New NCIS Fic: In Case the Star Stops Shining
Title: In Case the Star Stops Shining
Fandom: NCIS
Characters: Everybody in the Emily!verse
Prompt: #46 Star
Word Count: 6953
Rating: T - for violence
Summary: Using her right arm only, she ripped off her shirt and quickly packed it against her wound.
Author's Notes: This is an AU, inspired in part by wiccagirl24’s wonderful Kelly!verse. This is the second to last of this universe. It is also a very different and very intense story. Deals with school violence. Also, very long, 16 pages in Word.
Author's Notes 2:I claim no knowledge of criminal investigations or hostage negotiations, however, I do claim knowledge of a similar instance. My brother, a former Petty Officer First Class with the USCG, was fairly recently in a stand-off like this at work. Fortunately, he was unhurt, but he was in a similar position as Emily. And, before you yell at me, yes, I think Emily’s too poised and in control in this story, too. However, I’ve modeled her response after a young girl in Philly, who a few years ago saved her entire class even with a bullet in her shoulder.
Emily looked down at her rapidly staining shirt and then up at the boy standing in front of her, “My mom’s going to kill me. I didn’t ask if I could borrow this shirt.”
“Damn it, Emily. Why’d you have to do that,” the boy stared at her in wide-eyed terror.
“Did you really think I was going to let you kill someone here today, Jeremy,” Emily grunted as the initial shock wore off and pain ripped through the large knife wound in her side. Using her right arm only, she ripped off her shirt and quickly packed it against her wound. Her left elbow held it in place as she slide down the wall behind her to sit on the floor. Jeremy started moving towards her, but she put up a bloody hand and he stopped.
“I swear, Em, you’re the one person I didn’t want to hurt. I actually like you.”
“Well, you always hurt the ones you love,” Emily sighed. “You know this is going to end badly for both of us, right?”
A tear rolled down his cheek as he nodded.
***
As hard as she worked and fought to get into her position there were moments that Jennifer Sheppard wished she wasn’t the director of NCIS. This was one of those moments.
Jenny took a second on the bridge overlooking the bullpen to watch her Major Case team… her best team. Things had been slow lately, which wasn’t a bad thing, and at the moment all seven members of the team were gathered in their area. Tony was in the middle telling some story that had them all laughing. Ducky was perched on Tony’s vacant desk, Palmer hovering nearby. Ziva and McGee were at their owns desks. Finally, her eyes moved to Jethro and Abby. Jethro was sitting in his chair while Abby stood behind him. Abby’s arms were looped lazily around Jethro’s neck and his hand was tracing the infinity symbol on the inside of Abby’s left wrist. She’d never really understood or approved of their relationship, but moments like this let her glimpse at the underlying connections between them. They looked so happy that Jenny had to force herself to move.
Ducky was the first to notice her descending the stairs and with their years of friendship he instantly spotted her distress, “Jennifer, what is the matter, my dear?”
Jenny sighed and continued her path until she was standing directly in front of Jethro and Abby, “I need to talk to you both.”
“Emily,” Abby’s hands flew to her mouth as her eyes widened in horror.
Jenny stared at the lab tech, “How did you…”
“What the hell happened to my daughter,” Jethro cut off the rest of her question as he exploded out of his chair.
“There was an incident at her school. A boy tried to take a classroom hostage at knife point. Apparently, Emily was able to distract him long enough that most of the students and the teacher got out. However, he’d stashed a gun in the classroom and he’s now holding Emily and a few others hostage.”
Jethro didn’t bother with his badge, but he did grab his gun before he, Abby and Tony all started for the elevator.
“Jethro, wait! They won’t let you near the operation. FBI was called into to run it and they’ve already kicked Fornell out.”
“They’ll let me in,” McGee stood and started putting on his gun and badge. “I’m not family.”
Jenny nodded, “Ducky, you should go, too.”
“Why,” Abby reached for Jethro.
Jenny licked her lips, “There were reports that Emily was stabbed.”
Jenny wasn’t sure how Tony held the weight of both Jethro and Abby as they staggered from the emotional blow.
***
McGee’s ID card and badge felt heavy in his hand. He’d been involved in a few hostage negotiations, but none with such importance. If anything happened to Emily he was sure that they would lose Gibbs and Abby as well. Walking into the command center that had been set up in the Principal’s office McGee had to remind himself to breathe. He knew that they had video feed of the classroom, but seeing it… seeing Emily sitting there in her bra and jean looking pale and scared made his breath hitch. Despite feeling like a voyeur, he forced himself to not look away.
“You Agent McGee,” one of the men wearing FBI jackets asked.
McGee nodded and flashed his ID, “Yeah.”
“Good. I’m Morris,” he extended his hand and McGee shook it. “Your director called, said you knew the girl and that she’d probably be a little more comfortable dealing with you, but that you weren’t especially close.”
His eyes flashed to the screen, “My boss’s kid. We know each other, but aren’t real fond of each other.”
The other man nodded, “Okay, that’ll work. We’ve got video feed from the attack on. Take a look at it and see if you see anything out of the ordinary for the girl. Then when we get the comm. established, we’ll have you do it. We’re pretty sure he’s going to have her do the talking.”
McGee wanted to scream that her name was Emily, but knew that would get him kicked from the operation, so he nodded and went to the indicated monitor. He hit the button to start the video feed and a few seconds later he jerked in horror as the kid lashed out knife and a stream of crimson flowed from Emily’s side. He knew it was probably shock, but he was amazed at how calmly Emily acted using her shirt to stop the bleeding and moving to sit where she was in direct view of the camera. When she spoke, she made sure that her face pointed to the camera. McGee froze the screen. That was it.
McGee remembered having to drop something off at Gibbs’s one weekend afternoon and Emily was webcamming with Abby’s mother, Gloria. Emily had run off to find her father, but not before she had pulled McGee into her seat and told him to talk to “Grams.” She had reminded him that Gloria could read lips and that he just needed to sure his face was pointed to the camera. At the time, it had been an awkward conversation, but suddenly he was grateful for it. He realized that Emily had made it a point to sit were her lips could be read and the nervous tapping of her right hand was actually sign language. He flashed back to the boy with the bomb in the base high school all those years ago; Emily really was her father’s daughter.
“Morris,” he called for the agent in charge, “we need a sign language interpreter here now. She’s been signing his whole time.”
Morris studied the screen, which McGee had unpaused, for a few seconds before nodding, “You’re right. I didn’t know the victim knew ASL. We’ll find someone, but we’ve got a viable comm. link up. We need you on that.”
McGee took a deep breath.
***
“What the hell is that,” Jeremy swung the pistol so it was aimed at the ringing phone near the classroom door.
“It’s probably the negotiator, Jere,” Emily made her voice strong. “They’ll want to talk to you.”
Jeremy shook his head, “No way. I’m not talking to some cop. You do it.”
“Let Sarah bring me the phone, then.”
Jeremy nodded and waved his gun towards one of the three other people still in the room, “Do it.”
Silent tears running down her face, the teen carefully made her way towards the phone. She merely picked it up and slowly, untangling the long cord as she went, carried it toward Emily. A smile passed between the two of them as Emily took the phone in her blood stained fingers. Exhaling slowly, she raised the phone to her ear, “Emily Gibbs.”
Emily, it’s McGee. Are you okay?
“Just peachy,” Emily’s eyes rolled at the stupidity of the question.
Fair enough. Can he hear me?
Emily sighed, suddenly vaguely ashamed for snapping at McGee, but that was the relationship they had, just barely civil when they absolutely had to be. Putting her head down, she spoke low, “No, he can’t. Do you have the camera up?”
Yes, but don’t talk about that. We’re getting someone to do the sign translation. Do you think you can keep that up?
“Yes,” Emily’s eyes flitted to the camera.
Good. Emily, do know why he might have done this?
She repeated the affirmative answer.
Can you tell us in sign?
“I already did,” Emily licked her lips and looked at where Jeremy was staring at her expectantly. “He wanted to know if I stopped the bleeding.”
Jeremy nodded his approval.
Ask him if you can tell us who’s in the room with you, okay?
Still looking at Jeremy, she swallowed, “They want our names. They want to know who is in the room.”
“Why,” Jeremy asked, suspiciously.
“Probably so they can do a roll to make sure everyone is accounted for and safe. So they know which parents to call before everyone freaks out.”
Jeremy nodded and waved the gun in a permissive gesture.
“Agent, besides myself and Jeremy Wentworth; Sarah Thoms, Beth Anne Rodgers, and Lenny Kent are with us,” Emily’s eyes didn’t leave Jeremy’s face as she gave the list of names. He didn’t seem bothered that she said his name.
