Sarah Malloni’s apartment was filled with clutter. There were books and newspapers and clothing all over the place and Jethro immediately felt stifled the moment he walked inside. There was a cloying, sweet smell in the air that irritated his nose and he sneezed. Waiting to see if there would be another sneeze, he scanned the apartment again, taking in greater detail the second time: nick-knacks and dishes scattered amidst the books; most of the books romance novels; photography magazines.

Stepping further into the apartment, Jethro headed for the next room, which turned out to be the kitchen. It was just as filled with junk as the living room and he began to feel sorry for the apartment complex cleaning crew when the apartment reverted to their control. Leaving the kitchen for the short hall which led to two bedrooms and a bathroom, Jethro opened the first door he came to.

Jackpot.

Jethro felt ill as he scanned the walls that were, sure enough, filled with candids of Tony. Hand to his stomach, forcing the emotions away, he took a few breaths to calm down and get back to that void where he could work properly. He recognized a lot of the places that Tony was, some of them crime scenes, some of them in the park where they both went to relax and jog sometimes.

He definitely recognized the hand that was inevitably on Tony’s body; either the shoulder, or arm, or hip, or back, even though he’d been personally cut out of all of the pictures.

“Oh my God,” Kate exclaimed from behind. “This is insane.”

Quirking an eyebrow at her, Jethro pointed out, “Look at the source.”

“You ah, you want me to go through things in here?” she volunteered.

Jethro hesitated, then shook his head. “I want you to start cataloguing things in the rest of the apartment. We need to know as much about this woman as possible. Where she is in her mania.”

Nodding, Kate said, “Wills just called me. Said that he got the financial records and is going over them with a fine-toothed comb.”

Extra-fine, given the other man’s tendency for thoroughness, Jethro mused. Aloud, he replied, “Thanks. Let me know if you find anything.”

“You too,” she replied before leaving.

Set with the daunting task of going through all the photos on the walls and everything else in the room, Jethro put his kit on the floor and got to work.

* * * *

Despite the fact that Tony still couldn’t see, he knew that the world was spinning viciously. Instead of fighting the cuffs, he was holding onto them for dear life, positive that if he didn’t, he would fly off the cot and bounce around.

The nausea wasn’t helping matters either.

“I see that you aren’t terribly used to drugs, Agent DiNozzo.”

Tony flinched away from the voice that was suddenly at his ear. He hadn’t heard the door open or anyone come in, let alone someone crouching down right beside him.

“It won’t be long now, so don’t worry.”

“Long for what?” Tony managed to gasp.

“You’re a very determined man, aren’t you?”

Hoping that talking would both steady his insides and make something important slip from his kidnapper, Tony replied, “No more than most.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that at all. You’d have to be in order to get Gibbs’ attention, let alone keep it. And keep it, you have. One of the main reasons that you’re here in the first place.”

“So…this is about Gibbs?” Tony asked.

“No, not really. He’s the bonus. My personal bonus.”

Even in his current state, the hatred in the man’s voice was unmistakable. “Don’t touch him!”

A soft laugh graced the air between them and his captor replied, “And what are you going to do about it, Agent DiNozzo?”

Tony stayed silent, knowing there was nothing he could do and hating it.

“That’s what I thought.”

Pain sliced along his midriff and Tony inhaled sharply. The flat of a blade slid along his stomach and the man continued, “Such a perfect canvas. There’s a lot I can do to you that doesn’t involve permanent damage and I think I’ll take advantage of that loophole.”

Panic flared and Tony struggled against the cuffs, uselessly, of course. He froze when the sharp edge pressed into his throat.

“Now now, I don’t think that moving around like that is a good idea when there’s a knife nearby. I suggest you stay very, very still unless you’d like to lose some important parts of your anatomy. Parts that I’m sure Gibbs would be very unhappy to lose.”

The nausea returned in full force, but Tony kept a lid on it, breathing harsh and shallow as the knife slid down his throat to cut just under his collarbone in a long, even slice.

“Do you know, I spent a lot of time developing this particular skill? It’s very necessary to know how to extract information from someone without having them pass out from pain or blood loss. Shallow nicks, long cuts, but never deep ones. Never anything that would permanently impair the ability to divulge information.”

