Part 8
Jethro Gibbs poured himself a cup of coffee and began to make his way towards his basement. His steps were heavy as exhaustion coursed through his body, his knee sending him a painful reminder that he wasn’t as young as he used to be.
He carefully walked down the stairs and slowly circled his boat, sipping his brew as he admired the fine craftsmanship that had been created by his own two hands. There was something about the solitude and the intricacies of working with wood that always seemed to soothe his frazzled nerves and sort out his jumbled thoughts, but at the moment, he doubted anything could keep him from worrying about Tony.
The added strain of his father’s illness was forcing DiNozzo to push himself beyond his limits and the resulting stress was already affecting the young man’s health. Gibbs hoped that Tony had taken his own advice and had gone home to rest, but he had a feeling that resting was the last thing on his mind. Senior’s heart attack had unnerved his senior field agent, forcing Tony into the role of caretaker; a part that DiNozzo wasn’t use to playing.
The relationship between Senior and Junior was unusual; both men hid behind a mask of charm and deceit giving the appearance that all was well with their world when in all actuality, nothing could be further from the truth. Tony’s father was a man of mystery who obviously had not taken his paternal responsibilities seriously and now faced with a life threatening illness expected his son to take care of him; at least that was the way that it appeared to Gibbs.
Tony, being the dutiful son would oblige the elder DiNozzo hoping that perhaps after all these years, his dad would be able to find room in his heart for the young man who wanted nothing more than to be close to his father. Gibbs was truly concerned that Tony was going to be hurt by his father once again and he was determined to do everything in his power to prevent that from happening. DiNozzo seemingly could never catch a break where his father was concerned and despite Senior’s supposed desire to get to know his son better, the team leader couldn’t shake the gut feeling that the elder DiNozzo had a hidden agenda.
Setting his coffee down on the step below him, Gibbs raked is hands through his salt and pepper hair in a subconscious effort to clear his mind. Aware that he truly needed to sleep, but too tired to get back up and walk up the stairs, he eased his back against the wall and stretched out his legs in front of him. A groan escaped from his lips as he closed his eyes. “I’m getting too old for this,” he mumbled to himself.
The silence surrounding him was almost hypnotic as he began to allow the sweet arms of slumber to embrace him, hoping that Tony was getting the opportunity to do the same. It was the sound of his cell phone ringing that jarred him back to reality and sent the vapors of much needed sleep scattering into the air.
He fumbled for his phone, managing to answer on the second ring. “Gibbs.”
“Uh, hey Boss.”
The team leader sat up at the sound of Tony’s voice. DiNozzo had been the one to insist that he go home and rest; Gibbs knew that for Tony to call him there had to be something wrong. “Tony? Everything okay? Is your dad all right?”
“Yeah. They took him in a little earlier than they originally planned,” Tony answered. “I’m heading back over there in a little bit.”
Something was wrong and he had a feeling that it had something to do with Tony DiNozzo, Senior. The uncertainty in Tony’s voice concerned the team leader and he was determined to discover the cause of DiNozzo’s obvious distress. Many people assumed that Tony was unflappable and under most circumstances, they would be right; however, if the situation involved his father, Tony’s self-assurance seemed to evaporate.
“Tony, what’s wrong?” he quietly pressed.
“It’s nothing,” Tony answered a bit too quickly. “I just wanted to tell you that they took my dad earlier; I said I’d call if there were any changes.”
“You didn’t call me to tell to me that they took your dad early for his catharization; you want to cut the b.s. and tell me why you really called?”
An image of Tony as a lost child looking for direction etched itself in his mind; Gibbs had always been there to offer guidance and he was determined to do so once again.
“I shouldn’t have called you, Boss. I just wasn’t sure what else to do,” Tony said, almost as an afterthought.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s…it’s nothing I can’t handle. I’m really sorry I woke you up,” Tony apologized.
“You didn’t wake me up,” he countered. “I was just in the basement. How many more excuses are you going to throw at me before you tell me what’s going on?”
