Disclaimer: I don't own any one you recognise in this fic.
Beta: Thanks to Bev for beta'ing it.

Struggling

Prologue

"You want him, admit it!" whispered a husky voice in Abby's ear, causing a shiver to run down her spine.

Turning around she came face to face with her lover. She was sure she had left him with the others a few minutes ago. She had watched him leave after all, but now he was standing in her personal space, nearly touching her.

Raising an eyebrow in challenge she responded, "And if I want him? What you're gonna do?"

"Suggest to share?" answered Tony in a voice he usually only reserved for the bedroom.

Looking surprised at the man in front of her, Abby answered, "You would? I like the sound of that, Tony. Now, since you're the one who suggested it..."

"Damn! I knew that I was missing something... should have waited until you suggested it," cursed Tony playfully.

Smiling, Abby pulled the conversation to an end, "All you need is patience. How about you go now and start working on it?"

"Who's the impatient one now? I'll see you later," said Tony once again close to her ear before turning around, grabbing to coffee pots that hadn't been standing there earlier and walked out of the lab.

Abby stared at the door for a while before turning back to her current test, smiling to herself.

Neither of them had noticed a smiling Ducky, standing in the background. They didn't need to mention a name for him to know whom they were speaking about, and he thought that it was high time Jethro Gibbs would be getting laid again. He was far too grumpy lately, and Abby and Tony would be tough enough to handle the ex-marine.

Ducky returned to his office, contemplating what kind of plan Tony would come up with and how'd they convince the older man to forget about rule number 12, and most importantly... how long it would take them.

Meanwhile Tony got back to his desk, placing one of the pots he was carrying on Gibbs' empty desk when he passed by, and started on the task he was assigned. He could see Kate's disapproving look for taking so long to return, as well as relief at the coffee he had placed on Gibbs desk, though Tony was sure that he wasn't supposed to see the last bit. He only guessed it because her stare wasn't as intense as usual and the way she let go of her own cup, it must have been short to fall again victim to Gibbs's need for caffeine.

Throwing her one of his charming smiles he continued going through the files in front of him, searching for a connection between the two murders they were currently working on. It wouldn't be wise to make his boss grumpier than usual, especially if he wanted said boss to join Abby and him in bed after all. His thoughts were interrupted when an angry Jethro Gibbs, who'd just returned, asked, "DiNozzo! Where did you go after we left the lab? Don't you have something to do or did you decide to keep Abby from her work?"

"Uhm... no. I went to Ducky to get some coffee, his special Brew. I even got a cup for you," explained Tony, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

He couldn't keep his smile hidden for long when he saw Gibbs's surprise and watched the older man walk over to his desk and get some coffee, calming instantly. Sighing in relief, Tony went back to working on his research and planning. Now if only he knew how to convince Gibbs.

Two hours later Abby called up, informing them that she'd found a match for the DNA, collected at the latest crime scene, while McGee just announced that he found the connection between the victims. Getting the murderer arrested and closing the case was a piece of cake after that.

***

The day was getting better and better for Tony.

Gibbs was in a relatively good mood, the case was closed and nothing could go against him, except maybe if he started it the wrong way. An hour later McGee and Kate left the office, handing in their reports.

Working a bit more on his own, although it was technically already completed, he waited until Gibbs left the room, then he quickly placed a note on his boss' desk that stated a place and time for him to be. He was pretty proud of his plan and certain that it'd work.

When Gibbs came back, he demonstratively finished his report and gave it to his boss. Packing up, he headed outside, calling Abby on his way once he was sure he couldn't be heard, telling her of his plan and where to be.

Closing his cell-phone he left the building and went over to where his car stood. But before he could open it, he was startled by a black van pulling up, stopping with screaming tires, and two men jumping out. The first one attacked him immediately, while the other came up from behind. It didn't take long before he was held by strong arms, someone putting a cloth in front of his face. He tried to struggle free and not to breathe in whatever it contained, but after a while he lost the fight and took refuge in the blackness that overtook him.

***

An hour later found an irritated Abby, waiting in the bar to which Tony had sent Gibbs. She had seen the older Special Agent enter a while ago, but there still wasn't any sign of her lover although he had asked her to meet half an hour earlier.

Deciding that she waited enough she went over to the table Gibbs had chosen.

"Hey, have you seen Tony? He said he'd meet me here half an hour ago but there's still no sign of him," asked Abby.

Gibbs looked her over curiously, wondering why she'd meet Tony before answering, "He left the office around an hour ago. But when I left his car was still there. I thought he went to one of the bars there before heading home."

"That's strange. He... We... Damn, he was supposed to be here and do the talking, but he's not... and I'm starting to worry about him missing, he planned it after all... Gibbs, I think something is wrong with this situation," responded Abby.

Eyebrows raised Gibbs asked, "Are you saying that Tony left me the note about the meeting at this bar?"

"Yes. And he wouldn't have chickened out of this. He'd have informed me," rambled Abby on.

Gibbs sighed, "I have no clue what you're talking about, Abs. I don't know what you planned to do and I hope you're going to tell me as soon as we find him. No lies, half truth or distractions, the plain truth!"

"Promised," nodded Abby her understanding.

"Okay. Now let's check Tony's car," continued the ex-Marine. With that both stood up and went to the counter, paying for their drinks before leaving the bar and returning to the NCIS Headquarter.

***

Tony's car was the only one remaining on the parking lot in front of the building.

