Gibbs sighed and looked at the plasma screen. The pictures there were the image of his failure, at least that was what he thought. He knew his team was feeling just as miserable as he was - well, maybe not quite as miserable. At first he had told McGee to put up the pictures as a reminder, a motivation. He wanted them to see the faces so they would work harder. By now it was just frustrating. The daily visits from Fornell never brought good news, only bad and even his team seldom brought results. Two weeks had passed since the last child had been found, two and a half weeks since she died and four fucking weeks since she had been abducted. It had been the longest that bastard had held on to the same girl - Ducky suspected that she simply lived the longest. It was the seventh girl and yet both his director and Fornell’s director wanted to close the case, as unpopular as that would be. Gibbs knew that it would take months before the case really was closed, but it was only a matter of hours, maybe days, before his team would be taken off the case.

„It gotta be Jefferson!“ Tony said once more, cutting into Gibbs‘ thoughts. Of course it was Jefferson. He knew it, Tony knew it and Fornell knew it, too. Jefferson, that filthy son of a bitch. He had laughed in their faces and was out before they could read him his rights.

„We don’t have proof though,“ Ziva said, resigned. Tony snorted and stood up fast, his chair crashing into the shelf behind his desk, knocking one of the folders down â€" he didn’t seem to notice.

„I’m going home, this is making me sick,„ he said angrily, but still looked at Gibbs for permission. Gibbs knew that Tony would stay as long as he told him to, but he didn’t see any reason to keep his agitated senior agent any longer, so he nodded, nearly unnoticibly. Tony did too, and left without another word.

Gibbs once more looked at the plasma screen. „Ziva, McGee, go home, get some sleep. Tell Abby to do the same.“

„I don’t think Abby will listen, boss,“ McGee reasoned.

„Just try it, Tim,“ Gibbs answered tiredly, and then he did something he never did on an active case â€" he left before McGee and Ziva.




Only hours later Gibbs returned to the office. McGee’s message was confusing but he came in as soon as he heard it. His phone battery had been dead and when he called back McGee told him that he, Ziva and Ducky were still at the scene whereas Tony had went back to HQ.

„What’s going on?“ he asked as he met Tony in the hallway. He noticed the candy and soda Tony was carrying. „You ever stop eating?“ he added.

„It’s not for me, boss. They found Jefferson. His throat was slashed from left to right,“ Tony said and made a slashing motion with the candy across his throat. „There was a girl with him. I thought she could use something sweet after the night she had.“ Tony started to walk towards the conference room.

„Did the girl kill Jefferson?“ Gibbs questioned.

„The FBI thinks so.“

Gibbs put a hand on Tony’s shoulder to stop him from entering.

„What do you think?“ he asked and Tony sighed.

„The girl said a big man entered the room and cut Jefferson’s throat, blood splashed and the man was gone. When the FBI asked her about the man all she could tell them was that he was dressed in all black and had something like a black hockey mask on. They found the knife and it had her fingerprints on it. She said she had taken it after Jefferson was killed. The FBI thinks she killed him and then made up the big black man to take the blame. Sounds pretty reasonable to me.“

„How old is she?“

„Eight. Not easy to cope with killing someone at that age...it never is.“

Gibbs nodded, accepting the argument. They went into the conference room where the girl was still talking to the FBI Agents, McGee and Ziva. Her voice was starting to sound raspy as her eyes found Tony.

„Tony, you tell them! I didn’t make him up!“ she looked at Tony with big pleading eyes. Gibbs was surprised that she chose Tony of all people to bond with, but then, he had gotten the message two hours late (damn cell-phone battery) and Tony had probably been there right when they found her.

„Sure, sweetie, I believe you. Here, rest your voice a little.“ He smiled at the girl and gave her the candy bar and the soda.

„Agent DiNozzo, could I have a word with you?“ The FBI profiler, a man Gibbs disliked at first sight, asked pointedly. Tony stroked the girl’s head and then left the room behind the profiler, followed by Gibbs.

„It does not help her trauma if you’re encouraging that fantasy, DiNozzo!“

Gibbs got the feeling again that all that anger didn’t just come from this case. The profiler and his second had some history.

„Maggie had a really tough night and even if she’s imagining that guy she’s still holding up amazingly well. And you’re just assuming that she’s making him up, you know what they say about assumptions, don’t you, Clark?“

„Do you really believe that someone followed Jefferson, killed him and then left? If someone knew what he was doing, why would they do that and risk a conviction instead of calling the cops?“

„Ever heard of people who lost faith in the system?“ Gibbs asked inbetween and threw them both off. „I don’t think it would hurt if someone believed her right now. Or do you really want that girl to face what happened to her and what she did?“

Clark, clearly taken aback, shook his head and went back into the room, looking royally pissed.

