Over There

Chapter 6

“How soon can we get in touch with McGee?” Gibbs asked Director Vance once they were back in his office.

“The best I can do right now is Major O’Hara. McGee and David are away from the camp right now. They’re not expected back for several hours, maybe as long as eight to ten hours, Gibbs. What’s so important? Did you find something in your background checks?”

“You could say that. My agents could be in danger. The wrong person knows what they’re doing and where they are.”

“Who do you mean by ‘the wrong person’?”

Gibbs handed him a printout of the information Abby had found.  He scanned the papers and looked at Gibbs. “I’ll see what I can do. You two get back to your desks and I’ll let you know what happens.”

“But, Director…” Tony started to protest.

“Agent DiNozzo, I’ll take care of it. Don’t make me make it an order.”

Gibbs took Tony’s arm and gently led him out of the room. “Come on, DiNozzo, let him do his job.”

*****

It had been almost three hours since they talked to Vance.  Tony was getting more anxious as the day wore on. The words on the computer screen made no sense no matter how often he read them. Tony finally turned the monitor off and closed his eyes as he sat back in the chair.

“Timmy, what’s going on? Talk to me.” Tony wanted his lover to answer, but that was impossible. He wasn’t there to answer; he was somewhere in the sand of a foreign country, where people were being shot at. The restless feeling that had consumed him most of the day was back.  He got up for the third time and hurried down the hall. Nervous energy boiled in his body and he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was indeed wrong. He didn’t like that feeling at all.

Tony placed a hand on each side of the sink in the restroom and stared into the mirror. Tim, dressed in his desert camo, stared back at him over his shoulder. Tony turned quickly only to see the tan tiled wall behind him. His shoulders slumped as he looked back at the sink. Turning the water on, he splashed his face and pulled several paper towels from the box on the wall, drying himself off. He wasn’t ready just yet to go back to his desk. He leaned against the counter and closed his eyes, letting his mind wander.

“Love you, my little Sugarplum.”

That’s what Tim had told him just before he left to join Ziva at the car that would take him to the airport and the plane that would take him to Afghanistan.  He touched a finger to his lips, imagining that he could still feel the touch of Tim’s lips. He wished they had had more time for a proper good-bye.

Just then the door opened bringing Tony back to the present. He pushed off the counter and nodded at the new arrival. “Martinez,” he said in greeting, trying to put a smile on his face.

“DiNozzo. You okay? You look a little pale.”

“Just tired, Paul.”

“Well, you need to take care of that.”

“Yeah,” Tony said as he left the restroom, knowing that he wouldn’t really feel any better until Tim was home.

*****

The sun had long set by the time the chopper landed near the military hospital. Tim, still unconscious, was off loaded and rushed into the trauma area. Two Army doctors and several nurses and medics were immediately at his side.

The nurse from the chopper called out his vital signs and that he’d lost several units of blood. She continued talking until the hand carried litter was placed on a hospital gurney. 

Each doctor and nurse had a job to do and was efficiently doing their assigned job. Tim’s clothes were quickly removed and he was hooked up to monitors to keep track of his vital signs which were stable at the moment. 

While McGee was being assessed and cared for in one area, Ziva was being led to a gurney at the other side of the room away from the activity around her partner. She was having no luck trying to convince the medical personnel that she was okay.

Lt. Jasper had arrived at the hospital shortly after the chopper landed. He noted that McGee was not responding to the activity around him and went to stand by Ziva. “When you’re done here, I need to know what happened out there.”

“You will be able to debrief me once I talk to my boss.”

Before the lieutenant could answer a doctor came over to examine her. X-rays were taken and fractures were ruled out, but both wounds needed a good cleaning, some sutures and dressing. A young medic whom Ziva was sure had graduated from high school just the week before came up to her.

“I’m Specialist Parker. Don’t worry, Agent David. I wield a mean needle and thread. No one will even know you had stitches,” the young man stated before he started his treatment.

