A Lie Well Told: a Watcher Abby Fic
Hi everybody, I aten't dead! This is the 'missing scene' from Methos' little visit to NCIS, where Gibbs questions the Old Man about the death of his 'brother'. This storyline will continue in parallel with the rest of the Watcher!Abby series, but I needed to wait for the revelations happening in strangevisitor7's stories to pan out first, which you can read here along with the rest of the series.
Big thanks as always to strangevisitor7 for the beta.
Disclaimer: Not mine, none of it, no harm intended, no profit made.
A Lie Well Told
Methos slouched as best as he was able to in the hard metal chair, trying to project the appropriate level of sadness and distress at being called in to discuss the loss of his ‘twin’. Dr. Mallard had cautioned him that Gibbs was tough to fool, but Methos had dismissed the warning. Playing the part of grieving brother didn’t require much effort, and in reality, he was scrutinising the security camera and recording devices and listening intently to the conversation outside the door.
At least two agents were stood in the corridor, one who Richie had called Tony, and another who Methos suspected was the infamous Agent Gibbs
“I just don’t like it, DiNozzo. Something is off kilter about this whole cock-a-mamie scenario. His twin brother?!” said the voice Methos assumed to be Gibbs.
“I know, boss. But the resemblance is uncanny. What other explanation is there? Unless the corpse just got up and walked out of autopsy,” DiNozzo replied with a half-hearted chuckle. Gibbs grunted in reply and opened the door.
Methos could tell instantly that the man was former military. It was obvious from the way he walked, and the jarhead haircut could only belong to a US Marine. Inwardly Methos smiled, he knew just how to play this now. He sat up in his chair and adopted a concerned look.
Gibbs sat down opposite Methos and slapped a folder on the table in front of him. The two sat regarding each other for a moment before Gibbs spoke.
“So, Doctor Clifford…”
“Yes, Agent… Gibbs is it?”
Methos then sat quietly regarding Gibbs, who clearly wanted him to say something more, but he waited for the agent to make the next move. The silence stretched into minutes. Clearly, Gibbs was good at the waiting game, but Methos was a master. Eventually Gibbs patience wore thin.
“So, my M.E. tells me that it was your brother, Daniel, that was found this morning,” Gibbs said. Methos could feel the scepticism pouring off Gibbs and looked suitably distressed, knowing that Gibbs was gauging his reaction. “Any idea how such a snafu could happen?”
“I can only assume that immigration got us muddled when we entered the country. They must have put my prints on my brother’s visa. We are identical. I mean were,” Doctor Clifford said with a shake of his head.
Methos smiled inwardly as he said that. It was a nice touch; he knew that referring to a loved one in the past tense too soon was considered a sign of guilt by law enforcement.
“And nobody picked up on this sooner? I’m glad this security issue has come to our attention, Doctor,” Gibbs commented. Methos could hear a note of derision in his voice; clearly Gibbs didn’t believe what he was being told.
“Look, I’m sorry for any confusion and any unnecessary paperwork this mistaken identity has caused you. But the sad fact of the matter is that Daniel took his own life, and it wasn’t unexpected. I failed to protect my own twin, Agent Gibbs.”
“You’re absolutely certain of that?” Gibbs asked.
Methos hung his head and delivered his response to his shoes.
“I’ve never been more certain of anything,” he said quietly.
“Why the hurry to remove the body from the morgue?”
Methos sighed inwardly. Gibbs was certainly persistent. Methos looked up, straight into the agent’s eyes.
“There was no hurry, Agent Gibbs. Doctor Mallard said he had concluded the autopsy and was happy to release my brother’s remains. If you’ve no more questions, I’d be grateful if you would let me go so I can finalise the necessary arrangements to have him sent home.”
Gibbs glowered at Methos, but no more questions were forthcoming. Methos silently crowed in triumph as he recognized the defeated tilt to Gibbs head. He would be free momentarily. Gibbs stood, but before exiting the room he sent a final word of caution toward him.
“Just don’t leave town, Doctor Clifford,” he said.
The cliché amused Methos, but the threat it implied certainly did not. Gibbs was clearly unsatisfied with the story Methos had given and wanted to pursue things further. Luckily for Methos, the case was closed and so there was nothing Gibbs could do about it.
Methos had never known a mortal to be so formidable, he was impressed. After five thousand years, it took a lot to make him sweat. Still, he was mentally patting himself on the back for what he felt was an Oscar-worthy performance of the grieving brother. Not too grief stricken, but not too cavalier either. He just hoped this was going to be an end to the matter.