Gibbs was about to head into the building, just in case Tony had come back to fetch something, when Abby called, "Gibbs! Something must have happened to Tony. He'd never leave his car keys lying on the floor in front of his car."

Gibbs ran back to the car and looked at the spot the Goth pointed at. It was not difficult to recognise the bunch of keys Tony usually carried around. He had seen the other man fumbling with it often enough after all.

A look on the street revealed skid marks right next to the car. Possible scenarios started up in his mind, showing him what this could mean, none of them were pleasant and he felt a knot forming in his gut, making him sick. He was startled out of his thoughts by Abby who was holding a piece of paper in her hands, hands protected by the sleeves of her shirt.

"I think you should read this," said the lab rat in a strangled voice.

Walking over and reading the text on the paper that was held out for him to read, he paled when the words sank in and started making sense.

>>
If you want to see him again, you better do what we say.

An Eye for an Eye,
A Friend for a Friend,
A Life for a Life.

<<

The text didn't leave much to interpret, but Gibbs knew that they had to find the younger man before the warning in this note became true.

"Where did you find it?" asked Gibbs, suppressing all emotions.

Abby looked up startled before recalling what he had asked and pointing to the windshield and the windshield wiper that was pulled up.

Nodding, Gibbs instructed, "Stay here. I'll go in, call the others and fetch something so we scan start to process the car and everything else."

Abby only nodded, her gaze returning to the paper she was holding, still shocked at the thought that she might loose her lover.

Chapter 1

Half an hour later, Kate and McGee joined them, slightly shocked at what they had been told and helped them process everything. Or at least they helped Gibbs. Abby hadn't moved at all, still staring at the note she was holding.

Both looked at Abby every now and again, wondering what was wrong with her, while Gibbs only checked whether she was still standing there and wasn't about to faint.

This was getting weirder from second to second. First of all, Abby and Tony apparently met outside of work. The hints he had gotten from her at the bar and now this spoke a clear language. He didn't know how to breach the subject though. Calling himself to attention, Gibbs concentrated on looking for more evidence that would point to Tony's kidnapper.

Two hours after they had found the note Gibbs called the search to an end, deciding that they wouldn't find anything else in the dark and that they'd continue in the morning.

He thought it might be better if Abby wasn't alone right now and he wanted some answers, so Gibbs sent Kate and McGee home.

Taking the note from Abby, he bagged and tagged it and put it to the other evidence they had collected. Once everything was secured he went to the Goth and gently led her to his car, helping her get into the passengers seat. Getting into the car himself, he started it and drove to his place.

***

When they arrived there half an hour later, he helped Abby out of the car and led her to the door. She didn't react to anything but his gentle steering and Gibbs doubted that she even realised that he hadn't driven her to where she lived.

He was startled when she suddenly reacted and picked something off the door with a muttered "Oh God", before she sank to the floor sobbing, clutching what appeared to be a Polaroid to her stomach.

Irritated, he knelt down next to her and asked her to show him the picture. When she still didn't react after a few moments, he tried to pry the picture from her hands and after a few more seconds he held it in his hands. The picture shocked him and he felt sick.

The picture showed a bruised Tony, chained to a wall. To Gibbs relief he was alive which meant that they hadn't done too much damage yet. He turned it around another message on it.

>>

This is just the beginning.

>>

It didn't calm him in any way to read this, wondering when the picture had been attached to his door and what they were doing to Tony now. He unlocked the door, picked Abby up, and carried her to his spare bedroom. What she needed now was time to rest, to cool down, to let this settle in.

When he wanted to leave again, he was halted by Abby holding his wrist, not letting him go.

"Please stay. I don't want to be alone," asked the Goth in small voice.

Sighing, he sat down on the bed and pulled the young woman into his arms. He felt awkward doing it, but when Abby didn't struggle he decided that this was what she needed. He only hoped she didn't expect more from him as he wasn't sure whether he could give any more comfort. It wasn't something he was good at.

After a while Abby broke the silence by saying quietly, "I miss him already. What will I do if he..."

"Tony's too tough to die. I'm sure we'll have him back real soon and he can brag about all his dates again," interrupted Gibbs her.

He was surprised when he felt her shaking her head, "He's making that up to annoy Kate. He thinks she's too uptight and needs more fun in her life. He wouldn't do that to me."

"What do you mean to you? Are you saying that..." asked Gibbs wide awake.

He felt Abby snuggling closer and when she answered he could barely make out what she said, "If you're asking whether we're dating than yes we are... have been since before Kate joined the team."

Staying silent, Gibbs' thoughts were running wild. First Tony wanted to meet him in a bar, then Abby came and told him that he was missing and now this. He saw his chances with Tony disappear, but at the very least it meant that the younger man wouldn't be leaving any time soon and it wasn't as if he'd ever have acted on his feelings. He knew how bad everything ended up that he started, concerning relationship. For now he'd concentrate on getting him back alive, for Abby's sake. It'd have to be enough for him to see the younger man and the Goth getting happy together.

Now if only he knew what the two had planned on doing tonight if Tony hadn't been kidnapped...

After some time he realised that Abby had fallen asleep and gently he untangled himself, tucking the Abby in carefully.

Dejected, he went to the bathroom and prepared himself for bed. Ten minutes later he was ready and made sure that the doors to the bedrooms were open so he could hear if Abby needed him and shut off the light, hoping that he wouldn't be haunted with nightmares about what Tony could be going through.

***

When Gibbs woke the next morning, he was surprised to find a black head lying on his chest, before everything came back to him. Apparently Abby had woken again and decided to crawl into his bed. He carefully pulled out from under her and went to the bathroom, preparing for the day.

