A/N: I have time to post another chapter. More questions answered and more questions posed. I am so glad you are reading and telling me. It inspires me to write more. Sheila

A Man Left Behind

Chapter 2

"I'm an American, Paolo. I told you that the first day. I came here on a mission to rescue two American teen-agers, nothing more."

"I don't understand, McGee."

"You've been in this hole too long, but you probably know enough. We have a small consulate here. Additionally, we have a very small Naval research station. They are tasked with observing Naval movements in the Southern Hemisphere. It has been here for 45 years without incident."

"I know of this place. I used to protest its existence. It threatened our sovereignty."

McGee smiled. Paolo was a leftist to the end. "You probably heard that we had destroyers in the area on a training exercise, and there was an incident. Fishing vessels wandered into the exercise, and two large boats were sunk. 35 people were killed."

"Yes, I heard. Even the prisoners here condemned the Americans."

"Emotions were high, and the consulate was evacuated in the night. The research station tried to hold off until morning. Two children of Naval personnel were on a school trip. Crowds surrounded the station, and a mob broke through in the early hours of the morning. 7 Americans were murdered. Another 23 were able to escape in waiting helicopters."

"It was wrong for those Americans to be murdered just as it was wrong for U.S. ships to do war games in our waters."

More screaming drifted up from the courtyard as a tormentor tortured Cantu with threats against his children.

"McGee!"

"The two children never made it back from the school trip. They were hiding in the home of the Spanish consulate. The Navy was already under international pressure to leave the area and couldn't help. The Spanish ambassador agreed to keep them for only one week. He did not want to risk the safety of his people. After one week, he said he would turn them over to Berumian officials."

"Coward!"

"Yeah, we thought so too. The problem was brought to NCIS. This means Naval Criminal Investigative Service. I am a special agent there, not a spy. Primarily, we investigate domestic crimes involving Navy personnel, but we do have the power to operate internationally as well."

The courtyard had grown quiet, and for a moment, McGee imagined that the whole thing was over, but then came the hysterical babbling of a man begging for the lives of his children.

McGee shook the sounds out of his head. "I came up with the solution. Interdyne Industries is an American technology company that moved offices here twenty years ago. The president of Berumi and the CEO had gone to school together. There is a complex treaty that allows Interdyne to operate in Berumi regardless of the state of U.S.-Berumi relations."

"I know the company well. They pay workers well, but they are also corrupt."

"I have a friend who is an executive at Interdyne. I had an idea that we would go in to the country as Interdyne employees and bring the children out. It was a difficult situation because Interdyne had to stay neutral in this situation. My friend agreed to help us without informing the CEO of the company. We had very little time, and he was only able to find two identities to use. I went in a project manager and my boss went in as one of my team and also as the father of these two children. We were only supposed to go in, grab the children, and return to the airport."

"Such plans never go smoothly."

McGee sighed. "My Interdyne friend worked with my team to intercept all communications between Interdyne and Berumi. It was a good plan. When we arrived at the airport, Berumian officials were our escorts to the Spanish embassy. We'd convinced them that the children were friends of the ambassador's children, and we had to return them to the U.S. The officials wanted to confirm everything with the local Interdyne office by taking us there the next day, and we couldn't do that without exposing ourselves so the plan was for one of the children to feign illness. We had medical records showing that she had a history of kidney disease. My boss coached her all night long on how to mimic the symptoms of a kidney infection. Then we called Berumian officials and said it was imperative that we get on the next British Airways flight out so we could get her to her kidney specialist. It worked. They rushed us to the airport in the early morning hours."

"You were so close, my friend."

"It was at the airport that it all started to unravel."

…..

"I'm glad you called. You've been avoiding me."

Gibbs leaned over the railing at the Anacostia River. "Been busy."

"You look like hell, Jethro."

He turned his head. "Why didn't the plan work, Tobias? It was a good plan."

Fornell shrugged. "The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry."

"We were at the airport. They'd done all the checks. We'd even survived the call to the Interdyne CEO's office that Pierce and Abby intercepted. We were just waiting for the flight."

"What happened then?"

"McGee was texting back and forth with Abby and Pierce while I sat with the kids. He was the mastermind. He knew the technologies well enough to pass as an Interdyne executive. I just played the part of the dad. That was my mistake. I should've retained more control."

Fornell sighed. "Come on, Jethro. You can't take all the risks. What happened?"

