Chapter 11
Salvation- Part Four
1745 hours, 24 January 2001, JAG Headquarters, Falls Church, Virginia.
When Tony regained consciousness, his head was founding like an anvil being hit by a sledgehammer. Holy hell, it feels like I have a katzenjammer he thought. Jesus, I must have really been knocked for a loop, I'm not even thinking in English anymore. Blood trickled down the side of Tony's face as he slowly picked himself up off the ground. Then he saw what lay before him. JAG Headquarters was in flames, a sizeable chuck of it just completely blown away by the blast. THREE! LIAT! He thought as he took off sprinting towards it.
Admiral Albert Jeathro Chegwidden, The Judge Advocate General watched as Tony sprinted away. Being a father himself, he understood the feeling all too well. "Gunny Sergeant Galindez!" he yelled. JAG's Gunny came running up to him.
"Yes Sir?" he asked. His face, like the admirals, covered in soot.
"Setup triage, do what you can for the wounded, establish a perimeter, and get EMS here" he ordered, as he took off running after DiNozzo.
"Three!" Tony yelled over the roar of the flames. The heat was getting more intense by the minute, as he moved further into the building. "Liat"! He yelled again. He turned around when he heard footsteps behind him. Hoping it was either Three or Liat, he was somewhat disappointed when it was on AJ Chegwidden. "Admiral, what the hell are you doing here?" Tony asked.
"Just shut up and keep moving" said The Admiral rather forcefully.
"Liat! Three!" Tony yelled again.
"Over here!" yelled a voice. Tony quickly busted through a fallen beam that had caught fire. He through his whole body through it, the flames scorching his hands. "Dad over here" Three yelled. Three's face was covered in soot, and the flames began to surround him. "She's stuck" he yelled. Liat was pinned to the floor by a fallen oak bookcase.
"You had to buy the heavy ones, ah AJ" joked Tony as both he and The Admiral joined Three.
"Only you can joke at a time like this DiNozzo" retorted AJ. With a few grunts and jerks, The 3 men were able to move the fallen book case off of Liat.
"You ok sweetheart?" Tony asked as he kissed her forehead. She nodded.
"I'm ok, just a dislocated shoulder I think" she replied.
"Ok then" he said as he scooped her up in his arms. "Let's get the hell out of here" he said. The group quickly made their way out of the building, where EMTs were waiting.
2005 hours, 24 January 2001, Chegwidden Residence, Fairfax, Virginia.
As Admiral Chegwidden served the chili to the 3 DiNozzos, Liat tugged at her sling. Tony was quick to notice. "Liat, quit tugging at the damn thing" he ordered.
"Yes Sir" she replied.
"So Dad, what do think will be Palmer's next move?" Three asked, trying to change the subject.
"I have no idea. He's targeted everyone who had a hand in taking them down. He hit NCIS and JAG, and he tried to take out Tom. He's managed to get at me at both NCIS and JAG, so I have no idea what he plans to do next" he said as he shoved a spoonful of chili into his mouth. "Any of you have any ideas?" Tony asked. They all shook their heads. "Terrific day isn't it"
"It hasn't all been bad. You hear about what happened in Ottawa this morning?" Liat asked. Tony shook his head. "Canadian Prime Minister Agreed to put Quebec's status to a vote in Parliament. If it passes, Quebec will be free" she explained.
"I'm sure Lucien is thrilled" commented Three.
"I'm sure he is. When is the vote?" Tony asked.
"2 Weeks" Liat informed him.
"And the chances of it passing?" Tony asked. Liat only shrugged. The rest of the meal passed in silence. Liat was exhausted and in no shape to travel, so Admiral Chegwidden offered to put her up in his spare bedroom for the night. With Three passed out on the couch, Tony decided he would go for a drive, just to clear his head.
It was 0200 when Liat was awaken by a gentle rub on her good shoulder. "Liat" said a voice just a hair above a whisper. "Liat, come on get up" whispered the voice.
"Go away Three, its only 0200" she mumbled, as she knew only her idiot little brother would wake her up at such an hour.
"Come on Liat, get up" he pleaded, shaking her shoulder again. She reached out and swatted his hand away.
"Why?" she moaned softly.
"We have things to do. Come on" he said. Reluctantly, Liat raised herself up from the bed and slipped on her black urban combat boots, similar to the ones her brother wore. Fortunately, she had fallen asleep in her clothes and didn't have to waste time changing. They slipped out of the house and got into Three's Mustang. Three quickly started the engine, put it into gear, and sped away.
