Fic: Smoke and Mirrors [10/23]
Title: Smoke and Mirrors 10/23
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.
As always, my thanks to Lisa for proofing.
~*~
Part Ten
~*~
Mikel Mawher sat in the interrogation room at NCIS Headquarters on the Navy Yard, his mind going back to the last time he'd been there. He remembered banging on the one-way mirror desperately, convinced Abby was standing on the other side watching him.
He remembered being heartbroken when Special Agent Gibbs had flicked on the light and shown that there was no one there after all.
Over the years he'd been in prison, he'd had time to wonder and theorise about why she hadn't been there and he'd eventually settled on an idea that had become reality in his mind. It only stood to reason, after all, that her colleagues would want to keep her away from him - they didn't understand how they felt about each other, couldn't know how much she loved him. If they'd refused to let her see him, if they had ganged up on her, she wouldn't have had a choice.
It was for that reason that he decided he hated the NCIS agents who'd helped secure his place in prison, and for that reason that he'd allowed himself to be talked into Tommy Doyle's plan.
"She wasn't meant to be hurt," he repeated, for what felt like the hundredth time. "Tommy promised me Abby wouldn't be hurt. He knew how I felt about her. He said she'd be safe, that she'd be waiting for me when I got out."
"And you believed him." It was the pity in Agent Gibbs' eyes that bothered him the most, the almost condescending way in which the older man looked at him.
As if he knew something Mawher himself didn't.
The agent who stood behind him, watching him in the reflective glass, stared at him unblinkingly. Mawher clasped his hands together and fought the urge to sink down in his chair.
"I believed he wouldn't hurt her, he promised," Mawher insisted. "Why would he? Abby did nothing to hurt him. It was you guys who ruined his plan, you guys who arrested him."
"It was using evidence Abby gathered that got him convicted," Gibbs pointed out mildly. "You didn't think he'd be a little pissed off at her for that?"
"He said he wasn't," Mawher replied petulantly, crossing his arms across his chest. "I had no reason not to believe him."
"Right." Gibbs met the gaze of the agent standing behind him. "So why don't we just cut to the chase, Mikel. Tell me where I can find Doyle, and tell me who's working with him."
Mawher looked down at the table. "I don't know who's working with him," he answered after a moment. "And I really didn't think he'd hurt Abby."
The agent behind him moved so suddenly, Mawher didn't realise he had until a firm hand clamped down on his shoulder and squeezed tightly. Mawher turned his head away, noticing with a sickening lurch of his stomach that the hand was missing a finger. "Get your head out of your ass, boy. Doyle's pissed at Gibbs, right? Surely you're not so thick that you didn't realise he'd probably go after Abby to hurt his main target?"
Mawher paled, both at the agent's words and at the pressure on his shoulder. "I-I didn't think about that."
Didn't want to, he admitted to himself. He didn't want to remember the way she'd talked about her boss, the way she'd always left him without a second thought if her boss had called while they were out on a date. He didn't want to remember the way she'd smiled in her sleep sometimes and murmured her boss's name instead of his own.
"No, you didn't, because you're living so far in cuckoo land you don't know which way is up." The other agent moved away but the ghostly memory of his grip on Mawher's shoulder lingered. "Just answer the damn questions and I'll try to let you leave here with your legs intact."
"Mike." It took Mawher a moment to realise Gibbs wasn't talking to him. "Be careful."
The agent behind him - Mike - shrugged and leaned casually against the wall. "What's the worst they can do, Probie? Fire me for assaulting a convicted criminal? I don't even work here anymore."
"What?" Mawher twisted in his chair. "You don't... Who are you?"
The agent - former agent - known only to him as 'Mike' gave him a wide toothy grin in response. "I'm someone who cares a lot for the people you and your friend decided to screw around with. You're gonna want to start talking, boy, before my patience runs out."
Gibbs shrugged when Mawher fixed wide eyes on him. "I'd do what he says, Mikel. He's not known for his patience." The NCIS Agent arched an eyebrow. "Neither am I."
