Chapter 1 â€" An Unfolding Nightmare

Not since losing Shannon and Kelly had Gibbs felt so helpless...

His gut, that infamous barometer of all things hinky, had been uneasy all week.

While DiNozzo may have been convinced that The Gut was supposedly infallible, Gibbs knew that whilst it didn't often let him down, he had been wrong in the past. This time when his gut radar went off while Abby was away in LA giving her forensic input to Callen's team, he'd put it down to simply missing her bright presence around the lab, to not being able to hear her voice and her laughter every day.

He'd missed her company but tried to tell himself that he was merely being selfish.

He didn't want to stand in the way of Abby's career, of her brilliant mind and he knew she'd be annoyed with him for being so over-protective. She'd laugh at this urge he always had to wrap her in cotton wool, wind his arms around her and not let her out of his sight.

If he was honest with himself, there was also a part of him that worried what impact Callen would have on her. His friend's charm with women was well known and Gibbs couldn't help wondering whether she'd find the agent attractive â€" Callen was nearer Abby's own age after all and had little of the baggage that Gibbs was carrying.

He could imagine all too well Callen's reaction to the arrival of such an emerald-eyed beauty with a sexy smile, and a fascinating mind to go along with an equally incredible body. His gut clenched at the thought that Abby might respond to any overtures from the handsome LA agent.

Gibbs knew he had no right to be jealous.

He'd wanted her for years but had not acted on that attraction. It was only in recent years that he realized that it was more than mere lust he felt towards Abby â€" that he'd fallen in love with his forensic scientist. That thought terrified him, making him hesitate in case he screwed up their friendship as well as any relationship they might try. While he suspected that Abby at least found him attractive, even if she didn't share the same depth and force of his feelings, he didn't know if she'd be willing to take the next step. He wouldn't blame her if she'd grown tired of waiting for him to make a move.

If he'd left it too late, it would be his own fault.

On a professional note, Abby was the best forensic scientist NCIS had... hell, the best any federal agency on the eastern seaboard could boast, and her talents and experience would be an asset to any case. If she'd found evidence of a serial killer that had so far slipped under the radar of every law enforcement agency in the country, then she was doing the right thing going to LA.

He remembered how hard she'd worked gathering evidence on what had started off as nothing more than a hunch…

She was 'following her gut,' as she'd told him one day with her usual cheeky grin.

She'd worked in between cases, and often on her own time, assembling a convincing argument for the existence of a killer she dubbed the Phantom. Gibbs was sure she didn't need his help, but he was touched nevertheless that she'd used him as a sounding board for her ideas and theories. He'd encouraged and supported her, pleased to see her take the lead on it…

Rule 38, her case, her lead.

He'd watched her as she paced the catwalk while waiting to see Vance, her shoulders squared and a determined look on her face. He'd never seen her look more confident and knew she was eager for this opportunity to convince the Director of her theory, and to use this latest case as an opportunity to go to LA to work 'live' on the case rather than retrospectively with evidence from other cases that were already months old. Only his knowledge of her body language enabled him to see the nervousness underlying it, her fingers fidgeting at her side giving her away to his eyes.

She'd looked down on him sitting at his desk as she walked towards the Director's office and returned his gaze with a smile, her eyes lighting up. She always seemed to know when his eyes were on her, wherever they happened to be.

He raised his hands and signed Good luck, causing her smile to widen as she inclined her head in acknowledgement of his unspoken support.

Gibbs knew she hadn't entirely persuaded Vance of the Phantom's existence but the Director at least had enough respect for her abilities to give credence to her theories. Combined with Abby's persistence, and Hetty backing her up once news of this latest victim came to light in LA, Vance had had no choice but to let her go.


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She was fine… of course she was. There was nothing to worry about.

He was just missing her. That's all it was.

She'd be back as soon as she could.

That's what he kept telling himself, even as his gut churned and unease rolled through him in waves that no amount of caffeine, bourbon and boat time could ease.

It wasn't helped by the fact that they'd had a slow week at the Navy Yard, with no new cases to occupy the mind, so the long days were spent working cold cases or catching up on paperwork, or intervening when the bickering between his three agents reached High School levels in their attempt to stave off boredom. But at least it meant that he didn't need to go and terrorize whoever the lab stand-in happened to be while Abby was away. He always hated visiting the lab when she wasn't there â€" it was an empty shell without her.

He'd spoken to Abby twice since she left at the beginning of the week. Once when she'd arrived to say she was safely at the hotel â€" she'd sounded amused, rolling her eyes at him and calling him a fusspot as she'd hugged him goodbye at the airport when he insisted she ring him to let him know she'd arrived.

Tonight he'd spoken to her as she was on her way out of the LA office, full of enthusiasm for the team there, mentioning Callen more than once. He chided himself that it was childish but Gibbs couldn't stop a stab of jealousy going through him when she spoke about his friend. She'd then cheerfully informed him that she was going out to a club that evening with Eric, the LA team's young tech operator, as they couldn't make any more progress on the case till morning.

He told himself to stop acting like a jealous boyfriend. He had no claim on her.

But just hearing her voice had cheered him up. That husky Southern drawl always had more of an effect on him than he cared to admit, the effect enhanced almost by rolling down a phone line directly into his ear.

As she outlined the progress they'd made in LA in such a short space of time, he wasn't surprised that she'd made such a difference. That's what she did â€" made connections on the flimsiest of forensic material, helped agents approach cases from different angles, and see evidence in a new light. He was proud of her that, not only had she convinced the LA team of the existence of the Phantom, but that it was down to her that they'd made such fast progress in identifying a workable lead.

Her reputation throughout NCIS was formidable and he knew what an impression she usually made once she got the bit between her teeth. Her grasp of the case and conviction in her theory would add up to a persuasive argument, and he was only sorry that he hadn't been there to see her present her findings to the LA team.


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When the phone call from Vance came through in the early hours with news of Abby's kidnapping by someone they assumed to be the Phantom, he knew he should have trusted his gut, even as his blood froze and heart hammered in his chest.

"Gibbs, I just got a call from Hetty," Vance's words jerking him to instant wakefulness after he'd grabbed his cell off the bedside table.

"What's happened to Abby?" was his first thought, instinct telling him that it would hardly be a social call at this hour.

"She's gone missing, Gibbs. She was at a club last night with Eric, went outside to the parking lot â€" I'm not sure why â€" and vanished. They think the Phantom took her."

"Why was she on her own?" disbelief mingling with anger in his voice.

"I don't know. Callen and his team are doing all they can to find her, Gibbs." Vance sounded annoyed but wasn't about to engage in a blame game with his senior agent. He'd deal with the LA team and their failure to protect NCIS's foremost forensic scientist in his own way.

"Not good enough, Leon," Gibbs was already out of bed and reaching for his clothes.

"There's nothing you can do from here, Gibbs. Leave it to the LA office," Vance was firm, even if he suspected it would fall on deaf ears.

"As they're the ones who put her in jeopardy, that doesn't fill me with confidence," came the harsh reply.

Vance sounded weary. "There was no indication that Abby was being targeted by the killer. When Callen and his team made the connection and realized that Abby could be in danger, they were only minutes behind him but by then it was too late. She'd already been abducted from the parking lot."

Worse was to come when Vance told him that the LA team believed that she'd been deliberately lured to LA; that the murder of Chief Petty Officer Frank McEllon was nothing but an elaborate bait to bring Abby within his reach. The forensic scientist now posed a danger to the previously invisible serial killer. He'd gone to considerable trouble to construct a complex trap to tempt her closer. He could have been watching her… stalking her for months, even if only virtually via cyberspace.

Vance tried to offer one crumb of comfort, conscious it didn't amount to much. "Nate did have one positive thing to say, for what it's worth. If the Phantom intended to kill her, she'd be dead in that parking lot already. Nate thinks he's taken her to gloat."

"Even if that's true, he's hardly going to let her go though, is he, Leon?" Gibbs was unable to keep the despair out of his voice but didn't care at that moment what he was revealing to his boss.

"No, it goes without saying that her life is in danger. There's no telling how long she's got."

"I'm not gonna to wait around here to see if Callen and his team can find her. I'm flying out there and taking my team with me." Gibbs was adamant.

"I had a feeling you'd say that." Vance's tone was resigned. "I had someone check and there are no tickets available on the first two commercial flights in the morning. The next flight with seats is not until midday."

"It could be too late by then. I'll find a plane â€" the FBI's got to be good for something." Gibbs' tone brooked no argument. "Their G5 flies out of Manassas airport. My team can meet me there. I'll take personal time if I have to, Leon, but I'm going."

"Yeah, I know, Gibbs." He heard Leon sigh. "I'll inform Hetty you're on your way and to keep you in the loop if there are any developments in the meantime."

Gibbs had had heard the displeasure in Vance's voice when he told him that he was going and was surprised that the Director didn't order him to stay in DC. If he had, Gibbs was fully prepared to disobey that order. He wondered if Vance suspected the lengths he would go to in order to get to LA, whether his boss had somehow sensed or worked out that Abby was his breaking point.

In truth, Vance had bowed to the inevitable. Whatever the relationship between NCIS's forensic scientist and his senior agent, something he wondered if they'd even worked out for themselves yet, he was adept by now at recognizing Gibbs' stubborn streak when it surfaced. Whatever he'd ordered him to do, Gibbs was going to LA, with or without the agency's help.

Word had spread like wildfire on the NCIS grapevine about Abby's abduction. If the Director was in any doubt over her place as the heart and soul of the agency, this removed it. He wouldn't have been surprised if the entire building had attempted to mutiny and tried to decamp to LA to help with the search.

Leon was also conscious of feeling a sense of responsibility for the night's events. He'd not been entirely convinced by Abby's arguments in the first place. Were it not for Hetty backing her up and insisting that the Director let her 'borrow' his forensic specialist to work on their case in LA, he might well have dismissed the trip as a waste of resources and insisted that Abby make her initial contribution to the case via MTAC.

Now that she'd been snatched, he was beginning to wish that he had.

As the true nature of the trap emerged, Vance felt guilty that he'd perhaps missed something in the evidence she'd presented to him, something he should have seen if he'd been more willing to believe Abby about this putative serial killer in the first place. He was also furious with Hetty's team for allowing Abby to be placed in a vulnerable enough position to be kidnapped so easily.


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Gibbs had promised to keep her safe.

Keep Abby out of danger…

Keep her from harm…

Variations of that mantra were running through his head on an endless loop as he hurriedly dressed.

His gut's internal 'I told you so' didn't help the fact that his worst nightmare was coming to life...

Abby was in jeopardy and he was too far away to help. In the past whenever her life had been threatened in any way, at least he'd been nearby. It hadn't lessened the danger she was in at the time but at least he'd been able to do something. Inactivity didn't sit very well with him, even at the best of times.

There were terrible parallels to a tragedy that had almost destroyed him.

When Shannon and Kelly were killed, he was similarly thousands of miles away but then it had been too late anyway… they were already dead. This time, as far as he knew â€" and hoped â€" Abby was still alive. But the distance between DC and LA might as well have been the same as Iraq to the States… he was still too far away to be of immediate help. Abby was in peril and he was hours away. He found himself fighting back an almost a choking sense of dread at the thought he was going to be too late.

Calling his team and dealing with their initial reactions hadn't been easy, but their training soon kicked in when his tone of voice told them in no uncertain terms that they didn't have time to fall apart and that he needed them... now.

McGee's stuttering disbelief and shock was the hardest to hear without letting his impatience get the better of him. He could hear the fear underlying Tony's voice even as his senior agent cut to the heart of the matter and anticipated their next move, as Gibbs knew he would. He was thankful for Ziva's expected reaction â€" understandable but contained anger mixed with her usual practical, direct approach.

The call to Ducky was possibly the hardest of all â€" the ME viewed Abby as the daughter he'd never had.

His "Bring her home safely, Jethro" as they ended the call almost didn't need voicing but he couldn't be annoyed at his friend for needing to vocalize his worry.

Ducky was also able to read the worry and strain in Gibbs' voice more clearly than anyone, and Gibbs was grateful to hear his friend's warm voice offering what little support he could. He was sure Ducky felt as helpless as he did.

His next call was made as he hurried to his car.

"Tobias, I need a favor…"

TBC…

Chapter 2 â€" A Waiting Game

Fornell watched his friend wearing a groove in the floor as he paced the cabin of the G5, while they waited for the flight to be cleared for take-off. He'd seen his friend in many stressful situations before, but there was so much tension currently radiating off Gibbs that he wouldn't have been surprised to see him punch a hole in the nearest wall if anyone crossed him.

The G5 had been on its way in to DC from New York when Gibbs first called Fornell and they'd had to wait for the plane to arrive, be readied and the back-up flight team to arrive; delays which were doing nothing to help soothe Gibbs' temper or halt a sense of building frustration. Even if the plane took off shortly, flight time to LA was still just over four hours.

Abby could be dead by the time Gibbs and his team arrived.

Approaching Gibbs almost warily, Fornell told him. "We've clearance for take-off in two hours, Jethro."

"Not soon enough, Tobias." Gibbs ran a hand through his hair and resumed his pacing.

"It's the best they can do. Not even the FBI can clear DC airspace."

"It could be too late by then," Gibbs sounded as anguished as Fornell had ever heard him.

"I know, Jethro, I know."

McGee had arrived a short time ago, the strain of the news of Abby's disappearance written on every line of the young agent's face.

After Callen rang through with an update on the lead they'd found at the lawyers' office, Gibbs had taken the phone off speaker so he could rip the LA agent a new one in private.

"You wanna tell me what happened, Callen?" he began.

Callen sighed, briefly closing his eyes, not surprised by Gibbs' reaction. He'd been waiting for the explosion as soon as they learned Abby was missing. "If you've heard from Vance, then you know as much as we do at the moment, Gibbs."

"Then I'll rephrase that. How the hell did it happen?" The anger in Gibbs' voice plain.

"Look, we never saw it coming. There was nothing in the evidence to suggest Abby was a target."

"Even if that's true, what the hell were you thinking letting her go to that club with only Eric to protect her," he demanded.

"She was off duty, Gibbs, and so was Eric. Do you think I'd have left Abby alone if I believed she was at risk in any way?" Callen hated sounding so defensive but felt moved to defend his team.

"That's no excuse and you know it. You… he made a Probie mistake. Why did he leave her alone?" Gibbs almost growled.

"We didn't know she was in danger," Callen repeated. "Look, I get it, Gibbs, I really do. Do you think by shouting at me you can make me feeling any guiltier than I do already?" Callen took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "We're working on it, Gibbs. We'll get her back."

"I hope you're right Callen, or I'll have your ass and Eric's before I'm done."

Callen listened to the cold anger in Gibbs' voice and couldn't help but agree with him, "Yeah, I know, Gibbs, I know. Now let me get on and do my job. This isn't helping Abby… or you."

Gibbs closed the connection, too angry to continue… but the rational part of his brain knowing that Callen was right. He rested his hand against the wall, back to McGee and Fornell, trying to calm down. Going round in circles over who was to blame wasn't helping, despite his need to vent his anger in any direction.

Finally getting his breathing under control, Gibbs approached McGee, knowing it would also help Tim if had something constructive to do. "Can you set up a line with the LA office? I want to be linked in to what's going on with Callen and Sam in the field. Don't want to hear any news secondhand."

"Sure thing, boss. I'll get right on it," turning to his laptop with a sense of relief to be doing something useful.

Fornell approached. "You'll need my log-in details to access the communications network on the plane, won't you?" He couldn't resist adding, a small smile breaking out, "Or perhaps you won't, McGee?" McGee had the grace to look sheepish at this reference to the times he'd hacked into the FBI's network.

They were all distracted by the arrival of the remaining two team members. Even if the screech of tires hadn't announced Ziva's arrival, the bickering audible long before they walked up the steps of the plane would have clued them in to the presence of Tony and Ziva.

"You should be used to my driving by now, Tony," she sounded exasperated as she nodded a greeting to Fornell, dumping her backpack on the floor.

"Yeah, I should be, Zee-vah," said Tony, following her into the cabin, "and perhaps it was slightly less terrifying than normal. Wonder why? Maybe it's because there's less traffic around in the middle of the night, or perhaps after a while your body goes from a state of sheer terror to being merely numb… a sort of sense of self preservation kicks in."

McGee knew that their usual arguments were their way of coping with the stressful situation, and he wasn't surprised to find an echo of the same strain on Tony's face that he was sure was all too visible on his. Only Ziva looked calm and collected but he knew that she was merely better at hiding it or channeling her anger and worry into something more practical, saving her energy for when she could take direct action.

Glancing at Gibbs and Tobias talking quietly together further down the cabin, Tony asked, "Probie, there any more news of Abby?"

McGee shook his head, "No, Tony, nothing new on Abby's whereabouts. The LA office do have a new lead though." He explained Callen's latest call.

Ziva asked, "Do we know any more details of how she disappeared last night?"

McGee sighed, elaborating on what little they did know. "Only that she was with Eric at SteamPunk, you remember that club she said she wanted to visit? While they were there, Abby wanted to see the hot rods, you know what she's like with fast cars? She went outside to the parking lot… on her own."

"And Eric let her?" exploded Tony, running a hand through his hair.

Ziva sought to try and calm her partner, "Abby is perfectly capable of taking care of herself, Tony."

Tony couldn't help a sarcastic comeback, even though he knew it was unfair to take his anger out on his teammates. "Well, obviously not in this case, Ziva. Why were the LA team not protecting her?"

"Maybe they did not realize that she was at risk?" Ziva speculated.

McGee nodded, "No, from what I hear, I don't think they did. No one knew she was a target, Tony."

He glanced nervously down the cabin before lowering his voice, not wanting Gibbs to overhear what he was going to say next.

"Besides, Tony, when did Abby ever let anyone tell her what to do? The Boss excepted, of course, and she won't listen to him all the time, you know that. You know how independent and stubborn she is. I doubt Eric could have stopped her if she'd wanted to go outside."

Tony refused to be placated. "Stop making excuses for him, McGee. What man leaves a woman to go out to the darkened parking lot of a club on her own in a place she's never been to before?" He'd always thought of Abby as the younger sister he never had. As far as he was concerned, she was family and he was almost as protective of her as Gibbs was.

Ziva sounded exasperated. "She is not a child, Tony. You and Gibbs," glancing behind her to see if the man in question was within earshot, lowering her voice, "cannot wrap her in cotton wool all the time and prevent her from going out… however much you would both like to protect her from everything."

"I know, Ziva, I know. It's just… it's not a pleasant feeling, knowing she's so far away and we're hours away." Tony slumped into one of the seats. "I'm not used to feeling so helpless, you know."

"Yes, I know, Tony." Ziva squeezed his shoulder in an attempt to offer some comfort, knowing it wasn't going to make much difference.

Time dragged slowly â€" none of them were at their best when they were forced to wait on the sidelines. All they could do was listen to the audio feeds coming in from Callen, Kensi and Sam in the field while they waited to take off. Only Ziva remained calm, leaning against the wall, quietly watching McGee fidget with his laptop and Tony pace. He hated inactivity as much as his boss.

Ziva nodded at Gibbs as he sat by her, seeing the tension in his body in the way he held himself. He was grateful, as always, for her composure in a crisis, her poise helping to settle him, allowing him to focus.

When news came through that a live feed had been discovered showing where Abby was being held, McGee liaised with Eric to bring up the feed being piped through.

The news initially filled Gibbs with relief that at least Abby was still alive. This was quickly followed by a gut churning anger and dread when he saw her. He felt his spine stiffening as he tried to reign in his visible reactions, calling on all his training and self-discipline to hide what he was feeling. He had to be strong for his team. He had to hold them together. They didn't need him to fall apart.

Hearing Tony's exclamation of "Jeez" next to him as he surged to his feet, he saw McGee freeze when Abby's image came on the screen

Chapter 3 â€" Escalating Tension

Abby was sitting in an upright chair in front of what looked horribly like a double bed. A table behind her held a bottle and two wine glasses and the whole room was ominously surrounded by plastic sheeting, or at least covering the three sides of the space that they could see. The camera angle indicated it was positioned high up, above the head of the bed.

Her captor, who they assumed to be the Phantom, was standing with his back to the camera, facing Abby.

Gibbs curled his hand over his young agent's shoulder as McGee stared at the screen, unable to tear his eyes away, not sure if he was attempting to reassure McGee or trying to ground himself as he felt his stomach churn at the sight. He sensed Ziva move up to stand on Tony's far side, as she wordlessly supported her partner.

Fornell looked from the screen to Gibbs and back again, concern for the tremendous strain on his friend warring with his relief that Abby was still alive. The FBI agent was equally horrified to see his young friend in such obvious peril.

"Can you get sound on this thing too, McGee?" Gibbs' voice sounded hoarse as he tried to focus. When he didn't respond immediately, Gibbs squeezed McGee's shoulder again to break him out of his daze.

"Sorry… yeah, on it, boss. It'll only take a moment to set up." He glanced at his boss, a flash of understanding passing between the two men that neither wanted to examine too closely for the moment. Tearing his eyes away from the large screen and the sight of his former lover, McGee got to work.

