Sorry about the delay, real life occasionally takes effect. Also, it'd be lovely to hear what everyone thought of the story so feel free to leave me a little review :)
Two hours later the door to Jenny's room swung open without so much as a knock.
"Well, this is nice and cosy," drawled Tobias, taking in the view of Gibbs sitting on the bed behind Jenny, his arms wrapped around her waist as they talked softly to each other about nothing and everything.
"Tobias," said Jenny.
"Fornell," grimaced Gibbs, knowing he was in for a ribbing later.
"I do believe that I was requested for an interview."
"You were indeed," confirmed Jenny, "I don't want some green-tinged FBI agent attempting to grow a rapport with me and baby me during my testimony. I certainly won't get that from you."
"No, I don't do rapport with anyone."
"You don't say," added Gibbs, causing Jenny to have to hide her grin.
"Agent Gibbs, if you could excuse us then?"
"No, Jethro is staying here. I wasn't going to tell this story more than I have to so decided that I would wait until you arrived to tell Jethro."
"Back to Jethro, eh?" Fornell looked at Gibbs who shrugged slightly but with a smile playing around his lips. "Might I guess then Agent Gibbs' involvement is personal rather than professional?"
"You can guess all you like Tobias. But I would hope that an Agent such as yourself would rely only upon the evidence laid in front of them."
The rebuke was enough to convince Tobias to sit on the seat beside the bed and pull out his recorder.
"OK, so interview with... what name are we going by now then?"
"I'm back to being Jennifer Shepard now Tobias. However, I was known as Kat Joshua."
"Interesting choice. Suits you surprisingly well though."
"I'm glad it has your approval Tobias. Now please, can we begin?"
It took Jenny an hour to recount what had happened to her over the past week.
Gibbs was thankful to know that, before the first video was sent to him, she was basically left alone in the room that they found her in, only roughing her up to try and gain her compliance.
When they had worked out that she was no ordinary woman, that was when they had searched the internet for information about her and hit the jackpot in an image search.
The moment that they knew who they were dealing with, her beatings became more regular and violent, leading up to the video being sent.
When Jenny started to tell Gibbs about the video that had gone live when she was cornered by the three men in her cell, she told them both that she knew that someone was watching, one of her captors had let it slip, too excited by their plan to destroy her will and force her into submission.
Gibbs had sat silently throughout the whole interview, using his body to convey his support to Jenny.
It was only when she started to describe how the men stripped her and forced her to the ground that he squeezed Jenny involuntarily, causing her to gasp as he put pressure on her broken ribs.
"Sorry Jen," was all that Gibbs could say at that moment, trying his hardest to control the rising anger he could feel.
"Jethro, do you want me to stop?" Gibbs looked at Jenny incredulously.
"Jen, you're the one who's having to relive some of the worst days of your life and you're worried about me."
"Well, yes. I know what's coming next, I was there after all. But this is coming down on you like a tonne of bricks. It can't be easy."
"It's not."
"Well, do you want me to stop? Do you want to leave?"
"Jen, stop being such a goddamned martyr already and just hurry up and finish. The sooner we're done here, the sooner we can go home."
"We? Oh Gibbs, do I sense a wedding? Number... 5?"
"If you know what's good for you Tobias," said Jenny without giving the man a glance, "you'd keep your mouth shut. And that recorder better be off at the moment."
As much as Tobias liked to wind up both Gibbs and Jenny, he also had a lot of respect for the pair, and he had indeed turned off the recorder the moment the conversation became personal.
"Can we continue?" asked Tobias, "I'm getting bored with all this lovey-dovey nonsense."
"Very well." Jenny took a deep breath before continuing.
"The three men had me on the floor, naked and restrained, and the man who I had the most contact with throughout the entire ordeal decided he was going first. I got the feeling he was in charge of the store of girls as it were, but it's a much larger organisation. The man who was with me in the video the first time was definitely higher up the food chain."
"We've known about a trafficking ring in Miami for a couple of months now but we've never managed to track them down. I gotta say Gibbs, fancy lending us your tech witch for a couple of weeks, we'd have it all wrapped up then."
"That's tech Goth Fornell. And no, Abby will be going nowhere with you. You can work with her in NCIS but that's as far as she'll go."
"I'll keep that in mind. Please, continue."
"The lead captor knew how to best inflict pain with his pleasure it seemed and just... went for it. After that, the others all took their turn, although the first decided that he didn't like sloppy seconds apparently and decided that he wanted a fresh start, as it were. All in all, I was raped by three different men, four times."
