Fic: Smoke and Mirrors [8/23]
Title: Smoke and Mirrors
Author: Jo. R (driftingatdusk)
Rating: FR-15
Category: Drama, Case-file, Romance, Angst, Action, Friendship
Pairing: Abby/Gibbs
Spoilers: Bloodbath, Hiatus 1&2, Murder 2.0, Broken Bird, Faith, Rule 51, Cracked
Summary: Someone from the past has a score to settle with the team.
Note: Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who's supported this story/me so far, and that I hope you keep enjoying it. I also want to say that I know there are some similarities between a couple of scenes in this part, and some in ncislove's fantastic, Accidents Can Happen (which, if you're not reading, you really, really should). That's what comes of being so on the same wavelength with someone so much that you kinda share a brain cell or two!
Also, my thanks as always to Lisa, who's a proofreading star!
~*~
Part Eight
~*~
The NCIS forensic specialist was taken to the intensive care ward rather than the emergency room the others had been treated in. Within minutes of being admitted, a team of doctors and nurses swarmed over her, whisking her off in one direction as another nurse attempted to keep the agents who'd accompanied her from following.
"You can't go through there," the woman protested, folding her arms over her chest. "I'm sorry, Sir, but only permitted members of staff are allowed through those doors."
Gibbs glared at her but it had no effect.
"You can glare at me all you like but if you try getting past me, I'll have to call security and have you escorted out of here." The nurse - Martha, according to her name badge, gave him a stern look that reminded him of his mother. "That wouldn't do either you or your friend any good."
He wanted to protest that she wasn't his friend, that she was far more than that, but he remembered with a surge of regret that that wasn't true. If things had been different, if he hadn't pulled away from her not more than a few nights ago...
"Jethro." Ducky's calming voice, and the hand he placed on his arm, kept him from trying to go through the double doors anyway. "Why don't we go and sit in the waiting room? The others will be here soon and they'll want to know what happened."
Ziva and McGee had returned to the safe house to pick up Mike and Tony, all of them agreeing silently that there was safety in numbers and that they should all be together just in case.
Just in case another attempt was made on someone else's life, just in case Abby didn't make it through the attempt on hers...
Gibbs shook himself mentally, trying not to let his thoughts dwell on that possibility but the thought kept coming back to him, tormenting him.
Wordlessly, he let Ducky lead him to the private waiting area Martha directed them to, missing the flash of sympathetic understanding on the nurse's face.
"I can't lose her, Ducky," he mumbled, sitting down and letting his head rest in his hands. His chest hurt at the thought but, at the same time, he felt strangely numb. Almost disconnected. "I didn't tell her..."
Ducky sat beside him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder but was unable to find any words of comfort that might help. He had suspected for a long time that his old friend harboured feelings for the forensic specialist and he knew, from many a conversation with Abby herself, that those feelings were returned. Just as he knew, with a slight ache in his own heart, that neither of them had acted on those feelings. He'd thought - hoped, maybe - that they'd have the chance after Gibbs had finally seemed able to find peace and put the ghosts of his past behind him but that, it seemed, was not part of fate's plan.
The arrival of the others saved Ducky from having to think of something to say and it also gave Gibbs an excuse to compose himself behind the carefully constructed mask he wore so often at work.
"Where is she? How is she?" It was Tony who asked, looking as frantic as Gibbs himself had felt. "Do we know what's wrong...?"
Gibbs shook his head but didn't stand up; he wasn't sure his legs would support him. "They haven't said anything. Just took her away to run some tests."
"But she'll be okay, right? I mean, you found her in time?" His eyes searching Gibbs' own, Tony reminded his boss more of a scared child than the competent agent he knew him to be.
Gibbs could understand though, better than anyone; Tony and Abby's relationship had always been a close one and had, at one time, caused him to think that maybe he'd end up watching her fall for the younger agent. It was strange to Gibbs that he'd never felt threatened by the closeness that still existed between Abby and McGee even knowing they'd once been lovers but that the closeness between Tony and Abby had, at first, unsettled him. "We don't know anything yet, Tony," he said after a moment, keeping his voice soft. "There's nothing we can do but wait."
Hating it but knowing his boss was right, Tony sat down on the couch opposite and let his head drop to his hands. Ziva and McGee immediately sat either side of him, subconsciously flanking him as they, too, worried for their friend.
Mike stood, keeping watch over the group, meeting Gibbs' gaze for a brief moment, a chill going through him at the look in the eyes of the man he had once mentored. Whether Abby lived or died, the people responsible for putting her at risk were going to suffer, Mike vowed. Both for what they'd done to her, and for what they'd done to those who loved her.
~*~
It took an hour and much badgering of the nurses at the station before Martha returned with one of the doctors with news of Abby's condition.