Tony watched his boss and friend retreat behind a familiar icy exterior. He wasn't fooled for a moment by this mask, the image Gibbs usually projected in a crisis. They'd been grateful for that calm control in the past and Tony suspected they'd all need it even more before the day was out.

They all knew by now that the less emotion Gibbs showed, the more he was actually feeling. Given the unreadable expression on his face right now, his emotions had to be in turmoil.

The Marine felt far too much but was just better at hiding it than most.

Tony suspected that Gibbs especially felt too much when it came to their forensic scientist. He knew of Abby's strong feelings for Gibbs as she'd shared them with her 'big brother' in the past, but up till now he could only speculate on whether his boss reciprocated those feelings.

This was not the way in which he'd have wished to find out. Tony cared for them both and would have done anything to spare either of them pain.

Judging by his boss's reactions tonight, if they lost Abby, they could very well lose Gibbs as well.

Seemingly unaware of Tony's thoughtful look, Gibbs stared intensely at Abby, moving closer to the screen.

It was hard to see her in detail. She at least looked uninjured, but he'd never seen her sitting so still before. She was usually a bundle of energy, unable to keep motionless for very long. Even her hands weren't moving… which was almost unheard of. He couldn't think of a time when her hands weren't in graceful motion, gesturing, signing, fidgeting… or gesticulating in some way.

He sensed Ziva beside him and wasn't surprised when she voiced the thoughts running through his head. "Why is she not moving, Gibbs? It is hard to tell from this angle but it does not look as if he holding a weapon on her. So why is she sitting so still?"

Tony joined them, sounding puzzled. "Ziva's right, boss. She's not struggling or moving at all."

Fornell commented, pointing at the screen, "But she doesn't look tied up… at least her arms and hands don't appear to be tied."

Gibbs agreed, it didn't look as if her arms were bound to the chair. "Is there something else holding her there?"

Ziva moved closer to the screen, looking thoughtful. "There seems to be something around her waist, holding her against the back of the chair perhaps?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't explain why her head and arms look so… still," protested Tony.

"Perhaps she can't move them," commented Gibbs quietly, running through the possibilities in his mind as to why Abby couldn't move, none of them positive.

"You mean the bastard drugged her in some way, boss?" None of them had heard McGee's voice carry so much venom before.

Ever practical, Ziva said, "It would make sense, given that he was able to abduct her so easily from the parking lot. If he drugged her, it would make it easier to move her and subsequently restrain her now." Ziva hesitated before finishing her thought quietly, knowing none of them would like hearing it, "She would not be able to fight back… then or now."

What worried Gibbs more was the bed he could see at the foot of the screen. Together with the screen of plastic sheeting all round the visible space, it added up to a chilling picture.

Turning from the screen, he met Fornell's worried gaze as he moved up to stand beside him. "Looks like some kind of warehouse, Jethro. I don't like the look of that sheeting."

"Or the bed, Tobias," his throat closing over at the obvious implication. Gibbs swept his eyes over DiNozzo who seemed frozen to the image on the screen, anger rolling off him. Ziva stood quietly by her partner, her normally warm brown eyes dark with an icy fury as she took in the sight of her friend.

Even if Gibbs hadn't been intending to tear this Phantom limb from limb with his bare hands, from the look on Ziva's face she was planning to take the serial killer apart slice by slice.

McGee's voice broke into their reverie. "We've also got sound, boss, from the live feed. We should be able to hear what's being said in that room, as well as communicate with both the LA office and Callen and Sam in the field."

Gibbs listened as Eric directed the LA agents to the neighboring building to continue the search. Dread settled in his stomach as they found the owner, Mike Smith, dead and no sign of Abby, confirming Callen and Sam were in the wrong place. As the search expanded to include other sites owned by the lawyer, his gut screamed at him that they were going to be too late.

As the Phantom began moving towards her, they could see Abby glance up at the camera, although she still couldn't seem to move her head very freely.

"What's the bed for?" Gibbs could hear the fear in Abby's voice as he heard it for the first time as she tried to keep the killer engaged in conversation. Her voice sounded much quieter than normal and seemed slightly slurred, as if she was fighting off the effects of drugs.

The Phantom responded, raising his glass. "To you, who empower me."

Eric exclaimed, "Wait, he's toasting her. I thought he was gonna gloat. What's with the wine and the bed?"

Fornell glanced at Gibbs, "Is the kid really asking that? Jeez, I'd have thought it was obvious."

Hetty put in, "Men love women who appreciate them, and she alone has appreciated him."

Gibbs and Fornell exchanged worried glances, hearing their own fears being voiced aloud.

"He's going to… " Tony could barely bring himself to say the word, "rape her, isn't he, boss?"

Fornell turned, "It doesn't look like she can try and fight him off either… not if she can't move."

Ziva offered quietly, "Even if she could move, he has killed 14 people, Fornell. I doubt she could overpower him."

Gibbs looked at her, not liking that she was right. "I know, Ziva."

Fornell muttered, "Yeah, you might be able to, Ziva, but not Abby. She's not a trained agent."

Nate's voice brought their attention back to the audio feed, "I don't buy it. He's too smart. He knows she's his downfall. He knows that she won't come around. At best he's playing with her."

"Playing, like chess?" asked Eric.

Nate sounded grim as he replied. "More like a bear with a salmon."

Gibbs found himself gripping the back of McGee's chair, fists clenching and unclenching in an attempt to control himself as they calmly discussed Abby's plight, his Abby.

Abby's voice drew his eyes back to the screen, "You must have been good at math." He noticed her right arm had slipped down the side of the chair. Perhaps she was regaining some movement?

The Phantom sounded smug… boastful. "Good at everything. So, Tampa?"

"That was your first?"

That's it, keep him talking, Abbs.

Her captor shook his head, perching on the edge of the bed. "My fifth."

"So, what four did I miss?" He could tell Abby was trying to keep her voice neutral, whatever she might be feeling inside and even in the midst of his fear, Gibbs felt proud of the way she was handling the situation.

The Phantom could have been discussing the weather, his tone was almost conversational. "Well, they were before the suit. My first was in Chico. My first human, I mean. Animals, whew…. "

Gibbs could see her react, her green eyes widening as her breathing became faster, a shudder running through her frame.

Steady, Abbs, don't let him provoke you.

"Before that there were dozens of animals," the Phantom continued, smiling at some internal memory. "That's how I knew I was built for this, really… I just couldn't stop killing. It was such intense pleasure."

"It's not fun. It's awful. And you are awful." Abby's voice became stronger as her outrage and disgust gave it strength. "Every person and animal that you killed had a life, and people that loved them and deserved them alive. I'm not on your side. I've never been on your side, and I will never be on your side."

"I know." His quiet certainty as he got off the bed chilled those who were listening. "But it was fun to pretend. Do you want to pretend? Buy yourself another night of life? After all, you'll be able to move soon."

Gibbs felt his heart almost stop and fought to suppress something akin to panic as the Phantom patted the bed and spoke of Abby 'buying' another night of life… none of them in any doubt as to what that meant.

He could see the fear and despair pass over Abby's face before she tried to hide her reaction from her captor, and felt such a burning hatred for the man who would threaten her with every woman's worst nightmare.

Could this get any worse?

Could they all stand there… could he really stand here and watch Abby being raped in front of them all, while they stood by, helpless to stop it?

Chapter 4 â€" In the Nick of Time

Could they all stand there… could he really stand here and watch Abby being raped in front of them all, while they stood by, helpless to stop it?

Gibbs felt Fornell's hand grip his shoulder tightly, wordlessly trying to convey his support, knowing Tobias felt as helpless as he did as they stared at the screen.

He heard Ziva's own indrawn hiss of breath and glanced across at her, taking a moment to worry about the reminders of Somalia this would invoke. She'd never discussed in detail what had happened to her at the hands of Saleem and his men, but he wasn't naïve enough to assume she'd made it through the months in captivity without being violated. As tough as she was, Gibbs wished he could have spared Ziva this inevitable stirring up of unpleasant memories as she faced the sight of her friend in danger.

Ziva met his gaze briefly, acknowledging his concern. "They must get to her in time, Gibbs," her simple statement conveying far more than the words themselves.

They both turned back to the screen in time to see Abby spit at the Phantom in response to his comments about buying another night of life, followed by her quiet comment, "Look at that."

"Yeah, and look at this," came the rejoinder from the killer as he drew an axe out from underneath the pillow.

What was Gibbs thinking? That it couldn't get any worse?

Oh yeah, it could get a lot worse.

Dragging his eyes away from the axe, Gibbs' attention was drawn to the fingers of Abby's right hand which were beginning to twitch. Presumably whatever the bastard had drugged her with was starting to wear off. Suddenly caught by the familiarity of what he's seeing, it nevertheless takes him a few seconds to make the connection.

When it dawns on him, he leans forward to shout into the phone, "Zoom in on her right hand, Eric. She's signing."

Eric's reply is quick, "Yeah, I see it, Gibbs." The picture zooms in to lose the main picture but concentrates on Abby's hand which is starting to form more recognizable signs. "I can't make it out clearly, her spelling is sluggish."

"Well, it would be if she's still drugged," Tony broke in impatiently.

"You read sign, Eric?" asks Nate, curious about a new facet of the young agent.

"Since I was seven," replied Eric, quietly, trying to concentrate on what he was seeing.

Finally having something positive to concentrate on, Gibbs elaborated, "She's finger spelling."

More familiar with the style of Abby's signing than Eric, Gibbs is the first to make out what she's signing, "Noise… something."

Eric sounds frustrated. "I can't read. It's like when someone's mumbling. Her fingers are slurred."

Wishing Eric would shut up so he could concentrate, Gibbs's eyes narrowed as he strained to make out the individual letters.

"Construction…? " queried Eric.

The signs suddenly clicked in Gibbs' mind, "Construction noise."

"Then start looking for construction sites," interjected Hetty, urgently.

Calling up the map on screen, Eric directs Callen and Sam, as he zooms the picture back out again so they can also keep an eye on where the Phantom is, or more importantly, what he's doing with that axe. "Callen, there's a warehouse on the corner of 6th and Ardmore owned by Smith, construction down the block."

They heard Callen confirm, "On our way," as they saw the Phantom sit back down on the bed, hand still on the axe.

"The truth is, you're just not smart enough for me, Abby." Unable to keep the gloating note out of his voice, he continued, "Because you're there and I'm here. And now the great forensic specialist dies without any evidence of her killer. And it will be fun for me, Abby."

Gibbs tried to ignore the twisting in his gut as he half listened to the Phantom's threats, concentrating on Abby's continued finger spelling.

"I've almost got the second half of the message. Noise…" mused Eric.

Gibbs cut in, irritation evident in his voice, "Doors is the next word."

Eric sounded puzzled, "Doors? Noise… doors."

They could hear Sam and Callen discussing how to get into the warehouse door when Eric suddenly shouted, "Guys, stop."

At the same time they heard Sam caution, "Wire."

As it dawned on Gibbs what Abby was signing, he was terse, "Booby… trapped." He leaned forward to add urgency to his shout, "Callen, the doors are booby-trapped."

Still sounding calm, despite the pressure he must be feeling, Callen asked, "So how are we getting in, Eric?"

There was a pause before Eric came back with, "Okay, skylight fire escape north side."

McGee's urgent, "Boss" drew their attention back to the screen where the Phantom could be seen getting up off the bed.

"I'll leave, trip the door fuse remotely, place will go kaboom and the Phantom remains traceless," he boasted.

Abby's tone was defiant, almost derisory, "You're not traceless." Gibbs exchanged a look with DiNozzo as he marveled at how in control she seemed

The Phantom picked up the axe, hefting its weight in his hands, replying almost scornfully, "Oh, come on, Abby. You know butane burns hot enough to destroy evidence."

"You have my teeth marks in your fingers… Creep."

Tony burst out with, "Teeth marks? When did she bite him?"

Ziva's voice was quiet, "Or rather, what did he do to provoke Abby into biting him?" Trying not to let his imagination fill in the blanks associated with that statement, Gibbs looked back at the screen as they heard Callen and Sam arrive at the skylight, discussing how to get down into the room.

For God's sake, Callen, just do it… just get down there.

He watched in horror, dread lodging in his stomach as Abby's final goading pushed the Phantom too far.

He heard Tony's muttered "They're going to be too late" as the Phantom began moving towards Abby, "I saved the white woman in her late twenties for you. You should be honored," taking an experimental swing with the axe.

Fornell hated the look of despair in Abby's eyes as she saw the killer approach, perhaps realizing she'd gone too far.

Gibbs couldn't tear his eyes away from Abby's pale face as she closed her eyes, an almost resigned expression settling over her features. He could see her trying to strain every sinew, trying to get immobile muscles to work. Eyes drawn to her right hand which was frantically signing again, he saw her form a familiar I love you even as he heard her cry out, "Gibbs."

The temptation to close his own eyes so he wouldn't see her die right in front of him was so great that Gibbs almost succumbed to it. But he forced his eyes to stay open as the Phantom pulled back the axe to complete the swing, aiming towards the left side of Abby's neck.

They were all going to be too late.

Chapter 5 â€" Release of Tension

The Phantom pulled back the axe to complete the swing, aiming towards the left side of Abby's neck.

They were all going to be too late.

Instinct propelled him forward a few steps as the scene unfolded in front of him, even though there was nothing he could do. Gibbs was grateful for Fornell's hand gripping his shoulder, both riveted to the screen.

McGee surged to his feet, an anguished cry of "Abby" torn from his lips.

They could hear Eric frantically shouting, "Guys, gotta go now!"

The next few seconds were a blur of motion; from the sound of crashing coming from the skylight, glass showering down onto Abby, to the sudden arrival of Callen dropping into view behind Abby's chair, gun drawn.

The sound of gunshots filled the air and they saw the Phantom falling, the axe clattering to the ground, missing Abby by inches. Her eyes flew open and her breathing changed to panicky gasping as chaos erupted around her, before she registered the change from staring imminent death in the face to the killer sprawled on the floor in front of her, dead.

Frozen to the spot, unable to comprehend at first that Abby was safe and that Callen had arrived in the nick of time, Gibbs vaguely registered Tony cursing loudly, as much with relief as a way to release the tension. He unclenched his hands from the back of the chair in front of him, hands rigid and stiff from the tension.

McGee had slumped back into his chair, head in his hands and Fornell turned away, hands running through his hair as tension drained out of all of them. In the background, they could hear the relieved comments coming from the LA team.

Gibbs felt Ziva's hand on his arm and turned to see her concerned face. "Are you okay, Gibbs?"

He nodded, unable to speak for the moment.

Gibbs turned back to the screen to see Callen untangle himself from…. was that a rope or a fire hose? He saw his friend approach the Phantom, gun still drawn. They watched as he kicked the killer's leg and when there was no response, Callen holstered his gun before turning to Abby, who still sat immobile, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath.

Callen leant down level with Abby's face to meet her green gaze, his hand on the back of her chair. The audio feed was still functioning and they heard him ask, gently, "You okay?"

Abby's voice sounded small and almost uncertain for the first time, "Yeah. Thank you G. Callen.

Callen patted her hand. "You're welcome Abby Scuito."

The team watched as he moved closer, examining her arms and shoulders, brushing off slivers of glass. Shaking out a handkerchief from his pocket, Callen pressed it against her neck and cheek, wiping away what looked like blood before pressing it more firmly against her forearm.

Tony voiced what they could all see, "Flying glass must have cut her."

Abby's voice broke in, urgently asking, "Callen, I need to speak to Gibbs. I need to tell him I'm okay. He'll be worrying. Can you ring him… please Callen, I can't wait."

Flipping open his phone, Gibbs had started dialing before Abby even finished speaking and on screen, they saw Callen grab for his phone. Looking up at the camera with a rueful glance, he leaned down again to show Abby the caller display.

"Wow, I see his ESP's working okay."

Callen shook his head, "He's been watching the video feed, Abby."

Abby closed her eyes briefly as she absorbed that news, "Oh."

"Gibbs and his team were on their way here but their plane hasn't left DC yet," Callen explained as he accepted the call and held the handset to Abby's ear, straightening up to at least give her the semblance of privacy as she spoke to Gibbs.

Not till he heard her smoky voice drifting into his ear did he really believe his Abbs was okay and that the nightmare was over.

"Gibbs?"

Gibbs kept his eyes on the screen image of her, unable to tear his eyes away, "Abby, are you hurt?"

Never was he more thankful to hear her start one of her trademark babbles. "Gibbs, I'm okay. I know you were coming to save me. But these guys, they were amazing, really. I mean... you should see what they can do with a fire hose."

Gibbs felt a smile curl his lips for the first time in what felt like forever. "I know, Abbs, we saw. I'm still coming to get you."

As if hearing his voice was finally unravelling her self control, he heard her voice start to quiver, "Oh, Gibbs... Hurry... I... I need you."

Unable to say what he really wanted to in front of an audience and unable to comfort her as really he wished, he settled for promising, "I'll be there as soon as I can," knowing it was woefully inadequate.

While Gibbs was on the phone, Tony's cell rang and he winced when he saw the caller ID. "Yes, Director Vance?" he answered, rolling his eyes at Ziva and moving away out of earshot.

Vance's irritated voice filled his ear, "Agent DiNozzo, I can't get hold of Gibbs. His cell goes straight to voicemail."

Tony glanced over at his boss, but kept his voice low, "He's speaking to Abby, Director."

"Then he knows… you all know that she's safe?"

"We've been watching the video feed, so yeah, we know she's safe, thanks to Callen and Sam." Tony didn't like to think what they'd now be facing if Callen had been even a few seconds later.

"Yeah, it was a close shave… too close." Vance's voice sounded hoarse. Whatever the team might think of him, Tony at least realized that nearly losing one of his own was likely to put tremendous strain on the head of the agency... not to mention triple the paperwork.

"Did you see the feed too, Director?" Tony was curious how closely he'd followed the events in LA.

"Yeah, I saw it." Vance sighed and allowed a beat to pass before changing the subject. "As much as this has been a stressful time for your team, I need you back at the Navy Yard right away. You've caught a case, call dispatch for the details."

"Okay, I'll give them a call. Er, I think Gibbs…"

"You don't have to say it, DiNozzo. I can already guess. He's going to LA." Vance's voice was resigned with an undercurrent of annoyance. The Director might have a hell of a poker face but Tony had had enough practice by now to be able to read his voice, usually made easier if… or rather, when Gibbs managed to piss Vance off… not an unusual occurrence.

"Yeah, I think he is. Do you want to talk to him? He's just finishing his call," Tony asked.

"No, there's no need. We had our… discussion about him going to LA earlier. I don't imagine much has changed even now Abby is safe. He can take it as personal time." Tony was intrigued by Vance's grasp of the situation… it hinted at him knowing, or guessing, more than Gibbs would probably be comfortable revealing about his reaction to Abby's situation.

"Okay, I'll tell him."

"I don't imagine even Gibbs can convince the FBI to let him hijack their plane now that the danger to Abby is passed. I've already had him booked on the lunchtime flight to LA. He can pick the ticket up at the desk." There was a pause before Vance continued, weariness evident in his voice. "I think in these circumstances, we can put the plane ride on the agency dime. Tell him… tell him to bring her home."

Tony looked at the phone after Vance had disconnected. Wow, the Director must be feeling really guilty about Abby.

Unaware of his Director cutting him some slack, Gibbs watched as Callen put his arm around Abby as she started to cry. He bent over, pulling her into a hug made awkward by the fact that he was still standing while Abby remained in the chair, unable to move.

Callen hesitated only briefing before bending to put an arm under Abby's legs and his other arm around her waist. Straightening, he hoisted her up, settling her more securely in his arms as she was unable to hold onto him, and turned towards the bed.

"No, G. I… I don't want to lie on the bed. Don't put me down there."

Oh, Abbs…

Gibbs felt his heart breaking at the slight note of panic in her tearful voice. She sounded more scared now the danger was passed than she had when facing down the Phantom so bravely.

Callen turned, still holding her and sat on the bed himself, back to the camera and settled her in his lap. He wrapped his arms more firmly around her waist, supporting her weight so there was no danger of her slipping off his lap as she couldn't yet help to anchor herself. Her fingers were twitching and her hands were able to clench but it was obvious she still couldn't move her arms.

She could now turn her head though and Gibbs saw her lean her head against Callen, burying her face in his neck. He watched as Callen cradled her, rocking her gently, one hand coming up to stroke her hair, all of them hearing him start to murmur to Abby but not able to make out the quiet words of comfort.

Gibbs ached to hold her. To be where Callen was now.

Tony's voice filled the silence.

"She shouldn't have been alone, boss. She should never have been allowed to go to that club with only Eric with her. Hell, she should never have been allowed to go to LA alone. It should be a new rule. Whenever Abby goes outside the state, goes anywhere on agency business, an agent should go with her."

Seeing Gibbs' hand move out of the corner of his eye, he braced himself for the expected head slap but was startled instead when Gibbs' hand gripped the back of his neck and squeezed warmly.

"I know, Tony. I know." Gibbs held Tony's gaze, trying to reassure him.

He released Tony and reached for his phone again, mentally head slapping himself that he hadn't dialled Ducky straight away. His ME would be frantic if he hadn't been linked into the feed and he may not know Abby was safe.