„What is it between the two of you?“ Gibbs asked Tony. The younger man sighed.

„We knew each other in college. It’s been like this ever since.“

With that cryptic answer and a pained expression nearly hidden behind his well practiced mask, Tony went back into the conference room.

Several weeks passed since Jefferson was buried, and everything had returned to normal. The search for the black-dressed man Maggie swore she had seen had brought no success, though Gibbs was pretty sure the FBI hadn’t really been trying. Another psychologist had confirmed that it was a possible symptom of PTSD, so the FBI chalked it up as self-defence and a coping mechanism. It probably hadn’t hurt that Maggie was seeing a shrink before, too.

Gibbs had almost forgotten about it and even the media wasn’t interested anymore, though he could imagine that Fornell was royally pissed that someone had leaked the information about the imaginary man to the media - he sure as hell would have been. No-one seemed to remember the case, though Gibbs and everyone else who worked the case would never really forget the faces of the girls they hadn’t been quick enough to save.

It was one morning when he had just walked into the office with a fresh cup of coffee that Gibbs was reminded of the case. When he exited the elevator he saw his team, including Abby and Ducky, gathered around the plasma screen. As he approached the group he could see CNN and some reporter talking to some woman.

„Don’t you have work to do?“ Gibbs asked, but silently wondered why they were so interested in the news today.

„Maggie didn’t make it up, Gibbs,“ Abby said, but didn’t turn away from the screen.

„She didn’t make what up?“ He was confused, to say the least.

„That man who killed Jefferson. It seems that this woman has been saved by the same guy,“ McGee clarified, and now Gibbs frowned.

„How would they know if it was the same guy?“ He wondered.

„Well, she said it was a big guy with all black clothing and a black hockey mask. Not the best costume for a superhero,“ Abby mused.

„Superhero? Abby, it probably was just a guy in the wrong place at the wrong time,“ Tony said, sounding slightly annoyed.

„Why are you so pessimistic, Tony? I don’t know what’s wrong with a superhero. DC could use one.“ Abby turned to Tony and frowned at him.

„I’m just saying that you‘re glorifying an outlaw, Abby. That guy kills people without justification.“

„Isn’t saving a little girl and a woman justification?“ Abby was getting a little louder.

„Abs, Tony’s right.“ People looked shocked at Gibbs at that statement. „Vigilantism is a crime.“

Tony got out of his stupor first. „Abby, that guy’s killing. It’s our job to bring those bastards to justice, not his. The system might not be perfect, but if everyone did what he does, where would that lead us? Until now he only killed guilty people, but once he realizes that he’s not gonna be caught, he might kill other people or he will kill someone who’s innocent just because he thinks they’re guilty. And I thought you were against the death penalty?!“

„I am against the killing of people in the name of the government, that’s just wrong. But this guy’s punishing those who fall through the system,“ she insisted.

„That’s enough!“ Gibbs intervened. „We all have work to do.“ He really didn’t want to hear more about that damn vigilante murderer. He knew only too well why someone would do something like this â€" once. However, to have someone on the streets doing it all the time, apparently without personal reason, was as Tony had said a danger and glorifying his actions would probably just be an added motivation.




Some days later Gibbs realized that he would probably be hearing a lot about the vigilante murderer for a while ahead. The FBI was still struggling to find him, but whoever it was, the guy was good. No ties to the people he killed, the only motive apparently vengence for those in need of revenged Three people had been killed so far and Gibbs wondered how many more would die before the FBI finally found a clue.

The media had of course realized the opportunity and soon the viligante murderer even had a name:

THE DARK AVENGER

Nearly every day there was news about the newly crowned superhero and Gibbs was waiting for the copy-cat crimes to begin. There sure were people who’d like to label themselves the Dark Avenger. However he could zone out the press and the hype around that particular criminal, and as long as he didn’t piss on his leg he didn’t really care - but what he hated was that Abby seemed to be overly fascinated by him.

„A guy in black clothes walking around and bringing justice to an unjustice world. Are you sure he’s Abby’s type?“ Tony had mockingly asked McGee one day and Gibbs had to admit, Tony had a valid point there.

