Section 45
Jethro watched his father and Tony moving around the kitchen. Delicious smells were filling the kitchen. The two men worked in concert as if they had been doing it for years. He couldn't believe it was only six days since he walked in on Tony being handcuffed. Even if it hadn't been a week yet, he knew it in his gut. It felt right. They were a family.
Tony brought a tray of biscuits to the table emptying it into a bowl. He smirked as Gibbs snitched a biscuit and tossed it from hand to hand to keep from getting burned. "You could wait."
"Nope." Jethro said unrepentant. "Your biscuits are too good."
"Better than mine, Leroy?" Jackson asked from where he was turning thick slices of ham.
"Busted." Tony sing-songed as he placed the tray on the counter. He switched out carafes and brought the fresh coffee to the table.
Jethro shifted on the cushion Ducky had left and buttered the biscuit. "Well, Dad. Whose biscuits do you think I should like better, my husband's or my father's?"
"So you don't like my biscuits better?" Tony put on a sad face as he set the coffee down.
Jethro gave him a swat on the rear and grabbed another biscuit.
"Spouse abuse! Jackson, you're my witness." Tony laughed as he moved back to the stove to stand next to his father-in-law. He checked the scrambled eggs, finding them done to his satisfaction he placed them in a bowl and took them to the table. "Need a hand, Jackson?"
Jackson pointed his spatula at another pan. "You could dish up the home fries. This ham is ready to come off."
"Sounds like I'm just in time." Fornell said from the kitchen door. Jethro glanced at Tony who gave a small nod before saying to his husband with a smirk at Fornell, "I thought you locked the door."
"Pull up a chair." Jethro pointed to the table while finishing his second biscuit.
Ignoring Tony's comment, Fornell sat down next to Jethro. "Thanks." He looked up as Tony produced a large mug and filled it from the carafe.
In typical male fashion, conversation gave way to enjoyment of the meal, Jackson and Tony provided. Once the dishes were heavily depleted and Gibbs had managed to swipe the last biscuit, Tony and Jethro exchanged a knowing look. "So, Tobias, what brings you by?"
Fornell wiped his mouth and looked enviously at the biscuit Gibbs held. "Breakfast. Heard you had Dinozzio cooking."
"McGee." Gibbs stated the source definitively.
"Talked to him when I stopped by NCIS to see Vance."
"What was he doing at the office? We're off the roster."
"Said he was following a new lead. Anything I should know?"
Tony took a long sip of coffee trying to decide how to answer the question. With Senior, it had been a relief to know he didn't carry his DNA, but his mother… Mentally, Tony shook his head. Not his mother. She had been the only thing bearable in his life and she wasn't his mother. He looked to Jethro and then Jackson for guidance, before realizing he needed to take the lead. Neither man would break his confidence. "McGee found a picture online last night. The golden couple, Mr. & Mrs. DiNozzo, arriving for a reception at the Whitney Museum of Art just before my birth. She wasn't pregnant."
Fornell took a sip of his coffee. This was not a good turn of events. "Maybe she carried well. You know there are women who don't show till late in the pregnancy."
Jethro shot down Fornell's theory. "The picture was taken just a couple weeks prior to the DiNozzos going to Palermo. McGee also found a picture of the three taken shortly after their return. Tony was a healthy full-term baby. There's no way she was pregnant. It would have showed in that dress."
"A panty line would have showed in that dress." Tony muttered bitterly.
"Well, damn." Fornell took a long sip of his coffee. He hated to be the bearer of anymore bad news.
"So, Fornell, I know you didn't come to taste my cooking."
"We traced the car we found that night."
"Which case?" Gibbs wondered who had tried to take them out this time.
"None." Fornell held his cup out for a refill. "Turns out a couple of your neighbors saw you on the news. Decided they didn't want 'your kind' living in their neighborhood. Had a few beers, had a few more, got the bright idea to scare you out."
"Huh." Gibbs looked at Tony. "Didn't expect that. Guess it's a good thing we're moving."
"I don't know I feel a bit cheated. I figured a cartel, foreign assassin, weapons dealers… All we get is drunk, prejudiced neighbors?"
Gibbs exchanged looks with Jackson who obligingly swatted his new son-in-law.
"Hey!" Tony looked at Jackson betrayed. "I'm your son-in-law."
"He's my son." Jackson shrugged. "Besides I worry enough about people hunting you two down. It's nice that it is just drunk neighbors."
"That's not all you came for, Tobias." While Tony and Jackson bantered, Gibbs had been watching Tobias. "Might as well spit it out."
Tobias reluctantly put his cup down realizing he couldn't stall any longer. He let out a big sigh of relief when the front door banged shut.
"Boss?"
Section 46
"Kitchen, McGee." Gibbs called.
"Morning, Boss, Tony, Jackson. Agent Fornell." Juggling the packages in his hand, he sat a beverage carrier down on the table, followed by two large boxes with distinctive packaging.
"You stopped at Hansen's?" Tony bounced in his chair and grabbed a box.
"It was on the way," Gibbs glanced at his agent with a raised eyebrow. "Sort of." McGee added. "I picked up some of that cappuccino you like Tony and some of their special java." McGee handed the Styrofoam™ cups around. He had even brought one for Fornell.
"You can't seriously still be hungry." Gibbs watched his husband salivating over the box.
"It's donuts. From Hansen's." Tony stated in explanation. "With sprinkles."