"Where are we going?" Liat asked as they pulled onto the main highway.
"An Apartment in Georgetown" he replied.
"Whose apartment?" she asked.
"Marine Lieutenant Colonel Sarah Mackenzie" he replied.
"The JAG Officer?" she asked.
"The very same" said Three, his eyes not leaving the road in front of them.
"Why?" she asked.
"It was her desk that exploded, and she wasn't there when it did" stated Three.
"Ok then" said Liat
0305 hours, 25 January 2001, Lieutenant Colonel Sarah Mackenzie's Apartment, Georgetown, Washington D.C
It was just after 0300 when Three and Liat pulled up to Colonel Mackenzie's apartment. They got out the car, sidearms drawn. They quickly picked the lock on the front door and made their way up to the 3rd floor. Within 10 seconds, Liat had picked the lock and Three quietly swung open the door. they slowly and silently crept in, guns up, ready for anything. They were greeted by a figure, sitting on the Colonel's couch. "Colonel Mackenzie isn't here and the apartment's clean" said a very familiar voice. Three and Liat lowered their weapons.
"Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Dad, I could've plugged you" said Three as he holstered his M9. "How the hell did you know we would be here?" he asked.
"Because you 2 are my children, that's how" said Tony with a smile. "Come on, we'll spend the night at your mothers" said Tony as he stood up.
0330 hours, 25 January 2001, Caitlin DiNozzo's Apartment, Washington D.C
One of the many benefits of being a Secret Service Agent is living on Pennsylvania Avenue. It was only a few hours till sunrise when Tony knocked on his wife's door. he eyes shot open wide when he saw who actually came to answer the door. "Abby, what are you doing here?" Tony asked the super-hyper Goth in front of him.
"Well what are you doing here?" she countered.
"I asked you first"
"Well I'm inside, so I don't care"
"Damn it Abby, why are you in my wife's apartment!" Tony demanded. It was then that Kate approached the open door.
"Jesus Christ Tony, its 0330, what are you doing here?" Kate asked.
"I need an excuse to see my wife?" Tony asked.
"At 0330 you do" she countered before stepping out of the way to let the rest of her family inside.
"So Abby, why are you here?" Tony asked, as he closed the door behind them.
"Well, me and Kate are BFFs" she said as she pulled Kate into a tight huge.
"Terrific" said Tony sarcastically.
"So what? Does this make you our Aunt Abby or something like that?" asked Three, referring to himself and Liat.
"I guess so" said Kate.
"Yeah!" exclaimed Abby as she jumped up and down, pulling her new niece and nephew into a tight hug.
0715 hours, 25 January 2001, JAG Headquarters, Falls Church, Virginia
The Previous days, it had taken hours for the firefighters to finally put out the fire from the explosion. And now came the more gruesome part, coming through the wreckage. "How many?" Admiral Chegwidden asked Gunnery Sergeant Galindez.
"155 Dead, 415 wounded" he said grimly. Prior to the explosion, someone had cut the power to the alarm system and the phone lines, as well as jamming all cell communications.
"Damn" he muttered under his breath. It had been a longtime since he had written letters home to parents; not since he was a Navy SEAL in Vietnam.
"It ain't your fault AJ, you couldn't have seen this coming" consoled Tony.
"Like hell it isn't, I'm The JAG, these are my people, of course I'm responsible" he yelled. "Is this it DiNozzo? Is this Palmer's endgame, or is there more to come?" AJ asked. "No one knows this SOB better than you" he added.
"I have no idea Admiral" Tony replied gravely. "Three, say here and help com through the wreckage, Liat, get to NCIS and hookup with The Gunny, Abby and Bridget, whatever they have on Palmer's whereabouts, I want em' and I want em' now" Tony yelled.
With that, Tony jumped into his Mustang and sped off. Fortunately it was only a 15 minute ride to The Gunny's place in Arlington. Webb and Harm would be at NCIS with Gunny and Agent Burley for the day, and consequently so would Billy and Izabella. Tony pulled up in front of the Gunny's place and turned off the engine. He made his way to the front door, which was unlocked, as usual. He made his way down the stairs and into the basement. He walked mover to Gibbs' workbench and pulled out one of the many bottles of bourbon that resided there. He grabbed one of the larger mason jars and filled it straight to the brim. He knocked it all back in one shot. He proceeded to do this 3 more times. It had been a while since he had drunk like this.