Gibbs hated the matter of fact tone that Jenny was using and the fact that she had not shed a single tear over the entire event. He knew that she was repressing all of her emotions and he hoped that she would finally let herself fall apart now that he was there to catch her and pick up the pieces.
"After they'd all finished they just buckled up their pants and left, leaving me be for a while. But then two of them reappeared and decided that I needed even more bruises on my body, that I wasn't battered enough. That was when they broke my ribs and caused me concussion. Next thing I remember, I'm waking up in here with Jethro at my side, shouting at a load of nurses to do their jobs correctly."
Jenny looked to Gibbs who merely shrugged in defence.
"What? You'd been awake for at least 30 seconds and none of them had bothered to get their asses in here to check you over."
"Jethro, I wasn't exactly going anywhere, they knew that worst comes to worst I'd be a little confused for a few moments."
Gibbs could see Fornell grinning at his chastisement.
"You need anything more Fornell?" he growled.
"Not right now, but we'll no doubt be back in touch with you both sooner or later."
"Good, but how about you go and catch the bastards who think it's OK to kidnap and rape innocent women."
"Yes Gibbs, I will go and do my job. How about you do yours and look after your Director this time."
"Not the Director anymore Tobias," said Jenny softly.
"I'm not so sure about that," said Fornell with a mysterious smile, "I'm sure that when the politicians hear of your miraculous return they will be more than willing to welcome you back to your old job and their fancy shindigs."
"Oh I can hardly wait," deadpanned Jenny, causing both men to smile at her lack of political ambition at that moment, so different from when they knew her 4 years previously.
Gibbs couldn't help but notice that this was only one of the changes that had occurred to Jenny during her time in WitSec.
Her patience seemed to have grown immensely, her body seemed even leaner and fitter thanks to her active lifestyle that meant that she was continuously using her muscles, her hair and her complexion were sun-kissed and, in his eyes, her beauty had only grown in the time they had spent apart.
She also seemed to be far more serene than she had been during her last months as the Director.
All in all, as much as Gibbs hated to admit it, her time in Miami seemed to have suited her.
These thoughts consumed Gibbs as Tobias bid farewell to the pair of them and left the room, leaving Gibbs open to scrutiny from Jenny.
"What are you thinking about Jethro?" Jenny asked with a smirk, knowing that his thoughts more than likely were revolving around her at that moment.
"You. Well, you and Miami, and your job."
"I don't follow."
"You seem... better here. More like the probie that I trained rather than the Director I worked for."
"That's because I've discovered what actually matters to me here. I don't care what the suits in Washington think about me, I don't feel the burning urge to vindicate my father anymore, and now I've been reunited with the most important people... and the most important person in my life."
"Who?"
"Abby of course." Jenny laughed as Gibbs' expectant smile fell slightly.
"You're mean Jennifer Shepard."
"Oh, full name territory, that's not good."
"You're damn right Jen, not nice."
"Oh fine. Leroy Jethro Gibbs I missed you most of all."
The grin was back in full force on Gibbs' face.
"What did you miss?" he asked, genuinely curious.
"I missed sharing your coffee. I missed the smell of sawdust that accompanied any visit from you. I
missed these knowing smirks of yours. Do I need to go on?"
"No, cause it's my turn. I missed your hair and how it always smelled of your shampoo, something with jasmine I think. I missed the way you wore tights skirts to tease everyone. I miss the way you'd sneak up on my team using techniques I taught you and they still couldn't work out. I miss the way we'd have dinner together and I'd just want to kiss you there and then."
"Why didn't you?"
"Because you told me categorically on your first day that there would be no 'off the job'? I was trying to behave myself and hope that you would eventually change your mind."
"I almost did. A week before the shooting, I was so close to throwing the towel in and coming to you. I resolved that once I'd dealt with La Grenouille that I'd tell you I still felt the same way and that I still wanted to be with you and I hope you'd be receptive to me."
"I would have been more than receptive Jen. I don't think we'd have made it to the couch in your office if you would have told me that then."
Jen smiled ruefully.
"Seems I wasted years that we could've been together... twice. Well let me tell you, Leroy. Jethro. Gibbs. That I will not be walking away this time."
"I wasn't planning on letting you."
Jenny turned her body in Gibbs' arms and their lips met, their kiss a promise of at least trying to spend the rest of their lives together.