Mawher did slink down in his chair then, hanging his head and avoiding eye contact with both of the other men in the room with him. "I'll tell you what I know."
~*~
What he knew didn't amount to much, to the disappointment of both Gibbs and Mike. Mawher was taken back to his cell, escorted by armed guard, while Gibbs and Mike returned to the hospital where Ziva and McGee were doing their best to entertain Abby and Tony. Gibbs watched them through the window in the door for a few moments, savouring the sight of all four of them being alive.
He was just about to push the door open when a movement caught his eye. Turning, he heard Mike call out just as a shot rang through the air.
Ducking to avoid it, Gibbs looked up in time to see the back of Tommy Doyle as the man ran in the opposite direction.
Without a moment's hesitation, Gibbs ran after him, knowing without looking that Mike and at least two of his agents were behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Tony, motioning without words for his senior agent to get back into Abby's room and keep watch over her. His agent nodded, looking only marginally disappointed to miss out on the chase.
Following Doyle to the parking lot, Gibbs had almost reached him when the younger man darted into a waiting car, putting it in reverse without checking to see if there was anyone behind him. Before he could curse, a second car approached and Gibbs looked to see Franks in the driver's seat.
"Get in, Probie, before we lose 'im!"
He didn't need to be told twice, nor did McGee and Ziva, who jumped in the back. Pressing his foot down on the gas, Mike sped after Doyle, his driving just as reckless as Gibbs' own.
It felt like a lifetime but was in fact not more than fifteen minutes. Doyle eventually led them to a warehouse not far from the Navy Yard, throwing open his car door and sprinting into it before the NCIS team had managed to slam their brakes on and stop.
The four agents got out of the car, each taking a split-second to make sure they had their weapons ready before approaching the warehouse with trepidation
~*~
Inside, Doyle wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand paced in front of the explosives he'd already arranged between himself and the front door. Plan B, he told himself, was just as good as Plan A. Maybe even better.
It didn't matter that he'd missed in shooting Agent Gibbs; the man had followed him to the warehouse, which meant he still had a chance to take him out.
He still had a chance to achieve what he'd planned.
Glancing from the front door to the back door, Doyle darted across the floor and tugged down on the handle, grinning in relieved satisfaction when the door opened.
Good. Plan B was going to work. It had to. And even if none of the agents were seriously hurt in the explosion, he'd at least get another chance at getting them back later down the line.
He'd survive.
The front door to the warehouse opened and two of the four agents came in, flanked by their colleagues.
Doyle held his hands up, showing them he no longer held a gun, showing them the detonator in his hand in the gun's place.
"I'm unarmed," he called out, a grin on his face as Agent Gibbs advanced forward. "Well, in a manner of speaking. Shoot me and I'll blow us all up."
"You're probably going to blow us all up anyway," Gibbs replied, holding his gun steady in his hand. "Put down the detonator, Tommy. It's over."
"No, it's not." Doyle shook his head. "It's not over till I say it is, Agent Gibbs. If I give up now, you'll have me back in my cell within the hour. I'm not going back there, I'd rather die first."
It wasn't much of an exaggeration; he didn't want to die but he couldn't imagine going back to prison, either. It was too much and too little all at the same time. He'd wanted fame and fortune and instead had spent the last two years of his life trying to convince his fellow prisoners he really was responsible for the murders they'd heard about.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Agent David moving around trying to get behind him. "I wouldn't do that, Agent David. If I press the button, it starts the timer. Once the timer is started, we all have two minutes to get out of here before the whole place comes down around us. You don't want that, do you?"
"Neither do you," Gibbs answered for her. "You don't want to die, Tommy. If you're dead, you won't be around to soak up the limelight, the glory. That's what you want, isn't it? That's what you've always wanted? I'm guessing that's why you've staged this whole thing, an attempt at getting more attention from the press, this time with your name and picture attached. The guy who managed to break out of prison and go after the agency who put him there. That's what you were hoping for, right? To kill us one by one then go public?"
Doyle shifted uncomfortably; while he'd become proficient in being able to predict the minds of Agent Gibbs and his team, he wasn't comfortable with the thought that Gibbs could do the same for him.
