Title: Innocent Blood
Chapter 4/6 - A shocking business
Genre (general, hetero or slash) Gen/Action
Pairing/Characters: Ensemble
Disclaimer. I don't own the NCIS characters, I'm only borrowing them, and I promise to return them in minty fresh condition when I'm finished.
Many thanks to FatCat for all her Beta'ing work.
And thanks to everybody for feedback and reviews.
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Previously on NCIS
Chip abducted Tony from the NCIS parking garage. Jimmy Palmer got in the way and Chip shot him. Tony managed to retrieve Jimmy's phone, and Gibbs later had Abby track it using GPS.
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[Part 04]
Tony had done everything Chip had told him to. He'd smiled nicely at the guard at the exit, knowing that Chip was hiding on the floor behind him ready to blow his brains out should he try to send a warning. He'd kept to the less well-traveled streets and refrained from going over the speed limit, because Chip didn't want to attract attention from any cops. He'd even avoided smiling at the woman stopped beside him at the red light, just in case Chip got pissed. He'd followed every direction, taken every turn and finally pulled in smoothly to a fairly decrepit looking parking garage on the other side of the city, and not once had he tried mouthing off to Chip and his gun.
Which was why Tony was so majorly aggrieved that Chip had pulled a taser on him.
Okay, Tony figured, he should have guessed that Chip's plan wouldn't have included hiding in the back seat of the car all the way to wherever he was going. And with hindsight, keeping a hostage tied up in the passenger seat was bound to draw all sorts of attention, especially as it was now the middle of the night. So really, there had been only one other option...
Tony wriggled around in the trunk of Chip's car and tried to get comfortable. It wasn't easy. Car trunks weren't designed to carry six foot plus N.C.I.S. agents and no matter which way Tony tried to position himself, he couldn't get comfortable. Of course having his hands cuffed behind his back didn't help either.
Tony would have kicked himself for being so careless, but right now his legs were almost touching his chest, so that wasn't going to happen.
He'd done what Chip had ordered. He'd gotten out of his car, and walked around to Chip's car, putting his hands on the trunk as instructed. Chip had kept a safe distance away... a smart move, because with no innocent bystanders about to get shot, Tony would have had no problem with jumping him and to hell with the consequences. For all he knew, it could have been his last chance. Tony had been just waiting for his opportunity...he'd heard Chip move a little closer, and then just as Tony was about to make his move...he felt the zapping of a taser against his side and everything went black.
Tony had woken to find himself in the trunk of the car, with Chip standing over him about to slam the lid.
"Ah, you're awake," sneered Chip.
Tony had tried to say something in response, only to find a gag in his mouth. He grunted fruitlessly.
"Sorry about the gag, but I can't have you trying to yell for help...not now anyway. Later on you'll be able to scream all you want...but nobody's gonna hear you."
Tony grunted again, and tried to get his hands in front of him, only then realizing he was wearing cuffs.
"Just think yourself lucky I didn't have any duct tape," snapped Chip before slamming the lid down.
Alone in the dark, Tony felt the vibrations of the car starting. He swallowed hard, knowing that this was bad...really really bad. "Don't panic," he told himself. "There's plenty of air, just breathe in, nice and slowly...Gibbs will find you...he always does. Just keep calm and relax..."
He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the route the car was taking, but in the cramped space of the trunk, it was impossible for him to judge speed or direction, so in the end Tony gave up and tried instead to reach Jimmy's phone.
Tony spent a few minutes twisting and wriggling and trying to get the phone out of his pocket but space was limited and the cuffs were tight on his wrists and after banging his head for a third time on the inside of the trunk, he had to give it up. He lay there exhausted for a few minutes, wondering if Jimmy had managed to tell Gibbs about the phone...and then he wondered if Jimmy had bled out before help had arrived...and then he wondered where exactly Chip was going and what he was going to do when he got there...and then he realized that he couldn't do anything constructive about his situation at the moment so he might as well just sit tight, conserve his energy and wait for the opportune moment...and then he slept.
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Tony wasn't sure if it had been the jerk of the brakes as the car pulled to stop that had awoken him, or maybe it was the sudden silence as the engine was switched off. Either way, he was ready and waiting when the trunk lid was raised. Unfortunately there wasn't a lot he could do. A bright light was shone in his face, blinding him momentarily, and before Tony could react, he felt something being fastened around his neck.
The light was removed and Tony blinked as he saw Chip looking in at him, the gun in one hand and what looked like a remote control in the other. Tony grunted a question at Chip, nodding towards the control.
"You want to know what this does?" asked Chip. "Here...let me show you..."
He pressed the button and Tony jumped and screamed into the gag as an electric shock zapped through the device that had been placed around his neck.
"It's a shock collar," explained Chip. "Just a little insurance in case you try anything. Now get out of the car...slowly..."
Tony couldn't move any way other than slowly. He felt bruised all over from bumping around in the trunk of the car. His side was throbbing from where he'd been tased earlier, and now his neck was sore from the shock collar. It took him a few minutes to maneuver his way out of the trunk, and when he finally managed it, he collapsed to his knees, panting heavily from the exertion...and panting a little harder than necessary, in the hopes of lulling Chip into a false sense of security.
