"City engineers traced the disturbance to an underground power node. Back traced the source, they found this," McGee said as Morgan climbed down the ladder into the underground junction room with Russell over her shoulders.
Gibbs gave her a glance with a small frown. She'd been avoiding him for some reason and they hadn't been able to get drinks like he'd planned. After they confirmed that Karen was the serial killer a few cases ago, Gibbs went to get a hold of her, but she left early. He wasn't quite sure what had happened.
"Hey, boss," Tony greeted as he moved into the room where their victim was. "Meet Marine Officer Major John Maguire. At least that's what his ID says. It's hard to tell with the, you know, the one eye."
"Yeah, where's the missing one?" Gibbs asked, putting on his gloves and pulling out a flashlight for a better look.
"Your guess is as good as mine."
"I'll have Russell check around," Morgan offered, kneeling down for the dog to hop off her shoulders and leading him to the body for a sniff. "Search."
She followed the dog around as he shuffled about and Tony continued to give an explanation as to their victim.
"The Major worked under Marine Corps Systems Command as liaison to the civilian sector for NBC preparedness."
"Nuclear, biological, and chemical," McGee explained.
"Very good. I'm proud of you. Like a weird uncle. Hey, boss, you may not have noticed, but the—"
"Door locks from the outside," Gibbs finished for him.
"Oh, so you noticed that…"
"Meaning someone else locked him down here," McGee concluded.
"Yeah, you really want to impress me, McGee, tell me why," Gibbs said firmly, getting up to check the torn open wiring box nearby. "Did he know where his SOS was going?"
"Not a chance. Shorting the power box was clever, but a shot in the dark. Lucky it worked at all."
"And someone was able to figure it out," Ziva said as she moved into the room with Ducky right behind her.
"That's precisely why S.O.S. was chosen because it was so very recognizable. Dot-dot-dot, dash-dash-dash, dot-dot-dot. Unlike the old signal which was CQD, come quick distress."
"Just the SOS?" Gibbs asked to confirm and Ziva nodded.
"That's all he sent."
"Morse code's a dying art," McGee hummed.
"Was for him."
"Well, he could have sent a longer message, but nobody would have recognized it," Tony said, before catching the look Gibbs gave him. "Present company excepted."
"Cause of death?" Gibbs asked Ducky, hoping for some answers there.
"Well, he didn't suffocate. There are no signs of cyanosis to indicate oxygen deprivation. No petechial hemorrhages that would indicate strangulation. There's no blunt or sharp force trauma. In fact, there is no sign of any trauma at all."
"Other than the missing eye," Morgan said as she stepped back into the room. "Russell didn't find anything. Just followed his path to and from this room. So, either whoever locked him in here took it or…"
"Or?" Gibbs questioned and she caught his gaze for a moment before looking away.
"Or it's still on him."
"How would it still be on him?" Tony questioned. "We checked his pockets. What'd he do? Eat it?"
Morgan gave him a look and he grimaced.
"Really?"
She shrugged. "A possibility. Door was locked from the outside so it's still possible someone came back in and took it but that wouldn't explain the lack of trauma. Could've been schizophrenic, off his meds, done it himself sort of thing."
Ducky hummed. "A possibility we would have to wait to find, unfortunately. I'll be sure to send Abby tissue samples for a chemical analysis."
"And the blood?" Gibbs questioned and Ducky held up the man's torn hands.
"Yes, well, the blood on the hands is superficial, from several torn cuticles and pads."
"It looks like he literally tried to climb the walls," Tony pointed out, taking photos of the blood smears on the concrete walls.
Ducky frowned though as he pulled out the tool he was using to check the body's internal temperature. "Oh, that's odd. Ninety-nine point one. It appears our corpse is running a slight fever."
"What happened down here?" McGee wondered as Ziva called out from the corner of the room where she'd found a camera tucked on top of a pipe.
"Whatever happened, someone wanted to watch."
Gibbs and Tony had gone down to see if Ducky found anything while doing his autopsy and weren't entirely surprised when he confirmed Morgan's suspicions. Major Maguire had been the one to claw out his eye and had swallowed it as well.
"You know, it's kind of scary when she's right," Tony muttered as he headed for the elevator and Gibbs rolled his eyes.
"She's got a good intuition," he said, nodding for Tony to head out. "Go on. I'll check with her and Abby."
He headed into the lab to find Abby and Morgan hovering near a computer. The moment he walked in though, Abby bounced to her feet and grabbed him in a hug.
"Gibbs! Thank God you're here. I really need your help. You've got to stop me from doing something stupid. I'm thinking about getting a tattoo."
He glanced at her, entirely unsurprised, as she moved back to the computer where Morgan was waiting, and the two locked eyes. Again, Morgan was quick to look away and his brows furrowed before Abby showed him the tattoos she was looking at.
"All these tattoos. You know, I get really nervous 'cause it's such a final decision. Should I go with something a little esoteric or I don't know, maybe a little Eastern? Huh, Ganesh. The Hindu god of wisdom, for me, the wise one. What do you think?"
"I don't think I'm the one to ask about this," Gibbs admitted.
"But Gibbs, you know me better than anyone else! And when you're going to make a decision that's going to affect the rest of your life, you need the person around you that knows you best for guidance. Please?"
"Where do you want to put the tattoo?" He tried and Abby grimaced.
"You're right. You're not the one to ask."
"What about a tree?" Morgan offered, drawing Abby's attention. "There's lots of symbology surrounding trees regarding wisdom, life, balance, and longevity. Could do owls too, though I find them a little typical. Raven maybe? They're rather clever and keep with the whole dark theme."
Abby gaped at her before Morgan turned away from the computer to find her staring. "Morgan J. Frost—"
Morgan frowned. "I don't have a middle name."
"Since when do you know so much about tattoos!" Abby leaned in close with a wicked smirk. "Are you hiding them from me?"
