Chapter 21
Ducky stood in the kitchen, steeping his tea as he waited for the coffee to finish brewing. The last thing Gibbs needed was a cup of coffee but Ducky knew he would never get him to leave the boy’s side now. Not after the scare they had faced not two hours earlier. Tony was going to be all right, the chest pains and his eventual collapse was just his body’s way of telling him he needed to rest and not overdo it, which is what Ducky tried to tell them both earlier. Not that he was surprised at Tony’s total disregard of his warning; he was typical law enforcement after all, thinking he was invincible, able to push himself past his limits. Well, Ducky was determined to nip that in the bud before he left.
Ducky strained the tea bag and removed it from his cup before pouring a mug full of the strong, dark coffee that Gibbs was so fond of. Picking both cups up, Ducky headed for the bedroom, and stopped in the doorway when he noticed Gibbs was sound asleep in the chair bedside the bed. Tony was curled up in the bed and appeared to be sleeping soundly, his heart monitor beeping softly.
Setting the coffee mug on the dresser just inside the room, Ducky leaned against the door frame and watched the two men sleep. Gibbs needed the sleep so much more than he needed the coffee and Ducky wasn’t about to wake him.
Ducky smiled and gave a little laugh. Well, Jethro, you can deny your feelings for young Anthony all you want, but after what I just witnessed you’ll never convince me, Ducky thought to himself, as he remembered how Gibbs reacted to Tony’s collapse. He had never seen Gibbs panic, ever, but he was close as you could get to just that state when he and Gibbs had rushed into the room and found Tony on the floor, clutching his chest in agony. The wild-eyed look Ducky had seen on Gibbs had only happened once before and that was when he had heard about the bombing in Disney World. Knowing his wife and child was there and not knowing if they were dead or alive had nearly killed him. That same fear, or something damned close to it, was there in his eyes again tonight with Tony.
Gibbs was in love and he refused to admit it. In fact Gibbs had been adamant that it was not true. Ducky knew that Gibbs needed Tony as much as Tony needed Gibbs, but how to convince him? How could he prove to Gibbs that he was the right choice to become Tony’s master? That Tony would be better off with him than with some stranger?
Ducky stiffened and stood up straight as a thought struck him, like a light bulb going off over his head. That was it! It was so simple it was almost embarrassing that he hadn’t thought of it before. As the saying goes, if Mohammed won’t go the mountain, it was time for Ducky to bring the mountain to Mohammed. Ducky smiled as he took another sip of his tea and began to plot.
A low moan coming from the bed brought Ducky’s attention back to the present. Placing his tea on the dresser beside the now cold coffee, Ducky headed for the bed. Before he even made it half way, Gibbs awakened and rose from his chair to sit on the bed beside a now restless Tony.
“You with me, Tony?” Gibbs quietly asked, his voice filled with concern. “Open your eyes for me.”
Tony moaned again, his head turning towards the voice he could hear. His eyes fluttered open and he found Gibbs at his side. Was that a look of fear he saw on the man’s face? Tony’s voice was barely above a whisper when he asked, “What happened?”
Ducky immediately picked up his stethoscope and stepped in between Gibbs and Tony, Gibbs scooting to the bottom of the bed to give Ducky enough room. “You got out of bed before you were ready, my dear boy,” Ducky began as he listened to Tony’s chest. “I told you it was imperative that you rest, but you didn’t listen.”
“D-did I have a heart attack?” Tony started to rub his chest, but Ducky pushed his hand away.
“No, Anthony, not a heart attack.” Ducky gave Tony’s shoulder a supportive squeeze. “It was a severe case of angina. Your heart began to beat irregularly due to your unfortunate encounter with that electric fence out there. It caused you to become short of breath and that chest pain you were feeling.” Ducky wrapped a blood pressure cuff around Tony’s upper arm and took a quick reading. “Now, you’re going to continue to have these spells for a few more days, until your heart returns to normal. You must rest, and no getting out of bed except to use the facilities for the next week.”
“A week, I can’t stay in bed for a full week.” Tony attempted to sit up only to be stopped by Gibbs’ stern voice coming from the end of the bed.
“Don’t even think about it, DiNozzo.”
Tony lay back against the pillow, not even trying to hide his disgust. Ducky smiled at the overly exaggerated sigh that came from Tony when he stared at the wall.
“Jethro, I don’t believe young Anthony here has eaten for close to twenty-four hours.” Ducky turned to face Gibbs, a determined look on his face. “Why don’t you go out and make him some nice soup and maybe some toast.”