"Agent Gibbs?" The doctor called out after glancing at the notes in his hand and reading the name of Abby's next of kin. As Gibbs approached, he held out his hand. "I'm Doctor Taylor. I'm overseeing Ms. Sciuto's care."
"How is she?" Gibbs accepted the hand held out to him on impulse, his mind far too busy trying to process his thoughts to worry about remembering his manners. "Is Abby...?"
"She's responding well to treatment," the doctor informed him calmly, his neutral expression not giving anything away. "After all of the tests, we can safely assume she's suffering from a form of caffeine poisoning as a result of an overdose."
"Caffeine...?" Gibbs remembered the pool of Caf-Pow he'd knelt in and tensed his back against a shudder. "Will she be okay?"
"I believe so. We attached a tube from her nose to her stomach in an attempt at washing out any caffeine that might have been left in her system," Doctor Taylor said seriously. "Her condition has stabilised and we've got her on a ventilator to help with her breathing. At the moment, we're trying her on a variety of treatments to correct her irregular heartbeat."
Gibbs nodded, the intense relief he felt making it almost impossible to speak.
"You said it was caffeine poisoning," Tony intervened on his behalf. "Abby has a fondness for a caffeinated soft drink... Could she have just drunk too much...?"
Doctor Taylor shook his head. "There's rarely enough caffeine in energy drinks to cause this kind of reaction. The amounts we found in her blood... Unless she was also taking caffeine supplements, it's unlikely that this was an accidental overdose. Is there any way her drinks could have been tampered with?"
The team exchanged uneasy looks.
"It's a possibility," Gibbs answered curtly. "When can I see her?"
Doctor Taylor exchanged a glance with Martha before sighing softly. "I can let one of you in to see her now, two at most. The rest of you will have to wait until we've moved her out of intensive care."
It was enough for Gibbs, who turned to his agents. "Ziva, McGee, find out where she's been getting her Caf-Pows from and see if there's been any hits on the search she was running. Duck, can you test the Caf-Pow in her lab and check the caffeine levels? Mike, go with him, make sure he gets there in once piece. DiNozzo, you're with me."
No one argued, though it was clear all of them wanted a chance to go and see Abby themselves. Understanding why he'd chosen the way he had, McGee and Ziva left reluctantly, with Ducky and Mike following.
Tony and Gibbs followed Doctor Taylor through the double doors Martha had prevented Gibbs from going through not more than a few hours earlier, each impatient to see their friend.
~*~
Tracing Abby's movements over the last few days wasn't a difficult task nor was it hard to find out that she'd bought her steady supply of Caf-Pows from the same coffee shop they'd frequented for years.
McGee and Ziva stood at the counter, the latter tapping her foot impatiently as the customer being served ahead of them deliberated over whether to add a blueberry muffin to her order or a chocolate slice.
"She will have the blueberry," Ziva said eventually, making the decision for her. When the woman turned around the protest, Ziva flashed her badge at her. "We are here on official business and do not have all day to wait."
Evidently annoyed but unwilling to argue with an officer of the law, the woman took her latte and muffin and left. The barista behind the counter looked at the two agents expectantly, recognising both of them from the many coffee runs they'd done over the years.
"Agent David, Agent McGee. What can I do for you?" The young man, Elliot, glanced between them. "Is everything okay?"
"Not really, Elliot." McGee held Elliot's gaze evenly. "We need to take your Caf-Pow machine in as part of an investigation, and we need to know if you've had any complaints from customers about the content of the Caf-Pows you've sold in the last week or so."
"You have to take in the machine...? Why? If Abby wants one that badly, I can give you the details of our supplier..." His attempt at a joke fell flat and he frowned at the expressions on their faces. "What's going on?"
"Abby is in hospital, Elliot," Ziva informed him calmly. "She is suffering from caffeine poisoning and we believe the Caf-Pows she drinks may be responsible."
"What? No." Elliot shook his head, his eyes wide. "Our machine was serviced a month ago, it was working fine. And no one... No one's said anything about the drinks..." He cut himself off and shook his head. "You're welcome to take it in but I promise, there's nothing wrong with it. She couldn't have... Not from here." He shook his head again. "She's gonna be okay, though, right? Abby? She's... She's one of our favourite customers."
"She is a favourite of many," Ziva murmured softly.
McGee glanced at her, hearing the trace of concern for their friend in her voice. "She's going to be fine," he said firmly, not sure if he was assuring Ziva, Elliot, himself or all of them. He scribbled down the name and number of the NCIS techs who would be arriving to pick up the machine for the barista. "Your cooperation is appreciated, Elliot, and I promise, as soon as we're done with the machine, we'll have it brought back to you."
Elliott nodded. "Sure, no problem. Just... Tell Abby we're all thinking of her, okay?"
"We will," McGee promised, "as soon as we see her."
He and Ziva left, certain they'd managed to rule out accidental poisoning but otherwise no further forward in finding the person responsible.