The most ridiculous attempt to solve the problem, (which wasn’t a problem if you asked the media and public), was the phantom picture. Seriously, put a hockey mask on any guy who’s around 6 feet tall and there you have him. As if the rescued victims could have seen his eyes so well. However, the FBI acknowledged the danger and the Dark Avenger made the Most Wanted list.

Gibbs had to fight down a laugh when he saw Fornell’s face only two days ago. They had caught another big case and not surprising, it didn’t go anywhere. Tobias was standing in Gibbs‘ basement when he received a phone call from his second in command informing him that they had been tipped off, and when they reached the location, they had found the perp they’d been chasing for three weeks cuffed to a chair. There was a post-it on his forehead which read:

Wherever the system fails
I’ll be there
For those who can’t save themselves
I’ll be there
When ever a crime is unrevenged
I’ll be there

Sincerely, the Dark Avenger

P.S. Thanks for the great work, Agent Fornell. Wwithout you, I’d have solved this two weeks ago.

Maybe Gibbs disliked the Dark Avenger just as much as Tobias, but it was damn funny. As usual Tobias wasn’t quick to admit that without the Dark Avenger they wouldn’t have been there in time to save the woman held hostage. Instead, he talked to his director and that had lead to the meeting Gibbs found himself in on this day.

„Tobias, why the hell am I here? I have paperwork to do,“ he asked, annoyed when Fornell was still typing on the computer. Gibbs hated the FBI deep in his gut and he hated it even more when he had to go over there. If Fornell wanted something he should have come over to his playground.

„We worked hard on the Dark Avenger, but that guy is damn good at covering his tracks. We want him down,“ Fornell answered heatedly.

„Don’t you mean you want him down? Because he humiliated you?“ Gibbs couldn’t quite suppress the smirk. He knew he wouldn’t have reacted any differently, though.

„It doesn’t matter. He’s a criminal and he has to be caught like every criminal.“

„Maybe you should send him a message that he’s a criminal, maybe he’ll kill himself at the thought.“ Okay, maybe he was enjoying himself a little too much.

„We thought more of a trap. We set up a big case, let your team work it, and catch him as soon as he’ll try to intervene,“ Fornell said with an even smile as Gibbs‘ folded.

„Why my team?“ As professional as that guy was he didn’t know what he would do if he was ambushed.

„Well, it would be too obvious if the case was FBI, and he’s already intervened in one of your cases. We will set something up that he won’t refuse. We were thinking serial rape and murder.“

Gibbs narrowed his eyes at Fornell.

„What if I say no?“

„You can’t. It’s all cleared with your director. Oh, and your team cannot be in on it.“

Gibbs swallowed at this. He still remembered too well how angry Tony was at him for setting the trap for that traitor. He really didn’t think that their friendship, comradship and whatever Gibbs was feeling for Tony could take another blow so quickly. However, he knew when he was in a situation he couldn’t get out of, and nodded.

Gibbs sat in his basement staring at the remaining part of his boat. He would have her finished soon and he didn’t know what he should do then. He had always thought that once he had finished her, he would quit and sail her. However he was still missing something, he still had something left to do here and quitting wasn’t an option before he had finished his business. Though he doubted that he would sail her if he finished his business sucessfully, at least not alone.

He heard the door upstairs close and footsteps through the hall and then the door to the basement opened. He watched the Italian leather shoes, then the expensive pair of suit pants, the matching jacket and dress shirt, and then finally the head of his second in command appearing on the stairs. Tony finished his way down and stepped off the stairs, and there he stopped.

„You wanted to talk to me?“ Tony asked, looking anxious despite his smile.

„Yeah, I did, I do...actually, I’m not allowed to talk about this but I won’t risk losing you by leaving you out of the loop again, not because of this,“ Gibbs said and took a sip of bourbon. Then he held out the bottle to Tony. The younger man frowned, took the bottle and took the empty mug Gibbs had placed on the work bench.

„So, you really did learn something, didn’t you?“ Tony’s light tone didn’t betray the fact that he was indeed glad that Gibbs had realized how close he came to losing Tony that time.

„I might be stubborn but I’m not stupid,“ Gibbs replied.

„So, what’s the super secret...em...thing, this time?“ Tony smirked as he took a sip but grimaced immidiately.

„Fornell wants to set up a trap for the Dark Avenger. No one’s in on it but him, me and our directors. Well, and the agents that built the case, but they’re liason agents from LA.“

„Does Fornell suspect that the Dark Avenger could be an Agent?“ Tony asked with a slight frown.