Gibbs was rewarded with silence on the other end of the line. He thought that he heard a faint gasp as Tony muttered a curse. The knot in his stomach pulled tighter as he considered the possibility that DiNozzo was hurt. After a few seconds, Gibbs gently called out to the agent. “Tony, are you still there?”
“I’m still here, Boss.”
“Talk to me, Tony.”
“Boss, before I tell you why I really called, I need you to give me your word that you’re going to let me handle it. I don’t want you confronting my father about this and I don’t want you to overreact and…”
“DiNozzo!”
“No Gibbs,” Tony stated, clearly not phased by Gibbs’ gruffness. “I need your word.”
It was evident to Gibbs that whatever it was that DiNozzo had to say was extremely important to him and if it took the team leader giving his word to encourage Tony to open up to him, then he would do as DiNozzo asked. “All right; I give you my word.”
There was no mistaking the sigh of relief that he heard emanating from DiNozzo. “Thanks; I really appreciate you trusting me on this.”
“You’re welcome,” the former Marine replied. “So tell me, what’s going on?”
“I got home and there were some men looking for my dad,” Tony began to explain.
Gibbs visibly bristled. “What men?”
“Sam Brewer and his hired muscle.”
Gibbs stood up, his swift movement knocking over his coffee. He had never had any dealings with Brewer, but he knew the man’s reputation and that was enough for him. “Sam Brewer? How did your father get mixed up with the likes of Brewer?”
“I don’t know; they had a business deal and my father owes him money. I guess that Brewer wants to collect. Obviously I haven’t had the chance to talk to my father about this; of course, I’m not sure he’d tell me the truth.”
He made his way back up the stairs and to his living room. His first instinct was to take Tony into protective custody and let Senior resolve his own conflict with Sam Brewer, but he knew that that DiNozzo would never leave his father defenseless against Brewer and his henchmen. “What can I do?” he wanted to know.
“Nothing. Remember you gave me your word, Boss,” Tony reminded him. “I guess I just thought you should know just in case something happens.”
“Where are you now?”
“I’m at home, but I’m getting ready to head back to the hospital.”
“Hang tight. I’ll be there in ten minutes; I’ll take you to the hospital.”
“Gibbs, you don’t have to appoint yourself my personal body guard. I’ll be fine,” Tony assured him.
“I’ll be over in ten and you better be there.”
Gibbs hung up, not giving Tony the opportunity to argue with him. Although Tony probably wasn’t too happy with him at the moment, he knew that DiNozzo would be at his apartment when he arrived. He couldn’t permit the man that he cared for as a son to fall prey to his father’s schemes; Tony would not be held accountable for the sins of the father.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
“Why can’t you learn to keep your mouth shut, Anthony?” Tony mumbled to himself as he hung up his phone.
He had gone against his natural instincts and called the team leader; his family problems had always been kept private and to allow an outsider to be privy to them had gone against everything that his dad had taught him. However, Gibbs wasn’t an outsider; he was more of a father figure to him than his own and would do everything in his power to help him.
Tony also realized that if either he or Senior ended up as fish food in the Potomac River, Gibbs would at least know where to place the blame.
He slowly stood up, wincing at the pain in his side as his broken rib shifted slightly. Tony was going to have a difficult time hiding his pain from Gibbs but he was going to have to; he thought that he had done a fair job of hiding it from him on the phone when Tony had shifted without thinking and he had to bite back a string of expletives that would make a sailor blush. Gibbs had enough to worry about now that he had taken on the role of his personal bodyguard.
Tony grabbed a pair of jeans and button down shirt, effectively managing to put them on without too much effort. His socks and shoes were going to prove to be a little more difficult because it would involve the usually simple task of bending over. He grabbed a pair of socks out of the drawer and sat back down on the bed, already deciding that he would wear a pair of slip-on shoes. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he put on his socks and sat back up, blowing out a pent up breath in an effort to try and even out his breathing.
