Gibbs watched through the one way mirror as Dewing faced off against Nunes. His own interrogation style was cold and calculated, rarely losing control regardless of how it might look to the untrained eye. Gibbs always assessed his opponent, looking for weaknesses and uncertainties; he measured their posture and expression, judging the truth of what they had to say by how they said it rather than what they said. He often got more from a suspect saying as little as possible, letting his silence condemn and coerce the truth from them.
Tony’s style often seemed to be the polar opposite of Gibbs’. Tony was far less intense, more talkative, and personable than outright intimidating or hostile. But Gibbs knew Tony was just as thorough in his approach, appraising a suspect with as much care and deliberation as Gibbs used. Many suspects found themselves talking to Tony simply because he’d lulled them into believing he was harmless, not smart enough to actually catch them in a lie, or didn’t genuinely care about seeing them punished for their crimes.
From what Gibbs was seeing, Dewing’s style was neither as disarming as Tony’s nor as directly confrontational as Gibbs’. She seemed to be presenting herself to Nunes as every inch a lady. The sort of old world grand dame who was unmistakably in charge regardless of her age, attire or the situation. She seemed damn near regal in her bearing and attitude.
The image was enhanced by the way Tony’s partner, Mendez, kept a respectful distance, yet obeyed every command or look without question. He was also clearly ready to take Nunes out if the man so much as looked cross-eyed at her.
At first Gibbs thought Mendez an odd choice for this. The cop was too young, his little round glasses and quiet demeanor reminding him too much of a student for him to put the fear of God into Gibbs. But then Gibbs wasn’t afraid of very many people. And he couldn’t help approving of the subtle dangerous air that surrounded Mendez now. He recognized the younger man, regardless of his age and appearance, was a force to be reckoned with. Tony had nothing but good things to say about his partner. He wouldn’t have stayed partners with Mendez if the man couldn’t hold his own. And for as much as Gibbs hated the way Mendez still regarded him with some suspicion, he appreciated and respected the fact that he was doing it because he was looking out for Tony.
Gibbs smiled to himself. Nunes had shifted nervously in his seat; Mendez reacted, dark eyes following every move the man made, managing to exude a quiet menace, rather like a well trained guard dog. Mendez didn’t snap or snarl, but he made a good show of looking like he wanted to. Dewing raised on hand in a graceful gesture, a clear command to ‘stay’, making it obvious he was being kept in check by her and her alone.
There were three other cops in the room that Gibbs didn’t recognize. They aped Mendez’s behavior. It was almost as if they were an honor guard for Dewing, a pack of wolves at her beck and call. The way Nunes regarded them warily made it obvious he wasn’t blind to their presence or immune to their steady, hostile stares.
Nunes may have risen in the ranks, becoming top dog dealing drugs, but he probably hadn’t experienced a face to face confrontation acting solely on his own in some time. Gibbs knew a man like that was used to controlling the situation, to having the upper hand, outnumbering and outgunning his opponents. He was like a bully on a playground; he wasn’t used to being defenseless, weaponless or facing his battles alone.
The Houston team was doing an admirable job keeping him off balance. Dewing was the epitome of polite to Nunes. She had requested he take a seat rather than ordering him to. Mendez and company were the ones to make it clear she was not to be denied. She offered him something to drink, while Mendez made it plain the right action for Nunes was to decline the offer. She was quick to say he wasn’t being charged with anything yet, while the others made it obvious he was only present because they already knew he was guilty or something.
If so much wasn’t riding on this, Gibbs would have found himself enjoying observing the byplay a lot more. If Tony was there, he’d have made a bet with him on when and how Nunes would break. Gibbs jaw clenched. Tony wasn’t there, and it was Nunes’ fault.
Gibbs didn’t need to see Dewing’s face to know what sort of look she was giving Nunes. From his reaction she had to be measuring him in a way an alpha male like Nunes considered himself to be couldn’t help but find insulting. He was more used to beautiful women like her falling at his feet than regarding him as something she had scraped off the bottom of her shoe.
Gibbs had to admire how well she and the others were playing this. So much ground work had already been laid and they had yet to ask a single question. It hadn’t really taken long either. Just a few minutes to set the stage, but Ziva didn’t see it the same way as Gibbs.
“It would be faster to simply break his fingers than put on this display,” She said impatiently, her dark eyes flashing as they met Beaumont’s.
“Intimidation isn’t always about force.” Beaumont smiled, holding Ziva’s gaze easily and making her own status as the one in charge with just a look.
