Maya looked at him curiously. “So she wanted to take the next big step in a relationship, meeting her family. What did you say?”
“I didn’t know what to say.” He answered honestly. “I really cared about Megan after all we had been going out for 3 and a half months by that stage but after what I had been through with Sasha I didn’t want to get too comfortable in a relationship.”
“But you just said you really cared about her.”
“I did. But meeting family is a big step in a relationship and I wasn’t sure I was ready to take that step yet.”
“Did you tell Megan that or did you just continue to stare at her with a mouth full of food?”
“Well I didn’t get the chance to answer because just as I regained my composure we were interrupted by an urgent call on my cell phone...
* * *
Tony looked at his girlfriend apolitically before he swallowed the food in his mouth and reached into his pocket for his ringing phone.
“DiNozzo.”
“Tony, we need to here.” Came McGee’s anxious reply.
Tony sighed. “You really know how to ruin a moment don’t you Probie?”
“It’s important Tony. It’s Abby! She was checking to see if the white powder we found at the hotel was cocaine and it turns out it was cyanide gas.” McGee explained.
“Is Abby okay?” Tony asked. “I’m on my way.” He said before standing up putting his phone back in his pocket and quickly kissing Megan on the forehead. “I’m really sorry but something’s happened at work. I’ll talk to you later.” He told her as he headed towards the restaurant door leaving his girlfriend sitting alone at the romantic table for two.
Maya gasped. “Oh, my, god! What happened to Aunty Abby? Was she ok?”
“Well we had recently had a case in a hotel room where there was blood and white powder everywhere and while she was testing the powder she realised it had cyanide in it.” He explained.
“Why would someone put cyanide in cocaine?” Maya asked.
“That’s a good question and that’s why we started to think someone was after your Auntie. While the lab was decontaminated and both Abby and Probie were checked over we went through her records and found some very interesting facts about your Aunt....
* * *
Tony knew Abby was kinda weird that was one of the things he admired about her but he thought she had better taste in men.
“You have injunctions out on your ex-boyfriend to stop him from stalking you, he made a creepy shrine website and has called you 200 times in the last month, and did you really buy him a straitjacket for his birthday?” Tony read to her from her file.
For once the Goth was silent; she sat on the bench in autopsy next to McGee looking at her feet.
“Why didn’t you come to me, Abby?” Gibbs asked her.
“Because, Gibbs, I wanted him restrained. I didn’t want him beaten to a pulp with a baseball bat. And I’m embarrassed. It wasn’t a great taste in boyfriends.” She explained.
“Did I mention the web shrine he dedicated to you?” Tony asked.
“Okay, it’s creepy. But that’s not dangerous. He just can’t accept that it’s over between us. He’s not a violent type.” Abby replied.
“The guy cleans up crime scenes for a living, Abs.” Tony reminded her.
She sighed. “I know. That’s what I liked about him. But I’m telling you, Gibbs, he’s not your man. You’re going to pay him a visit anyway. Can you pick up my red studded dog collar when you’re there?” She asked as Gibbs and Tony left the room.
“Wow Auntie Abby’s ex-boyfriend sound almost as creepy as Chip.” Maya said as she shivered at the thought. “But you went and arrested him right, before he could hurt her more?”
“Well it was a little more complicated than that. You see we paid him a visit just as he was staging a photo shoot, with himself as the victim, so we had our guns at the ready. But it turns out he had an alibi for the time of the crime: there had been a full moon, and it had been "drive-by central" and he worked three crime scenes for metro police. We couldn’t arrest him.” Tony explained.
“So Abby had a killer after her and you couldn’t do anything about it?” Maya asked and Tony could see the concern in her eyes.
“No. So it was back to square one. Gibbs sent Ziva and I back to the bullpen to continue working...
* * *
Tony quickly minimized the background check on the Lodge employees he’d been running and quickly read the latest email from Megan asking if Abby was OK and if he wanted to meet her family on Christmas. He looked around the office, with Christmas only 3 weeks away the decorations had begun to appear. He sighed and deleted the email without bothering to reply.
“What is wrong Tony?” Ziva asked him and for once she wasn’t reading over his shoulder.
“Oh nothing, it’s just...” He trailed off as his phone began to ring. His eyes widened when he noticed it was Megan.
“Hey, umm Ziva could...could you do me a favour?” He asked her nervously.
She stood up and walked over to him where she leant curiously on his desk. “That depends. What is it?”