A little desperate, the knife marking him between words, Tony exclaimed, “But you haven’t even asked me anything!”

“Yes, I know. And isn’t that a shame for you?”

* * * *

Three hours and four coffees later, Jethro left the picture/trophy room, everything inside neatly and thoroughly catalogued for evidence. Bone weary, a headache throbbing in the base of his skull, he joined Kate in the living room where she and several other agents were still sifting through and logging things.

“Wills call?” he questioned.

“About fifteen minutes ago. He’s on his way here to help,” Kate answered. “Everything done in there?”

Nodding, Jethro said, “Bagged and tagged. I see you’ve gotten a good way along out here.”

Kate glanced around the half-bare room and replied, “Thank God. This woman is giving me the creeps and I’ve never even met her. How are you doing?”

Jethro bit back all those answers and shrugged. “Fine.”

“Fine? Gibbs, come on. I know this is bugging the crap out of you.”

“Then why’d you ask?”

“Gibbs…”

Thankfully, Wills arrived just then and Gibbs cut her off by walking away. He was pretty sure he could actually hear her teeth grinding as he did.

“Three large payments to an unnamed Cayman account,” Wills informed him without preamble. “Totaling seven hundred fifty thousand dollars.”

Jethro laughed, a short, ugly sound. “So $1.75 million, with the payment from the DiNozzo family. That’s the exact amount he’d asked for the diplomat’s daughter.”

“At least he’s consistent,” Kate interjected, joining them.

Consistently merciless and cruel, came unbidden to Jethro’s mind. It had been seventeen hours since Tony’s call and there was no telling what his lov…what the other man was going through. Shaking his head, Jethro said, “Anything else unusual? Where’d she get the money in the first place?”

Wills held out a file, which Jethro took, and said, “Partially from an inheritance, but mostly from her own work. Seems that Ms. Malloni is a renowned photographer and her work brings in a lot of money. She’s always been considered eccentric and on the edge.”

“Well now she’s gone over it,” Jethro stated, grim.

Wills stared at him for a long moment. “I think you need to take a break. Beckwood isn’t due to call for another eight hours.”

“I’m fine.”

“That wasn’t a request.”

Jethro wanted to balk, but he didn’t want Wills to take the case back. Not that he thought the black man would leave him in the cold, the other man couldn’t really, not with Beckwood dealing directly with him. But Wills could make things very difficult for him. Glowering, Jethro nodded curtly and said to Kate, “You want a lift back to the office?”

“No, I’ll catch one with Wills,” she replied.

With a scowl, Jethro left the apartment and stalked to the elevator. He got all the way there when he couldn’t stop his feet from bypassing it to go to Tony’s apartment.

Letting himself in with his key, Jethro sighed deeply and walked to the bedroom. He wanted nothing more than to bury himself in Tony, to crawl under the covers and fill himself with his lov…with the other man’s scent.

Forcing those thoughts away, Jethro stopped short at the doorway into the bedroom. Standing at the dresser, neatly folding the clothes inside a drawer as if it were the most natural thing in the world, was Sarah Malloni.

It was a tossup as to who was more surprised.

She tried to bolt past him, but Jethro grabbed her arm and swung her against the wall, not caring that she banged hard against it. Twisting her arm behind her, Jethro hissed into her ear, “Where is he!?”

When she remained silent, he pushed the arm up further and repeated, “Where. Is. Tony!?”

“I’ll never tell you, you sick pervert! If not for you, my Tony wouldn’t be in this kind of trouble. He’d be at my side.”

Tightening his grip, causing her to whimper, he demanded, “What kind of trouble? Beckwood got out of control, didn’t he? He’s cut you out of the deal. You were going to get Tony and he was going to get me, plus money, but he changed the rules. Didn’t he!?”

She cried out in pain when he pushed the arm up further, but didn’t answer.

“Gibbs! Let her go!”

Snapping out of the violent haze at Kate’s horrified exclamation, Jethro instantly released the woman and stepped back. He watched as Kate hurried forward and moved Sarah to the bed, still clutching one of Tony’s shirts. “I’m so sorry for Agent Gibbs’ behavior, Ms. Malloni. He’ll be reprimanded, I promise.”

