NCIS Fic: The Alpha and Omega 3/?
Rating - nc-17
Pairing - Gibbs/DiNozzo
Warning ; My take on what could have happened in 'Dead Air"
Summary: You're supposed to be a team, respect one another and always have each other's six. What if two team members disregard that protocol? One life hangs in the balance due to their arrogance and selfishness. A cover up and lies is all that they speak in their defense as their actions come to light. Tag to 'Dead Air'- what could have happened by the simple action of turning a switch
Abby looked at the three coms in the evidence bags that Balboa placed in her hands.
“These are Ziva and McGee’s coms from the op and Tony’s.” He hugged the distraught woman. “It will be ok Abby. This is Tony. Gibbs is with him and you know that as soon as he knows anything and is able to, he’ll let you know what is happening.”
“And as hard as this is, he and Tony need you to examine these. We need the facts to take care of this properly. By the book Abby. For Tony.”
Abby squared her quivering shoulders, wiped her eyes, and sniffed. “For Tony.” Balboa squeezed her shoulder as he walked out of her lab. She took the first com, logging it into evidence and began to examine it. Using the microscope, she started checking the connections and documenting every minute detail and issue that she discovered.
Abby knew that the coms were working prior to being given to Tony, McGee, and Ziva. She triple checked them and made sure, because the assignment was huge. Getting clear voice prints was imperative. Plus, she had them set to record everything in case it became necessary; being in a residential neighborhood, she hadn’t wanted to leave anything to chance.
She was only human and not above making a mistake, but the idea that they just stopped working would have bothered her greatly even if Tony hadn’t been hurt. She took her job very seriously; Gibbs and the team counted on the equipment to be in working order.
Abby was very relieved that she hadn’t shared the information that the coms were recording and their data was being sent back to her computer. The fact that Ziva and McGee’s conversation was recorded for all to hear was something she would be eternally grateful for. She couldn’t wait until that piece of information was dropped in their laps. They certainly wouldn’t feel so high and mighty then.
But she wanted to be thorough so she was checking all the connections visually before attaching the coms to an Oscilloscope to track their electrical continuity. As she looked through the scope, she froze.
“No!” escaped her mouth as she looked harder. Regardless of the fact that she knew that McGee and Ziva were lying and that they had in fact left Tony without back up, this was not something that she had expected. This went far beyond arrogance and irresponsibility. This was in fact criminal.
The tears started to flow as she noted that this particular com had been messed with. There was a small scratch at the edge where the tiny wire was attached. They had tried to cover up their crime by damaging the equipment. She wasn’t worried about this coming back on her, she had run a test with the coms before they were in use and she had that as proof that they were working.
At that moment she gave thanks to every deity that she knew existed for her anal compulsiveness where keeping records was concerned. Notating whose com it was, she grabbed the next one and realized it was Tony’s. There were traces of his blood on it and she had to stop and hug Bert before she was able to continue.
Taking a deep breath, she opened it up and began to examine it under the scope. There was nothing to indicate there would be a problem with Ziva and McGee hearing Tony. And the recordings that she had of the incident itself were proof that his was in fine working order.
She gingerly swabbed some of the blood to run it through tests just to confirm that it was in fact Tony’s as the tears silently streamed down her face. Placing that com back in the bag, she reached for the third one. Bracing herself for what she was sure to find, she looked under the scope and there it was. Slightly different and very faint, there was a scratch at the wire. It obvious they were trying to be gentle. Both of the damaged coms had tiny shavings that were invisible to the naked eye due to their small size. There was no way, unless you attempted this under a scope, that there would have been no trace left after the tampering. Certainly after the damage had been inflicted and the coms were inspected it would have appeared clean.
Abby could picture that whoever did the deed gently blew air into the small device thinking that would have removed any residual trace. But small electronics end up carrying a very small static charge and the shavings though microscopic would have stayed inside.
Taking small samples from both damaged coms, she ran them through Major Mass Spec so she could determine the compound that comprised the shavings. She hoped that one or both of their knives would have trace on them. Chances were good that the plastic inside the com was statically charged and the same shavings would have clung to the knife.