Morgan's gaze flickered to Gibbs who was rather curious himself, before she cleared her throat and backed up slightly; dragging a hand through her hair. "I was just offering suggestions. The, um, toxicology report? Have we confirmed what happened?"
Abby's eyes narrowed. "We will talk about this later," she said firmly before getting up and leading her and Gibbs toward the report she'd printed out. "I heard about Ducky's unexplained hyperthermia. I can explain it. I found traces of three quinuclidynyl benzilate in Major Maguire's blood. NATO calls it BZ gas. We call it Agent Buzz. It's an incapacitating agent that causes hyperthermia, severe hallucinations, and in large enough doses, death. It's a chemical weapon, Gibbs."
"Schizophrenia in a bottle," Morgan muttered as Gibbs frowned.
"Whose weapon?"
Abby shrugged. "It's hard to tell. Chemical weapons are banned, but they're still allowed for research purposes. Even by our own government."
"Can we trace it to the lab who ordered it?" Morgan asked.
"No, but I do have a lead," Abby said, showing Gibbs the camera. "The camera that you pulled from the sewer is Wi-Fi-based. It works by piggybacking on local, unprotected networks. Once it's on the internet, it can be routed anywhere at will. And it makes it totally untraceable."
"But you traced it anyway," Gibbs confirmed, turning to leave. "Let me know when you—"
"I got an address," Abby said.
"Yup."
"No, I mean, I got an address," she pressed, making him pause as Morgan grabbed a notepad to scribble the place she found. "The killer watched the Major die from a bowling alley. 19 Bella Street. Of course, whoever was there is probably long—"
"Thanks, Abs," Morgan said, hurrying out with Gibbs before she could finish.
Once they drove up to the bowling alley, the team split up with Tony and Ziva going in the back and Morgan, McGee, and Gibbs going through the front. The area to the left of the entrance had multiple people playing games on their PCs, distracting McGee for a moment before they moved further into where the bowling alley was. The front desk was empty though—no employee to be found—and the group headed for the staff area just past it.
"Talk to me, Ziva," Gibbs asked as he drew his service arm upon hearing arguing in one of the rooms.
"Rear service entrance clear. Standing by," Ziva replied and Gibbs moved toward the door that was cracked open.
There were two people inside interrogating another and Gibbs signed as much before knocking the door open. Russell rushed in low, barking as the two men inside turned with guns drawn and Gibbs, McGee, and Morgan drew their own.
"Federal agents! Drop it!" McGee shouted as one of the other men shouted the same thing upon bursting in through a backroom door.
Tony came in saying much the same and soon Russell stopped barking and Morgan sighed, bringing her fingers to her lips. Her loud whistle cut through all the shouting and all eyes went to her as she put her service arm away.
"How about we all put down our weapons since we're all apparently federal agents?" She said sharply as a familiar face stepped in from the back room as well.
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Lieutenant Colonel Mann said, making her men stand down as Gibbs did the same with their team. "Nice to see you again, Morgan, Gibbs."
Russell bounded over happily to get his own pets as Morgan ran a hand through her hair.
"I beg to differ," she grumbled. "I've got a bad feeling about this."
Mann cracked a small smile and turned her attention to Gibbs. "Shall we head back and discuss things?"
"Yeah, we should."
The team was quick to head back to NCIS headquarters and Mann joined them in the bullpen with the information she had from her lead.
"Mamoun Sharif. CID was able to trace an old lead from when Sharif was working as a paid informant for the CIA. The trail led to an alias which led to a credit card."
"Which led to a bowling alley," Gibbs confirmed.
"Yup. Funny us running into each other like that."
"Funny?"
"Do you have a better word?"
Mann cracked a smile before looking over at Morgan who was scowling and fiddling with a stress ball at her desk. "I know it's not exactly something you're thrilled about, Morgan."
"Doesn't matter what I think," Morgan grumbled, annoyed that those old feelings of guilt for not catching Sharif the first time were quickly returning. "What matters is how our two cases are connected. Sharif having chemical weapons doesn't bode well."
Tony nodded. "Prints on the computer that was used to monitor the sewer matched the prints on file from Sharif's CIA report. The Mad bomb's back."
"Except he's not using a bomb this time," Ziva added.
"So where did he get the BZ gas?" Mann asked as Tony explained his findings.
"One of the Major's duties was to deliver small quantities of weapon-grade gasses to civilian research labs."
"Ziva, you and Tony—"
"Run down the list of the Major's deliveries starting with the most recent," Ziva said, getting up to grab her things.
"And find out—"
"If any of them were BZ gas. On it, boss," Tony finished for him and the two hurried out.
"They always finish your sentences for you?" Mann asked Gibbs who hummed.
"I teach them to anticipate."
"Well, they do it well. You must be a good teacher."
"Well, thank you very much," Gibbs replied with an accent, making her chuckle with him as McGee's gaze bounced between them and Morgan.
He didn't miss her grip tightening on the stress ball and silently made note to share this with Ziva and Tony later.
"Ah, Boss, if Sharif was trying to cover his tracks, why would he go to all this trouble just to kill Major Maguire?"
"It does seem unusual that Sharif would have wasted the BZ gas the way he did," Mann replied to McGee's question but Morgan shook her head.
"He was watching what happened. Testing it, seeing what it'd do, how long it would take, first symptoms, that sort of thing." She huffed, abandoning her stress ball and moving to type on her computer. "I'll look into the connection between Maguire and Sharif. Someone should check with Abby about how BZ can be dispersed and antidotes."
McGee got up. "I'll go ask and see if there's anything more we can get from the camera."
He hurried off as Mann went over and gave Morgan's shoulder a squeeze.
"Careful, Morgan, or you might just run Gibbs out of a job."