"The other box is muffins. They're still warm." McGee watched his amusement as Tony abandoned the donuts and pounced on the other box. As the box was opened the smell of warm muffins filled the air. The scent of blueberry, lemons, apple, banana teased the nostrils of the other men, while Tony made a triumphant grab.
"Chocolate chocolate chip with pecans." Tony crowed.
Jackson eyed the huge muffin. It did smell good and he did have a cup of coffee just waiting.
"Dad! We just ate." Gibbs was shocked when his father grabbed the muffin box.
"Loosen up, Leroy. They're still warm. What do we have here?"
Still clutching his muffin, now missing a large bite, Tony began to point. "Those are Citrus Raspberry with poppy seeds, those are blueberry praline, these are apple raisin strudel and these are chocolate chocolate chip with pecans. Hey, McGee, I don't recognize those." Tony said pointing to the remaining muffins while taking another large bite of his muffin.
"Those are two new varieties that Aalrik sent for you to try. He's considering adding them and wanted to know what you think." McGee leaned over the table. "Those are…" he thought for a minute. "Oh, yeah, cinnamon honey sour cherry and those are white chocolate raspberry crisp."
"White chocolate raspberry?" Tony stared at McGee as if Elvis had just returned to the building.
McGee nodded. "Said it's sort of a take on white chocolate cheesecake with raspberry sauce and dark chocolate crust."
Tony glanced at the half-eaten chocolate muffin in his hand and then back at the box. "White chocolate…. Raspberry…"
"Give me that." Jethro swiped the remaining muffin. "Well, go on," he said taking a bite.
"You're the best husband ever." Tony grabbed the new muffin.
Jackson smirked at his son. He never pictured his son eating a chocolate muffin. "Uh, Leroy, we just ate." He reminded his son.
"It's muffins. From Hansen's." Gibbs used Tony's explanation. "Loosen up, dad."
McGee and Tobias hid their snickers behind their coffee cups. Both men were content to let the Gibbs family enjoy their muffins for as long as they would. Exchanging a glance each man grabbed a donut or muffin to prolong their reprieve.
Their second breakfast consumed, Gibbs looked at Fornell and McGee. "You want to tell us now about whatever you two don't want say."
Fornell glanced at McGee but couldn't force the younger agent to break the news. "I stopped in at NCIS to tell Vance about a situation. Last night," Fornell drank the last of his coffee to ease his suddenly dry throat. "Last night, Senior was attacked."
"Is he…" Tony couldn't finish.
"No. He's not dead. They worked him over pretty good. Broken ribs, arm, fingers, concussion and a lot of bruises and some pretty bad internal injuries. He's in a secure prison hospital. He's serious but stable. I talked to the doc myself. He said he'll live."
"He was supposed to be in maximum security, what the hell happened, Tobias?"
"Gibbs, you know what it's like. We're investigating, but…"
"Who did they buy? Come on, Fornell." Tony demanded.
"We're watching a couple guards. They got roughed up a bit in the attack but something doesn't add up."
"Foreign cartel?" Gibbs asked.
"We don't think so. It appears to be a U.S. link to one of the drug rings."
"You can't just "not think so"." Gibbs raged. "The foreign cartel isn't going to just crawl off. They're going to want to leave a warning."
"They left a warning but…" Tobias cleared his throat. "Ah, hell. The DOJ decided that they didn't want Senior and Benoit held in the same city so they decided to move Benoit to Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York last night. It was top clearance only. On the way, the transport was… was ambushed. All the transport personnel and the marshals in the unmarked cars leading and following them were all shot to death."
"Jeanne was the warning." Tony said in shock. "She's dead?" Gibbs rubbed his back in comfort.
"Yeah. I saw the photos. They made it real personal."
"Does Senior know?"
Fornell shook his head. "Senior is being kept unconscious. The doctor doesn't think he should be told till his condition is upgraded. The DOJ is trying to keep Benoit's death quiet but with ten marshals killed, it's not going to stay that way for long. I thought you should be prepared."
Tony pushed back his chair and stumbled to his feet. Gibbs rose and tried to take him in his arms, but Tony pushed away. "I can't breathe. I can't…" Putting an arm around his waist, Gibbs lead him to the back door and then out on the back porch.
Jackson looked towards where the two men had exited. "I know they appreciate your coming to break the news in person."
Fornell rose slowly. He felt he had aged twenty years in the past twenty minutes. "I better go. There's an inquiry today into the incidents. Pretty sure some heads are going to roll. I haven't seen an op this FUBAR in years. If they want to…" Fornell just shook his head.
"Thanks, Fornell." McGee stood. "I'll let them know you had to report in."
McGee escorted Fornell to the door. "Listen, tell Gibbs the word was somehow leaked that the Tony and Senior weren't speaking and that Senior isn't his dad and that's one reason Tony turned him in. I've got a friend in listening to chatter. It seems the cartel decided that because of that Tony would be of no use in sending a warning. If I hear any different, I'll let them know."
"Thanks. I'll let him know."
"Jackson, are you okay?" McGee was concerned when he re-entered the kitchen and saw Jackson leaning his hands braced on the sink.
"He can't seem to catch a break."
"No, he can't."
"What haven't you told him?" Jackson looked at the young agent and then back at his sons.
"I've been through everything I could find and followed every lead I had. There's nothing to link either Benoit or Senior to DHS."
Jackson turned to McGee. "Then the person who started this whole mess?"
"Still out there." McGee looked out the window at his team mates. "Whoever is after Tony is still out there."