Event Five
Tony and Ziva led Sarah into Gibbs' house, each keeping an eye on the young woman in case she succumbed to another surge of emotion. She had cried on and off for an hour in her dorm after Tony had given her the news. And it was clear Gibbs had to deal with the same thing when they heard Abby's sobs echoing through the house once they were inside. Sarah bolted for the goth on the couch the moment they entered the living room, clinging to the older woman despite her obviously ill health. Abby didn't hesitate to wrap her own arms around Sarah. Ziva joined them on the couch, but kept a slight distance and merely set a hand on Sarah's shoulder. Leaving the women to their emotional break down, because Sarah was already crying again and it looked like Ziva might start as well, Tony headed immediately into the kitchen.
As expected, Gibbs was in the middle of warming up some soup for the sicko in the living room. Ducky and Palmer sat at the table silently, both of them cradling rapidly cooling cups of tea. Tony paused a moment to look the other men over before pulling a chair out and spinning it around before sitting.
"Sarah's in the living room with Abby and Ziva." Tony reported, updating the others of the situation out of habit. Gibbs jerked his head in acknowledgment, but that was the only response Tony got. He felt unsure was what to do or say and was certain he wasn't the only one. Only Gibbs found something to keep himself occupied by focusing on taking care of Abby.
This definitely didn't feel like when Kate died. Everyone had reacted in anger then. They had something to do. They had someone to blame. But silence seemed to be the theme this time. And a good dose of denial and disbelief that it was McGee. Tony resisted the urge to tap his fingers on the table by grabbing one of the disposable napkins, which were undoubtedly set out by Ducky, and methodically ripping it to shreds. By the time Gibbs had finished warming up the soup and delivered a bowl to Abby, he had created a nice pile of white confetti. Tony frowned at the size of the mound in front of him and pushed it away before crossing his arms on top of the chair back.
"Who's telling his parents?" Palmer randomly asked, making Tony and Ducky jump slightly from the sudden break in the silence. The two of them exchanged unsure glances, not knowing the answer.
"Sarah." Gibbs provided as he sat down in the last chair at the table. "Said so when I gave Abby her food."
"Sure she should do that, Boss?" Tony asked. "Sarah had a difficult time telling her friends. I can't imagine what it'll be like for her to tell her parents."
"It was a car accident, DiNozzo, not a suspect gunning him down. It'll be better for McGee's parents to hear it from her than one of us." Gibbs insisted. Tony knew he could have argued that he or Ziva would have been a better choice, but he kept his mouth shut on the matter. Getting into an argument on who was going to tell McGee's parents that their only son was dead would be a petty thing to do at the moment. If Sarah faltered when the time came, he'd simply have Ziva or himself take over.
"Timothy was a well organized lad." Ducky started, gaining a slightly confused look from Tony and Palmer. "I'm sure he has instructions somewhere on what to do in the event of his death, body or no body. I must inquire, Anthony, if you would know where Timothy would keep such paperwork in his apartment."
"Safe, under his writer's desk." Slipped from Tony's mouth automatically. He had seen McGee remove and insert many small objects and files into that thing in the past few years. If he thought about it, he'd probably be able to recall the combination to unlock it.
"Very good. Tomorrow morning we should attempt to collect Timothy's final instructions so we may begin to put them into action. He would not want us to dawdle." Ducky suggested, focusing more on Tony than the other men at the table. Tony nodded.
"First thing, before the girls wake up." Tony didn't need to explain to Ducky why he insisted on that. They wouldn't make it out the front door without Ziva finding out, but they needed to leave before Abby and Sarah woke up in the morning. Neither of them needed to go to McGee's apartment so soon.
"I'll come with." Palmer spoke up, a slightly stubborn look appearing on his face. Tony let out a sigh but didn't argue. Jimmy was a bit more in control of his outward reactions than the girls were. If he felt that he could handle visiting McGee's apartment then Tony wasn't going to debate it.
A sudden ringing brought attentions towards Gibbs, who shot up to grab his cell off the counter.
"Gibbs." He nodded a few times, murmuring in confirmation before cutting off the connection and setting his phone back down. "Abby's substitute is done looking over McGee's car. The only thing he could find wrong with it was that McGee was a tad short on oil."
"You mean other than the fact that it took a bath in the Potomac?" Tony frowned at the table. Gibbs knew he normally smacked Tony upside the head for snark like that, but decided against it. Tony needed an outlet.
"Timothy always did keep his possessions in top, working order. That the young man found nothing wrong does not surprise me." Ducky commented, taking a sip of his now stone cold tea. Ziva wandered into the kitchen then, hitching a hip onto the table next to Tony. She gave him a critical look.