"No chance," Gibbs replied, nodding toward the stairs. "Come on. We better go update the Director. She won't be happy about a new terrorist threat."
Mann nodded and followed him up the stairs as Morgan silently watched them go. After a moment, she shook her head and went back to work, ignoring the slight uneasiness in her gut at seeing the two chuckling over something once more. She had other things to focus on. Namely, catching Sharif after she let him run off the last time. She wasn't about to let that happen again.
"So then the Colonel says to Gibbs, 'Funny us running into each other like that.'" McGee said to Abby, recounting the conversation that had happened between Gibbs and Mann.
"McGee, you are readying way too much into this," Abby pressed.
"Abby, you were not there. You did not see the look on Gibbs's face."
"Look at what, McGee?" Gibbs said, having stepped in and now eyeing the computer that was trying to pair him and Mann up to see what their kid would look like.
"Hi, boss. I was… I was just…"
"Talking about us behind our backs?" Mann said as they closed the program and Abby hummed.
"Well, we were trying to."
"What do you got on Sharif?" Gibbs questioned, bringing them back to the task at hand.
"Or Maguire?" Mann added.
"Well, we've been digging all day trying to find the connection," McGee started as Gibbs spoke up.
"Frost told us about the twenty thousand dollar deposit," he informed them, making McGee nod.
"Yeah, if we can track the source, it might give us a lead on him. She sent us what she got there since she's not good at hacking."
"There's more," Abby piped up before they could try and leave, and McGee explained.
"The Wi-Fi camera that Sharif used? It stream-videoed Major Maguire in real time to Sharif's computer."
"And we all know that the internet was designed to be a redundant communications protocol."
The two went on a long rant about how they worked on things as Mann gave Gibbs a look.
"How long will they go on like this?"
"Until we stop them," Gibbs replied. "Morgan usually can dumb it down a bit."
"Really?" Mann hummed. "She wasn't all that into tech when we worked together."
"Maybe she studied up."
Mann shrugged before cutting the two rambling techies off. "McGee! Bottom line."
McGee paused before nodding. "We've got the video Sharif took of Major Maguire before he died."
The group gathered up at the computer as they displayed the video and Abby started off the narration.
"First, he tried to pick the lock."
"Then he called for help. About a half hour later, he gets the idea to try and signal using the power box on the wall, which caused the traffic lights on the street to blink," McGee pointed out.
"Watch what happens when the BZ goes into effect."
The Major began crawling on the floor and scrambling up the walls.
"He looks really agitated," Mann muttered.
"The BZ gas causes severe hallucinations," McGee explained as Abby grimaced at the final bit of the feed.
"He is literally losing his mind. Now we know how an eyeball got in his stomach."
"How much?" Mann asked, wondering how much it took to get him like that.
"This was the result of roughly ten milligrams of exposure."
McGee saw the look on their faces and hesitantly questioned it. "What?"
"We're missing ten kilograms, McGee," Gibbs informed him.
"That's like a million times more."
"Did you check on how he can dose people?"
Abby blinked, rather surprised. "I'm still working on it. I mean, technically there's quite a few ways. I'm surprised Morgan thought to ask."
"She's still pissed he got away," Mann noted. "She won't leave any loose ends."
Abby nodded. "It will take some doing to find all the ways he can alter it. The usual ways are airborne and ingesting. Trying to find out if he can mix it with other compounds could take a while."
"Do it," Gibbs ordered. "And start making sure there's some sort of cure for this thing. If he gets it out before we get to him, we need a way to stop it."
"On it."
Gibbs, Mann, and McGee stepped out and headed back upstairs where Tony was quick to meet up with them.
"Good news, Boss. Gordon Gear ran a full inventory," he said, handing Gibbs the report as Ziva continued.
"The only thing unaccounted for was the BZ gas."
"Does that mean you found Sharif?" Gibbs questioned, knowing the answer.
"I guess he's still unaccounted for, too."
"The bolo isn't giving us much," Morgan chimed in, looking as though she'd dragged her hand through her hair a million times already in frustration. "Possible he's dyed his hair or changed how he looks."
"He's someplace doing something. Figure out where and find him," Gibbs snapped at them as Tony grinned.
"I've got an idea! Campfire!"
"No!" Ziva immediately refused as Tony argued.
"Yes! Campfire is where we all get together and in a free environment, you know, without hugging and everything, we—" He paused as Gibbs grabbed his things to leave and stepped out. "Not a big fan of the campfire."
"And where's he going?" Mann asked, curious.
"Same place he always goes to think," McGee informed her, not expanding on that but he didn't have to.
Mann knew where he'd be and gave Morgan a look as she passed by. "I'll check up on him for you."
Morgan shot the woman an annoyed glance and went back to work as Mann left to drop by Gibbs's house as well. Not before finding out something to give him regarding the case, anyway. She headed down toward his basement after knocking on the door to alert him to where she was.
"I thought you'd like to know that Sharif made it to the top of every agency's most wanted list. Homeland Security's all over it," she said as she came down the stairs before pausing at the sight of his boat gone and a new shell of one being made. "Where's your boat?"
"Oh, had to move it to make some room," Gibbs replied.
"Yeah, but—"
"They're covering their asses," he said, regarding her comment on Sharif.
"But where…"
"It'll take them days to do anything."
"Yeah, well they want a briefing. Chemical weapons are notoriously difficult to deal with and ten kilograms is a large amount. It could be a land-based attack," Mann said, slowly going back to the case though unable to help but wonder how he got the boat out of his basement.
"Or it's something else we haven't thought of yet," Gibbs noted.
"Well, that's what I'm here for."
Gibbs shot her a look. "Is it?"
"You say that like you were expecting something else," she quipped before cracking a smile. "Or hoping it was someone else."
"What's in the bag?" He asked, nodding to the bag she'd brought.
"Dinner. I tried to get Morgan to come but she was glued to her computer. I told Ziva to send her home when she got too frustrated."
