Gibbs fought down his instinctive need to simply demand answers, to hear results of the team’s efforts for the past few hours and issue orders on what still needed to be done He mustered his patience and waited for Beaumont. He hated not being in complete control of the investigation but he and his team were only being included because she’d pulled strings. And it wouldn’t take much to send them packing.
One phone call from her to the SecNav--Gibbs and his team would be on the next plane back to DC. He knew she wouldn’t hesitate to make that call if he pissed her off. She’d made it clear when she lined out the terms of them working the case that she wouldn’t put up with him breaking any rules. Even if Beaumont had been prepared to give him some leeway, no one else on her staff would tolerate him trying to take the lead or investigating on his own. He’d already put his foot in his mouth with Dewing more than once, Mendez and LaFiamma didn’t like him on general principle, Hartung and Sixkiller hadn’t commented but he suspected they would side with their teammates. Lundy might think he was okay, but he wasn’t position to argue in favor of Gibbs or his team.
Gibbs took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The conference room Beaumont had set for a meeting place was the same one they’d used the last time he’d been in Houston. It was large enough for everyone and yet gave them privacy that the NCIS bullpen rarely offered.
From what Gibbs knew of how the team in Houston worked, Beaumont calling this meeting wasn’t unusual but it wasn’t exactly the norm either. Ordinarily, she simply asked to be kept in the loop, getting updates from her people at regular intervals from the lead detective. It was Gibbs’ understanding that she didn’t typically take such a hands on approach unless it was absolutely necessary. Given what had happened to her people, Gibbs couldn’t really argue against her taking a more active role in this one. They were down two detectives, Tony and Lundy, three if they counted LaFiamma staying at the hospital to guard his cousin and partner. Mendez had only one good arm. Dewing still sported bruises and walked with a limp. Her partner had been informed of what happened; he was cutting his vacation short but wouldn’t be back in Houston until tomorrow.
Gibbs silently breathed out ‘finally’ when Beaumont strode in, the last to arrive. She shut the door, after checking to see everyone was present and accounted for. Gibbs couldn’t help but admire the way she took command of the room. She had everyone’s attention without having to even say a word.
“Okay, people, lets run the numbers.” She looked at Abby. “What have you got on the ordinance?”
Abby hesitated, looking to Gibbs for guidance. Gibbs nodded, giving her permission to answer Beaumont. He caught a trace of amused understanding in Beaumont’s eyes. No doubt her people would have looked at her first before answering to him.
“From the residual chemicals we were able to clearly identify the make up the explosives.” Abby was uncharacteristically sober as she gave her report. No extra, meaningless information. No bubbling, happy smiles and flapping pig tails. Gibbs wasn’t sure if he missed the babble and positive disposition or not.
“The signatures I found in what was collected from the warehouse are used exclusively in Marine Corps issue.”
Beaumont nodded, trading a look with Gibbs. It was both a relief and disappointment to have a genuine reason to be working the case. Gibbs hated seeing any military hardware misused, especially Marine Corps. But at least now NCIS’ involvement was legitimate and justifiable.
Beaumont shifted her gaze back to Abby. “Any idea how that shit got here?”
Abby shook her head. “So far, I haven’t found any reports of theft. Nothing is listed as missing or lost. Nothing was scheduled for disposal either that could have been sidelined.”
Beaumont arched an eyebrow. “Inside job?”
It was a logical question. That would explain how ordinance could disappear and no one notice. It wouldn’t be the first time paperwork was tampered with.
“It’s possible.” Abby bit her lip, her eyes moving uncertainly from Beaumont to Gibbs. “I’m still working on it.”
“Fair enough.” Beaumont clearly wasn’t the sort to make unreasonable demands. Not that he’d ever say so, but Gibbs could see the appeal of her management style.
“Let me know if you need help.”
Abby twisted her fingers together in a classic gesture of unease. “I prefer to work alone. I mean, Annie is great and I don’t mind sharing her lab. Really. But the last time I had an assistant he was---”
“Not saying you have to work with someone, Ms. Scuito. I’m just offering assistance if you need it.” Beaumont smiled. “Try to remember we’re on the same side here.”
Abby smiled back at her, clearly relieved. “Yes, Ma’am.”
Beaumont looked at Hartung. “Annie, what have you got?”