"No one really knows. We had 60 minutes before boarding, and the girl was moaning her kidney infection like an Oscar contender. McGee got a look on his face. Pierced had texted him that Berumian officials contacted the Interdyne CEO again, and they had been unable to intercept it. He worried that the CEO would blow our cover. Then he got another text from Pierce. There was a Swissair flight taking off in ten minutes, and somehow he'd secured tickets on that flight as well. They weren't watching us closely. All we had to do was walk past our gate and get on the Swissair flight. We'd be in the air before anyone knew better."

"Pierce sounds smart."

"Yeah. He's also a handsome charmer who relished his role as a secret agent a little too much for my liking," Gibbs said. "I signaled to McGee and we started walking the two kids to the Swissair gate. Then one of the officials called for McGee. Said he wanted to confirm something. The kid looked at me, and I tried to think of a way to stay back instead of him, but he had all the answers and we had these two kids."

"You were in a tough spot."

"McGee said it was going to be just fine. Said they probably just needed to ask a couple more questions. I knew that I had to get the kids on the Swissair flight, and so I let him walk off with the official. I put the kids on the plane, and I thought about getting off and going for him, but I couldn't trust that the kids wouldn't panic and follow or that the flight wouldn't get delayed because I walked off. I couldn't risk it. I sat there like an idiot and held my breath, waiting for him to board."

"He never showed."

"The airport is small. I could see into the terminal windows as the plane taxied away. McGee was still there arguing with officials. Then I saw two armed men pushing him against the glass hard. That's the last thing I saw before the plane took off."

"And no intelligence since then?"

"Nothing, Tobias. Nothing."

"Man, you're carrying this deep, aren't you?"

"Somehow, it feels even worse than losing Kate. Maybe, it's because I knew him longer or because I've always felt protective 'cause he came to me as such a kid. I don't know."

Fornell shook his head. "It might be some of those things, but this is also about leaving a man behind. My guess is that you see his face every time you close your eyes and it's eating a hole in your gut."

"Why did they have to call the CEO again? I don't get it."

"Does it matter, Jethro?"

"Today, Abby told me that Pierce was the one with the idea for the Swissair tickets. She said that getting them on short notice went very smooth."

"What bothers you about this?"

"Pierce gave her the credit for the tickets."

Fornell shrugged. "He's a modest guy?"

"There's nothing modest about that guy. He's all politician. Yet, he gives the credit away for the one action that probably saved our lives."

"Your famous gut feels off."

"Everything about me is off. I can't tell if there's something here or if I'm just wishing there was."

"You want me to look into it."

"Yeah, and I want you to get me close to Trent Kort. The CIA undoubtedly has ears and eyes on the ground in Berumi, but I can't get any intel. Kort is avoiding me like the plague, and I'm a day away from kidnapping the S.O.B. and beating the information out of him."

"I'm sure he doesn't want you crashing one of his ops."

"Tobias, in the last two months, I have been called selfish, lost, and shortsighted. I have been told repeatedly that there is a bigger picture and that the life of one NCIS agent is the price we have to pay. I have watched this destroy my team, and I have been too paralyzed by my own guilt to do anything about it. I can't listen to all the noise anymore. My gut tells me that we're not doing everything we can to find my agent."

Fornell nodded.

"I don't care about my job or my retirement. I'll serve jail time. Hell, I'll trade places in Berumi with him. It would be a frickin' relief. I just have to know what happened to him. I have to know."

He put a hand on Gibbs' shoulder. "It's okay, Jethro. I got this."

…..

It was late in the afternoon when a series of staccato shots sounded in the courtyard. McGee's head jerked up at the noise, and then he let it settle again with his cheek cool against the clay floor. "I'm sorry, Paolo."

"It's okay, McGee. I am relieved."

McGee breathed in deeply. "I almost wish I were him."

"Your destiny is a different one."

He lifted his face and looked through the hole into Paolo's deep brown eyes. "You've heard my story. What is my destiny? Why am I still alive? What do they want?"

The older man gave him a sad smile. "They don't know. I am sure Saldana's men are arguing over the possibilities. They are storing you here for a big finale."

"Sometimes, I let myself imagine that my government is negotiating for my release."

"No, my friend, don't do that to yourself. Saldana hated the U.S. long before the 'incident'. He has no interest in negotiating anything with Americans. He is simply unsure of how to best utilize your demise."

McGee snorted. "You are a great comfort, Paolo."