Grabbing several pairs of gloves, evidence bags and the evidence log, she set off to Interrogation to retrieve both McGee’s and Ziva’s knives. With any luck, one would be a match. Abby narrowed her eyes in anger, Gibbs was going to kill them both when he found this out before they even had a chance at a trial. She needed to make certain that she had a chance at the two of them first, otherwise there would be nothing left.
Walking up to the first Interrogation room she quietly knocked. The guard came to the door and she explained what she need quickly and quietly. He smiled and assured her he understood and headed back in to do her bidding, returning with evidence bags that contained three knives; he logged in the evidence.
Abby realized that Ziva must be in the room from the amount of knives collected. After the logging was complete, she thanked the Agent and walked to the room that held Agent McGee. Trying to reign in her anger at the two of them, she gently knocked on the door.
Agent Evert put his head out to find out what was needed.
Abby leaned forward and whispered in his ear frantically. “I found scratches at the connection in the coms worn by Agent McGee and Agent David. There was also trace plastic shavings and I need his knife to see if any were left on the blade.”
“I noticed the shavings were very statically charged and I have reason to believe that it is possible that some was transferred to the blade. I need you to bag and tag his knife.”
Agent Evert noticed her eyes were red and she was clearly upset. He nodded as she handed him an evidence bag and gloves. He motioned for her to stay where she was. He could sense the worry for Tony and her anger at the whole situation and wanted to keep her away from temptation.
Hell, he knew Agent Gibbs’ reputation and Abby’s. She was very rarely wrong in her findings and once Agent Gibbs found out, those two agents were going to be lucky to make it to prison. Frankly, he understood the sentiment, this whole thing stunk.
Closing the door, he put the gloves on and turned to McGee. “Agent McGee we need your knife please.” He held out the evidence bag.
“Why?” He asked as he slowly pulled it out of his pocket.
Two pairs of eyes narrowed at the question but Agent Evert answered.
“Place the knife in the evidence bag please.” Once the knife was dropped into the bag, he sealed it and took out his pen to sign and date the seal. “The knife has been requested for evidence.”
As he turned to the door, he saw McGee swallow nervously. Opening the door, he handed off the bag to Abby and signed the transfer log keeping everything by the book. Abby thanked him and headed back to her lab prepared for what she knew she would find.
Entering her lab, she placed the evidence on the table and once again picked up Bert. She really needed a hug from Gibbs or Tony desperately. But Gibbs was where he should be, with Tony. Whispering a prayer to God to help Tony survive, she placed Bert on her table.
“Bert, you know what we’re going to find. Question is who did it?” Abby looked at the bags. “Yeah, I know, I think McGee was the one who did it. He would think that he had the knowledge and ability. I can’t believe that it turned into this, that they would just leave him out there alone. Tony would never, ever leave someone without back up. And not because of a rule, but because he cares about people and wants to keep them safe.”
“This sucks. How is he going to feel when he finds out that his friends, people he trusted did this to him? This is Tony we’re talking about. He will find a way to blame himself, but I will not let that happen. This is not his fault. He still has us and we will make it right.” She let out a heavy sigh. “Don’t know how, but Gibbs, Ducky, and I will figure out a way.”
She put her gloves on and grabbing the bag with the one knife that she knew in her heart of hearts caused the damage, got to work. She did everything by the book, making meticulous notes as she logged the evidence and removed it for examination. Taking a deep breath, she looked under the scope.
There they were. Teeny pieces of shavings. Gathering them to place in the Mass Spec to run comparisons, she logged in, examined the other three knives, and found them to be clean. She sat back and once again let the tears flow. For Tony who was fighting for his life, for Gibbs who she believed cared for Tony more than anyone realized and for McGee and Ziva.
For them, her tears for them were of sadness that they would do this intentionally. They turned their back on family and ignored what they knew was right. Those would be the last tears she shed for the two of them as anger took their place.
Hearing the familiar ding, she brought up the results on her computer. She was prepared and knew what it was going to say. It was a 100% match. The coms had been tampered with and McGee’s knife had been the one that caused the damage. She completed her report and sent it up to Vance while preparing to call Gibbs.