Ducky answered on the second ring, his worry evident in his voice, "Jethro, is there any news?"

"She's safe, Duck. Callen got to her in time." Gibbs turned and sat down, rubbing his free hand over his face, tiredness sweeping through him.

He could hear the relief in his friend's voice. "Oh, thank God, Jethro. Was she hurt?"

"She says not but I'll be happier when she's been checked over at the hospital. We think she was drugged."

Ducky's voice was tight with anger as he replied, "The bastard." He paused while he grasped for control. "Is he dead?"

Gibbs told him. "Yeah, Duck. Callen shot him."

"Good."

"I need you to view the video feed, Ducky. You need to see what she went through," sighed Gibbs, knowing how Ducky would react before he could finish his explanation.

And sure enough, his friend's horrified, "Jethro...?" interrupted him.

"No, Duck, nothing like that..." Gibbs knew it would take too long to explain and he still needed reassurance himself that she was indeed okay after her ordeal, so he just settled for telling him, "Just take a look at the footage will ya?"

"Of course. I'll talk to Vance straight away." Ducky paused. "Are you still going to LA?" already knowing the answer.

"You bet I am, Duck. I'll call you when I've seen her."

While Tony and Gibbs were on the phone, McGee and Ziva had liaised with Eric and Sam and were able to update Gibbs and Tony on the rapidly moving aftermath.

As he explained, McGee looked equally absorbed by the view of Abby being held by Callen and Gibbs couldn't find it in himself to be angry at his young agent's distraction. "Paramedics are on the way, but they might have to go in via the same skylight, Boss."

Ziva nodded. "The bomb squad has arrived but it will take them some time to clear a safe path through all the doors, even if it proves to be a straightforward task to disarm the booby traps."

McGee continued, "It may be safer if they can get Abby out through the skylight before the Paramedics get here."

"And quickly." Ziva picked up the thread, "If the whole place is wired, as the Phantom claimed, then it would only take one mistake by the bomb squad for the place to go up. They need to get them both out of there as soon as possible." She glanced at her teammates. "The fire service are on the scene and they are rigging something up now to get them out of the skylight."

Fornell joined them as they absorbed this new information and threat. "I'll feel happier when they're both out of there."

"You and me both, Tobias," Gibbs shot him a look, not sure how much more tension any of them could take.

While they waited, Gibbs turned his attention back to the screen, unable to tear his eyes away from Abby. He could see her hands flexing and she seemed to be regaining some movement in her arms.

She was trying to raise her arms and Callen reached down to grip one of her hands in his, lacing their fingers together. Abby slowly moved her other arm until she could bring her hand to the back of Callen's shirt, where she gripped the fabric, clinging onto him. Her head was now nestled on his shoulder and her tears seemed to have subsided but Callen was still cradling her head, holding her close.

Gibbs told himself it was petty of him to feel jealous at the scene in front of him. She needed comfort, he knew how she thrived on physical contact and he should be glad Callen was there to provide it.

It wasn't long before the fire service were able to rig up a harness and they watched as Abby was hoisted up out of the room, closely followed by Callen, finally safely on her way to hospital.

Tony moved up next to Gibbs as they turned away from the screen and told him about the call from Vance.

Fornell cut in. "He's right, Gibbs. I doubt I can swing it for you to hitch a ride on this plane any more, but it sounds as if you don't need it."

Tony commented, "Wonder why Vance is getting soft?" Gibbs didn't reply, privately wondering what the payback would be.

"I'll give you a ride to the airport," offered Fornell.

Gibbs shook his head. "I can take my car, Tobias."

Fornell snorted, "Huh, your driving's lethal enough at the best of times, Jethro. You look exhausted and Abby will kill me if you finally kill yourself behind the wheel. Don't argue. I'm driving."

Tony tried not to sound too eager, "I can drive your car to the Navy Yard, Boss, or back home."

Ziva came over, interrupting Tony before he could get in his stride, "Or I could."

"Oh come on, Ziva. The Boss wants his car in one piece," scoffed Tony, always read to rise to the bait.

"As our driving techniques are," Ziva glanced at Gibbs, eyes alight with mischief, "similar, I'm sure his car would respond more to my touch than yours, Tony. I will take good care of her, Gibbs."

Gibbs suppressed a smile as the pair bantered back and forth, knowing full well what they were doing in trying to lighten the atmosphere.

Fornell looked on, not bothering to hide his smirk. It was at times like this that they looked more like a family than a team of highly trained agents. Watching each other's sixes was an ingrained response now for all of them, both physically and emotionally.

Gibbs looked from one to the other and eventually tossed his keys to Tony, who grabbed his bag and practically ran down the steps of the plane, eager to get behind the wheel of the Challenger for the first time.

Ziva watched him go with an indulgent smile before turning to Gibbs. "Bring her home, Gibbs." Gibbs nodded and gave her a half smile in thanks as she left.

Outside in the bright sunshine on the tarmac, Ziva caught up with Tony just as he was circling Gibbs' car, practically drooling. He looked up as she approached, sobering instantly. "He'll be okay, won't he?"

Ziva knew he needed reassurance as much as they all did. "He'll be fine when he gets there. She will need him."

Tony looked thoughtful as he glanced back at the plane. "Are you sure you don't mean they'll need each other, Ziva

Chapter 6 â€" Reflection

Gibbs settled into the passenger seat of Fornell's car, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. He felt the tension of the past few hours finally start to drain away, leaving him utterly drained. His stomach churned and his nerves were jittery as the effect of the adrenalin coursing through his body still made itself felt.

The memory of what Abby had endured continued to roll through his head, in all too vivid technicolor. He was sure that the horror of every image would be carved onto his mind till the day he died. And that was just what they'd been witness to via the video feed.

Until he saw Abby again, he had no way of knowing what else she'd suffered in the hours before Eric had tapped into the live recording. And she'd gone through it all while he wasn't there to either help her or comfort her.

He felt he'd failed in what he'd promised her years ago â€" to keep her safe from harm, and he knew that the guilt of that would stay with him for a long time to come.

In one sense, Gibbs had been grateful that his team and Tobias were there with him while they watched Abby's ordeal. Their silent support and presence always made a difference, even if he never acknowledged it. But the intensely private part of him couldn't help wishing that he'd been alone.

He hated having witnesses whenever he felt weak, even if they were his closest friends.

If he'd been alone, he wouldn't have had to steal himself to keep his feelings hidden, or try to appear strong in front of his team when all he wanted to do was let his rage loose.

It was going to be a long morning till his plane took off and would no doubt feel like an even longer flight but before the day was out, he'd be reunited with her. He just wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let go.

Then he could see for himself how she was coping and how injured she was… although he suspected a lot of her scars would now be mental ones, and those were the ones that worried him most of all. At the moment, he had no idea how best to help her and knew that he'd need to spend time with Ducky when they got back from LA to try and understand what Abby would need from him. In the meantime, he'd just have to work off what he did best… his gut and his instincts.

As he drove, Fornell glanced over at his friend, pleased to see that at least Gibbs looked to be resting, but he could still see his shoulders were held rigidly and his face was drawn and tired. Fornell felt some of the residual tension ease from his own shoulders as he navigated the DC traffic, heading for the airport. He was unlikely to forget the images he'd seen of his young friend in danger.

If Abby had died tonight, he shuddered to think of the effect that would have had on Gibbs. He doubted whether his friend would survive such a blow.

Over the years, Fornell had also grown close to Abby and considered her a good friend. Under the guise of supposedly trying to tempt her away to work for the FBI, something he'd been ordered to do by his Director, he'd first taken Abby out to dinner years ago. From that first 'date', they'd started an unlikely friendship which had grown closer over the years.

He knew from that first year that he had no chance of succeeding in tempting her away to the FBI's lab. She'd listened to his offer, which was far more than NCIS were paying her, politely thanked him for dinner but told him in no uncertain terms that she was never leaving NCIS. He vividly remembered her cheeky, stunning smile as she'd followed that up by declaring that her refusal didn't necessarily mean that either of them couldn't dress up and enjoy a slap up meal each year anyway… with the FBI paying.

Fornell had realized within a year or so that the real reason she wouldn't leave was a certain silver-haired senior agent, but he kept his thoughts to himself and just watched from afar as his two friends danced around each other. Many a time he'd been tempted to head slap the Marine for being so dense and hesitating when Fornell could see that happiness was within the grasp of both of them.

So each year he took the opportunity to take Abby out to dinner on the FBI's dime, mostly to places that neither of them could have afforded on their own. It had turned into a yearly treat for both of them.

He enjoyed her company, and they always had a fun evening, chatting easily on a variety of topics. After all, he was never one to turn down turning up at a fancy restaurant with a beautiful woman on his arm, although he was careful to ascertain Gibbs' whereabouts on the night beforehand. Fornell had a well developed sense of self preservation and felt it was best to avoid stirring up Gibbs' possessive and territorial nature unnecessarily.

He'd also found it helpful to talk about his daughter with a female friend who was outside his own agency. Abby was sympathetic to his problems of being a part time father, especially with an ex-wife who always seemed to delight in making things difficult for him with Emily. He knew he could rely on Abby's discretion. She brought a fresh perspective to a lot of things and wasn't afraid to tell him a few home truths if she needed to.

His daughter had formed an instant bond with Abby from the moment they'd met. Abby had volunteered to help Emily with a school science project when he'd casually mentioned it, and the two had since developed a firm friendship. Both he and Emily often went bowling with Abby… and the nuns.

Emily considered Abby to be the coolest honorary aunt she had. Sooner or later, he was sure she'd be asking her mother if she could have a tat… and Fornell wasn't looking forward to the fall-out from that conversation. But as a role model, he couldn't wish for better for his daughter, even one with what could only be called Abby's unique style.

As the car pulled off the highway, Gibbs stirred and looked at his surroundings more closely as they pulled into the parking lot of a diner.

"You forget the way to the airport, Tobias?"

"Nope, I'm buying you breakfast," he replied, knowing he'd have an argument on his hands.

Gibbs didn't move. "There isn't time for that."

"There's plenty of time, Jethro. It's more than two hours till the flight takes off. What are you gonna do at the airport while you wait? Wear another hole in the floor?" Gibbs just shot him a look and didn't reply.

"Despite what you think, you can't function only on coffee. Although come to think of it, you haven't even had coffee for a few hours so you'll be going cold turkey any minute now." Fornell got out of the car, determined to head in for his own breakfast even if Gibbs persisted in sulking in the car.

"Not hungry, Tobias."

Gibbs' voice sounded beyond exhausted, which made Fornell soften his tone as he leaned down to look across to the passenger side. "Look, Abby's going to need you, so you need fuel for that gut of yours. You can't help her if you're exhausted. Besides, I'm starving. Come on, old man, I'm paying."

Glaring at Fornell's back as he walked into the diner, he nevertheless acknowledged that his friend was right.

He'd be no good to Abby in his current state. He wanted to be sure he could concentrate fully on caring for her, helping her in whatever way she needed and he couldn't do that if he could barely keep his eyes open.

Gibbs followed Fornell into the diner and after ordering, they sat quietly as they waited for their food to arrive, both sipping their first coffee in several hours.

As the caffeine flooded through his system, Gibbs started to feel more alert. When the food arrived, he tucked in, hungrier than he cared to admit and he gave his friend a grateful nod. They ate in a companionable silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts.

Eventually, Fornell decided that now Gibbs was mainlining coffee again, it would be a good time to tackle him about the topic at the forefront of his mind. At the very least Gibbs couldn't very well off him in front of witnesses.

"So has this scare finally convinced you to get your head out of your ass and tell Abby how you feel?" he ventured.

Gibbs looked up from his plate, glaring. "None of your business, Tobias."

"It is my business when I see two friends holding back when they could be happy." Fornell was determined this was one conversation Gibbs wasn't going to retreat from, even if he had to provoke him to react.

"You don't know how Abby feels," Gibbs neatly sidestepped the subject of his own feelings.

"Huh, I would have thought signing I love you and crying your name as she's facing her own death would have given even you a slight clue," scoffed Fornell. Gibbs froze as he realized that he hadn't been the only one to catch that last frantic signed message.

"Didn't know you could read sign, Tobias?" still Gibbs evaded the question.

Fornell shrugged. "Abby taught Emily a few signs, including I love you so she could surprise me one birthday."

Gibbs felt a smile threaten to break out at the typical Abby gesture.

Seeing is friend's face soften, Fornell continued. "Then Abby taught me a few signs so I could talk to Emily sometimes, and without her mother knowing what I was saying. It just felt special to have something private that no one but me and Emily could understand."

"I'll have to try her out on a few phrases next time I see her." Gibbs adored Fornell's daughter, and the feeling was mutual. He knew he didn't see her as often as he should.

"Stop avoiding the question, Jethro." Fornell's quiet voice brought his attention back after a few moments of silence.

"The signing may not have been directed at me," shrugged Gibbs, unwilling to air his feelings in public, even with his close friend.

"Now you're just deluding yourself." Fornell started to let his irritation show through. Abby had never talked openly about her feelings for Gibbs, but Fornell guessed that she would never be the one to make the first move, presumably for fear of rejection or Gibbs quoting that damn Rule 12.

He continued, pressing home his argument. "Why do you think she's never left NCIS, huh? It's hardly for the modern lab, huge salary and up to date equipment they give her. We both know she could have whatever she wants in a private lab, or working for one of the other alphabet soups further up the food chain."

Gibbs' protest sounded weak, even to his own ears. "She feels happy here… she thinks of everyone as her family."

"That's not the real reason and deep down, you know it, Jethro. If I had a beautiful woman like that interested in me, I wouldn't have let the situation drift for as long as you've done."

Gibbs shook his head. "It's not that simple, Tobias."

"Yes, it is. It's just in your nature to make things unnecessarily complicated." Fornell leaned across the table, trying to get his point across before Gibbs' temper blew and he stopped listening. "Look, if seeing her nearly die in front of you isn't enough, Jethro, I don't know what it would take to convince you."

Gibbs looked down at his coffee, sighing. "Okay, Tobias. I get it."

"Then do something about it… before G. Callen snatches her away from under your nose."

Ah, that got a reaction, thought Fornell as Gibbs head snapped up, his eyes narrowed. So he had seen how the LA agent had held Abby and how she'd clung to him. "It may be a cliché, Jethro, but it's true â€" life is too damn short."

Eventually he heard Gibbs' quiet reply. "Yeah, I know, Tobias."


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As they finished the drive to the airport, Gibbs was silent and Fornell wondered if he'd gone too far.

He hadn't meant to be so harsh to his friend after the hell he'd gone through this morning, but he figured that if he gave Gibbs enough time, he'd retreat behind his emotional brick wall again, as he usually did. Fornell feared that by the time Gibbs arrived in LA, he'd have convinced himself that it would be in Abby's best interests not to make a move, or start doubting all over again that she shared his feelings.

The man was that damn stubborn.

At the very least, he hoped he'd pissed him off enough to make Gibbs think.


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As the plane finally took off for LA, Gibbs settled back in his seat, grateful for both the time to think and perhaps sleep a little. He was loathe to admit it to either his team or Fornell but the interrupted night's sleep, plus the tremendous strain of the past few hours had left him feeling physically and emotionally wrung out.

He'd spent the last few hours riding an adrenalin 'fight or flight' rush that had had nowhere to go.

The last time Abby had been threatened… the last time she nearly died in front of him was during the case with the 'killer' car that had trapped her inside and she'd nearly died from carbon monoxide poisoning. But at least then he'd been there so he'd been able to convert that adrenalin rush into something more concrete as he tried to get her out.

There too it had just been in the nick of time.

Because of McGee's inattention, he'd nearly lost her that day… and still he'd held back on telling her what she meant to him, and that was three years ago. Three years wasted… because he was an emotional coward.

Whatever he'd said to Tobias, or refused to say, he had no illusions any more about the strength of his feelings for Abby.

He loved her.

He could no longer try and kid himself. He just hoped he'd have the courage to tell her how he felt when he saw her… and hoped he wouldn't make too much of a fool of himself or jeopardize their friendship if he was wrong about her feelings.

He thought back to those last moments and her signing, coupled with her desperate cry of his name.

Did she really feel that way? Did Abby really love him or was it just the heat of the moment? She told him she loved him all the time, usually in the lab or in circumstances where she could laugh it off as friendship. But did she mean it as more than that?

Abbs was the most important person in his life. His Abbs… as he always thought of her, even though he had no right to.

She'd stuck by him through everything over the past ten years. She supported him without judgment. She cared for him without demands. She offered him friendship without expectation.

He'd always had the urge to protect her. Gibbs couldn't place the moment when it had morphed into something more than friendship for him. More it had crept up on him gradually until he couldn't imagine his life without her.

Seeing the image in his mind of Callen cradling Abby gently in his arms and of Abby in turn clinging tightly to his friend, Gibbs just hoped that he hadn't left it too late to tell her.

Chapter 7 - Reunion

Pacing the arrivals lounge, waiting for Gibbs' plane to land, Callen felt his own exhaustion settle around his shoulders. It was the first time he'd paused since yesterday evening and a night without sleep, coupled with the tensions and stresses of the past 24 hours, were beginning to catch up on him.

After the fire service had hoisted them both out of that warehouse, the paramedics had been swift in checking Abby over.

She was in no imminent danger they'd decided but nevertheless recommended that she go to hospital, which immediately triggered vigorous protests from the woman herself. She was fine. She just needed time to recover her mobility and just required rest and didn't need to go to hospital… she hated hospitals. It was only Callen's insistence and the reminder from the paramedics that they didn't know what drugs the Phantom had used, and that a full blood work-up would be needed so they could be sure there were no harmful side effects, that convinced her it would be a good idea to go.

His time sat on that damned bed in the warehouse with Abby wrapped around him had allowed his own nerves to settle.

She was finally safe.

It didn't lessen his sense of guilt and responsibility that she'd been snatched on his watch. He hadn't needed Gibbs' anger to remind him that they had taken their eye off the ball and put Abby in harm's way.

If he could find it in himself to acknowledge it, there was a certain irony in that, given the effect she'd had on him in such a short space of time. Putting her in harm's way was the very last thing on his mind when it came to Abby Scuito.

The minute they'd been introduced, there'd been an instant and strong mutual attraction. Both had felt the spark and he'd been determined to explore that further.

She'd accepted his dinner invitation, green eyes full of promise as they'd arranged to meet after she'd been to the club with Eric. He fully intended to take this further than dinner, conscious she might only be in LA for a short time.

She'd never made it, of course.

Why the hell hadn't he gone with her to the club? He'd never have let her go outside on her own… Gibbs was right about that and Callen was still furious with Eric for not protecting her.

Beyond the magnetic pull he felt towards her, Callen had also been more than impressed at her grasp of the case when they'd first met. Although he hadn't been immediately convinced by her theories, he couldn't help but be caught up in her enthusiasm and animation.

Within a few short hours, she'd proved that her reputation was well founded.

She did indeed live up to her hype.

After riding with Abby to the hospital, he'd stayed with her through the usual formalities and listened to her grumbling â€" already knowing her well enough to realize that if she was complaining about something, then she was starting to feel more like herself.

He'd spent the rest of the day debriefing and getting updates from Sam on the defusing of all the booby traps at the warehouse. He was eager to get back to the hospital to check on Abby's condition… but knew he'd have company.

Talk of the devil…

Gibbs' tall figure easily stood out from the trickle of people coming through the arrivals gate and as his friend drew near, Callen could clearly see evidence of the strain of the past day written on his face. He knew Gibbs always sought to protect his team and would feel it when any of them were in danger, but Callen was startled to see just how exhausted he looked.

He'd wondered at the cold anger in Gibbs' voice on the phone earlier. Seeing his face, drawn and tired, it made him wonder whether this was far more than just a senior agent's concern for one of his own.

As Callen pulled out into the LA traffic, Gibbs' first question wasn't long in coming. "How is she, Callen?"

"When I left she was arguing with the doctors, so she's as feisty as ever," which prompted a faint half smile from Gibbs.

"What did the doctors say? Come on Callen, give me it all."

"Well, until they get the blood work back on what drugs that bastard used, they won't know what they're dealing with." He could see Gibbs' jaw working as he tried to keep his temper in check. He knew he didn't need to spell it out to Gibbs that it wasn't just the immediate side effects she was experiencing as the drugs came out of her system that they needed to worry about, but there might be long term implications to deal with.

"Has she regained any more movement?" Gibbs asked, quietly, working to regain his composure.

"Yeah, when we got to the hospital, she could move her arms more freely and flex her legs."

"And…?" prompted Gibbs when Callen paused.

"As the feeling started coming back, she complained of pins and needles and said she was starting to feel nauseous." As the feeling started returning to her muscles, Abby had been hit with intermittent pins and needles of varying intensity and it had pained Callen to watch her struggling with it, not knowing how best to help her.

"What else?" insisted Gibbs, wanting to know it all before he saw her. He knew her well enough to suspect she would go into her 'I'm fine' routine, regardless of how she felt. They were too much alike in that respect.

