Tony had felt himself being pulled off of Agent Crimson but it wasn’t until he turned and answered his question that he felt Gibbs let go of him. Gibbs walked over, picked the recorder up off the floor and turned to Fornell.
“This should have everything you need.” He said.
Fornell, who had a hold of Crimson along with McGee, reached over and took the recorder from Gibbs. He rewound the tape and then played it back for everyone to hear. As they all listened to what had occurred Tony glanced at his teammates to gauge their reactions. If the situation weren’t so serious he would have found it amusing. It was pretty much what he expected.
The look on McGee’s face was a combination of shock and surprise, he had seen Tony get mad but had never heard him so angry. Ziva on the other hand showed no emotion. She simply raised an eyebrow as she listened, as if this was how Tony acted all the time. But it wasn’t until he looked at Gibbs face that Tony started to worry. At first glance it appeared as if Gibbs had no reaction at all but as Tony looked closer he could see that his boss was barely containing his anger. What had Tony worried was that he wasn’t sure exactly who Gibbs was angry with.
Gibbs turned to Tony and held out his hand “Keys” he said.
“Boss?”
“Your car keys DiNozzo. Now!” he practically snapped.
Tony quickly dug his keys out of his pants pocket and dropped them into Gibbs hand. At least now he knew whom Gibbs was angry with.
Turning to Ziva who was standing next to him, Gibbs handed her Tony’s keys as he took hers. “Take him back to the office and make sure he stays there this time. I don’t care what you have to do, he is not to leave until I get there.”
“My pleasure.” Ziva said as she gave Tony a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. He knew it was designed to make him nervous.
“C’mon Boss, you can’t expect me to let Ziva...” Tony began.
When Gibbs turned and glared at him Tony took a step back “But with her driving we’ll get back there faster. Gotcha Boss.”
Tony turned and followed Ziva out to his car. He was just about to try and convince her to let him drive when she spoke.
“I am driving Tony.” She said as she dangled the keys from her finger. “ I do not think it wise for you to disobey Gibbs right now, yes?”
Tony just hung his head and sighed. “Your right” he said as he got into the passenger side of his car. As soon as Ziva got in and started the engine Tony turned to her and pleaded “Please Ziva, can you take it easy while driving my car? I’d like to keep her in one piece.”
“Tony, it is only a car.” She replied with an eyebrow raised.
“You’re paying for any and all damages.” He said as he pointed a finger in her face.
Ziva’s only response was to hit the accelerator causing the tires to squeal as she exited the parking lot. She smiled as she heard Tony mutter a curse under his breath as he grabbed for something to hold on to.
Back in the apartment Fornell was reading Agent Crimson his rights as he placed him under arrest. After putting him in handcuffs Fornell turned to McGee.
“Take him down to my car, I need to talk to Gibbs.” Fornell said.
After getting a nod from his boss McGee took Crimson by the arm and escorted him out of the apartment. The two Senior Agents stood there in silence for a few moments before Fornell finally spoke.
“Not to sound ungrateful or anything but you realize this pretty much ends the involvement of NCIS in this case.”
Gibbs just snorted. “You wouldn’t have your suspect if it weren’t for us Tobias.”
“Whatever. It’s still an FBI case.” Fornell replied as he rolled his eyes. “But I am going to need to get a statement from DiNutso about what happened here.”
Gibbs nodded “Later?”
Fornell nodded his head in agreement “I’ll come by in a couple of hours. I want to get Crimson back to headquarters and processed first.”
As the two men started to leave the apartment Fornell suddenly stopped and turned to Gibbs.
“Listen Jethro, take it easy on the kid huh?”
He saw the surprised look come across Gibbs face but before he could respond Fornell continued. “All things considered? I think DiNozzo showed a restraint and control that I didn’t think he had. I know you have every right to be your usual bastard self but maybe you should give him a break.”
When he turned away and mumbled, “I can’t believe I just defended DiNutso”, he missed the softening of Gibbs expression.
“Since when do you care Tobias?” he asked with an eyebrow raised.
Seeing the glint of humor in Gibbs eye, he responded with a deadpanned look.
“Oh it’s not a matter of caring, I just need to make sure he stays alive in case I need him to testify.”
Fornell then turned and pulled out his phone as he exited the apartment but not before he saw the smirk on Gibbs face.
As he followed him out of the building Gibbs considered what Fornell had said, thinking that maybe he had a point about DiNozzo. But the more he thought about it the more he realized that the reason he had been so pissed off was not that he had been worried about Tony hurting Crimson, but that Crimson would hurt Tony. This caused the angry scowl to return to his face, which is what McGee saw when the two men approached him.
“Did he give you any trouble?” Fornell asked.
“Nothing I couldn’t handle.” McGee replied.
“He say anything?” Gibbs asked.
“Not a word”
“Oh he will.” Fornell said as he scowled at the handcuffed agent in the back seat of his car.
Gibbs turned towards Fornell “Do you want any help taking him in?”
“Nah, I’ve got back-up on the way here.”
Gibbs nodded and started walking across the parking lot towards Ziva’s car with McGee hurrying behind. Seeing that the angry look had returned to his boss’s face McGee sent up a silent prayer that they didn’t run into any traffic on the way back.
Having arrived back at NCIS Headquarters Ziva had parked Tony’s car and was headed to the elevator when she realized she was alone. Turning around she saw Tony bent over, rubbing his hand across the hood of his car as he murmured softly.
“Tony” she yelled.
Tony straightened up and hurried over. At Ziva’s inquisitive look he responded.
“What?”
She tilted her head to the side as she asked, “Were you just talking to your car?”
“So what if I was.” Tony said as he walked over to the elevator.
Ziva followed and stood next to him “Why were you talking to your car?”
“I was just apologizing and reassuring her that you would never drive her again.”
“Her?” She said as she quirked an eyebrow at him.
“Never mind, you wouldn’t understand.” He said as they got on the elevator. “It’s a guy thing.”
She was just about to ask him another question when Ziva noticed that he had pressed the button for the floor where Abby’s lab was and not the one for the bullpen.
“Tony, Gibbs said you are to wait…”
He cut her off “I’m just going to see Abby. Don’t worry, I’m not leaving the building.”
“I will go with you then.” Ziva turned and faced the doors.
“Ziva, I just need to talk to Abby.”
Ziva continued to stare straight ahead but didn’t answer.
“Privately” Tony insisted.
Ziva turned to face him, “Fine, I will wait outside the doors for you but you are not leaving my sight.”
Tony rolled his eyes at her as the elevator doors opened and they both stepped out.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.