Grounded In Truth
Chapter 7
by WCUGirl
Morrow stopped just outside the door to Interrogation 3 and straightened his tie. He opened the door and saw that Blackadder was seated at the table, hands folded calmly in front of her. She looked at him when he entered and gave him a smile that dripped with sugar. He recalled her probie days when she’d first been hired and had been working on Costello’s team. Her attitude and personality had certainly changed from those days. Before she’d been a sweet, kind, intelligent agent. Now…he fought down the shudder at the memory of the display he’d seen just moments before.
Morrow took care of his agents"all of them. He had to get this right.
“Ms. Blackadder.”
“Hi Director,” she said pleasantly.
“Can you tell me what happened tonight?”
“Well you see sir, it was like this…”
xxx
Gibbs sat with Tony and Ducky upstairs in the director’s office waiting. Tony was asleep, leaning heavily on his shoulder. Gibbs was glad he was finally getting some rest, even if it wasn’t under the best circumstances. Some sleep was better than none, and he knew if Tony could sleep for an hour he’d feel better. God knew he hadn’t slept in several nights before this. Gibbs doubted he’d be sleeping for the foreseeable future"which meant he’d be up all night as well.
“Jethro, I’ve been thinking.”
“What’s that Duck?”
“There is a problem with Anthony’s file…it seems to attract a great deal of undue attention.”
“Who else has looked at it Duck? I already busted Abby and now Vivian.”
“Ah well yes, Abigail was the other person I was going to mention. I should have known you’d know.”
“Speaking of Abby. Ducky give Abby a call. Tell her I need her to come to work.”
“Now?”
Gibbs nodded. “We’re fixing this problem. Tonight,” he said firmly, squeezing his arm around Tony’s shoulders just a bit tighter.
Ducky nodded and pulled out his phone. After several rings a very sleepy Abby answered the phone.
“Ah yes, good evening Abigail. I’m sorry to wake you, but I’ve just been instructed by Jethro to have you come into work.”
Now? came the sleepy reply. It was nearly 1am.
“I’m afraid so, my dear. Jethro is adamant that this case should be dealt with in a most efficient manner. The whole team is here.”
The blood samples DiNozzo left me aren’t going to be ready yet. Gibbs is still going to have to wait for those. I can’t hurry them along. Abby reasoned, while Ducky could hear her zippers and buckles rattling in the background.
“This is not the Singer case, Abigail, it’s a different one. I will have Jethro debrief you when you arrive. We are in the director’s office.”
Alright Ducky, I’m locking up my place now. I’ll see you soon.
Ducky nodded and ended the call. “She’s on her way Jethro. May I ask what you have in mind?”
Jethro smiled and leaned his head back on the couch cushion. “Sure Duck. Ask away. But I’m not talkin’ til Abs gets here.”
xxx
A few minutes later Abby knocked softly on the door. She was surprised to find Gibbs and Tony both sleeping on the director’s couch, Ducky sitting sentry over them. Gibbs opened his eyes the instant he sensed someone else close by. Tony was so exhausted though, that he didn’t stir at all, even when Gibbs started to move around a bit. Gibbs knew this was a testament to how safe he felt with his dad. He bit back the smile and relished the pride he felt in his chest.
“Hi Bossman,” Abby said quietly.
“Hey Abs,” Gibbs greeted her. “I need your help.”
“Sure Bossman, whatever you need, I’m on the job.”
“I need you to get on the director’s computer and pull up Tony’s AFIS file.”
Abby blinked. “Um…didn’t you write me up for doing that?”
“No I wrote you up for disobeying a direct order,” Gibbs replied. “Now get to it, Abs, this is important.”
Gibbs gently eased himself out from under Tony. He gently laid him over on the couch and covered him with his jacket. Tony never stirred.
He stepped to Abby’s side and saw she just about had the profile up. He stopped her by putting a hand on her arm.
“Now Abby before you pull this up I want you to listen to me. The information you are about to see is highly confidential. Consider it as confidential as any Top Secret information you may deal with. If you leak anything you read here I will have your job, do you understand?”
Abby looked up at him and saw that he was absolutely not joking (not that Gibbs ever joked) and she nodded her head. “I understand Gibbs,” she said softly.
Gibbs reached out and hit ENTER, accessing the profile. It took it a moment to load. He turned to Abby.
“Alright now, here’s what I want you to do…”
xxx
Morrow frowned at Vivian, flabbergasted as to how this woman could be so heartless. He’d had security pull the tapes from the bullpen to show to Blackadder. Her taunting jabs echoed around the small room, and Morrow’s frown had grown deeper with each passing second. As Morrow’s frown deepened, Blackadder’s smirk had only grown brighter.
It was time to make the decision. “Ms. Blackadder your lack of remorse for your actions has left me no choice. I’m afraid I’m going to have to terminate your employment with NCIS, citing professional breach of confidentiality, as well as employee harassment as the reasons for your dismissal. I’m going to ask you to leave. You may return in the morning at 0900 to retrieve your belongings.”