No, it was often about the threat of it more so than the actual application. Gibbs understood that. Logically, Nunes had to know they couldn’t legally beat or torture him. This was America and such things were not ordinarily permitted. But so far the show Dewing had put on was making it seem far more likely they could and would. They were making a statement that the proceedings were anything but ordinary even though they hadn’t done anything that would be considered in violation of Nunes’ civil rights or illegal.
“If the goal were simply to making him confess so we could take him out back and shoot him, your way, Officer David, would be adequate.” Beaumont said, her tone cool. “But we are after a bit more than that.”
On one hand, Gibbs could appreciate Beaumont’s people attention to detail and determination to do things right. But on the other, deep down, he would have preferred Ziva’s way. He would like to simply beat the shit out of Nunes. Not so much for information; that would be gratis, but not the main goal. He simply wanted to hurt the man for his part in nearly getting Tony killed. Revenge was not justice, but in this case, it would almost be enough.
Gibbs’ gripped his ever present coffee cup a little tighter. He likely wouldn’t get a chance to vent his anger on the Marines who’d sold ordinance to Kort either. Ziva had managed to track down the source of the explosives, although she hadn’t been able actually pinned it to anyone in particular. Gibbs had reluctantly called Shepard with the name of the base where it had been stolen from. Not completely trusting her to act on it with the necessary speed, he made sure the SecNav knew as well.
It had earned him a ‘nice work Agent Gibbs’ from the SecNav. Not that Gibbs gave a shit what the man thought. He just wanted to make sure the job got done. Given his intent to bring down Jenny, Gibbs doubted the SecNav would be handing out any more praise in the future.
Another team was already moving to investigate, interviewing troops and researching inventory records. As much as Gibbs wanted to put a traitor’s balls in a vice, he was unwilling to leave Houston. He’d told Shepard they were still following up on leads and couldn’t leave yet, which was the truth, just not the whole truth. He wasn’t tipping his hand to what he knew about her involvement in all this, not until he had firm proof he could use to put her in cuffs and behind bars.
Gibbs had considered using what he already knew to just mete out some punishment of his own. It wasn’t like he hadn’t done it before, but he’d renewed his commitment to be what he considered an honorable man after Tony had left. It was a promise he found himself making a second time when Tony called him a hypocrite to his face and pointed out several times he’d acted in ways he’d have condemned anyone else for doing. Gibbs wasn’t going to hold others accountable to a standard he himself couldn’t or wouldn’t meet. Shepard would be taken down legally and it would be with enough evidence to make the charges stick. She would be held accountable in public, not taken out with a sniper’s bullet in some dark, back alley.
Gibbs redirected his attention to what was going on in the interrogation room. He wasn’t at all surprised that Dewing was able to get Nunes talking without having asked him any questions. All it took was a well worded baiting comment about how he had nothing to worry about since he was clearly not the man in charge. Looking down her nose at him and saying ‘someone like you couldn’t possibly be in charge’ had Nunes all but frothing at the mouth. She simply wanted him to tell her about his boss and he would be free to go.
Gibbs smirked thinking the insults to Nunes’ manhood were clearly not well tolerated. The man obviously thought highly of himself, of his operation and aspiration to expand. He wanted to impress her, to put Dewing in her place. Nunes wanted to make her aware that she was messing with a powerful, important man, to admit a mistake had been made and for her to apologize.
It was stupid of him, and it was also basic human nature. All that macho posturing and need to talk was good for something, Gibbs decided with a silent snicker. Nunes outright confessed to a number of crimes without realizing until much too late that his arrogance was going to bury him. He remembered watching footage of Tony doing something similar with a gang banger. Tony had managed to successfully goad the man into admitting he’d taken over running the gang, that he’d been issuing orders in the former boss’ name after having killed the man and left his body in a shallow pond. Tony had done it while playing Tetris on his phone and barely mentioning the case.
Ziva seemed genuinely surprised that Nunes had given so much so quickly. But then, Gibbs mused, she was still more used to Mossad’s methods than those in the US. He doubted very many interrogations there happened without actual bloodshed. And she probably didn’t run into many operators who were as stupid as Nunes.
Finishing his coffee Gibbs amended his opinion of Nunes. He wasn’t just stupid. He was careless. He was likely used to only dealing with law enforcement that he’d bought and paid for. He probably hadn’t had to watch what he said or to whom in years. He grown complacent, so used to other people being afraid of him and deferring accordingly he’d forgotten he wasn’t untouchable.
Gibbs shook his head. How the hell a man that careless thought he was going to take over anything was a mystery to Gibbs, but then dealing drugs and selling weapons didn’t require an advanced degree, courage, or even much common sense. Nunes only had to be bold enough to try and ruthless enough to put down any opposition.