When he was finished, he checked up on the still sleeping woman, before heading to the kitchen and preparing coffee - extra strong - and something edible for Abby. He figured that she'd need something after last night. He only hoped that she would be able to pull herself together as her skills more than once had helped to close a case.

Having finished the breakfast, he set everything on the table and sat down in one of the chairs, his cup of coffee close by, and closed his eyes. He'd never admit it to anyone, but he was scared to death. He didn't know what he'd do without Tony and, the way things looked right now, without Abby as well. If she reacted that way just when the other man was kidnapped he didn't want to think what would happen if they found him dead... not that he himself would have much reason left to live.

He was startled out of his thoughts when he heard Abby enter the room. She was still dressed in the clothes from the day before and she didn't look as if she had gotten any rest at all. When Gibbs offered her breakfast she shook her head.

"You need to eat something. What'll Tony say if he finds out that you haven't been taking care of yourself?" tried Gibbs.

Reluctantly the Goth took a seat and started picking on her food, eating at least a little bit. She looked far from her usual cheerful self, rather like death warmed over. Gibbs could honestly say that he'd never seen her being this sad. Hell, he never had seen her anything but cheery.

When Abby pushed the plate away, indicating that she was finished, he said, "Let's go back to the office and look through the evidence. Maybe we can find something that leads us to whoever took Tony."

Abby only nodded and stood up, not even caring to put the dishes away. Deciding that he didn't care as well, Gibbs fetched the picture they had found the previous evening and motioned Abby to follow him. Silently, each of them deeply lost in their thoughts, they left the house.

***

When they entered the office, they found Kate already working on a list why Tony could have been kidnapped. She looked up at them, asking with only her eyes whether things were going to be OK or not.

"He's still alive. At least he was when this was taken. It was attached to my front door," answered Gibbs with a stern voice, but his eyes showed his worry.

Kate only nodded and said, "I decided to check if Tony stepped on anyone's toes. But considering the way the message we got is written, I'd say that it is most probably case related."

Gibbs nodded, headed to his place and started the computer before he turned around and looked at Abby. She was standing in the middle of the bullpen and looked sadly at Tony's desk.

Sighing Gibbs went back to Abby and said, "Come on. We'll go downstairs and check if Ducky is already in. I'll inform you as soon as we have a lead."

He wasn't sure whether the woman had heard him or not, but when he turned her around to face the elevator she moved without him needing to push her. It made him confident that she could be at work without falling apart, or else he would have needed to find someone that could watch over her at home. This way he could ask Ducky to keep an eye on her.

Chapter 2

When they arrived in the lab a few minutes later Gibbs pushed Abby into her chair and told her to stay there before he went to the morgue and looked for Ducky.

It didn't take long for him to actually find the coroner and before he could say anything he was told, "Now if you want to get some of my coffee you'll actually have to wait until I settled in and can start the machine."

"Ducky, I'm not here for coffee. I'm here about Abby. DiNozzo went missing yesterday and she took it pretty hard. I let her spent the night at my place as she doesn't seem to notice what goes on around her. Apparently they are dating since before Kate joined us. I hope that taking her to work in order to distract herself would be helpful. But just in case... I need you to keep an eye on her," responded Jethro.

Ducky's eyes widened, "Anthony's gone missing? That doesn't sound to well. Of course I'll keep an eye on her."

"Thanks, Duck. I promised her to send info as soon as we know something new. I'll be going upstairs again and check if Kate and McGee have something already," said Jethro, before turning around and leaving the room.

Ducky finished his work and went over to Abby's lab. Seeing her sitting in her chair, looking sad and miserable, holding a picture and staring at it, Ducky decided to do something.

"Abigail, why don't you start working on the evidence? Here, let me help you," said the coroner and took all fingerprints that had been collected and placed them on the table in front of the Goth, "Why don't you start with the fingerprints? Scan them in and let them run through. It's not much to do and if you want to talk I'll be in morgue."

Ducky could see that Abby wasn't sure about not looking at the picture as if it would be a form of betrayal, but she started the task nonetheless. Satisfied that the young woman was alright for now, he returned to his own territory.

Some time later, for all Abby cared it could have been minutes or hours, McGee entered the room with a sympathetic look. He stopped for a moment and watched the miserable young woman who was holding a picture - from his position he had a more or less good view and saw that it showed Abby and Tony together, laughing - and on the computer in front of her were fingerprints changing quickly, searching for a match for the few they had found.

Taking a deep breath he ventured further into the room and asked, "How are you?"

For a moment he thought that she hadn't heard him, but after a while she looked up at him and he could see that she must have cried at some point. It surprised him, although he had known about Tony and Abby being together - knew it from the moment Abby had agreed to go on a date with him - but he hadn't thought that their feelings ran so deep.

"We found a piece of cotton lying under the car. It was drenched with chloroform as far as Gibbs could smell it. He'll send it down with some more evidence later on," McGee continued when Abby remained silent, "He thinks he has some other leads as well and we're going to check them out. I'll tell you when we find anything useful."

Before he could say anything else, Kate entered the room.

"Gibbs sent me to call you. He wants to go and check this out now. What's this?"

At the last bit Kate took the picture Abby held in her hand and looked it over.

"You let Tony get this close? I'm sure all he wanted to do was to get close and get off on it. It's all he can do after all," continued Kate when he saw the picture of Tony whispering something into Abby's ear with a big grin.

