PT 11

Tony was in his room 3 days after the gang had watched Sam's performance. He couldn't believe how well they took to Sam.

He was pulled from his thoughts when he seen Gibbs walk in grimed faced. "Ooo I don't like this. Sam ok?" Tony asked him concerned.

Gibbs nodded. "Yeah she's fine. She's at school. Said she needed to get back to school. But she would drop by and make sure all the nurses aren't passed out from your charm." Tony smiled his daughter knew him.

"She sleeping ok?" Tony asked. He seen Gibbs looked at him.

"I ain't gonna lie to you Tony." Gibbs said. "She's not looking like it."

Tony nodded his head. "Just make sure she eats something. Takes insulin and all. That's all I got." Tony said. Gibbs could see the fatherly concern behind Tony's eyes. He never let Tony know this but he watched him and Sam. They were inseparable. Tony always bragged to Gibbs about her school achievements. And he knew Tony was looking forward to that school play. But he knew Abby filming it was better. Cause he could see the emotion on Sam's face when she watched the other cast members react to her performance. And she could see everyone in the room reaction to. He thought about telling Tony about his discovery when he followed Sam home last night.

"Tony. Listen I need to ask a question. Does Sam have a cell phone?" Gibbs asked. He didn't want to step on Tony's toes about Sam.

"Yeah. She has one. She uses it in case of a emergency. I got it for her when she turned 13. Told her when I go on cases I want her to have it on her cause of me getting in odd hours. Why?" Tony asked concerned.

"Maybe just call her on it not use the house phone." Gibbs suggested.

"Why? Gibbs is something wrong?" Tony asked more worried.

"Last night your house phone rang and she jumped and Tony her face showed she was scared. She answered it shaking so badly I thought she was gonna drop it." Gibbs told him shaking off the memory of the pale face he saw.

Tony nodded. "I figured this would happen. There is one thing. Sammy can hold a lot of stuff in. She will not let this get to her. Cause she thinks if she does she lets me down. I have told her it doesn't matter. That I love her no matter what.' Tony explained. "I'll call the phone company and have them disconnect the phone. No one uses it except my mother and frankly I don't wanna talk to her much any ways. And telemarketer."

Gibbs nodded. "I think you better see if you can talk to her. " Gibbs suggested.

Right at that time a doctor walked in. "Mr Dinozzo. How would you like to leave today?" The doctor asked.

Tony smiled. "I would love to. No offense but this bed is rougher than a rock." Tony said smiling,.

The doctor smiled. "OK well let me get your discharge papers. I want you to take it easy your ribs are still healing. Do your breathing exercises." The doctor told him.

"I have a daughter to keep me in line. She'll make me do em." Tony told him smiling.

"Ok. Give me a few minutes and I will be back with discharge papers." Doctor said walking out.

Tony looked at Gibbs smiling. "I can surprise my girl." Tony told him smiling. Gibbs bit back the urge to mention the skitishness that Sam had been going through.

"Um let's not scare her. Tony she was just assaulted in her own home. You think you surprising her is a good idea?" Gibbs reasoned.

Tony nodded. "My mistake." Tony said,

3:30 PM TONY AND SAM'S APARTMENT.

Sam dreaded going home. It was empty and it was where that creep did that to her. Sam walked up the flight of stares that lead to the apartment. She walked over to the apartment door and stuck her key in. She walked in to find Kate and Abby along with Gibbs sitting in the living room talking.

"Hi." She said confused.

Kate smiled at her. "Hi Sam. There's soup in the kitchen if your hungry." Kate told her.

Sam nodded. "Thanks. Um I'm gonna go and get Shaq and take her for a walk." Sam said and had almost made it to the kitchen door when the phone rang. She cringed. And all memories flooded her mind. She didn't see Tony standing in the kitchen rinsing out his bowl. She just ran right to the trash can and threw up what was left over from her lunch. She stayed there for a while. Until she felt a hand on her back,

"No not again. Not my nightmare coming true." She cried onto her arm.

"It's not a nightmare." Tony said softly.