Glaring at him, Sarah snapped venomously, “This is all your fault!”

Jethro kept his mouth shut, settling against the wall, arms crossed over his chest to keep himself from strangling the information out of her.

“Ms. Malloni, please, if you know where they’re holding Tony, you have to let us rescue him,” Kate implored. “Think of the awful things that Beckwood will do to Tony, now that you’re not there to protect him. You don’t want Tony to die, do you?”

Sarah looked at Kate, uncertain.

Pressing the advantage, Kate continued persuasively, “Tony’s an innocent victim here, and so are you. If you tell me where he is, then we can get him so the two of you can work things out. Isn’t that what you want? To be with Tony? I can help you get that.”

The uncertainty grew as Sarah stared at the shirt in her hands, but she still didn’t say anything.

“Sarah, honey, Tony needs help and you’re the only one who can do that,” Kate said softly. “You can be the one to save the day, here. Without you, Tony’s going to die, you know that, right? That’s why you’re here? To try and feel close to him? I know Tony pretty well, and I know that you’re exactly the kind of woman that he can’t help falling for. But if you don’t tell me where he is, then he’ll never have the chance to love you the way you love him.”

“I-it’s a warehouse. He’s in the basement of a warehouse in Ricksen, it’s on Twelfth Street, number 450.”

“And how many men does Beckwood have helping him?”

“Five. But, they have a lot of guns and someone’s always outside the door to Tony’s cell.”

“Thank you, Sarah,” Kate said, pulling her to her feet and turning her around. “I have to handcuff you now, but I’m going to make sure that you get treated well, okay?”

Sarah nodded, defeat permeating her slumped shoulders.

Jethro didn’t stay to watch, he took off to find Wills.

* * * *

Jethro had had several loud and very definitive words for Wills when he’d been told to sit out Tony’s rescue. Words that would make a sailor blush, but Wills didn’t budge. He’d informed Jethro that he could wait in the van with himself and Kate, or he could wait at NCIS in handcuffs.

And even though he hated to admit it, really, really hated to admit it, Jethro knew that Wills was right to do that. He was about ready to snap and going anywhere with a gun in his hand would lead to unnecessary bloodshed. The moment that he spotted any of the kidnappers, there would be a bullet hole between the eyes, put there without remorse by Jethro.

So he waited outside of the warehouse with Wills and Kate and an ambulance that was there, just in case. They were about half a block from the building, not wanting to give Beckwood any idea that he was about to be taken down. It was almost two in the morning and the industrial warehouse area was deserted, which only helped make sure no one got caught in the crossfire.

Tensing when he heard the echo of gunfire, Jethro had all he could do to stay put and keep a calm mask. It seemed like forever before the team leader reported, “All secure. We have DiNozzo. Send in the paramedics.”

Jethro felt faint and swayed a little before grabbing the van seat to steady himself. Paramedics were needed. Tony was injured. Tony could be badly injured.

He was out the door a split second later, Kate and Wills right behind him. Running flat out down the street, he reached the building just as the ambulance pulled up and the paramedics hopped out. Running inside, Jethro looked around frantically and saw one of the team standing at a door that looked to lead to stairs. He ran there and then downstairs a flight before reaching another team member and another door.

“Sir, you should wait for the paramedics…”

But Jethro blew past him into the tiny room where Tony was being cut free from handcuffs that were attached to a thin, metal cot by a pair of pliers. His chest and abs were littered with cuts and gashes of all lengths and depths. His face was bruised with both eyes swollen shut. There were massive and dark bruises in the rib areas. More slices adorned his arms and legs, as if someone had decided to aerate Tony’s body.

“Oh my God,” he whispered.

Tony turned towards him and whispered, “Jethro?”

But Jethro couldn’t move. He couldn’t make his feet cross the four feet that separated them, rooted to the spot by equal parts horror and fear and relief and rage.

The paramedics arrived just then and instantly went to Tony’s side. He heard them talking about blood loss and shock, about possible eye damage and internal injuries, but couldn’t really make sense of it. A gentle hand on his arm drew him aside and Jethro looked at Kate, still speechless, to see her own horrified expression.