“I’ve run ballistics on all the weapons and the bullets recovered at the scene.” Annie pointed to the screen on the wall, hitting a button to bring it to life. A picture of a large caliber slug appeared. “Everyone, except this one, was a match to guns found at the warehouse or belongs to our people.”
“Amos, who did you pull that one out of?”
Sixkiller answered with one word. “Kort.”
“Has to be Nunes’ gun then, yes?”
“Yep.”
“It is the only bullet of that caliber recovered at the scene,” Hartung said. “Not sure why, but as far as I can tell, Nunes apparently fired that weapon once and only once.”
Beaumont cocked her head to one side. “And the gun wasn’t at the scene?”
“No.”
“Damn,” Beaumont cursed softly. Gibbs knew she was hoping for more evidence to link Nunes directly to Kort’s murder. Several cops seeing him do it didn’t hurt, but conclusive proof like a gun with his prints would seal the deal.
“Any theories on why he didn’t ditch it?”
“You may not have found it,” McGee offered, “given how close the warehouse was to the water he could have tossed it in anywhere.” Gibbs gave the younger man points for not making it sound like the Houston cops hadn’t been diligent in their search.
“His bodyguards got him out of the building quick.” Mendez noted. “Maybe he didn’t have time to fire more than once, or didn’t see the need to toss it once he got away.”
“Or he could be like that sick fuck, Ashton.” Dewing said.
“Ashton?” Ziva asked, her brow furrowing at the new name.
“Maurice Ashton. It’s a case Joe and Levon worked. The guy kept a pearl handled .38 revolver that he used only for killing people he considered traitors to his organization. Never fired the thing more than once at a time, and it was always a head shot when he did. They found the gun in his safe, and pinned four murders on him.”
“Hopefully we can ask Nunes when we find him. Shame that slippery bastard wasn’t among the dead.” Beaumont grimaced. “What do we have on him?”
“He is well known as a drug dealer in Columbia , but he wasn’t on the list of operators DEA and Vice had put together as possibles to show the night of the bust.” Dewing said. “We now know one of the guys who was on the list worked for him.”
She took the remote from Hartung, hitting a button to bring up a picture of a Hispanic man in his mid to late thirties. A scar ran down one cheek, three tear drop tattoos decorated the other. “Alberto Rodriquez. Not exactly new in the area. Vice and DEA have been watching him for the last year or so. He styled himself as the man in charge, taking over and expanding territories. Evidently, he wasn’t the top dog he made himself out to be. At best he’s was a lieutenant who was running the operation here for Nunes, but he clearly thought of himself as more than that.”
Beaumont frowned. “Maybe DEA’s turf war was actually a civil war.”
Dewing shrugged. “Wouldn’t be the first time.”
It probably won’t be the last either, Gibbs thought cynically. Drugs rarely had static boundaries. And the players changed frequently.
“Can we bring this Rodriquez in for questioning?” Ziva asked. “He could tell us more about Nunes.”
“We would if we could find him.” Mendez shook his head. “No one has seen him in days.”
Gibbs bit back a curse. “Dead?”
“It is likely.” Mendez rested his cast on the table with a sigh. “I doubt Nunes was the sort to tolerate any of his people getting ambition to climb higher than he wanted them.”
“Men like that usually don’t.” Beaumont frowned. “Do we know when Nunes arrive in Houston?”
“According to Customs he arrived five days go.” Ziva had pulled a few strings to get the Immigration Department to cooperate and give them the information more quickly than they would have otherwise. “His private plane is still at the airport.”
“No one has seen hide or hair of him since the bust.” Mendez muttered. “I hate it when they go to ground.”
“McGee, did you get his phone number from Loire’s blackberry?” Beaumont asked.
“I did.” McGee tapped several keys on his laptop. “I’ve been trying to triangulate his location but he hasn’t had his cell on since we got the number.”
“If he had any sense, he’d have tossed it. If we’re lucky, he’s stupid.” Beaumont shifted her weight, the fingers of her left hand beating a soft tattoo on her thigh. “We get his phone logs?”
“Yep.” Mendez took the remote Dewing hand off to him and brought up a spreadsheet on the screen. “I talked to Vice. They picked out the ones belonging to drug dealers they’ve been watching.” More than a dozen numbers, all with area codes for Houston, lit up in green and flashed once. “We’ve got people monitoring their phones and keeping an eye out in case Nunes contacts any of them or shows up at their usual hang outs.”