Anyone else hurt?
“No.” Emily took a breath and a risk, “I think Kate or Todd might have hurt themselves as they tried getting out of the school.”
Emily?
“I don’t want anyone else to get hurt here today, Agent McGee, but I really don’t want anyone to die today. Please check on Kate and Todd. I saw them out the window, limping across the schoolyard towards the middle school. I think they had either an easy shoulder wound or leg injury.”
“Enough,” Jeremy finally roared. Snatching the phone from Emily, he screamed into it, “I want a car here and free passage or someone is going to die here today.”
He slammed the phone back into its cradle on the wall with enough force that Emily had to prevent herself from jumping as the others gave startled screams.
***
McGee stared at the monitor for several long moments after the connection was severed. Emily was trying to tell him something, but just like the sing language she was tapping out, he didn’t know understand. The possibility that two kids named Kate and Todd had actually been in that class and injured had to be astronomical.
“There were no Kates or Todds in that classroom at all today, sir,” an agent overlooking the class roosters for the classes in room 108 confirmed his suspicions.
Morris snatched the lists from his agent and scanned them briefly, before looking at McGee, “Any idea who or what she’s talking about?”
“I need to talk to my boss.” Before anyone could stop him, McGee was jogging from the room.
***
“Boss,” DiNozzo’s voice was gentle as he nodded towards the figure jogging to them.
Gibbs sprinted across the field where students, family and friends had been cordoned off and met the younger agent in the middle of the road that acted as a barrier between those people and the horror that was happening in the school. He wait a moment for the rest of his family to catch up, “McGee?”
“I talked to Emily, Boss,” McGee’s hands went into a slightly defensive position.
“How is she,” Abby’s voice was thick with unshed tears.
McGee gave a small smile, “Snarky as ever. She sounds pretty good.”
Abby breathed a small sigh of relief as she curled into Ducky’s side.
“Then why are you out here, McGee,” Fornell asked, his impatience at being turned away growing.
Morris slid up behind McGee, “That’s a damn good question.”
“She… I… Well…” McGee stopped and closed his eyes for a moment trying to get his thoughts together. He felt the familiar hand of DiNozzo squeezing his shoulder in a surprisingly supportive gesture and opened his eyes, “Emily gave me a clue or a code that I just can’t figure out. She’s also been signing this whole time, but I think this is even more important.”
“Just tell us what she said, Probie,” DiNozzo’s voice was even soft and supportive and the nickname was said tenderly.
Gibbs’s hand rested on his other shoulder, “Use her exact words, Tim. It will be important.”
McGee nodded, “When I asked her if anyone else was hurt, she… she said, ‘I think Kate or Todd might have hurt themselves as they tried getting out of the school.’”
“Damn,” Tony ran a hand over his face. “Boss, that’s a code we came up with when she was little. Not long after Kate died. It’s kinda an all purpose, I need you signal.”
Gibbs nodded, as if he’d known about the code, but sighed, “I think it might be something else this time, Tony. What else, Tim?”
McGee looked into the pained blue eyes of his boss as he spoke her words, “’I don’t want anyone else to get hurt here today, Agent McGee, but I really don’t want anyone to die today. Please check on Kate and Todd. I saw them out the window, limping across the schoolyard toward the middle school. I think they had either an easy shoulder wound or leg injury.’”
“She has spotted a place for a sniper and is saying that this is the only way to end this.” All eyes turned to Ziva as she spoke. Noticing the shocked looks, Ziva shrugged, “Emily has an eye for shooting. She is her father’s daughter and would make an excellent sniper. She is rational enough to know that something drastic needs to be done, but she is a child and does not want to see her friend killed. She is asking for the sniper to merely wound him.”
“How do you know Emily can shoot,” Abby asked, staring at the Mossad officer.
“We have gone with Tony to the firing range,” Ziva flinched at the smack on the back of her head from Tony.
“Sorry, boss, but trying to do something with ninja-girl and Marine Barbie is a challenge. We’ve been kicked off more miniature golf courses than we’ve been on,” Tony apologized with his best hurt puppy dog look.
Fornell seethed, “DiNutso, you took our daughter to a firing range? What kinda sick…”
“Tobias, we’ll deal with that later.” Gibbs looked at DiNozzo, “And by dealing with it, I mean I’m going to beat the crap out of you.”
“Yes, sir,” DiNozzo nodded.
“But, right now, Ziva is right. Emily must have a perspective that we can’t see. Have you found a place for snipers,” Gibbs looked at Morris.
Morris shook his head, “No. There just isn’t an angle.”
“There must be. McGee, what did Emily say about the schoolyard again,” Ziva snapped her fingers.
“’I saw them out the window, limping across the schoolyard toward the middle school,’” McGee dolefully repeated again.
Ziva nodded, “There is a window in the middle school from which there is a shot. I shall need to get into the middle school.”
“Miss…”
Ziva cut him off with her raised index finger, “Officer. Officer David, liaison to NCIS from Mossad. I am a trained marksman and I will be taking that shot, with or without the FBI’s assistance.”
“Fine,” Morris nodded and waived a hand. “Officer David and Agent McGee are coming back with me. The rest of you, back behind the barrier.”
“Mo,” Fornell called towards the retreating agent.
Morris turned and looked at his colleague and friend, “Yeah, Tobias?”
“Take care of our girl, okay?”
Morris nodded, “You have my word.”
***
Half an hour later, Ziva, McGee and Agent Morris slowly made their way through the deserted halls of the middle school that was adjacent to the high school following Emily’s instructions.
By the time the three agents had returned to the command center, the school’s ALS teacher had been found and she was about half way through the translation of Emily’s choppy signs. Between Emily’s limited hand movements and her own tears - Emily often assisted in her class and even tutored some of the hearing impaired students - the poor woman was struggling, but she had finally found the crux of Emily’s message. The first ten minutes or so was what you would expect from a hurt, scared 17 year old kid; cries for her parents and her pain and prayers. Then, she seemed to have calmed herself down (McGee hoped that the bleeding had stopped like she said or she had finally realized that the bleeding had stopped) and began to give them the vital information they need.
First, she told them about Jeremy and about the fact that his mother had just up and moved across the country with her new boyfriend. Virtually leaving Jeremy to raise his two small siblings and protect them from their verbally, physically and perhaps sexually abusive father. He’d also just found out that he lost a scholarship to the college he wanted to go to. Next, she gave them the layout of the room, the position of the students and things that weren’t in view from the camera. Finally, she gave them directions to the room in the middle school that had an angle on the classroom they were in. Then, she’d begin the whole process again, adding a few more details and stressing other points.
Entering the room that Emily had described, Ziva nodded, “She will make an excellent agent one day.”
“According to Abby, she wants to be a forensic anthropologist,” McGee commented as he joined her at the window.
“Then, she shall make an excellent one of those,” Ziva smiled. “She is Gibbs and Abby’s daughter, is she not? Could she be anything less than excellent?”
McGee laughed, “Of course not.”
Ziva gave a small, but definite nod.
“You know,” Morris looked between the other two agents, “I’m beginning to think this kid isn’t normal.”
“She isn’t. She is a Gibbs,” Ziva spoke as if that explained everything.
***
Emily’s eyes kept tracing to the middle school across the schoolyard. She hoped to see something in the other school, something that would tell her that McGee had understood what she was trying to say. She wished that Tony had been the agent working on this situation, but she understood that he was too close to her, like her dads, to be allowed into the room. Still, he would have known the code she used.
Something flashing attracted her eye again. For a second she thought she saw movement in one of the windows.
***
McGee and Morris left Ziva set up in the other school and returned to the high school. They had decided to try and get a team into the hallway a few yards away from the classroom. McGee crouched against the wall, his Kevlar vest feeling more restrictive than ever and the comm. device in his hand feeling heavier than lead. The sound of the connection being established buzzed in his ear.
Down the hall a phone rang tinly.
***
Jeremy started when the phone rang, the room had been silent, save for Sarah and Beth Ann’s crying, for the last ten minutes. Even Emily had stopped the inane chatter about how it would be better for him to give himself up after she’d talked to the cops. Waving his gun towards Sarah, he gestured for her to get the phone. She picked it up and turned to hand it towards him, but he nodded for her to give it to Emily. He wasn’t going anywhere near the classroom door.
There was actually a hitch in Emily’s voice as she spoke into the phone.
***
Ziva watched through the scope as Emily accepted the phone from a young dark haired girl. Fortunately, the girl scurried back to the desk she’d been sitting at when Emily took the phone. The exchange on the phone was going to be an intense one and Ziva hoped that Emily had the fortitude not to reveal anything. She watched as Emily pulled the phone away from her mouth and exchanged a few words with the gunman. She was probably trying to talk him in one more, trying to end this thing peacefully. Emily shook her head and put the phone back to her ear. The signal was given as Emily suddenly dove to her left.