When Tony was transferred to a stretcher and wheeled out of the room, Jethro saw how much blood had soaked into the thin mattress. His knees gave out just in time for him to lose his stomach and he threw up, adding to the disgusting stench. A gentle, firm hand rubbed up and down his back as everything he’d eaten for what seemed like the last week came up. Shuddering, wiping the bile from his mouth with the back of his hand, Jethro dragged himself away from Kate’s comforting hand and the mess he’d made on the floor.

For a long moment he just stayed there on his hands and knees, staring at the cold pavement of a floor. He stared at his hands as though they belonged to someone else and wondered that they had ever touched Tony’s unmarked body. Wondered if he’d ever be able to touch Tony again. If he could let himself do so, undeserving and incompetent as he was.

“Gibbs, come on, we should get to the hospital,” Kate said quietly.

He took a deep breath and released it, sitting back on his haunches as he brought himself under control. A few moments later, Jethro stood and walked out of that room, never wanting to see it again in his life.

* * * *

Gibbs looked about as pale as the linoleum floor that he was pacing, but not nearly as steady. Sighing, Kate went back to not-reading her magazine as they waited to hear from the doctor about Tony. Wills was still back at the warehouse doing cleanup and had brought Beckwood back to the FBI office. She’d never forget when Beckwood had called out to Gibbs, “Hey Gibbs, I prettied him up for you!”

Mostly because she’d seen Gibbs’ hand on the butt of his pistol and had been wondering if she’d be fast enough to grab his gun-hand before it landed a bullet between Beckwood’s eyes. She was pretty sure that she wasn’t that fast.

Tony had been admitted to surgery an hour before, thanks to a punctured lung that needed to be repaired, and internal but unspecified bleeding from his beatings. Beatings. Plural. Kate’s eyes closed and she thought about what Tony had gone through, now that she knew for sure. It was the first time that someone she called friend had been exposed to that kind of brutality and she wasn’t sure how to handle it.

Enforced visits to the shrink were not going to be necessary this time, she’d be making her own damn appointments come the morning.

“Agent Gibbs?”

Kate dropped the magazine and stood, striding over to Gibbs, who was standing stock still in the middle of the hall as the doctor approached. The doctor was in his forties with a reassuringly competent air to him.

“Your friend is going to be fine,” the doctor announced. “He suffered a great deal of blood loss and, as you know, his lung was punctured, but we were able to repair it without any trouble. There was a slice along his hamstring, but not too deep, so we’re hopeful that will heal without too much trauma. We won’t know about his eyes until the swelling goes down, unfortunately, there could be permanent vision loss. But that’s the only bad news. He’ll be laid up for a few months healing from the major injuries, but with therapy, he should be almost as good as new by the time he’s done.”

Relief threatened to turn Kate’s knees to jell-o and she grinned, exclaimed, “Thanks, Doctor! When can we see him?”

“Actually, he’s still under from the anesthesia, but you can see him now, if you want. Only for a few minutes, though, since it’s not visiting hours. He’ll be in room 408 in about ten minutes.”

Gibbs finally smiled at the doctor, though it was clearly forced. “Thank you, Doctor.”

The man nodded and headed back the way he’d come.

Kate was practically dancing in place as she said, “Come on, let’s get upstairs.”

“No, I’m going home,” Gibbs answered.

Shocked, Kate repeated, “Home?”

“Yeah. Home.”

Still stunned, Kate watched as Gibbs walked towards the exit, baffled about what had just happened.

* * * *

Jethro made it all the way to the hospital parking lot before staggering to a halt. Permanent vision loss. Repaired lungs. Therapy. And that was just the physical list. There was no telling what kind of terrorizing that Tony had gone through. No telling what kind of therapy he would need to get through what had been done to him.

And all because Jethro had fallen in love with him. All because that bitch had researched the best way to get rid of Gibbs and throw them off the scent at the same time.

There was no way that he could face Tony again. No chance that he could look the other man in the eyes knowing how badly he’d let Tony down. The future loomed out in front of him, empty and alone, but Jethro knew it was only what he deserved.

With that depressing thought in mind, he started walking towards his car again.