Grounded In Truth
Chapter 10
by WCUGirl
Vivian stepped forward. She tried desperately to hide the reluctance in her steps, but with her uncle there it was hard to not feel like a petulant school child being sent to the principal’s office.
“Have a seat, Ms. Blackadder,” Director Morrow said, indicating the chair in which he wanted her to sit. Vivian was no fool. She was told to sit. She sat.
“Now, because I am a director of an investigative agency, I would like to have the full account of what happened in Rota last week from your perspective.”
“Haven’t you already heard about Rota from Gibbs and DiNozzo?”
The director bristled. “I have. But you see, their jobs aren’t the ones on the line here. Yours is. I would like to hear from you, in your own words, just what in the hell happened to blow that op last week. I am not here to pick sides. I am here to understand what happened and make the decision that is best suited for the agency.”
“For the agency? Is that what this is all about? Looking out for the agency? Does no one ever consider the agents who work in the agency?”
The director smiled. “Of course I do, my dear. That’s why I’m giving you the opportunity to explain what happened"to give your account of the events"before I make a final decision about your job.”
“Oh please! You think you’re being all smart trying to get me to tell you my side of the story so that you can feel better about how you handled it when you fire me! I have no comment, Director.”
“That’s enough attitude young lady,” the SecNav said. “This is ultimately my decision. If you’re going to act like a twelve year old, we can arrange to have you treated like you are twelve.”
“I am not acting like I am twelve,” Vivian exclaimed. “I just don’t understand why it is I’m being expected to sit here and recount a series of events that two other agents have already recounted. You’ve already made your decision"you already know what you want to do,” at this she looked at Gibbs and Tony. “You’ve made your choice,” she said flatly.
Director Morrow leaned back in his chair and stroked a hand thoughtfully over his chin. He looked at Gibbs, at Tony, at the SecNav, and finally at Vivian Blackadder.
“You know,” he said, “I hadn’t made a decision at all,” he stated. “But you are leaving me without many options. I think you should know though, before you pass too harsh a judgment, that Agent DiNozzo has actually requested that you be allowed to keep your position.”
“What?! Why would DiNozzo want me to keep my job? I’ve treated him like shit since the day he walked in.” She mentally cursed herself. When you’re sitting in a disciplinary meeting such as this it is not wise to give them more reasons to inflict discipline on you. But what was this bullshit about Tony arguing in her favor? As if DiNozzo would do anything for her after what she’d done?
“I don’t know how you expect me to believe that DiNozzo would do anything for me,” she continued.
“That has honestly surprised all of us. Agent Gibbs even suggested he get a psych eval after stating that he didn’t believe you should be fired.”
DiNozzo laughed. He turned to Gibbs, “You wouldn’t really make me do that, would ya, Boss?” Gibbs narrowed his eyes. “That’s not funny, Boss,” Tony said, “not funny at all.”
“Ms. Blackadder, after discussing the events in Rota with Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo, Agent DiNozzo pointed out that you show exemplary skills at record keeping and notes management. He suggested that we put those skills to good use in one of the branch offices. Somewhere that wouldn’t be anywhere near Washington DC.”
Vivian stopped. “Wait, could I choose where to move?”
“Certainly,” the director said. “You may choose between Tulsa, Oklahoma or Reykjavík, Iceland. Oh and Rota, Spain. There is a position in records in Rota as well.”
“But if I’m working in records and notes management…you’re basically telling me I won’t be an investigator anymore.”
“That is exactly what I am telling you. That is also assuming I don’t decide to terminate your employment with us. You’ve proven time and again that you are inconsistent with your actions and your follow through. You have not demonstrated the ability to work successfully on a team, and you have endangered your teammates on more than one occasion. Add to the fact that you were accessing another agent’s profile without consent or permission, taking notes on it to, what was it you told me, sell it to the highest bidder…But, no Ms. Blackadder. You haven’t demonstrated to me at all that you need to be anywhere near active caseloads.”
“You can’t do this to me! You can’t make me give up my whole life like this!”
“Why not? It’s no less than what you forced Agent DiNozzo to do?”
“What are you talking about? I didn’t force Agent DiNozzo to do anything?!”
“Sure ya did, Viv,” Gibbs said. “You made him deny his past and who he was and assume the profile of someone entirely different from who he actually is, just so he could make it through a day’s work without being harassed.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I am talking about this,” Morrow said, clicking enter on the profile log-in page. He pulled up Tony’s new profile. Same names, same faces, different details in the storyline. Tony was the son of a senior vice president in an overseas Italian banking firm. He was raised by servants because his father spent so much time abroad and his mother was chronically ill. He was a brilliant student, wanted to play pro football, but was knocked out of that after a knee injury in his senior year of college. He pursued a career in law enforcement earning a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and completing Police Academy six months after graduating from Ohio State University.”
The director smiled at Vivian. “So you see. You can sell that information to the highest bidder, but you have nothing to back it up. The information you gathered"your trump card"your winning hand, as you put it, are worthless. You have no bargaining chip here. Agent DiNozzo actually argued in your favor"asking me specifically to not fire you, just to not make him work with you anymore. I disagree. You’re intelligent Blackadder, but you abuse those skills. So we’re going to have to ask you to leave.”
Vivian blinked. She’d been played!
“But I thought I could choose between Oklahoma, Iceland and Spain?”
“No, I’m sorry. Initially it was a consideration, but after seeing your lack of remorse for your actions, I’m afraid I’m going to have to withdraw that offer.”
Vivian thought for a moment. Then an idea dawned on her. She could always go work at the FBI, she reasoned to herself.
“Well we’ll just have to see what happens when I go to the FBI office, won’t we? I’m sure they’d be glad to have a wonderful investigator such as myself.”