“They should all be so stupid,” Beaumont muttered, shaking her head.
“Wouldn’t be much of a challenge if they were.”
“True.” Beaumont chuckled. “But there are days when I’d settle for boring.”
Gibbs nodded, throwing away his empty cup. He wouldn’t mind boring now and again himself. It beat the hell out of planning to bring down a woman he’d worked with and for, a person he’d liked and respected enough at one time to actually sleep with.
Suddenly aware that he might have hung himself, Nunes demanded to see his attorney. It had taken him far longer to insist on that than Gibbs expected. If Nunes had been smarter, he’d have demanded his lawyer from the second he was in the interrogation room. Or have been adamant about being able to call one.
“I don’t think an attorney will do you much good, Senor Nunes. You’ve already confessed to killing a man. It was witnessed by several officers of the law, and we now have the gun you used.”
Dewing sat forward slightly, her voice lacking any inflection. It was all the more intimidating for the lack of hostility. “Two police officers were critically injured and may not make it.”
Gibbs grimaced, unhappy with the reminder of how serious Tony and Lundy’s injuries were, but also very glad to know beyond a doubt she was lying about their current condition. He couldn’t have read the lie in her voice or posture. She was good.
“You are going to pay for that.” She hesitated for a moment. “With your life.”
Nunes panicked and started to rise. Mendez and another moved swiftly, gripping his shoulders and forcing him back into his seat. Gibbs noticed that Mendez’s grip was tight enough to whiten his knuckles, and made Nunes wince. They remained standing next to Nunes effectively trapping him.
Dewing dipped her head once, acknowledging their action and condoning it at the same time. “Relax Senor. You won’t die in this room. No, that would leave us with just a few too many questions to answer. But rest assured, you will die.”
She sat back, waving a hand in a careless gesture. “There are some people in our jail who had friends among the fallen. And there are a few I believe you may have met before, on less than favorable terms, or so it seems.”
Nunes’ dark complexion paled dramatically when Dewing started naming names. Whoever the people Dewing named were, they clearly meant something to Nunes. Dewing had done her homework.
“It will not take long for news of your arrival amid the ranks of the incarcerated to spread.” Dewing assured him. “Especially not when we make a point of telling them.”
“And if they don’t get you, we will strap you down while other people watch you get a needle full of poison.” Mendez interjected quietly, leaning down to speak directly into Nunes’ ear. “They always say it’s painless, but it’s not. Everyone screams. They all cry like little girls. They wet their pants, and shit themselves. They blubber and beg. So will you.”
Nunes straightened, grasping what little composure he still had. “This is all a misunderstanding.”
“I agree.” Dewing pushed her chair back and stood. “You clearly did not understand that here in Houston we do not tolerate your kind. We cannot permit you to hurt two of ours and allow that to go unanswered. It wouldn’t be right. Surely, you can understand that? After all, you’ve killed others for much the same reason.”
She clucked her tongue. “I will be stepping out for awhile. My men will keep you company and impress upon you the error of your ways.”
Nunes blanched and again tried to stand only to be forced back into his chair. “You can’t…My attorney---“
“Oh a few bruises, missing teeth, broken bones…they are not so hard to explain.” Dewing smiled coldly. Her recitation of the injuries likely to be inflicted on him made Nunes shudder.
“The elevator was out of order and we had to take the stairs. You were clumsy and slipped. It is rather hard to catch one’s balance with your hands cuffed behind you.”
“Will he be falling several floors, Ma’am?” Mendez asked, still making it clear Dewing was in charge and that he was seeking permission to act. He and the other cop had Nunes up and standing, cuffs in place with efficient speed Gibbs found impressive.
“At least several floors. Maybe more than once.” Dewing patted Nunes’ face. “I’ll see to it the camera’s are off for as long as you need.”
Mendez smiled. “Thank you, Ma’am.”
Beaumont looked at Gibbs. “You’re up.”
Gibbs nodded. He’d known about this part of the plan, at least in general terms. They couldn’t really get too specific since there were too many variables. The goal was to scare Nunes enough to get him to roll on Shepard. Dewing and company had started the process; it was Gibbs’ job to finish it. Ziva had been decidedly disappointed to know no actual injuries would be inflicted. Gibbs felt the same way, but he understood the need to do it right.
He left the observation room and strode purposefully toward the interrogation room. He knocked loudly on the door before entering. He took in everything at a glance, pleased to see the few seconds it had taken him to get from one room to the other nothing had changed.
“What the hell is going on in here??!” Gibbs demanded, slamming the door with enough force to make Nunes jump.
