Chapter Six

Sunday

Tony was glad to finish up and place on Gibbs' desk the U.S.S. Bush reports so he could finally run some follow up checks on Petty Officer Anderson's vacationing/moved neighbor, Mr. Eddie Callum. He was also glad to take a little more ibuprofen. Gibbs had kept him up late after the movie, which he hadn't needed McGee's help with after all thank you very much, drinking more beer and moving on to shots of bourbon after everyone else had left. They hadn't mentioned whatever their campfire plans were, and Tony hated to admit he was grateful for that. It was just a nice night with his 'family' despite the deeply surreal elements; watching The Big Lebowski in Gibbs' living room, Gibbs having asked Abby to bring it (curious after Tony's reference that morning), and finding Gibbs' ugly couch more comfortable than usual… at least as compared to Tony's lack of even an ugly couch.

Tony thought he remembered Gibbs drawing out the plans to some kind of California King sized drawer-sided platform bed frame, but by then things were a bit fuzzy. Next time I should just ask him if he wants me to stay overnight in the guest bedroom instead of us tying one on… save us both a headache in the morning. Assuming Gibbs has a headache? Didn't look like it this morning over pancakes. Hmm, he wasn't drinking nearly as much as me. Sneaky bastard.

He heard the elevator ding and looked up, curious who was joining him on the empty MCRT floor… and hoping they stayed quiet.

Tim, Ziva and Gibbs had agreed to meet at work about an hour after Tony's arrival. Tim and Ziva didn't have as much paperwork to catch up on, but thought DiNozzo would appreciate a decent lunch being brought in. Something better than the "four kinds of breakfast cereal" he'd bought the night before, as he'd proudly said of his shopping expedition. Tony had told them how he was feeling more confident financially after his recent sales and paycheck, but still had a strict budget to follow for six months before he'd start splurging on meals out like he used to. And even then he'd keep it to a minimum for at least five years, to re-amass his hypothetical retirement fund. He'd shaken his head with a grimace at Tim last night, "Just because I don't think it'll happen doesn't mean I shouldn't budget for it, just like you said Tim. When you're right, you're right McPlanner."

Tim had tried to play down the pride he felt at those words. Convincing Tony to do something he didn't see the need for was usually a pointless undertaking… unless Gibbs ordered him to of course.

Ziva had picked McGee up, having rolled her eyes when promising to use her "snail-driving" skills the others were so proud of her for developing. Tim, pleasantly un-nauseated, caught up on some searches he'd put into place last night as they pulled into the NCIS parking lot.

They'd found quite a few important and well-known investors involved in the Excelsior Palace Resort and Casino, which had initially attempted to use live-online casino gambling in order to get around Saudi Arabia's strict prohibition against gambling. Considering Prince Omar ibn Alwaar himself was against any gambling connection it was no surprise the development had quickly switched to a plan B: Excelsior Palace Resort and Spa.

The agents had found several investors with dubious and shady financial practices that could be exploited, but Gibbs had eventually ruled that out. They weren't going to stoop to blackmail on one shady character to get at another. Besides, the more they researched the Prince beyond what they knew from his brief visit to retrieve his sons from D.C. a couple of years ago, the more he looked like a better angle. Not only a stern and imposing man, but also highly ethical in his own way, having ended several business deals upon discovery of illegal practices. Also potentially useful, his investment group did indeed hold the sponsorship for Mr. DiNozzo's business visa.

McGee continued checking the status of all elements on his PDA as he and Ziva approached security. He wanted to finish up so Tony didn't snoop as usual and accidentally see something the SFA was a bit sensitive on, according to Gibbs. Ziva opened her bag of gyros she had brought for the team's lunch and handed out extras to two of the security officers always on duty on Sundays. She laughed as she instructed them not to eat the third officer's lunch before he got back to his duty station.

Tim froze as he was returned his gun and electronic devices by the officers, wondering if the scanner had damaged the device or search settings. Double-checking, he stared wide-eyed at Ziva as he frantically dialed Gibbs. "Answer Boss, answer…"

Gibbs, having already arrived, paused to answer his phone while heading up the stairs to the bullpen, "Yeah, Gibbs."

"Boss! You know how you had me tracking Mr. DiNozzo's movements via flights and cellphone? Well nothing popped up on flights, but customs pinged his name just now, and his cellphone has come back on - in D.C. - it's inside NCIS Boss!"

"Shit." Gibbs hung up as he double-timed it up the last flight of stairs.