"They put her on a drip to counter the dehydration," explained Callen. "She said she was unconscious from last night until she woke this morning in the warehouse." He felt his own anger rising again as he thought again about what she'd endured. "So she'd most likely been without fluid since last night. Combine that with the drugs and she was quite dehydrated."

Gibbs ran his hand through his hair. "How badly was she cut by the flying glass?"

"Mostly superficial cuts, fortunately. A couple needed stitches but the rest are fairly minor." Callen glanced across at Gibbs, "I think she's going to be okay, Gibbs, although I'll feel better when I know about those drugs."

Gibbs sighed and leaned back against the headrest. "Yeah, me too, Callen. Thanks... for getting there in time."

Callen offered, "Would never have forgiven myself, Gibbs, if we hadn't. My watch… my bad."

Gibbs nodded in acknowledgement of what Callen was trying to say. "I'm just glad she's okay… physically at least," continued Callen. "I don't think the mental strain has hit her yet… reasonably enough, she's just too busy at the moment being grateful she's still alive."

"That's why I'm here, Callen, to take her home where we can look after her."

Callen heard the 'we' but sensed Gibbs really meant 'I'… "She might need more help than that… you know that," he ventured.

Gibbs sounded weary. "Yeah, I know. I need to talk to Ducky when we get back. He'll already be working out what to do for the best."

Gibbs' cell rang and Callen listened in to his side of the call. "Yeah, DiNozzo… No, I don't know how she is yet, I haven't seen her coz I've only just got here… Yeah, Callen went with her to hospital." He looked over at the LA agent. "I'll call you when I have more news."

Gibbs ended the call in his usual abrupt fashion and they passed the rest of the journey to the hospital in silence, both lost in their own thoughts of the same woman.


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As they approached her room in the hospital, they could hear Abby's animated voice raised in argument.

"She obviously likes hospital just as much as you do, Gibbs," was Callen's wry comment. Glancing over at Gibbs, he saw his lips quirk in a smile.

That's my girl... came the unbidden thought.

Walking into the room, they were met by the sight of Abby perched on the side of the bed, arguing with one of the doctors.

Halting in mid sentence, her eyes widened as she took in the sight of the two men, their presence immediately dominating the room as soon as they entered. She started to ease herself off the bed, her face lighting up but Gibbs was across the room to her side in an instant.

As he reached her, Abby flung her arms around him as she stood up. For once, he couldn't have cared less about an audience as he wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her neck.

Callen watched the pair of them, intrigued by what he saw.

Gibbs was not usually one to show his feelings too easily or in public, so it spoke volumes that he was wrapped around Abby like he had no intention of letting her go. Abby grinned a hello at Callen over Gibbs' shoulder and then her eyes drifted shut as she clung onto him.

Feeling what he told himself was an unreasonable degree of envy, Callen allowed himself a rueful thought that perhaps he wouldn't need to arrange a separate room for Gibbs at Abby's hotel after all.

Eventually pulling back slightly, Gibbs gently cupped her face in his large hands, stroking his thumbs across her cheeks, breathing out her name. A brilliant smile spread across her face as she gazed up at him, leaning into his touch, green eyes roaming over his face as if she couldn't take in the fact that he was here.

They could have been the only two people in the room, so little notice did they take of anyone else.

"How d'ya feel, Abbs?" Gibbs asked, his voice soft.

He tilted her head gently, jaw tightening as he took in the livid bruise on her neck from where the Phantom had forcibly injected her the night before, and the visible cuts on her face and neck.

"I'm okay, Gibbs, really. I'll be fine when I can get out of here." She still sounded slightly hoarse but he'd never been more thankful to hear her husky voice.

Recognizing it was exactly the type of reply he would have given if he were ill or injured, Gibbs merely arched a skeptical eyebrow. He looked over at the doctor she'd been arguing with, who approached as she sensed an opportunity to gain an ally.

"You're right to be concerned. I'd feel happier if Miss Scuito remained here overnight so we could monitor if she has any adverse reaction to the drugs in her system." The doctor sounded thoroughly peeved that a mere patient was daring to question her medical opinion.

Abby's protest was equally vigorous. "I can just as easily rest at the hotel… as long as I'm not on my own, right? The stiffness is wearing off too… see." Although she paced up and down as if to demonstrate her point, Gibbs couldn't help but notice that she didn't move with her usual grace. Her movements seemed sluggish and obviously stiff.

He refrained from commenting, however. Gibbs could sense her stubbornness surfacing and knew he'd get nowhere if he tried to override her wishes. As concerned as he was about her health, he could sympathize with her wish to get out of hospital as fast as possible. She hated hospitals as much as he did.

"You are also dehydrated," the doctor continued, with an air of finality.

If possible, Abby looked even more annoyed, her face taking on a familiar stubborn set. "Which you've dealt with already. I've been on a drip since I got here, Gibbs, they've only just taken it out. I can make sure I drink plenty of fluid just as easily elsewhere as I can here."

Sensing this was becoming a verbal tennis match, the doctor was beginning to sound exasperated, "I'd rather you weren't alone in a hotel room, Miss Scuito."

Gibbs' quiet voice broke the tension. "She won't be alone." He was rewarded with another smile, surprise on her face as she took in what he might mean by that.

"You see," Abby gestured at him, turning back to the doctor. "If you tell us what symptoms we need to be worried about, Gibbs can look out for me. Then it won't just be me on my own. Help would just be a phone call away."

"If you discharge yourself, Miss Scuito, it will be against medical advice."

"What were the drugs in her system?" asked Gibbs, attempting to head off a brewing explosion from the medic.

Turning towards Gibbs with relief, the doctor began her explanation. "The blood work came back and it looks like the main chemical agent preventing her from moving was a neuromuscular blocker." The doctor spoke as if Abby wasn't present and Gibbs could see exactly why she'd only ended up antagonizing Abby with her attitude. "As the stiffness wears off, there will probably be pins and needles, but Miss Scuito will also experience nausea from the drug used to knock her out. We've already prescribed something to help with that. What we need to monitor for is if the paralysis begins to return or the pins and needles get worse."

The medic looked from Gibbs back to Abby, "I'll leave you to decide but I really hope you at least consider what I've told you." She nodded at Gibbs and marched out of the room.

Abby rolled her eyes and turned back to Gibbs. "Let me look, Abbs," continued Gibbs, before Abby could speak. He reached out to cup his hand around Abby's neck, distracting her and cutting off what she was about to say.

He tilted her head once again so he could see the cuts on her neck from the flying glass. The cut on her arm was the deepest and he ran his fingers gently over the skin on her wrist next to the stitches covering the wound, not missing the slight shiver than run through her at his actions.

"Gibbs, it's just some minor cuts, it's nothing," came Abby's soft voice, watching as his thumb ran gentle circles over her skin.

Callen's voice broke into the moment. "It could have been a lot worse."

It was the first time he'd spoken and his voice drew Abby's attention back to him. A smile broke out over her face and she launched herself at the LA agent, wrapping him in a warm hug.

"Hey, G. Callen. My hero of the hour."

Callen returned her hug, conscious of Gibbs stiffening beside him. "You stood me up, A. Scuito," sensing she was also using this greeting as a way of moving the subject away from her health.

Abby grinned, delighted to see him again.

G. Callen was a fox.

Not quite a silver-haired one but a fox nonetheless. He reminded her of Gibbs in many ways.

She'd felt the chemistry between them as soon as they were introduced and had eagerly accepted Callen's invitation to a late dinner. She had been looking forward to seeing the club with Eric, and she wasn't blind to the fact that the young tech was attracted to her… although infatuated might be a better word and she'd have to be careful not to hurt his feelings.

But it was Callen's bed she'd been more interested in falling into later that night.

Abby had given up hope that Gibbs would ever reciprocate her feelings and had almost reconciled herself to that over the years. Although there was an expression on his face and a look in his eye just now that had her intrigued. His breath on her neck as he wrapped her in an almost desperate hug had had the usual effect of raising goosebumps all over her.

His quiet promise that she wouldn't be alone in her room tonight had also made her wonder… but she could have driven herself insane from all the mixed signals he'd sent her over the years. He'd had ample opportunity in the time they'd known one another to act on his feelings… if he felt anything for her beyond friendship. She'd waited long enough… and given him enough hints, or so she thought.

She hadn't dated anyone in a while, tired of being disappointed in virtually all the men she went out with. None of them even came close to Gibbs. It was far easier not to even bother. So she'd spent far too many long, lonely nights lately with only her fantasies of a certain silver haired Marine to keep her company and a bedside drawer full of toys to take the edge off.

So by the time she'd met Callen, she'd been more than tempted. She was tired of being alone. If she couldn't have Gibbs, perhaps she could develop something with the LA agent… or at least have some fun.

"Yeah, sorry about that, G. I was kinda held up," she teased, grateful for him trying to lighten the atmosphere. His sense of humor being only one part of him she was attracted to. "Will you take a rain check on dinner?"

Gibbs felt something cold settle in his chest at her words. Dinner? Dinner with Callen? She'd not mentioned that in her phone call yesterday when she'd spoken about going to the club with Eric.

Gibbs also couldn't help but notice that, even in a few short days, she'd developed a nickname for Callen… and he for her. There was an air of easy intimacy about them both as they talked that worried him more than he cared to admit.

Risking ratcheting up the death glare that he could feel being directed his way from Gibbs, Callen moved to hug Abby again, unable to resist wrapping his arms around her.

At least if the big guy took him apart, ER would be close by…

"I'll hold you to that, A. but in the meantime you really need to listen to the doctors."

"Oh, not you as well." Abby huffed at him. "Look, nothing the doctors have said has convinced me that I need to stay here. I'm not being irresponsible, Callen." Abby moved out of his arms and started to pace. "All I need is rest and time to get these drugs out of my system. I'm very tired and I'm not likely to get much rest here, am I? I'll sleep far better at my hotel… as dodgy as the mattress might be."

"He's right, Abbs." Gibbs joined in.

She looked from one set of vivid blue eyes to the other. "Are you sure neither of you were mother hens in a past life?" Gibbs snorted and shook his head. She was incorrigible.

Looking back at Gibbs, she continued, eyes narrowing, refusing to back down. "And this advice from the guy who won't let a bullet wound keep him in hospital. You two might as well accept that I'm discharging myself and taking a cab to the hotel if I have to. And if that argument doesn't sway you, you might like to remember that I haven't had caffeine since yesterday and I'm not going to be held responsible for the consequences if I'm forced to stay in here while I go cold turkey… and on top of all that, this hospital gown really isn't my color."

With an air of finality, Abby put her hands on her hips.

Callen suppressed a smile as Abby and Gibbs faced off. He'd bet good money on Abby being the one person who could get Gibbs to back down. It was amusing as hell to watch the hard assed agent, and the strongest man he knew, crumble under the weight of an adorable pout and a pair of green eyes.

Gibbs knew what was Abby doing. She was attempting to give the impression she was fine, a bright smile in place, acting normally… all in order to get discharged.

She was giving a performance and it would be a darn good one to anyone who didn't know her well.

Fortunately, Gibbs could see straight through it, but that didn't mean he wasn't sympathetic. It was the same strategy he used… except where she used smiles and coaxing, he used brooding silences, glares and threats to get the same result.

He raised his hands and signed, knowing she wouldn't lie to him if he did it this way.

I know what you're doing.

Abby looked startled but smiled at him as she signed back, And I know that you know.

Is it safe for you to leave hospital? Be honest.

That was the bottom line. He would take her out of there if it was okay for her to leave, but he'd fight her and make her stay if discharging her too early would in any way harm her health.

She nodded, signing I think it is. Trust me, eyes softening as she knew he was just trying to take care of her.

His signed reply warmed her heart. Always.

One of the nurses, Julie, approached and Abby greeted her with a smile. It was only the doctor's recalcitrant attitude which had annoyed her. The nurses who'd treated her had shown her nothing but kindness, and they in turn had warmed to Abby within minutes of her arriving.

"If it helps at all, Abby, the type of drugs in your system are not dissimilar to those we use in surgery." She looked over to the two men as she elaborated. "We use muscle immobilizing drugs sometimes to prevent spontaneous movements of muscles during surgery, typically for things like abdominal or thoracic surgery. The other drug he used on you is fairly similar to that used in general anesthesia, so I think you can expect the usual nausea which affects some people after they receive a dose of that."

Abby pulled a face. "Oh, yeah, I'm already getting that." Gibbs unconsciously stepped closer.

Julie continued. "The muscle paralysis drug, the one that will give you pins and needles, should wear off completely by tomorrow, so your stiffness will disappear. You might get intermittent pins and needles still over the next few days, but plenty of rest and massaging the muscles will help."

"Well, I can live with regular massage as a treatment," eyes twinkling as she smiled at the nurse, she looked up at Gibbs, who rolled his eyes at her.

"Yeah, I can imagine," Julie glanced over at the two men. "As for the nausea, just keep watching your diet for a few days and the pills will also help."

"Thanks, Julie. I'll be good, I promise." Abby surprised her with a hug.

Callen picked up the bag he'd brought in with him. "I picked up some fresh clothes from your hotel room, and there's your toothbrush in there too."

"That's great, G, just what I need." She rewarded him with a smile and a kiss on the cheek before turning to pick up a plastic bag from her bed. "In exchange, you'll need my clothes for evidence and," she glanced at Gibbs, hesitating, knowing how he was going to react before she said anything, "can you get them examined for semen."

Gibbs stepped to her side, hand reaching up to her shoulder, feeling nausea roll through him as he processed her words. "Abbs?"

Abby laid her own hand over his. "It's okay, Gibbs. I don't think I was raped," seeing him flinch. "I mean it doesn't feel as if I was raped, I'm sure I'd know... but I've no idea what he did while I was unconscious and that's… " she struggled for words, "that's freaking me out."

She swallowed and Gibbs could see the fear and dread flash across her face, knowing he was seeing a genuine reaction from her for the first time since setting foot inside the room.

Abby looked from one to the other. "I really need to know what he did, guys, if anything, and my clothes might tell us."

The fact that Callen hadn't shown any surprise told Gibbs that he suspected something already. Gibbs didn't want to confront Callen now but would get it out of him when Abby wasn't in earshot. He was holding something back… they both were. But pushing Abby now wouldn't achieve anything other than her clamming up on him.

Callen locked eyes with Abby, both remembering the sticky residue on her clothes.

He'd felt it as he held her but hadn't commented on it at the time. He knew he shouldn't be surprised that she'd been aware of it too. She was a scientist for Christ's sake, of course she'd seen it… or been able to smell it. She would have analyzed enough semen stained clothes in her career to not even need a formal analysis to tell her what the substance was.

Abby broke the tense silence. "Now scram the pair of you while I shower and get dressed." Nodding, Gibbs leaned forward and pressed his lips to her temple before leaving. Callen squeezed her hand as he passed.

She let out a sigh of relief when the two left. Keeping up the front of being okay was taking its toll, even if she knew Gibbs wasn't fooled. She just wanted to get out of here, get back to the hotel and rest.

Julie put her hand on Abby's arm, her expression concerned. "Are you okay, Abby?"

"Yeah, just tired I guess. I'll be happier when I can get out of here… no offence intended, you've been great."

"None taken. I'm not surprised you want to get out of here though. I would if I was being collected by those two."

Abby laughed, shaking her head. "It's not what you think."

"Oh, don't ruin my fantasy fodder for tonight, Abby." Julie kept her tone light, sensing Abby needed distracting and was rewarded by a laugh as she continued. "Those two are way too hot. We don't get many alpha males turning up in here… never mind two in one morning. You've cheered up all the nurses at any rate."


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After grabbing coffee from the vending machine, Gibbs and Callen had found a quiet corner to talk while they waited for Abby. Gibbs took a sip and grimaced, before throwing the cup in the nearest trash. "What's on her clothes, Callen… or do I even need to ask?"

Callen had been prepared for the question, knowing Gibbs wouldn't beat about the bush. "It looked like semen stains down the front of her clothes."

Gibbs closed his eyes, cursing under his breath as his imagination filled in the details… he thought he'd done with adding images to the memory bank of horrors today. He should have known it wasn't that easy. "Why didn't you tell me? You knew, didn't you?" he demanded.

Callen nodded, "I suspected, yeah. I noticed it when I held her... afterwards. And would it have really helped to know any earlier, Gibbs, to torture yourself?" he demanded.

"Stop trying to protect me, Callen, I need to know it all." Gibbs took in a deep breath, trying to calm down before continuing after a few moments, "Was there any earlier footage from that video feed?"

Callen shook his head, already knowing what he was thinking. "Don't know, Gibbs. When Eric found the feed and tuned in, it was already running. Eric said he'd got it rigged to record straight onto the hard drive of his PC, so there could be hours of footage, from the night before. I'll get Eric to check."

"Wanna know what that bastard did to her, Callen," rage clearly audible in Gibbs' voice.

"Me too, Gibbs. Me too. It makes me sick to my stomach to think what he might have done. He held her all night... whatever we saw in the morning may only be the half of it."

"Whatever you find, I'd like Ducky to see it… and I need to see it too." It wouldn't be easy, it would kill him to watch it but he knew he had to… he couldn't help her if he didn't know what the Phantom had done.

Callen hesitated. "Are you sure you want to put yourself through that, Gibbs?"

"There might be nothing but if there is, I need to see it… I need to see what the bastard did."

Callen was more grateful than ever that he'd killed the Phantom outright. Judging by the cold hatred in Gibbs' voice, if he'd been still alive, the Marine would have found a way to finish him… even if that meant breaking the law and ending up in Leavenworth himself.

Chapter 8 â€" Confessions

When Abby appeared from the hospital room, her hair was still damp from the shower and loose on her shoulders, her face devoid of make-up. She looked tired, circles under her eyes and her skin even paler than normal. After dropping off her discharge papers at the nurses' station, she made her way over to Gibbs and Callen, a wan smile on her face, relieved to be finally leaving.

"Good to go?" asked Gibbs, as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they moved off.

"More than ready, Gibbs. Get me out of here guys."

As they made their way out to the car, Abby felt the need to vent about the doctor who she'd done nothing but argue with since she arrived. "You know, I can't believe that doctor. She was just so totally patronizing. It took me ten minutes just to get her to tell me the name of the drug the Phantom used, like I couldn't possibly understand words of more than two syllables."

Gibbs and Callen exchanged an amused glance over her head, but she hadn't finished yet. "I eventually had to pull out my forensic scientist trump card to get her to tell me and by that time I was so pissed, I went all pompous and self righteous on her. I don't know what came over me but I ended up lecturing her about all the uses of that drug, making sure she knew that I knew more about that damn drug than she does."

"Feel better now?" Gibbs sounded amused as she huffed to a halt as they reached the car.

"Yeah, much," rewarding him with a wry smile.

Callen dumped her bag in the trunk and took out Abby's handbag. "I brought your bag. Eric found it in the parking lot at the club."

"Hey, thanks, I'm lost without this, my whole life is in here. "She paused, eyes twinkling. So wanna tell me why you didn't bring it into the hospital with you, G. Callen?"

Callen smiled. "You know damn well why, A. Scuito."

"You mean a hard ass federal agent who faces down bad guys can't carry a handbag through the corridors of a hospital?" teased Abby.

"It's not his color, Abbs." Gibbs smirked as he ushered Abby into the backseat and after a moment's hesitation, followed her into the back of the car.

She looked surprised but pleased as he settled in next to her. He reached across for her hand, lacing their fingers together before startling her as he lifted her hand and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. She looked down at their joined hands to hide her blush.

He was definitely acting very un-Gibbs-like in public but she wasn't about to complain.

"What am I? A cab driver," came the comment from the front, breaking the moment.

"Just drive, Callen." Gibbs leaned his head back against the seat.

As Callen pulled into the traffic, Gibbs' cell rang. After showing her the caller ID, Tony, he offered her the phone. "It's you they want to talk to not me."

They listened as Abby spoke to the team back in DC, greeting each of them enthusiastically, her voice animated and her face coming alive. Gibbs hid his smile. He could imagine his team's excitement at hearing Abby's voice only too clearly.

Callen watched them in the mirror, seeing how she was almost curled into Gibbs' side, leaning her head on his shoulder as she spoke to her friends. He saw Gibbs press a kiss to her hair and then lean his head briefly against the top of her head, his face looking relaxed for the first time since he arrived.

Oh yeah, this was much more than an agent's concern for his forensic scientist… even if neither of them fully realized it yet.

Callen was sure she wouldn't have agreed to go to dinner with him if she was already involved with Gibbs. He couldn't imagine Gibbs sharing her with anyone.

He knew he wouldn't.

Callen couldn't remember the last time he'd been so drawn to a woman. It was difficult to pin down exactly what it was about Abby that seemed to bring out every possessive-protective instinct he had, although he'd bet that she had that effect on most men. He'd spent the last few days torn between kissing her senseless and taking her to bed, or wrapping her up and protecting her from the world.

He could see exactly why she'd got Gibbs tied up in knots, and it seemed to be reciprocated, judging by the way her face lit up when she'd first seen Gibbs in the hospital.

He'd known Gibbs for years. He'd seen his marriage to Stephanie fail and had since learnt about his first wife and child and wanted nothing but happiness for his friend, even if it meant backing away from a woman who fascinated him.