Pairing - Gibbs/DiNozzo
Warning ; My take on what could have happened in 'Dead Air"
Summary: You're supposed to be a team, respect one another and always have each other's six. What if two team members disregard that protocol? One life hangs in the balance due to their arrogance and selfishness. A cover up and lies is all that they speak in their defense as their actions come to light. Tag to 'Dead Air'- what could have happened by the simple action of turning a switch
Abby looked at the three coms in the evidence bags that Balboa placed in her hands.
“These are Ziva and McGee’s coms from the op and Tony’s.” He hugged the distraught woman. “It will be ok Abby. This is Tony. Gibbs is with him and you know that as soon as he knows anything and is able to, he’ll let you know what is happening.”
“And as hard as this is, he and Tony need you to examine these. We need the facts to take care of this properly. By the book Abby. For Tony.”
Abby squared her quivering shoulders, wiped her eyes, and sniffed. “For Tony.” Balboa squeezed her shoulder as he walked out of her lab. She took the first com, logging it into evidence and began to examine it. Using the microscope, she started checking the connections and documenting every minute detail and issue that she discovered.
Abby knew that the coms were working prior to being given to Tony, McGee, and Ziva. She triple checked them and made sure, because the assignment was huge. Getting clear voice prints was imperative. Plus, she had them set to record everything in case it became necessary; being in a residential neighborhood, she hadn’t wanted to leave anything to chance.
She was only human and not above making a mistake, but the idea that they just stopped working would have bothered her greatly even if Tony hadn’t been hurt. She took her job very seriously; Gibbs and the team counted on the equipment to be in working order.
Abby was very relieved that she hadn’t shared the information that the coms were recording and their data was being sent back to her computer. The fact that Ziva and McGee’s conversation was recorded for all to hear was something she would be eternally grateful for. She couldn’t wait until that piece of information was dropped in their laps. They certainly wouldn’t feel so high and mighty then.
But she wanted to be thorough so she was checking all the connections visually before attaching the coms to an Oscilloscope to track their electrical continuity. As she looked through the scope, she froze.
“No!” escaped her mouth as she looked harder. Regardless of the fact that she knew that McGee and Ziva were lying and that they had in fact left Tony without back up, this was not something that she had expected. This went far beyond arrogance and irresponsibility. This was in fact criminal.
The tears started to flow as she noted that this particular com had been messed with. There was a small scratch at the edge where the tiny wire was attached. They had tried to cover up their crime by damaging the equipment. She wasn’t worried about this coming back on her, she had run a test with the coms before they were in use and she had that as proof that they were working.
At that moment she gave thanks to every deity that she knew existed for her anal compulsiveness where keeping records was concerned. Notating whose com it was, she grabbed the next one and realized it was Tony’s. There were traces of his blood on it and she had to stop and hug Bert before she was able to continue.
Taking a deep breath, she opened it up and began to examine it under the scope. There was nothing to indicate there would be a problem with Ziva and McGee hearing Tony. And the recordings that she had of the incident itself were proof that his was in fine working order.
She gingerly swabbed some of the blood to run it through tests just to confirm that it was in fact Tony’s as the tears silently streamed down her face. Placing that com back in the bag, she reached for the third one. Bracing herself for what she was sure to find, she looked under the scope and there it was. Slightly different and very faint, there was a scratch at the wire. It obvious they were trying to be gentle. Both of the damaged coms had tiny shavings that were invisible to the naked eye due to their small size. There was no way, unless you attempted this under a scope, that there would have been no trace left after the tampering. Certainly after the damage had been inflicted and the coms were inspected it would have appeared clean.
Abby could picture that whoever did the deed gently blew air into the small device thinking that would have removed any residual trace. But small electronics end up carrying a very small static charge and the shavings though microscopic would have stayed inside.
Taking small samples from both damaged coms, she ran them through Major Mass Spec so she could determine the compound that comprised the shavings. She hoped that one or both of their knives would have trace on them. Chances were good that the plastic inside the com was statically charged and the same shavings would have clung to the knife.