„At least he suspects that he has some intel. He knows too much about current cases,“ Gibbs answered. Suddenly he was happy that he took Tony in. This way he had someone to bounce ideas back and forth with, someone that wasn’t Fornell.

„What did the Avenger do to piss Fornell off that much anyway? They barely had any interest in him just a few days ago and suddenly he’s on the Most Wanted list. I don’t like the guy, but I think it’s overkill, excuse the pun.“ Tony raised an eyebrow at him.

„Have you heard about the note he left the FBI?“ Gibbs tried to swallow his grin.

„You mean that ridiculous poem-like thing?“

„Well, what the news didn’t say was that he addressed Fornell directly. He said that without Fornell, he would have solved the case two weeks earlier.“ His grin broke free and Tony chuckled slightly.

„Well, that explains the sudden interest. So, what’s the trap?“

Gibbs found himself retelling the plan in every detail and in the end Tony shook his head slightly. „I’m not sure that’s gonna work.“

„Why shouldn’t it?“ Gibbs questioned.

„Well, the Avenger usually doesn’t take action until it’s clear that the case won’t be solved or if someone’s in immediate danger. So, either they put up traces he can follow which we, coincidently don’t find, which is going to be difficult if McGee, Ziva and Abby aren’t in on it, or they put two agents undercover. And as much as I love undercover work, I wouldn’t want to be the bait for that guy.“ Tony stood up and paced the basement. „And how are you going to explain to Ducky that he won’t be doing the autopsy for the body? Or if do you take Ducky in, how do you explain to McGee and Ziva that we’re not working the scene? And don’t you think it’s a little obvious if a whole team from LA comes over here? I think the plan has too many flaws. The guy seems to be a pro.“

Gibbs nodded. Tony had a good point. Faking an investigation without the team knowing and at the same time letting the Avenger find the clues would be more than difficult. He sighed and rubbed his eyes.

„I’m not convinced either, but it’s a direct order and you know how I feel about them,“ Gibbs said through another sigh. Tony nodded knowingly.

„Well, thanks for taking me in anyway, boss. I don’t think I would have stayed if you betrayed my trust like that again.“

„Yeah, Tony, I know. Trust works two ways.“

Tony nodded and put down the mug. „Well, thanks for the â€" drink“ he said with a grin and then walked to the stairs. Gibbs looked after him, biting his lips to stop himself from saying anything he’d regret.

„AGENT GIBBS!“

The shout rang through the office and several people turned. Gibbs, however, exchanged a look with Tony. Then he turned and went up the stairs to meet his agitated director.

„MTAC,“ Vance said with a dark face. Gibbs hid a smirk. Tony had been right in the end. They had been setting up the trap and after only one day, McGee had figured out that something wasn’t right. Ziva was close behind. And Abby had been looking really pissed off too. He had warned Vance that his team would see right through it. However, his team was apparently not the only ones who saw through it. The Avenger didn’t show, no matter what they did.

As he entered MTAC, he saw that Fornell and the FBI director were on the screen. „The operation is cancelled,“ Fornell announced, and he didn’t look happy at all.

Gibbs simply nodded. „I’ll tell my team, then.“

„Not so fast, Gibbs.“ Fornell intervened before Gibbs could only turn. „Every Agent on my and your teams will be interrogated.“

„Why?“ Gibbs asked with a frown.

„The Avenger has to have intel at the very least. Someone is feeding him information. We will interrogate every agent involved in the case,“ Fornell answered, sounding pissed.

Before Gibbs could open his mouth, Vance spoke up. „It’s an order, Agent Gibbs. Go down and tell your team that they are not free to leave the building. Agent Fornell will be here soon.“

Gibbs swallowed everything he wanted to say to either Fornell or Vance and simply answered with a „Yes sir,“ then left MTAC. As he went down, he saw Tony looking at him knowingly.

„People, you will all be interrogated by Agent Fornell. In the meantime, none of you are free to leave the building.“ Gibbs announced.

„Why are they putting us under house arrest? We haven’t done anything! We all knew that the case we were working on was fake and still we kept on working it!“ McGee said, outraged. Tony obviously wasn’t the only one who’d had enough of the secret operations. Gibbs suppressed a sigh at that. If Vance kept going that way he soon would have to find a new team, though he wasn’t sure that wasn‘t what Vance was trying to do.

„I know none of you did anything wrong. I wasn’t given a choice, McGee,“ Gibbs said, and it was as close to an apology as he would get.