“I am not worried, Specialist. A few scars do not bother me.” She rested back on the gurney and let the medic do his job. She did not care what was happening to her. Her mind was on her partner lying on another gurney on the other side of the room. Suddenly a flurry of activity and shouting could be heard and she was able to see the gurney Tim was on being rushed through a door at the other end of the room. She sent up a silent prayer for her friend.

The medic finished suturing the laceration and applied a clean bandage. He also gave her a sling for her arm and helped her to put it on.  She was released from their care with instructions to keep the head wound dressing dry and come back to see them if she had any problems. She assured him this wasn’t her first head wound and knew quite well what to look out for.

Lt. Jasper was standing outside talking to some other soldiers when Ziva left the trauma area. She was glad that she wouldn’t have to go looking for him.

“Have you heard anything about Agent McGee? I saw them wheel him into the operating room.”

“One of the nurses told me it would probably be a while; maybe several hours depending on what they found when they opened him up. We have great doctors here. He’s in good hands. Dr. Bridges is the best.”   The Lieutenant was trying to sound hopeful but wasn’t sure he could pull it off.

 Ziva took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a second. “I need to call NCIS now, let them know what happened and about McGee.”

“I know. I already have a satlink set up. They’re waiting for us. Come on.” He took Ziva’s good arm and led her out of the hospital area toward the nondescript building that was used for communications. Despite her protests to the contrary, the adrenaline rush was waning and she was starting to feel a little lightheaded.  She let the Lieutenant guide her away from the hospital and across the compound, his hand still on her arm. 

“Thank you for all of your help, Lt. Jasper,” Ziva said once they reached the fence surrounding the com building. “May I ask you a question?”

“Of course, Agent David, you may ask me anything. I will be glad to answer if I can.”

“Can you tell me if there was any indication that there was going to be a mortar strike or any trouble in that area? I mean, I know that is not something that is always known, it is supposed to be a surprise after all, but your intelligence network is usually pretty good, is it not?”

The young lieutenant was surprised at her question. “There hadn’t been any intel about an attack in that area. I checked myself. In fact, that’s what led the Major to agree to let you go to that area.” He was quiet for a moment. “If I may ask, did Agent McGee find out who he was looking for?”

Ziva was guarded in her answer. Right now she wasn’t sure whom she could trust. “I am not sure. If he did, he did not tell me who it was.”

*****

Tony wasn’t sure how long he had been at his desk. Too much was happening and he was worried about Tim. He twisted his body causing his back to crack relieving the tension that had been building up. A few seconds later there was a beep from his computer.

“Yes!” he said excitedly and hit the print button. He made a quick phone call then alerted his boss. “Boss, I think I have a lead on Lafferty.”  He pulled the papers off the printer and put them in a file folder.

“Where is he?” Gibbs asked, looking up from his paperwork.

Tony pulled an image up on the large plasma screen. There was a picture of Lafferty with a plaque that read ‘Baltimore PD’ held in front of him. “He was arrested three days ago after pulling a knife on a bartender in some dive on the waterfront. He’s still locked up; couldn’t make bail. You remember my old partner Al? I already called him and he’ll be waiting for us. He’s not the detective of record, by the way.”

“Get your gear, looks like we’re heading to Baltimore.”  Both men holstered their weapons and got on the elevator.” Do you know the detective who was assigned to his case, this Detective Levinson?” Gibbs asked, looking at the file he held.

“I do.” He didn’t sound too enthused about meeting up with that particular detective again. Gibbs just looked at him, waiting for an explanation. They were in the car on the way to Baltimore before Tony talked.

“I was a new detective with the Baltimore PD, shortly after transferring from Peoria. I stumbled over a case that, well, helped my career, shall we say. Anyway, Levinson took offense to me right away. Called me a Prima Donna; wouldn’t even give me a chance.” Tony stared out of the car window for a moment. “No one I worked with knew of my…sexual preference. You know that being gay isn’t something you advertise to fellow police officers or your fellow federal employees. Of course there were other gay officers and we found each other.” Tony’s voice trailed off.