The shot sounded loud even in Ziva’s ears.
***
“Emily,” McGee screamed into the phone. A second shot, closer than Ziva’s had sounded after the shattering glass and terrified screams.
“He’s down,” Emily sobbed into the phone. “The gun fell and went off, but no one was hit.”
McGee had started running when she said that the boy was down. A team of FBI agents followed in his wake and as he skidded into the classroom, he let them deal with the injured but alive suspect and the other kids. He first and only concern was Emily. Dropping down in front of her, he place a hand on her cold and clammy cheek hoping that she’d open her tightly shut eyes, “Em? Em, it’s okay. We’re going to get you taken of.”
Her eyes remained shut, “Is he dead?”
“No.”
“Thank god,” Emily whispered. She barely cracked open her eyes and looked at him, “Thanks, Tim.”
Before he could reply, her eyes roll back into her head and she passed out. He reached for her again and moved her slightly, hoping to rouse her, but it was then that he noticed the blood soaking the floor. Her side was still bleeding and what little clotting the t-shirt had done was destroyed when she lunged to her side out of the way of Ziva’s shot. She was bleeding heavily again.
Ripping off his Kevlar to move easier, McGee scooped her up into his arms and started running. He’d meet the paramedics on their way into the school.
***
Everyone in the waiting room stood as the trauma surgeon arrived. Removing her surgical cap, the doctor froze for a moment as she noticed one of the men in the room was extremely familiar. Sighing, she walked further into the room, ignoring the man next to the blond near the couch, “Agent Gibbs? I’m Dr. Benoit, I operated on Emily.”
The silver haired man’s eyes flashed to towards Tony, who gave a barely perceptible nod. “How is she?”
“She’s in stable condition. She was suffering from severe blood lose and needed a transfusion. Also, during surgery, we discovered that the stab wound lacerated her kidney. We called in a renal specialist, Dr. German, but he was unable to repair it. We had to remove it. She’ll currently on antibiotics to fight a high fever and any possible infection. She’ll be in the hospital for several days, but I don’t foresee any long-term negative affects.”
“No long-term negative effects? You took out her kidney,” Abby sobbed as she clung to Gibbs’s side.
Wrapping an arm around her, Gibbs kissed her head, “Hey, a lot of people live just fine with only one kidney and she ever needs a second one she can have mine… or Tony’s if he’s being particularly annoying that week.”
He’s words had the desired effect, as everyone in the room gave a small laugh.
“When can we see her, Doctor,” Fornell asked.
“Well,” Jeanne smiled at him, “I’m sure you all want to see her, but I think for this evening it would be best if just her parents were with her. It is unusual, but as she’s a minor and been through a rather traumatic day, I think it would be okay for her parents to sit with her in recovery.”
Gibbs put a hand on Fornell’s shoulder, “This is Emily’s other father. He and his wife will come with Abby and me into recovery.”
“No, Jethro,” Estacia spoke up from behind Fornell. “The three of you go be with Emily. I want to get Annie home and make sure she’s okay. We’ll be back in the morning.”
Gibbs nodded, “Okay. Doctor Benoit, if you could give us just a moment.”
Jeanne nodded and watched as the group started exchanging gentle words.
Abby hugged Ducky first allowing him to hold her and whisper words of comfort in her ear, then she moved to Estacia and Annie and held them while whispering words of comfort to them.
Gibbs stood in front of Ziva, placing his hands on her shoulders, “I owe you one.”
“I shall collect,” Ziva smiled at the déjà vu moment and briefly hugged her boss.
Moving in front of Tony and Maddie, Gibbs pulled Maddie to his side in a one armed hug, while he placed a gentle hand on the back of Tony’s neck, “You okay, Tony?”
“I’m not the one you need to worry about tonight, Boss. Just focus on Em.”
Gibbs pulled Tony a little closer, “The day I stop worrying about you will be the day that we’re both in the grave. That clear, son?”
“Yeah,” Tony spoke around the lump in his throat, “but, honest, I’m good. Maddie and I have each other. You give Em a kiss from me and tell her that we’ll see her first thing in the morning.”
Maddie stood on tiptoes and kissed Gibbs’s cheek three times, “One from Tony for Em. One from me for Em. And one for you. Call us and we’ll bring whatever you want from the house.”
Gibbs nodded and kissed Maddie’s temple as Abby came over wrapped her arms around Tony. A few more quiet words were exchanged between the four of them before Abby hugged Ziva and Gibbs hugged Ducky, Estacia and Annie. Once all the farewells were finished, Abby, Gibbs and Fornell turned back to Jeanne.
“Nurse Wittman will take you to Emily,” Jeanne indicated the nurse with a smile. “I’ll be in to check on her shortly.”
When they had left the room, Tony, holding Maddie’s hand in a vice like grip, stepped up to Jeanne, “Thank you, Jeanne.”
“I was only doing my job, Agent DiNozzo,” her eyes settled on Tony and Maddie’s joined hands. “This is your family, then. When you showed me pictures of Emily and told me she was your little sister, you weren’t lying?”
“We’re not biologically related, but no, I wasn’t lying. Emily is my kid sister and Gibbs is more a dad to me than my father ever was.”
Jeanne nodded, “I’m glad you made the right choice then, Tony.” With that she turned on her heels as strode from the room.
Untangling her hand from Tony’s, Maddie wrapped her arms around his waist, “Tony?”
“She’s right, I did make the right choice,” he kissed the top of Maddie’s head and turned them both around to look at the remaining ‘family’ members. “We’re heading to Gibbs’, anyone want to join us?”
Ducky shook his head, “I must get home and check on Mother and I think Estacia and Annie should be getting home as well.”
“Yes,” Estacia nodded and kissed Tony’s cheek, “tomorrow we will have dinner together, but tonight… tonight we just need to go home.”
“Zee-vah,” Tony drew out the name as a question.
Ziva shook her head, “I think I shall return to the Navy Yard. I believe McGee went back there to write his reports.”
Tony nodded and kissed her forehead as he wrapped an arm around her and lead both women from the waiting room.
***
McGee had stared at the computerized form on the monitor for several hours, but he couldn’t seem to find the words to describe the day. This was a fact that bothered him, since he and a sizeable fan-base considered him to be a writer. Still every time he typed a word, his eyes would be drawn to the blood stained shirt in the wastebasket next to his desk and he’d erase the word as being inadequate.
“Emily will be all right,” Ziva’s voice pulled his eyes from the bloody mess in the wastebasket.
He was startled at how close she was, “Ziva. I didn’t hear you.”
“No, you were a million feet away.”
“Miles,” he corrected automatically. “You said Emily’s okay?”
Ziva sat on the edge of his desk, her toe kicking the wastebasket holding the offensive shirt, “She will be, eventually. They had to remove one of her kidneys.”
McGee sucked in a sharp breath.
“True, not an optimal situation, as I believe she’ll be forced to give up playing her beloved soccer, but still the alternative could have been much worst.”
“Yeah, I guess,” McGee nodded.
“There is no guessing here, Tim. You did a good job today and Gibbs and Abby are very grateful,” she rested a hand on his shoulder. “Go home. The report can wait for the morning.”
“Okay,” he slowly started to shut down his computer and follow her from the building. However, once Ziva was safely driving into the night, he doubled back into the building to pick up something he’d forgotten.
***
Maddie crawled over Tony to lay between him and the back of Abby’s black leather sectional. Putting her head on his chest, she looked at the pictures he was scrolling through on his iPod. One particular one caught her attention and she put her hand over his making him pause, “I’ve never seen that before. It’s adorable.”
“It was Em’s eleventh birthday, the summer that Gibbs ran off to Mexico. The poor kid was devastated, hell we all were, but Em’s father had walked out…”
“And yours hadn’t,” Maddie asked softly, turning her head to look into his eyes.
Wrapping his arm around her, he toyed with her hair for a moment, “Yeah, but I was used to fathers leaving me behind.”
Maddie gave him a sad look, but didn’t say anything as she squeezed him a little closer.
“Anyhow, I concocted this scheme and on the morning of her birthday I showed up at Fornell’s place and ‘kidnapped’ her. I took her to Busch Gardens Williamsburg and basically, we spent the whole day riding ‘The Big Bad Wolf.’ We were goofing around in line waiting to ride it again and the woman behind us snapped this picture. She said that she never thought she’d capture a moment of pure joy like that. We exchanged emails and she actually sent me the picture,” Tony’s thumb traced over the small video screen, pausing next to Emily’s face. “When Jeanne asked me about Emily, this is the picture I showed her.”