“Special Agent Gibbs, I believe I told that this was our case, and we would be handling it.” Dewing’s tone was icy. If Gibbs hadn’t known better he’d have believed her to be truly pissed.
“And I told you that this is a federal case.”
The argument bounced back and forth between them for several minutes. It was more than enough time for Nunes to catch on that Gibbs might well just be the man to save him from a beat down and a death sentence. The irony of his playing a ‘good cop’ to their ‘bad’ was not lost on Gibbs. It was a novel role for him, and one he never planned to be in again.
“Call off your dogs, Dewing,” Gibbs ordered curtly. “I’ve got a warrant. A federal case trumps local, and Nunes is mine.”
The four cops ringing Nunes didn’t move. Nunes’ dark eyes shifted back and forth, desperately darting between Gibbs and Dewing. He looked close to trying to bolt when Mendez’s hand came to rest on the back of his neck.
“Fine.” Dewing snapped her fingers. Mendez and the other three stepped way from Nunes. They didn’t remove the cuffs though. Gibbs silently approved. The cuffs would remind Nunes of their presence even after they’d left. Keeping him scared was part of the plan. What the man didn’t know was that he had more to fear from Gibbs than the Houston cops.
“When you find out he’s nothing but a scumbag drug dealer with lofty ambitions, and completely unrelated to your case, I expect you to return him to me and mine.”
Gibbs tipped his head, signaling agreement. “If he can’t to tell me what I want to know, I’ll give him back.”
Gibbs could see Nunes nearly praying he would be able to tell him whatever he wanted to know. Nunes’ cowardly behavior pissed Gibbs off. Someone responsible for nearly killing Tony should be a better man. This little piss ant wasn’t good enough to even breathe the same air.
Once Dewing and the others left, Nunes spoke almost immediately. “Thank you, Sir. I want to press charges. Those people were about to--“
Gibbs stopped him with a look. He was still playing the ‘good cop’, but not that damn good. No reason for Nunes to think he’d escaped getting burned just yet.
“Sit,” he ordered, pointing to the chair Nunes had been in.
The man sat immediately. “What do you wan to know?”
“Tell me about Trent Kort?”
Nunes nervously licked his lips. “I am not familiar with him. I was just telling them that I don’t know•“
“Don’t waste my time.” Gibbs’ gaze was flat and hard. “You either tell me what I want to know or I give you back to them. Your choice.”
Nunes swallowed hard. “What do you want to know about him?”
Gibbs glared at him. “Everything.”
It was like uncorking a bottle. Nunes just spewed information. He hadn’t really worked with Kort or even met the man before a few days ago. He detailed how he’d been working with Rene Benoit off and on for several years and took up with Kort as a byproduct of that. Nunes sounded so reasonable as he tried to explain needing more firepower and how getting it from a reliable source seemed like a good idea. Gibbs wanted to throttle the man.
“Why’d you kill him?”
“He lied to me. Betrayed me.” Nunes said bluntly. “He was not a businessman like Benoit. He was a federal agent, like you.”
“And you know this how?”
“A received a call from a friend of Benoit’s. She told me Kort was not who he claimed to be.”
“She?” Gibbs’ eyes narrowed, wanting to seem surprised rather than pissed. “A woman?”
“Si. She said she was looking out for Benoit’s business associates. She was making sure his customers were not being misled by the man who killed him.”
Gibbs raised both eyebrows. “And you just took her word for it?”
“No, of course not.” Nunes shook his head. “I am no fool.”
Gibbs thought otherwise but didn’t say so aloud.
“I checked.” Nunes said. “I check everything she told me was true.”
Gibbs frowned. “Everything?”
“Yes.” Nunes gave him an earnest look. “She called me several times. Always the information she gave me was accurate.”
“Who was she?”
Nunes hesitated.
“I want a name!” Gibbs snarled. He didn’t think Shepard would have used her own name, but whatever name she’d given was one more piece of the puzzle and he wanted it now.
“You want to do her harm. Make her pay for what happened to your fellow agent.” Nunes cocked his head to one side, giving Gibbs a calculating look ignoring the fact that his killing Kort might be reason enough for Gibbs to want to do him harm.
“Perhaps we could make a deal. And exchange of favors. You let me go and I tell you what I know about this woman.”
“You either tell me what I want to know, or I let the cops here in Houston take their pound of flesh out of you before they sentence you to death. I’ll even help them.” Gibbs fixed Nunes with a hard stare. “That’s the only deal on the table.”
Nunes flinched. “But Agent Gibbs•“
“Take it or leave it.” It was a risk that Nunes might just find balls enough to defy him, but Gibbs doubted he would this late in the game.