“You met someone.” Not a question.

“I did. He was a patrol officer. His name was Robert.” Gibbs didn’t miss the ‘was’ in the statement.

“We were together for almost six months. It was a rare four day weekend that we both had off. We went out of town, to Deep Creek Lake, you know in western Maryland. Who knew that Levinson’s wife was from there and that they were there for some sort of reunion? He saw Rob and me walking down a street. We were just holding hands, for God’s sake. It’s not like we were screwing in the middle of the road.” He took a deep breath. “I was sure Levinson couldn’t wait to spread the news. By the time we got back the word was out.”

“Life became more difficult at work.”

“I was a detective, so it wasn’t too bad for me. Luckily Al was more open-minded, for an older cop that is, and didn’t ask for a new partner. I knew he still had my back. He didn’t even give me a bad time; took it all in stride, you could say. But Rob, he was moved to midnights, riding alone in the worst part of town. He wouldn’t let me do anything about it, like he had something to prove to the department. One night Rob answered a burglary call, two men with guns. He called for backup.”

Gibbs shook his head knowing where this was heading. “No one came.”

“Not until it was too late. I didn’t even find out until the next morning when I went in to the station. The bosses knew about us but no one called me when it happened.” Tony took a deep breath to calm him. It still hurt after all these years. “His parents, who threw him out for being gay, took his…him back to New York and made it plain that I wasn’t welcome at the funeral.” There was a short pause in his story.  “I could have easily quit then but I wasn’t going to give the police department the satisfaction. No one except Al and a few others even acknowledged my pain. Six months later you showed up and here I am.”

“I pretty much figured something was going on when I was there. I could see that you were a damn good detective, but hardly anyone gave you the time of day, including your captain. I thought maybe they were just tired of all your movie references.” He paused for a moment. “I’m guessing McGee is your first real relationship since then.”

“Yeah,” was all he said in response, but the smile was undeniable.

When they pulled up in front of the police building Al was waiting for them. Tony and Al greeted each other warmly. “Lookin’ good there, Agent DiNozzo.”

“You, too, Old Man.” Tony accepted the quick hug and pat on the back then introduced Gibbs to his former partner.

“Detective,” Gibbs said, smiling at the older man, glad that Tony had someone like him to look after him all those years ago.

“Al, please.” Al’s demeanor changed, taking on a more serious side. “Kid, Levinson wasn’t too happy to find out that you were coming here to see one of his collars; just wanted you to know.”

“I figured as much, but this is a federal matter and we just want to talk to him right now. Will there be any problems, you think?”

“If Levinson has his way there will be, just on principle, but the Chief gave his okay so he can’t do anything about it. Let’s go.”

The agents spent the next three hours questioning the prisoner.  Lafferty would be in the jail for at least another five days, giving the NCIS agents plenty of time to investigate the new information they had received, and they were to be notified if there was any change in Lafferty’s status.

The three men left the jail area and stepped outside. “How ‘bout I buy us a beer or two?” Al offered.

“We really need to get back,” Gibbs said. “We appreciate everything on your end.” He shook the older detective’s hand.

“My pleasure. Take care of the kid here, okay. He was one of the best partners I ever had. Hated to lose him to the feds, but what are you going to do? How many movie references has he tortured you with?”

“Oh, I lost count at about 742,” Gibbs said jokingly. “Don’t worry; I’ll keep an eye on him.”

“Hey, I’m right here,” Tony chimed in, trying to sound indignant, but the smile on his face told them differently. “Besides, you love it. Hey, Al, you should come up to DC sometime. You can meet Tim.”

“Tim. Okay, Kid. I’ll call ya’.” Al nodded his approval.

After a final round of goodbyes, Al promised to keep an eye on things in Baltimore and Gibbs and Tony returned to the Navy Yard.

Tony was quiet, almost too quiet. He was having an uneasy feeling that something was wrong. Although Gibbs liked the quiet, he missed the usual constant patter that was Tony’s norm. Instead, Tony just stared out the window, breathing deeply every so often. Gibbs did not like this at all.