"I'm done with this," he declared, his voice shaking. "I'm through playing games! You've got two minutes, Agent Gibbs. I'd recommend you and your team get out of here if you want a fighting chance."
It wasn't the way he'd planned, not half as dramatic as he would have liked, but Doyle pressed the button on the remote in his hand, watching with satisfaction as the digital display on the explosives lit up and began counting down.
He waited a split second to hear Gibbs issue the order he'd been hoping for, the order for his agents to retreat, and headed to the back door to make his own escape.
The handle wouldn't budge.
"No. No, no, no..." Hitting it, throwing his weight against the door, Doyle felt a cold sweat break out over his body as the door refused to move and the counter behind him continued to tick down, second by second. "This can't be happening, this can't be..."
~*~
The explosion was immense, the heat of the fire reaching them even as they threw themselves on the ground behind their car. Debris flew through the air and rained down on them but thankfully no one was hurt.
No one but Tommy Doyle.
The forensics team who swept the site when it was deemed safe to enter found traces to prove the young man had still been inside the warehouse when it had exploded, along with evidence that he'd been trying to exit through a second entrance when the bomb he'd rigged had gone off.
Why he hadn't checked the door prior to setting it off, Gibbs couldn't fathom. It was a puzzle, he told himself, he would have to let go unsolved.
The days went by. The second man remained a mystery but, having made no move to hurt anyone else, was deemed a low security risk. Gibbs had been troubled at first but had let Director Vance talk him into accepting that the stranger was no longer a threat, and probably just a nobody who'd been talked into going along for the ride.
He put it out of his mind as Abby was released from hospital and the team were allowed to move out of the safe house. McGee moved back in with Tony and instantly began looking for a new place, while Gibbs took in the dog as promised, not minding one bit that Abby insisted on making daily trips to check on 'her two Jethros'.
Smiling to himself at the thought, Gibbs found himself looking forward to the approaching evening, knowing it would bring another visit from his favourite forensic specialist. He opened the front door to his house and greeted the dog that bounded up to him with a scratch behind the ears before heading through to the kitchen, ready to make a start on fixing something for dinner.
Less than half an hour later, Jethro the dog barked again, his tail wagging, announcing Abby's arrival.
"Hey, Jethro. How's my favourite dog today, hmm?" The sound of her voice made him smile again and Gibbs moved from the kitchen to see her kicking the door shut behind her while petting the dog that leapt up, eager for attention.
Gibbs could kind of understand how he felt. "You come to see me or the dog, Abs?"
"Both," she answered immediately, her smile bright and unapologetic. After fussing over the dog for a few moments more, Abby straightened and headed towards him, letting Jethro the dog walk over to the fireplace and settle back down on the rug he'd been dozing on. "Hey to you, too," she greeted Gibbs, tilting her face up to his to accept the light kiss he so willingly bestowed on her lips.
They were taking their relationship slow, having exchanged no more than a few light kisses and lingering embraces. After everything they'd been through over the last few weeks, they decided that they would take their time and savour every second since neither could know just how much time they had.
"Something smells great," Abby declared, breaking away from him with a shy smile. "What's for dinner?"
He grinned again when she brushed by him, following her into the kitchen. Watching her for a few moments as she stirred the sauce bubbling away on the stove, Gibbs moved up behind her and wrapped his arms around her just because he could. "Spaghetti ala Gibbs, Jack's recipe. I think you'll like it."
"I'm sure I will." She leaned back against him, tilting her head so it rested against his shoulder.
They stood together in silence for a few moments more, enjoying the domestication of it, each taking pleasure in something so simple that most couples took for granted.
~*~
He was going crazy, not knowing what was happening. Someone had said Tommy was dead but that couldn't be true; Mawher refused to believe it. Tommy was his way out of prison, his ticket to freedom - and to Abby. Tommy had promised... but Tommy had also promised not to hurt her.
Mawher sat up when the guard came to his cell and told him he had a visitor, his heart pounding in his chest as he was led through the artificially lit hallways to the visitors room.