Maddie looked at the picture once more. Tony was holding Emily upside down by the knees. Emily was laughing and struggling against him, making her blond hair fly everywhere. Unlike other pictures that Maddie had seen from that time, there wasn’t a trace of sadness in either Tony or Emily’s eyes. It perfectly captured the joy that Tony and Emily found and brought out in each other all the time.
Rolling slightly, so her chin was propped on his chest and she could look him in the eyes, Maddie asked, “Why did Jeanne even know about Em?”
Putting the iPod on the coffee table, he linked his hands behind Maddie, “I started the cover just about the time Gibbs got home. His relationship with Emily was tenuous to say the least, so I didn’t want her to think she couldn’t reach me whenever she needed, like she always had. I gave her the number for Tony DiNardo’s cell. One night, I was with Jeanne and Em called. I had to answer it and I just naturally answered with ‘Hey, Bella, how’s my girl?’ Well, as you can imagine that piqued Jeanne’s interest. Gibbs taught me that best lie was the one closest to the truth, so I told Jeanne that Emily was my kid half-sister. She wanted to meet her, but instead I showed her pictures.”
“You loved her.”
It wasn’t a question, but it deserved an answer, “Yes, I did, but I loved my family more.”
“She shouldn’t have asked you to chose,” Maddie laid her head down on Tony’s chest listening to his heartbeat.
“No, but if I really loved her, I wouldn’t have to have been asked.” Gently, he picked up her head so that she was looking at him, “There’s an NCIS field office in San Francisco. Just so you know, in case, you ever want to go back to Oakland to be near your family again.”
Scooting up his body slightly, she kissed his lips, “There are hundred of horse farms and clinics in Virginia, Tony. And I’ve got family here. Including a 17 year old, who’s going to need all the love she can get during the next few months.”
“If there is one thing that Em has in this world, it is love.”
“It’s the one thing we all have,” she smiled as she shifted to settle next to him.
***
McGee slipped into the hospital room early the next morning. Earlier than visitor hours even, but the badge was handy for getting through security. He intended on leaving the object in his arms and getting out before anyone in Emily’s room was awake or before she had any visitors. His plan was thwarted however, when he walked into her room and found himself staring into her blue eyes.
She smiled and held out her arms, whispering, “You brought me Bert.”
“Yeah,” he moved close enough to hand the stuffed hippo to the girl, but hopefully far enough away not to wake either of her fathers, who were sleeping in reclining hospital chairs on either side of the bed. Abby was in the bed, her body placed out of the way of the IV’s and her arm carefully curled under Emily. “I know you love him as much as Ab… your mom.”
Smiling, she hugged the hippo to herself, but not hard enough to make it make its trademark sound, “McGee, is Jeremy okay? Mom, Daddy and Papi wouldn’t tell me last night.”
“Cause we didn’t know, baby,” Gibbs voice was gravelly from sleep and perhaps a few tears as he opened his eyes. “It’s early, McGee.”
“I… I… was just going to leave Bert for Emily, but she was awake,” McGee stammered slightly and blushed.
“And now, so are we,” Fornell stretched and stood from the chair. Dropping a kiss on Emily’s head, he smile, “Morning, Princess. How you feeling?”
“Sore and crappy,” she answered honestly.
“Mmm,” his fingers brushed her cheek, “I’ll go find a nurse with something for your pain and a caffeine source for Mom and Dad before they go into withdrawal.”
“Funny, Tobias,” Abby cracked open an eye. “I thought people were supposed to rest and sleep in hospitals.”
Gibbs gently swatted her rear, “Only the patients. Come on, I want to call Tony and get him to bring us a change of clothes.”
“I’m going to the head, first,” Abby kissed Emily’s cheek as she crawled out of the bed. “Need anything, babe?”
Emily shook her head.
“Okay. We’ll all be back soon,” Abby squeezed McGee’s arm gently as she left the room.
“My parents, the masters of subtlety. I told them last night that I wanted to talk to you alone…. At least I think I told them that. Last night is a bit of a blur, but the way they booked out of here, I must have told them.”
McGee smiled at her rambling, “You sound like Abby when you do that.”
“Do what,” a smile played at her lips, but he wasn’t sure if it was because of the comparison to Abby or if she was teasing him.
“Ramble. When she’s nervous or upset, she uses twenty words to say hello.”
“Yeah, I do take after her in that,” she smiled, then sobered. “I was being honest earlier. I really want to know how Jeremy is.”
McGee sighed and moved a little closer to the bed, “Ziva shot him in the shoulder. The bullet passed straight through.” He didn’t tell her that it lodged in the wall where she’d been leaning before she dove to the side, but she was smart enough to figure it out and paled noticeably. In a move he never imagined he make, he gently sat on the bed and wrapped his arms around the young girl. Pressing his cheek to her temple, he kept up the narrative, “There was minimal damage and blood loss. He’ll probably be out of the hospital before you. He’s going to be going to a prison mental hospital for a very long time. When we searched his locker, we found a suicide note. The team that went to his house found his father dead. We think Jeremy went back to the house after leaving his brother and sister off at their school and killed their father. Then he went to your school and… and tried to commit ‘suicide by cop.’”
Crying, she pressed her face into McGee’s neck, “Thank you for understanding. Thank you for not letting them kill him. Thank you for keeping me safe.”
Mindful of the surgical area on her side, he tightened his hold and let her cry for several long and painful minutes. Finally, he whispered, “Em, we’ve never been real close, but I’d never let anything happen to you. Despite everything, I do love you.”
“I love you, too, Tim,” Emily sniffled, settling into his arms as she drifted to sleep.
***
Emily grabbed the mail as she came home from coaching the elementary level girls’ soccer team. The last several months had been physically and emotionally challenging. She’d always been such an active girl that to now have limitations placed on her activities was difficult. The worst had been the fact that her doctors insisted that she give up playing soccer. She had always intended on not playing after high school, but choosing to stop playing and being forced to stop playing were two very different things. She ended up trying to test her doctors’ and parents’ limits often to the detriment of her own body. Her therapist, Dr. Swanson, whom she had seen her freshman year after the problems with Coach Wegman, felt that most of her behavior came from her lack of control in the situation. A comprise, mostly Dr. Swanson’s idea, was finally struck that Emily could assist in coaching one of the younger girls’ teams. Emily had gone back to the man that had first seen her potential, her elementary school gym teacher, and asked him for a position. A week later, she was teaching a bunch of seven year olds how to run drills and correct feet positions. She loved it. For the first time since the stabbing, she felt like she had some control over herself and her body again. Her parents liked the fact that she smiled and laughed again.
Sorting the mail into four piles - Mom, Dad, Emily, Junk - on the kitchen table, Emily scanned the mail for her new NetFlix movie and a few cards. Ever since her acceptance at Georgetown, she routinely received invitations to this or that organization on campus and of course, there were the little postcards reminding her what a great place Georgetown was to go to school - like they were afraid she was going to suddenly turn down the scholarship and go someplace else. What she didn’t expect to find was the large object wrapped in Kraft paper.
There was no return address on the package, so she debated about the wisdom of opening the package, but there was something familiar and safe about the handwriting. Sitting at the kitchen table, she slipped her finger under the tape and ripped off the paper to reveal a book. Specifically a new Thom E. Gemcity book called “Star.” Rolling her eyes, Emily flipped open the book hoping to find a note from McGee as why he’d send her one of his goofy books. On the flyleaf she again saw the familiar handwriting that she now knew belonged to McGee.
Emily,
There’s always been something missing from the series and I just figured out what it was. I hope you like the new character.
McGee
Curiosity piqued, Emily continued turning pages. She stopped on the dedication page, her fingers tracing over the printed words.
For Emily. Our Star. Everyday, in so many ways, you remind me of your mom and dad. You’ve grown into an amazing young woman and I’m sorry I never recognized that until now.
With a small smile, she took the book and headed to the living room. She flipped on the stereo, letting the sound of her mom’s new favorite band “Dead Residents” fill the room, as she curled into the corner of the couch. She turned to the first page and began to read.
Ellie Tibbs was born in the middle of a cold, dark, wet night, but it didn’t matter. The moment she entered the world she became the light and warmth of her parents’ world. She was the star around which their universe revolved and the center of their beings. Ellie was born to Amy Sutton and L.J. Tibbs just about a year after Tibbs rescued Amy from Major Charles Atwood. After the rescue their relationship changed and soon they had created a family filled with love and laughter.