Gibbs smiled and Vivian almost backed down immediately. Gibbs never smiled. Why was Gibbs smiling? Then Gibbs spoke and his words concerned her. “Oh definitely. Go right over to the FBI. And by all means, Ms. Blackadder, please have them call me for a reference.”
Shit. Shit, shit, shit. That wasn’t going to be good. They were going to look at her work record and they were going to need to talk to her former supervisor"Gibbs.
“You can’t say anything except whether or not I would be eligible for rehire.”
“I can’t say anything on the record except whether or not you would be eligible for rehire. No one has any control over what may come out of my mouth when I go out for drinks with my friend Tobias Fornell.”
Vivian blinked. Suddenly Vivian had a terrible feeling she wouldn’t get any job in DC with Gibbs doing the references.
Tony spoke up. “Boss I think you should let me do her job references"after all, as Senior Field Agent, I was technically her direct supervisor before you.”
Vivian’s eyes widened. If there was anything worse than Gibbs doing the references it would be DiNozzo. She had no doubt he would rip her to shreds. She turned to the director.
“Can they do that? Seriously?! I’ll never find another job in law enforcement anywhere!”
The director smiled coldly and opened the door. “Cynthia, process the termination for Ms. Blackadder please. She is in a hurry to begin her new job search.”
“Of course, Director Morrow,” came Cynthia’s voice from the lobby.
The director turned to the agents in the office and the SecNav. “Alright then. If everyone is satisfied by the decisions that have been made here, I’ll have someone from security come escort Ms. Blackadder to get her things. Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo, it’s going to be a two man team until you can find someone else. Secretary Davenport, thank you for being here, sir. I wish the circumstances were better.”
The SecNav turned to his beloved niece. He looked at her sadly for moment, then his face contorted into a grimace. “Your behavior disgusts me. Next time you call me for a favor, please make sure you deserve it first.”
“But Uncle Phil, I…”
“No more,” Davenport said, shaking his head. “I can’t even look at you. You disgrace our family.”
“I only did this because my brother"”
“Your brother died in the line of duty serving his country just like he’d signed up and been assigned to do. He died an honorable death and you have tarnished that by your selfish actions. You should be ashamed of yourself. I know he’d be ashamed of you.”
That being said, the SecNav nodded at Gibbs and Tony and left the office, shaking hands with the director on his way out.
Gibbs clapped Tony on the shoulder and Tony moaned softly when it hurt. “C’mon partner,” Gibbs said sympathetically, “let’s go find you an ice pack.”
Tony smiled. “On it boss.”
Vivian left the NCIS office a while later, box of possessions in hand. She still wondered what it was about Gibbs and DiNozzo’s relationship that she was missing. It was almost as if they were father and son. But there was no way that was possible.
xxx
Abby laughed when Gibbs told her and Ducky that Vivian was fired. Ducky shook his head. “You know, she’s quite bright really,” he said. “Too bad her choices didn’t reflect that.”
Gibbs had invited the team over for dinner that following weekend. Tony was in charge of mixing the drinks, Gibbs was manning the grill and Abby and Ducky took care of making sure everything else was ready on time. Gibbs begged them not to let Tony near the kitchen.
“If he doesn’t cut his hand off, the food won’t be edible, trust me. That’s unless he’s cooking Italian"then he gets the kitchen all to himself and the creation is well worth the mess he makes,” Gibbs said much to everyone’s amusement. Tony rolled his eyes good-naturedly.
It wasn’t the first time Gibbs, Ducky and Tony had grilled out together, but it was the first time Abby had seen them all together outside of work. She sat back and observed Gibbs and Tony in a relaxed setting together. They were like a well-oiled machine, instinctively knowing the other on a level Abby wished for with her own parents back in Louisiana.
Tony was shocked at this kind of quiet, introspective version of Abby he was seeing. At work she was bubbly and warm, music pounding out a beat as she produced brilliant pieces of information from what seemed to be nothing at all. She was a sweet person; he just wished he could have known that all along. He watched her smile when Gibbs kissed her on the cheek and she teased Ducky, “Duck-Man” good-naturedly and he teased her back"behavior Tony wasn’t used to seeing from the proper old Scot.
The meal was delicious, the steaks were cooked to perfection, the drinks were mixed flawlessly. Towards the end of the evening, Abby raised her glass. She looked thoughtfully at each of her friends"some old and some new and she smiled.
“I’d like to make a toast. This team…well it’s more than a team. It’s friends, it’s coworkers, but most importantly,” she looked at each man in the eyes before she continued, “most importantly it’s family,” she said. “To the Gibblets!” Everyone laughed at the title Abby had given them"but no one contradicted.
“Here, here!” The glasses clinked and the drinks were sipped. Indeed they were becoming a family.
xxx
Across town, Vivian Blackadder sat in her apartment. It was Saturday night. She had no plans, but then, she had no friends to have plans with. She’d been literally laughed out of the FBI office when she showed up wanting to talk to Tobias Fornell about a job. She’d visited lots of the other alphabet agencies in the past few days too, all of them rejecting her as soon as they learned her name. It seemed the power of Gibbs’ reputation preceded him, and where his reputation hadn’t been, Director Morrow’s was.
She was friendless. She was jobless. She would be forced to leave DC after all.
She sighed and sipped the tall glass of scotch she held. She truly believed she had done the right thing"both concerning her brother, his killer and Tony DiNozzo. She considered the smug look on Gibbs’ face when the director told her she was fired. She considered the iron grip DiNozzo had on her arm after she’d been caught looking up his profile. She thought about the way Abby had snubbed her after she heard what had happened in Spain.
Maybe in the new life she would have to make for herself, she’d practice being nicer to people. She took another sip of her drink and snorted softly to herself.
Then again, maybe not.
End.
Chapter End Notes:
Thanks to everyone reading!