"Sounds like her," Gibbs replied as they went to pull out the food. "She wasn't finding anything then?"
"No, and not through lack of trying either. She doesn't think Sharif will sell the BZ."
"He won't," Gibbs confirmed, drawing her attention.
"And you're so sure of that because?"
"His eyes."
"His eyes?"
"He doesn't want the money. He wants to kill."
"Who? Sharif's sold himself out to the highest bidder his whole life, no matter what side they were on. And what's changed?"
"People get older. Realize that they want something different."
"Right. Morgan said something similar but at least she had a better explanation."
"What'd she say?"
"That someone who planned out a bombing like the last one wouldn't do that just because someone wanted him to. People need motivation to throw away their whole lives like he did," Mann replied. "Wasn't really convincing but she's always been good at what she does. Hard to argue with her. What's really surprising is you not making a move on her yet."
"Who says I haven't?"
Mann snorted, eating some of her food. "You're joking, right?"
Gibbs sighed. "I invited her out for drinks a month ago. She was having a rough day and thought it would take the edge off. She wanted to wait until the case we were working on was over but when it was…" He shrugged. "Avoidance."
"That's not like her," Mann muttered. "The avoidance, I mean. She probably didn't even see that you were asking her out on a date."
"It wasn't a date," Gibbs protested and Mann shot him a look.
"You wanted it to be."
He couldn't argue that.
"Point is, something must have set her off. We're a distraction to your team as it is. If your team is aware of you two—"
"Oh, they are," Gibbs said with a huff of annoyance.
"Then, is it possible someone mentioned something to her?" Mann asked. "Maybe her avoidance is her being more aware of you. It could be a good thing, though it does mean you'll have to try harder. Who knows? Maybe she'll start getting jealous of us hanging out."
"You're not my type," Gibbs countered, making her snort.
"Yeah right."
His phone went off then and he put his food down to answer it. "Yeah, Gibbs."
What he didn't expect, was the voice on the other end.
"Hello, Agent Gibbs."
Gibbs glanced at Mann, who stopped eating and grew serious at what he said next. "What do you want, Sharif?"
"No pleasantries? That's not very friendly, Agent Gibbs."
"You want friendly? The front door is open. Bring coffee."
"I would, but I had somewhere else to be and they weren't home. Shame. I had some decorating tips, but first things first. I know you are aware I have almost ten kilograms of BZ gas in my possession… I wasn't expecting applause but I was hoping for a little bit more."
"What do you want?" Gibbs pressed as Mann pulled out her phone to call up the team about this.
"The United States Government is holding six alleged members of a Chechen separatist group in a secret prison in Afghanistan. I want them released within the next twenty-four hours."
"Not going to happen," Gibbs said firmly.
"Because the United States does not negotiate with terrorists," Sharif concluded, knowing well enough what the rules were. "But you misunderstand. We are not negotiating. Either you release those men or I will release more of the BZ gas."
"More?" Gibbs questioned, writing down what was being said to show Mann, who nodded at the warning and continued to talk to his team.
"It's hard to say how many have been exposed. Airborne weaponry is a tricky business. But I am sure the eleven o'clock news will have a pretty good figure by now."
Gibbs grabbed the nearby remote and turned on the TV where a news report was playing about a mystery illness at a hospital. Mann spat out a curse and informed the team as Sharif continued.
"Actually, counting your companion, Agent Gibbs, that makes seven," Sharif said, overhearing the number of people from his TV. "Do give Agent Frost my regards. She was the first to catch onto me from what I heard and if it weren't for her selfishness, she might have caught me and prevented all this the last time we met. I look forward to hearing about the results on the news."
"Poor Morgan," Abby mused as she, Ziva, Gibbs, and Mann stood outside of Ducky's autopsy room where the woman was putting back on her shoes with a scowl. "First a fractured wrist and now this?"
"Sharif's going to have far more than that when Gibbs catches him," Ziva added as the door opened and Ducky met the group.
"Is she going crazy?" Abby asked as Ducky shook his head with a small smile.
"No, she's her usual self, if a little displeased. I didn't find any trace of BZ gas in her or Russell. Sharif appears to be bluffing. You're welcome to—"
"Morgan! I was so worried!" Abby shouted, rushing in and grabbing Morgan in a hug.
Morgan held her hands up, a little awkward about the hugging as Russell whined and Abby released her to squish the dog's face.
"I was worried about you too, Rus," she cooed, hugging him as well as Gibbs and Mann headed over.
"You're sure you're okay?"
Morgan nodded. "Yes. I barely got home when you called. Russell hadn't even walked in the door. Probably caught his scent at the entrance and was sniffing around there. I didn't think anything of it."
"That's unlike you," Mann commented as Morgan picked up her coat.
"One of our neighbors has a new dog that they let roam the halls sometimes," she explained. "So, Russell's a little more interested."
"Was anything out of place?" Gibbs questioned as Morgan dragged a hand through her hair.
"We didn't get far. Only thing I saw was Russell's service vest on the ground but he could've knocked it over this morning when we left. I picked it up to put back and you called to tell me about Sharif's threat." She gestured to Russell. "I'm more concerned about him than me. I don't want anything happening to him that could get him…"
"We won't let that happen," Gibbs said firmly, giving Russell a pet himself. "Any signs of anything—"
Morgan nodded. "I'll bring a crate from home."
"I'll get it," Ziva said, willing to go to the apartment. "I'll have a sweep done as well. Make sure there are no more chances of BZ exposure."
Morgan nodded, fishing out her keys and handing them to her. "It's in the front room. You can break it down pretty easy and there's a bed inside it."
Ziva nodded, giving her a pat on the shoulder as the group headed for the elevator.
"No fatalities at the hospital. The dose was too low. They're reporting it as food poisoning. But the word is already beginning to leak out," she informed them as Gibbs frowned.
