NCIS: The Secret of the Agent

S1E2: Hung Out to Dry

A/N: So sorry for how long it took to get this chapter up! Between starting a new job and getting settled into my apartment, things have been pretty hectic. Don't forget to vote and comment! :)

"Don't you lock the door?" Tony called out from the top of the stairs, leaning down to look at Gibbs, who was sanding down the wood of his boat. 

"Don't you know it's rude to just walk in?" I retorted with a shake of my head, flipping the page of the book I was reading. Tony chose not to answer that. 

DiNozzo made his way down the stairs as he explained why he was here. "I got a call-Quantico. Marine got killed in an exercise."

Gibbs flickered a brief glance at Tony as he questioned how it happened. The response was that it had been during a night training jump and that the Marine's chute hadn't opened. I paused in my reading to watch as Tony walked along one side of the room, opposite of where Gibbs was currently standing. 

Tony appeared confused, his eyes narrowed. "Is this a boat?" 

Gibbs' only answer to that was to pause in his work and shoot DiNozzo a look. I bit back a sarcastic comment when DiNozzo glanced my way, his expression playfully stern. I smirked at him, flipping the page of my book once more. 

"Did his reserve chute fail, too?" I questioned. 

"I don't know," Tony answered. "Ah," he continued after having bent down to get a closer look at a jar of paint thinner resting on the table beside me. "I tried your cell. Tried your hard line, too. No wonder I couldn't get through." 

"Don't ask," Gibbs warned.

"Geez, DiNozzo. You do realize that I have a phone, right?" 

My words had clearly embarrassed him, made clear by the slight reddening of his cheeks. "Right," he muttered. "Didn't think of that." Opting to quickly move on from his obvious error, Tony changed the subject. "You know, my dad gave me a power sander for my birthday, but I don't really power sand much. You're welcome to it." 

Gibbs cast me a somewhat exasperated look. "Aside from that bare bulb there, and a plug going to that idiot box, you see a power cord around here anywhere?" 

I was unable to hold back my laughter, grinning widely now. "You're on a roll today, DiNozzo. Try three-for-three?" 

Again, he chose to leave that question unanswered. When asked, Tony denied having called Ducky about the Marine, running his hand along the now smooth wood. He tossed Gibbs his cell when prompted. 

"Coming, DiNozzo?" I shouted down the stairs. 

"Yeah. I got the... light." Tony faltered in his words when I had reached my hand around the wall to shut off the light, leaving him standing still in the darkness of the room. 

The scene before us was rather gruesome. Lights were staged around an abandoned vehicle, allowing us to see the dead marine clearly.

"He impaled an SUV?" Tony asked one of the men leading us closer to where the car was parked. 

"Like he was laser-guided, sir." 

"Where are the other jumpers?" Gibbs questioned. 

Our escort pointed off to the side of the field, indicating the location of the other jumpers. "They landed in the drop-zone, 400 meters north of the road." 

Eying the body as we walked along the outskirts of the perimeter, I shook my head. "Just one stick?" 

The man leading us along affirmed my words, explaining that the jump master had held the others back when the victim's chute didn't open. Gibbs continued by asking him about one other thing-securing the paraloft and the aircraft. Once it was confirmed that they were secure, Gibbs ordered the marine leading us to keep those who did not jump to be separated from those who did.