Vivian blinked. She honestly hadn’t been expecting that. After all the information that had been leaked about DiNozzo, she’d figured he’d be the one dismissed, not her. Huffing loudly, she stood up and stormed out of the interrogation room. This just would not do at all.
xxx
Vivian stomped out of NCIS towards her car in a fit of rage. FIRED? Her? Seriously?! For doing what, accessing an AFIS profile"like everyone in the office did on a daily basis? This was unacceptable. She had to keep her job at NCIS"she HAD to avenge her dead brother.
She sat down in her car and thought for a moment. She had an idea, but it was late. She pulled out her phone and decided to make the call anyway.
After several rings, a tired voice answered the phone. “Hi Uncle Phil,” Vivian said sweetly. “It’s Vivvy. I was wondering if we could have breakfast in the morning? Around 0800? Sounds great….ooh yeah I like that place! Ok, it’s a date! Go back to sleep.”
Vivian hung up the phone, smiled to herself, and drove home.
xxx
“You want me to do what?!” Abby asked, shocked.
“You are going to rewrite Tony’s file for him Abby. I’m going to double check it to make sure I approve of everything you put in. Consider this part of your punishment.”
“But…but that’s against like, every protocol in every book ever, Gibbs!”
Gibbs raised an eyebrow and didn’t say anything.
“But then again…since when do we really care about following the rules,” Abby muttered to herself.
“Oh and Abs?”
“Yes Gibbs?”
“You have to read what is there in order to know what to take out.”
“But I thought you said…”
“Abby everyone is so interested in reading Tony’s file that they are sneaking back into the office at night to read it. Tony caught Vivian studying his file, here, this evening, and taking notes on it. Then she turned right around and used the information she had against him. She dredged up memories that he just didn’t need to deal with right now. And I know you have wanted to read Tony’s file. So go ahead. And as you’re reading it, I want you to take out the juicy details. His partner has proven that this information is a weakness of his and can be used against him.” He leaned in close to the Goth girl sitting at the computer. “You wanted to read the file too Abby. Now you’re getting your wish.”
Tony began mumbling and stirring slightly. Ducky put a hand on the boy’s shoulder, but it didn’t help. A moment later, Tony sat straight up on the couch, shaking and pale, terrified at whatever he’d remembered just then. Gibbs moved over to him and sat down facing him on the couch.
“Shhhh Tony I got you it’s ok now, son…”
Tony leaned over on Gibbs’ shoulder, hands covering his face. Gibbs wrapped his arms around him, ran a hand up and down his back and whispered to him that it was going to be alright.
“It-it was terrible, D-dad,” Tony sobbed against Gibbs’ chest.
Abby couldn’t tear her gaze away from the scene before her, but she drew back just slightly, completely surprised by what she’d heard.
Gibbs was Tony’s dad?
They had different last names. They didn’t look anything alike. That must mean…
Abby clicked on one of the photos and gasped at the image she saw. It was Tony; you could see part of his face in the picture. His back was covered in…burns? Cuts? She squinted at the picture trying to understand the injuries. They were nightmarish. She deleted the picture and clicked on the next one. Deep bruises around the boy’s neck where someone had tried to garrote him. Delete. The next picture made her nearly vomit"and she was a forensic specialist!"she deleted it quickly"along with all of the others.
Tony had been abused…no question about that…but it still didn’t explain why Tony called Gibbs ‘dad’ and why Gibbs called Tony ‘son’.
She looked back at Gibbs and Tony on the couch. Gibbs had his chin on the top of Tony’s head, rocking him gently, whispering to him that things were going to be alright and that everything was going to be better soon.
Finally Tony sat up and looked around the room. His eyes widened when he saw Abby sitting at Morrow’s desk, watching them while she worked on the computer.
“A-Abby…what are you doing here?”
Abby took a deep breath. “Gibbs asked me to come,” she said quietly. “We’re rewriting your AFIS profile, Tony.”
“Rewriting my profile…but…?”
“Anthony it will keep things like what happened tonight from happening in the future. Especially if your profile was to end up in the wrong hands, my dear boy,” Ducky said gently.
“Boss do you trust Abby to do it,” Tony asked Gibbs. Abby nearly said something to Tony, but quickly realized she hadn’t given him any reason to trust her at all. If she were in his position, she would question that decision as well.
Gibbs looked at Abby and nodded once. “I do Tony. She knows the consequences of what would happen if she goes down the same road Vivian took.”
Tony looked at Abby. “I know Gibbs trusts you. Can I trust you, Abby?”
Abby stood up and walked over. She knelt in front of the couch at Tony’s knees and rested her arms crossed across his legs. She looked up at him. “Tony when I was looking up your profile…I was really just being nosey. Gibbs had rain-checked me on lunch and he never does that, so I didn’t understand what made you so special that he would do that to me for you. I was jealous. But Tony…please believe me,” she was shocked when her own voice cracked, “what Vivian did to you…Tony it was horrible, and I could never be that mean to anyone"not even someone I don’t like. I want to get to know you better Tony"I think I was wrong about you. I…that is if you’re interested…I’d like to go out sometime.”
