I think there will be one more chapter after this, in the form of a short-term Epilogue of sorts. Thanks for continued support!
Abby woke suddenly, jarred from her sleep by a thrashing movement next to her. Gibbs turned in his sleep again, his face showing obvious signs of distress.
"Jethro…" Abby whispered, hoping it would be enough to stir him. Instead, he remained asleep, his expression the same.
Abby hesitated before placing a hand on his chest. "Jethro."
He shot up, his arm grabbing at Abby's hand.
She startled at first, but calmed quickly when Gibbs realized where he was.
Gibbs gave her a reassuring smile and settled back down next to her in the bed. She laid her head on his chest.
"Bad dream?"
"Nothing terrible."
"Tell me about it?" Abby looked up from his chest to meet his eyes.
Gibbs hesitated, though his expression remained stoic. He didn't want to add to Abby's stress, but if he didn't talk to her about the trauma that haunted him, why would she do the same with her experiences?
"Was the same basement I was in, same cell. Wasn't too different – as if I was just remembering it in dream form." He shifted a bit with Abby still propped lightly on him, her head back on his chest as he spoke. Gibbs considered leaving out the rest, but decided he needed to be entirely truthful. "But they caught you. Chained you up next to me for leverage."
Abby stiffened under him for a moment. "I'm sorry, Jethro."
"For what, Abbs?"
"Blowing your cover."
Gibbs sat up, bringing Abby up with him so that he could look at her. "Is that what you believe happened?"
"But it's true, isn't it? They figured out you were still working for NCIS because I made it out. Hendricks probably figured it out before you'd even left and probably called to let them know!" She sat up straight, avoiding Gibbs's gaze.
"Abby, if he'd known he never would have let me leave. And he would have been prepared for the team when they arrived. They knew long before you showed up. They were trying to feed me false information to send back to NCIS; that's the only reason I was kept around. When they figured out that I wasn't talking to NCIS, I was tortured for information. They were going to kill me."
Abby absorbed his words. "So if I hadn't have sought you out, we'd never have known that you were being held…"
"And I would be dead by now."
Abby looked up and met his eyes, her eyes brimming with tears.
Gibbs reached over and placed a hand on her cheek. "You saved me, Abby."
A tear rolled over his hand in a quick stream. Abby's voice was unsteady. "I thought I almost killed you, Jethro. I thought because of me you were discovered and killed, that I had betrayed you for not trusting you."
Gibbs removed his hand from her cheek and pulled her against him in a tight hug. "You're not capable of that, Abbs."
Abby pulled away from him enough so that her face was parallel to his. "I always think I'm going to mess something up and you're going to hate me."
Gibbs shook his head. "Not possible. Not even close."
Her eyes swept over his features, studying each line, each curve, until she returned to his piercing eyes. She'd always considered it a challenge to try to figure out what he was thinking by looking at his eyes, but he was always good at covering those thoughts and feelings up. Tonight, however, he wasn't trying to cover up the love and the concern that rang through when she looked at him.
Abby was filled with the safe and comfortable feeling Gibbs had always given her, but which had recently disappeared following the start of the twisted nightmares. Still a bit nervous, she leaned closer to him, her hand resting on his upper arm to steady herself. Gently, Abby's lips met his.
Gibbs savored the feel of Abby kissing him, obviously more relaxed in doing so than she'd been in the last few days. He was careful to keep the kiss light, weary of making her feel that he was moving faster than she wanted.
Abby moved her hand from his arm to his shoulder, her other hand finding a spot on his chest. This time the kiss felt more like the first kiss they'd shared, which had erased all the trauma that had occurred for at least a few moments. Deepening the kiss, Abby slipped her tongue in between Gibbs's parted lips, enjoying his immediate return in the caressing. Slowly the kiss came to an end, both Gibbs and Abby breathing heavier from arousal.
"Is this okay?"
Her eyebrows furrowed in surprise and confusion. "Of course, I've always wanted this."
Gibbs cocked his head slightly, as if waiting for more.
"Though we probably shouldn't go…too far… tonight." Abby admitted, looking defeated.
"We'll have plenty of time, Abbs. I promise…and that's a promise I can keep."
Abby smiled up at him. "We should probably get some sleep."
He nodded, climbing back under the covers with her. Abby settled once more with her head on his chest, his arms wrapped around her comfortably.
Abby didn't wake again until the next morning, still wrapped in Gibbs's arms.