“I’m not hungry,” Tony grumbled.
“I don’t think anyone was asking you, were they?” Gibbs stood and headed out of the room, stopping at the door and looking back at the bed.
“Go head, Jethro.” Ducky motioned for Gibbs to leave. “Anthony and I will be just fine ‘til you get back.”
Gibbs nodded his head at Ducky. “You don’t give Ducky any grief or you’ll have to deal with me.” With that statement, Gibbs left the room.
“So, now that Jethro is gone, tell me, how are you feeling, my boy?” Ducky sat on the side of the bed, picking up a cool cloth from the basin of water, ringing it out and placing it on Tony’s forehead. “And I want the complete truth.”
Tony didn’t respond at first, mentally taking inventory of his aches and pains. He thought it was wise to tell Ducky the truth, even if he didn’t want to. Ducky was the one person he felt he could probably trust to have his best interest at heart. “I hurt all over, like every muscle in my body was overworked, and I feel like I have no energy at all, like I’ve been completely drained.” Tony tried to find a more comfortable position, but failed miserably. “Does this mean I won’t have to go through any more training?”
Ducky smiled to himself at the hopeful tone he heard, but was pleased that Tony gave him the opening he was so desperately looking for. “No, I’m sorry Anthony, it will only set you back about a week.” Seeing the distress on Tony’s face, Ducky decided to push the point further. “In fact, I hate to say, it will likely make your training much worse.”
“Worse,” Tony yelled and attempted to sit up, the damp cloth on his forehead falling onto his chest, but Ducky easily pushed him back down on the bed. “How the hell could it get any worse?”
“Oh, my dear lad, if you only understood how much worse it could have been for you.” Ducky shook his head as he placed the cloth back in the basin. “I know you don’t believe it, but Jethro truly has tried very hard to make this as easy on you as possible.”
“You call the hell he has put me through easy?” Tony snapped back.
Ducky shook his head again, ignoring Tony’s question as he continued, “You know, I first met Jethro at the slave training center he was in charge of. I was brought in as a consultant, and was present during many of his training sessions, so I have seen first hand what he is capable of. So yes, my boy, I would definitely call the so-called hell he’s put you through easy.”
Tony clicked his tongue in disgust and rolled his eyes. He didn’t want to hear anymore of this bullshit and hoped Ducky would get the hint.
Ducky, of course, pressed on. “You have been up here, training for two months and Jethro informs me he just started your oral sex training. Which mean he has just started preparing you for the final penetration phase of your training?” Ducky grinned when Tony’s head whipped around and he did a fair imitation of Gibbs’ glare. “Yes, I thought so. Do you know if you were being trained by anyone else, or in a training center, you would have been penetrated the first day, and without any preparation? It can be a very brutal process.”
This time the look Tony gave was of shock, and he appeared as if he would be ill. “He told me when he shoved that damn plug up my ass that it wasn’t something other slaves got, that they got little to preparation. I thought it was just more of his bullshit. That he was just trying to scare me.”
“Oh, no my boy, he was being 100% truthful, no bullshit, as you call it, involved. It can be very bad, very brutal if he wants it to be, but for some reason, with you, he doesn’t want that.” Ducky continued, “Unfortunately, with this injury of yours, Jethro will loose a week he can’t afford. So, he will be forced to speed up the end of your training and I hate to think what that will entail.”
“Wh-why would he have to speed anything up?” Tony’s heart monitor began to beep at a faster rate, drawing Ducky’s attention to the screen. “Why can’t he just continue doing what he’s been doing?”
“Because he has already spent a month longer with you than he has with any other salve he has ever trained.” Ducky went to the head of the bed and began drawing some medication up in a syringe. “How much longer do you think they will allow him to stay up here just to train one slave?”
“What will happen to me if they make him come back before my training is complete?” Tony started rubbing at the ever increasing pain in his chest as the alarms on his monitor became going off.
“I can only guess, but I would assume you will be sold to the highest bidder, probably as defective merchandise.” Ducky slowly injected a light sedative in to Tony’s IV port. He only wanted to calm him, not put him to sleep. He still had some talking to do if his plan was to work. “Lord only knows what kind of an owner you will go to. Not too many people are willing to buy a slave that hasn’t been fully trained, and of course they won’t get as good of a price for you if you’re listed as ‘defective’, so you will likely go to someone in a much lower income bracket.”
“But, Gibbs told me they would see to it that I was sent to an owner who would respect me and treat me right.” Tony couldn’t understand why the sudden image of him being tied to a bed as some fat biker dude fucked him, suddenly filled his mind. He could feel the medication enter his vein and immediately felt it taking effect, the image slowly fading away.