~*~
Author: Jo. R (driftingatdusk)
Rating: FR-15
Category: Drama, Case-file, Romance, Angst, Action, Friendship
Pairing: Abby/Gibbs
Spoilers: Bloodbath, Hiatus 1&2, Murder 2.0, Broken Bird, Faith, Rule 51, Cracked
Summary: Someone from the past has a score to settle with the team.
Note: Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who's supported this story/me so far, and that I hope you keep enjoying it. I also want to say that I know there are some similarities between a couple of scenes in this part, and some in ncislove's fantastic, Accidents Can Happen (which, if you're not reading, you really, really should). That's what comes of being so on the same wavelength with someone so much that you kinda share a brain cell or two!
Also, my thanks as always to Lisa, who's a proofreading star!
~*~
Part Eight
~*~
The NCIS forensic specialist was taken to the intensive care ward rather than the emergency room the others had been treated in. Within minutes of being admitted, a team of doctors and nurses swarmed over her, whisking her off in one direction as another nurse attempted to keep the agents who'd accompanied her from following.
"You can't go through there," the woman protested, folding her arms over her chest. "I'm sorry, Sir, but only permitted members of staff are allowed through those doors."
Gibbs glared at her but it had no effect.
"You can glare at me all you like but if you try getting past me, I'll have to call security and have you escorted out of here." The nurse - Martha, according to her name badge, gave him a stern look that reminded him of his mother. "That wouldn't do either you or your friend any good."
He wanted to protest that she wasn't his friend, that she was far more than that, but he remembered with a surge of regret that that wasn't true. If things had been different, if he hadn't pulled away from her not more than a few nights ago...
"Jethro." Ducky's calming voice, and the hand he placed on his arm, kept him from trying to go through the double doors anyway. "Why don't we go and sit in the waiting room? The others will be here soon and they'll want to know what happened."
Ziva and McGee had returned to the safe house to pick up Mike and Tony, all of them agreeing silently that there was safety in numbers and that they should all be together just in case.
Just in case another attempt was made on someone else's life, just in case Abby didn't make it through the attempt on hers...
Gibbs shook himself mentally, trying not to let his thoughts dwell on that possibility but the thought kept coming back to him, tormenting him.
Wordlessly, he let Ducky lead him to the private waiting area Martha directed them to, missing the flash of sympathetic understanding on the nurse's face.
"I can't lose her, Ducky," he mumbled, sitting down and letting his head rest in his hands. His chest hurt at the thought but, at the same time, he felt strangely numb. Almost disconnected. "I didn't tell her..."
Ducky sat beside him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder but was unable to find any words of comfort that might help. He had suspected for a long time that his old friend harboured feelings for the forensic specialist and he knew, from many a conversation with Abby herself, that those feelings were returned. Just as he knew, with a slight ache in his own heart, that neither of them had acted on those feelings. He'd thought - hoped, maybe - that they'd have the chance after Gibbs had finally seemed able to find peace and put the ghosts of his past behind him but that, it seemed, was not part of fate's plan.
The arrival of the others saved Ducky from having to think of something to say and it also gave Gibbs an excuse to compose himself behind the carefully constructed mask he wore so often at work.
"Where is she? How is she?" It was Tony who asked, looking as frantic as Gibbs himself had felt. "Do we know what's wrong...?"
Gibbs shook his head but didn't stand up; he wasn't sure his legs would support him. "They haven't said anything. Just took her away to run some tests."
"But she'll be okay, right? I mean, you found her in time?" His eyes searching Gibbs' own, Tony reminded his boss more of a scared child than the competent agent he knew him to be.
Gibbs could understand though, better than anyone; Tony and Abby's relationship had always been a close one and had, at one time, caused him to think that maybe he'd end up watching her fall for the younger agent. It was strange to Gibbs that he'd never felt threatened by the closeness that still existed between Abby and McGee even knowing they'd once been lovers but that the closeness between Tony and Abby had, at first, unsettled him. "We don't know anything yet, Tony," he said after a moment, keeping his voice soft. "There's nothing we can do but wait."
Hating it but knowing his boss was right, Tony sat down on the couch opposite and let his head drop to his hands. Ziva and McGee immediately sat either side of him, subconsciously flanking him as they, too, worried for their friend.
Mike stood, keeping watch over the group, meeting Gibbs' gaze for a brief moment, a chill going through him at the look in the eyes of the man he had once mentored. Whether Abby lived or died, the people responsible for putting her at risk were going to suffer, Mike vowed. Both for what they'd done to her, and for what they'd done to those who loved her.
~*~
It took an hour and much badgering of the nurses at the station before Martha returned with one of the doctors with news of Abby's condition.
"Agent Gibbs?" The doctor called out after glancing at the notes in his hand and reading the name of Abby's next of kin. As Gibbs approached, he held out his hand. "I'm Doctor Taylor. I'm overseeing Ms. Sciuto's care."