“Could you answer this for me? It’s Megan and I really don’t want to talk to her right now?” He explained offering her the ringing phone.
She raised her eyebrows but took the phone without any argument. “Hello? It is Ziva. Uh, no he’s not here right now. He left here urgently and forgot his phone. Yes I will let him know you called. Very well.”
She calmly handed the phone back to him. “Are you no longer seeing Megan?” She asked.
Tony shook his head. “No, we are still together I was just too busy to talk to her.”
“Talk to who?” Abby asked as she entered the bullpen quickly followed by McGee.
Tony quickly shot Ziva a look so she wouldn’t say anything.
“No one.” She told them and before they could question her further Gibbs stormed into the bullpen and demanded to know what they were doing.
“I’m running a background check on the Lodge employees. Maybe someone’s got a vendetta against the cleaning staff." Tony reported.
“And I am putting together a suspect list and was about to contact the local medical waste facilities and see if anyone reported a break-in.” Ziva reported.
Gibbs then turned expectantly to the youngest agent. “McGee?”
“Well, I can um… I can go check on… Boss, I’m not really sure what I should do.” McGee said nervously.
“Go home.” Gibbs ordered him. “Take Abby with you.”
“Gibbs, I am fine!” Abby protested. “I only have one stalker and he has an alibi.”
“I don’t want you to be alone tonight, Abs. You’re going with McGee.” Gibbs told her firmly.
“Great.” The Goth complained as she followed McGee towards the elevator. “It’s not like I haven’t been traumatized enough today.”
Maya laughed. “I bet Auntie Abby wouldn’t complain about going home with Uncle Probie now.”
Tony grinned. “Especially now they are living together.”
“Yeah, so anyway what happened when Auntie Abby went home with Uncle Probie?” Maya asked excitedly.
“Well apparently your Uncle Probie was a little annoyed at your Aunt because she fiddled with his computer and then when Abby left her tooth brush in McGee’s car she sent him out to get it. But when she answered the door thinking it was McGee it was really her stalker.”
“Oh my god! So what did she do? Did Uncle Probie rush in and rescue her?”
“Actually she threw your Uncle's typewriter at him and missed but broke it. Then she handcuffed the guy to a rail but he had a key around his neck so then she looked herself in the bathroom and when someone bust the door open she almost hit your Uncle with the lid of the toilet cistem.”
“So Auntie Abby was safe but the stalker guy got away.”
“Yeah and McGee wasn't too happy about his typewriter plus Gibbs wasn't happy with him because he left Abby alone...
* * *
Tony walked into the elevator after he got back from his break and didn't even notice the Goth sitting quietly in the corner until she said hello making him jump.
“Umm Abs, you do know this isn't your lab right?” He asked her curiously as he pressed the halt button and slid down next to her.
She nodded. “But I like it in here.”
“How long have you been in here?”
“Since Timmy brought me back here.”
Tony looked at his watch. “That was over an hour ago.”
“I know.”
He sighed. “Guess its better in here then it is out there.”
Suddenly they were interrupted as his cell phone began to ring. He rolled his eyes as he realised it was Megan.
“Aren't you gonna get that?”
He held the phone out to her. “Can't you?”
She glanced at the caller ID. “It's Megan; don't you wanna talk to her?”
He shook his head.
“Why not?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Tony I have a stalker trying to kill me.” Abby pointed out.
“Good point.”
“So what happened?”
“She asked me to meet her family.” Tony explained.
“Wow big step.”
“I know.”
“But not big enough to stop you from talking to her. Did you even tell her it freaked you out?'
He shook his head.
She Gibbs slapped him.
“Ow what was that for?”
“Stop avoiding your girlfriend and just tell her how you feel!”
“Did you have to hit me so hard?”
She nodded as she stood up and pressed the halt button. “Yes now go tell Gibbs where I am then ring Megan and sort stuff out!” She ordered him as the elevator dinged and the doors opened.
Tony hurried out of the elevator and into the bull pen where he noticed McGee knelling on the floor typing on his computer. “Uh Probie where's your chair?”
“He doesn’t deserve to sit.” Gibbs barked at them.
“With that ass?” Tony commented earning himself another Gibbs slap which didn't help his already pounding head. “Right sorry Boss, I didn't find our guy but I did find this in his apartment.” He reported handing Gibbs some recent photos of Abby.
“It looks like he has been tracking her for a while.” Ziva said as Tony brought the photos up on the plasma.