"How did Sharif deliver the BZ?"
"I can't tell yet. The pattern of illnesses appears at random," Abby commented as Morgan spoke up.
"Look for ways other than gas. You can't hit only six random people with gas. The whole hospital should be quarantined if he used gas."
"We're still trying to find a link between Sharif and the Chechen rebels as well," Ziva added.
"You won't find one. He's trying to distract us," Gibbs mentioned.
"From what?" Mann asked.
"I don't know."
"Then what makes you so sure?"
Abby lightly tapped her as Gibbs went quiet. "Never question the gut."
Gibbs gave her a look but Abby just smiled as the door opened and he nearly ran into McGee.
"Oh!"
"Going somewhere, McGee?" Gibbs asked.
"Actually, looking for you, Boss. I might've found a connection between Sharif's victims. Neighbors reported seeing the same truck outside of two of the houses."
"Well, you got a plate?" Mann questioned as they moved to the bullpen.
"Not enough of one. All I got is a red truck, some kind of logo."
"Ziva, you and Tony find out if anyone else saw—" Gibbs paused as he spotted the empty desk. "Where the hell is Dinozzo?"
"You tell me," Ziva said with a huff. "Oh, that's right. You won't."
"Find him. Now," Gibbs snapped as she gathered her things.
"I'll call him on the way to Morgan's. You need anything else?"
"Change of clothes," Morgan grumbled, dropping into her desk chair. "I'll stay at a hotel—"
"You can stay at my place," Gibbs offered, earning glances from the people around. "It's more secure."
"A hotel isn't as easy to find if I pay cash," Morgan argued lightly. "And if he made it into my place, why wouldn't he get into yours?"
The two had a stare-down for a moment before Gibbs sat down and got to work.
"You stay at my place or you get protective detail. Your choice."
"And that's my cue to leave," Ziva said, getting her things and heading for the elevator. "Good luck, McGee."
He offered her a small wave, glancing between Morgan and Gibbs who were now giving one another the silent treatment. Mann leaned over his desk then, drawing his attention.
"They do this often?"
"Only when they disagree," McGee replied, lowering his voice. "Gibbs usually wins."
Morgan's glare shifted to him then and he cleared his throat.
"Right. Working."
Morgan sat at her desk rubbing at her eyes tiredly and battling a headache that had started up early that morning while Gibbs interrogated Dane—the man who'd done the wire transfer to Major Maguire for the BZ that Abby and McGee had tracked down. She hadn't slept much that night and had just stayed in the bullpen overnight instead of attempting to get a hotel or go to Gibbs's place. It meant she didn't get protective detail and she hadn't given in to his offer but it wasn't leaving her feeling any better.
I need to get a new apartment. That's the second time someone's gotten in and Russell being put at risk is not an option for me. She glanced at the dog beside her as he happily chewed on a toy in his crate—which she'd replaced his bed with for the moment in case anything happened with the BZ they might have been exposed to. She didn't know what she'd do if anything happened to him. She'd lost more than enough for a lifetime and losing him would—
"Get down! It's an ambush!" She shouted, dragging herself across the hot desert as blood seeped from the shrapnel in her leg.
It was too late though. Her team was scattered—the closest one a dozen feet away—as gunfire pelted down on them. She bit out a curse, pulling herself behind a dried-out bush and digging through her pockets for something to use as a tourniquet for her leg. Sweat trickled down the back of her neck as she tried to keep an eye on her team, keep herself safe, and locate where the enemy might be firing from.
A cry of pain came from not too far off and she whipped around, seeing one of her men downed and watching as he tried to crawl away. She bit out a curse, attempting to head toward him but before she could even move, there was an explosion, and dirt was kicked up. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of him being thrown several feet; nothing more than a corpse after incidentally crawling over an IED.
"—gan. Morgan?"
She regained her focus on Mann who'd stepped into the bullpen and had been trying to get her attention for a moment.
"Everything alright?"
Morgan nodded, flexing her quivering hands. "Yeah, fine. Just don't like waiting around."
"Not much else we can do, unfortunately," Mann said. "CID weapon specialist is looking over the blood of the hospital victims and I'm waiting to hear back from them. Gibbs should be almost done with the interrogation which should give us something to work with… How are you handling this?"
Morgan scowled. "I'm pissed."
"Obviously," Mann mused, leaning against her desk. "You can talk to me, you know. We've known each other long enough and I get it. You're angry about him getting to you and about letting him go last time, but you're scared too, aren't you?"
Morgan glanced at her in mild annoyance. "You're not my therapist."
"No, but I am a friend, whether you'd admit that or not," Mann countered. "Have you started looking for a new place? I can help with that at the very least."
Morgan sighed, dragging a hand through her hair. "I haven't started looking but I need to. Can't risk anything happening to Russell by staying there, even if it has been cleared."
Mann cracked a small smile. "I was thinking more along the lines of you not feeling safe in your own home."
"I'm fine."
"You're really not."
Morgan's glare returned but it was then that Gibbs headed back with Ziva and the others who'd been watching the interrogation.
"You better not be pissing her off, Mann," he commented as he went toward his desk.
"Only a little," Mann replied easily. "How'd it go?"
"He says he paid Sharif and only gave him the BZ because he'd modified it to not work as a gas," Tony replied as Ziva continued for him.
"Claims there is no terrorist attack and it was a tactic to scare people and get money through stock prices."
McGee went to his desk as his phone rang and soon revealed what he'd found out as Morgan rubbed at her eyes again in frustration. Damn this headache, she mentally complained before opening her desk and searching through it for some pain medication she might have left over from when she broke her wrist.
"Boss, local LEOs found the stolen sprayers in an alley. No trace of BZ. I think maybe Dane was right."
Gibbs said nothing, just frowning as Tony spoke up instead.