"How is she?" Gibbs accepted the hand held out to him on impulse, his mind far too busy trying to process his thoughts to worry about remembering his manners. "Is Abby...?"
"She's responding well to treatment," the doctor informed him calmly, his neutral expression not giving anything away. "After all of the tests, we can safely assume she's suffering from a form of caffeine poisoning as a result of an overdose."
"Caffeine...?" Gibbs remembered the pool of Caf-Pow he'd knelt in and tensed his back against a shudder. "Will she be okay?"
"I believe so. We attached a tube from her nose to her stomach in an attempt at washing out any caffeine that might have been left in her system," Doctor Taylor said seriously. "Her condition has stabilised and we've got her on a ventilator to help with her breathing. At the moment, we're trying her on a variety of treatments to correct her irregular heartbeat."
Gibbs nodded, the intense relief he felt making it almost impossible to speak.
"You said it was caffeine poisoning," Tony intervened on his behalf. "Abby has a fondness for a caffeinated soft drink... Could she have just drunk too much...?"
Doctor Taylor shook his head. "There's rarely enough caffeine in energy drinks to cause this kind of reaction. The amounts we found in her blood... Unless she was also taking caffeine supplements, it's unlikely that this was an accidental overdose. Is there any way her drinks could have been tampered with?"
The team exchanged uneasy looks.
"It's a possibility," Gibbs answered curtly. "When can I see her?"
Doctor Taylor exchanged a glance with Martha before sighing softly. "I can let one of you in to see her now, two at most. The rest of you will have to wait until we've moved her out of intensive care."
It was enough for Gibbs, who turned to his agents. "Ziva, McGee, find out where she's been getting her Caf-Pows from and see if there's been any hits on the search she was running. Duck, can you test the Caf-Pow in her lab and check the caffeine levels? Mike, go with him, make sure he gets there in once piece. DiNozzo, you're with me."
No one argued, though it was clear all of them wanted a chance to go and see Abby themselves. Understanding why he'd chosen the way he had, McGee and Ziva left reluctantly, with Ducky and Mike following.
Tony and Gibbs followed Doctor Taylor through the double doors Martha had prevented Gibbs from going through not more than a few hours earlier, each impatient to see their friend.
~*~
Tracing Abby's movements over the last few days wasn't a difficult task nor was it hard to find out that she'd bought her steady supply of Caf-Pows from the same coffee shop they'd frequented for years.
McGee and Ziva stood at the counter, the latter tapping her foot impatiently as the customer being served ahead of them deliberated over whether to add a blueberry muffin to her order or a chocolate slice.
"She will have the blueberry," Ziva said eventually, making the decision for her. When the woman turned around the protest, Ziva flashed her badge at her. "We are here on official business and do not have all day to wait."
Evidently annoyed but unwilling to argue with an officer of the law, the woman took her latte and muffin and left. The barista behind the counter looked at the two agents expectantly, recognising both of them from the many coffee runs they'd done over the years.
"Agent David, Agent McGee. What can I do for you?" The young man, Elliot, glanced between them. "Is everything okay?"
"Not really, Elliot." McGee held Elliot's gaze evenly. "We need to take your Caf-Pow machine in as part of an investigation, and we need to know if you've had any complaints from customers about the content of the Caf-Pows you've sold in the last week or so."
"You have to take in the machine...? Why? If Abby wants one that badly, I can give you the details of our supplier..." His attempt at a joke fell flat and he frowned at the expressions on their faces. "What's going on?"
"Abby is in hospital, Elliot," Ziva informed him calmly. "She is suffering from caffeine poisoning and we believe the Caf-Pows she drinks may be responsible."
"What? No." Elliot shook his head, his eyes wide. "Our machine was serviced a month ago, it was working fine. And no one... No one's said anything about the drinks..." He cut himself off and shook his head. "You're welcome to take it in but I promise, there's nothing wrong with it. She couldn't have... Not from here." He shook his head again. "She's gonna be okay, though, right? Abby? She's... She's one of our favourite customers."
"She is a favourite of many," Ziva murmured softly.
McGee glanced at her, hearing the trace of concern for their friend in her voice. "She's going to be fine," he said firmly, not sure if he was assuring Ziva, Elliot, himself or all of them. He scribbled down the name and number of the NCIS techs who would be arriving to pick up the machine for the barista. "Your cooperation is appreciated, Elliot, and I promise, as soon as we're done with the machine, we'll have it brought back to you."
Elliott nodded. "Sure, no problem. Just... Tell Abby we're all thinking of her, okay?"
"We will," McGee promised, "as soon as we see her."
He and Ziva left, certain they'd managed to rule out accidental poisoning but otherwise no further forward in finding the person responsible.
~*~