„What was this for anyway?“ Ziva asked as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

„I’m not authorized to talk about that,“ Gibbs said and the only reason why he said that was because Vance was standing on top of the stairs watching him like a hawk. Tony noticed it as well, and subtly shook his head when McGee wanted to say something.


A few minutes later Fornell showed up, and he looked even more grumpy than usual. He got the usual death glares from the team, although they were a little fiercer than normal. McGee was the first to be asked down, and Tony and Ziva remained in the bullpen, with an agent to keep them from talking and synchronising their stories.

Meanwhile in the interrogation room, Tim felt just as bad as he did the first time he sat in that chair, on the wrong side of the table. This time however Gibbs was in the room as well and if his earlier reaction was anything to go by, Gibbs was on his side. He would feel so much better if he knew that he hadn’t done anything wrong but after so many years with Gibbs â€" and so many computers he had hacked â€" he wasn’t so sure.

„Agent McGee, do you know why you’re here?“ Fornell asked.

„Erm, no, sir...Gibbs just said that we’re being interrogated. He didn’t mention why...is there another mole?“ McGee asked and looked nervously at Gibbs. Last time that didn’t go down well.

„Maybe,“ Fornell said cryptically and McGee frowned. „Did it at any time occure to you that this case was a fake?“

McGee looked at Gibbs and his boss nodded slightly.

„Yes, sir. The research I did, the algorithm...“ Fornell held up a hand to stop McGee from falling into techno babble, he wouldn’t understand a thing anyway.

„So you knew that the case wasn’t real. Did you find out the purpose?“

„No, sir. I talked to Tony about it, but he said he had no idea either. Neither did Ziva or Abby...“

„Did you ask Gibbs about it?“

„Actually, I had hoped that Tony would approach him about that...“

„So, you still have no idea why you were working a fake case?“

„No, sir, I don’t, I mean, yes, I do...I mean I have no idea why we worked a fake case.“ McGee stuttered slightly as he tried to find the right words. Fornell sighed and looked at Gibbs.

„You’re free to go, McGee.“

McGee stood and left the room. Gibbs smirked slightly. He knew that McGee wasn’t half as nervous as he let on, but the boy still had that persona down and sometimes playing like that came in more handy than trying to be a tough agent.



Tony looked up when McGee entered the bullpen and Ziva was asked down. „How did it go?“ Tony asked and got an evil look from the FBI Agent. „Right, forgot, no talking,“ he muttered, and turned back to his computer, resting his head on his hand as he clicked through his emails. At some point Ziva returned, but Tony wasn’t asked into interrogation. Tony figured that Fornell wanted to question Abby and Ducky first, and when he finally was asked down he went into the interrogation room with his head held high and a slightly arrogant expression. Fornell had really interrogated him one time too often for his liking. He sat down and fixed the agent with a glare.

„Agent DiNozzo, this feels like déjà vu,“ Fornell said with a smirk. Now it was Tony and Gibbs glaring at him.

„Really? You’re going to accuse me of murder yet again?“ DiNozzo retorted calmly.

„No, not this time. Agent McGee told us that he talked to you about the case being bogus. How did you come up with that idea?“

„Well, where to start?“ Tony leaned back in the chair. „We didn’t work the scene. Ducky didn’t get a single body for autopsy. Allegedly the PD had done all that already before they knew that the women had been in the Navy. The thing is, the photos didn’t look right. And Abby’s test results just came popping up, we found all those promising leads, but as soon as we started to dig deeper we were blocked. You’re an Agent for how long, Fornell, 40 years?“ Tony grinned slightly as Fornell’s jaw tightened. „You should know that we notice if a case looks too perfect but yet unsolvable. When McGee approached me about the algorithm-whatever, we concluded that the case couldn’t be real.“

Fornell narrowed his eyes at Tony.

„So, you knew the case was fake, did you find out the purpose for it?“

„No, I didn’t. I meant to ask Gibbs about it, or rather yell at him, or maybe I’d just have handed in my resignation because it’s the second time in six months he’s done this. Anyway, I didn’t get the chance to talk to him about it because you showed up and thought you’d have a little chat with all of us. So, what’s the deal? Another traitor? Terrorism?“ Tony raised his eyebrow and Gibbs had to admit, he was damn good at this, though the part about the resignation stung a little.

„Have you at any time given out information about the case or about the case being fake to anyone?“ Fornell asked instead of answering the question.

„You mean beside McGee, Ziva, Abby and Ducky? No, I never talk about work details with anyone beside the team or the director,“ Tony answered and it sounded a little too textbook.