“The overseas numbers we were only able to narrow down to the country of origin. Not too surprising they are mostly Columbian.” Another dozen numbers lit up in blue. “Those are well out of our jurisdiction to monitor legally. And we don’t have the manpower or technology to cover them anyway. I wasn’t sure how you felt about asking DEA for input or help after we told them to butt out.”
Beaumont pursed her lips. “Can NCIS do anything with those?”
Gibbs nodded. “We can.”
Legally they didn’t have any real grounds---except that Nunes had intended to buy military hardware which he planned to use within the US borders. That could get him labeled as a terrorist. Anyone he’d done business with might well fall under the same heading which could put Homeland Security in the mix. They had more authority than NCIS when it came to acting unilaterally, but Gibbs wasn’t sure he wanted to involve them. Not to mention the CIA still waiting in the wings. They were going to get curious about Kort’s disappearance eventually.
Gibbs would run it by the SecNav. He could decide how much they should pursue. Gibbs wasn’t interested in a drug dealer in Columbia unless he was the one to tip off Nunes about Kort and was ultimately responsible for Tony being hurt.
“Annie make sure they get copies of everything.”
Hartung nodded, holding up a flash drive. “Already done.”
“Any numbers in Nunes log that don’t seem to fit?”
“Two.” Those two lit up in red and stayed lit. “They both come up as burn phones. The first one was bought and activated in the DC area eight months ago. There are five calls from that phone to Nunes and three from him to it. The second one was purchased around the same time but wasn’t activated until a few days ago. Only one call was made. It lasted just under five minute, one day before the bust.”
Beaumont arched an eyebrow. She gave Gibbs a pointed look. “This something you’ll be wanting to look into?”
“Yes.” Not just yes, Gibbs thought, hell yes. A burn phone by itself didn’t prove anything. Nunes was a drug dealer;any number of his customers or contacts might have felt the need to have their communication remain untraceable. That they were purchased in the DC area likewise didn’t prove anything. Nunes was primed to expand his business in Houston; there was nothing saying Houston was the only place he was doing so. But even as circumstantial evidence it lent credence to his and LaFiamma’s theory that Sheppard might be involved.
“We get anything useful from Loire’s laptop?”
“No.” McGee shot Gibbs’ an apologetic glance. “It must have been more exposed to heat from the fire or gotten hit during the explosion. Part of the monitor melted and the hard drive was damaged. I’m trying to rebuild it, but that’s going to take some time, and I can’t guarantee we’ll get anything useful from it.”
“It’s all right, McGee. I know you are doing your best.” Beaumont huffed out a sigh. “Ultimately, the laptop may not be a huge loss for us.”
“Why?” Ziva asked, frowning. “It would have everything Kort was involved in.”
Beaumont shook her head. “The only thing we want to know about Kort is who revealed his true identity. Nothing else about him really matters to us.”
“But"“
“The man was an undercover operative.” Beaumont held Ziva’s gaze easily. “Everything that he did was probably recorded somewhere by someone else. Or at least it should have been. By all rights, if the CIA had any sense, they have a copy of whatever was on that laptop before Kort came to Houston. And Loire wouldn’t be a good Pepper Potts if she didn’t have it backed up somewhere. She might not have mentioned it or be overly willing to give it up, but I’d bet good money she’s got copies.”
“Most of what is likely on it has nothing to do with this case.” Dewing pointed out with a wry smile. “It’d be nice to have, but we aren’t chasing down international arms dealers. We’re a little more parochial than that.”
McGee glared at Beaumont and then Dewing. “Why have me"“
“Because what we’ve got is speculation, McGee.” Beaumont’s tone was sharp. “I want confirmation. The CIA won’t share willingly and getting them or Loire to cough up more will be a lot easier if they think they are only giving us what we already know.”
Gibbs nodded to himself. She was right about that. Playing politics wasn’t much different than an interrogation in some ways. It was always easier when you weren’t guessing. Or could at least make the suspect think you weren’t. Not knowing enough was one of the reasons he didn’t push harder to get more out of Loire. He didn’t want any nasty surprises or to look as though he wasn’t in complete control of the situation. Letting her stew on the fact that her life was already at risk for talking at all, and making sure she knew they might ask for more had been a calculated tactic on his part.