"You must prepare yourself. Hope is a dangerous commodity for people like us. I know that one day soon, the door to my cell will swing open and I will have to face the savages in the courtyard. I have nothing to prove. I will give them what they want and then I will join my God. I have very few feelings left on this matter."

"I don't know if I can do that. I come from people who don't give up…ever. I have to leave room for a different possibility."

"Americans!" He spat. "All of your movies have to have happy endings."

"Admit it, Paolo. This American has really started to grow on you."

A hoarse laugh exploded through the opening. "Yes McGee, you are an American who grows on me very much."

…

Ducky looked up from his desk and found Gibbs staring at him. He put down his pen. "How many hours are you averaging at night?"

"You're going on a trip, Duck?"

He closed his eyes. "Mr. Palmer is incapable of keeping secrets."

"I hear you're on your way to Berumi."

He nodded. "I am waiting for the final approval from the International Committee. They will be traveling there for a human rights mission next week. It seems Saldana wants to prove what a benevolent dictator he is."

"Does the committee know what you are really after?"

"They know enough. I wrote out an affidavit explaining McGee's mission there. They are considering his situation as a legitimate human rights violation."

"Vance will have your head."

He shrugged. "The most he could do is take my job. It is a small price to pay."

"You didn't talk to me."

Ducky sighed. "You are like a ghost these days, Jethro. The fact of the matter is that I am doing this for you as much as for Timothy."

"Don't count me out yet."

"Good! I've been waiting for you to say that. You're not going to stop me from going, are you?"

Gibbs shook his head. "It's past time for action, but you remember how much you mean to us. Please don't be foolish. Our pain is already unbearable."

The old Scot smiled. "Of course, old friend."

"I need a favor, Duck."

"Anything."

"You still talk to Penelope Langston?"

"Yes, but I have steered clear since this has all happened. Vance was very clear on his directive to not inform the family."

"It's time to break another rule."

"Are you sure?"

"It's time to shake things up. Can't get any worse for Tim than it already is. She needs to get me in touch with the admiral."

"You know what they say about sleeping giants."

"Just do it," Gibbs said before turning on his heels and striding out of autopsy. Ducky breathed a sigh of relief. It was good to see some energy in the man's step again.

…

"How are things with your new boyfriend?"

Ziva looked up from her desk. "Tony, please don't."

"He's a looker. I'll give you that, but the Ziva I know isn't fooled by a pretty face."

"Stop it."

"When were you going to tell us about your little trip next week, Cassia?"

She froze. "Are you spying on me?"

"Yes," he said softly, never wavering in his gaze.

Her eyes got red and for a moment, it looked like she was going to explode.

"We're a team, Ziva."

"I won't leave him there. I can't. You didn't leave me behind. I have an obligation. I have to find out what happened to him."

"You're not invincible. Maybe, your dead body joins his. What then? How will I even breathe if that happens? There won't be anything left for me to care about."

Her eyes stung with tears. "Tony."

"Berumi is only 67 miles from the coast of Brazil. I'm going to rent a fishing boat and sail in. We can join up. Name a beach, and I'll be there. Deal?"

She got up, hair falling over her eyes and came over to him, putting her arms tightly around his neck. "Shhh, Tony! You know I need to do this."

He spoke through her hair. "I don't really look Berumian, and it's a little late to learn Portuguese, but that's not going to stop me. If you go, I go."

She stroked his hair. "I will be safe. I promise you that."

He shook his head as he pulled her into his lap. "It's not possible, Ziva. No one is safe there."

"But we can't live like this, ahuvi sheli. We won't be right until we do something."

"I know," he said, rocking her gently. "What does ahuvi sheli mean?

Gibbs walked into the bullpen and stopped short. There were few things more inappropriate than what he was viewing at this moment, but he felt no compunction to yell. They were waking up. All of them were waking up. He waited another moment before clearing his throat.

Two heads popped up, and Tony shoved Ziva off his lap unceremoniously. "Boss!"

"DiNozzo, you remember a few months ago when we had that case with stolen Treasury bills? You talked about some classmate of Tim's that the two of you ran into. I want you to go visit him. See if his recollections of MIT are the same as our friend, Pierce's."

"Gibbs." Ziva stood.

He pointed at her. "You go with him and listen good. You're not going anywhere with Laurent Pierce until we have all the facts."

…

"Zombies?"

McGee nodded. "Zombies."