Maybe it was Abby. Maybe she'd come to thank him...
His heart fell when he saw the person waiting for him was a man but rose again when his visitor looked up and he recognised who it was.
Sitting down at the table, he was barely able to wait for the guard to move away before picking up the plastic receiver and addressing the man sitting in front of him. "What's going on, Drew? Where's Tommy?"
"Tommy's dead." Drew Barton, his former cellmate, told him calmly, his manner matter-of-fact and entirely unperturbed by the news he was breaking. "It's okay, Mikel. I got him back for what he did to her. For what he tried to do."
"You...?" Mawher's eyes widened but he couldn't bring himself to say the words. He looked over his shoulder, noticed the guard watching him, and turned away quickly. "Abby's okay?"
"She's fine." Drew smiled a small, secretive smile. "I'm keeping an eye on her for you, don't worry. I won't let anything bad happen to her again."
"Good. That's good to know." Relief flooded him, replacing the disappointment he'd felt at learning Tommy was dead. His elation was short-lived, however, as he realised that, with Tommy, his chances at getting out of prison early had died too. "You'll keep her safe till I get out of here? It won't be for another year, maybe two..."
Drew smiled again, that same knowing smile that made Mawher wonder what was going on in his friend's mind. "You'll be out of here in a matter of weeks, Mikel, just like we planned."
"Really?" Sitting on the edge of the seat, Mawher could barely contain his excitement. "How...?"
"I've tweaked Tommy's plan a little. Just be ready. It'll happen the way he said it would, during your next meeting with your lawyer." Drew looked over Mawher's shoulder at the guard watching them and then back to Mawher. "Just be ready, Mikel. I'll have you out of here soon."
Mawher returned his grin, almost giddy at the thought. Even once he was back in his cell, lying on his bed staring at the ceiling, he couldn't keep himself from getting excited.
Conjuring Abby's face in his mind, her happiness when she realised they could finally be together again, Mawher grinned again.
"Soon, Abby," he whispered to the otherwise empty room. "We'll be together again soon."
~*~
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.
As always, my thanks to Lisa for proofing.
~*~
Part Ten
~*~
Mikel Mawher sat in the interrogation room at NCIS Headquarters on the Navy Yard, his mind going back to the last time he'd been there. He remembered banging on the one-way mirror desperately, convinced Abby was standing on the other side watching him.
He remembered being heartbroken when Special Agent Gibbs had flicked on the light and shown that there was no one there after all.
Over the years he'd been in prison, he'd had time to wonder and theorise about why she hadn't been there and he'd eventually settled on an idea that had become reality in his mind. It only stood to reason, after all, that her colleagues would want to keep her away from him - they didn't understand how they felt about each other, couldn't know how much she loved him. If they'd refused to let her see him, if they had ganged up on her, she wouldn't have had a choice.
It was for that reason that he decided he hated the NCIS agents who'd helped secure his place in prison, and for that reason that he'd allowed himself to be talked into Tommy Doyle's plan.
"She wasn't meant to be hurt," he repeated, for what felt like the hundredth time. "Tommy promised me Abby wouldn't be hurt. He knew how I felt about her. He said she'd be safe, that she'd be waiting for me when I got out."
"And you believed him." It was the pity in Agent Gibbs' eyes that bothered him the most, the almost condescending way in which the older man looked at him.
As if he knew something Mawher himself didn't.
The agent who stood behind him, watching him in the reflective glass, stared at him unblinkingly. Mawher clasped his hands together and fought the urge to sink down in his chair.
"I believed he wouldn't hurt her, he promised," Mawher insisted. "Why would he? Abby did nothing to hurt him. It was you guys who ruined his plan, you guys who arrested him."
"It was using evidence Abby gathered that got him convicted," Gibbs pointed out mildly. "You didn't think he'd be a little pissed off at her for that?"
"He said he wasn't," Mawher replied petulantly, crossing his arms across his chest. "I had no reason not to believe him."