He had had ample opportunities to kill Clark Palmer over the years, and he had failed every time.
"No, G-36s, M-4s, and MP5s. these ain't stupid moosh, these are pros" said Tony. "None of them appear to be of Middle Eastern decent either. I think" he paused. "I think they're Americans" said Tony. A well dressed man exited the limo. He was dressed in a business suit. Tony turned to Malachi. "Blue Star, get some snap shots of these assholes" he whispered. Malachi reached for his pack and pulled out his camera. While he took the photos, Tony looked through his scope again. "Freedom, intel must be off, there's no AQ here" said Tony. He watched as the well dressed man took a briefcase out of his limo. He walked over to the hood of the limo and laid it down. The 1st Middle Eastern man, Target 0-0-1, took a brief case from his SUV and walked over to the limo and laid it down. They opened their brief cases at the same time. The businessman's suitcase was filled with papers, while Target 0-0-1's was filled with cash. After they shook hands, they exchanged brief cases and went their separate ways. "Freedom, the two groups just completed a deal, suitcase of cash for same of documents"
"Evidence?" she asked.
"Blue Star took a few ruddy snapshots of the whole bloody affair" replied Tony in a very British accent. Then Tony's head snapped to the sky as he heard the sound of an approaching helicopter. "Freedom, I'm hearing an approaching rotorwing, do you have visual on the sate feed?" he asked.
"Copy that Movie Buff, we have rotorwing on sate feed" she replied.
"Hostile?" asked Tony.
"Negative Movie Buff" she paused. "It's squawking a Marine signal" she said, with a great amount of surprise in her voice.
"What the hell are those Jarheads doing here?" asked Tony, who was stunned. But Tony wasn't the only one who noticed the helo's presence. The businessman started yelling to his men. The other 2 men, the ones of Israeli decent wasted no time. They rushed to the back of their Land Rover. At the same time, so did the businessman's bodyguards. They threw Away a brown sheet and pulled out a Stinger Missile. "Holy Shit, Freedom, Target 0-0-1 has a Stinger repeat, 0-0-1 has a Stinger, requesting permission to fire, say again, request fire order, over" Tony yelled.
Once he had heard a Marine Helo was in the area, Chester rushed out to get Colonel Colleton. The 2 men came rushing back, with Jack and his new recruit, Staff Sergeant Jonathan Cole in tow. "Say again, request fire order over" yelled Tony over the radio. Colleton quickly ran over and grabbed the headset that Chester had laid down when he had left the room. Tom looked up at the sate feed and saw what was happening. But before Tom could give them permission to open fire, the 2 Stinger Missiles were fired. "Missiles have been fired, repeat, missiles have been fired!" Tony screamed. Colleton watched in horror as the 2 stinger missiles hit the Marine Sea Stallion. The 1st missile hit the rotor, sending the helicopter into a tailspin. The 2nd stinger hit the fuselage, causing the helo to explode.
As the Helo crashed to the ground, Targets 0-0-2 and 0-0-1 jumped into their Land Rover and took off. "God dammit" yelled Tony as he watched them flee. "Targets 0-0-2 and 0-0-1 are exiting target area. I say again, requesting permission to fire, god dammit" he yelled.
"Permission granted" replied Colonel Colleton.
"Finally" said young Billy Hazard as he flicked the safety of his Karabiner. Tony did the same with his AWP.
"Yeah, but the ones I wanted already got away" said Tony as he drew a bead on one of the bodyguard's head. Both Tony and Billy opened fire. At 1800 yards, this was a tough shot for a normal soldier, but not for Delta. Both bullets struck home. The 2 bodyguards dropped instantly. The man dressed in the suit grabbed his brief case and jumped for his limo. Tony and Billy fired off several more shots, all one shot, one kills. Unfortunately, the businessman was able to escape. "Dammit" he said. "Marshlands, targets have fled, repeat, targets gone" said Tony.
"Well, you'll be happy to know, that we've identified the men you killed" said Colleton.
"Mercenaries?" asked Billy
"Close, they're PMCs, Brandenhurst Corporation" said Tom.
"The Defense Contractor, I thought they only manufactured the stuff" said Chester.
"Yeah, well these guys all worked for em" said Colleton.
"What about that fella who dressed all fancy like?" asked Chester.