Without a second notice Abby grabbed the picture and said angrily, "That's your opinion, but you don't know a thing about him."

"Sure, I don't know him. I just have the desk right next to his and have to listen to his bragging all the time," responded Kate.

Abby snorted, "Well, if you're so blind I can't help you. Can't you see that Tony acts most of the time? Or do you truly believe everything he says?"

This got Kate to shut up and silence settled once more until and angry Gibbs entered the room.

"Is this a hen party or what? I can remember sending you down here to fetch McGee and not to argue, Kate," said the ex-marine with some force.

Both McGee and Kate jumped and started to follow him out of the room, when Tim suddenly turned around again and hugged Abby, whispering, "We'll find him. Don't worry."

She watched him hurrying after Kate and Gibbs and continued staring at the door for a while. With a sigh she returned her attention to the picture she was holding, tears pouring down her face once again. She was only interrupted when the computer in front of her beeped, showing her that a matching print was found on the Database.

***

The lead, the trio had had, quickly turned out to be a ruse while giving them an insight into Tony's private life neither McGee nor Kate had really wanted. Gibbs didn't let his surprise show although it opened a whole new venue he hadn't expected to be faced with.

It all started with a still unread e-mail send to Tony with the subject 'You will pay for your sins'. At the time it had sounded like a warning, but when they arrived at the residence of Christina Small, the sender, it had turned out that she was leading a Fetish Club where couples could live out their fantasies - from spanking with a paddle over bondage to quite painful experiences - and had invited all members to an exclusive party with a fitting e-mail.

Gibbs surmised that they might have forgone this embarrassment if he'd have asked Abby as she most surely knew about this. She had mentioned a fascination with all things not normal in this regard. This false lead also meant that they didn't have anything else left to follow.

Meanwhile Abby was busy printing out everything she could find on Michael Summers - the owner of the matching fingerprint - with growing horror. He was suspected to have killed an officer and a retired investigator in the last two months before disappearing. There was no connection between both and none she knew about between them and Tony aside from the fact that Tony used to work in Baltimore and the previous two victims lived there.

She was startled out of her thoughts by Ducky who was suddenly standing behind her.

"Don't you think it's time to solve this? Whatever game Tony and you had planned to play with Gibbs isn't anything to joke about. Especially sending him and the others to a Fetish Club; what were the two of you thinking?"

"Ducky, I don't know what you're..." started Abby shocked. She was nervous when she realised that Ducky had never before looked at her in this disapproving manner when he continued, "Don't play dumb. I overheard you and Tony planning to woo Jethro."

"We didn't plan this! Tony's plan was to get Gibbs as drunk as possible before telling him, in case he decided he didn't like his advances. This has nothing to do with it!" said Abby for a moment forgetting the dire situation.

Ducky's face turned forgiving instantly, "In that case I'm sorry for accusing you, but you have to understand that it looked suspicious."

"You know that I'm not so good at acting, especially not the distressed girlfriend kind of act," said Abby sadly.

Before anything else could be said Gibbs entered the room and by the looks of it he must have overheard the conversation, surmised the Abby.

With a raised eyebrow, promising an inquisition later on, Gibbs said, "I take it you already heard that the lead ended up being nothing. Do you have anything on the fingerprints already?"

"One of them came back to belong to Michael Summers. He's suspected to have killed two persons in Baltimore. The others are still running through," explained Abby, not facing the ex-Marine, "I checked out anything I could find on him, but there isn't much else. The two victims are a police officer and a pretty successful investigator who retired last year. No visible connection."

Chapter 3

"McGee will cross-reference their cases. We're thinking that it might be related to a case. Abby, I want you to check whether Summers or anyone he knew was involved with the police, possibly Summers himself," said Gibbs, before turning around and heading back upstairs.

Abby didn't even watch him go. If this man had anything to do with Tony's disappearing she'd have to find out as much as possible. She couldn't bear the thought of loosing him, when they had just planned to get Gibbs into this. Still she was tempted to return looking at the picture of Tony and her and ignore the search she was supposed to do.

Calling herself to order, Abby focused on the screen in front of her, wrote a message to McGee with the names of the two victims before continuing her research.

Meanwhile Gibbs arrived at his desk, stopping himself from asking McGee if he already found something, reminding himself that the other man couldn't have the names that long yet.

He hadn't been sitting for a minute when a messenger appeared in front of his desk and asked, "Special Agent Gibbs?"

"Yes?" asked the ex-Marine annoyed.

The man obviously heard the unvoiced threat for his voice was shaking slightly when he continued, "Package for you."

Within a minute he had signed his name and taken the 'package'. Upon closer inspection it was merely a larger envelope with his name neatly written on it. This made him falter. He knew that handwriting. Within seconds he had the notes at hand they had found and indeed it was the same.

"Who sent this?" asked Gibbs the messenger who was still standing in front of his desk.

With a shaky voice the messenger answered, "I don't know. I only get the packages and the address where it's going to. All I know is that I should give this only to you, no one else."

"Give me the number of your central," ordered Gibbs, making clear that he didn't expect anything less than the number.

The messenger in return looked as if he was prepared to run at any given moment. However he took the paper and pen offered and wrote the number down before leaving as fast as he could without running.

Not waiting any second longer, Gibbs ordered, "Kate, find out what they know about the sender."

Not waiting for an answer, Gibbs pulled on a pair of latex-gloves, opened the letter and turned it upside down. As a result a tape and another note landed on his desk. For a second he wondered whether he should read the note first or take a look at the tape first. In the end the note won out and he turned it around. It contained once again a to the point note and it send shivers down Gibbs' spine.