She jumped slightly and turned in his arms. "What are you doing here?" She asked surprised.

"The doctor kicked me out. Nurses were complaining." Tony told her smiling. But he saw the tear stains on her cheek. "Sammy. You ok?" Tony asked her worried.

Sam nodded and stood shakingly to her feet. She rinsed her mouth out with water and spat it out into the sink. "Yeah. Just sore. Gym class was rough. I fell on my ankle. Twisted it." She said.

Tony could see the darkness behind all the excuses. He was a trained agent. He could read any criminal. But his daughter going through her own turmoil and he couldn't tell when she was not sleeping. Hell she was probably sick most everyday she came home. He would be. "Sammy come on. Talk to me." Tony said to her as she walked past him into the living room.

"Dad I told you I'm fine. Look I got a ton of homework." Sam told him standing in front of the couch.

"Sam. You were just in there throwing up. So I don't think you're all that fine." Tony told her.

Sam nodded. "Ok you want me to talk. Ok let me see oh well there is the fact that I dread coming back here since Saturday morning. Or that fact that I wake up if I fall asleep every morning at about 6 in the morning. Or there's the fact that since the paper report my "alleged" rape everyone at school looks at me like I did the football quarterback. Pick a topic." Sam said through tears.

Tony swallowed his emotions. Gibbs was right Sam was having a hard time.

He walked over to her but was surprised when Abby got to her first.

"Sammy. God Sammy why keep it bottled up?" Abby asked her. Abby was guiding her towards the couch. Sam almost had a fit.

"No not the couch. Anywhere but there." She said in a weak sob. Abby looked at Tony and then to Gibbs.

"Sam. Is that where you woke up?" Kate asked gently.

"Yes. I need to get out of here. I'm gonna go and walk Shaq." Sam said walking back into the kitchen and grabbing a leash. When she came back through Gibbs stood up.

"Sam you might wanna stay here for a while. I heard you say you twisted your ankle. Walking on it will be hard." Gibbs said gently.

Sam shrugged. "No more harder than sitting in this apartment." She said walked out the door.

Gibbs looked to Tony and he could see the tension and worry in him. But Tony startled him when he got up and walk to the kitchen and snatched the paper off the table.

"Tony what are you doing." Kate asked him confused.

Tony glared at her. "Reading the paper." Tony said matter of fact.

Kate shook her head confused. "Your daughter is out there hurting and your just gonna read the paper. Tony how much more insensitive can you get." Kate asked and got up.

Gibbs grabbed her arm and drug her behind Tony's chair. It wasn't until then she saw he was that looking at the classifieds.

"It's the Classifieds Kate. Tony is looking for another place to live." Gibbs told her.

Kate shrunk back. "Oh. But who's gonna go get Sam?" She asked.

Tony shook his head. "No one. She needs time to deal. Sam's like this. If anyone tries to talk to her now she will clam up. And if she does that she will get depressed. And then she will more or less stop eating. And the last time that happened I had to take her to the ER." Tony said from behind the paper.

Gibbs looked at him. "She got a history of Depression?" Gibbs asked.

Tony nodded. "Yeah. Doc put her on medicine and she takes it. But." Tony didn't have to state the obvious.

"Something like this will make it worse. Medicine won't help. Gotcha." It was Abby who spoke and surprised them.

"Tony until you find a place would it be ok if Sam stayed with me?" Kate asked hesitantly.

"Sure. Just ask her. Oh and Kate does your building allow Dogs?" Tony asked. He knew Sam would be better with Shaq.

Kate looked at Tony and smiled,. "I was already planning on sneaking her in." Kate said.

Tony smiled back at her. "Thanks. To all of you. For accepting her. She's my world. And anything happened to her I would need you to shoot me." Tony told em.

Abby walked over and hugged him. "If she is anything like you. She's a good person. And I can already tell she has a good heart." Abby told him. Tony smiled.

Kate hugged him from upside down. "I know I only met her a week or so ago. But in that time I have seen her and you together. And Tony she will get through this. She mite need you more than you know." Tony nodded and hugged her again.

TBC