"Right." Gibbs met the gaze of the agent standing behind him. "So why don't we just cut to the chase, Mikel. Tell me where I can find Doyle, and tell me who's working with him."
Mawher looked down at the table. "I don't know who's working with him," he answered after a moment. "And I really didn't think he'd hurt Abby."
The agent behind him moved so suddenly, Mawher didn't realise he had until a firm hand clamped down on his shoulder and squeezed tightly. Mawher turned his head away, noticing with a sickening lurch of his stomach that the hand was missing a finger. "Get your head out of your ass, boy. Doyle's pissed at Gibbs, right? Surely you're not so thick that you didn't realise he'd probably go after Abby to hurt his main target?"
Mawher paled, both at the agent's words and at the pressure on his shoulder. "I-I didn't think about that."
Didn't want to, he admitted to himself. He didn't want to remember the way she'd talked about her boss, the way she'd always left him without a second thought if her boss had called while they were out on a date. He didn't want to remember the way she'd smiled in her sleep sometimes and murmured her boss's name instead of his own.
"No, you didn't, because you're living so far in cuckoo land you don't know which way is up." The other agent moved away but the ghostly memory of his grip on Mawher's shoulder lingered. "Just answer the damn questions and I'll try to let you leave here with your legs intact."
"Mike." It took Mawher a moment to realise Gibbs wasn't talking to him. "Be careful."
The agent behind him - Mike - shrugged and leaned casually against the wall. "What's the worst they can do, Probie? Fire me for assaulting a convicted criminal? I don't even work here anymore."
"What?" Mawher twisted in his chair. "You don't... Who are you?"
The agent - former agent - known only to him as 'Mike' gave him a wide toothy grin in response. "I'm someone who cares a lot for the people you and your friend decided to screw around with. You're gonna want to start talking, boy, before my patience runs out."
Gibbs shrugged when Mawher fixed wide eyes on him. "I'd do what he says, Mikel. He's not known for his patience." The NCIS Agent arched an eyebrow. "Neither am I."
Mawher did slink down in his chair then, hanging his head and avoiding eye contact with both of the other men in the room with him. "I'll tell you what I know."
~*~
What he knew didn't amount to much, to the disappointment of both Gibbs and Mike. Mawher was taken back to his cell, escorted by armed guard, while Gibbs and Mike returned to the hospital where Ziva and McGee were doing their best to entertain Abby and Tony. Gibbs watched them through the window in the door for a few moments, savouring the sight of all four of them being alive.
He was just about to push the door open when a movement caught his eye. Turning, he heard Mike call out just as a shot rang through the air.
Ducking to avoid it, Gibbs looked up in time to see the back of Tommy Doyle as the man ran in the opposite direction.
Without a moment's hesitation, Gibbs ran after him, knowing without looking that Mike and at least two of his agents were behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Tony, motioning without words for his senior agent to get back into Abby's room and keep watch over her. His agent nodded, looking only marginally disappointed to miss out on the chase.
Following Doyle to the parking lot, Gibbs had almost reached him when the younger man darted into a waiting car, putting it in reverse without checking to see if there was anyone behind him. Before he could curse, a second car approached and Gibbs looked to see Franks in the driver's seat.
"Get in, Probie, before we lose 'im!"
He didn't need to be told twice, nor did McGee and Ziva, who jumped in the back. Pressing his foot down on the gas, Mike sped after Doyle, his driving just as reckless as Gibbs' own.
It felt like a lifetime but was in fact not more than fifteen minutes. Doyle eventually led them to a warehouse not far from the Navy Yard, throwing open his car door and sprinting into it before the NCIS team had managed to slam their brakes on and stop.
The four agents got out of the car, each taking a split-second to make sure they had their weapons ready before approaching the warehouse with trepidation
~*~
Inside, Doyle wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand paced in front of the explosives he'd already arranged between himself and the front door. Plan B, he told himself, was just as good as Plan A. Maybe even better.
It didn't matter that he'd missed in shooting Agent Gibbs; the man had followed him to the warehouse, which meant he still had a chance to take him out.
He still had a chance to achieve what he'd planned.