>>

You're too slow.

>>

It was as if the kidnapper was playing with them.

Sighing, Gibbs looked up to find that Kate was still talking on the phone and McGee was throwing him glimpses every now and again, or more precise the tape in front of him. He contemplated for a second to watch it right here on the big screen standing next to Tony's table, before he reminded himself how Tony had looked like in the picture they had been given and he doubted that he'd look any better on the tape.

Deciding to use the closest conference room that included a VCR, he signalled McGee to follow him, indicating that Kate should follow as soon as she had the information he wanted.

As suspected, the Tony on the tape was in worse condition than he had been in when the picture had been taken. He was still chained to the wall, and now they could see that it belonged to a large and high room due to the angle the camera was hold. The amount of bruises had doubled and he could see several blood trails from scars. Gibbs didn't realise he let out a sigh when Tony moved and moaned in obvious pain, proving that he was still alive. He could also see that some of the ribs appeared to be damaged, though he didn't know for sure as it could have been the angle playing tricks on his eyes.

After having assured himself that the other man was still alive he checked the surroundings some more. He could see the sun behind one of the windows, signalling that wherever this was filmed it was either facing east or west, depending on the time it was taped.

"McGee, find out when this was filmed and look for any other hints that could give us a clue as to where they might hold him," ordered Gibbs.

Before McGee could say anything, the ex-Marine added, "And make sure that Abby won't see this. She doesn't need to know how bad he looks."

"Yes... uhm... about the cases both deceased men worked on together in Baltimore. I didn't get far yet..." started McGee nervously, gazing at the back of the other man.

Gibbs didn't turn around or took his hand of the door he was about to open, when he replied, "Send Abby what you came up with so far, she'll take care of it."

Gibbs nearly collided with Kate when he returned to his desk. Raising a brow, asking without words what she got he continued his way to his chair.

"They don't know much about the sender. The package was dropped off at the central at exactly 9:33 this morning, paid in cash. No name, no address. All they could tell us was that it was a man, tanned skin, dark hair, around 30," explained Kate, throwing Gibbs a questioning glance in return.

Without looking up, Gibbs responded, "You don't want to see it. He's alive, but worse off than on the picture we received last night."

Meanwhile Abby had broadened her research to the family members of Michael Summers. It revealed that his parents died in the early 90s and his sister, along with her husband, was shot in 2001; nothing that could give her any clues as to why he was suddenly involved in a murder case. Her concentration was broken by the usual ping of a mail arriving.

She wondered why after only half an hour she got the task of cross referencing the cases that Gibbs had given to McGee, but shrugged it of. Maybe he was given something else to research. Giving up on Michael Summers for a while, she worked through the cases of the other two victims.

Half an hour later, she had just marked another case that both the police officer and the investigator had in common, Abby stocked on the name. It was screaming at her, but she wasn't sure why. She stared at it, begging it silently to tell her what it wanted to say, without much success, when she grabbed for her coffee. Abby was surprised at the missing weight of the coffee, thus using to much force to lift the cup and causing a few papers to flutter down.

Stooping down to collect the papers, she was faced with the answer to her question. The two main victims of a case concerning a mob were the sister and brother-in-law of Michael Summers. A few more checks also revealed that Tony had handled this case shortly before joining NCIS, which also had been present due to the death of a Petty Officer.

Now they had a real lead. Acting purely on instinct, Abby checked out whether Michael Summers had left any traces leading them to a possible location and it didn't take her long to find a warehouse he had rented shortly before the first murder.

Ignoring anything else, she printed the result and nearly ran to the elevator.

At the same time McGee had returned to his place with the tape and reported, "The view on the room and the lack of machines indicate that it is most probably a warehouse, possibly empty due to the sounds echoing hollowly. I also discovered hints of red in the visible sky, narrowing it down to either dusk or dawn and with the slightly orange colour I'd say dawn as dusk has a touch into pink..."

"Do you have a more exact location? There have to be hundreds of warehouse around DC," exclaimed Gibbs

Whatever McGee was about to say in response it was interrupted by Abby storming down the steps and nearly running over to Gibbs' desk.

"Michael Summers' sister and brother-in-law, Sarah and Joe Tanner, were killed shortly before they could give testimony in a case against a mob boss in 2001. They witnessed him killing a Petty Officer who had been bribed to let them on base, but had suddenly tried pulling out. Naturally NCIS was involved and it was one of Tony's last cases in Baltimore before he started working here. Both, the police officer and the investigator, had been involved as well. He also rented a warehouse, close to the harbour of DC," exclaimed Abby without taking a breath in between, while handing the paper she was holding to Gibbs.

The ex-Marine looked down and upon finding an address on it, announced, "McGee, Kate we're heading there right now. Well done, Abby. We'll tell you as soon as we know something."

Chapter 4

An hour later, the three NCIS Agents stood in front of the warehouse, along with a unit specialised in storming buildings. It was eerily silent before the signal was giving for the unit to enter the warehouse and within a minute they had it secured.

When Gibbs entered with Kate and McGee following close behind, he came upon a completely empty room. There was no sign of either the kidnappers or Tony. Without a word spoken they swarmed out and searched for any traces that would indicate that their friend had been held hostage in this room.

It was Kate who found something ten minutes later. A hook in the wall, maybe one and half to two feet above her head, and several scuff marks had drawn her attention.