He carefully stood back up and slipped his feet into his shoes and made his way to the living room. Glancing at his watch, he knew that Gibbs would be arriving any moment and that he was going to have to make sure that his mask was firmly in place. If the former Marine realized that Tony was hurt, the older man would never let him out of his sight.
The sound of a key unlocking his door forced him to stand upright as Gibbs entered his apartment. “Hey, Boss,” he casually greeted, surprised at how rested the team leader appeared to be despite the fact that he had obviously gotten very little sleep.
Gibbs handed him a cup of coffee while simultaneously taking a sip of his own. “Three sugars and a hazelnut creamer?”
Tony shook his head in amazement as he took the cup. “You had time to stop for coffee?”
“There’s always time for coffee.”
“Good point.”
He felt Gibbs’ ever vigilant gaze upon him. “Did you get any sleep?”
Knowing that it wasn’t any use to lie to him, Tony answered, “Not really. I did take a shower and clean up so I feel a lot better; it’s amazing how a hot shower can improve your outlook on life.”
“I’m sure it does,” the team leader conceded. “You still need to rest.”
Tony shrugged off the suggestion. “I guess I wasn’t as tired as I thought I was; I must have caught up on my beauty sleep while I was sleeping off my migraine.”
“Either that or something or someone kept you from getting any real rest.”
“I guess you’re talking about Sam Brewer,” he deduced. “Gibbs, I can handle this. I shouldn’t have called but I just…”
“You did the right thing by calling me; at least I can watch your six a little closer.”
“It’s not me he’s after; it’s my dad,” Tony pointed out.
“Yeah, but you know as well as I do DiNozzo, that men like Sam Brewer use any means possible to get their point across and I just want to make sure that he doesn’t use you as his messenger.”
Tony inwardly cringed at the former Marine’s well meaning words. Had Gibbs managed to see through his façade? Was he aware of the fact that Tony was trying to hide the fact that he had already been given a rather painful message to deliver? He had spent a life time of living behind a wall of stoicism and false bravado and he knew that he couldn’t afford to show any cracks in his armor; his dad’s life depended on him to be able to stay in control and focused.
Clearing his throat, he grabbed his keys and jacket. “I need to head on back to the hospital.”
“I’ll drive you,” Gibbs insisted.
Tony shook his head. “You don’t have to do that, Boss. I’ll need to have my car and you…’
One of these days, he was going to be able to withstand Gibbs’ infamous glare, but it obviously wasn’t going to be today. Despite his claims of not being tired, exhaustion was indeed claiming every part of his body prompting him to make the decision to allow Gibbs to win what could have been a potentially long and drawn out argument.
“All right,” he sighed. “Let’s go.”
He gestured for Gibbs to go in front of him in an effort to keep him from seeing Tony’s pained expression as the usually simple task of walking was quickly becoming a major endeavor. Keeping his coat over his arm, he attempted to nonchalantly brace his side, hoping that the action would somehow help support him as he forced his legs to keep up with Gibbs’ purposeful strides.
Tony closed the door behind him and hurried to catch up with the team leader. “Elevator or stairs?” Gibbs asked.
“Elevator,” Tony automatically replied.
“All right.”
DiNozzo watched as Gibbs pushed the button to summon the elevator car. Thankfully, they didn’t have to wait too long and the two of them promptly entered the empty lift. As soon as the doors closed, Tony punched the number one and they began the short journey to the first floor. Leaning against the back wall, he took the opportunity to allow his body to relax; he clenched his jaw as he fought against the fire that was burning inside him.
The abrupt stop of the elevator forced him back to awareness as he realized that Gibbs had hit the emergency stop button. Tony stared at his boss, confusion and disbelief radiating from his own emotive orbs. “Something wrong?”
“Lift up your shirt,” Gibbs ordered.
Tony swallowed hard. “Huh?”
“Your shirt. Lift it up,” the lead agent repeated.
“Are you all right, Boss? That’s kind of a strange thing to ask, isn’t it?”
“Nope.”