When Abby had finished, Gibbs gestured for the phone. "McGee, tell Ducky I'll call him tomorrow." He wanted privacy and especially didn't want Abby to hear his conversation when he spoke to the ME.

The rest of the journey was silent as Abby rested her head on Gibbs' shoulder, eyes closing as she dozed. Now she no longer had to put on a performance for the medical staff, her exhaustion was beginning to make itself felt.

Callen dropped them at Abby's hotel, arranging to see them the following day at the LA office for a debriefing before they flew back to DC. Abby hugged Callen warmly again as Gibbs took their bags out from the trunk.

Callen watched them enter the hotel, a feeling of sadness washing over him. He recognized that he'd probably missed his chance with Abby… if he ever really had one.

Whether she knew it or not, he had a feeling there was an invisible tattoo etched on Abby somewhere written in Gibbs' handwriting which read mine.


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Entering her room, Abby dumped her bag on the bed and stood in the centre of the room, shoulders slumped. Gibbs followed her in, carrying their bags and the water bottles he'd picked up on the way in. If she was going to rehydrate properly, she needed to do it with something other than Caf-Pow!

She looked so forlorn and lost standing in the middle of the room that he felt an overpowering need just to hold her. Acting on instinct, Gibbs walked over and wrapped his arms around Abby. It was the first time they'd been alone and he just absorbed the feel of her in his arms, breathing in the scent of her hair.

She returned his hug, burrowing into his chest, shivering slightly and rested her head on his shoulder. Her voice sounded tired. "It feels good to be alone."

That startled him and he drew back slightly. "Do you want me to leave, Abbs?"

"Not you, you idiot." She looked up at him. "I meant it's good to be alone with you. I thought I'd never see you again."

"Me too, Abbs." He drew her back towards his chest, holding her close and brushing his lips against her temple.

She slid her arms round his waist. "I've been thinking about that a lot today, Gibbs. I've had a lot of time to think."

They stood quietly together, each taking comfort from the other. Thinking she was about to fall asleep on his shoulder again, Gibbs pulled her towards the bed and helped her out of her jacket, urging her to lie down. She grabbed the bottle of water off the nightstand and drank thirstily, looking at the clock. "It's not quite time for more nausea pills yet."

"You feeling sick then?" he asked, concerned.

Abby shook her head. "No. I was a bit earlier but it's gone off now."

"What about the pins and needles? Saw you flexing your hands in the car." Gibbs tucked her hair behind her ear.

Abby should have known that she couldn't hide anything from him. "A bit of tingling in my fingers and shoulders in the car, but that's gone off too. It sort of comes and goes and nearly always in a different spot."

"Promise you'll tell me when it does, Abbs." Gibbs sat on the bed beside her.

"Why? You gonna give me a massage?"

"Might do." He smiled down at her. "Try and get some rest now."

Abby caught his hand as he tried to move away. "Hold me, Gibbs… can you just hold me? I'm so tired."

Needing no further encouragement, he shrugged out of his coat and settled on the bed beside her, gathering her towards him. "Sleep if you want, Abbs. I'm not going anywhere."

She sighed and rested her head on his chest, feeling herself relax for the first time today. Her muscles still felt sore and stiff and if the hotel room had had a bath rather than a shower, a long hot soak would probably have helped.

Time drifted as they both enjoyed the feeling of being together again, a comfortable silence settling over them. But she couldn't seem to drift off to sleep, despite her exhaustion.

"I need to know, Gibbs."

He didn't need to ask to know exactly what she was referring to. "Yeah, I know, Abbs."

"Not knowing what that bastard did to me last night is just freaking me out. I mean I can deal… or I think I can… with the stuff he actually did while I was awake, but it's just… it's the stuff rolling around in my head that's really scaring me… almost far more than what actually happened."

"Imagination's a powerful thing, Abby." Knowing there was nothing he could do to reassure her, he knew she wouldn't thank him for empty promises. So he chose to go with something practical to give her mind something to focus on. "How long were you unconscious?"

"Well," she thought about it for a moment, "when I woke up in that chair it was some time this morning." She started tracing patterns on his chest as she pondered. "It was difficult to judge how much time passed, you know, but I think it was about a couple of hours before Sam and Callen arrived. So that's 12 hours unaccounted for since I went out to look at the hot rods last night."

"Eric should never have let you go outside alone." He couldn't hide his annoyance.

"Oh no you don't, Gibbs." She struggled upright to sit beside him on the bed, prodding his shoulder, sounding pissed. "I've already had this argument with Callen. I will not have you laying any blame on Eric. I was the one who decided to go outside. I'm a big girl, Gibbs. I sent him for more drinks while I went out to see the cars."

"Abbs…" he broke in, trying to interrupt her. This wasn't what he had in mind when he said rest.

"No, Gibbs." She was adamant. "This is not Eric's fault. That kid already feels guilty enough. Do you know he rang Callen's cell and asked to speak to me and just kept apologizing over and over? I think Callen ripped him a new one already and I won't have you doing the same."

"Regardless of whether there was any danger, what guy let's a woman go outside to a darkened parking lot?" Gibbs wouldn't be placated. "He should have gone with you."

"Oh, Gibbs." Abby took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "And how do you think I'd have reacted if Eric had insisted on going with me, huh? I'd have said, don't be silly and gone anyway."

She was right but that didn't mean he had to like it. He knew even he could have problems persuading Abby to do anything she didn't want to, so a kid like Eric would have no chance. He eventually nodded, not wanting to argue with her. "Okay, Abbs."

"If it's anyone's fault, Gibbs, it's mine." She held up a hand when he would have interrupted her. "I was the one who went outside. Hell, I didn't even realize I was at risk and yet the whole thing was a trap… a set up from beginning to end."

Oh no, she wasn't going to take this on herself.

Gibbs reached up and slid his hand round her neck, tilting her face up so she'd look him in the eye. "No, Abbs. None of this is your fault."

"But I must have missed something, I need to go back over the evidence, look at it again. There must something there I should have seen, and I should have checked out the forum users, Gibbs. He was right there all the time, right in front of me and I didn't see it." She broke off, distressed.

"Listen to me, Abbs. This isn't your fault. None of us saw it. The Phantom's the only one to blame for this, not you."

This was typical of Abby.

Not only would she not blame Eric or any of the LA team for putting her at risk, she would even try and take the blame away from the guy who'd begun this spiral, the Phantom, choosing to beat herself up over what she could have done differently.

It was a character trait they both had, and he didn't like it.

She shared his habit of brooding and going round in circles with 'what ifs'. He needed to talk to Ducky to see how best they could help her. After years in that vicious circle himself, he knew how unproductive and self destructive it was. Not sure if he'd got through to her or not, he pulled her back down and was relieved when she settled against him again. He traced gentle circles on her back trying to calm her.

"How much of the feed did you see, Gibbs?" came the quiet question a few minutes later.

He didn't need to think about it, every second was engrained on his memory but he chose not to mention the comment about the bed for the moment, which is where they'd tuned in. "From when you were talking about his first victim to… to the end."

"So you saw Callen's rescue?"

"Yeah."

She sighed. "I'm sorry you had to go through all that."

That was also typical of his Abbs. She'd been the one to go through the ordeal, yet here she was apologizing for putting her friends through hell. "Did all the team see it?"

"Yeah, and Tobias."

"Toby was there?" She sounded surprised. "Oh yeah, I forgot… you were hijacking their plane, weren't you?"

His "Borrowing" earned him an unladylike snort.

"How did you swing that?" she asked, curious what he'd done.

"Called in a favor from… Toby," amusement coloring his voice, attempting to lighten her mood any way he could think of. She swatted his arm and shifted so her head was on the pillow next to him, wanting to see his face.

"I didn't know you were on the other end of that feed, you know, Gibbs, and reading what I was signing." She brought the conversation round to what she really wanted to talk about. "I kinda hoped you were but…"

"Eric can read sign too." His mind ran through those frantic moments when they'd been trying to decipher her messages.

"Yeah, Callen told me. Though you're more familiar with my signing than he is… although I doubt my hand signals were that clear. My fingers felt stiff."

"Callen wouldn't have found you without it, Abbs," glancing over at her, remembering just how close they'd come to losing her.

"I know. I wasn't sure if anyone was watching it. I just thought that if you were or someone was… or maybe if you saw it later, you could read what I signed and it would help find me… " she hesitated before continuing, "or find my body."

He turned on his side and brushed her hair off her face, fingers trailing down her cheek. "You scared the crap out of me, Abbs. I nearly lost…" He stopped as his throat tightened, unable to continue as his emotions threatened to overwhelm him.

Her eyes widened at the look in his eyes and she reached up to his face, fingers moving along his jawline, sighing as he turned his head to place a kiss in her palm. "Can't lose you, Abbs."

"Gibbs… how much did you see?" It was time to prod the elephant in the room awake. She needed to ask Gibbs if what she saw on his face now was more than just affection for a friend.

"Saw what you signed, Abbs…. at the end."

"Oh." Not exactly her most eloquent utterance but for a moment she was unsure what to say next.

The crunch question came from Gibbs. "Did you mean it?"

"Yeah… yeah, I meant it Gibbs." She started to look down, but he put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up so she couldn't avoid his gaze. What she saw there gave her the courage to continue.

"I love you, Gibbs." There, she'd said it and felt her pulse rate pick up as she saw a slow smile start to curve his lips. "I know I tell you that all the time but I really mean it like I'm in love with you. I mean I don't know if you feel the same, so I might be making a complete fool of myself here but I just had to tell-…"

Her lips were soft. He couldn't help wishing that he'd used this method to stop her babbling long before now. He moved his lips gently over hers, kissing her softly. He kept his eyes open, not wanting to miss her expression and he saw her eyes close as he slanted his mouth over hers, extending the kiss, teasing her, absorbing her slight gasp in his mouth before drawing back.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked softly as her green eyes opened, hazy with pleasure.

Her smile was ironic. "Too scared, Gibbs. I mean I can just hear that conversation and how much that could have gone wrong. I was scared of losing our friendship."

"Don't think we could ever lose that, Abbs."

She shook her head. "I couldn't be sure. I didn't want to risk it and the more time went on, the more I convinced myself that you didn't feel the same. Besides, I'm not your type Gibbs. I'm not a sophisticated, mature redhead in case you hadn't noticed."

He smiled at her. Did she really not know how beautiful she was? Before he could tell her so, she went on. "I mean I know we've flirted and danced around each other for years, but I didn't know if you felt anything beyond friendship for me. I didn't know if you wanted me."

"Oh, I want you." He slid a hand out to cup her neck. He leaned forward again and pressed his lips against hers, unable to resist deepening the kiss, feeling her respond eagerly.

As they broke for air, he nuzzled his way across her cheek. "Didn't know you wanted me."

She murmured, "I'm all yours, Gibbs, always have been," as she felt him nibble her earlobe before moving his lips to her neck.

She felt him smile against her skin at her words before a possessive growl of "Mine" into her neck made her shiver. Trying to rein himself in, he kissed his way gently back along her jawline before pulling back to look at her dazed expression.

Senses spinning, she frantically tried to get a coherent sentence out. "Why… why didn't you make a move, Gibbs?"

"Too scared. Didn't think you'd want an old Marine."

She reached out to run her fingers through his hair, indulging herself in something she'd always wanted to do. "Well, I do… very much. I'm tired of pretending, Gibbs… tired of holding back."

"Then don't." Drawn to her mouth again, he leaned in to kiss her, hands cupping her face to hold her in place as he suckled on her lower lip, tugging gently, hearing her moan softly as she leaned into his touch. "Don't want to hold back either."

Keeping the kiss slow and tender till it came to a gentle end, he pulled her back into his arms and she snuggled in close, her hand resting on his chest, feeling his steady heartbeat.

Neither found the need for words, happy to lie there quietly together.

Content as he was to lie there all evening, he was conscious that she needed to eat and, more importantly, drink, and the sooner the better so she could rest and get some proper sleep, not something that was drug induced.

"You hungry, Abbs?" He asked after a few minutes.

She raised her head and sent a mischievous smile in his direction, quirking an eyebrow. "I meant food," he shot back, flicking the end of her nose.

She grinned at him, unrepentant. "Not very but I feel a bit empty I guess."

"Any nausea?"

"No, not yet, nothing since earlier. I just feel… tired."

"I know." He could see the strain on her face, her eyes shadowed and lines more visible than normal. "Have you eaten anything today?"

"I had a sandwich at the hospital when they gave me the last dose of nausea pills, so I guess I'd better have something with the next dose."

"Soup then.. and crackers?" he suggested. "And then sleep."

She pulled a face at the unappetizing suggestion but nodded, more to appease him than because she really wanted to eat.

"I'll order something for both of us and then I'll take a shower." Giving her a quick kiss, Gibbs left the bed and she lay there, content to watch him as he moved around the room, unable to believe that a day that had started so horribly was ending so wonderfully.

Chapter 9 â€" First night

The food arrived while Gibbs was in the shower and Abby took the opportunity to change into her pyjamas, pulling a sweatshirt over the top, still felt slightly chilled. Her pins and needles were back, her nerves 'firing' off intermittently, and she figured keeping warm might help.

Abby sat cross-legged on the bed, the tray in front of her as she halfheartedly started on the crackers and soup, trying not to think of one of her chief fantasies, Gibbs in the shower, taking place next door. She was also feeling a kind of nervous anticipation at the thought of them spending the night in the same hotel room for the first time.

Once she'd started, Abby found she was hungrier than she thought and had managed to finish most of her soup and drink another bottle of water by the time Gibbs emerged from the bathroom.

She stilled as he came back into the room, cracker paused in mid air at the sight in front of her.

No shirt… was all her mind could come up with at first.

Sporting sweatpants, Gibbs just had a towel slung round his neck, hair still wet from the shower. Her hands itched to run her fingers through it… her mind still trying to process the living breathing fantasy striding into the room.

As terrifying as it was being shot at by Ari all those years ago, with the grief of Kate's loss still raw, her most abiding memory of that evening was being cuddled by a soaking wet Gibbs, water running down his face, hair sodden. As he'd pulled her close that night, she'd buried her nose in his neck. He'd smelled of an intoxicating mixture of rain, sawdust and coffee.

Abby shook herself out of the memory, distracted by her first sight of his bare chest. She couldn't help her eyes wandering over his skin. He wasn't overly muscular but nicely toned, with broad shoulders and strong arms and sparse chest hair… grayish-silver too… oh my.

Conscious that he'd stopped in front of her, she raked her eyes slowly up above chest level to meet an amused blue gaze.

"What? I have license to look now, don't I?" Abby protested, her voice betraying her in its huskiness.

He shrugged, toweling his hair vigorously. "Help yourself."

Did he really just tell her to help herself?

Oh right, he meant looking… didn't he?

"Oh good, coz I gotta tell you the view is pretty impressive from here."

He leaned down and her heart rate reacted predictably to his warm close presence… oh god, he smelled so good.

He grabbed the cracker out of her hand and pressed a quick kiss to her nose. "Eat your crackers, Abbs."

She mock glowered at him as he retreated. "Hey, I can multi-task. I can munch a cracker, ogle you and eat my soup all at the same time."

"Thought you were tired." He snorted and grabbed his own plate, settling himself on the side of the bed and tucking in… to something more substantial than soup, she noticed.

She was rewarded by a side view this time and let her eyes run over his strong back, wondering what the muscles would feel like under her hands… her mouth… her skin. Her sensible head knew she was too exhausted and under too much strain to do anything about it, and she should really just curl up and go to sleep, but her inner slut was uncurling and virtually purring at the sight in front of her.

Abby also recognized this emotional reaction common to a lot of survivors of trauma… the need to reaffirm that they were still alive, which usually manifested itself as an urge for sex. That, coupled with the fact that she'd wanted him for years and that he could make her toes curl in a heartbeat, it was hardly surprising her mind was heading straight for the gutter.

The playful look Gibbs threw over his shoulder as he sat down told her he knew exactly what she was doing and where her eyes were wandering. She knew he was supremely confident in his own skin, but Abby was unused to this almost seductive playfulness from him and found she loved this side of him. No wonder women kept marrying this guy.

It wasn't long before she'd finished the rest of her food and stretched out on the bed, trying to ease some of the kinks out of her muscles. As he finished his own meal, Gibbs noticed that Abby was rolling her shoulders and shifting her legs restlessly.

"Muscles stiff?" he asked, quietly concerned that she was holding back on how bad she was feeling.

"Yeah, a little. A few pins and needles in my hands, and some cramping in my legs and shoulders but nothing too bad."

"How bad?" he persisted.

"A lot easier than earlier, Gibbs, honestly."

Gibbs turned to place a hand on her leg, "Tell me where."

Swallowing hard at the thought she was about to get a massage from a half naked Gibbs, Abby gestured to her calf muscles.

He pushed up the silk of her PJ pants covering her lower legs, enjoying the feel of her soft skin against his fingers, feeling a shiver run through her. His strong hands circled her lower leg, fingers beginning a gentle massage. Gibbs watched her face, unsure how much pressure he could exert on her muscles. It wasn't like an ordinary sports massage and he didn't want to exacerbate the pins and needles.

"Tell me if it hurts, Abbs. Don't want to make it worse."

Gibbs watched her eyes close and head fall back against the pillow as she relaxed into his touch. Her soft moan went straight to his groin and he shifted his hands to her other leg, repeating the gentle pressure, trying to control his reactions.

He'd decided in the shower that tonight would not end in sex. She'd been hurt, terrified, drugged and was beyond exhausted. What she needed was food, water, rest, sleep. She needed caring, tenderness, kindness, warmth, gentleness... love.

She didn't need him acting like a horny teenager.

He'd wanted her for years. It wouldn't hurt him to wait a bit longer. What he did want was to cradle her to sleep, to hold her and take care of her tonight… the first of many nights he hoped.

That was the plan he'd come up with in the shower anyway.

Good plan, Gunny. Pity the execution might be more difficult than you thought.

Running his eyes up the lines of her body as she stretched out on the bed in front of him, he swallowed hard, a jolt of need going through him… there was a fantasy in every curve.

Keeping his eyes on the few inches of skin at a time that he was massaging and not letting his eyes or hands… or thoughts wander … that was the way to handle this. Man up, Marine.

When he could feel her calf muscles loosen under his hands, Gibbs eased her pant legs down again and pulled her into a sitting position. He clasped Abby's hands, looking at her questioningly.

"Oddly enough, the base of my thumbs are tingling but I can probably do those myself." Not really wanting to as she was enjoying being the focus of his attention too much.

"Let me." His thumb pressed into the muscles, gently pushing in small circles. She dropped her head forward into his shoulder, eyes closing and murmured, "That is just heaven, Gibbs."

"Sure is." She laughed softly as she heard his muttered comment. She opened her eyes, taking advantage of her angle to peek down, seeing evidence of the effect she was having on him in an impressive bulge at the front of his sweatpants.

He drew in an unsteady breath. "Turn round, Abbs."

Climbing onto the bed, Gibbs settled behind Abby. He swept her hair to one side and debated whether to ask her to remove the sweatshirt, but he was finding the massage arousing enough without increasing the amount of bare skin within reach.

Figuring he'd be able to at least unknot some of the muscles even through her top, Gibbs brushed his hands over her shoulders. He felt more confident now at how much pressure he could exert and worked his way across both her shoulders, trying to find where the muscles were knotted.

Almost purring under his ministrations, she felt her muscles loosen and the worst of the pins and needles subside. He was so tender and caring and she felt herself rapidly turning to mush.

His hands felt incredible, strong and sure and her body was getting impossibly turned on by his touch. She knew she was really too exhausted and sex should be the last thing on her mind, but couldn't help shifting restlessly as she felt a pulse start to beat insistently between her thighs.

Slowing his massage to become just gentle strokes across her shoulders, Gibbs leaned forward to rest his chin on her shoulder.

"Feel better?"

"Mmmm."

"Had enough food?"

"Mmmm."

"Sleep?"

"Mmmm."

He chuckled at her barely audible responses and pulled her back, settling her against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her as she leaned her head back against his shoulder, both of them reluctant to move and disturb the peace of the moment.

Abby eventually managed to tear herself away from the warm shelter of his arms before she fell asleep. She kissed him softly in thanks and headed for the bathroom to clean her teeth. When she returned, he was under the covers, lying on his side, head propped on one hand, watching her as she pulled off her sweatshirt.

"Nice PJs, Abbs," he smirked as she climbed into bed beside him, running his eyes over the skull and crossbones pattern decorating her camisole top.

She rolled her eyes at him. "Well, I didn't know I was going to have company, did I?"

"Not even Callen, your hero of the hour."

He could have bitten his lip the minute that remark slipped out. She didn't need to deal with his possessive jealousy right now. But instead of ignoring his sarcastic comment, she sat up, pulling her knees up to her chin and looking at him over her crossed arms, choosing to address it head on.

"You're not jealous, surely?" She read his face, slightly surprised that he could feel threatened. "You are, aren't you?"

"Damn right I am." He couldn't help but be honest with her.

"Wow, so that's what your jealous face looks like. Not seen it before."