She called the others over and pointed out what she had found. A closer looked also revealed blood stains on the wall and the floor.

"If this is indeed where they kept Tony, then they must have moved," surmised Kate.

Gibbs nodded and said, "My guess would be that they moved as soon as they sent the tape. They must have known that we'll be able to find them with the help of it. Maybe they wanted us to find this. I remember hearing that the witnesses were moved around a lot until the mob found them and tortured them to death."

"So in a way Tony represents his sister and / or his brother-in-law, only he's reversing the roles. Instead of the officers staying with the 'witness', we're trying to find them before Tony is tortured to death," concluded Kate.

McGee continued, "Or he thinks of himself as the protector and just like it had been with his sister and brother-in-law he will fail like the officers protecting them will. The only difference is that he's both."

"Then let's hope that we'll find Tony faster then the Baltimore Police took to find their witnesses and he hasn't been tortured to death yet," surmised Gibbs, "Collect any evidence you can find. I'll go back to the lab and tell Abby what we found. The blood needs to be tested to make sure that it's Tony's."

Kate quickly took several samples and handed them to Gibbs before returning to photographing the scene.

Once back at headquarters, Gibbs went directly to Abby's lab and entered without knocking. He found her collecting more information about Michael Summers.

She startled when Gibbs said, "The warehouse was empty, but we found evidence that Tony might have been there. Got some blood samples as well, to make sure that it's his and not someone else's."

"Blood? But he wasn't..." said Abby surprised.

Gibbs sighed and said gently, "It's not much, at least not an amount that would be deadly, but there is some."

Abby reluctantly took the swabs and headed to the other end of the room where the needed machine stood.

"Are there any other places Summers has access to?" asked Gibbs while shifting through the papers on Abby's desk.

When she didn't answer, Gibbs thought that she hadn't heard him and was about to repeat his question only to be interrupted by Abby, "Aside from his house in Baltimore? None. And the house is in the middle of a quiet neighbourhood. He wouldn't be able to keep this a secret there."

Gibbs nodded in silent agreement although the Goth couldn't see him.

"I wrote down the numbers of the Detectives working on the case in Baltimore, so you can share information," added Abby after a while.

Once again the ex-Marine nodded and said, "I'll do that right now until Kate and McGee return."

"The note should be on top of the table if you didn't mix anything up," explained Abby.

Gibbs didn't say anything in response, but shuffled through the papers, trying to find the note he had ignored when he had gone through them a few moments ago. Once he had found it, he threw one last look at Abby and headed out of the lab.

An hour later Gibbs had been assured the help of the Baltimore Police Department in regards to sharing what they knew so far, although that wasn't as much information as he had hoped it would be. Though they had agreed to check out Summers' residence, in case that there could be anything helpful. For now he knew that Tony had been held at the Warehouse for sure. The test had come back a quarter hour ago.

He had also re-read the original case and surmised that the reason Tony had been kidnapped instead of being killed immediately was that the younger Agent was the one that convinced the witnesses to testify in court, while the other two were only responsible for the investigation.

Gibbs' musings were interrupted by the arrival of Kate and McGee.

"We dropped the evidence off at the lab. Abby is looking through it as we speak," explained Kate.

The ex-Marine simply nodded and said, "Baltimore PD is going to check Summers' house and agreed to share any and all information they have. It isn't much, but it might give us the help we need. Other than that, Tony had definitely been in that warehouse. Unfortunately there is not other possible location available to Summers that we know about. McGee, check if you can find something. Kate, you go over the case files and look for anything that might be of use."

Without another word Gibbs stood up, grabbed the tape and headed to the elevators.

Within a few minutes Gibbs arrived in the morgue and headed straight to where he knew Ducky most probably could be found. It didn't take long for him to find the older man and before he could be questioned about anything, he asked, "Ducky? We got a tape of Tony and I want to know, from the look of the injuries, how serious it is. Also, no word to Abby please; this isn't something she should see."

They went to a nearby TV that was connected to a VCR and watched the tape. To Gibbs it hadn't lost any of it's ghastliness in comparison to the first time he had seen it several hours ago.

Ducky himself didn't let any emotions emerge while the taped played, but when he answered Gibbs' question he lacked his usual talkativeness.

"As far as I can see there are no grave injuries, but one shouldn't underestimate the combination of smaller ones. The angle makes it difficult to give you a precise diagnosis. There might be a few problems with his ribs, but this could be due to the fact that he's hung higher than he is tall. I can't really say much aside from the fact that there aren't any visible life threatening injuries there yet."

Gibbs merely nodded in return, "It's good to know. That gives us some time, though we don't know how much, considering that they moved him."

"That it does, at least emotionally," nodded Ducky absently.

Without another word Gibbs turned around, taking the tape with him again and headed out of the door silently. Ducky remained and sighed. So much to his hope of having Jethro Gibbs relax somewhat. He only hoped that this would have a happy ending. He hated to think about how things would turn out if Tony couldn't be saved in time.

When Gibbs arrived back in the bullpen, Kate jumped up and said, "Detective Carlsberg from Baltimore PD called. They didn't find anything in the house that could give us hints about Tony's new location. However, they found the number of Steve Tanner on number 1 speed dial. Steve and Joe Tanner were brothers."

"Check if Steve Tanner has any houses, warehouses, etc. that could be used. Maybe they're working together," ordered Gibbs.

He could feel that both Agents were curious about where he went, but none of them seemed willing to ask. Thus he decided to just ignore it and concentrated on the task at hand, namely finding Tony.