Glancing from the front door to the back door, Doyle darted across the floor and tugged down on the handle, grinning in relieved satisfaction when the door opened.
Good. Plan B was going to work. It had to. And even if none of the agents were seriously hurt in the explosion, he'd at least get another chance at getting them back later down the line.
He'd survive.
The front door to the warehouse opened and two of the four agents came in, flanked by their colleagues.
Doyle held his hands up, showing them he no longer held a gun, showing them the detonator in his hand in the gun's place.
"I'm unarmed," he called out, a grin on his face as Agent Gibbs advanced forward. "Well, in a manner of speaking. Shoot me and I'll blow us all up."
"You're probably going to blow us all up anyway," Gibbs replied, holding his gun steady in his hand. "Put down the detonator, Tommy. It's over."
"No, it's not." Doyle shook his head. "It's not over till I say it is, Agent Gibbs. If I give up now, you'll have me back in my cell within the hour. I'm not going back there, I'd rather die first."
It wasn't much of an exaggeration; he didn't want to die but he couldn't imagine going back to prison, either. It was too much and too little all at the same time. He'd wanted fame and fortune and instead had spent the last two years of his life trying to convince his fellow prisoners he really was responsible for the murders they'd heard about.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Agent David moving around trying to get behind him. "I wouldn't do that, Agent David. If I press the button, it starts the timer. Once the timer is started, we all have two minutes to get out of here before the whole place comes down around us. You don't want that, do you?"
"Neither do you," Gibbs answered for her. "You don't want to die, Tommy. If you're dead, you won't be around to soak up the limelight, the glory. That's what you want, isn't it? That's what you've always wanted? I'm guessing that's why you've staged this whole thing, an attempt at getting more attention from the press, this time with your name and picture attached. The guy who managed to break out of prison and go after the agency who put him there. That's what you were hoping for, right? To kill us one by one then go public?"
Doyle shifted uncomfortably; while he'd become proficient in being able to predict the minds of Agent Gibbs and his team, he wasn't comfortable with the thought that Gibbs could do the same for him.
"I'm done with this," he declared, his voice shaking. "I'm through playing games! You've got two minutes, Agent Gibbs. I'd recommend you and your team get out of here if you want a fighting chance."
It wasn't the way he'd planned, not half as dramatic as he would have liked, but Doyle pressed the button on the remote in his hand, watching with satisfaction as the digital display on the explosives lit up and began counting down.
He waited a split second to hear Gibbs issue the order he'd been hoping for, the order for his agents to retreat, and headed to the back door to make his own escape.
The handle wouldn't budge.
"No. No, no, no..." Hitting it, throwing his weight against the door, Doyle felt a cold sweat break out over his body as the door refused to move and the counter behind him continued to tick down, second by second. "This can't be happening, this can't be..."
~*~
The explosion was immense, the heat of the fire reaching them even as they threw themselves on the ground behind their car. Debris flew through the air and rained down on them but thankfully no one was hurt.
No one but Tommy Doyle.
The forensics team who swept the site when it was deemed safe to enter found traces to prove the young man had still been inside the warehouse when it had exploded, along with evidence that he'd been trying to exit through a second entrance when the bomb he'd rigged had gone off.
Why he hadn't checked the door prior to setting it off, Gibbs couldn't fathom. It was a puzzle, he told himself, he would have to let go unsolved.
The days went by. The second man remained a mystery but, having made no move to hurt anyone else, was deemed a low security risk. Gibbs had been troubled at first but had let Director Vance talk him into accepting that the stranger was no longer a threat, and probably just a nobody who'd been talked into going along for the ride.
He put it out of his mind as Abby was released from hospital and the team were allowed to move out of the safe house. McGee moved back in with Tony and instantly began looking for a new place, while Gibbs took in the dog as promised, not minding one bit that Abby insisted on making daily trips to check on 'her two Jethros'.
Smiling to himself at the thought, Gibbs found himself looking forward to the approaching evening, knowing it would bring another visit from his favourite forensic specialist. He opened the front door to his house and greeted the dog that bounded up to him with a scratch behind the ears before heading through to the kitchen, ready to make a start on fixing something for dinner.