Nunes swallowed hard. “She said her name was Nikita Druyiev. She spoke with a heavy accent, one I did not recognize, but thought might be Russian from her name.”
Gibbs jaw clenched. He hadn’t heard that name in nearly ten years. Nikita Druyiev was the undercover name Shepard had used when they worked in Moscow together before the case had them heading for Paris. They’d been assigned to eliminate a man and his mistress. Gibbs had done his part, nearly getting arrested for murder when Shepard was late in following through with her end.
“She knew all about Benoit’s business and my dealings with him.”
Her knowing all that was likely what broke the ice and got Nunes to trust her, Gibbs mused. And Shepard knew Benoit’s business better than practically anyone else.
“She warned me about several other people I was dealing with as proof she could be trusted. There were traitors in my organization.”
Gibbs cursed silently. It sounded like Shepard had betrayed more than Kort. Why the hell would she do that?
“What did Nikita look like?”
Nunes shook his head. “Our only contact was by phone. We never met.”
“You’re lying.” Gibbs declared. He wanted Nunes to be lying. He wanted him to be able to pick Shepard out of a line up, to put a nail in her coffin once and for all. But even has he made the accusation, he knew Nunes wasn’t lying.
“I’m telling the truth. I never met her.” Nunes insisted, leaning forward to hold Gibbs gaze. “I thought the woman who was with Kort, the pretty blonde, might have been her. Benoit had referred to having an assistant…a woman who handled details for him. The woman who called me…she knew so much about Benoit’s business, about what I’d done with him…it made sense that it was his assistant. I thought she wanted to make sure the man who betrayed her boss did not go unpunished for his treachery. When I saw her there, that night, I ordered my bodyguards not to harm her. Just in case she was Nikita. I owed her a debt.”
Gibbs wanted to curse. He had yet another tenuous tie to Shepard, but nothing concrete. Circumstantial evidence would not be enough to put her behind bars. It might be enough to have the SecNav force her to step down but that was hardly the sort of punishment Gibbs wanted doled out. God. Damn. It.
“Did you ever call her?”
Nunes nodded. “Several times.”
“Give me the number.” Gibbs ordered.
They already had that information, but this would strengthen the connection to get the name and means of contact directly from Nunes. Nunes surprised him by being able to recite the number from memory.
Gibbs stifled a sigh, resisting the urge to belt the man on general principle. He stood up and headed for the door.
“Agent Gibbs, where are you going? I told you what you wanted to know. You said--”
Gibbs ignored him as he walked out, closing the door behind him. He nodded to Dewing and Mendez who were just outside the door. They obviously knew he hadn’t gotten what he wanted, but they had the good sense not to comment on it.
“Can you take care of him?”
“We’ll sit on him for now.” Dewing nodded. “Beaumont said to tell you she just got word the CIA knows officially that Kort’s dead. Sounds like we might be getting some company.”
Gibbs grimaced, not happy about this news, but realizing it wasn’t a huge issue. As pissing contests went, he was sure the crew in Houston could hold their own against anyone the CIA sent out. And if they wanted Kort dead the way LaFiamma said they did, Gibbs doubted they’d send their A game. It was more likely a formality but still one they’d have to deal with.
“Everything is backed up?” Gibbs asked.
“Yep,” Mendez smirked. “And safely stowed.”
“We’ve got good claim to Nunes,” Dewing told him, shrugging one shoulder. “Can fight to hold him, but we’ll probably lose Loire. Not sure this is much more she can tell us anyway.”
Gibbs nodded. “I’m going to check in with McGee.”
He was hoping McGee would tell him he’d linked the phones directly to Shepard. McGee should have the store footage by now. Hopefully there was something there they could use.
The money Shepard had moved in and out of Tony DiNardo’s account was a detail that still bothered him. Given what Abby had found she’d obviously used it to pay for medical treatment, but where had it come from?
There was more to Shepard’s wanting to take out Kort than just keeping her father’s name clear. Why else would she give Nunes information on people in his organization? She had to have been getting something from that.
Gibbs didn’t know what exactly Shepard had been doing, but his gut was telling him the money was part of it. Had she been working with the CIA to get Kort killed the way LaFiamma’s contacts said she was? Did she get paid for that bit of betrayal? Was she working with the CIA to set up Nunes for something they needed done? Something that meant getting him to trust her implicitly?
Gibbs rubbed tiredly at his eyes. At the rate things were going, he wasn’t sure his resolve to do this the right way would last long enough to take Shepard down. If they didn’t get what they needed soon, he was going to fly back to DC and strangle her.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Gibbs gets his chance to confront Nunes.