When Ellie Tibbs disappeared she was eight years old and it shook the team to its very core, especially McGregor, who had always seen Ellie as the barricade between Amy and him. Now, he vowed to get her back to her parents, no matter what the cost…
Fandom: NCIS
Characters: Everybody in the Emily!verse
Prompt: #46 Star
Word Count: 6953
Rating: T - for violence
Summary: Using her right arm only, she ripped off her shirt and quickly packed it against her wound.
Author's Notes: This is an AU, inspired in part by wiccagirl24’s wonderful Kelly!verse. This is the second to last of this universe. It is also a very different and very intense story. Deals with school violence. Also, very long, 16 pages in Word.
Author's Notes 2:I claim no knowledge of criminal investigations or hostage negotiations, however, I do claim knowledge of a similar instance. My brother, a former Petty Officer First Class with the USCG, was fairly recently in a stand-off like this at work. Fortunately, he was unhurt, but he was in a similar position as Emily. And, before you yell at me, yes, I think Emily’s too poised and in control in this story, too. However, I’ve modeled her response after a young girl in Philly, who a few years ago saved her entire class even with a bullet in her shoulder.
Emily looked down at her rapidly staining shirt and then up at the boy standing in front of her, “My mom’s going to kill me. I didn’t ask if I could borrow this shirt.”
“Damn it, Emily. Why’d you have to do that,” the boy stared at her in wide-eyed terror.
“Did you really think I was going to let you kill someone here today, Jeremy,” Emily grunted as the initial shock wore off and pain ripped through the large knife wound in her side. Using her right arm only, she ripped off her shirt and quickly packed it against her wound. Her left elbow held it in place as she slide down the wall behind her to sit on the floor. Jeremy started moving towards her, but she put up a bloody hand and he stopped.
“I swear, Em, you’re the one person I didn’t want to hurt. I actually like you.”
“Well, you always hurt the ones you love,” Emily sighed. “You know this is going to end badly for both of us, right?”
A tear rolled down his cheek as he nodded.
***
As hard as she worked and fought to get into her position there were moments that Jennifer Sheppard wished she wasn’t the director of NCIS. This was one of those moments.
Jenny took a second on the bridge overlooking the bullpen to watch her Major Case team… her best team. Things had been slow lately, which wasn’t a bad thing, and at the moment all seven members of the team were gathered in their area. Tony was in the middle telling some story that had them all laughing. Ducky was perched on Tony’s vacant desk, Palmer hovering nearby. Ziva and McGee were at their owns desks. Finally, her eyes moved to Jethro and Abby. Jethro was sitting in his chair while Abby stood behind him. Abby’s arms were looped lazily around Jethro’s neck and his hand was tracing the infinity symbol on the inside of Abby’s left wrist. She’d never really understood or approved of their relationship, but moments like this let her glimpse at the underlying connections between them. They looked so happy that Jenny had to force herself to move.
Ducky was the first to notice her descending the stairs and with their years of friendship he instantly spotted her distress, “Jennifer, what is the matter, my dear?”
Jenny sighed and continued her path until she was standing directly in front of Jethro and Abby, “I need to talk to you both.”
“Emily,” Abby’s hands flew to her mouth as her eyes widened in horror.
Jenny stared at the lab tech, “How did you…”
“What the hell happened to my daughter,” Jethro cut off the rest of her question as he exploded out of his chair.
“There was an incident at her school. A boy tried to take a classroom hostage at knife point. Apparently, Emily was able to distract him long enough that most of the students and the teacher got out. However, he’d stashed a gun in the classroom and he’s now holding Emily and a few others hostage.”
Jethro didn’t bother with his badge, but he did grab his gun before he, Abby and Tony all started for the elevator.
“Jethro, wait! They won’t let you near the operation. FBI was called into to run it and they’ve already kicked Fornell out.”
“They’ll let me in,” McGee stood and started putting on his gun and badge. “I’m not family.”
Jenny nodded, “Ducky, you should go, too.”
“Why,” Abby reached for Jethro.
Jenny licked her lips, “There were reports that Emily was stabbed.”
Jenny wasn’t sure how Tony held the weight of both Jethro and Abby as they staggered from the emotional blow.
***
McGee’s ID card and badge felt heavy in his hand. He’d been involved in a few hostage negotiations, but none with such importance. If anything happened to Emily he was sure that they would lose Gibbs and Abby as well. Walking into the command center that had been set up in the Principal’s office McGee had to remind himself to breathe. He knew that they had video feed of the classroom, but seeing it… seeing Emily sitting there in her bra and jean looking pale and scared made his breath hitch. Despite feeling like a voyeur, he forced himself to not look away.
“You Agent McGee,” one of the men wearing FBI jackets asked.
McGee nodded and flashed his ID, “Yeah.”
“Good. I’m Morris,” he extended his hand and McGee shook it. “Your director called, said you knew the girl and that she’d probably be a little more comfortable dealing with you, but that you weren’t especially close.”
His eyes flashed to the screen, “My boss’s kid. We know each other, but aren’t real fond of each other.”
The other man nodded, “Okay, that’ll work. We’ve got video feed from the attack on. Take a look at it and see if you see anything out of the ordinary for the girl. Then when we get the comm. established, we’ll have you do it. We’re pretty sure he’s going to have her do the talking.”
McGee wanted to scream that her name was Emily, but knew that would get him kicked from the operation, so he nodded and went to the indicated monitor. He hit the button to start the video feed and a few seconds later he jerked in horror as the kid lashed out knife and a stream of crimson flowed from Emily’s side. He knew it was probably shock, but he was amazed at how calmly Emily acted using her shirt to stop the bleeding and moving to sit where she was in direct view of the camera. When she spoke, she made sure that her face pointed to the camera. McGee froze the screen. That was it.
McGee remembered having to drop something off at Gibbs’s one weekend afternoon and Emily was webcamming with Abby’s mother, Gloria. Emily had run off to find her father, but not before she had pulled McGee into her seat and told him to talk to “Grams.” She had reminded him that Gloria could read lips and that he just needed to sure his face was pointed to the camera. At the time, it had been an awkward conversation, but suddenly he was grateful for it. He realized that Emily had made it a point to sit were her lips could be read and the nervous tapping of her right hand was actually sign language. He flashed back to the boy with the bomb in the base high school all those years ago; Emily really was her father’s daughter.
“Morris,” he called for the agent in charge, “we need a sign language interpreter here now. She’s been signing his whole time.”
Morris studied the screen, which McGee had unpaused, for a few seconds before nodding, “You’re right. I didn’t know the victim knew ASL. We’ll find someone, but we’ve got a viable comm. link up. We need you on that.”
McGee took a deep breath.
***
“What the hell is that,” Jeremy swung the pistol so it was aimed at the ringing phone near the classroom door.
“It’s probably the negotiator, Jere,” Emily made her voice strong. “They’ll want to talk to you.”
Jeremy shook his head, “No way. I’m not talking to some cop. You do it.”
“Let Sarah bring me the phone, then.”
Jeremy nodded and waved his gun towards one of the three other people still in the room, “Do it.”
Silent tears running down her face, the teen carefully made her way towards the phone. She merely picked it up and slowly, untangling the long cord as she went, carried it toward Emily. A smile passed between the two of them as Emily took the phone in her blood stained fingers. Exhaling slowly, she raised the phone to her ear, “Emily Gibbs.”
Emily, it’s McGee. Are you okay?
“Just peachy,” Emily’s eyes rolled at the stupidity of the question.
Fair enough. Can he hear me?
Emily sighed, suddenly vaguely ashamed for snapping at McGee, but that was the relationship they had, just barely civil when they absolutely had to be. Putting her head down, she spoke low, “No, he can’t. Do you have the camera up?”
Yes, but don’t talk about that. We’re getting someone to do the sign translation. Do you think you can keep that up?
“Yes,” Emily’s eyes flitted to the camera.
Good. Emily, do know why he might have done this?
She repeated the affirmative answer.
Can you tell us in sign?
“I already did,” Emily licked her lips and looked at where Jeremy was staring at her expectantly. “He wanted to know if I stopped the bleeding.”
Jeremy nodded his approval.
Ask him if you can tell us who’s in the room with you, okay?
Still looking at Jeremy, she swallowed, “They want our names. They want to know who is in the room.”
“Why,” Jeremy asked, suspiciously.
“Probably so they can do a roll to make sure everyone is accounted for and safe. So they know which parents to call before everyone freaks out.”
Jeremy nodded and waved the gun in a permissive gesture.
“Agent, besides myself and Jeremy Wentworth; Sarah Thoms, Beth Anne Rodgers, and Lenny Kent are with us,” Emily’s eyes didn’t leave Jeremy’s face as she gave the list of names. He didn’t seem bothered that she said his name.
Anyone else hurt?