Abby reached out and brushed her fingers down his cheek. "I'm not going to lie to you, Gibbs. I was… I am attracted to Callen. He reminds me of you. He's attracted to me too… I think."

"Oh yeah, he is." Gibbs remembered the look on his friend's face. "You were gonna go out with him last night."

"Yeah, he asked me to dinner and I wanted to go out with him." She sighed, remembering the look on Callen's face as they left him at the hotel entrance. "He's a great guy, and I'd given up hope of you and me ever being more than friends."

"It's not his fault we… I held off for too long." He knew he'd regret that for a long time.

"We're both at fault, Gibbs. I hesitated as much as you did." She was trying to absolve him but he knew it was mostly his cowardice that had stopped him.

"Never did have very good timing, Abbs."

She was honest enough to tell him. "If it had been another time and another place… I'd have been tempted to become involved with Callen."

"Then it looks like I nearly lost you twice." Once to Callen and then permanently to the Phantom.

"I've wanted you for years, Gibbs, and been in love with you for almost as long," she admitted softly. "And now I feel guilty for leading Callen on… when it's you I really want. None of this is fair on him."

"He's my friend too, Abbs. Don't want to hurt him either." It was the last thing Gibbs wanted.

She turned to face him, sitting cross legged beside him. "I really need to talk to him. At the very least I owe him an explanation."

He hesitated but he had to ask. "Are you sure about us, Abbs?" He didn't want her to regret anything and needed to be sure that she wasn't merely reacting to the danger she'd been in, reaching out to the first person who showed her comfort.

If he hadn't come to LA, would she now be in this room about to sleep with Callen?

She reached for his hand, smiling softly at him. "Yeah, I'm sure."

"Coz I'll back off if you want me to." She'd never know what it cost him to say it.

"You would do that?" She sounded incredulous, gripping his hand tightly, suddenly afraid that he was now regretting it.

"Would hate it but… this is about what you want. Want you to be sure this is what you want… that I'm what you want."

She leaned forward, brushing her lips lightly across his in reassurance, moved that he would be so selfless. "I am sure."

Relief washed over him and he returned her kiss, smiling at her when he drew back. She raised his hand, pressing a kiss into the palm. "I'll talk to Callen tomorrow."

Gibbs nodded, unable to stop a sense of possessive satisfaction running through him. "Good, coz I don't share."

She huffed a laugh, knowing he was more than half serious even if his tone was light. "Me neither, Gibbs." Two could play at that game. "You need to promise me that there'll be no more," she paused for the right phrase, "random redheads."

That earned her a laugh. "Promise, Abbs. No more redheads…. random or otherwise. No more anyone… only want you." He reached up to pull her head down to kiss her again.

She sighed when he eventually broke the kiss. "Don't pinch me, Gibbs, I keep thinking I'm dreaming." She opened her eyes to see the lop-sided smile she loved so much. "You gotta remember that until about two hours ago, I didn't even know how you felt about me."

Cupping her cheek, he couldn't resist kissing her again, nibbling her lower lip and teasing her with his tongue, slowly exploring her mouth before drawing back to meet her eyes. "Do you know now?"

She smirked. "I'm starting to get some idea but I perhaps need a more thorough explanation."

She couldn't resist leaning forward this time, rapidly becoming addicted to the way he tasted. Abby pressed him back against the bed, hands roaming across his chest for the first time, a shudder going through her at the feel of his skin and hard body underneath her.

Her need intensified and she deepened the kiss, moaning into his mouth, unable to prevent a tide of yearning washing over her.

She felt him moan into her mouth as his hands roamed over her back pulling her closer, and that only served to elevate her desire further. He suddenly rolled them over, pinning her down so she could feel all of him pressed against her, their kisses turning desperate and hungry, Gibbs taking control of the kiss and dominating her mouth.

Somehow… in the middle of a haze of desire so intense he could barely concentrate, his conscience started tapping him on the shoulder. Gunny…

Aw, hell.

Heart pounding, he gathered the last shreds of his willpower and drew back slightly, slowing the pace and intensity of his kisses until they were slow and soft. Not that it was helped by the mewing sounds she was making in the back of her throat, her nails scratching through the short hair on his neck, and the feel of her breasts pressed against his chest through the thin silk of her top, or the way she arched against his hardness, her body soft and pliant against his.

As much as he wanted to continue, he knew it wasn't the right time. Abby was frightened and needy, desperately wanting comfort and reassurance. It wasn't how he wanted either of them to remember their first time.

This wasn't about him claiming her as his own, even though he was confident enough in his own abilities in bed to be sure he could banish all thoughts of G. Callen from her mind. But this wasn't about him. If they made love now, it would be more about what he wanted than what was good for Abby.

She made a whimper of protest when he broke the kiss, shifting back slightly to put distance between them, his body aching in protest.

He rested his forehead against hers, breathing heavily. "Don't want to do this here, Abbs. You're exhausted, you need sleep." He kissed her softly, trying not to make it sound like a rejection.

She breathed out his name on a shaky breath, eyes still clouded, hands clenching on his shoulders.

Trying to calm his body, he shifted so he was lying on his side, stroking her cheek gently. "You're vulnerable, Abbs. I'd just be taking advantage of you."

All Abby could feel was intense longing for the man beside her. "What if I want you to take advantage?" She wanted to crawl into his arms and forget what had happened, take whatever comfort she could from his body.

Gibbs shook his head, pulled her into his arms, hand stroking her hair. "When we do this, I want to take my time. Want you in my bed."

Deep down, she knew he was right but it didn't stop her body screaming out in frustration. She snuggled close, resting her head on his shoulder, determined to maintain some contact with him. "Have I ever told you how irritating you are when you're always right, Gibbs?"

He snorted. "Frequently," relieved he hadn't upset her too much by pulling back. He could head slap himself for letting the situation get so quickly out of control, but she was just intoxicating and all he'd wanted was a little taste… he had a feeling that 'just' a taste wasn't ever going to be enough with Abby.

Lying quietly together, letting their heartbeats settle, they both felt tiredness creeping over them as the strains of the day caught up with them. "You're not going to go all noble on me are you, Gibbs, and sleep on the floor?"

He tightened his arms around her. "Not unless you want our first call in the morning to be to a chiropractor," causing her to giggle in response. "Not going anywhere, Abbs."

Chapter 10 â€" Interrupted sleep

"No… no, don't… no, please."

The frantic cries at an ever increasing volume would have been enough to penetrate Gibbs' sleep, even if he hadn't been aware of Abby shifting restlessly in bed, thrashing around, her voice growing more distressed with every word.

They'd shifted positions in the night and when he jerked awake, he became aware that he was lying behind her, arm wrapped around her waist, chest pressed against her back. He moved back slightly before he could get caught by a flailing arm, hesitating over the best way to interrupt her nightmare without startling her further.

Before he could make up his mind how best to get through her panic, a hoarse cry of "NO!" erupted from her lips and Abby surged bolt upright in bed.

As she came to, she clutched the sheets to her chest, her shoulders hunching over as if to protect herself. The sound of her labored breathing was harsh in the darkened room as Gibbs sat up, moving closer.

There was enough light seeping in from the hallway of the hotel, plus the streetlights outside for him to dimly see her panicked face, eyes darting around the room, her chest heaving as she fought for breath.

Gibbs had seen enough panic attacks in his time to recognize the symptoms of one fast approaching.

Abby almost screamed when she felt a hand on her arm, only relaxing when she heard a familiar voice calling her name.

She tried desperately to focus her mind on that well loved voice, but found that she could hardly breathe, and the more she tried to gulp in air, the less she was able to pull in. Gibbs heard her gasping, sensing her panic rising as she fought for breath but only managing shallow breaths.

He could feel the anguish and despair rolling off her in waves. He needed to get her breathing normally before she hyperventilated.

Gibbs shuffled round on the bed until he was facing her, hating the fear and anxiety he could see on her face… or rather loathing the maniac who had put it there. He felt dread clutch at him as he wondered what she was dreaming about that had triggered such a reaction.

He placed his hands over hers where they clutched at the sheets, raising his voice to get through her dazed state. "Abbs, listen to me."

She didn't pull away from him but he could tell that she wasn't quite with him yet. She simply couldn't seem to get enough air into her lungs, her desperate eyes darting everywhere but his face.

Gibbs pulled her hands to his chest, holding them there with one hand while his other hand wrapped round the side of her neck, trying to ground her with his touch and his voice.

"Abbs, breathe with me."

He breathed in deeply, holding her hands to his chest so she could feel his chest expand. "Come on, Abbs, feel me breathing. You can do it."

Whether it was his voice or his touch or the feel of his skin under her hands, but Abby slowly began to breathe in tandem with him. As he felt her start to take slightly deeper breaths, he cupped her cheek and leant his forehead against hers, whispering gently to her, trying to make her concentrate on his voice.

Gibbs gradually took increasingly deep breaths, hearing and feeling Abby slowly begin to match his breathing. He could feel her keep pace with him, inhaling and exhaling slowly… deeply… in…. out… until he saw her panic begin to subside.

As her eyes began to focus more on his face, Gibbs released her hands to cup her face with both his hands, feeling his own fear subside.

She was coming back to him.

Her palms kept pressed against his chest as he felt her relax.

Eventually, Gibbs heard her gasp his name and felt her shudder, her body starting to shake with reaction. He shuffled closer and wrapped his arms around her gently, not wanting to frighten her but needing the contact as much to reassure himself.

His own self control wasn't proof against a frightened, hurt, vulnerable Abby.

He felt her arms come round him, gripping him hard, burying her head in his neck and his arms tightened, rocking them gently. One of his hands came up to softly stroke her hair, soothing them both by the tender action, brushing his lips over her hair and nuzzling her temple.

Sensing her calming down but worried at how cold she felt in his arms, he gradually moved them so they were lying down. He continued to cradle her and she pressed even closer as he pulled the covers up around them both, forming a cocoon. Gibbs felt her body shaking and trembling and wrapped his arms more firmly around her, trying to instill some of his warmth into her chilled skin.

They lay quietly for a while, until her shaking subsided.

She moved her arms to grip him more tightly, trying to burrow as close as she could, taking comfort from his closeness and his warmth. He ran his hand up and down her spine, turning towards her slightly so he could wind both arms around her, entangling his legs round hers, seeking to get as much bodily contact as possible.

Gibbs felt the hitch in her breathing as she clutched at him, trembling on the verge of tears. Eventually, he could feel moisture on his neck and felt her finally start to cry.

Abby didn't cry very often.

Although she was a very emotional person, it took a lot to actually make her cry. She was too stubborn and he'd seen her battle back tears on more occasions than he cared to remember.

This time he was glad that she'd finally let go.

He'd been expecting this since he was reunited with her yesterday, but had seen her hold herself in, putting on a performance for the hospital staff, and for Callen. Then the evening had turned in a direction which he'd hoped for but couldn't have expected and they'd both been distracted by the emotional consequences of revealing their feelings.

Now in the quiet darkness of the night, her subconscious had taken over and reminded her body and mind of what she'd endured.

Until he spoke to Ducky, he felt out of his depth at how best to help her, but he knew without prompting that keeping everything bottled up was the worst thing she could do. It may be what he did… how he coped with grief and hurt by burying it, but it didn't make it the right way.

Abby needed to get her pain and anger out.

All he could do was be there to hold her when she did. Even when she cried, she didn't let go completely and it wasn't long before her quiet sobbing subsided, her breathing feeling shaky against his neck as she recovered.

Gibbs brought up his hand to cup the back of her neck, resting his hand on her hair and felt her nuzzle his neck, finally relaxing against him. Pressing gentle kisses over her forehead and across her face, he murmured her name and brushed his lips over her mouth before gently stroking her hair back from her face.

She settled against his firm chest, her heartbeat returning to normal, Gibbs' familiar scent enveloping her. He felt so warm and she wanted nothing more than to burrow into that warmth and shut out the rest of the world.

"I'm so glad you're here, Gibbs," her voice still sounded shaky even to her own ears.

"Me too, Abbs," came the soft reply.

"I'm not sure I could have coped without you." She hadn't wanted to be alone tonight.

"You don't have to." He let the silence drift for a while before asking, "how bad?" Neither needing to clarify that he was referring to her nightmare.

"Bad." She took a deep breath, needing to get it out. "I couldn't move, Gibbs. I woke up and I was in that chair again and as well as not being able to move, I couldn't breathe either. I tried and I tried but I couldn't get my breath."

She drew in an unsteady breath as his hands traced patterns on her back, telling herself over and over that she was here, with him. That she wasn't in that room any more… in that chair.

"I've got you, Abbs. He can't hurt you any more." Warm arms enfolded her.

Gibbs was here… she was safe.

Abby vividly remembered coming to yesterday morning, panicked for a moment when she couldn't focus. Her vision slowly cleared but as she realized she couldn't move, her body's defenses kicked in.

Her logical mind immediately made the leap between not moving to maybe not being able to breathe either and for a few terrifying seconds, she'd struggled for breath. It was several panic stricken moments before she realized that she could in fact breathe, it was just her chest muscles which were sluggish.

She'd found the Phantom's disembodied voice chilling. She'd tried to move her head, trying to strain her eyes towards the sound but had initially not been able to turn her neck. There was so much whirling around in her mind… every memory of everything that had happened in the last 24 hours. She didn't want to think about it but couldn't stop the images flashing across her mind.

She didn't want to stay awake and think about it, but she didn't want to sleep either.

Gibbs glanced at the clock… a little after 3am which meant they'd had a little over 5 hours sleep, which was often more than either of them could manage when they were on a tough case. But she needed more than that if she could manage it… much more.

"Try and sleep, Abbs." He was softly insistent.

"Not sure I want to go back to sleep, Gibbs." Her voice sounded small and uncertain.

"You need rest." Tomorrow would be another long day. After the debrief at the office, they still had a flight before he could get her home, back in familiar surroundings.

"Don't want to have a nightmare again." His felt his throat tighten at the fear in her voice.

She wouldn't thank him for meaningless reassurances. The only thing he could do was promise he'd be there to share whatever was coming. "I know. I'll be here if you do. I'll always be here."

Chapter 11 â€" Regrets

Together…

That was the word Callen thought best described Gibbs and Abby as they arrived at the LA office the next morning. There was a subtle shift in their body language as they walked in which was… intriguing.

He'd noticed yesterday how physically aware they were of each other, but that seemed to be even more marked today; their hands almost brushing as they strode in, walking close together, each fully into the other's personal space with no discomfort at all.

They presumably hadn't needed that extra hotel room after all.

Callen moved forward to greet them and was rewarded with a gentle smile from Abby as he kissed her cheek and a nod and handshake from Gibbs.

Abby looked less exhausted than yesterday and while her skin always seemed to be pale, she didn't look as ashen as she had at the hospital. Callen could still see the dark circles under her eyes but figured that was to be expected. It would take more than a few days before she was physically over the effects of her ordeal, never mind the mental ramifications.

"Morning, A. Scuito. How do you feel?"

"Okay. Tired but better than yesterday, G. Callen. I don't feel quite so nauseous anyway."

Abby had eventually drifted off to sleep again wrapped in Gibbs' arms, feeling warm and safe. No more nightmares plagued her for the remainder of the night and she woke for the first time in a bed next to Gibbs, something she could easily get used to.

A hot shower had banished stiff muscles and seemed to ease the lingering pins and needles. She'd risked eating a modest breakfast, conscious that she'd existed on only minimal food for more than 24 hours, although her first coffee for two days didn't sit too well on a recovering system. Chucking back the next dose of nausea pills she hoped would ward off the worst effects of feeling sick, at least to get home.

Abby turned to Gibbs as he clasped her hand briefly and gestured with his head upstairs. Abby nodded and smiled, watching him as he moved away upstairs.

There was a subtle intimacy about this non-verbal communication that reminded Callen of their signing yesterday, when they'd so effortlessly shut out everyone else and seemed to be in a world of their own.

He'd known it yesterday when he'd dropped them off at the hotel that he really stood no chance with Abby, and seeing the look on her face now as her eyes lingered on Gibbs only confirmed it. It wasn't a surprise but it still left him feeling wistful for a missed chance.

"He's off on a coffee run I expect and he wants to see Hetty before we leave," Abby offered by way of explanation as she turned back to him. "It's good to see you again, G."

"When's your flight?" he asked.

"We're booked on the lunchtime plane." She knew Gibbs was as eager as she was to get home, pick up their lives and explore this new found relationship.

Callen drew her further into the office. "You've solved 15 murders, Abby. How's that feel?" He hoped she could remember her professional achievement after all she'd suffered.

"Almost as good as being alive," she replied, a comment which earned her the smile which had first made her stomach flip when she'd been introduced to Callen a scant few days ago. He had the same blue eyes as Gibbs, a grin that could charm anyone and a stocky, strong body.

It may have been good for her ego to have two gorgeous men attracted to her but it played havoc with her conscience.

A deep voice sounded behind her before she could say anything else. "Hey, I lowered him down." Abby turned to see Sam fast approaching.

Glad her other hero was also here, Abby flung her arms around the big guy to give him a brief but bone crushing hug, "And you did it perfectly."

She'd never be able to adequately express her thanks to either Sam or Callen for giving her back her life, and for giving her this chance at happiness with Gibbs, even if that was tinged with a certain amount of melancholy when she looked at Callen… a sense of what might have been. Her timing sucked, as always.

Sam hugged her back and extracted a promise to come say goodbye later before she left. He kissed her cheek and moved away, sensing she and Callen needed privacy. He'd sensed how much the forensic scientist had affected his friend in such a short time and regretted that things hadn't worked out for him.

Abby waited until Sam was out of earshot and drew Callen aside, keeping hold of his hand as she smiled at him, "Thank you G. Callen for saving me."

He looked down at their joined hands. "I'd never have forgiven myself if you were hurt, A. Scuito."

Abby sighed. "It wasn't your fault. I wish everyone would stop blaming themselves."

"I'm just glad you're safe." Callen paused, all too aware he had very little time to say what he wanted and not really sure where to start. "I hope Gibbs is going to look after you."

"I have a feeling I'm going to be spoiled and coddled for days to come."

"Can't help wishing I were in his shoes. " His honesty was touching and made her feel even more guilty. If she could change one single thing about the last few days, other than being kidnapped by a serial killer of course, it would be that she hadn't hurt this good, charming man. He didn't deserve it.

"Oh, G, I'm no sorry." She reached up to stroke her fingers over his cheek.

He shook his head. "Don't be. You're a fascinating, beautiful woman, A, and I'm glad to know you."

"I didn't mean to lead you on, G, you must believe that." She moved closer to loop her arm through his, not sure quite what to say but felt Callen deserved an explanation. "We've been friends for years but up till yesterday, I had no idea Gibbs felt anything more for me than that. I would not have agreed to dinner and possibly more with you if I'd already been involved with Gibbs. I wouldn't do that to either you or him."

Typically Callen was reassuring. "I know, A. I'm glad Gibbs finally came to his senses and realized what's right in front of him. I'm just sorry it took you being in danger to do it."

"We're both at fault for hesitating too long. It's…" Abby paused, "complicated."

He looked into her green eyes, feeling the same punch to the gut as when he'd first seen her. "He's been my friend for a long time and he deserves happiness after all he's been through. So I can't be sorry at the outcome, even if it means I don't have a chance. I'm glad you two are together. He's a lucky man."

"I've already told Gibbs that if it had been another time, another place, I'd have acted on this… " she gestured between them, "whatever it is I can feel between us."

"I know. I feel the same." He couldn't help a wry smile. "Guess I was too late."

"I'm sorry Callen." She moved to face him, putting her hand on his chest, letting him see the regret on her face.

"Don't be. Gibbs is a lucky bastard." Abby was touched beyond words at Callen's generosity and flung her arms around him, burying her head in his neck as he continued. "But if he hurts you, I'll kick his ass."

"I'll look after him, G." She knew how much he cared for Gibbs.

"I know." She felt his arms fold around her, returning her hug. "Am I getting the death glare?" he asked after a moment.

She giggled and looked up to where Gibbs had emerged from Hetty's office and was standing on the balcony above them. She couldn't see his expression that clearly from here but could guess at it. "A little bit."

"I thought so. I could feel the laser burns on the back of my neck." He pulled back to grin at her, arms still looped around her waist. "At least he can't reach me with a head slap from over there," which earned him another throaty, sexy chuckle.

He reached up to brush his fingers across her cheek. "Are you gonna be okay, A? I don't mean with Gibbs coz I know he'll look after you. I mean after…" he trailed off.

She sobered but a determined look came over her face. "I think so, G. I had a nightmare last night," he tightened his arms again at her words, "and I'm sure it's going to be the first of many. But I've got Gibbs now and my friends will look after me. I know NCIS will have all the mandatory psych evals but I'm gonna need Ducky and the team more than some… nameless shrink. There is one thing though…"

Abby hesitated but Callen finished her thought. "You need to know what he did."

They'd only known one another a few days and yet he seemed to be able to read her mind; they were eerily in tune. It reminded her of the first few months of knowing Gibbs as their friendship developed and how they'd soon ended up finishing each other's thoughts. "Yeah, I do. You and I can both guess what happened though I think."

