A Tangled Web - A Watcher!Abby fic
This is part of the Watcher!Abby verse I'm co-authoring with strangevisitor7 , the rest of which you can read here. It's the next part in my little side story that follows on from Methos' visit to NCIS which you can find here and here.
Big thanks to strangevisitor7 for her invaluable help as beta.
Disclaimer: It isn't mine, not one little bit.
A Tangled Web
Methos groaned inwardly as he saw Agent Gibbs head across the hospital lobby. He’d had a feeling Gibbs wouldn’t let matters drop, but he’d hoped to be back in the UK before the NCIS agent came calling.
“Agent Gibbs, to what do I owe this pleasure?”
“Can it, Clifford. We need to talk, in private,” Gibbs replied, a determined glare on his face. Methos shrugged and ushered him into his temporary office. Once they were inside and the door was closed, Gibbs wheeled on him and pushed Methos against the wall. “There was no brother, was there? It was your body in the morgue that day.”
Shocked, Methos was momentarily at a loss for words, so he pretended Gibbs’ hold was choking him.
“Oh please, I know that won’t kill you,” Gibbs said, but he still loosened his grip a little. Having regained his composure, Methos was able to speak.
“Have you quite lost your mind, Agent Gibbs? I told you it was my brother who died. How could it possibly have been my body? That’s not only preposterous, but medically impossible,” Methos answered calmly and a little indignant.
This clearly wrong-footed Gibbs, who took a step back and released Methos. Methos straightened out his clothing and calmly regarded Gibbs. Gibbs seemed to recover his confidence and spoke again.
“I know everything. Ducky and Richie told me all about it. You’re like Ryan, aren’t you?” Gibbs said, more of a statement than a question, with emphasis on Richie’s real surname.
Inwardly, Methos sighed. He didn’t know why Richie had been blabbing again, but clearly half of NCIS now seemed aware of Immortals.
“What exactly did Doctor Mallard tell you?” Methos asked.
“Oh no, I’m not going to let you make me look like a fool again, Clifford. If that’s your name. I checked: there were no human remains shipped from Washington to the UK since your visit to NCIS. In fact, I can find no trace of your so-called brother beyond the immigration records. And I’m going to be having serious words with Abby and Ryan about where those came from. I know that the reason the body disappeared was because you got up and walked out of autopsy. Don’t try and deny it, Clifford,” Gibbs was invading Methos’ personal space again, jabbing at Methos’ chest as he spoke in a voice that was almost a growl.
Methos was really beginning to like this mortal. Richie, on the other hand, was rapidly slipping down his list of favourite Immortals.
“Let’s say, for a moment, that this insane notion of yours was correct. What exactly would you do about it?” Methos said cautiously.
“Officially? Absolutely nothing. The case was ruled a suicide, and all the documents back up the official story. Besides, who’d believe me? But I’m guessing that you didn’t set fire to yourself, so there’s a murderer at large. It didn’t stick for you, but if he got away with it once, he’s more likely to strike again. And the next victim won’t be able to get up and walk away. I want to catch the bastard before that happens,” Gibbs replied.
Methos sidestepped Gibbs and took his seat behind his desk. He motioned for Gibbs to take the seat opposite, but Gibbs stayed standing, arms folded. Methos silently contemplated Gibbs, weighing up his options.
He could continue to deny everything, and leave the States as soon as he was able, never coming back as Clifford and certainly not coming to DC for another generation. Alternatively he could go find Richie and practise his surgical techniques on the younger Immortal without any anaesthetic. That wouldn’t resolve any of his problems, but it would make him feel better.
“Come on, Clifford. Don’t you want to find out who tried to kill you? Hell, for all they know, they succeeded, they just got the wrong man. Aren’t you just a little bit pissed about that?” Gibbs asked, leaning over the desk.
Cut and run was usually his favoured option, but Methos had to admit a certain amount of curiosity as to Adam Clifford’s enemy, and an overwhelming urge for revenge. If he hadn’t been fortunate enough to wake up in Doctor Mallard’s autopsy room, he would have been forced to abandon Adam Clifford’s life, and he was rather enjoying it.
He rarely trusted mortals with his Immortality; Joe was probably the only one alive who knew. But Methos was a very good judge of character, and he thought he may be able to trust Gibbs.
“Would you let me make a private phone call please? You can wait out in the lobby; I won’t be able to slip out unseen. I just want to confirm some details before I say anything further,” Methos said, choosing his words carefully. Gibbs regarded him for a second, then nodded and left the room. Methos picked up his cell and hit speed dial.
“Hello?”
“What the buggering hell have you been saying now, brat?” Methos demanded.
“Methos?...Oh no, Gibbs is there, isn’t he? Man, I never thought…I’m so sorry, I should have realised he’d figure it out. I’m such an idiot,” Richie said.
“Well I could have told you that. Is there anyone in that agency who doesn’t know about us? I just want to know, so I don’t accidentally let it slip to the wrong Government Agent,” Methos sniped.
“It wasn’t like that. Gibbs thought I was a terrorist or something. He’d seen the video of the Paris crash, and he knew my alias was a fake. He was going to send me to Guantanamo Bay or something and Ducky and Abs would have lost their jobs, maybe ended up in Federal prison!” Richie babbled in explanation, barely pausing for breath. “I had no choice.”
“You could have left.”
“Did you not hear the part about Gibbs? He caught me as I was trying to leave, which of course made things a million times worse. I’m so lucky he didn’t throw my ass in jail on the spot.”
“Why couldn’t you just get shot and start over then?” Methos said, anger edging his voice. He was probably going to do more than shoot the young Immortal if he saw him in the near future.
“That would have still left Abby and Ducky in trouble. I couldn’t do that to them,” Richie replied, the apologetic tone replaced by a hint of anger.
Methos silently conceded the point, and changed topic to the crux of his current dilemma.
“If I stick to the story, give him the run-around until I leave the States, would Gibbs let it rest at that?” Methos asked, voicing his earlier gut instinct.
“I doubt it. He went after me based only on his gut and Gibbs never lets anything go. In fact, I’m still not certain he’s done with me… Look, Gibbs is a really good guy. A little rough around the edges, but underneath he really cares about what’s right. You can trust him,” Richie answered adamantly.
“Oh brilliant, another Boy Scout,” Methos opined, shaking his head in exasperation. On the other end of the line, Richie chuckled.
“Marine actually. Seriously though, Old Man, let him help you. He’s the best there is at what he does. If he can’t find out who tried to kill you, nobody can.”
“How did you know he’d offered to help?” Methos asked, suspicious suddenly.
“I know Gibbs,” was Richie’s reply.
Without saying goodbye, Methos hung up and considered what Richie had said. He did want to find out who exactly had tried to murder him, and he didn’t have much experience as a detective. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to let Gibbs know a little. Not too much, but enough that he could provide information and expertise.
Methos sighed and walked to the door of his office. He opened it and looked for Gibbs. The NCIS agent was seated opposite, but he stood when Methos opened the door.
“You’d better come in, Agent Gibbs. We’ve got a lot to discuss".
The Tangled Web continues in Part 2