A/N: I am very sorry that it's taken me so long to get this chapter out. I'm posting chapters for my stories as I type up them up and I had a small bout of writer's block for this one. It's not easy writing a story where McGee is 'dead' when he may very well end up that way in the show.

Event Four

Tim quickly closed the window on the computer screen in front of him, standing up to put distance between himself and the machine before he threw it out the nearby window.

It was really stupid of the FBI to allow him access to a computer with internet access at the moment. Of course he would hack into the NCIS mainframe to view the security video feeds. Of course he would want to double check Fisher's claim that his phone call wasn't recorded. Of course the morbid side of his curiosity would want to see how everyone would react to the news of his death and he would be powerless to argue with it. So why the hell did they give him internet access? If he, Tony, or Ziva did something that idiotic, Gibbs would...

Tim forced himself to stop that line of thinking. Gibbs wouldn't be doing anything to him. Not now and probably never again. Thoughts like that would make him go nuts. And since the FBI wanted to keep him in a DC safe house until after his 'funeral' to make sure the Lambert's didn't pull anything, it was probably a good idea to keep himself from going crazy while his friends and family were still in reach. He might just violate Witness Protection if they were in reach when he finally did break, and he knew he eventually would.

"I take it you're finished, McGee?" Tim looked up at the sound of Agent Rocco's voice. He refrained from answering right away because he felt the intense urge to be overly sarcastic with the man, but Rocco was only doing his job. Tim agreed to look over some work and do some minor hacking for their operation – hence the internet access – and Rocco was just checking in on him.

"I finished a couple hours ago. The work I reviewed looked solid and I forwarded the information I collected on to Agent Holt. He can decide how to act on it."

"Any advice you might have will hold some weight with the higher ups, so feel free to give it and don't hold back." Rocco informed him, walking forward to take a seat on one of the chairs in the safe house living room. "Agents Gibbs and Fornell have reputations of being hard asses and you are one of the only people who has ever impressed them both at the same time while remaining in their good graces. I'm in very select company."

"Thank you." Tim let a small smile out, taking Rocco's idea of sitting down as a good one and sat on the couch. Talking with Rocco would take the edge off his desire to do to the computer what the FBI did to his car. It was only fair. "Impressing one of them is hard enough. To be told I've, apparently, impressed them both at the same time makes me feel like I've somehow managed to do something considered impossible."

"It is." Rocco admitted with a laugh. "I know of several agents who've stopped trying to impress Fornell and have accepted that they never will. Sacks is the only one who's been able to handle the stress of working for him."

"Try working for Gibbs." Tim dared with a melancholy smirk. "That three of us lasted longer than five years makes people wonder about our sanity. I've wondered, myself, sometimes."

"Five years is a pretty exact number." Rocco pointed out.

"Special Agent Stan Burley held the record before Tony, Ziva, and I came along. He transferred off the team around his five year mark because he was sick of getting ulcers and having to buy antacids by the ton."

"But I bet he's a fine agent. All your reputations proceed you guys. Anyone who lasts longer than six months with either Fornell or Gibbs pretty much has their career made for them." Tim chuckled softly at that. He couldn't exactly argue it. And it was the ultimately irony that anyone who lasted past the unofficial point of no return didn't want to transfer. He, Tony, and Ziva had to be forced off the team to accommodate Vance's mole hunt. Even Ziva's lapse in judgment on who she could and couldn't trust showed that part of her wanted to remain with Gibbs.

"He is. Now, out of curiosity, what exactly is my reputation? That's one of the few things people haven't been willing to speak about with me for some reason." Rocco froze at suddenly being put on the spot and expected to give answers. It sort of felt like the one time he worked with Fornell on a case and he had to remind himself that he was talking with a man who learned his interrogation skills from a master. It was better to just give the man what he wanted.

"Sacks describes you as having the patience of a saint." Rocco began. "You're the only one from NCIS he seems to like, so I'm guessing that says a lot about his word choice. Others have claimed that you're understanding and willing to give anyone a chance. Your trusting, almost to a fault, but also have the knack of knowing just when to cut someone off. It's considered amazing how you still insist on finding the good in people after everything you've seen in our line of work. And you're considered quite wicked in the interrogation room."

"Wait, what?" Tim let out a laugh as he took in everything Rocco was revealing. "I can see where a few of those things are coming from, but 'wicked in the interrogation room'? Now that's just ridiculous."

"I am not joking, McGee. People underestimate you when you have them in interrogation. I've seen some of the tapes. I don't know if you realize you're doing it but you use that to your advantage." Agent Rocco insisted.

"I've been using other people's underestimation of me to my advantage my entire career, Rocco. That's not news." Tim admitted. "It's never worked on Gibbs, because he's very hard to fool, but I'll confess to doing it with my other team mates. Especially Tony."

"I have a feeling that's a long story, in and of itself, but that's beside the point. It has made you quite talented at interrogation."

"Well, we all need our strong points." Tim pointed out. He was no human lie detector, nor was he a master at hand to hand or a sharp shooter, and he had long accepted that his niche was in digital crime fighting. He never considered his skills in interrogation because his base line was Gibbs. But if an agent from another agency was calling him out on it then perhaps he should rethink his skill level.

Rocco's pocket suddenly exploded with noise as his cell phone started ringing. He hurried to answer it, not even looking at the Caller ID.

"Rocco." Tim watched on with mild fascination as Rocco nodded his way through the conversation. He had never been on this side of the situation before. Not knowing what the discussion was about, if it was about him or something else entirely. Snapping the phone closed, Rocco shoved it back into his pocket as he stood up. "That was Fisher. Apparently one of our field agents came up with a mother load of information for us to go through. He's calling a bunch of us in. Said you're more than welcome to come with."

"No, I don't think I can do much more right now." Tim begged off. He was still processing his situation and talking had cooled off his temper as he had hoped it would. Rocco nodded, not arguing with his decision.

"I'll send for another agent to come sit with you, then." Rocco started for the door.

"Wait..." Tim called out. Rocco froze mid-stride, turning back.

"Yes?"

"Do you have any idea where I'm gonna be going?" Tim asked timidly, not having to elaborate on what he meant by the question.

"Honestly, I don't know. Fisher might. I'll ask if he knows and come back later to tell you what he has to say." Rocco offered. Nodding at the answer, Tim remained silent as his visitor left. Back to his own devices, Tim frowned when the sudden urge to throw the computer out the window returned with a vengeance.

Back on the computer screen, the window for the NCIS security recordings opened back up and replayed the video recorded right after Gibbs left for the Director's office with Fornell and Sacks.

"Everything will be OK. You'll see..."

Tim sharply turned his head in the direction of the computer when he heard a whispering, getting up to walk over. When he stepped around the desk to see the screen the window was empty again.

"Huh..." Tim looked on in slight confusion. "Must have been a noise from one of the neighbors."

Shaking his head, Tim decided a break from the computer was needed if he was hearing things and made his way into the kitchen to make something to eat.