“No.” Emily took a breath and a risk, “I think Kate or Todd might have hurt themselves as they tried getting out of the school.”
Emily?
“I don’t want anyone else to get hurt here today, Agent McGee, but I really don’t want anyone to die today. Please check on Kate and Todd. I saw them out the window, limping across the schoolyard towards the middle school. I think they had either an easy shoulder wound or leg injury.”
“Enough,” Jeremy finally roared. Snatching the phone from Emily, he screamed into it, “I want a car here and free passage or someone is going to die here today.”
He slammed the phone back into its cradle on the wall with enough force that Emily had to prevent herself from jumping as the others gave startled screams.
***
McGee stared at the monitor for several long moments after the connection was severed. Emily was trying to tell him something, but just like the sing language she was tapping out, he didn’t know understand. The possibility that two kids named Kate and Todd had actually been in that class and injured had to be astronomical.
“There were no Kates or Todds in that classroom at all today, sir,” an agent overlooking the class roosters for the classes in room 108 confirmed his suspicions.
Morris snatched the lists from his agent and scanned them briefly, before looking at McGee, “Any idea who or what she’s talking about?”
“I need to talk to my boss.” Before anyone could stop him, McGee was jogging from the room.
***
“Boss,” DiNozzo’s voice was gentle as he nodded towards the figure jogging to them.
Gibbs sprinted across the field where students, family and friends had been cordoned off and met the younger agent in the middle of the road that acted as a barrier between those people and the horror that was happening in the school. He wait a moment for the rest of his family to catch up, “McGee?”
“I talked to Emily, Boss,” McGee’s hands went into a slightly defensive position.
“How is she,” Abby’s voice was thick with unshed tears.
McGee gave a small smile, “Snarky as ever. She sounds pretty good.”
Abby breathed a small sigh of relief as she curled into Ducky’s side.
“Then why are you out here, McGee,” Fornell asked, his impatience at being turned away growing.
Morris slid up behind McGee, “That’s a damn good question.”
“She… I… Well…” McGee stopped and closed his eyes for a moment trying to get his thoughts together. He felt the familiar hand of DiNozzo squeezing his shoulder in a surprisingly supportive gesture and opened his eyes, “Emily gave me a clue or a code that I just can’t figure out. She’s also been signing this whole time, but I think this is even more important.”
“Just tell us what she said, Probie,” DiNozzo’s voice was even soft and supportive and the nickname was said tenderly.
Gibbs’s hand rested on his other shoulder, “Use her exact words, Tim. It will be important.”
McGee nodded, “When I asked her if anyone else was hurt, she… she said, ‘I think Kate or Todd might have hurt themselves as they tried getting out of the school.’”
“Damn,” Tony ran a hand over his face. “Boss, that’s a code we came up with when she was little. Not long after Kate died. It’s kinda an all purpose, I need you signal.”
Gibbs nodded, as if he’d known about the code, but sighed, “I think it might be something else this time, Tony. What else, Tim?”
McGee looked into the pained blue eyes of his boss as he spoke her words, “’I don’t want anyone else to get hurt here today, Agent McGee, but I really don’t want anyone to die today. Please check on Kate and Todd. I saw them out the window, limping across the schoolyard toward the middle school. I think they had either an easy shoulder wound or leg injury.’”
“She has spotted a place for a sniper and is saying that this is the only way to end this.” All eyes turned to Ziva as she spoke. Noticing the shocked looks, Ziva shrugged, “Emily has an eye for shooting. She is her father’s daughter and would make an excellent sniper. She is rational enough to know that something drastic needs to be done, but she is a child and does not want to see her friend killed. She is asking for the sniper to merely wound him.”
“How do you know Emily can shoot,” Abby asked, staring at the Mossad officer.
“We have gone with Tony to the firing range,” Ziva flinched at the smack on the back of her head from Tony.
“Sorry, boss, but trying to do something with ninja-girl and Marine Barbie is a challenge. We’ve been kicked off more miniature golf courses than we’ve been on,” Tony apologized with his best hurt puppy dog look.
Fornell seethed, “DiNutso, you took our daughter to a firing range? What kinda sick…”
“Tobias, we’ll deal with that later.” Gibbs looked at DiNozzo, “And by dealing with it, I mean I’m going to beat the crap out of you.”
“Yes, sir,” DiNozzo nodded.
“But, right now, Ziva is right. Emily must have a perspective that we can’t see. Have you found a place for snipers,” Gibbs looked at Morris.
Morris shook his head, “No. There just isn’t an angle.”
“There must be. McGee, what did Emily say about the schoolyard again,” Ziva snapped her fingers.
“’I saw them out the window, limping across the schoolyard toward the middle school,’” McGee dolefully repeated again.
Ziva nodded, “There is a window in the middle school from which there is a shot. I shall need to get into the middle school.”
“Miss…”
Ziva cut him off with her raised index finger, “Officer. Officer David, liaison to NCIS from Mossad. I am a trained marksman and I will be taking that shot, with or without the FBI’s assistance.”
“Fine,” Morris nodded and waived a hand. “Officer David and Agent McGee are coming back with me. The rest of you, back behind the barrier.”
“Mo,” Fornell called towards the retreating agent.
Morris turned and looked at his colleague and friend, “Yeah, Tobias?”
“Take care of our girl, okay?”
Morris nodded, “You have my word.”
***
Half an hour later, Ziva, McGee and Agent Morris slowly made their way through the deserted halls of the middle school that was adjacent to the high school following Emily’s instructions.
By the time the three agents had returned to the command center, the school’s ALS teacher had been found and she was about half way through the translation of Emily’s choppy signs. Between Emily’s limited hand movements and her own tears - Emily often assisted in her class and even tutored some of the hearing impaired students - the poor woman was struggling, but she had finally found the crux of Emily’s message. The first ten minutes or so was what you would expect from a hurt, scared 17 year old kid; cries for her parents and her pain and prayers. Then, she seemed to have calmed herself down (McGee hoped that the bleeding had stopped like she said or she had finally realized that the bleeding had stopped) and began to give them the vital information they need.
First, she told them about Jeremy and about the fact that his mother had just up and moved across the country with her new boyfriend. Virtually leaving Jeremy to raise his two small siblings and protect them from their verbally, physically and perhaps sexually abusive father. He’d also just found out that he lost a scholarship to the college he wanted to go to. Next, she gave them the layout of the room, the position of the students and things that weren’t in view from the camera. Finally, she gave them directions to the room in the middle school that had an angle on the classroom they were in. Then, she’d begin the whole process again, adding a few more details and stressing other points.
Entering the room that Emily had described, Ziva nodded, “She will make an excellent agent one day.”
“According to Abby, she wants to be a forensic anthropologist,” McGee commented as he joined her at the window.
“Then, she shall make an excellent one of those,” Ziva smiled. “She is Gibbs and Abby’s daughter, is she not? Could she be anything less than excellent?”
McGee laughed, “Of course not.”
Ziva gave a small, but definite nod.
“You know,” Morris looked between the other two agents, “I’m beginning to think this kid isn’t normal.”
“She isn’t. She is a Gibbs,” Ziva spoke as if that explained everything.
***
Emily’s eyes kept tracing to the middle school across the schoolyard. She hoped to see something in the other school, something that would tell her that McGee had understood what she was trying to say. She wished that Tony had been the agent working on this situation, but she understood that he was too close to her, like her dads, to be allowed into the room. Still, he would have known the code she used.
Something flashing attracted her eye again. For a second she thought she saw movement in one of the windows.
***
McGee and Morris left Ziva set up in the other school and returned to the high school. They had decided to try and get a team into the hallway a few yards away from the classroom. McGee crouched against the wall, his Kevlar vest feeling more restrictive than ever and the comm. device in his hand feeling heavier than lead. The sound of the connection being established buzzed in his ear.
Down the hall a phone rang tinly.
***
Jeremy started when the phone rang, the room had been silent, save for Sarah and Beth Ann’s crying, for the last ten minutes. Even Emily had stopped the inane chatter about how it would be better for him to give himself up after she’d talked to the cops. Waving his gun towards Sarah, he gestured for her to get the phone. She picked it up and turned to hand it towards him, but he nodded for her to give it to Emily. He wasn’t going anywhere near the classroom door.
There was actually a hitch in Emily’s voice as she spoke into the phone.
***
Ziva watched through the scope as Emily accepted the phone from a young dark haired girl. Fortunately, the girl scurried back to the desk she’d been sitting at when Emily took the phone. The exchange on the phone was going to be an intense one and Ziva hoped that Emily had the fortitude not to reveal anything. She watched as Emily pulled the phone away from her mouth and exchanged a few words with the gunman. She was probably trying to talk him in one more, trying to end this thing peacefully. Emily shook her head and put the phone back to her ear. The signal was given as Emily suddenly dove to her left.