Grabbing several pairs of gloves, evidence bags and the evidence log, she set off to Interrogation to retrieve both McGee’s and Ziva’s knives. With any luck, one would be a match. Abby narrowed her eyes in anger, Gibbs was going to kill them both when he found this out before they even had a chance at a trial. She needed to make certain that she had a chance at the two of them first, otherwise there would be nothing left.
Walking up to the first Interrogation room she quietly knocked. The guard came to the door and she explained what she need quickly and quietly. He smiled and assured her he understood and headed back in to do her bidding, returning with evidence bags that contained three knives; he logged in the evidence.
Abby realized that Ziva must be in the room from the amount of knives collected. After the logging was complete, she thanked the Agent and walked to the room that held Agent McGee. Trying to reign in her anger at the two of them, she gently knocked on the door.
Agent Evert put his head out to find out what was needed.
Abby leaned forward and whispered in his ear frantically. “I found scratches at the connection in the coms worn by Agent McGee and Agent David. There was also trace plastic shavings and I need his knife to see if any were left on the blade.”
“I noticed the shavings were very statically charged and I have reason to believe that it is possible that some was transferred to the blade. I need you to bag and tag his knife.”
Agent Evert noticed her eyes were red and she was clearly upset. He nodded as she handed him an evidence bag and gloves. He motioned for her to stay where she was. He could sense the worry for Tony and her anger at the whole situation and wanted to keep her away from temptation.
Hell, he knew Agent Gibbs’ reputation and Abby’s. She was very rarely wrong in her findings and once Agent Gibbs found out, those two agents were going to be lucky to make it to prison. Frankly, he understood the sentiment, this whole thing stunk.
Closing the door, he put the gloves on and turned to McGee. “Agent McGee we need your knife please.” He held out the evidence bag.
“Why?” He asked as he slowly pulled it out of his pocket.
Two pairs of eyes narrowed at the question but Agent Evert answered.
“Place the knife in the evidence bag please.” Once the knife was dropped into the bag, he sealed it and took out his pen to sign and date the seal. “The knife has been requested for evidence.”
As he turned to the door, he saw McGee swallow nervously. Opening the door, he handed off the bag to Abby and signed the transfer log keeping everything by the book. Abby thanked him and headed back to her lab prepared for what she knew she would find.
Entering her lab, she placed the evidence on the table and once again picked up Bert. She really needed a hug from Gibbs or Tony desperately. But Gibbs was where he should be, with Tony. Whispering a prayer to God to help Tony survive, she placed Bert on her table.
“Bert, you know what we’re going to find. Question is who did it?” Abby looked at the bags. “Yeah, I know, I think McGee was the one who did it. He would think that he had the knowledge and ability. I can’t believe that it turned into this, that they would just leave him out there alone. Tony would never, ever leave someone without back up. And not because of a rule, but because he cares about people and wants to keep them safe.”
“This sucks. How is he going to feel when he finds out that his friends, people he trusted did this to him? This is Tony we’re talking about. He will find a way to blame himself, but I will not let that happen. This is not his fault. He still has us and we will make it right.” She let out a heavy sigh. “Don’t know how, but Gibbs, Ducky, and I will figure out a way.”
She put her gloves on and grabbing the bag with the one knife that she knew in her heart of hearts caused the damage, got to work. She did everything by the book, making meticulous notes as she logged the evidence and removed it for examination. Taking a deep breath, she looked under the scope.
There they were. Teeny pieces of shavings. Gathering them to place in the Mass Spec to run comparisons, she logged in, examined the other three knives, and found them to be clean. She sat back and once again let the tears flow. For Tony who was fighting for his life, for Gibbs who she believed cared for Tony more than anyone realized and for McGee and Ziva.
For them, her tears for them were of sadness that they would do this intentionally. They turned their back on family and ignored what they knew was right. Those would be the last tears she shed for the two of them as anger took their place.
Hearing the familiar ding, she brought up the results on her computer. She was prepared and knew what it was going to say. It was a 100% match. The coms had been tampered with and McGee’s knife had been the one that caused the damage. She completed her report and sent it up to Vance while preparing to call Gibbs.