„No friends? Family? Girlfriend?“

„What do you wanna hear, Fornell? My family? I barely talk to any of them anymore. My friends? Why should I tell my frat brothers about a bogus case? And I don’t have a girlfriend.“

Fornell nodded and after a few more questions Tony was free to go. He went up into the bullpen to see several FBI agents who looked pretty nervous.

„What’s going on here?“ he asked McGee.

„Apparently we’re not the only ones getting interrogated,“ The young man answered as the FBI agents were lead out of the working area. Tony sat behind his desk.

„Did Fornell tell you what this is about?“ Ziva asked.

„No, but for once he didn’t accuse me of murder, which is a nice change,“ Tony answered and turned to his computer.



Half an hour, later Gibbs entered the bullpen and he had that look. It was the same look that dogs had when they got the bone. He had broken someone in interrogation.

„Boss, what is this all about?“ Tony finally asked. He already knew, but he also knew that McGee and Ziva wouldn’t ask. Well, Ziva would but it wouldn’t be so polite.

„Fornell suspected a leak to the Dark Avenger in either my or his team,“ Gibbs answered. „I really didn’t suspect you guys and I didn’t want to do this, but I wasn’t given any choice by the director.“

„Did they find the leak?“ McGee questioned.

„One of Fornell’s team admitted dropping information for the Dark Avenger. Fornell’s giving him a piece of his mind at the moment.“ Gibbs replied and sat behind his desk. „It’s late, guys. Go home.“

McGee and Ziva were quickly out of the bullpen, but Tony lingered behind. „Tony, I could use a hand with the boat tonight. You free?“ Gibbs asked.

„Sure, boss. I’ll bring Chinese,“ Tony answered with a grin and then grabbed his coat and left.

The closing of the front door caught Gibbs a little off guard, and he realized that he had been stuck in his thoughts for fifteen minutes. He knew he really should stop trying to analyse every little thing Tony was doing, but his heart refused to let go of what little hope he had.

Tony came down the stairs and held up a paper bag grinning. „I really don’t know how I can help you with your boat, but I did bring Chinese.“

Gibbs grinned as well. He knew Tony knew that he didn’t need help with the boat but simply wanted to talk.

„So, the FBI had a mole. I’m not even surprised,“ Tony said as he sat on the stool taking one of the boxes and a fork. „Did he say why he was doing it?“

„He said he thought he was doing the right thing. Apparently he was contacted some years ago and he’d been dropping off information ever since. The Avenger must have found out that his wife had been killed in a hit and run that never was solved,“ Gibbs answered.

„So the Dark Avenger has been doing this for years?“ Tony asked with a frown. „Why haven’t we heard about him before?“

Gibbs shrugged slightly as he pushed some Chop Suey into his mouth. „Ducky made a profile for me. He said that the Dark Avenger has to have some personal motivation. He doesn’t do it for fame or because he thinks it’s his civil duty. And he probably hasn’t completely lost faith in the system. He doesn’t just kill people he thinks are guilty. He also tips off the police to the whereabouts or to leads. Ducky thinks that murder is the last method for him, if everything fails. He probably never wanted to become known.“

Tony nodded. „What personal motivation could that be?“

Gibbs sighed. „He’s probably been the victim of a crime that’s never been solved. Or someone he loved was the victim.“ Gibbs face showed a pained expression for a second, but it was enough for Tony to see.






The next day, Abby, McGee and Ziva stood in Abby’s lab and were discussing the Dark Avenger.

„What do you think - who it could be?“ Abby asked.

„Well, anyone?!“ McGee answered.

„I don’t think so. I mean, it has to be someone who’s a good investigator with a strong sense of justice. He’s probably a good fighter, too. That one guy the FBI found cuffed was pretty beaten up as I heard,“ Abby mused. „Oh my god, maybe it’s Gibbs!“

„Gibbs is what?“ Tony asked as he moved into the lab and the others turned to him, surprised.

„The Dark Avenger!“ Abby said excitedly. Tony snorted.

