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“Boss?” The whispered word was spoken in an agonized voice and Gibbs’ gut clenched.
DiNozzo had been missing for two days now and they’d been fearing the worst. They’d been following the trail of a petty officer who went after good looking male model types and the decision had been made to send Tony under. DiNozzo had cut off communication with McGee and Abbs after making initial contact with their suspect and hadn’t checked in for two days, closer to three. Tony knew the rules. No matter how deep under, he had to check in once a day.
“Tony,” he said, cautious joy in his voice. He jumped up from his desk, motioning to Ziva and McGee. They didn’t say a word, just grabbed guns and bags and rushed to catch up with him.
“Bossman?” Tony’s voice came through again, weaker this time, a thread of agony in his tone, even though it was clear he was trying to hide it.
Gibbs looked at the elevator, shook his head, and went down the stairs instead. There was no way he was going to run any risk of losing Tony’s phone connection. It was all they had right now. “Here, DiNozzo…right here. Where are ya?”
“Don’t…know. Boss….screwed up.” Tony’s voice wavered and Gibbs hoped he wasn’t going to lose him.
“Tony, listen to me. You didn’t screw up. Op going south not your fault. Just…stay with me, Tony. Hold on, I’m coming. You hurt?”
“Be okay, Gibbs…I…”
“How bad,” Gibbs asked quietly, tossing his keys to McGee, who was talking urgently to Abby. He hated giving up control of driving, but he needed his whole attention on Tony.
“Just…cut up….Bad. Gibbs…don’t know where I am…”
“It’s okay, Tony. McGee and Abbs are already tracing it. Ya on your phone?” Tony probably wasn’t. His phone had been turned off and the GPS chip disabled days ago.
“His.”
“He gonna come back for it?”
“Dead, Gibbs. I…”
“He alone?”
“Yeah. Boss…”
“It’s okay, Tony. We’ll find ya. McGee, trace on the number calling me!”
“On it, Boss.”
Tony erupted into horrible wet sounding coughs, breaths rattling in his chest. It reminded Gibbs of the long nights spent propping Tony’s weak body up as the other man tried desperately to drag breath into his lungs damaged by the plague. But he’d been there with Tony then, rubbing his back, soothing him along with Kate, McGee and Ducky, not stuck on the other end of a damned phone line.
“Tony…Tony, ya with me? You just stay on the phone. Don’t even have to talk.”
“Someone’s gotta.”
Gibbs chuckled but it wasn’t a happy sound. “Tony, I’ll talk for both of us.”
“First time…for everything.”
“Yeah, well…” Gibb trailed off. “Been worried about ya, Tony. You didn’t check in, knew something was wrong. Been running down every lead we could looking for ya. Working the team 24/7. Knew you’d call in. Always followed the rules.”
“Loyal…”
Tony’d latched on to being called Gibbs’ loyal St. Bernard, even though Gibbs had only made the comment once.
“Damned right ya are. Semper Fi, Tony. Hang on, we’re coming. ETA, McGee?”
“Five, maybe ten minutes, Boss.”
“Ya hear that, Tony? You can stick with me for five or ten minutes. Ziva? Get Ducky to Bethesda. Ambulance on standby.”
“Giving up on me?” Tony asked, genuine fear in his voice.
“Never, DiNozzo,” Gibbs said firmly. “Never. Ya understand me?”
Tony only coughed weakly in response.
“What should I tell Ducky?” Ziva asked.
“He’s hurt, stab wounds, maybe slices. Where, Tony? Where’d that dirtbag get ya?”
“Chest, lung…I think. Hurts…to breathe. Coughing…blood. My shoulder too. Tried to cut my throat but I dodged. Seven or eight times.”
“Seven or eight stab wounds,” Gibbs replied to Ziva, his voice shaking, even though he tried to control it. He couldn’t let DiNozzo know that he was rattled.
“Gibbs…if I… Desk drawer at home…safe…papers.”
“You will not die, DiNozzo! Ya hear me. We’re almost there, Tony. Just hang on.”
“Lot of blood. His…or mine? Don’t know. Gibbs…” Tony sounded confused, shocky.
“Not checkin’ out on me, DiNozzo. I own you, remember that.”
“Kay, Boss.” Tony coughed a few times more, each one getting progressively weaker, his respirations more shallow.
As they pulled up to a residential area, Gibbs tried to breathe deeply and easily for Tony’s sake. McGee and Ziva were holding their own hushed conversations. “You in a house, DiNozzo?”
“Basement, but no boat, no bourbon. Soon, Gibbs?”
“Soon, DiNozzo. Couple minutes max. We’re coming, Tony…we’re coming. Hold on for me.”
“Knew you wouldn’t let me down. Never did.”
Gibbs knew differently but this was not the time to remind Tony of that. “Always, DiNozzo. Breathe for me. Be there soon…”
Tony coughed a couple more times, and Gibbs clenched his fist at the moist sounds.
“Got it, Abbs,” McGee said, his voice shaking.
“Where?” Gibbs asked, hand already working the car door handle.
“Block and a half.”
“Ziva! Ambulance. Ya here that, Tony? Minute, maybe two. Gonna get ya.”
“Knew it. Count on you, Boss.”
Before McGee had even pulled into the driveway, Gibbs was out of the car. “Coming in, Tony.” He knew that DiNozzo would understand that he couldn’t be holding on to the phone, he needed both hands on his weapon.
“Don’t…leave.”
“Won’t.” Gibbs jammed the phone into his pocket, leading the way. “NCIS!” he announced as he and McGee made short work of the door. They cleared each room quickly and soon Gibbs was pounding his way down the basement stairs, Ziva and McGee at his heels.
“DiNozzo?” he called, looking around the unfinished basement. There was barely any light and he flicked on his flashlight, sweeping the room with a bright beam that made the basement look even more grimy and cold.
“Tony! Talk to me!”
“Here,” the whispered word was almost inaudible, even with Gibbs’ sensitive hearing. A small plywood door sat in the far corner of the room. Gibbs signaled Ziva and McGee and rushed over, kicking the flimsy wood in easily.
The room was pitch dark, Gibbs lit only by the flashlight beams as he moved inside. A body lay in a pool of blood barely inside the door and another was slumped against the wall. “Tony,” Gibbs breathed, rushing over to the slumped figure. He was at Tony’s side in a moment, hand stroking through the man’s sweaty hair. “I’m here, Tony…I’m here.”
“Get upstairs, direct the ambulance,” Gibbs barked to Ziva and McGee. Tony barely stirred as Gibbs touched him and Gibbs tried to still his trembling hands. He could patch up guys in the field, but this was way beyond his expertise.
Placing one hand over the wound in Tony’s chest, Gibbs tried to slow the blood flow. Tony jerked and groaned, and it was the best damned sound Gibbs had heard in years.
“Right here, DiNozzo. We’ve got ya now,” Gibbs said in his most soothing voice.
Tony’s eyes opened slowly and he smiled. “Knew you…wouldn’t let me…down, Boss.”
“Never. You’re gonna be okay.”
“Promise?”
“Yeah. Lost a lot of blood, but you’ll be fine, DiNozzo.” Gibbs had seen mortal wounds and this was serious, but survivable, even with Tony’s lung damage.
“Thanks…for coming.” Tony brought his hand up and covered Gibbs’. “Screwed up.”
“Didn’t,” Gibbs insisted. “And ya belong to me. I protect what’s mine and you belong with me. Nobody else I’d rather have on my six. Now rest. The worst is over. Ambulance on the way. Safe now.”
“Nice to belong, Boss.”