"Wrong, Probie. This is Sharif. He wouldn't go to all the trouble if he didn't have a plan. And not knowing is driving boss crazy."
"Then explain how Sharif is going to spread the BZ if it's been modified?" McGee challenged.
"It had to be used differently," Morgan said sharply. "If it wasn't a gas, then it had to be something else. Ingested?"
"There wouldn't be a way to get a lot of victims at once," Ziva pointed out.
"Then, what? There has to be something. Anything. He wouldn't just take something useless to send a message. What's the point of it all if he can't spread it?"
"Maybe it wasn't modified," Ziva offered as Mann stepped back into the bullpen after having made a call.
"It was. CID's chemical weapons specialist analyzed the blood of the victims at the hospital and confirmed the BZ's been modified. It's harmless unless ingested."
"Which is basically harmless," Ziva concluded.
"It wasn't harmless for Major Maguire and those six people," Gibbs cut in, annoyed himself.
"Sharif was in their houses. He could have spiked their O.J. with BZ," Tony offered as McGee agreed.
"Or Shariff figured out a way to modify it back."
"I didn't eat anything," Morgan pointed out. "I had only just got home and if it was gas, then there'd be a trace with Russell or me."
"Unless that was a bluff and he never did anything to you," Ziva added as Gibbs's phone rang and it was a good thing it did.
Morgan was starting to lose her temper.
"Yeah, Gibbs," Gibbs answered before soon snapping his fingers and getting the team in motion.
It was Sharif.
"Why don't I wait for you to start the trace?" Sharif hummed patiently. "I just called to see how Agent Frost was feeling."
Gibbs glanced at Morgan briefly, knowing she was frustrated and angry at the least but seeming generally alright health-wise. "Better than those six innocent people you put in the hospital."
"I'd stop by to pay my respects, but I'm on my way out of town. How about I send you a postcard? I am planning on traveling quite a bit for my retirement."
"And your Chechen buddies?" Gibbs asked, keeping the conversation going more than expecting Sharif to care about them.
"I'm not even sure where Chechnya is."
"We both know you're not retiring."
"With what I need, I plan to."
"Who were they?" Gibbs asked then, drawing Morgan's gaze at the change in question. "Wife? Family? Come on, Sharif. I've been there. I know. It's not the money. It's payback. You won't stop until you get it. So, who were they?"
The phone was disconnected before they could narrow down where he was and Morgan sighed heavily as she finally found some pills and took them with a sip of her energy drink.
"So this is all about payback?" Tony questioned.
"I said it before," Morgan replied. "You need motivation to abandon your whole life like that. The military rarely thinks twice about the people caught in the crossfire. He's definitely planning an attack."
Ducky stepped in then, having come up from downstairs with possible information. "I believe I have a clue as to what that might be."
Gibbs, Mann, Tony, and Morgan got up to follow him downstairs to autopsy where he showed them Major Maguire's torn-up hands.
"Do you see the slight inflammation of the stratum corneum of his fingertips?"
"Slight?" Mann commented as Tony hummed in agreement.
"Looks like he was grating cheese, forgot the cheese."
"Yes, well, most of the damage occurred when Major Maguire attempted to scale the walls of his crypt. But when I was learned that the BZ gas had been modified so it was no longer an airborne threat, I looked for other methods of exposure."
"He ingested it," Mann replied.
"That's a good guess, but also a wrong one. The answer lies in the Major's urine. Smell that," he said, holding up a glass bottle sample.
"I'd prefer not to," Tony said with a grimace but Gibbs, Mann, and Morgan had no problems taking a whiff.
"Garlic," Gibbs said as Morgan frowned.
"Or something else that can make it smell like garlic."
Ducky nodded, capping the sample. "The contents of his stomach showed that Major Maguire hadn't eaten anything, much less garlic. It appears that Sharif may have been testing a topical method of exposure. Like sunscreen or a body oil. If that is the case, then that would explain both the inflammation and the garlic odor byproduct. Of course, all this will require a specialized analysis from Abby to determine that that is indeed the case. I'm fairly certain that—"
Morgan spat out a curse as she bolted from the room while Gibbs took the sample Ducky had taken to head to Abby's lab with Mann. Morgan was on the phone in the hall though, dragging a hand through her hair.
"Ziva, I need a favor."
"Sure. What is it? What did Ducky find?"
"He thinks the BZ was transferred to the Major with a topical ointment type of thing. Can you send people back to my apartment and test my things? Start with the service dog vest on the dresser by the front door."
"On it. I'll let you know as soon as I do. You're feeling alright though, yeah? It could have still been a bluff."
"Yeah. yeah, I'm fine," Morgan muttered, lying through her teeth. "Thanks, Ziva."
She hung up and pulled at her short hair as she leaned up against the wall in the hallway. It's fine. It's okay because it means Russell probably wasn't exposed. He'll be fine. The problem is me. My headache is getting worse. She rubbed at her eyes with one hand, sending sparks across her vision before opening them and—
She stood before her superior at perfect attention, barely resisting a frown at having been called to his office for what she suspected was a reprimand.
"Do you know why you're here, Sergeant Frost?"
"If this is about my last mission—"
"I did not give you permission to speak freely, Sergeant," the man said sharply, making her grit her teeth.
"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir. I do believe I know why I am here."
"Good. Then you'll know what I'm about to say. You are on a squad for a reason. It's to work together to deal with your assignment and by working together, you prevent incidents like what happened today."
"Sir, if the Corporal had just stayed put—"
"Whether he moved or not, you were the problem, Sergeant! He went to stop you and was injured in the process! If you had followed orders to stand down, then you wouldn't be here. I don't give a damn how good your shot was. You follow orders as they are given, do you understand?"
"Sir, yes, sir," she said bitterly.
"Next time you decide to be a problem, you'll get far more than just a slap on the wrist. For now, you're suspended from active duty for two weeks."