20 minutes later Kate announced, "Steve Tanner owns a warehouse halfway between Baltimore and DC."

"Inform Detective Carlsberg and we'll be heading out. Tony better be there, Abby seems to be getting on track for now, but I don't want to find out how many dead ends we have to hit before it gets worse again," ordered Gibbs while grabbing his phone.

Within a short time he had another unit ready to storm a second warehouse which hopefully wasn't empty.

Chapter 5

Once again they stood in front of a warehouse, worried about what they would find inside. 'Did they move to another location again?' and 'How seriously is Tony injured?' were only two questions among many the little group was asking themselves.

Ten minutes later everyone was in position and the signal was given for everyone to storm the building. Gibbs, Kate and McGee followed close by, guns at the ready, staying out of the way

As soon as Gibbs' eyes had adjusted to the dark surroundings of the building, he scanned the room they were in. It didn't take the ex-marine long to find what he was searching for.

Tony was chained to the wall close to the corner furthest from where they had entered the room. He wasn't moving or reacting to their presence at all.

A quick glance to the commotion that caught his interest, Gibbs was satisfied to see both of Tony's tormentors being wrestled down and arrested. Relieved that he didn't have to take care of that matter, he lowered his gun and hurried over to where the other man was hanging, followed closely by Kate and McGee.

Before he was even close enough to touch Tony, he had already spotted where the chains that held the other Agent up were anchored.

Not caring who followed his command, Gibbs barked, "Hold DiNozzo while I lower him."

He put his gun away mid-step and gripped the chain, unhooking it and with an eye on Tony, who was held by Kate and McGee he let the chain move slowly upwards, lowering DiNozzo in the process.

As soon as he was lying on the ground Gibbs hooked the chain back on the anchor while Kate was working on removing the chain from a still unconscious Tony. Gibbs pushed McGee out of his way and checked the other man over. He let out the breath he didn't realise he was holding when he felt a weak, but steady pulse.

He heard McGee in the background calling an ambulance and prayed that Tony would keep up until they arrived, while checking for obvious injuries that needed to be taken care of.

To his relief, Gibbs could only find small cuts and what appeared to be whip marks that were clotted over already. There were no wounds that needed immediate tending, which meant that none of the visible wounds actually were critical. Now he only had to hope that among the many bruises visible were none that hid inner bleedings or other injuries. He was no expert on this after all and his training only included the most routine first aid like dressing up wounds and possibly setting a broken bone until it could be looked after.

After what felt like forever, Gibbs finally heard the sirens indicating the arrival of an ambulance. Several minutes later McGee returned, followed by several paramedics with a stretcher. More out of instinct than anything else he stepped back and let the men do their job. He longed to kneel back down and hold Tony's hand, not caring that the other man was still unconscious and wouldn't feel it anyway.

It didn't take long for the paramedics to declare Tony fit for travel and once Gibbs had their destination, he hurried to his car; McGee and Kate close behind him. He barely heard McGee stutter, "I called Abby and told her that we found him."

Gibbs nodded, although he didn't really hear it. His mind was set on fetching Abby and driving with her to the hospital as fast as possible.

He nodded absentmindedly, when Kate announced that she and McGee would remain at the office and report to Director Morris before following them to the hospital.

He didn't care that he was breaking several speed laws on his way to NCIS headquarters, but he noticed that both Kate and McGee looked slightly grey around the edges when he finally came to a halt. He waited patiently for a bouncing Abby to jump into his car. It didn't take long for her to be serious and ask him the question he dreaded most, "How is he?"

"I couldn't see any injuries that were life-threatening, but I can't say anything about those not visible," answered Gibbs shortly.

He noticed Abby nodding in the corner of his eye, keeping his eyes on the street while weaving his way through the traffic.

They spent the rest of the ride in silence and once Gibbs had parked his car they practically ran into the emergency room. Gibbs asked the first nurse he met for information and was directed to the waiting area with the information that Tony was currently in surgery and that a doctor would inform him as soon as possible.

The next hour was pure hell for Gibbs, and Abby wasn't helping in any way. In fact, her restless pacing was slowly driving him crazy. Having enough of this he ordered her to sit down and now that they had finally found Tony he demanded an explanation; anything to keep him from going insane with worry. Not that he would ever admit that to anyone.

Abby stared down at her hands when she slowly and almost hesitantly began to talk.

"Tony and I... our relationship is pretty open and... well, I knew from the beginning that Tony's actually bisexual and we occasionally are involved in a threesome at the club Ducky told me you went to. Had I known I would have warned you, I swear! Anyway, I thought about possibly asking you to join us, but wasn't sure about how to ask Tony until he asked me in the lab the day he was kidnapped. He offered to share and I knew that this would mean as long as you want to be with us. It was obvious that we both wanted the same, namely for you to join us. Since Tony brought it up, he was the one that had to come up with a plan to convince you to join us, if not in a relationship than at least for one night. His plan was to invite you to a drink and once you had drunk something, I was supposed to join and we'd give you the offer together. Only, as you know, we never got to that point," explained Abby nervously, stealing glances at Gibbs every now and again.

To say that Jethro Gibbs was stunned would have been an understatement. Sure, it had been more or less obvious at the beginning, but he hadn't been able to really believe it. He thought that he would have loved to see Tony and Abby trying to pull that one on him. He was sure that it would have been highly amusing.

He noticed Abby fidgeting in her seat and was tempted for a second to let her worry about this for a while, but with Tony still being in surgery he found that he didn't want to be that cruel.