"Yeah, I think I can." He felt his anger rising again at the thought of what the Phantom might have done to her. "I don't know what made me think you hadn't spotted the stains on your shirt… why I thought I could ignore it and you wouldn't notice."

"Oh, G, I've spent half my professional life examining semen stains. I knew what it was as soon as I saw it."

What was it about the men in her life that they felt the need to protect her from everything? It was a very touching… and very frustrating trait.

Callen was rueful. "I know. Your clothes are in forensics now and we should have the results soon, but I guess you don't need the results to tell you, do you?" He was reluctant to remove his arms from around her, wanting to prolong their contact for the short time she was there… despite the fact that a certain silver-haired Marine probably wasn't enjoying the view much at the moment.

"No, I just need to know how they got there… I mean I know how they got there. What I mean is…" she gestured helplessly, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders.

"I know what you mean, A." His mind had already supplied the images.

"I guess what I'm asking is I need to know what he did to me before that semen got there?" She felt his arms tighten on her waist again as she couldn't help the strain showing in her voice.

"I've asked Eric to analyze the video feed from before the time when we tuned in. That should tell us. Although I'm not sure if I really want to see what he did," he admitted.

"I need to know, G." Abby was adamant. "However difficult and horrible it is, I need to know. It's freaking me out not knowing… even if my imagination is already filling in the gaps."

"Okay." Callen nodded. "Gibbs asked the same thing."

"Did he?" Abby glanced up at Gibbs where he was leaning on the railing. "Yeah, of course he did. I want… no, I need to see it too." She sensed Callen's hesitation. "I need to, G."

"Gibbs wants me to send the footage to Ducky if there is any." It was obvious Gibbs hadn't told her this, nor did he know if they'd even discussed the possible footage and there was no way he was getting in the middle of that argument. "I guess he wants to see it too."

"I need to see it. Send me a copy." He recognized a stubborn set to her jaw when he saw it.

"A, I… do you think that's a good idea?" He understood why Gibbs wanted to protect her. She seemed to bring out a ridiculous sense of protectiveness in every male. "I know what you're gonna say but don't you think you ought to speak to Ducky first?"

"Ducky will only want to protect me, and you know Gibbs will too."

"Yeah, I know and I agree with them." He went on before she could argue. "Look, I'll let you know when I've sent the footage to Ducky, the rest is up to him and you."

Sensing that was the only concession she'd get, she nodded, "Okay, that's fair enough," before moving in for another hug, determined that she wasn't going to argue with him any more.

"You buckle that railing, Gibbs, you pay for it," came Hetty's wry voice as she moved past him to go down to Abby and Callen on the lower level. She threw an amused glance at Gibbs as he straightened, giving Hetty a rueful half smile as he released his hand from the railing where he'd unconsciously got it in a death grip.

In the privacy of Hetty's office, he'd taken the opportunity to update Ducky on Abby's condition, relating how she'd put on a performance for the medical staff in order to get discharged.

That earned him a rueful laugh from Ducky, 'That's no surprise, Jethro. She acts just like you do in hospital, except she's more polite and charming about it." Gibbs remembered her feisty confrontation with the doctor with a smile, but decided that was a story that could wait till he saw Ducky in person.

Gibbs had described Abby's nightmare and was grateful the doctor didn't question how he happened to be there to witness this in the middle of the night, although he doubted the implications would have been lost on his friend.

He ended with telling him about the semen stains on Abby's clothes, hearing Ducky's indrawn breath as he absorbed the inference of how they'd got there. He repeated what Abby had said about not feeling that she'd been raped and told him how the footage from the video feed might help resolve what had happened, however painful it might be for all of them to find out.

Abby released her hold on Callen as Hetty approached, with a fond smile on her face, "The post-incident medical evaluation is not optional, Abby. They're waiting for you. Go, go."

Abby sighed, this was the bit she was dreading. She looked up to Gibbs, signing where she was going and he hid his answering grin as he sipped his coffee. Knowing full well what he was thinking, Abby glowered at him and then took off up the stairs.

At the top, she bumped into Eric and came to a halt. He looked sheepish and guilty and she wondered just how hard Callen had been on him.

She raised her hands and signed So, you know sign language?

Eric gave her a shy smile. I better, friend grew up deaf, knew it since I was 7.

He looked so forlorn that she couldn't resist reaching over to give him a hug, Lucky for us.

Eric knew she was just being kind… Gibbs had translated her signing more easily than he had. All he'd done was put her in harm's way. He switched to speech, not sure how to say how sorry he was. "Abby…"

"It's okay, Eric. It wasn't your fault and I'm sorry if Callen gave you a hard time. I was the one who decided to go outside and I wouldn't have listened to you even if you'd tried to come with me. The Phantom would have taken me… whatever we'd done."

He wouldn't be placated. "I'm still sorry you were hurt, Abby. If I could have spared you that…"

"I know, Eric. But it's over now and I shan't forget what you did." She pecked him quickly on the cheek and continued upstairs, conscious of his wistful gaze on her as she moved away.

As Eric drew his eyes away from Abby's swaying hips, his skin prickled as he felt other eyes on him. Swallowing hard as he met the unwavering stare of Special Agent Gibbs, he decided he'd better get this over with… and only hoped that the Marine wouldn't be able to off him in full view of the rest of the team.

"I, er… I know how you feel about apologies, Agent Gibbs, but I gotta get this out. It was my fault she was taken and I'm not likely to forget it. I'm sorry."

The hard blue gaze held his for what seemed like forever, and he understood exactly why this man had his formidable reputation as an interrogator. He was surprised therefore when Gibbs broke eye contact first and turned to look over the balcony again, sipping at his coffee.

"Abby doesn't blame you, and she's safe." He shrugged. "That's all that matters."

Unsure what to say at what he figured was a major concession from Gibbs, Eric kept silent. He eventually heard Gibbs say quietly, "Thanks for not translating everything Abby signed."

For a moment Eric was puzzled and then he remembered the last sign he'd seen, although it had taken him a moment to process it, given that he was distracted by the fact that the Phantom was holding an axe to Abby's neck.

As Eric thought back now to the last sign he'd seen, coupled with her cry of "Gibbs", it came to him in a flash… oh.

He glanced over at Gibbs beside him but wisely chose to confine his reply to a brief nod.

Why had he ever thought he had a chance with Abby?

He must have been deluding himself. Not only did he have Callen as a rival but looking at the tall Marine next to him, he realized just how hopeless was his infatuation with Abby. He felt like a kid playing with the grown ups.

She wouldn't have looked once at him never mind twice with such competition.

Eric saw Callen approaching and left the two men to talk.

After several minutes of silence, Gibbs was uncharacteristically the one to break it. "Something you want to tell me, Callen." He wondered what had gone on in the conversation he'd just seen between Abby and his friend, not liking how physically at ease they were with one another.

After a pause, Callen sighed, "Apart from the fact that you're a very lucky bastard, Gibbs, nope."

He turned to face Callen. "Yeah, I know I am. Don't have to remind me."

"Look after her, Gibbs."

"I intend to." He recognized the regret on his friend's face, and could sympathize. The feeling of thinking he'd not be able to have Abby was one he'd lived with for years. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, can't help regretting my timing though. If you weren't a friend, Gibbs, you'd have competition."

"So I gathered." Gibbs knew that was no idle threat either. Callen could charm most women when he set his mind to it. He knew he might not like the answer but had to ask the question. "Something happen between you two?"

"Nope. Doesn't mean I didn't want it to." Callen sounded wistful. "Was planning on turning dinner into breakfast."

It was an uncomfortable reminder of how Gibbs had nearly been too late… in more ways than one. He just had to keep reminding himself that Abby was coming home with him, not staying in LA with Callen.

"She's an incredible woman, Gibbs, smart, sexy, sassy."

Gibbs shot him a look. "Ya think I don't know that?"

"Then don't screw it up this time, Gibbs."

"You giving me advice on women now, Callen?" Gibbs sounded amused.

Callen laughed. "With three ex-wives? Yeah, maybe I am. Look, you're the only man who I'd back off for. A woman like Abby doesn't come along too often in any man's life."

"I know," came the quiet acknowledgement. Gibbs didn't need any reminders that this was another chance at happiness and he wasn't going to make the same mistakes he made in his past three marriages… or he was going to try not to, anyway.

Callen's voice broke into his reverie. "But I gotta tell ya, Gibbs, if you hurt her, I'll not only kick your ass but I'll be there to pick up the pieces."

"Fair enough." They exchanged a look of perfect understanding.

Some time later, Abby rejoined them both, slipping in between the two men leaning over the railing, and muttering darkly about medical evaluations being a waste of time. They exchanged another amused glance over her head as they let her rant. All she wanted was to see Ducky… it was his medical opinion that she would listen to, not a stranger who'd never seen her before but who just happened to have a medical degree. She needed her friend, as well as her physician.

Hetty joined them. "We can leave most of the debrief for now, Abby, if you can let me have your report before the end of the week. I know you're both anxious to catch your plane."

"Sure thing, Hetty. I'm used to short deadlines and being put under pressure, my boss is a total ogre if we're late with paperwork," Abby replied, throwing a mischievous look over her shoulder at Gibbs, who turned his head away to hide his grin.

Hetty smiled and held Abby's hand in both of hers, "I'm so pleased you're okay, Abby. Take care of yourself."

Abby impulsively hugged Hetty, enfolding the smaller woman and almost swamping her, causing Callen to smile. It wasn't often he saw Hetty startled.

Abby turned to Gibbs with a smile. "Ready to go," he asked.

"Oh yeah, let's go home, Gibbs."

Callen drove them to the airport, feeling a sense of melancholy as he realized it would probably be a long time before he saw Abby again and when he did, she was likely to be a permanent feature of Gibbs' life.

He was under no illusions over the depth of feeling between the two of them.

Callen shook Gibbs' hand before he reached over to pull Abby into a hug and she didn't resist, wrapping her arms around him. When she pulled back, she saw the sadness on his face and immediately felt guilty that she'd been the one to put it there.

Cupping his face in both hands, she leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on his lips, whispering her goodbyes and promising to stay in touch. Callen kissed her back, before pulling away, smiling at her gently.

With a final wave, Callen got back in the car and drove away. Abby sighed and turned back to meet a raised eyebrow and an expression she could read all too well.

"Stop looking at me like that, Gibbs. You can't be feeling threatened, surely?"

He shook his head. "Not any more." He approached to brush his lips across her cheek and his next words were breathed into her ear in a low husky voice that sent a shiver down her spine. "When I take you to bed, Abbs, I guarantee you won't be thinking of G. Callen."

Chapter 12 â€" Going home

"When I take you to bed, Abbs, I guarantee you won't be thinking of G. Callen."

Gibbs pulled back, smirked at her, pressed a quick, firm kiss to her lips and strode off to the checkout to deposit their bags.

Abby grinned at his retreating back as her imagination supplied more than a few images to match his words.

He'd been unusually passive this morning as she'd spent time with Callen. She'd yet to experience Gibbs' full on jealous side, other than that glimpse last night, and she suspected that it was only the fact that Callen was his friend and she'd discussed how she felt about the LA agent the night before, that had stopped him coming over all cave man and throwing her over his shoulder.

Not that that wouldn't be a fairly sizzling scenario…

As independent as she was, there was something very hot about someone as alpha male as Gibbs going all possessive.

Trying to shrug off the lingering melancholy from saying goodbye to Callen, she followed Gibbs to the checkout.

As they had more than an hour before boarding, Gibbs persuaded her that they should both think about lunch. He was concerned that she'd only eaten the bare minimum in the last 36 hours. Abby should be trying to eat more than she was, even if she was still battling occasional nausea. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the nearest cafe. Abby rolled her eyes, knowing what he was doing but feeling too tired to argue.

After she'd taken more nausea pills, she picked at her food, wondering how to broach something she wanted to talk to him about. "You talked to Callen about the video footage," she eventually asked.

"Yeah. Not sure how much there'll be but Eric's gonna check." He studied her face, suspecting where she was going with this.

"I need to see it, Gibbs." She reached for his hand. "If I don't know what really happened while I was unconscious, then my imagination's going to supply the rest… and believe me, it's doing a pretty good job of that already."

"I know, Abbs." He ran his thumb across her hand. "Would be happier if you talked to Ducky first. Hell, I need to talk to Ducky."

"I will but you can't protect me from this, even though I know you want to." She didn't want to argue with him but needed to make him understand how important this was for her. "Did Callen tell you what I thought was on my clothes?"

"Yeah. Was waiting till you were ready to talk about it." He squeezed her hand, unsure how he could offer comfort.

"We both don't need to guess how the semen got there, do we?" She saw him shake his head, looking grim. "I just… I just need to know what he did to me before or after that… while I was unconscious."

"I need to know too." If this guy were still alive, Gibbs would want to kill him with his bare hands for ever laying a finger on her.

"I'm going to need you to get me through this."

"I'll try, Abbs." He reached out to brush a stray hair behind her ear, cupping her cheek, wishing they were alone so he could hold her again.

"Thanks for not pushing me… to talk, you know. I was gonna tell you… it's just…" she trailed off.

"Take whatever time you need."

"I'm not sure I can talk about it yet, Gibbs. I know I need to but I… I just don't know if I can." She looked down at their joined hands, feeling the warmth of his hand anchoring her.

"I know, Abbs. Let's get home. Talk to Ducky." He just wanted to get her back to DC and into familiar surroundings.

She glanced up, her gaze earnest. "Yeah, I need Ducky… I know they're gonna try and make me talk to some nameless shrink, Gibbs, but it's Ducky I need. Ducky and you and my friends."

Depending on what they found but already suspecting what they would, Gibbs thought that Ziva might know how best to help her. But he didn't want to put Ziva through it, although he knew that she would offer without hesitation. He needed to talk to her… after speaking to Ducky. He couldn't remember needing his old friend more.

Their flight was called and they made their way through onto the plane and settled into their seats, both thankful to be finally heading home. With the flight time and the time difference, it would be evening before they arrived. Gibbs had phoned Fornell and he was going to pick them up at the airport.

As soon as the flight took off, Abby opened her laptop.

"You sure you wanna do that now, Abbs?" he said, shifting to get comfortable with legroom that wasn't enough for his long legs.

"It'll pass the time on the flight, Gibbs." The report needed writing so she might as well start it now.

"So does sleeping."

"You might be able to fall asleep at the drop of a hat, but some of us need a comfy bed and an even comfier pair of arms." She smiled at him as he turned partly on his side so he could face her.

He smirked at her. "We'll see what we can do later."

"You make a very warm pillow." She resisted the urge to close the gap between them to taste him again but only just.

He read her intentions and tenderly ran his fingers down her cheek. "Stay with me, Abbs... even just for a few days. Let me look after you."

"Yeah, I'd like that." The thought of curling up in his house, the focus of his attention was a very comforting one.

He gave her a soft smile. "You ought to rest now."

"If I can just make a start on the report now, Gibbs, then there'll be less to do tomorrow," she explained. "I'd rather do it in bits when I'm feeling okay, which I am now than be forced to do it tomorrow, regardless of how I feel."

He nodded. "Okay." He didn't turn away but continued to gaze at her as if memorizing her face.

"You gonna sit there and watch me the entire time."

"Uh-huh."

"You realize how distracting that's gonna be, right?"

"Uh-huh."

Shaking her head at him as he gave her a lop-sided grin, she turned back to her laptop, acutely aware of the man beside her. If he didn't stop looking at her like that, she'd be tempted to drag him off so she could join the Mile High Club.

Abby tried to gather her thoughts into some sort of coherent order for the report and started writing. It was hard to put what she'd gone through in dispassionate language fit for an official report, but she figured that writing it down might also be helpful for her state of mind…. and it did need to be completed.

She was in an unusual position here of being both victim and scientist on the team.

As the nightmare had unfolded, she'd tried to engage the Phantom in conversation, seeking to gain as much information as she could. She may not have been a trained field agent, but she knew the drill and was determined not to give the bastard any satisfaction by showing how truly terrified she was.

Hearing him explain that he'd lured her to LA by posing as Mike 287 on her blog had truly appalled her. It meant that he'd been virtually… stalking her for months, she could think of no other word for it.

To think that he'd been right there all the time… what had she missed?

She remembered taking her courage in both hands, metaphorically speaking as she couldn't do anything with her limbs immobilized, and she'd tried to smooth the nut job's ego. Not knowing whether she was making a huge mistake trying to lure him closer, she at least could make an attempt to get some forensic evidence either on her or on him, even if she wasn't coming out of this one alive.

As terrifying as it was, she'd felt a sense of satisfaction when she'd tricked him and bitten his finger, finally getting a look at his face.

Her heart had chilled as she'd taken in sight of the bed and the camera, hearing him talk about watching her when he was at work. Fear had taken over then and it was a while before she realized that her bravado may only end up baiting him, provoking him to do something to her sooner rather than later.

Gibbs watched her face as she typed, seeing the concentration and emotion flit across it. She always had the most expressive face of anyone he knew and ordinarily he loved watching her, but this time he could almost see where she was in her story just by observing her expression.

He would have given anything to spare her this.

A sudden thought struck her, trivial as it was. "And he even got my age wrong."

Trust Abby to latch onto that. "Yeah, I heard him. By at least ten years." He snorted as she turned to glare at him. "I know your age, remember?.

She huffed at him, trying to look annoyed and only half succeeding. He continued, anything to distract her. "But you do look younger than you are."

She shook her head, amused at his 'save'. "Good answer, Gibbs."

Some time later, Abby eventually closed her laptop, flexing her fingers and easing her shoulders. She could feel the muscles stiffening again, not helped by the enforced sitting in one spot. She leaned her head against Gibbs' shoulder for the final hour and dozed.

Fornell waited in the arrivals lounge, eager to see them both. He'd only had the barest of information out of Gibbs earlier on and was keen to see Abby for himself to reassure himself that she really was okay.

He watched them approach and when they were within reach, he opened his arms and without hesitation, Abby walked straight into them, letting Fornell wrap his arms around her.

"You can turn the volume down on that glare, Gibbs. She's my friend and I was worried about her."

"Ignore him, Toby. He's just cranky coz the coffee on the plane sucked." She tossed a playful glance over her shoulder at Gibbs.

"At least if I can see his hands, he can't head slap me." Fornell held her at arm's length and took a good look at her tired face, seeing the dark circles and the strain she was trying to hide under her cheerful greeting.

"Don't bet on it, Tobias." Gibbs seemed to have spent most of the day fighting down an urge to head slap every man who got within hugging distance of Abby.

Abby looped her arm through Fornell's as they headed for his car, chatting about Emily.

"I'll just get the bags then, shall I?" came the good natured grumbling from behind them.

"You do it so well, Jethro," teased Fornell, earning him a giggle from the woman on his arm, a sound he thought he'd never hear again. As they reached his car, he opened the door for her. "You'll be glad to get home, Abbs."

Gibbs answered for her. "Going to my house."

Fornell grinned at him. "Really?"

"You can wipe that smirk off your face, Toby." Gibbs deposited the bags in the boot.

"Boys, play nice," Abby chided, unable to hide her amusement.

As Fornell drove them to Gibbs' house, they chatted idly, keeping the conversation light and Abby smiled as she let the familiar banter between the two old friends wash over her. Halfway through the journey, Gibbs asked, "You okay, Abbs?" twisting in his seat to look at her on the back seat, conscious she'd become very quiet.

Trust him to pick up on her change of mood. He was so attuned to her sometimes, it was positively spooky. "Just starting to feel a bit nauseous, Gibbs. I've just taken some pills but they seem to be taking longer to kick in this time."

"And?" he persisted, seeing her rubbing her arm.

"Pins and needles are back a bit. I think my muscles are just stiff from the flight." She sounded tired and exasperated.

When they pulled up outside his house, Gibbs saw that his car was back on the drive, looking in one piece still, despite being driven there by DiNozzo. Gibbs held open Abby's door and was the first to see her go white as she stood.

"Whoa…" her voice was shaky.

He caught her arms as she swayed. "Abbs?"

"Suddenly feel sick, Gibbs."

"Okay, I've got you." Gibbs wrapped his arm round her more firmly and helped her into the house.

Fornell grabbed their bags from the boot and followed them inside, kicking the door shut behind him. Gibbs was standing in the hallway with his arms round Abby rubbing her back gently as she leant heavily against him. He could feel her trembling slightly.

"You gonna be sick?" Gibbs asked gently.

Abby shook her head and drew back slightly, still looking pale. "No, it's fading. It just came over me as I got out of the car. Sorry."

"It's been a long day, Abbs, you've probably overdone it. Pins and needles bad still?" Gibbs asked.

Abby flexed her shoulders, grimacing. "A bit. The muscles just feel stiff."

Fornell dropped their bags by the stairs. "That won't have been helped by sitting on that plane."

Abby shivered. "I feel cold too, I can't seem to get warm."

Fornell suggested, "Maybe a hot bath would help… both for that and for your muscles?"

Gibbs rubbed her shoulders gently. "I'll go and run it. You go and sit down for a minute."

"If you've got any Epsom Salts, that might help the muscles." Fornell had had his fair share of pulled muscles over the years in the line of duty.