“So much for that restraining order.” McGee added.
“I also spoke to his supposed girlfriend. They went on one date and all he talked about was Abby.” Tony told them.
“Have any of you actually found the guy that's trying to hurt Abby?” Gibbs asked.
McGee sheepishly raised his hand. “Actually, Boss, I had an idea about how to find him. I’ve been analysing the incoming packets on Abby’s system. There appears to be a shell code. Um… I think that he's been worming into Abby’s computer to monitor her communications.”
“Do you think you can trace the worm?” Ziva asked.
McGee nodded. “If he tries to access again, yeah.”
Gibbs slid McGee a chair. “Coordinate with Abby.” He ordered him.
“Boss, you’re going to have to try to get her out of the elevator first.” Tony told him.
Gibbs nodded and headed towards the elevator.
“Did Uncle Gibbs manage to get her out the elevator?” Maya asked. “Did you do as Abby said?”
“He moved her lab stuff into the elevator until she decided that the longer she stayed in the elevator the worse her chances were.” Tony replied. “Then Gibbs took her back to his place for the night after her stalker managed to get into her lab. Then I single handedly-”
“With some help from Ziva and Uncle Probie.” Maya added.
“Okay they helped a bit; we managed to track down her stalker trying to cross the Anacostia River.”
“So Auntie Abby was safe.”
“Well not quite you see we brought the stalker into interrogation. He then protests his innocence and showed us that the pictures he had in his creepy stalker montage all showed the same guy following Abby.”
“Oh my god who was it?”
“Well then the Director came in and told us that the Federal Marshall who was supposed to pick up Abby: had his tires slashed and he hadn't left yet but someone just took your Aunt away in a van to testify on the latest court case.”
“So who took her? Was she okay?”
Tony nodded. “Yeah we rushed after them, getting co-ordinates off the GPS in Abby's phone. We got there to see no signs of your Aunt until we heard a whistle and sounds of a struggle. We ran over to the white van to find your Aunt standing there zapping the baddie with a tazer.”
“I knew Auntie Abby could look after herself!” Maya exclaimed. “So what did you do about Megan?”
“Well I decided to listen to your Aunt because she's always almost right and after work I decided to make a start on making it up to Megan...
* * *
Tony was packing up his stuff as Ziva walked into the bullpen.
“Hey.”
“Hi.”
“Listen, do you wanna come for a walk?” He asked her he could really use her opinion where he was going.
“Of course Tony where are we going?”
“You'll see.”
* * *
They arrived at the small jewellery store on the corner. Tony always brought his jewellery from there; it was even where his grandfather had gotten his grandmother's engagement ring from.
“Tony, what are we doing here?” Ziva asked him nervously.
“I need to pick something up and I wanted to get your opinion on it.” He explained as he entered the shop. Ziva nodded and followed after him.
“Hello.” They greeted the salesmen and Tony reached into his pocket and handed him a card. The salesmen glanced at it before walking over to the back of the shop.
“When are you going to tell me what we are doing here?” Ziva asked him again.
“Soon.” He promised.
The salesman returned and handed him a small black velvet box. “Here we are sir.”
Ziva looked at him curiously. “What's that?”
He opened the box slowly and grinned as her eyes widened as she saw the stunning gold diamond engagement ring.
“Ooh.” She said as she admired it.
“What do you think?”
“Megan will like it.” Ziva replied absent as she glanced at her watch. “I have to go. Bye Tony.” She said as she rushed out the door.
“I'm not surprised she left.” Maya commented.
“Why do you say that?”
Maya sighed. “Never mind. Anyway did you give Megan the ring? What did she say?”
“Well actually...
* * *
Tony quietly entered his apartment where he found his girlfriend sitting on the couch reading a book. He put his gear by the door and went over to sit next to her and wrap his arm around her.
She slowly placed her book down on her lap and looked up at him. “So you are talking to me.”
“Sorry about that today was hectic. Anyway I wanted to discuss our plans for next week.” He said casually.
She grinned slyly. “You made up your mind then. You wanna come meet my parents?”
He gently kissed her forehead. “Of course I do.”
Author's Chapter Notes:
While working on just a regular murder case with the rest of the NCIS team, Abby is almost killed by evidence from the case and soon it becomes clear that the murder was staged, and that someone wants Abby dead. The team discovers some enemies from Abby's past, and they must find out who is the person, before the person kills Abby. Tony considers Megan’s offer