"Do you want me to beat you harder?"

McGee rubbed the blood from his mouth on his shoulder. "It doesn't matter. You will do what you do."

"The U.S. does not have zombie soldiers."

He grunted as he tried to adjust the placement of his hand tied tightly behind his back. "Your men believe me. Look at them. They know zombies are real. They know the U.S. has powerful technology."

The interrogator looked at his men sharply. "It is a lie!"

His men shifted uneasily.

McGee licked at the blood trickling off his lip. "We are developing zombie armies. Think of it. They feel no fear. They can walk underwater. They will eat you alive."

"Zombies are easy to kill," said the interrogator trying a different approach.

"You have to shoot them in the head at least twice. Don't believe the movies. We have done real research. It is almost impossible to shoot accurately when ten of them are advancing on you all at once."

The soldiers started murmuring amongst themselves. The interrogator turned on them. "Silence!"

"It is still top secret, but I have worked with the Colonel developing his army. He is L.J. Tibbs. It is a strong piece of intelligence for your superiors to have."

The man slapped him across the face hard. "Enough!"

McGee's head lolled on his shoulder.

"Tell me something real. Now!"

He lifted his head slowly. "You don't understand the principles of interrogation very well, Shakespeare. I can call you that, right? I can't believe your mother named you after the greatest writer to ever live."

"Shut up, American!"

"Which is it? Shut up or talk?"

"Give me real information or I will push you over and my men will kick you in the head."

"Did your mother understand the consequences of giving you that name? Surely, she didn't realize it would lead you to a life such as this."

"Talk!"

McGee shook his head slowly. "Torture is useless for this. Let me explain. I will either tell you something real because I know something or I will lie because I don't want to be hit anymore. You have no way of knowing the difference. You only use torture when you already know the answer you seek. Torture is best used for confirmation. What you're doing is simply abuse with no resulting benefit."

"Do you wish to die today?"

"Is that your decision to make, Shakespeare? What if you hit me too hard and I don't wake up? What would Saldana say? Would you end up taking a trip to the courtyard?"

"It is like talking to an idiot."

"I feel the same, Shakespeare."

The interrogator slapped the wall. "Get him out of here!"

…..

"Hi Boss."

Gibbs lifted his head off the pillow and squinted into the dark. "McGee?"

The young man smiled. "Time to get up. I brought you coffee."

"Oh God! I'm so relieved. When did you get back?"

"It doesn't matter." He handed him a cup.

Gibbs brought to his lips and then sputtered. "Damn! This is bourbon. Why are you giving me bourbon?"

McGee sighed. "So Tony doesn't drink it. Tony is at a crossroads, and we have to help him make the right decision."

Gibbs sat up and put the cup on the nightstand. "It's been rough since you've been gone. I've blamed myself. "

"I don't blame you, Boss. There was nothing you could've done."

"You've always forgiven me all my excesses…even when I didn't deserve it."

"I wish this was real."

Gibbs shook his head. "It has to be. Please Tim, please be real. I've been choking on my guilt."

"But you're getting better. You fought harder yesterday."

"I'm doing everything I can think to do."

"Why did they call the CEO back, Boss?"

"I don't know."

"It's an important question, don't you think? And there is one person who would know."

Gibbs studied the young man in the shadows. "Of course! What's wrong with me?"

"It just took a little time to screw your head back on straight."

"God, I'm sorry about this."

McGee smiled. "Boss, you have to remember that apologizing is a sign of weakness. The truth is that you have little control at what life throws at you. You should understand that better than anyone else."

He closed his eyes and nodded.

McGee slapped his knees. "Well, I gotta' go. It was nice talking to you."

"No! McGee, you stay! Don't you go anywhere! You hear me!?"

McGee disappeared into the shadows. "McGee!"

"Gibbs!" He felt hands on him and he tried to wrench away.

"Gibbs, it's me, Abby!"

His eyes popped open and saw her kneeling on the bed, hands on his shoulders. The sound of pounding echoed below them. "What's going on?"

"Someone's at the door. It's 4 a.m. I was afraid to answer it."

Gibbs pushed her out of the way. He grabbed a pair of jeans from the floor, hiked into them, and ran down the steps. Abby grabbed one of his polo shirts from the closet and followed him.

He pulled the door open, and Ducky came through followed by Penelope Langston, and a tall dark haired man whose face was the exact shape of McGee's. "The door's never locked, Duck."