Gibbs rushed by then, stopping when he saw her spacing out and he frowned. She seemed to be doing that more lately and he reached out and lightly patted her shoulder. "Hey, come on. They have a lead on Sharif."
She slowly nodded, a little dazed before heading up to the bullpen with him where the team gathered around one of the viewing screens where security footage was being played.
"The guy's been a busy little banker," Tony hummed.
"He spent the last couple of days going from bank to bank," Ziva pointed out, giving Morgan a glance. "Waited until you already checked his accounts I guess."
"Depositing or withdrawing?" Gibbs asked, having an idea of the answer.
"Withdrawing," McGee confirmed. "And all of it in singles."
"Twelve transactions at twelve different banks," Ziva explained.
"Which is why he was flagged."
"Anti-laundering law used to say any transaction over ten grand needs to be reported," Tony informed them.
"But those are nine thousand each," Mann noticed on the transaction reports.
"Well, Sharif must have known about the limit," Mcgee said but Tony smirked.
"What he didn't know is that the Fed lowered the threshold to five grand last month."
"Since when do you know so much about anti-laundering laws, Dinozzo?" Gibbs asked, making Tony hum.
"Well, you should read your memos more often then, boss."
"Or not."
"How much did he pull out?" Morgan asked.
"108 thousand," Ziva answered as McGee hummed.
"A lot of singles."
"If the BZ is topical, singles would make it easy for him to hand out," Morgan noted. "Singles are used everywhere for all sorts of transactions. If it's on the money—"
"And the way it changes hands within thirty-six hours…" Gibbs said as Mann nodded.
"A lot more than a hundred thousand will be at risk."
"DiNozzo."
"I'll check casinos and racetracks. Best places to get rid of large amounts of cash quick," Tony said as Mann turned to McGee.
"Agent McGee, airports, train stations. Wherever Sharif can hit large groups of people."
"On it, boss," he said before correcting himself. "Colonel."
"Ziva, coordinate roadblocks with local LEOs," Gibbs ordered. "Frost—"
"I'll contact the National Guard. Have them ready to move with the antidote to wherever we need."
"We're going to have to issue a warning," Mann pointed out to Gibbs. "It's going to wreak havoc on the economy."
"The economy is not what I'm worried about."
"He could be anywhere. We're not going to find him now."
Gibbs flipped through the security images but paused on one. "McGee."
"Yeah, boss?"
"What is this?"
McGee got up to move closer to what he was pointing at. "Well, it looks like the cash."
"I can see that, McGee. No, that. Right there. What is that?" Gibbs pressed, trying to zoom in before McGee took the controller from him and did it himself. "That."
"Looks like a GBP. It's a GameBox Portable."
"Pest guy said Sharif was addicted to it," Tony chimed, drawing Morgan's attention.
"It's a video game thing, right? Could we trace him through it?"
"If he's playing it and we know his online gaming ID, yeah."
"We do," Mann informed him and they started to move.
"I'll call Abby," Morgan said and it didn't take long for them to get a location then.
The team pulled up to the train station quickly as Morgan hung up the phone—having left Russell with Abby this time to prevent him from coming into contact with the drug. The last thing they needed was a rogue military-trained K9.
"He's still online," McGee said as she spoke up.
"National Guard is sending in a response team with the antidote."
"If someone wants to suggest waiting for him outside I won't complain," Tony quipped as Gibbs turned to his team.
"Ziva, lock the station down. Nothing leaves."
She nodded and split off from the group as they stood in the station looking around for Sharif.
"Which way, McGee?" Tony asked.
"I don't know. He went offline."
"DiNozzo."
Tony turned to Gibbs. "Yeah, boss?"
"Have security block all exits," Mann ordered and he nodded.
"I'm on it."
"Listen to the announcements," Morgan said. "If he went offline he either knew we caught on or his train is showing up soon."
They moved further into the station as the intercom overhead chimed in.
"Train number eighty-four is now boarding on track eighteen."
Morgan pointed up ahead of them. "There. Should be straight ahead and to the left."
They moved quickly, passing by a few people heading in that direction when Morgan suddenly stopped. She turned, catching sight of a blonde man they had passed and her vision flickered—
She sucked in a gasp of air, water dripping from her head and shoulders as strong arms held her above the trough.
She blinked hard as the blonde man caught eyes with her and double-taked.
Pain rippled through her body as blood seemed to cover every inch and a bruising-tight grip over her injured thigh kept her consciousness bouncing between blacking out and struggling against her captor.
The blonde man turned to start walking away.
She stood in a crowd of people with Russell at her side, trying to keep her gaze on the man in the back wearing a baseball cap. A man who's face was recognizable from the image she'd been sending to multiple LEOs and other agencies. The man who had her team held hostage that she'd failed to capture when it counted.
"Frost," Gibbs called out then, seeing she'd stopped but reaching for his hip when she drew her weapon.
"NCIS! Get on the ground, Sharif!" She bellowed, sending the people into a panic, though Sharif just turned as the others drew their weapons too.
Morgan blinked hard though, her vision doubling as the panicked cries from the civilians around them echoed in her ears. Seeing a chance, Sharif bolted and the team hurried after him before he grabbed a handful of money and tossed it in the air.
"Get the money!" Gibbs ordered.
"What about Sharif!" Mann asked.
"We've got him!"
Mann and McGee slowed down to stop people from picking up the cash as Gibbs struggled to keep up with Morgan and Sharif. They were quick and despite how Morgan was feeling as she stumbled down the hall after him, Gibbs lost sight of them a the top of the stairs. Morgan moved into the bathroom that Sharif rushed into and, unfortunately for him, he'd walked into a dead end.
"Get down on the ground, Sharif," Morgan ordered, leaning heavily against the wall and breathing hard. "Trust me, NCIS or not, I'm the last person you want to fuck around with."
