Author's Chapter Notes:
A bomb blast rocks NCIS headquarters leaving one team member critically injured and chaos in the squad room.
Tony DiNozzo had just hung up the phone and was about to take a sip of coffee when an explosion rocked the building. The hot liquid poured out onto the front of his shirt scalding him. NCIS/Mossad agent Ziva David immediately hit the floor simultaneously drawing her weapon. For just a few seconds, chaos reigned in the squad room. Agent Timothy McGee got up off of the floor and said "There's smoke coming from the elevator!" Then he added, "Abby!" He ran for the stairway closely followed by Tony. The pair bounded down the stairs arriving at the door leading to Abby's lab at the same time. The door was blocked by something, and smoke was coming from inside the room. Together, the pair managed to push the door open just enough to squeeze through. "Abby!" Tony shouted. No reply. This time both men were calling their co-worker. There was a lot of smoke and damage but no visible flames. Tony moved to his left searching. Then McGee shouted, "Tony, over here!" On the far side of the room against the wall was the small crumpled form of an unconscious Abigail Sciuto. Tony moved the stricken girl so that she was laying on her back. There was blood on the wall and it was obvious it had come from a gash on the side of her head. NCIS medical examiner Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard arrived at that moment, and moved to the motionless lab technician feeling for a pulse. There was none, and she wasn't breathing. He immediately tore open her blouse and began chest compressions. McGee being the closest to her head, dropped to his knees, pinched her nostrils shut, and covering her mouth with his, began blowing air into her lungs. Tony said, Don't let her die Ducky. She's not going to wind up on your slab like Kate did." The pair continued CPR, stopping only to check for a carotid pulse. Finally McGee said, "I have a pulse" Doctor Mallard stopped his compressions, and could see that indeed Abby was breathing on her own. EMS had been called and soon the wailing of sirens reached their ears. The easiest way at this point to reach the lab, was through the double doors usually used to transport bodies to and from the morgue. Paramedics moved in and soon the forensics whiz was breathing oxygen, and had a saline solution coursing through a vein in her arm. Ducky identified himself as a physician, and accompanied the paramedics as she was carried-firmly immobilized, on a backboard to the waiting gurney, and then to the ambulance.