Gibbs made a quick inquiry of Vance to see if there was any new information on the two agents in the desert. Vance didn’t have anything for them and ordered them back to work.

After a quick stop in the break room for coffee both men returned to their desks and did as they were told.

Two hours later the phone on Gibbs’ desk rang and was answered quickly. When Gibbs hung up he hurried past Tony’s desk, speaking as he went. “MTAC, now,” he said tersely.

Tony didn’t need to be told twice and immediately followed his boss up the stairs.

“Did Vance say what it was about? Is everything okay?” Tony wanted answers now.

“I don’t know. All Vance said was to get up there.” Gibbs pressed the code for the secure room and heard the latch release letting them in. They walked into the semi darkness and joined the director in front of the large screen.

“Director,” Tony started but Gibbs took hold of his arm.

“Agent Gibbs, I did not tell you to bring Agent DiNozzo with you. He does not have the need to know at this point.”

“Right now he has as much need to know as I do if it’s about McGee or Ziva; he stays. Now, what is it?” He watched the Director’s face. Tony held his breath; there was no way he was going to leave without finding out about Tim.

Vance nodded although he wasn’t happy. “It’s from Kabul. I don’t know the details.”

One of the techs called out thirty seconds and soon Ziva’s face appeared on the screen.

The three men took in a sharp breath as one when they saw Ziva. She didn’t have time to clean herself up and she knew how she looked. Her face was dirty except around the freshly sutured and bandaged head wound, her hair was mussed and her arm was in a sling. If they had seen her walk, they surely would have noticed the slight limp.

“Ziva, what happened to you?” Not seeing McGee, Gibbs added, “And where’s McGee?”

“There was an incident in the field; we were hit by mortar fire. I am fine.”

“You don’t look fine, Agent David,” Gibbs spat out, only to be interrupted by a very worried DiNozzo.

“Where’s McGee?” Tony asked anxiously. His mind was working overtime, worst case scenarios flying through his brain. ‘Please, please, please say he’s okay, that he’s just using the head or something equally benign,’ he thought to himself.

“McGee is in surgery.” Tony closed his eyes, willing his heart to slow down and his stomach to return to its rightful place. Well, he was alive, that’s something. “I have not yet had an update. It has been only two hours since we landed here. We were told he could be in surgery for several hours. He was hit by shrapnel in the abdomen and he has a head wound. He’s been unconscious ever since it happened. I do not know what other damage was done. Luckily the Kevlar gave us some protection.”

Gibbs heard a low, strangled sound coming from Tony’s mouth and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder to calm him.

“Agent David, did McGee find out who sabotaged the Marines?” Vance had a job to finish and, while he regretted what happened to his agents, duty called.

“I think so, but he never had the chance to tell me who it was. The attack came as we were getting ready to return to Kabul.” Ziva diverted her eyes from the screen for a second.  “Do you have any information on the names McGee gave you?”

“As a matter of fact we do, Ziva,” Tony answered, his voice sounding almost normal.

*****

While Ziva was talking to her teammates in DC, doctors were working feverishly to stem the bleeding in their patient’s abdomen. One of the pieces of shrapnel had lacerated a small artery and his abdominal cavity was obscured by the blood. Dr. Bridges was not at all happy about the amount of blood in his patient’s abdomen. He was even unhappier that he couldn’t see where the blood was coming from.

“Suction, now,” he said, urgently. “I need to see what I’m doing here.”

“Blood pressure’s 78/50,” the anesthesiologist volunteered.

“Hang another two units of PRBC’s and an FFP,” The circulating nurse  went to a special ice chest and pulled two units of O-neg and one unit of plasma out and hung them as ordered. The surgeon was able to repair the bleeder and after a few minutes the bleeding slowed considerably.

“Blood pressure’s up,” the anesthesiologist said after a few minutes. “94/62; not great, but better.” 

 McGee was quickly stabilized and the surgeons could concentrate on the rest of the needed repairs.

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