"It's the middle of the night, Jethro. Forgive my formality."

Abby handed Gibbs a shirt and he pulled it over his head. He looked at her. "Coffee."

She turned and disappeared into the kitchen. Gibbs ran his fingers through his hair and nodded. "Penelope. I assume this is Tim's father."

The admiral extended a hand. "Gibbs."

Gibbs shook it and gestured toward the sofa. "Sit down. Abby is making coffee."

The admiral blinked. "This is Timothy's Abby?"

"She's staying with me for a bit. We're all…struggling right now."

"How many days?"

Gibbs closed his eyes. "58."

McGee shook his head. "I can't believe this."

Penelope wagged a finger. "You should've been on the phone with me immediately. What were you thinking?!"

"Stop it, Mother. He was under orders."

"He's a civilian."

"When you get orders from the Joint Chiefs and SecNav, it doesn't matter what you are. I told you on the way over here that we're not going to do this. We don't have time for it."

Abby came in with a pot of coffee and cups that she placed on the coffee table. Penelope grabbed her hand and pulled her down beside. "How are you doing, Honey?"

Abby shook her head and Penelope hugged her tightly.

Admiral McGee ignored the coffee. "Dr. Mallard brought me up to speed, but I have questions."

"If it had been my choice, you would've been informed immediately."

Penelope threw up her hands. "Why weren't we? I don't understand."

"It's delicate, Mom. If they get a whiff that Tim is my son, it will go very badly for him."

"I was told that you were doing very sensitive work, Admiral."

Admiral McGee snorted. "Of course, they told you that. That was to keep you from contacting me on your own."

Gibbs arched a brow. "You're not engaged in sensitive work?"

"Always but that's nothing special. I am an admiral with an IQ of 175. I oversee all of the weapons technology projects for the Navy, and then I go in and explain the science to SecNav and his idiot fratboys. SecNav wouldn't let you tell me because he thinks I'm a delicate flower that will fall apart if I know the truth."

"I don't understand."

McGee looked at his mother. "I'm a moody man. Always have been. Mom finally talked me into an evaluation about a year ago. Got diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. I'm medicated now, but I can't convince SecNav that I'm not a raving lunatic. He even assigned a psychiatrist to my staff. Unfortunately, he doesn't have another nerd Admiral who can explain technology to him. We're stuck with each other for the time being."

"Tim never knew about your diagnosis?"

He shook his head. "I never learned how to be vulnerable with my son."

Penelope leaned forward. "Is he alive, Gibbs?"

"I don't know. I don't know anything, and I realized yesterday that if I wait for U.S. State Department to unravel this, we're never going to know anything. So, now I'm pulling out all the stops. I'm calling in all my favors at the CIA, FBI, and I don't know what you can do, Admiral, but I'm not playing by the rules anymore. Nobody out there is thinking about your son besides us."

"This is a dangerous game, Gibbs."

"Would you have preferred I not call you?"

"God no. I know not to go public. Jarvis just wanted to make his life easy. I talked to friends on the Joint Chiefs. Keeping this from me was not a popular decision."

Abby pulled away from Penelope. "Jarvis could hurt Gibbs."

Admiral McGee shook his head. "Nothing is going to happen. Just because I'm not a politician doesn't mean I don't have power."

Gibbs shook his head. "Okay, let's get focused. You work with technology companies a lot. Do you know the CEO at Interdyne?"

"Sheldon Parks. Very focused man. Mallard here thinks he's the one that dropped the bomb on your rescue."

"I haven't talked to him. State Department won't let me near him. I don't know his story. Why did the officials at the airport have to call him again?"

"Does it matter, Gibbs? Your cover was blown. It could have been any number of things. Parks follows a protocol approved by the State Department. He's a 'by the book' kind of guy. "

"I think it matters, Admiral. I think it's very important."

"You understand the corners of this thing better than I do. I'll call him right away. In the meantime, my mother and I are going to go bang down some doors at the State Department."

"Good." Gibbs stood and took a breath. "I'm not much for apologies but what happened to your son is my responsibility—"

The admiral waved him away. "We don't have time for this. My son's job carried risks. I knew that. What the two of you did to save those kids was important and gutsy. It needed doing. I'm glad Tim was part of it. I…just wish I wasn't such a fool when it came to my pride. I never got a chance…let's just say that we both live with regrets, Gibbs."

Gibbs nodded, his eyes weary and sad.

…..

TBC