"Special Agent Clark Palmer, DSD" said Colleton as he threw a file down onto the table. Tony grabbed it and started reading it over.
"Ain't The Defense Security Division supposed to be protecting our secrets, not selling them" Tony pointed out.
"Well, unfortunately, since we can't prove what he was selling, we can't do shit about it" said Colleton.
"That son of a bitch shot down a Marine Helo for crying out loud" protested Tony as he shot up from his seat.
"Calm down Major DiNozzo, I know what he did, which is why as of 1100 hours today this becomes official" he said as he slide another piece of paper across the table to Tony.
Tony picked it up and read it aloud. The paper was a photo of Special Agent Palmer with the word "WANTED" printed across the top in big red letters. "Special Agent Clark Palmer- Defense Security Division- WANTED- DEAD or Alive. Designated- Target 0-0-4"
"I just hung the same photo up on the kill wall" said Tom. "Don't worry, we'll get em, we'll get em all" said Tom, confidently.
Colleton walked over and grabbed the phone from his daughter. "This is Colleton" he said. After a minute. He continued "Yes Sir, I'll put my best men on it" he said hanging up the phone.
"What's up Tom?" asked Tony.
"There's been a nerve gas attack on a US peace-keeping base in Algeria. Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility. Here's the kicker. You wanna guess who provided security for the base?" asked Colleton.
"Who?" asked Captain Bauer.
"Defense Security Division"
"Hands in the air now!" ordered Billy. The 5 men, all smartly dressed in expensive Armani suits, reluctantly complied. Then they both realized something, Clark Palmer wasn't among them.
"Where is Clark Palmer?" demanded Tony.
"Go to Hell, My Name is James Huntoon, CEO of The Bradenhurst Corporation, and I will not stand to have our rights violated by a meddling and power hungry Yankee Federal Government" he said as he rose. Tony raised his 45. and put 2 rounds into Huntoon's Chest. Huntoon collapsed to the ground dead.
"Anybody else?" asked Tony. When the remaining for men remained silent, Tony continued. "Very well then, where is Clark Palmer?" demanded Tony once again.
"The Helicopter pad, he's on the helicopter pad" said one of the men as he stammered and pointed to 2 glass doors at the end of the room.
"The what" said Billy before he was cutoff by the sound of a low flying helicopter.
"Son of a Bitch" said Tony as he made hi sway to the glass doors just as the helicopter touched down. He saw Palmer get it to the back. Palmer saw him too, and gave him wave, and an evil grin. "What the hell?" said Tony as the helicopter took off. Tony turned around to tell Billy something when he saw a blinking red light from below the table. "Oh My God. Billy get out, the rooms wired" said Tony as he jumped across the table and shove Billy out of the room. Once out of the doors, he threw Billy to the ground and jumped on top of him. The Semtex charge, no doubt supplied by Eli David and/or Michael Rivkin thought Tony, exploded. The blast instantly killed the 4 men still inside the conference room. It also blew out all the glass and sent a Blast of flames throughout the whole floor. "AHHHH" Tony screamed as the flames torched his back. After a few seconds, the flames receded. Tony rolled off Billy and fell to his back, which made him scream in pain once again.
"Top!" yelled Billy. "Top, you ok?" he asked. Tony gave him a nod and Billy offered him his hand. Tony reluctantly took it and Billy pulled him off the floor. then Billy saw Tony's back. The black commando gear had been completely burned off, and the flames had done a number to his back. When Tony tried to take a step forward, his legs gave out and he collapsed back to the ground. "TOP!" screamed Billy as he dropped to his knees. He quickly grabbed the sate phone from its pouch on Tony's belt.
"Go for Freedom" said Tali.
"Freedom, this is Hitman, need Medivac, my location post ricki tick, Movie Buff down, I say again, Movie Buff down" said Billy, frantically.
"Trying to draw out Clark Palmer, I thought you might appreciate it" said Webb.
"Oh, I'm sure he does" said a voice from behind them.
"Fuck me" complained Tony as both he and Webb turned around. Standing there was Former Special Agent Clark Palmer of the now disbanded Defense Security Division. In his hand was a Tokarev TT-33 pistol.
"High ya Tony old buddy, how long has it been?" asked Palmer in his psychopathic voice.
"So tell me Clark, how many times did your Mom drop you on your head as an infant?" Tony asked. "I mean come on, tell us what it's like to survive an abortion" said Tony.
