Jimmy Palmer awoke in a dim, dank room with a hard, cement floor. The room was rank, and he twisted his nose in disgust. It reeked of urine, what he hoped were dead mice, body odor and evil. He tried to stand to his feel, but was unable to support himself as pain immediately shot through his lower limbs. Realizing his legs were both broken, he tried to scoot in one direction in the hopes of finding a wall. Unfortunately, he was too weak to move himself. He wondered if he had been drugged, or was simply feeling the effects of his blood sugar bottoming out after not having eaten in several hours. How long had he been here? As sure as he knew his coworkers would save him, he knew he wouldn't last long without assistance. His thoughts continued along this path, as his eyes struggled to adjust to what small light there was in the room.
His macabre thoughts were interrupted by a dark, gruff voice. "So, now you've decided to wake up," the man taunted, as he shined a flashlight directly into his captive's eyes. Palmer instinctively recoiled from the bright light, raising his arm to cover his eyes. The quick movement brought a new kind of pain to the young man. He scream only caused the one holding him to laugh.
"I tried to wait to work you over until you woke up, but you slept too long," the man apologized. "I saved some of the fun," he continued in promise.
Was it possible to physically feel a man's malicious nature? He had heard stories of those sensitive to those sorts of things being able to discern the motives of the truly evil; but to truly feel another's darkness was something completely new to him. He was scared. ‘Hurry NCIS!' was his last thought before intense pain caused him to no longer be able to rationally think.
---
"Okay, people," Gibbs barked as he walked briskly into Abby's lab.
"Perfect timing," Maggie said, giving him a smile.
"We've just managed to decrypt the notes," McGee began. "The simple algorithm I applied wasn't working at first, but…" noticing Gibbs' look, he quickly ended his sentence before beginning again. "The first note reads ‘BECAUSE OF LUCINDA' and the second ‘IT WILL BE REPAID'.
"Who or what is Lucinda?" Gibbs asked.
"Umm… well, we don't know that yet, but…" McGee began.
"Get on it," Gibbs ordered.
"But, Boss, what are we supposed to…" McGee began inquiring before being cut off.
"Check military personnel, military relatives… I don't know, McGee, just find her!"
"On it, Boss," McGee answered as Gibbs turned his attention to Abby.
"Turn anything up, Abs?" he asked.
"I was able to enhance a partial print, and have just gotten a positive ID on our suspect. His name is Harold Wells. He's former Army. Was dishonorably discharged after only a few months of actual service. Since that time he has built a record about as long as McGee's album collection."
"Get that information to Tony and Ziva, Abs," Gibbs ordered.
"You got it," she said with a smile, as he left the room. Gibbs motioned with his head for Maggie to join him. She shrugged in apology to McGee and Abby, and then rushed to the elevator.
---
Maggie followed her fiancé into the elevator and reached up to lay a hand on his shoulder. She felt him tense up under her touch.
"What are you suspicious of, Jethro?" she asked quietly.
"What makes you think I'm suspicious? Feeling guilty?" he asked defensively, reaching to hit the elevator emergency stop switch.
"No," she answered with a smile. "Werewolf, remember," she indicated, pointing to herself with both fingers. "I haven't smelled suspicion from you this strongly since Noah and I first came to work here. What have I done to make you doubt me?" she asked sincerely.
Gibbs sighed and met the eyes of the woman he loved. Seeing the love mirrored back in hers was enough to him to remember all they had come through to be together.
"I don't doubt you," he said honestly. He paused a moment to think. "I'm jealous of the rest of the team," he admitted frankly, as the truth of the situation hit him squarely between the eyes.
"Come again?" she asked amused. Gibbs was the last man on earth who should ever be jealous.
"Today I'm jealous of McGee. But last week it was Diamond. I know you aren't unfaithful, I just wish I had you all to myself." His quiet admission had cost him a lot, Maggie knew. He was just learning to trust her with everything, and it had been a long process as he had experienced so many tragedies.
"We'll just have to find several moments throughout the day to steal away together," she suggested, rising up on tiptoe and pulling his neck down toward her. He kissed her passionately, and all the frustration he had been feeling slipped away in her reassuring embrace. "But I'm not going to stop befriending my male coworkers just because you had a jealous thought," Maggie added in warning, after she pulled away.
Gibbs smirked in response. "I never expected you to."
---
"I swear, she was totally checking you out," Tony taunted Ziva.
"Director Shepard is straight, Tony," Ziva told him, shaking her head in amusement. Tony was in rare form.
"I'm just saying – you're both hot, you're both attracted to me… if she is seriously into you… well, I'm seeing some serious potential here," Tony said suggestively, wagging his eyebrows.
"I'm not here to satisfy some boyhood sexual fantasy, Tony," Ziva scorned.
"I'm just saying…" Tony began as Gibbs smacked him in the back of the head. Ziva had seen him approaching from the elevator and had had to work hard not to smile before the slap. She laughed out loud at Tony's expression.
"Did you get Abby's info on Wells?" Gibbs asked.
"Yes, we were just," Tony began. "Out of here," he finished quickly at Gibbs' long look.
"You could have told me he was coming," Tony whispered loudly to Ziva as they were getting on the elevator.
"But that would mean no slap, yes?" Ziva asked with a smirk.
Tony glared at her, causing her to laugh again.
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