„Please, Abby. Gibbs?“

„Well, think about it! Ducky said he has probably lost someone in a crime that never was solved! Gibbs did lose his wife and daughter to some drug dealer who ran off to Mexico. He also has the needed intel. I mean, he could get all the information he needed to find the bastards.“

„Abby, Gibbs is not the Dark Avenger. Gibbs is...Gibbs. If he knows that someone’s guilty, he works the case until it’s solved. He doesn’t need to be a criminal for that,“ Tony argued „And by the way, the last time the Dark Avenger was seen, Gibbs had been in the office, so he has an alibi. I know it might disappoint you, Abs, but Gibbs is really not the Dark Avenger. It’s probably someone you’d never suspect.“

„What the hell are you doing down here? If you don’t have anything to work on, I’ll give you something!“ Gibbs barked from the doorway. He had heard every word of what Tony had said and he was tired of hearing about that damn Dark Avenger. His agents quickly left the lab and went back to their desks.



As Gibbs sat behind his desk he started to wonder himself. Tony was right, it was probably someone they’d never suspect, but then, Abby had a point, too. To get all the intel, even with the FBI mole, wasn’t easy, and somehow he must be an investigator of some kind. He turned to his computer, he had some research to do.

It was one o’clock in the morning when Gibbs reached Tony’s apartment. Nevertheless, he hammered on the door and only a minute later it was opened, however he was a little surprised when he found himself looking into the barrel of Tony’s gun.

„Fuck, Gibbs, what the hell are you doing here? Do you have any idea what time it is?“ Tony asked as he lowered his gun and opened the door a little more to let the older man in.

„I need to talk to you.“ Gibbs said and walked into the living room. He thought about sitting on the couch but he was too agitated to sit. „Did you really think I wouldn’t find out, DiNozzo?“ He demanded. Tony opened his mouth and then closed it again. Confusion would be an understatement to his current state of mind.

„What?“ he asked, puzzled.

„Did you really think I wouldn’t be able to connect the dots? Did you think I wouldn’t find out about all the unsolved vigilante cases in Peoria, Philly and Baltimore? I want an answer and I swear, you better not lie to me! Are you the Dark Avenger?“ Gibbs asked angrily.

At first Tony looked shocked but then he sighed and sat on the couch. He rubbed his hands over his face. „I never wanted it to become public...I never meant to do it for so long...“

Now that he had his answer and he saw Tony looking broken, all anger drained from Gibbs. He sat down. „Why are you doing it, then?“

Tony frowned as he picked on some lint on his shirt that wasn’t really there. „Well, I started in Peoria...then I left. I wanted to start over, leave everything behind...but in Philly...so many cases I worked weren't solved though we knew exactly who was the perp...I just couldn’t stand the look in the eyes of all those mothers and fathers and spouses when I had to tell them that we had to put the case away. Every time when I was worried that it might come out, I moved. Until I came here. I feel home here, for the first time since Peoria and I really didn’t wanna run anymore... or be that guy anymore. That guy who works as a cop and then at night becomes a criminal... I know what I do isn’t right. I don’t even want to try to convince you otherwise. I always told myself that if the day comes that they find me, I’ll face my punishment. You can say a lot about me, but I’m not a hypocrite. Anyway, Ducky’s profile was quite right. I never did it for fame or civil duty. I just couldn’t sleep at night when I knew that there was someone who wasn’t brought to justice. I barely killed, though. I really only do if it’s the only way. Usually, I just try to get them in a situation with enough evidence and then I tip off the police.
I’m not saying that they couldn’t solve the case because they’re bad investigators, but sometimes it really is the system that blocks everything.“ Tony fell silent for a moment. He didn’t look at Gibbs.

„If you wanna report me that’s fine. Get the evidence you can, and if you have a solid case, go ahead and charge me. I wouldn’t blame you. If you want me to leave, I will. I’d understand.“

„I won’t report you, nor do I want you to leave.“ Gibbs said and finally Tony looked up. „You’re risking a lot and I know that you’re just trying to do the right thing. Actually, I’m pretty relieved that it’s you.“

Tony frowned. „I didn’t think you’d understand.“

„I understand a lot, Tony.“ Gibbs said and sat up straight. „When you found Jefferson and Maggie. What happened that night?“

Tony looked down again. „I was tailing Jefferson. I knew he had another girl, I just knew. I followed him two car lengths behind, and I lost him because some idiot pulled in front of my car so I didn’t manage a traffic light. I thought I had to wait another night, but I drove around a little anyway, and I found his car. When I checked the abandoned houses in the area, I found him in one of them. I hadn’t planned on killing him. The knife was just a safety measure. When I got in there, when I saw him standing over Maggie, I blanked out. I killed him in cold blood. And I’m not even sorry.“

Gibbs nodded slightly. „Did you even see Maggie?“ Tony looked up at the question. „Did you see Maggie? Or did you see Sarah?“

Tony swallowed hard at the mention of the name. „You know about her?“

„Are you kidding me? Did you think I wouldn’t do a thorough background check on you before I hired you? Yes, Tony, I know that you had a daughter, and I know that she died when she was four...I just couldn’t find out how. But it served well enough as the „personal motivation“ Ducky mentioned. What happened back then?“

Tony bit his lip and Gibbs thought he saw tears in Tony’s eyes.