Beaumont smiled tightly. “And I said it wouldn’t be much use to us. We,” she made a motion encompassing her people, “aren’t in the business of chasing down international arms dealers.” She pointed to Gibbs and his team. “You guys are. Or at least your director seems to think so.”
Ziva’s jaw clenched at the mention of Shepard. McGee looked away, and Abby blushed. The La Grenoille case and subsequent fall out still bothered them. And well it should, Gibbs thought. That cluster was one of the reasons Tony left. None of them trusted Shepard any more.
Beaumont took a breath and released it. “BOLO is out on Nunes?”
“Yep.” Mendez replied.
“I’d like to keep him as the primary focus for my people from here on out,” Beaumont said to Gibbs. “We’ve got more local connections and contacts here to help find him if he’s still in Houston.”
Gibbs nodded in agreement. They could police their own backyard far better than he and his team could.
“I’d like you and your people to focus on those burn phones and how exactly the Marines managed to misplace some serious fire power.”
Again Gibbs nodded. Those were what he wanted to be doing anyway.
“The laptop can go on the back burner for now. We’ll still want it, as leverage if nothing else, but it’s not a high priority at the moment. Whatever you manage to pull off it may prove useful in the long run even if it has no direct bearing on this case.”
She looked to Gibbs. “Let me know if those international numbers give us any direct leads we can use here.”
“Yes, Ma’am.” The respectful ‘ma’am’ slipped out before Gibbs could stop it.
Beaumont smirked. “Bet you don’t do that very often.” She scanned the room, making eye contact with everyone. “Questions?” When they remained silent, she nodded. “All right then, let’s do this thing.”
Beaumont laid a hand on Gibbs’ arm as he started to move past her eager to get to work. “You might want to stop by the hospital.”
Gibbs’ chest tightened. “Tony--”
“Is fine, or not any worse at any rate.” She smiled reassuringly. “Joe called me just before this meeting. Said he’s got some information for you. Thought you might be able to brief him on what we found here.”
“What’s his cell number"“
“Wouldn’t do any good to call that,” she chuckled. “The nurses confiscated every cellphone they see him with. It’s why he ended up calling me. He couldn’t find your number.”
Gibbs almost growled. “How do I contact him then?“
“Go to the hospital. I’ve got a uniform headed there to relieve the guard on duty. You can catch a ride with him.”
It was so tempting. He hadn’t had a chance to talk to Ducky since leaving the hospital hours ago. Even if he had talked to Ducky, Gibbs still wanted to check on Tony, to see for himself the younger man was no worse than he had been. But the case took precedence.
“I don’t have time"“
“We both know your team will be doing most of the work. They don’t need you looking over their shoulders. And you can’t tell me you don’t want to see for your own eyes that Tony’s doing okay.”
Gibbs hesitated.
She sighed. “Your people will want to know how he’s doing too, and I’m sure they trust your assessment and that of Dr. Mallard better than anyone else.”
Gibbs glared at her. Guilt worked far too well, and he hated that she barely knew him and was still savvy enough to know what to use against him. “That was low.”
“I know, but effective.” She smiled. “I told you"“
“Playing by the rules doesn’t mean you can’t play to win.”
“Exactly.” She patted his shoulder. “Besides, I want someone to look in on Joe and Levon. And I don’t have people to spare at the moment.”
More guilt he didn’t want or need. “You win. I’ll go.”
“We both win. The uniform will be waiting out front when you’re ready.”
“I’m ready now.”
“You need to tell your people where you’re going first.”
Gibbs wanted to snarl at her to mind her own damn business, except that by agreeing to her terms earlier, he’d made his team her business. And it was hard to hostile to someone who was clearly looking out for their best interest.
“Let them know the next guard change will be in four hours. Anyone who wants to go along is welcome.”
Gibbs nodded. He knew he wasn’t the only one still worried about Tony, and he should thank Beaumont for reminding him of that fact, but he didn’t want to admit he’d forgotten. The look she gave him made it plain she already knew.
Everyone in Houston was an asshole, Gibbs decided. Or maybe not everyone, he amended thinking about his team and Tony’s…just the good ones.
Author's Chapter Notes:
a review of the case