“Hey!” Gibbs called. “No dating! Rule number 12.”
“No Gibbs! I don’t want to date Tony,” Abby said quickly then bit back a giggle at the look of shock on Tony’s face, “sorry Tony. But I want to get to know you better"I want to know who Tony is, and Gibbs was right"I should do that by asking you questions and talking to you, not by spying on you and digging up a government profile on you.”
Tony nodded. “I’d like that,” he whispered. “Please Abby just please promise me…don’t tell anyone about my file or my family or what happened to me, okay?”
There was a hint of desperation in Tony’s voice that she found almost endearing.
“You have my word,” Abby promised. She looked from Tony to Gibbs and back to Tony. “Your secrets are safe with me.”
xxx
The next morning, Tony cautiously entered the forensic lab, balancing a super-large drink, a coffee, and a back of breakfast burritos. He was surprised to find the music was off for a change.
The team had stayed at the office all night, sans Blackadder. They’d worked on Tony’s file until the early morning hours, not even stopping when Morrow stopped by to tell them that he had fired Vivian. Tony smiled when he saw Abby asleep with her head on her keyboard. Then he winced just a bit"that was going to leave a mark.
“Abby,” he said softly.
Abby didn’t wake up. Tony sighed. Here we go again.
“Abby!”
Nothing. Not even a twitch.
Moving carefully so as not to spill everything, Tony managed to get the drinks to sit successfully on the desk, far enough from Abby that when she jumped like he figured she would, she wouldn’t knock the drinks over. Then he thought better of waking her up. Abby had literally stayed up all night long. She was probably exhausted.
He left her breakfast burrito and Caf-Pow on the desk and quickly scribbled a note. He smiled at the sleeping lab-tech as he got back on the elevator.
“Thanks Abs,” he whispered as the doors slid shut.
Upstairs, Morrow was in the bullpen talking with Gibbs. Tony saw the look on his dad’s face and nearly got back on the elevator. He didn’t recall too many times when he’d seen his dad look that angry. He set Gibbs’ coffee on his desk and slid around to his own desk where he turned on his computer, munching on a burrito while it booted up.
Gibbs shook his head. “Unacceptable.”
“I’m sorry Jethro,” Tom said.
“How did we not know this?”
Tom shook his head. “Honestly? I have no idea. Unless she edited her profile…”
“She doesn’t have clearance to do that, does she?”
“No, but her uncle, Phillip Davenport, does.”
Tony couldn’t hold back any longer. “Who’s uncle?”
Gibbs raised one eyebrow and smirked at Tony. “Blackadder’s uncle got her reinstated Tony.”
“She still works here?”
“And on your team,” Morrow added.
Tony blinked. “Seriously? After everything she did…I-I don’t understand…”
“It’s easy DiNozzo,” Vivian Blackadder snarked as she walked across the bullpen. “You just have to be in good with the Secretary of the Navy, that’s all.”
“You’re in good with the SecNav,” Tony couldn’t believe that.
“Of course I am. I’m Uncle Phil’s favorite niece,” Vivian smiled sweetly. “When I told him what had happened, he was more than eager to call up Director Morrow here and get me my old job back. After all, I was merely following orders. Isn’t that right, Agent Gibbs?”
Morrow stepped right up to Vivian. “You listen to me, Blackadder. Your job may have been reinstated, but I made it very clear to your uncle exactly what you had done and said to DiNozzo, and exactly what Gibbs’ orders to you were. He stood by his decision, but he’s also allowed me to put you on employment probation. One screw up"and I mean ONE"you’re gone. We clear?”
Blackadder’s eyes narrowed in annoyance. “Clear, sir,” she snapped.
“Agent Gibbs and Agent DiNozzo will be watching you.”
“Agent DiNozzo? Why him? He’s just a Probie!”
“Actually, he is the Senior Field Agent. He’s your boss, Blackadder. He could have had you fired already, but he’s opted not to up until this point. You should be thanking him, instead of harassing him. He could have had you fired a week and a half ago based on what he told Gibbs and me.”
“But…But I’ve been here longer! I should be the Senior Field Agent! How can he just waltz in here and"”
“Because he’s got nearly ten years of law enforcement experience on top of a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice.”
Gibbs’ phone rang. A moment later he hung it up. “Gear up, that’s the call we’ve been waiting for on the Singer case. Come on. Blackadder, gas the truck. DiNozzo, with me.”
“On your six Boss,” Tony said, grabbing his backpack and following Gibbs. Vivian collected her things, and tried, really tried, not to roll her eyes. Maybe she’d have been better off fired.
TBC…
Chapter End Notes:
Angst warning