„I had just started in Peoria. Claudia, her mother, my fiancé and me...we had just bought a house. Sarah was beautiful...She was two weeks in kindergarten when Claudia called me and told me that I had to pick Sarah up. I’d never been to the kindergarten before. As a rookie I had to take a lot of shifts...when I got there the teacher told me that Sarah has already been picked up â€" by me. Someone had showed up there, complete with ID and the teacher said Sarah just told that guy that she wanted to wait for her mommy. The guy told Sarah that her mommy had asked him to pick her up...“

Gibbs looked down to fight back tears of his own. He knew too well what it was like to lose a child, but Tony’s story was just as sad.

„Two months later they found her body...she was barely recognizable...After we’d been to the morgue to identify her, I went to the police station to see if they’d made any progress. When I got home, Claudia had killed herself...with my back-up gun. I never found out who that bastard was...so when I had a case of a child molester that we couldn’t solve because of bureaucracy, I took my hockey mask and became the ‚Avenger’, as they call me now days...“

Gibbs took a deep breath. „Apparently we have a lot more in common than I thought.“

„Yeah, but the difference is that you didn’t turn into a criminal...“ Tony said, sounding resigned. „I really should go to prison....“

„No, Tony. We are much more alike than you think...after I returned...Mike Franks left the file on the desk with the location of the murderer of my family. I went to Mexico, staked him out and shot him in cold blood. If you’re a criminal, I’m no better than you. However, when I woke from that coma two years ago, I realized something. I tried to bury everything inside of me so I wouldn’t have to think of them ever again. I never grieved for them until two years ago. Now, when I think of them, I don’t think of how they were taken away from me. I think of the time I had with them and I can even smile. Can you smile when you think of your daughter, Tony?“

Tony sniffed and shook his head. „I try not to think of her...but I do...all the time.“

„You gotta let yourself grieve, Tony. You’ve gotta accept that they’re gone, and let them rest in peace. I’m not saying you should forget them, I’m saying you gotta live again. They wouldn’t want you to stop living.“

Tony looked at him with tears in his eyes. „How do you know that?“

Gibbs sighed and tried to think of a good way to tell him. „I had an epiphany...When I was nearly drowning, I saw Kelly...she told me to go back. That day, I realized that I still have something to live for.“

„Yeah, what’s that?“ Tony asked with a raised eyebrow.

Gibbs took a deep breath and gained all his courage to say what he wanted to say for such a long time. „You.“

Tony looked at him puzzled. „Me? What do you mean?“

„Tony, I...I think that...together we could return to something that someone could call a life. I think we could help each other heal.“

Tony’s eyes darkened and he stood up in a sudden wave of anger.

„That’s what you invited me here for? Comfort? You think that because I’m broken you can use me to mend yourself?“

„No, Tony, that’s not what I meant, I mean....I want to be with you. Not because of your history or mine.“ Gibbs stood to meet Tony and put his hand on Tony’s shoulder soothingly. „I want to be with you for the man you are. I want to be with you for the man you don’t show anyone, the man I saw tonight and I want to be with you for being that annoying, cheeky, chauvinistic goof-ball and I want to be with you for being the Dark Avenger. I want every bit of you, Tony. Though, I could understand if you don’t...“

Tony grabbed his face and kissed him hard. Gibbs was too surprised to react in any other way but to meet the kiss. As the kiss continued it became calmer, tender but passionate. At some point they had to stop for oxygen and Gibbs started to kiss Tony’s neck and he pulled him into a tight embrace.

„God, I think I totally lost my mind,“ Tony muttered.

„If you think this is a bad idea, I’ll stop,“ Gibbs offered.

„You wanna face the wrath of the Dark Avenger?“ Tony turned the offer down with a chuckle and closed his arms around Gibbs‘ shoulders.

„One more question,“ Gibbs muttered between kisses.

„Yeah? What?“ Tony asked, distracted.

„If you never wanted to be known...why did you leave a message to Fornell?“

Tony chuckled and looked him in the eyes. „Well, I guess I got a little carried away. And it’s just too easy to tease him.“

Gibbs laughed as he took Tony back in his arms.