard a vehicle drive off and he hadn't heard it return. He was tired, hungry, cold and bored. His head still hurt but the dizziness was getting better and he was feeling more alert. He tried to find comfort in the fact that his kidnapper had kept his mask on so presumably he was trying to keep his identity a secret and wasn't intending to kill his prisoner.

In the light of day, Tony had been able to see other cages and enclosures. They were all empty and Tony decided he must be being held in some sort of abandoned zoo and that perhaps his enclosure had been for some sort of big cat. As the rain began to fall, Tony lost patience. He had started to cough and feel feverish in addition to his other woes and he decided that he needed to find a way out. Shaking the rain out of his eyes he prowled the perimeter of the cage once more. He tried to dismiss the notion that this was probably exactly what previous occupants had done: he could only hope he would be more successful than they.

The zoo had seen better days. Tony suspected it had been abandoned for some years. The bars on his cage still looked strong, however and he couldn't dig his way out: the enclosure had been designed against that. As he looked up resentfully at the rain falling on him he noticed that the mesh which formed the roof looked as if it had rusted through in places. He gazed around his prison and spotted the water trough which was propped up against one wall. He pulled it out and found that it was long enough that he could use it to poke bigger holes in the netting.

After a few minutes he had punched a hole big enough to climb through; the problem was that the roof was too high for him to reach unaided. Tony coughed a few times from the effort and realised he should have made a hole nearer to the bars so he started work again. Sometime later he had made a gap by the bars. It was a long time since Tony had climbed ropes but he had to hope that scaling these bars might be similar: he took a deep breath and began.

It took a while, and darkness was closing in, but finally he was pulling himself through the hole and contemplating a sort of freedom. He dropped down outside his cage and began to plan the next part of his great escape. "Come on, Anthony," he said to himself, "If Steve McQueen could do it, so can you! Although," he added silently to himself, "McQueen had a motor bike!"