Tony and Ziva were if possible even more silent on the way back to NCIS than they had been on the way to the payphone. They had left agent searching the neighborhood of mostly abandoned building. There were no traces of Tim yet. They had wanted to keep searching until they found him, but they wanted to get the phone back to Abby to make sure they were even in the right neighborhood at all.
Most of the silence was due to the fact that each agent was lost in their own thoughts about Tim. Tony had known and worked with McGee longer than he had worked with anyone save Gibbs and Abby. He didn't think he could handle losing Tim, his partner, his friend. He had watched McGee grow from a stuttering probie to an agent he trusted with his own life.
Ziva had always been amazed by Tim's temperament and patience. She didn't know how someone of his gentle nature did the job they did, saw what they saw. She respected his skills and knew he was a good investigator. Tim had always treated her with respect and she truly considered him a friend. She took pride in the control she kept of her feelings which is why she had been so surprised at the strong emotional reaction Tim's obvious kidnapping had brought up in her. It was more than fear or anger. It was protectiveness and a dread at what might be happening to him at that moment.
Tony and Ziva dropped the payphone off with Abby.
"Did you find McGee?" she asked eagerly.
"No sign yet, all we have is the phone." Tony grunted as he dropped it on the table. Abby's face dropped for a second, then relit.
"Daddy McGee's here" she announced.
"Really?" Ziva asked surprised. "That was certainly fast."
"Huh? Oh Gibbs didn't call him. Right after you guys left he called Tim's phone and we answered. He's upstairs talking to Bossman now. I'm going to go see him."
"Shouldn't you start running the phone?" Tony asked
"Yes, that's where you come in. I'll start working and when he comes down with Gibbs you call me. "
"Abby-"
"Promise?"
Tony sighed.
"I promise"
Ziva smiled at how easily the boys always gave in to Abby
Abby continued.
"Plus I have information Gibbs needs to hear, so when we come back down here I can get started."
"Abby," Ziva started cautiously. "You seem very calm."
"I have to stay strong for Timmy." She said matter-of-factly. Her lip trembled for a moment. "He needs me at the top of my game. Now go and don't forget to call me."
Tony and Ziva headed to the squad room to start working. It wasn't long before they heard voices and looked up to see Gibbs and Ducky heading their way with a man who looked very familiar.
Ziva almost did a double take. This has to be McGee's father, the resemblance was uncanny. She caught Tony's eye just as he got off the phone with Abby to tell her the time had arrived.
The trio stopped and Tony felt a pang of sympathy for McGee's father. He looked exhausted and worried. He was not surprised to find traces of anger in his eyes as well.
He decided to make a better first impression with the elder McGee than he had made with his son. Tony got up and stuck out his hand.
"Commander McGee? I'm Tony DiNozzo, Tim and I work together. I'm...so sorry this happened."
Ziva was right behind him.
"Ziva David. I am sorry to meet you this way."
Sean shook both their hands and nodded.
"Me too, I would have preferred it another time. Tim speaks highly of you both. "
There was a silence no one really knew how to fill. Luckily Abby ran up to bridge the gap. She ran past Tony, Ziva, Gibbs, and Ducky, almost tackling the Sean McGee with a hug. He only barely managed to keep his balance as Gibbs not so gently pried her off.
"Abby!"
Sean gave the ghost of a smile
"Abby. I assumed as much."
"Commander McGee I am so sorry! I want you to know I will not rest until Tim has been found and brought home. Well not home, but here, and really he spends enough time here that-"
Gibbs only had to give her a look to get her back on track.
"Sorry" she said looking truly contrite. "I will find him."
"Find Danny Larson you'll find Tim" Sean said bitterly.
"We've got a BOLO out for him, he's only a suspect until we talk to him sir." Gibbs reminded
"Who is Danny Larson?" Tony asked
"He left McGee all these mean messages; he called over 300 times in the last week." Abby blurted out before Gibbs could stop her.
Sean McGee's face got darker with each word.
"What?" He asked so angrily that Abby took a step back.
Gibbs shot her a glare and tried to control the situation
"I don't think-"
"I want to hear the messages."
"No" Gibbs said putting his foot down. "They are evidence, they would not help you, they would not do anything but piss you off more. There were dozens on that machine that had been listened too but not deleted. Tim kept them and listened to them and it didn't do him any good."
"I can-"
"Keep your temper? I doubt it. Why do you want to hear someone tear down your son? What do you think that will solve? Hearing them won't help you and it won't find Tim."
Sean looked deflated. Ducky grabbed a chair and guided him to it.
Abby timidly stepped back up and asked.
"Tim had a restraining order against Larson, why didn't he just call it in?"
"Tim only got the restraining order to get his mother, his sisters, and a friend in college off his back. He didn't want it and I don't think ever had any intention of using it. That's why I didn't insist on it."
"Why would he not use it?" Ziva inquired.
Sean paused
"Tim...empathized with Larson."
"In what way?" Ducky inquired
"Danny was 10 years older than Scott and 11 years older that Scarlett. He saw that Abby, Ziva, and Tony were confused not having been there for the earlier conversation. "His half brother and half sister that died in the drowning." he clarified.
"Tim is 10 years older than Sarah and 11 years older than Emily. He is very, very protective of those girls." Sean finished.
Gibbs had to smile
"Yeah we know."
"I didn't know he had two sisters" Abby said
"Yeah and you won't hear of Emily. She's the youngest and Sarah polar opposite. She likes to stay under the radar, out of trouble. Sarah seems to enjoy being in the hot box."
Sean shook his head.
"That protectiveness is a lot my fault though. When I was deployed I would leave and tell Tim to take care of his mother and sister. He's my oldest son. I expected him to handle things while I was away. He took that responsibility very seriously; he never disappointed me. I was talking to him, one day, about letting Larson harass him and he told me he didn't do anything because he couldn't imagine losing one of his sisters and certainly not both in one accident. He doesn't see Larson for the mentally disturbed person that he is. Tim looks at it though his own lens."
"The lens of a protective older brother." Ducky mused. "Still I'm surprised he put up with it for so long."
Sean snorted.
"Tim got his mother's personality. I am not nearly as patient or easy-tempered. I wanted to do something then. Tim just wanted to forget it all, but he's always taken things to heart that he shouldn't, things that just make it harder for him."
He paused
"I'll get out of your hair Agent Gibbs. Thank you for seeing me. I certainly appreciate it."
Gibbs shook his hand.
"We'll let you know as soon as we hear anything."
"Thank you, sir. Thank you."
The doors on the elevator had barely shut...
"Gibbs, Gibbs! I have stuff for you in my lab!"
"Am I going to like it Abby?"
A looked passed across her face he couldn't read and that shocked him. If there was always one person he could read it was Abby.
"What is it Abbs?"
She scrunched up her mouth.
"You had better come see."