"We'll talk about this when he's awake. I never considered a threesome, but I admit that some attraction is present," Gibbs could see some of the tension leave the Goth's body in relief.

Shortly after that, the silence between them was broken by the arrival of first Kate and McGee, followed by Ducky, and then by a doctor.

After verifying that everyone present was allowed to hear the news, the doctor started, "There was some minor damage to his right kidney, which should heal just fine, and some inner bleeding. Luckily, it was only a minor blood vessel, which reduced the amount of blood lost in comparison to any major one. Otherwise his chances for survival would have been minimal. As it is, his chances are very good and he will be transferred to his own room in the next minutes where you can visit him. He woke up shortly on the ambulance and once the narcotics wear off completely he should wake up on his own again."

Gibbs sighed in relief and he could see Abby being hugged by an equally relieved Ducky. McGee and Kate also looked like an enormous weight had been lifted off their shoulders.

Together they made their way upstairs to the station they were told that Tony would be transferred to and as soon as the nurses had him settled in the room they were allowed to visit.

Gibbs was prepared for the sight and was not surprised by the many bandages he saw, but he was keeping an eye out for Abby, who had yet to lay an eye on her lover.

As he had predicted the Goth gasped and nearly ran over to the bed Ton was occupying. He could hear the quite sobs Abby produced at the sight and without a word offered her some comfort. How did the saying go? The things that don't kill us, will make us stronger? Gibbs was sure that this would apply to Tony and Abby, and if he would feel generous, he would say that it would apply for himself as well.

When the realization of what Abby had told him had finally sunken in, he hadn't been sure what to say. Sure, there was enough attraction towards Tony and he could see the appeal in Abby, but he wasn't sure whether he could cope with both of them at the same time. Sitting here now at Tony's hospital bed, holding Abby; he was suddenly sure that this would be the right thing to do, that they fit together just perfectly. In fact, he suddenly was sure that they would complement each other just perfectly. The only thing missing now was an awake Tony DiNozzo.

Gibbs was so emerged in his thoughts that he neither noticed the presence of his co-workers nor did he notice them leave. All he noticed was Abby in his arms and the warm skin of Tony's hand that he wasn't aware he was holding.

Epilogue

Tony woke up several hours later and after being assured that he was safe, as well as that Gibbs had been told about their interrupted plan (which Abby had spurted out once the silence had started creeping her out), he started to question when he would be released.

It took a week before the hospital staff decided that he was healed enough to leave the hospital, although he wasn't allowed to return to work for another 2 weeks.

Meanwhile Gibbs had made sure that neither Tony nor Abby would ever be told what kind of weapons they had found at the warehouse. Most of them had not yet been used and the ex-marine shuddered to think what would have happened had they arrived a little later. Most of them had would have been deadly on their own if only used for an extended time. They had also found a second tape, this time with the torture on it. He made sure that McGee and Kate kept silent about this. It was easy enough to explain why he didn't want Abby to see it and after a while the other Agents had agreed that Tony was better off not knowing that he was taped at the worst time in his life. He didn't need to be reminded of what he had gone through.

Pushing these thoughts aside, Gibbs straightened his shirt and knocked at the door. Seeing how their plan had been ruined, Abby and Tony had decided to invite him to a home-cooked dinner, considering that Tony wasn't allowed to walk around much yet.

Gibbs couldn't help but feel apprehensive, as neither of his hosts fit into the type of gourmet cook. Then again both had surprised him occasionally, why not in this as well. He only hoped that he wouldn't come to regret this.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he knocked on the door. Not a second later the door was pulled open forcefully, revealing Abby, dressed in her usual clothes.

"Good. We already feared that you would never knock," said Abby cheerfully before opening the door wider, allowing Gibbs to enter.

Without a second thought he was led to the living room where they had set a table for three and Gibbs had to admit that the food smelled delicious.

Before he could ask Abby anything, she disappeared in what he assumed was the kitchen. He had to smile when he heard Abby scolding Tony about carrying the food over. A few moments later Tony emerged from the kitchen, scowling, followed by Abby who was carrying a large bowl with pasta and sauce.

While they were eating they talked about a wide range of topics and Gibbs found out that he actually had more in common with them than he had originally thought. Once he was finished, he said, "This was really good. Where did you get the receipt from?"

"My grandmother. She taught me how to cook. She always said that I shouldn't forget my roots. Then again she immigrated with her family when she was ten," explained Tony.

Gibbs made a mental note to remember that. Who knew what else the other man was able to cook.

His thoughts were interrupted when Tony continued, "Maybe I should have thought of that. I think my first plan was really stupid and to be honest, I'm glad I didn't have to test just how stupid it was. Although I could have gone without the torture and the stay at the hospital afterwards."

Gibbs couldn't stop himself from smiling. This was typical for Tony DiNozzo and he wondered how he was to survive without this for another week at work. He only hoped that Tony would receive the go to return to work at his next check-up.

Without many words they moved over to the couch with a glass of brandy for digestion, continuing their earlier conversation.

It was Abby who finally brought the talk to the topic at hand, "So how would you like to go on with this? Start slowly, one step at a time or jump right into the middle?"

By her expression, Gibbs knew which one she would prefer and Tony seemed to be just as willing. To his surprise he found himself wanting to stay for the night, no matter what might be happening later on.

Carefully, he laid one arm around Abby's shoulder, the other around Tony's, and pulled them a little closer.

He was open to everything.

The End

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