“Gibbs, I need to get to the hospital,” Tony pleaded, trying to think of any excuse that would enable him to deny Gibbs’ request.
“You probably do but not for the reason you think.”
“Gibbs, my dad…”
“Can wait. You’re favoring your side; what happened?”
Tony shook his head as he reached around the team leader to try and restart the elevator. Normally, he wouldn’t have even considered defying Gibbs, but he could not endanger the one man who had given him so much over the years; he didn’t want anything to happen to his dad, but Tony knew he would never forgive himself if something happened to Gibbs.
“Let it go, Gibbs,” he growled.
Gibbs stepped in front of the console preventing Tony from restarting the elevator. DiNozzo couldn’t bear to look into the blue daggers that were attempting to gaze into his soul. “I can’t let it go, Tony; not when I know you’re hurting. Now lift up your shirt,” Gibbs quietly demanded, his usual stern tone was now gentle and soothing.
Angry at himself for allowing Gibbs to manipulate him, Tony threw his coat on the floor and lifted his shirt to expose the bruise that had formed on his side. His cheeks flushed crimson when the team leader gently probed his aching side. “Did Brewer do this?”
“His hired muscle did it. It’s no big deal.”
“Looks pretty painful to me,” Gibbs observed.
“Nothing I can’t handle.”
“You keep saying that. Are you trying to convince me or yourself?”
“Gibbs, please.”
“You don’t have to do this by yourself.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Gibbs. One thing that was drilled into me since the day I was born was that DiNozzo’s take care of their own problems. Do you know how furious my father would be if he knew that I involved you in this mess?”
“Do you think that he would willingly risk your life because of his pride?”
“Yes,” Tony blurted out. Surprised by his answer, he attempted to correct himself although he knew that he had spoken the truth. “What I mean is that the DiNozzo name is everything to my dad and quite frankly, that’s all he has left right now. He’s probably going to have to heart surgery and now he’s got Sam Brewer out there demanding money that he clearly doesn’t have! What am I supposed to do, Gibbs? He’s my father!”
Tony saw that familiar fire in Gibbs’ eyes; it burned whenever the team leader felt an injustice had been done. “That’s right! He’s your father and as a father, his main concern should be his son!”
“I’ve never been his main concern and I doubt that’s going to change; I just have to settle for what I can get.”
“And what’s that?”
Tony pinched the bridge of his nose as he forced the tears of anger to stay at bay. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “Right now, I’d settle for this entire conversation to be over; I need to get to the hospital.”
“First thing you’re going to do when you get to the hospital is to get checked out,” Gibbs informed him.
“Whatever.”
“Tony, your dad’s in over his head and I don’t want to see you dragged down with him. Brewer doesn’t play around; I don’t want to see you hurt any more than you already are.”
“I’ll be fine,” he assured Gibbs. “I’ve just got to figure out how much money dad owes Brewer and then I can go from there.”
“You need to report this to the police.”
He shook his head. “Nope. You know and that’s enough. Besides, I don’t even know what kind of business venture that my dad has with Brewer; I need to find that out first.” Tony started the elevator, grabbing his side as it lurched as it continued down to the first floor. “Brewer probably has ties to the police force; he does in Baltimore so I figure he probably does in D.C. as well.”
“Tony, I…”
“My car or your car?” he asked, sending a silent message to the team leader that this particular discussion was over.
“I’ll drive.”
Tony carefully slid into the passenger seat of Gibbs’ car. Laying his head back against the head rest and closing his eyes, DiNozzo quietly rode out the waves of pain that seemed to assault him with each breath. Today was certainly not turning out as he had planned and thanks to Sam Brewer, he had a feeling that things were going to get a lot worse before they even considered getting better.
His hopes of repairing and rebuilding his relationship with his father were disintegrating before his very eyes and fate kept dealing him one blow after another. Would there ever be a day when he could have one thing he wanted without having to literally fight for it? He already knew the answer to that question. Sometimes life just sucked.
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