"Just wait for my chance," Tony told himself as Chip let him through a deserted park. He took a look around him, the surroundings looking vaguely familiar in the pale moonlight. But it wasn't until they rounded a corner and came upon a picnic area that Tony stopped in his tracks as he realized where they were.
"I'm taking you back where all this started" Well he hadn't been kidding.
Baltimore, 2001. One of the last homicide's that Tony had worked before he joined N.C.I.S. A particularly vicious crime. A pretty young woman found murdered and mutilated in a popular local park. It had been a difficult case to solve, and Tony had devoted weeks of his life towards nailing the perp. And then six months later when he'd come back to Baltimore to testify, the whole case had had to be thrown out thanks to sloppy forensics.
Tony whirled around, looking at Chip, his eyes wide. He knew how the victim had died; he'd practically memorized the details of how she'd been cut. He knew that she had died screaming...and nobody had heard her in the middle of the night.
"What's the matter, DiNozzo? Cat got your tongue?" Chip laughed and then pressed the control for the collar.
Tony cried out into the gag and slumped to his knees. He could hear Chip coming towards him, and just when he judged the time was right, he lunged towards his captor.
But Tony's reactions were dulled by the residual pain from the shock collar, and Chip easily dodged him. Unable to stop himself, Tony landed face down in the ground. Chip's foot landed on Tony's neck, pinning him down, even as Chip reached down and pulled out the gag. "I told you you'd be able to scream all you want."
Tony swallowed hard, trying to get enough saliva to spit out the taste of the gag. Finally he said, "Chi...Charles, think about this. You don't really want to be doing this."
"Oh but I do, DiNozzo. See, I've got nothing left to lose now. I've burnt my boats. Once the cops catch up with me I'm a dead man one way or another...but I'll see you in Hell first." He kicked Tony in the ribs. "Get up!"
"No," snapped Tony. "If you're gonna kill me, then shoot me now and be done with it. I'm not playing your stupid little game any more...*Chip*."
"Don't call me that!" yelled Chip.
"Chip, Chip, Chipadee, Chipster...Chippy boy...aghhh!" Tony screamed as Chip pressed the controller. Waves of pain shot through him and he was left gasping for breath. "Chip," he muttered defiantly under his breath.
"I'm not gonna shoot you, DiNozzo," said Chip. "That'd be too quick." He kicked Tony making him roll onto his back. "I figure letting you bleed to death out here, that'd be more fitting."
He stood back from Tony and dropped the backpack he'd been carrying. Keeping his gun trained on Tony, Chip dropped the controller in his pocket before he reached into the bag and pulled out a bone saw. "Course you'll probably pass out with shock before I finish cutting through your legs with this, but hey, them's the breaks."
"You...you are one sick puppy...you know that..." Tony managed to push himself to his feet and started backing away. He knew that running wasn't an option. Not while Chip still had the gun aimed at him. His only hope was to delay things, give Gibbs a chance to find him. "Chip, killing somebody, it's not something you can just do...I think you're better than that...you're not capable of murder..." Tony hoped he sounded convincing.
"Twenty four hours ago I might have agreed with you," said Chip, offhandedly. "And so might Doctor Stewart...but he's dead now, so you can't exactly call him as an expert witness again."
"You killed him?"
"Guess you're not as dumb as you look," sneered Chip. "Enough time wasting, DiNozzo. Get on that picnic table. I haven't got all night."
"No," said Tony. "I don't think I'll be doing that."
Chip shrugged. "I can cut your legs off on the ground." He reached for the controller but had to tuck the gun in his pocket to free up a hand.
Tony didn't miss his chance. He charged straight at Chip, dipping his shoulders and slamming straight into Chip's chest knocking them both to the ground. The controller and the gun went flying, but Chip still managed to cling to the saw. He swung it at Tony who had to throw himself backwards to avoid being decapitated. Before he could get back on his feet, Chip had grabbed him by the hair, pulling him to his knees.
"Why do you *always* have to spoil my plans," snarled Chip, as he held the saw to Tony's neck. "If I cut your jugular, you'll bleed out too quickly. Why couldn't you have just done like you were told?"
"Because DiNozzo's never been much good at doing what he's told," said Gibbs, stepping out from behind a tree, gun aimed squarely at Chip's head.
Chip moved quickly, pulling Tony in front of him as a shield. "How good's your aim, Agent Gibbs? Think you can shoot me before I open his throat?" He held the saw to Tony's neck.
Tony could feel the teeth of the saw against his neck. He knew it would only take a little more pressure for it to break the skin. He also knew that even if Gibbs took Chip out with a single shot, then the saw could still do plenty of damage, especially if Chip didn't die cleanly. And Tony knew for a fact that he didn't want Gibbs to have his blood on his hands.
With all those facts in mind, Tony stomped hard on Chip's foot.
Chip's hand jerked...the saw hit Tony's shock collar and there was a flash of sparks. The last thing Tony heard as he blacked out was the sound of gunshots.
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To be continued
Author's Chapter Notes:
Jimmy's been shot, Tony's been abducted. Chip is responsible, but what fate does he have in store for his captive?