Camping with Gibbs 09/?
"So, I've been under surveillance this whole time?"
Gibbs slipped back into the tent with a fresh pot of coffee as Fornell answered him. "At first, we thought you were your brother, since we've never been able to get any good images of him. Then we were waiting to see if he showed up. There's five different teams at different campgrounds where's he's been known to hide out, but this is the only one with a paid reservation linked to one of his bank accounts."
Kyle stared into his cup as Gibbs topped it off. "Was I supposed to be arrested in his place? Is that why he set me up out here?"
"It's possible." Gibbs didn't pull any punches. "He knows the FBI is closing in on him, and NCIS takes the theft from a Naval research facility pretty seriously. A fall guy would be pretty handy about now."
"Great. So, how much trouble am I in?"
"Your fingerprints on the inside of that box?"
"No."
Fornell finished doctoring his own coffee. "You'll have to be officially cleared, but I wouldn't worry too much. The best part of being under surveillance is that we're the best alibi you could have."
Kyle nodded as he looked at Tim and Tony, then back at Gibbs. "There is that. So, they're not really your kids?"
Tony felt a sharp pain at the reminder, but Gibbs answered before he could say anything.
"They're my agents, but..." Gibbs shrugged as he looked at them both. "You don't have to be there for the conception to make them yours."
Both the boys beamed at that and Gibbs gave them a subtle nod, a warm look in his eyes. Kyle smiled at that before looking over at Fornell. "And your brother? You adopted him, too?"
"We share an ex-wife, does that count?"
Kyle snorted and began choking on his coffee. After Gibbs was done pounding on his back, Kyle started laughing. "Man, I wanna go to one of your family reunions."
"You sure? Diane loves it when a new man shows up." Tony grinned, unapologetic, at Fornell before looking over at McGee. "Of course, that would help lure her away from Timmy and keep him safe."
McGee rolled his eyes, but silently agreed that DiNozzo had a point. "Thanks, Tony."
Kyle had to laugh at that before turning serious. "So, what happens now."
"Now, you get warm and then get some sleep. Tomorrow we figure out exactly what's in that box and deal with it." He watched fondly as Tony and Tim shuffled their bedding around to put Kyle between them and added extra to help him keep warm before the three of them settled down to watch the movie as Tony started it over.
Once Kyle was sufficiently engrossed in the movie, Gibbs and Fornell started making plans. Tony was the closest to them and Gibbs gave him a slight nod to listen in as best he could. After Kyle was asleep, he could let Tim know what the plans were.
Fornell picked up his cup and took a sip while he gathered his thoughts. Bringing in the suspect's brother as they had was going to change the plans considerably. "Do we go back into town in the morning?"
Gibbs was also considering the options. "We need to get that box to the lab, determine what's in it."
"Our suspect set Kyle up here for two more days, he could still show up." Fornell hated to split the group up, but he knew that was what was going to have to happen, even before Gibbs said anything.
"I'm going to send the boys to the Yard with the box at first light. You and I will stay here with Kyle and continue the watch."
"You don't want to send Kyle with them?"
Gibbs shook his head before finishing the last of his coffee. "If his brother shows up and he's not here, it'll tip him off. With the cameras Tim's got set up, we can watch him without spooking anyone else."
Fornell looked around before stretching out a bit. "Does that mean we get to use the boys' camp instead of your antique set-up?"
"Funny, Tobias."
"I thought so." Fornell waited a minute. "So, is the answer yes?"
"Am I going to have to rescue you from those hammock chairs again?"
"Shut up, Gibbs."
---NCIS---
A sudden beeping woke Gibbs. By the time his eyes were adjusted to the dim pre-dawn light, Tim had rolled to his feet and was checking the feed. "Company, Boss."
"Where?" Gibbs watched over his shoulder as Fornell and DiNozzo joined them. Kyle stayed out of the way as he nervously watched the activity in the tent.
Tim pointed out the blips on the screen. "Three bogies on foot, heading toward Kyle's tent from the back side."
Shoes were slipped on and weapons went into holsters as earwigs were passed out and Gibbs barked orders. "McGee, I want you to stay here and monitor their movements. Kyle, you stay close to McGee and do what he says."
Kyle's eyes were huge as he stared at the figures slowly creeping toward his empty tent. Any hope that this was all a big misunderstanding quickly vanishing. "Yes, sir."
"Here." McGee pulled a stack of knit hats out of one of his bins and tossed one at each of the other agents. "These are tagged, so I can track you guys too." He fiddled with the computer for a moment and three green marks showed up on the screen.
Gibbs nodded in approval as he pulled his cap down onto his head. "Watch your back."