Less than half an hour later, Jethro the dog barked again, his tail wagging, announcing Abby's arrival.
"Hey, Jethro. How's my favourite dog today, hmm?" The sound of her voice made him smile again and Gibbs moved from the kitchen to see her kicking the door shut behind her while petting the dog that leapt up, eager for attention.
Gibbs could kind of understand how he felt. "You come to see me or the dog, Abs?"
"Both," she answered immediately, her smile bright and unapologetic. After fussing over the dog for a few moments more, Abby straightened and headed towards him, letting Jethro the dog walk over to the fireplace and settle back down on the rug he'd been dozing on. "Hey to you, too," she greeted Gibbs, tilting her face up to his to accept the light kiss he so willingly bestowed on her lips.
They were taking their relationship slow, having exchanged no more than a few light kisses and lingering embraces. After everything they'd been through over the last few weeks, they decided that they would take their time and savour every second since neither could know just how much time they had.
"Something smells great," Abby declared, breaking away from him with a shy smile. "What's for dinner?"
He grinned again when she brushed by him, following her into the kitchen. Watching her for a few moments as she stirred the sauce bubbling away on the stove, Gibbs moved up behind her and wrapped his arms around her just because he could. "Spaghetti ala Gibbs, Jack's recipe. I think you'll like it."
"I'm sure I will." She leaned back against him, tilting her head so it rested against his shoulder.
They stood together in silence for a few moments more, enjoying the domestication of it, each taking pleasure in something so simple that most couples took for granted.
~*~
He was going crazy, not knowing what was happening. Someone had said Tommy was dead but that couldn't be true; Mawher refused to believe it. Tommy was his way out of prison, his ticket to freedom - and to Abby. Tommy had promised... but Tommy had also promised not to hurt her.
Mawher sat up when the guard came to his cell and told him he had a visitor, his heart pounding in his chest as he was led through the artificially lit hallways to the visitors room.
Maybe it was Abby. Maybe she'd come to thank him...
His heart fell when he saw the person waiting for him was a man but rose again when his visitor looked up and he recognised who it was.
Sitting down at the table, he was barely able to wait for the guard to move away before picking up the plastic receiver and addressing the man sitting in front of him. "What's going on, Drew? Where's Tommy?"
"Tommy's dead." Drew Barton, his former cellmate, told him calmly, his manner matter-of-fact and entirely unperturbed by the news he was breaking. "It's okay, Mikel. I got him back for what he did to her. For what he tried to do."
"You...?" Mawher's eyes widened but he couldn't bring himself to say the words. He looked over his shoulder, noticed the guard watching him, and turned away quickly. "Abby's okay?"
"She's fine." Drew smiled a small, secretive smile. "I'm keeping an eye on her for you, don't worry. I won't let anything bad happen to her again."
"Good. That's good to know." Relief flooded him, replacing the disappointment he'd felt at learning Tommy was dead. His elation was short-lived, however, as he realised that, with Tommy, his chances at getting out of prison early had died too. "You'll keep her safe till I get out of here? It won't be for another year, maybe two..."
Drew smiled again, that same knowing smile that made Mawher wonder what was going on in his friend's mind. "You'll be out of here in a matter of weeks, Mikel, just like we planned."
"Really?" Sitting on the edge of the seat, Mawher could barely contain his excitement. "How...?"
"I've tweaked Tommy's plan a little. Just be ready. It'll happen the way he said it would, during your next meeting with your lawyer." Drew looked over Mawher's shoulder at the guard watching them and then back to Mawher. "Just be ready, Mikel. I'll have you out of here soon."
Mawher returned his grin, almost giddy at the thought. Even once he was back in his cell, lying on his bed staring at the ceiling, he couldn't keep himself from getting excited.
Conjuring Abby's face in his mind, her happiness when she realised they could finally be together again, Mawher grinned again.
"Soon, Abby," he whispered to the otherwise empty room. "We'll be together again soon."
~*~