Chapter 3
"Hey Bossman, what's up?" Abby asked perkily when Gibbs answered his cell phone on the first ring. "McGee said you were looking for me. Although I can't imagine why you would call me before the rest of the team if there was a new case, and it IS the middle of the night…"
"Abby!" Gibbs interrupted her rambling with an insistent voice.
"Yes sir!" Abby responded immediately.
"Meet me at the office ASAP. Go ahead and bring McGee; I'm sure he's with you," he finished as he disconnected the line.
"Gee thanks, Abby, I'm so glad you can make yourself available in the middle of the night at my whim," Abby mimicked Gibbs' authoritative tone as she stared at her cell phone.
"Abs?" McGee asked. "What's going on?"
"I will as soon as I know, Timmy," she answered sweetly as she leaned up to give him a quick kiss. "We're wanted at the office."
"Both of us?" he asked.
Abby shrugged. "Gibbs said to bring you with," she answered. At his quizzical glance she continued. "Trust me, Ziva will be fine," she added with a smirk.
"I don't doubt it," McGee responded with a secret smile of his own. As a frequent recipient of Abby's dream manipulation, he was well aware of her power.
"Not now, Tim, we have to go!" Abby urged him toward the door.
"I'm coming," he insisted, allowing her to lead him outside.
---
"Ziva," Roy whispered, tossing in his sleep. He brushed away the offending hair that was tickling his neck, and sat up in bed confused. He remembered the explosion; the heat of which he could still feel burning his flesh as he was blown into so much confetti. He had been so focused on protecting Jenny Shepard that he had thrown the full force of his power into the shield that he could only hope had spared her life. He stopped still when he heard a soft feminine moan. He turned from side to side, but could see no one. A cursory glance around the room revealed traces of a woman's presence. "Where am I?" he asked himself. "Hello?" he said aloud, and then clamped his mouth shut. Something was very definitely wrong with him.
---
Abby and Tim walked into the lab and turned on the lights. Abby looked around, "I guess we beat him here."
As if on cue, her phone began to ring. She lifted the receiver, and heard Gibbs' voice before she even had the opportunity to properly answer the call.
"Abs, upstairs!" he said shortly, disconnecting.
Abby shook her head, confused and a little irritated. "How did he know we just walked in?"
"Because he's Gibbs?" McGee suggested. "Come on," he said, resting a hand on the small of her back and leading her toward the elevator. She smiled seductively at him, leaning into his side. "Ummm… I think it was you who said ‘not now' earlier, right?" he asked with a grin.
"Right," Abby said, refocusing on the task. "I wonder what Gibbs is so upset about?"
---
Gibbs met them as they stepped off the elevator.
"Abby; McGee," he greeted them with a nod. "Abs, I know I told you I could respect Noah's privacy, but something has happened and I need you to tell me where he is."
"I don't know," Abby answered honestly.
"But you could know," Gibbs countered.
"Gibbs! I can't…"
"Yes you can, and you will," he insisted, leaning into her personal space, his eyes not three inches from hers.
"I really don't…" she began softly.
"Abby," Gibbs said softly, but with determination, his eyes never leaving hers. "I need you right now. I have to find them. It's critical."
"If you could just tell me what is going on," Abby said, leaning away from him and beginning to pace the room, "I could…"
"Abby!" Gibbs barked. "This is not a game. You don't have a choice. As your boss I am ordering you to tell me where my agent is!" His tone left no room for argument. Tears sprang to Abby's eyes and she averted her face from his long gaze. "Don't make me do this, Abby," Gibbs begged. Tim looked at him in confusion, then looked to Maggie, who shrugged her shoulders indicating she also had no idea what the man was up to.
Gibbs crossed the room and took Abby by the arm. He craned his neck to look back at Tim and Maggie, who had immediately moved to follow them down the hallway. "You two stay here," he ordered as he escorted Abby back to the interrogation room.
---
Tony rolled over in his sleep, a smile softening his masculine features. A lock of his hair covered his forehead, and Kate had to resist the urge to brush it away with her fingertips. He mumbled happily in his sleep, his smile drawing her closer to him. Kate walked closer to the bed, practically willing him awake. It felt as if she had been gone for ages. After leaving this realm a few months ago, she had learned as much as she could about her afterlife, and had finally happened upon the answers to which she and Tony had so desperately been searching.
"Ziva," he mumbled with a flirtatious giggle. His words stopped Kate short. What exactly had happened to him in her absence? She took a few steps back, shaking her head in denial. She couldn't blame him for moving on. She had told him point blank that she was dead, and he needed to accept it and move on. A tear rolled down her cheek as she realized what her words may have cost her.
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