The shot sounded loud even in Ziva’s ears.
***
“Emily,” McGee screamed into the phone. A second shot, closer than Ziva’s had sounded after the shattering glass and terrified screams.
“He’s down,” Emily sobbed into the phone. “The gun fell and went off, but no one was hit.”
McGee had started running when she said that the boy was down. A team of FBI agents followed in his wake and as he skidded into the classroom, he let them deal with the injured but alive suspect and the other kids. He first and only concern was Emily. Dropping down in front of her, he place a hand on her cold and clammy cheek hoping that she’d open her tightly shut eyes, “Em? Em, it’s okay. We’re going to get you taken of.”
Her eyes remained shut, “Is he dead?”
“No.”
“Thank god,” Emily whispered. She barely cracked open her eyes and looked at him, “Thanks, Tim.”
Before he could reply, her eyes roll back into her head and she passed out. He reached for her again and moved her slightly, hoping to rouse her, but it was then that he noticed the blood soaking the floor. Her side was still bleeding and what little clotting the t-shirt had done was destroyed when she lunged to her side out of the way of Ziva’s shot. She was bleeding heavily again.
Ripping off his Kevlar to move easier, McGee scooped her up into his arms and started running. He’d meet the paramedics on their way into the school.
***
Everyone in the waiting room stood as the trauma surgeon arrived. Removing her surgical cap, the doctor froze for a moment as she noticed one of the men in the room was extremely familiar. Sighing, she walked further into the room, ignoring the man next to the blond near the couch, “Agent Gibbs? I’m Dr. Benoit, I operated on Emily.”
The silver haired man’s eyes flashed to towards Tony, who gave a barely perceptible nod. “How is she?”
“She’s in stable condition. She was suffering from severe blood lose and needed a transfusion. Also, during surgery, we discovered that the stab wound lacerated her kidney. We called in a renal specialist, Dr. German, but he was unable to repair it. We had to remove it. She’ll currently on antibiotics to fight a high fever and any possible infection. She’ll be in the hospital for several days, but I don’t foresee any long-term negative affects.”
“No long-term negative effects? You took out her kidney,” Abby sobbed as she clung to Gibbs’s side.
Wrapping an arm around her, Gibbs kissed her head, “Hey, a lot of people live just fine with only one kidney and she ever needs a second one she can have mine… or Tony’s if he’s being particularly annoying that week.”
He’s words had the desired effect, as everyone in the room gave a small laugh.
“When can we see her, Doctor,” Fornell asked.
“Well,” Jeanne smiled at him, “I’m sure you all want to see her, but I think for this evening it would be best if just her parents were with her. It is unusual, but as she’s a minor and been through a rather traumatic day, I think it would be okay for her parents to sit with her in recovery.”
Gibbs put a hand on Fornell’s shoulder, “This is Emily’s other father. He and his wife will come with Abby and me into recovery.”
“No, Jethro,” Estacia spoke up from behind Fornell. “The three of you go be with Emily. I want to get Annie home and make sure she’s okay. We’ll be back in the morning.”
Gibbs nodded, “Okay. Doctor Benoit, if you could give us just a moment.”
Jeanne nodded and watched as the group started exchanging gentle words.
Abby hugged Ducky first allowing him to hold her and whisper words of comfort in her ear, then she moved to Estacia and Annie and held them while whispering words of comfort to them.
Gibbs stood in front of Ziva, placing his hands on her shoulders, “I owe you one.”
“I shall collect,” Ziva smiled at the déjà vu moment and briefly hugged her boss.
Moving in front of Tony and Maddie, Gibbs pulled Maddie to his side in a one armed hug, while he placed a gentle hand on the back of Tony’s neck, “You okay, Tony?”
“I’m not the one you need to worry about tonight, Boss. Just focus on Em.”
Gibbs pulled Tony a little closer, “The day I stop worrying about you will be the day that we’re both in the grave. That clear, son?”
“Yeah,” Tony spoke around the lump in his throat, “but, honest, I’m good. Maddie and I have each other. You give Em a kiss from me and tell her that we’ll see her first thing in the morning.”
Maddie stood on tiptoes and kissed Gibbs’s cheek three times, “One from Tony for Em. One from me for Em. And one for you. Call us and we’ll bring whatever you want from the house.”
Gibbs nodded and kissed Maddie’s temple as Abby came over wrapped her arms around Tony. A few more quiet words were exchanged between the four of them before Abby hugged Ziva and Gibbs hugged Ducky, Estacia and Annie. Once all the farewells were finished, Abby, Gibbs and Fornell turned back to Jeanne.
“Nurse Wittman will take you to Emily,” Jeanne indicated the nurse with a smile. “I’ll be in to check on her shortly.”
When they had left the room, Tony, holding Maddie’s hand in a vice like grip, stepped up to Jeanne, “Thank you, Jeanne.”
“I was only doing my job, Agent DiNozzo,” her eyes settled on Tony and Maddie’s joined hands. “This is your family, then. When you showed me pictures of Emily and told me she was your little sister, you weren’t lying?”
“We’re not biologically related, but no, I wasn’t lying. Emily is my kid sister and Gibbs is more a dad to me than my father ever was.”
Jeanne nodded, “I’m glad you made the right choice then, Tony.” With that she turned on her heels as strode from the room.
Untangling her hand from Tony’s, Maddie wrapped her arms around his waist, “Tony?”
“She’s right, I did make the right choice,” he kissed the top of Maddie’s head and turned them both around to look at the remaining ‘family’ members. “We’re heading to Gibbs’, anyone want to join us?”
Ducky shook his head, “I must get home and check on Mother and I think Estacia and Annie should be getting home as well.”
“Yes,” Estacia nodded and kissed Tony’s cheek, “tomorrow we will have dinner together, but tonight… tonight we just need to go home.”
“Zee-vah,” Tony drew out the name as a question.
Ziva shook her head, “I think I shall return to the Navy Yard. I believe McGee went back there to write his reports.”
Tony nodded and kissed her forehead as he wrapped an arm around her and lead both women from the waiting room.
***
McGee had stared at the computerized form on the monitor for several hours, but he couldn’t seem to find the words to describe the day. This was a fact that bothered him, since he and a sizeable fan-base considered him to be a writer. Still every time he typed a word, his eyes would be drawn to the blood stained shirt in the wastebasket next to his desk and he’d erase the word as being inadequate.
“Emily will be all right,” Ziva’s voice pulled his eyes from the bloody mess in the wastebasket.
He was startled at how close she was, “Ziva. I didn’t hear you.”
“No, you were a million feet away.”
“Miles,” he corrected automatically. “You said Emily’s okay?”
Ziva sat on the edge of his desk, her toe kicking the wastebasket holding the offensive shirt, “She will be, eventually. They had to remove one of her kidneys.”
McGee sucked in a sharp breath.
“True, not an optimal situation, as I believe she’ll be forced to give up playing her beloved soccer, but still the alternative could have been much worst.”
“Yeah, I guess,” McGee nodded.
“There is no guessing here, Tim. You did a good job today and Gibbs and Abby are very grateful,” she rested a hand on his shoulder. “Go home. The report can wait for the morning.”
“Okay,” he slowly started to shut down his computer and follow her from the building. However, once Ziva was safely driving into the night, he doubled back into the building to pick up something he’d forgotten.
***
Maddie crawled over Tony to lay between him and the back of Abby’s black leather sectional. Putting her head on his chest, she looked at the pictures he was scrolling through on his iPod. One particular one caught her attention and she put her hand over his making him pause, “I’ve never seen that before. It’s adorable.”
“It was Em’s eleventh birthday, the summer that Gibbs ran off to Mexico. The poor kid was devastated, hell we all were, but Em’s father had walked out…”
“And yours hadn’t,” Maddie asked softly, turning her head to look into his eyes.
Wrapping his arm around her, he toyed with her hair for a moment, “Yeah, but I was used to fathers leaving me behind.”
Maddie gave him a sad look, but didn’t say anything as she squeezed him a little closer.
“Anyhow, I concocted this scheme and on the morning of her birthday I showed up at Fornell’s place and ‘kidnapped’ her. I took her to Busch Gardens Williamsburg and basically, we spent the whole day riding ‘The Big Bad Wolf.’ We were goofing around in line waiting to ride it again and the woman behind us snapped this picture. She said that she never thought she’d capture a moment of pure joy like that. We exchanged emails and she actually sent me the picture,” Tony’s thumb traced over the small video screen, pausing next to Emily’s face. “When Jeanne asked me about Emily, this is the picture I showed her.”