"Might have. I'll see what I can find." Gibbs tilted her face up to catch her eyes. "Then do you think you can face a sandwich?"

"Urgh," she couldn't help pulling a face as her stomach rolled in reaction, but saw Gibbs about to protest. "Okay, okay, I'll try. Hopefully the pills might have kicked in then."

Gibbs gestured with his head at Fornell, who put his arm round Abby and steered her into the living room, while Gibbs set off upstairs.

Fornell settled her on the couch, sat next to her and encouraged her to lean against his side. He pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped it round her, feeling her shivering gradually subside as she relaxed against him.

"I'm glad you're okay, Abby," he said into the comfortable silence.

"I was so scared, Toby. I thought I wasn't going to get out of there." She paused, remembering something Gibbs had mentioned earlier. "Gibbs told me you were on the plane and saw the video feed."

"Can't remember feeling so helpless for a very long time." He rubbed his hands gently up and down her back, trying to warm her.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," she looked up at him.

It was typical of her she'd be more concerned about others. "Was worried about Gibbs too. Never seen him so scared," he confided. "If anything had happened to you, Abbs, we'd have lost him too."

She still sometimes found it hard to believe how Gibbs felt about her. They'd only had a short time to talk last night and she hoped that things would calm down over the next few days and they could enjoy exploring this new found relationship.

"We all owe Callen and Sam a lot… me most of all."

"It wasn't the way I'd have wanted it to happen but I'm glad it made Gibbs pull his head out of his ass." He tightened his arms around her. "I'm glad you're together."

"That obvious, huh?" she smiled at him, touched that her friend was so pleased for them.

"Oh yeah. I mean I'm taking my life in my hands right this very minute. I hope you realize that," teased Fornell, smiling down at Abby.

"You done playing grab ass, Tobias?" came the deep voice from the doorway. Typically, neither had heard Gibbs coming down the stairs and he was now lounging against the doorframe, a half smile hovering.

"See what I mean?" Fornell whispered to Abby, as she laughed.

"Bath's ready, Abbs." She sat up and Fornell helped her to her feet, blanket still wrapped around her. Gibbs walked her to the hallway, arm around her waist, out of earshot of Fornell. "Will you be okay? Don't like the idea of you taking a bath on your own in case you feel dizzy."

"Gonna join me then?" Tired as she was, she couldn't pass up the opportunity to tease him, knowing full well he was going to come over all noble again.

Gibbs rolled his eyes, "Normally you wouldn't be able to stop me, but you're not well… remember?"

She looked up at him. "Yeah, I know… doesn't mean I'm not tempted."

"Me too, Abbs." He ran his hand down her arm to clasp her hand. "I've put your bag in my room. I'll bring a sandwich up shortly."

Abby nodded, giving him a wan smile. "Okay, don't feel quite so nauseous now so perhaps I should try and eat something."

Fornell came over. "If you feel faint while you're in the bath, just shout and we'll come up."

Gibbs raised his eyebrow, glaring at him. "Just shout and I'll be up, Abbs."

Abby snorted at the pretend face-off. "I'll be fine you two… behave. I'm just tired. Think I might go to bed straight afterwards."

Gibbs turned back to her. "Good idea."

Fornell nodded. "You should get as much rest as you can."

Abby looked from one to the other. "I see you've taken over from Callen as a substitute mother hen, Toby."

Gibbs cut in, "If ya think we're fussing, wait till ya see what DiNozzo has in store. Think he's planning a protective detail to rival the President's"

"Armed guard on a coffee run, eh?" asked Fornell.

"At the very least," shot back Gibbs, a half smile breaking out.

Fornell nodded, unable to keep a twinkle from his eyes. "Quite right too."

She shook her head, amused at the double act. "You two should go on the stage, you know that. Just leave this invalid to have a bath in peace, will ya?"

Gibbs ushered her towards the stairs. "I'll be up soon."

Abby gave him a soft smile and then turned to Fornell, "I'm so pleased to see you, Toby."

"I'm glad you're back, Abbs. You get some rest. I'll bring Emily by at the weekend if you feel up to it." He kissed her cheek.

"That would be great." Abby hesitated. "Does she know?"

Fornell shook his head. "No, I haven't told her anything other than that you've been in LA for a few days. She'd be too upset for her favorite aunt."

"Thanks. I don't want to upset her either but I'd love to see her."

Gibbs watched her climb the stairs before going into the kitchen, where he was joined by Fornell. "Got something to say, Tobias?" He knew that smirk.

"Other than it's about damn time, nope. Glad to see you've ignored your own rules for once."

"Abby's an exception to a lot of rules."

"I gathered." He leaned against the counter and looked over at his friend, seeing the tiredness and the stress on his face. "Seriously, Jethro, I'm really pleased for you both."

"Thanks." Gibbs sighed, glad to be home, feeling the strain of the past two days starting to drain away. "It's good to get her back."

Gibbs pulled two beers from the fridge and they drank in silence for a while before Fornell asked, "Where's this sickness coming from? Is that the drugs that bastard gave her?"

"Yeah, the stuff to knock her out is making her sick, and the crap that stopped her moving is causing the stiffness and pins and needles."

Fornell felt his anger rising again. "How long do they reckon before it's out of her system?"

"Not sure, a few days maybe. The more she rests, the better it'll be but…" Gibbs shrugged and set about making sandwiches.

"Huh, getting Abby to rest is like getting you to take it easy, Jethro, just about impossible."

"Yeah, I know." Gibbs figured he'd have more luck getting her to rest if he was here in the house too. He fully intended taking tomorrow and the rest of the weekend off… and into the following week if need be. Apart from anything else, they'd had little time to explore this new side of their relationship and while he had no intention of making a move while she was still feeling ill, just having her close would be enough for now.

"What else did he do to her?" Fornell asked. He shook his head when Gibbs offered him a sandwich. He needed to get going soon.

"Don't know yet." Gibbs replied, the anguish in his voice obvious to his friend.

"What about the video feed for during the night… before we tuned in live?" That thought had been rolling around in Fornell's head for most of yesterday and today.

"Yeah, that's the bit that worries me too. Eric's analyzing it."

"Makes me sick to my stomach just thinking about it. I mean a guy doesn't go to all the trouble of getting a bed into a warehouse if he wasn't intent on using it. We heard him threaten her, Jethro." Fornell all but slammed his beer bottle down on the counter.

Gibbs hesitated as Fornell collected his coat and headed for the door.

He wasn't sure if Abby would want to share everything about her ordeal just yet, but he felt so out of his depth at the moment that he felt the need to confide in his friend. He knew it wouldn't go any further. Despite the amount of teasing he inflicted on Fornell, he knew the FBI agent cared about Abby and was just as protective of her as everyone else. "She says she found semen on her clothes"

Fornell paused with his hand on the door. "Oh, jeez… did that bastard rape her?"

"She says not and… I guess she'd know." They exchanged a glance, not needing any more words… two old friends who'd seen their share of horrors over the years but this time it was all too close to home.

As he left, Fornell put his hand on Gibbs' shoulder, "You need anything, Jethro, you know where I am." Gibbs nodded his thanks as his friend left.


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Upstairs, Abby tried to relax in the bath but the heat of the bathroom was making her feel nauseous again. She'd left the bathroom door ajar, partly for safety in case she did feel dizzy and also to let the heat dissipate. The hot water seemed to be helping her muscles though and she felt sure a night's sleep was exactly what she needed… if she wasn't plagued by nightmares again.

She heard Gibbs enter the bedroom, calling out through the door if she was okay.

"I'm fine, Gibbs. I'm getting out in a minute. You can come in you know."

"You trying to kill me?" came the amused reply.

"It's nothing you're not going to see, hopefully sooner rather than later." Abby pulled herself out of the bath, wrapping herself in a warm towel.

"If I come in there, Abbs…" He paused, hearing her moving, swallowing hard at the mental image of her rising up out of the bath, water streaming over her. "It was difficult enough to control myself last night, seeing you in a bath is not going to help that."

She rolled her eyes at his chivalrous behavior but had to admit if the situation were reversed, she'd feel the same.

When she came out of the bathroom in her PJs, he was sitting on the bed sipping coffee and eating his sandwich. She couldn't help a smile breaking out at the sight… the first time she'd seen him sat on his bed.

She was gradually beginning a new store of memories for their relationship and that wasn't a bad one to start off with.

She'd spent the night in Gibbs' bed before but he'd always slept on the couch. Even if nothing happened tonight, at least it would be the first time they'd spent the night together in his bed.

He smiled at her as he made room for her to sit beside him and handed her a sandwich and a bottle of water. She huffed a protest at the lack of caffeine… yet again and he smothered his smirk at her reaction by sipping his coffee.

"Gonna take a shower. Try and eat, Abbs." He dropped a kiss on her bare shoulder as he headed for the bathroom.

She forced down the sandwich even though she didn't feel like it. She was thirsty though and made inroads into the bottle of water, curling up in bed when she'd finished. She took the same side of the bed as last night, hoping she'd guessed right as to the side Gibbs preferred.

Her nausea was back and she shivered, grabbing her spare pillow and clutching it to her stomach, curling round it and trying to warm her tummy and hug the sick feeling away.

As she heard the shower running, she was left with her own imagination to fill in the mental picture… again.

It wasn't long before he joined her and she was pleased to see that he was as shirtless as last night and wearing soft sweatpants. At least the view was pretty damn good even if she couldn't do anything about it.

As soon as he was under the covers, he scooted closer and spooned against her. She grabbed his hand as his arm came round her and put his warm hand against her stomach.

"Is it bad?" he asked gently.

"It just seems to react like this as soon as I eat. It'll pass soon… hopefully." The warmth of his large hand against her stomach and his chest against her back was comforting.

He pressed a soft kiss to her hair. "Try and sleep, Abbs."

She rolled over towards him. "I'm sorry, Gibbs."

"Hey." He propped himself on one arm and wrapped his arm fully around her, concerned at how tearful she looked. "You've nothing to be sorry about."

She reached up to run her fingers down his jaw. "When will I start to feel okay? I feel fine for a few hours and then I just feel sick and achy again."

He knew she hated being ill and was only slightly less cranky as a patient than he was. "It's been barely 48 hours, Abbs. You gotta rest." He leaned his head down to nuzzle into her cheek, resting his head on the pillow beside her. "I know you're frustrated."

She couldn't help an exasperated laugh escaping her. "Huh, you can say that again." Oh, if only she felt better, she'd have jumped his bones by now. This was beyond frustrating.

He snorted, knowing full well what she meant. "I meant from feeling sick."

"Yeah, I know. It's just… do you have any idea how much I want you?" She wriggled round to face him, feeling herself drowning in his close presence.

His reply was fervently muttered. "Oh yeah, about as much as I want you." He kissed her lightly and quickly and then pulled her close, wrapping arms and legs around her. If he couldn't make love to her tonight, at least he could have her as near as possible.

Abby sighed as she relaxed against him. "This isn't how I imagined ending up in your bed for the first time, you know that, right?"

"Yeah, I know." She felt his hands run gently up and down her spine, managing to be both soothing and promising at the same time. "We've plenty of time to make some new memories in this bed, Abbs."

Chapter 13 â€" Declaration

Warmth.

That was the first thing Abby registered when she woke the next morning.

Warmth around her, beneath her, on top of her.

The familiar scent of the body she was snuggled against and feel of the arms around her told her the warmth was caused by a wrap-around Gibbs. When they were standing and fully clothed, his full body hugs always felt wonderful. Lying down in his bed with them both half naked, it was intoxicating.

She felt so comfortable and so safe, she wished they could stay here all day, cocooned under the comforter.

"I can hear you thinking, Abbs," came an amused rumble from beneath her cheek.

"I could stay here all day." She rubbed her cheek on his chest like a contented cat.

"Me too. How d'ya feel?" When she didn't answer, he tilted her head up forcing her to meet his concerned gaze.

She grimaced and sighed, "A bit sick… again."

She'd managed most of the night without nightmares, only waking once, jerked awake with the image of the Phantom with axe raised vivid in her mind. Gibbs had held her again, soothing her with his hands and she'd drifted off into an undisturbed sleep. At least the nightmare had been about a real event this time, not an imagined inability to breathe like the night before.

"Gonna try some breakfast?" Gibbs was conscious of just how little she'd eaten since even before she was kidnapped.

"I guess," came the less than enthusiastic response. "You gonna cook it for me?"

"Thinkin' about it," his hands rubbing in soothing circles over her back.

After a few minutes lying there in comfortable silence, Abby asked, "Can we pick up some more clothes from my apartment this morning?"

Shrugging, "Sure."

She raised her head and propped herself up on his chest. "I'd also like to go into the Navy Yard and see everyone today."

He frowned, concerned she was going to overdo things on her first full day back in DC. "I'm sure they'd love to see you but you sure you're up for it?"

"Yeah, I really want to see everybody. I've missed them all." She paused. "I also wanna see what that temp has done to my babies."

That earned her a laugh. "Yeah, I thought you might."

She swatted his chest, chuckling. "I also wanna collect some stuff from my lab. I know I'm not gonna be allowed back to work yet."

"Not till the pysch eval clears you, you know how it works, Abbs." It was a side of his job that he too hated about being on sick leave. He always fretted about the restrictions placed on him and Abby was enough like him in that respect to rebel against anything that stopped her from returning to her beloved lab.

Forensics was as much a vital part of her life as being a field agent was an essential part of his.

"I know, Gibbs, but I'll go mad if I can't work." She rolled onto her side and propped her head on her hand to look at him. "So if I'm not allowed in my lab, I've got to do something. I've got several papers I'm writing and another one I'm editing. If I download them onto my laptop, I can work on them here."

He nodded. "Good idea." He picked up her other hand, lacing their fingers together.

Abby looked down at their joined hands, enjoying the feel of his calloused fingers. "I also have a selfish motive for wanting to go in and see everyone this morning." He looked at her questioningly. "If we don't go in today, everyone's gonna come by later after work to see me. Don't get me wrong, I really want to see everyone. I love those guys dearly and I feel really mean for saying this… but I'd quite like you to myself later."

"Sounds good." He shuffled over onto his side and pulled her down into the circle of his arm.

Abby snuggled closer again, seeming to fit to his side as she were measured for it. "We haven't spent much time alone together or been able to talk much in the last couple of days, apart from that first evening."

"I know." He didn't like it any more than she did. All he wanted to do was shut out the world and explore this oh-so-new side of their relationship. But circumstances had worked against them.

"And with me still feeling yuk, I feel like we've been… almost on hold ever since we talked about how we feel." She gave him a shy smile. "So I guess I'm feeling a bit selfish."

"Me too, Abbs. I just want to hole us up in here and not come out for days." He brushed her tousled hair off her forehead, loving this just woken up look she had. He was gradually adding more images to his mental catalogue of favorite Abby looks.

She smiled at him slowly. "Then let's go say hello and then do exactly that."

The sexy smile he gave her was full of promise and he wrapped both arms around her again, running his hands slowly up and down her spine, feeling a shiver go through her.

She loved the fact that the physical ease they already had with each other in their friendship was now extending so unselfconsciously to their relationship. Plus the fact that she couldn't keep her hands off him… and that was before they'd had sex. She suspected she might need a straightjacket in order to behave herself once they had.

Lying quietly together again, she felt herself starting to doze again before she heard his quiet question. "How d'ya muscles feel?"

"Not too sure yet given that I haven't moved much, except to snuggle closer." She nuzzled into his neck just to prove her point. His neck was another part of him she could become addicted to… along with his hands… and his lips… and his…

Yeah, okay, Scuito, I get the picture… all of him… just as soon as you stop feeling hinky.

His arms tightened involuntarily around her at the feel of her breath on his neck. "Perhaps later this evening we ought to try what the nurse suggested?"

That brought her head up, a mischievous smile breaking out. "Are you offering me another hot massage?"

He grinned. "Might be."

"Is this for medicinal purposes only?" Abby tilted her head to one side, loving the sparkle in his eyes.

"Maybe."


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For the first time in days, Abby found herself not only enjoying a meal, the breakfast of eggs he cooked for her, but it wasn't followed by the familiar rolling nausea which had been the aftermath of everything else she'd eaten lately. Her muscles did still feel stiff but the pins and needles this morning seemed less, so maybe the drugs were finally clearing her system.

Perhaps it was progress at last.

After they'd eaten, Gibbs drove them to Abby's apartment. As he followed her into the lobby of her apartment building, he heard her curse.

"Oh rats, look at this, Gibbs." Abby waved a notice at him which had been pinned to the mailboxes. "The heat's out… again. And at least a week before it can be repaired."

"One of these days, Abbs, you're gonna move out of this crappy building." He'd been trying to persuade her to move out of this building and away from this neighborhood for years.

She rolled her eyes at the familiar argument. "I've told you before, the rent's cheap. Looks like you're stuck with me for at least a week, Gibbs, sorry."

He tugged on a pigtail and leaned in for a kiss, smirking at her. "I'd hardly call that stuck. More like a bonus."

While she sent Gibbs into her kitchen to pack any perishables from her fridge and cupboards that she'd forgotten before her trip to LA, she headed into her bedroom to pack a case. As she grabbed some clothes, she selected a few items from the more interesting end of her underwear drawer, her thoughts straying to the two nights she'd spent in Gibbs' arms… sleeping.

On the many, many occasions she'd imagined them together in bed, sleeping was very far down the list of things they did. And yet sleeping was all they'd done so far… that and kissing and cuddling, which she was hardly likely to object to but she wanted more… much, much more.

Of course it was all her fault… okay, strictly speaking, it was the Phantom's fault but that was just semantics.

Abby knew why Gibbs was holding back. He was such a gentleman and she loved him for it but oh god, it was frustrating.

She knew what he tasted like.

She knew what his skin felt like.

She knew what it was like to be held by his strong hands and cradled by his arms.

Now she desperately wanted to know what he felt like inside her.

She wanted those rough hands and long fingers running over her skin, exploring her and driving her crazy. She wanted that mouth, those lips and tongue running over her skin. She wanted that deep voice growling in her ear.

Oh god, will you stop it Scuito.

She was wound up enough already without her imagination running wild.

She loved tender caring Gibbs but also wanted to know the powerful, dominant Gibbs… especially in bed. She wanted the heated promise behind those arrogant words whispered into her ear at the airport.

She had a feeling there was enough passion sizzling under that gorgeous surface to set fire to the mattress.

If he didn't make a move soon, she'd have to take matters into her own hands… or take something into her hands at least.

Mentally head slapping herself as her mind supplied the pictures to go with that thought, she shook herself out of her fantasy and left the room. She dumped her case in the hall alongside the bags he'd packed and joined him in the living room.

"Ready, Gibbs?"

"Yup," he moved towards her. "Been thinking, Abbs. We could ask Tony and McGee to move your TV and DVD player over to my house while you're staying?"

He laughed as she looked at him, incredulous. "You're actually volunteering to have a huge, super-duper, modern bit of TV kit in your house? Are you feeling okay, Gibbs?"

He shrugged, chuckling, "Thought it might help you pass the time… when I let you out of the bedroom of course."

She grinned at his comment and moved to go past him. "Wow, it must be love."

Before she could react, he'd caught her arm and crowded her against the wall, hands cupping her face gently, staring at her intently. "It is, Abbs."

Oh….

She searched his eyes, heart soaring at the emotions she could see there. "It is?"

"Yeah." He nodded, brushing his thumbs across her cheeks. "Just realized I hadn't told you that yet."

Abby rubbed her cheek into his touch and slid her arms round his waist, relishing the solid feel of him against her. "You know I don't need grand declarations, Gibbs. It's you I want… it's you I love, just as you are. You don't need to be something you're not with me, you know that."

She felt her pulse rate hike at the slow smile that spread across his face. "How did I get so lucky, Abbs? You could have any man you want."

Did he really not know what effect he had on her, even now? Did he really doubt how she felt about him? "Don't want anyone else… just you."

He took a deep breath and leaned his forehead against hers, sliding his hands over her hips. "You know how crap I am at this, Abbs, at tryin' to find the right words."

"Well, from where I'm standing, you're doing just fine." She cupped his cheeks, searching his blue eyes, trying to reassure him. "Show me how you feel if that's easier?"

Gibbs smiled. Oh yeah, that he could do.

He lowered his head and brushed his lips gently across hers, tracing their outline with his tongue. Abby responded immediately and opened her mouth, allowing him to deepen the kiss. She groaned into his mouth at the feeling of his tongue sliding inside. She raised her hands to thread her fingers through his silver hair, scraping her nails over the short hairs on the nape of his neck, feeling him moan.

Pressed up close, she could feel his reaction and she felt a surge of longing go through her. Arching her back and pushing her hips against his growing hardness, she felt his hands slide round her back and pull her even closer.

Gibbs left nipping kisses along the line of her jaw to the skin under her ear, suckling on her neck, hearing her breathing hitch.

She grabbed his head and brought it back up so she could kiss him again, pouring everything she felt into her kiss. Her heart pounded as he finally kissed her back as she'd imagined he would… completely dominating her mouth in an intense hungry kiss that made her head spin.

At last… was the only thought her brain could manage.

And just then Gibbs' cell started to ring…