Yet, as she moved further into the bathroom, things grew worse. She couldn't focus on him, mistaking his image in the mirror for him at least once before facing him properly.
"Something wrong, Agent Frost?" Sharif asked, hands raised but hardly feeling threatened by the faltering woman.
She fell against the wall, sinking to the ground quickly as her head pounded and her blood felt as though it were boiling. "H-How…"
"Your pet," Sharif said. "That silly harness you put him in. It's a shame I didn't go after Agent Gibbs directly but I thought this would be more suitable."
Morgan dropped her weapon as her back hit the ground, feeling nauseous as he vision swam and those memories cropped up again.
She was pinned to the ground as a blade rolled over her skin, cutting into her as the man above her laughed at her squirming.
Sharif picked up her gun and aimed it at her. "Undetectable until it reaches your bloodstream. A little early, but I am not complaining. I'd rather tell Agent Gibbs but my family was killed by one of your country's smart bombs. Do you know what it's like to lose your family?" He asked and she drew a knife she had in her pocket.
He easily reached over and twisted her wrist, forcing her to drop it as he shoved her back to the ground.
She was shoved onto her knees and her arms pulled across the top of a box of stolen weapons. Sore, beaten, defeated with no hope of rescue. She hardly made a sound as there was a sharp crack and pain ripped across her back and spine.
"They say every one you kill, you just make ten more like me," Sharif bit out, leveling the gun with her head. "I think today just one will be enough. Oh, I can't wait to see the look on Agent Gibbs's—"
Shots were fired and Sharif fell back against the wall, dead as Gibbs and Mann rushed into the room. Gibbs went immediately to Morgan as Mann went to confirm Sharif was dead, and Tony stepped in, calling out to them as well.
"National Guard's here. They've got the antidote."
"She'll be alright, boss," McGee added but Gibbs wasn't listening to them as he held firm to Morgan's arm.
His own heart was racing at the sight of her and the fact that he hadn't paid enough attention to realize what she was dealing with. A soldier hurried in then to give her the antidote and Morgan jerked in Gibbs's hold, breath coming out in quick gasps as Mann came over to help him hold her still.
"Morgan. Morgan, you need to calm down," Mann said, struggling to hold her down as Gibbs shook his head.
"She's hallucinating," he said, knowing the kind of past she had and how reliving that wouldn't be pleasant. "Morgan. Hey! Focus on me."
Her eyes flickered to his as she sat up, wavering but somehow staying somewhat focused when he grasped her arm tightly.
"Listen, okay? You're at the train station. We were chasing Sharif. He's dead. You're okay, alright? Everything's going to be fine."
"W-Where's Russell?" She demanded, eyes flickering back to the room they were in. "Where is he? I need him."
"Russell's fine. He's back with Abby, remember?" He said, holding firm to her arm when she'd shifted as though to get up. "You'll be fine."
Her expression pinched though, as if in pain as she grasped at her shirt and her breath hitched. Gibbs turned to Mann who looked a little panicked, glancing at the National Guard soldier who wasn't sure what was going on either.
"She's in pain. Is it a side effect?"
"It shouldn't be. We haven't had anyone say anything about pain. She should be fine."
"Well, obviously not!" Mann argued but Gibbs stopped her.
"If she's still hallucinating, it could be psychological. How long will it take for the antidote to fully kick in?"
The soldier glanced at his watch. "Five, ten minutes max. It should have already started."
Gibbs nodded and waved him off before turning to his team. "Go make sure the LEOs are doing their jobs. Get Ducky here for the body and update the Director. Call Abby and have her bring Russell, then get that money secured."
"Yes, boss," Tony said, helping to herd the others of the team out and Gibbs glanced at Mann.
"You should go too. You've got men on the way, don't you?"
Mann nodded, giving Morgan a small, worried glance. "She'll be okay."
"Course," he confirmed as she stepped out.
"I-I need to get out," Morgan murmured under her breath, quickly trying to get out of his grip and onto her feet.
He got up and helped steady her, letting her lean against him when she faltered and leading her out into the hall. He had to pull her down toward the ground to prevent her from trying to walk off on her own but was beginning to see some clarity in her eyes again. He reached up and lightly pat her face, drawing her cloudy gaze to his.
"There you go," he muttered quietly. "Stay with me, okay? Focus. You're safe here. As safe as you could be in a train station, anyway."
She narrowed her eyes in confusion but then winced, sucking in a sharp breath and grabbing her left thigh. He glanced down but there was no sign of injury so he turned back to her with a solemn expression.
"What was it?" He asked, wondering if she'd tell him.
There was a lot he didn't know about her past and some that he did, but he would always want to hear it from her if he could.
"Ambush… There was… an explosion and the shrapnel…" she murmured, voice soft and sounding rather lost; as though she wasn't sure why she wasn't still there experiencing it now.
"Okay," he said, taking her hand off her leg and giving it a squeeze; hearing people coming over and hoping it was Ducky and Abby. "It's okay. You're not there."
She nodded slowly, going quiet and he let out a sigh of relief when there was a whine and Russell rushed to Morgan's side. Abby stood over by Ducky, looking worried as the medical examiner headed over.
"How is she?" He asked and Gibbs glanced at Morgan as she clung tightly to Russell, taking deep, shuddering breaths as she used him to ground herself.
"Not good, Duck, but better than she was. I'd give her another minute. She was fighting to run off a moment ago," he warned. "Her PTSD was acting up something fierce."
"I can imagine," Ducky murmured, glancing toward the bathroom. "He's in there, is he?"
Gibbs nodded and Ducky headed inside to check out the corpse of Sharif as Abby hesitantly headed closer.
"Ziva asked me to come and bring him," she explained, giving Morgan a worried look. "Is she okay?"
"She is now, Abs. She is now."