Maddie looked at the picture once more. Tony was holding Emily upside down by the knees. Emily was laughing and struggling against him, making her blond hair fly everywhere. Unlike other pictures that Maddie had seen from that time, there wasn’t a trace of sadness in either Tony or Emily’s eyes. It perfectly captured the joy that Tony and Emily found and brought out in each other all the time.
Rolling slightly, so her chin was propped on his chest and she could look him in the eyes, Maddie asked, “Why did Jeanne even know about Em?”
Putting the iPod on the coffee table, he linked his hands behind Maddie, “I started the cover just about the time Gibbs got home. His relationship with Emily was tenuous to say the least, so I didn’t want her to think she couldn’t reach me whenever she needed, like she always had. I gave her the number for Tony DiNardo’s cell. One night, I was with Jeanne and Em called. I had to answer it and I just naturally answered with ‘Hey, Bella, how’s my girl?’ Well, as you can imagine that piqued Jeanne’s interest. Gibbs taught me that best lie was the one closest to the truth, so I told Jeanne that Emily was my kid half-sister. She wanted to meet her, but instead I showed her pictures.”
“You loved her.”
It wasn’t a question, but it deserved an answer, “Yes, I did, but I loved my family more.”
“She shouldn’t have asked you to chose,” Maddie laid her head down on Tony’s chest listening to his heartbeat.
“No, but if I really loved her, I wouldn’t have to have been asked.” Gently, he picked up her head so that she was looking at him, “There’s an NCIS field office in San Francisco. Just so you know, in case, you ever want to go back to Oakland to be near your family again.”
Scooting up his body slightly, she kissed his lips, “There are hundred of horse farms and clinics in Virginia, Tony. And I’ve got family here. Including a 17 year old, who’s going to need all the love she can get during the next few months.”
“If there is one thing that Em has in this world, it is love.”
“It’s the one thing we all have,” she smiled as she shifted to settle next to him.
***
McGee slipped into the hospital room early the next morning. Earlier than visitor hours even, but the badge was handy for getting through security. He intended on leaving the object in his arms and getting out before anyone in Emily’s room was awake or before she had any visitors. His plan was thwarted however, when he walked into her room and found himself staring into her blue eyes.
She smiled and held out her arms, whispering, “You brought me Bert.”
“Yeah,” he moved close enough to hand the stuffed hippo to the girl, but hopefully far enough away not to wake either of her fathers, who were sleeping in reclining hospital chairs on either side of the bed. Abby was in the bed, her body placed out of the way of the IV’s and her arm carefully curled under Emily. “I know you love him as much as Ab… your mom.”
Smiling, she hugged the hippo to herself, but not hard enough to make it make its trademark sound, “McGee, is Jeremy okay? Mom, Daddy and Papi wouldn’t tell me last night.”
“Cause we didn’t know, baby,” Gibbs voice was gravelly from sleep and perhaps a few tears as he opened his eyes. “It’s early, McGee.”
“I… I… was just going to leave Bert for Emily, but she was awake,” McGee stammered slightly and blushed.
“And now, so are we,” Fornell stretched and stood from the chair. Dropping a kiss on Emily’s head, he smile, “Morning, Princess. How you feeling?”
“Sore and crappy,” she answered honestly.
“Mmm,” his fingers brushed her cheek, “I’ll go find a nurse with something for your pain and a caffeine source for Mom and Dad before they go into withdrawal.”
“Funny, Tobias,” Abby cracked open an eye. “I thought people were supposed to rest and sleep in hospitals.”
Gibbs gently swatted her rear, “Only the patients. Come on, I want to call Tony and get him to bring us a change of clothes.”
“I’m going to the head, first,” Abby kissed Emily’s cheek as she crawled out of the bed. “Need anything, babe?”
Emily shook her head.
“Okay. We’ll all be back soon,” Abby squeezed McGee’s arm gently as she left the room.
“My parents, the masters of subtlety. I told them last night that I wanted to talk to you alone…. At least I think I told them that. Last night is a bit of a blur, but the way they booked out of here, I must have told them.”
McGee smiled at her rambling, “You sound like Abby when you do that.”
“Do what,” a smile played at her lips, but he wasn’t sure if it was because of the comparison to Abby or if she was teasing him.
“Ramble. When she’s nervous or upset, she uses twenty words to say hello.”
“Yeah, I do take after her in that,” she smiled, then sobered. “I was being honest earlier. I really want to know how Jeremy is.”
McGee sighed and moved a little closer to the bed, “Ziva shot him in the shoulder. The bullet passed straight through.” He didn’t tell her that it lodged in the wall where she’d been leaning before she dove to the side, but she was smart enough to figure it out and paled noticeably. In a move he never imagined he make, he gently sat on the bed and wrapped his arms around the young girl. Pressing his cheek to her temple, he kept up the narrative, “There was minimal damage and blood loss. He’ll probably be out of the hospital before you. He’s going to be going to a prison mental hospital for a very long time. When we searched his locker, we found a suicide note. The team that went to his house found his father dead. We think Jeremy went back to the house after leaving his brother and sister off at their school and killed their father. Then he went to your school and… and tried to commit ‘suicide by cop.’”
Crying, she pressed her face into McGee’s neck, “Thank you for understanding. Thank you for not letting them kill him. Thank you for keeping me safe.”
Mindful of the surgical area on her side, he tightened his hold and let her cry for several long and painful minutes. Finally, he whispered, “Em, we’ve never been real close, but I’d never let anything happen to you. Despite everything, I do love you.”
“I love you, too, Tim,” Emily sniffled, settling into his arms as she drifted to sleep.
***
Emily grabbed the mail as she came home from coaching the elementary level girls’ soccer team. The last several months had been physically and emotionally challenging. She’d always been such an active girl that to now have limitations placed on her activities was difficult. The worst had been the fact that her doctors insisted that she give up playing soccer. She had always intended on not playing after high school, but choosing to stop playing and being forced to stop playing were two very different things. She ended up trying to test her doctors’ and parents’ limits often to the detriment of her own body. Her therapist, Dr. Swanson, whom she had seen her freshman year after the problems with Coach Wegman, felt that most of her behavior came from her lack of control in the situation. A comprise, mostly Dr. Swanson’s idea, was finally struck that Emily could assist in coaching one of the younger girls’ teams. Emily had gone back to the man that had first seen her potential, her elementary school gym teacher, and asked him for a position. A week later, she was teaching a bunch of seven year olds how to run drills and correct feet positions. She loved it. For the first time since the stabbing, she felt like she had some control over herself and her body again. Her parents liked the fact that she smiled and laughed again.
Sorting the mail into four piles - Mom, Dad, Emily, Junk - on the kitchen table, Emily scanned the mail for her new NetFlix movie and a few cards. Ever since her acceptance at Georgetown, she routinely received invitations to this or that organization on campus and of course, there were the little postcards reminding her what a great place Georgetown was to go to school - like they were afraid she was going to suddenly turn down the scholarship and go someplace else. What she didn’t expect to find was the large object wrapped in Kraft paper.
There was no return address on the package, so she debated about the wisdom of opening the package, but there was something familiar and safe about the handwriting. Sitting at the kitchen table, she slipped her finger under the tape and ripped off the paper to reveal a book. Specifically a new Thom E. Gemcity book called “Star.” Rolling her eyes, Emily flipped open the book hoping to find a note from McGee as why he’d send her one of his goofy books. On the flyleaf she again saw the familiar handwriting that she now knew belonged to McGee.
Emily,
There’s always been something missing from the series and I just figured out what it was. I hope you like the new character.
McGee
Curiosity piqued, Emily continued turning pages. She stopped on the dedication page, her fingers tracing over the printed words.
For Emily. Our Star. Everyday, in so many ways, you remind me of your mom and dad. You’ve grown into an amazing young woman and I’m sorry I never recognized that until now.
With a small smile, she took the book and headed to the living room. She flipped on the stereo, letting the sound of her mom’s new favorite band “Dead Residents” fill the room, as she curled into the corner of the couch. She turned to the first page and began to read.
Ellie Tibbs was born in the middle of a cold, dark, wet night, but it didn’t matter. The moment she entered the world she became the light and warmth of her parents’ world. She was the star around which their universe revolved and the center of their beings. Ellie was born to Amy Sutton and L.J. Tibbs just about a year after Tibbs rescued Amy from Major Charles Atwood. After the rescue their relationship changed and soon they had created a family filled with love and laughter.
When Ellie Tibbs disappeared she was eight years old and it shook the team to its very core, especially McGregor, who had always seen Ellie as the barricade between Amy and him. Now, he vowed to get her back to her parents, no matter what the cost…