"Abby is bound and determined to go with Sarah tomorrow when she goes to notify college administration and her various professors that she won't be attending classes. I have tried to tell Abby that she should be resting, but there is no convincing her. Perhaps you should try." Tony snorted at what Ziva said, shaking his head.
"You want me to convince Abby to willingly stay away from what she views as her only connection left to McGee? I may be daring enough to take you on, my little Israeli ninja, but I'm not suicidal. Let's just drug Abby up with every flu medication known to mankind and let her go." Ziva gave Tony a frown, turning to Ducky for support.
"Anthony isn't exactly wrong in his thinking, Ziva. Abigail needs to be able to accept that Timothy is no longer with us on her own terms. Perhaps going with Sarah as she notifies people of his death will help Abigail accept the reality of the situation and allow her to let Timothy go. While they have not had romantic feelings for each other for quite some time, Abigail and Timothy have always been the closest of us all. I do gather the pain of his death is only more severe in Sarah. And his parents, once they're notified. We will need to watch Abigail quite closely, and not because she has influenza." Ducky elaborated. The frown on Ziva's face didn't go away but she remained silent.
"We're going to his apartment tomorrow, Z." Tony started, changing the subject. "Do you want to come with? We'll be looking for any paperwork he created for last wishes."
"Yes. I will come with. Anything I can do to grant McGee his final requests." Ziva stepped away from the table with a sniff. "We should figure out what to do with Jethro. He is still at the vet."
"He can stay here. Already knows the place." Gibbs offered.
"Perhaps we should ask Abby and Sarah to pick him up tomorrow. You know...give them something to focus on." Jimmy suggested awkwardly. Ducky pointed a finger at him, waving it in agreement.
"Excellent idea, Mr. Palmer. We don't want to overwhelm them with tasks, no, but simple chores should keep the girls from over thinking. We don't want them to start blaming themselves or regretting things that they shouldn't be worrying about. Timothy wouldn't want them to do that."
"Then our plans tomorrow are settled. While Sarah and Abby are out doing their errands, we go to McGee's apartment." Tony summarized. The others nodded in agreement, suddenly finding themselves with little else to talk about. Letting out a heavy sigh, Ziva wrapped her arms around her waist in a hug.
"I should go back to my apartment to pack an overnight bag. My backup duffel still in my car." Ziva stated. "Take me, Tony?"
"Sure. We can stop at my place, as well." Tony got up, turning the chair back around. "Sarah's bag can stay in my trunk until we get back."
"Do hurry back." Ducky bade them farewell. Nodding, Tony and Ziva headed through the dining room to the front door.
"Be careful driving on those roads, ok? I hit a patch of black ice on the way to work this morning and nearly drove my way into a tree, even with the roads salted. So drive even more grandmotherly than you usually do. Got it?"
"Aaron, it looks like the car is a Porsche Boxster. Not a car you want to lose in an accident like this."
""McGee's cell phone, badge, ID, and weapon were retrieved from the vehicle an hour ago."
"...the body was never found."
Tony sat up with a gasp, shaking his head to clear it. He hated the dreams. They came each time a close friend of his died. He may have hallucinated Kate briefly in the few days after, but the nightmares after her funeral made up for the delay in their appearance. Tony glanced over at Ziva, snoring away on the other cot in the dining room, and mentally dreaded the thought of her dying any time soon. He didn't think he'd survive it. Wiping away the film of sweat that had developed on his forehead, Tony got up from the cot and decided a late night shower was in order. Collecting the extra pajamas he had packed, he headed through the living room to go to the upstairs bathroom.
Tony stood there, waiting for the water to get hot enough for his liking. Hotter than he usually had it. He had had these dreams many times before but he felt especially filthy this time around. McGee wasn't supposed to die before him. McGee was supposed to find a woman he could call his wife. McGee was supposed to get the house, with the dog, cat, and two point five kids. McGee was supposed to get the American dream that he desired so dearly. He wasn't supposed to die in a damn car accident, where they couldn't even find his body. McGee didn't deserve that. Water sufficiently heated, Tony stepped in with a hiss.
The mirror above the sink fogged up from the cloud of mist escaping the top of the shower, blurring the backwards world it showed. The bathroom door in that backwards world opened slowly, the door it should be reflecting remaining still, and a slender figure stepped in. The figure crossed the backwards bathroom and stood in front of the shower curtain, lightly dragging her hand down the plastic.
"The nightmares will be worth it." Her voice was hidden in the roar of the shower.