"Are you trying to piss me off" Palmer asked, straightening his shooting arm.
"That's the general idea yes" Tony replied, doing anything to stall for time. And it worked.
"Freeze Palmer!" yelled a voice. Palmer turned and saw both Chester and Malachi with their M9 pointed at him.
"I don't think so" said Palmer as he opened his other hand. A canister dropped from it. Tony thought it was a grenade at first, but then it he realized what it was.
"Flash bang" he said as he shielded his eyes. It went off, temporally blinding Webb, Chester and Malachi. When there vision finally restored, Palmer was no where to be found. "How the fuck does he keep doing that?" Tony asked rhetorically.
"The guy is like the wind" said Chester.
"Yeah, then why can't the wind just break his leg" said Tony.
Even after Tony and Tom Colleton had captured Palmer, Tony hadn't had the heart to kill him. he probably would have saved everybody a whole lot of trouble. All those people were dead because he had been too cowardly to take the shot. He picked up the now empty Mason jar and chucked it across the room. "You're not a coward Tony" came a female voice from the top of the stairs. Tony looked up and saw a ghostly, yet beautiful figure glide down the stairs. He shook his head several times and blinked repeatedly, but she was still there.
"I must be drunker than I thought, cause now I'm seeing ghosts" he exclaimed. He had seen this women once before, in a photo, on Gibbs' mantel. "How? Aren't you…" he blurted out.
"Dead? Yes Tony, I have been for about 10 years" she explained.
"But I'm alive still, right?" he asked.
"Yes Tony" she laughed. "I saw Jeathro drink like that once, for about a year after I passed. He blamed himself. And boy did he hate you. He hated that you had saved his life. For a longtime, Jeathro had just wanted to end it. And he drank heavily, like you are now" the ghostly figure explained. "And if I'm not mistaken, you've drunk like this before too. After Mogadishu and Haiti"
"So what are you doing here?" Tony asked. "What are you an Angel?" he added.
"Something like that" she said simply.
"Like the one that helped Harm find his way off that burning Aircraft Carrier a few years ago?" Tony asked.
"That wasn't me" she said with a smile.
"Yeah, I know. Harm claimed it was his father" Tony explained.
"We go where we are needed" she explained. "Only certain people can hear and see us. Like Commander Rabb, you share this gift, Lieutenant Colonel DiNozzo" she explained.
"So why are you here now?" Tony asked.
"Because you need to be told that you are no coward. The reason you didn't take the shot at Palmer in Afghanistan was because you are a good soldier who follows his orders. And you didn't kill him here last 2 years ago because you are a good person, a honorable man, much like my Jeathro, and a man of the highest integrity" she said softly.
"But all those people" said Tony.
"Will have died for nothing if you don't continue to do what you've always done. You are a hero, Tony DiNozzo. Everyone around you knows it, maybe its high time you knew it too" she told him sweetly. "Family Tony, that's what it always comes down too. Family" she said, as she slowly faded away.
The next thing Tony knew, he was lying underneath Gibbs' latest boat. He shook his head, expecting to have a whopping hangover. He was stunned to discover he didn't. "That was weird" he said to himself as he stood up. He grabbed his leather jacket off the floor and threw it over his shoulders. Family he thought, remembering the words as if they were from a dream. "Family" he said out loud, when it all clicked. To make sure it all made sense, he started talking to himself out loud. "Palmer wasn't targeting The Gunny or me at NCIS; he was targeting Abby and Three. And at JAG he was targeting the people Harm considered to be his family. The same thing at Marshlands, he was going after Jordan and Tali, not Tom. Family, he's going after out family" he said. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. "Kate" he said as he pulled out his cell phone.
2035 hours, 25 January 2001, White House, Washington D.C.
United States Secret Service Agent Caitlin DiNozzo was making her rounds when her cell phone rang. She reached into her pocket and pulled it out. "Agent DiNozzo" she said answering.
"Kate, it's Tony, you need to lockdown The White House, post ricki-tic, you may have been breached. It's Palmer" Tony explained.
"But why, The President and Vice President aren't even here" stated Kate.
"Katie he isn't after the President, he's after YOU" Tony explained.
"But why would" was all she got out before the wall behind her exploded, sending her crashing into the adjacent wall.
"Kate. Kate!" yelled Tony through the phone, as men rushed inside. One of them kicking away Kate's phone before picking it up and snapping it in half.
TO BE CONTINUED…
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