“Well, that was true when he agreed to train you.” Ducky took a seat in the chair Gibbs had vacated and just watched Tony for a moment. “Of course he guaranteed them a fully trained slave. You on the other hand, well… It’s just too bad that Jethro won’t take you for himself, like the President offered him. That way it wouldn’t matter if you had completed your training, and I guarantee you that your life would be so much better with him.”
“Just how do you figure that?” Tony asked sarcastically. “I’ve been with him for two months and it hasn’t been any picnic, I can tell you.”
Ducky leaned forward in his chair, a no-nonsense look on his face. “That is because you have been fighting him the entire way. If you would allow Jethro in, allow him to teach you properly, I think you will be pleasantly surprised. Anthony, I know what you’ve been through and I totally understand…”
“Oh I doubt that very much, Dr. Mallard. You can never understand what I’ve been through until you have been forced to have sex with another man,” Tony saw Ducky’s eyes fill with sadness, and his gut clenched. “Have you, Ducky, been forced I mean?”
“Yes, my boy, I have.” Ducky gave a sad little smile. “I was in college at the time. I had spent the evening studying in the library and was walking back to my room. Three men stopped me, I was sure to rob me, but I wasn’t that lucky. I was dragged behind some bushes, stripped naked and spent the next several hours being held down as they each took their turn with me, over and over again. I was used in every way a man can be used by another man.” Ducky shivered at the memory, and then took a deep cleansing breath. “I was hospitalized for a month and after I was released I feared any man that came near me for the next year. Then I met a fine young man who showed me what sex with another man could be like, caring and deeply gratifying. So I will tell you this, coming from a man who has had it both ways if you will. If you quit fighting and let your self enjoy what is to come, you will be in for one of the most wonderful experience of your life.”
Tony closed his eyes and turned his head away. “Could you leave me alone for a while, Ducky?”
“All right, Anthony.” Ducky rose from the chair and headed for the door. “I’ll go check on Jethro; he should have that soup about ready.”
“Hey, Ducky,” Tony called, stopping Ducky at the door. “Is it true what I heard you say? That Gibbs is falling for me?” Tony yawned and felt more relaxed. He also realized the pain in his chest had finally receded.
“Yes, lad, he has, even if he won’t admit it to himself.” Ducky stepped closer to the bed. “So let me leave this with you so you can think about it. You will end up being owned by someone, and there is nothing anyone can do to stop that fact. So, which would be… well, I was going to say better but let’s instead say the lesser of two evils. To be taken back and sold to Lord knows who, and be treated who knows how - or to belong to someone who loves you and would do everything in his power to make sure you were safe and cared for?”
Tony watched Ducky walk out of the room, the doctors question his mind with trepidation. Could he do what Ducky was suggesting? Could he quit fighting and just give in? Ducky was right about one thing, if he had to be owned by anyone, it would be much better for him if that person cared for him, maybe even loved him. Perhaps, if he stayed with Gibbs he could get the man to eventually help him gain his freedom, but hadn’t Gibbs told Ducky he wasn’t the right person to become Tony’s owner? Didn’t Gibbs say he wasn’t good for Tony? Does that mean Gibbs didn’t want him?
Tony knew he had some decisions to make, because if he chose to stay with Gibbs he not only had to learn to submit, which he had never done in his entire life, but he would also have to work to convince Gibbs to keep him. He sure as hell was not about to risk being sold to his father and he knew, no matter what Gibbs had told him, that was a very distinct possibility.
Gibbs entered the room, tray in hand with a bowl of soup, toast and a glass of milk and placed it across Tony’s lap. Turning to face Tony, to tell him he’d better eat everything without argument, Gibbs stopped at the strange look on Tony’s face. “Hey, you feeling all right?”
Tony just stared at Gibbs for a moment, finding it hard to believe the amount of caring he not only saw on the man’s face but could hear in his voice. Maybe Ducky had hit the nail on the head. Maybe he would be better off staying with Gibbs, a man who at the very least cared for him, if was not in love with him. In that instant he knew what he had to do, what the situation would require of him from this point on. But the question was, could he do it?
Looking Gibbs in the eye, Tony gave a small smile and the next words out of his mouth shocked Gibbs beyond belief.
“Yes, I’m feeling fine. Thank you, Master.”
Author's Chapter Notes:
Ducky works on both Gibbs' and Tony's stubborness
Chapter End Notes:
Extra chapters today as requested.