Chapter 9
Waiting for the elevator doors to close, Tim turned to Tony and Ziva. “Guys? What do you think is going on? Do you really think that Abby could do that? Switch our Gibbs with another? Across dimensions or something like that?”
He knew Abby had always had an interest in the unknown, in the unexplainable. But Tim never thought she’d have the ability to actually do something like this.
Tony hit the button for the ground level. “Coffee run off the Yard,” he said abruptly. He wasn’t really worried about the other Gibbs, and if they were quick, they could talk about it in the car.
They hurried to Tim’s new sedan; it was the best car for all of them to ride in. Once they were settled, Tony in the passenger seat, he twisted, looking at both McGee and Ziva. “We ever known Gibbs to have a younger brother with the same name? I don’t know what to believe. It sounds like a movie…”
“Gibbs has no other family living, other than his father. My dossiers were complete. There is no way that man is Gibbs’ brother, not someone who looks absolutely identical to him, save the hair and what else age has given to him.” Ziva buckled her seatbelt loosely, leaning forward in consideration.
“What do you think, Ziva?” Tony asked. “You have the most information of any of us. Was Jack the type to cheat, could Gibbs have a half brother?” It seemed out there but no more out there than Gibbs going someplace else and a stranger being brought in his place.
“I do not believe so, Tony. From my understanding, Jackson loved his wife very much, regardless of any issues within the marriage. However, I cannot say for prior to the marriage. Or, from the look of Jet and from guessing his age, after she passed. Do you really think that is a possibility? Granted, one that is entirely more plausible than cross-dimensional travel.”
“But,” Tim piped up, “Where’s our Gibbs then? And how do you explain this one? How’d he get into the Navy Yard? He seems to really be confused by everything that’s going on, like he doesn’t know where is or what he’s doing here. So, what? He’s just a really good liar? What does your gut say, Tony?”
“I don’t have Gibbs’ gut,” Tony protested, voice tensing. “We didn’t do the obvious yet. We haven’t tried his cell phone. Tim, dial him. Ziva…when did Gibbs’ mom die? Did Jack date a lot afterward? Any of you ever know Abby to play with magic or spells?”
Putting her hand on Tony’s shoulder to squeeze it briefly before letting go, Ziva answered him. “No, you do not have Gibbs’ gut. You have DiNozzo’s gut. And you have successfully used it to solve difficult situations before. Tony, use it now. As for your questions, Gibbs’ mother was deceased prior to his leaving for the Marines, prior to his marriage to Shannon. I believe Jack did see a number of women from Stillwater, and I have never known Abby to do something of that nature.”
Giving up, Tim tossed his phone to his lap. “He’s not answering.”
Tony nodded, closing his eyes, rubbing a hand over them. “ The number is active, right? Is it registered to our Gibbs?” He pulled in and expelled a deep breath. “What do you do when your head and your gut don’t agree? My gut says there’s something to this but my head says there’s no way, that this is something out of a movie or something we’d see on the science fiction channel alongside Mega Shark and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, which was actually a pretty cheesy movie and a cult classic but…” Tony forced himself to stop there, hoping someone else would jump in.
“Then we do what we have been trained to do, Tony. We follow the clues, we follow the evidence, no matter where it may lead us,” Ziva offered.
“You indicated on the ship that Mossad taught you a lot. Have you ever heard of anything like this? Or you, Probie? Ever heard or see things outside of the science fiction movie realm? Quantum Physics or whatever.” It was all technically beyond Tony, but McGee was brilliant, had gone to MIT and Hopkins. If anyone could puzzle out the science side, it was him.
Ziva considered his question, taking a moment to figure out exactly which boat he meant. “On the Chimera, Tony? Yes, Mossad trained us to look beyond what we can see, but never anything like this. They never went to what exists beyond our own world.”
“Tony, I’ve got nothing. This is beyond anything I’ve ever researched or read about.” Tim shook his head, defeated in a sense.
Tony nodded, shivering, remembering the rats and what had happened at the end. “What do your guts say?” he asked quietly. “Abby’s right. Everything has been so screwed up since Jenny died.” He winced as he said that, glancing at Ziva, who knew he’d been drinking to cope.
Ziva looked towards Tony from the back of the car, understanding what he left unsaid. “Unfortunately, Abby was the only one willing to risk everything to fix what had been broken. But now we join her. My gut is telling me that there is more going on here than we can comprehend, something beyond anything we have experienced before. The answer lies with Abby and what she did last night.”
Tim echoed Ziva, unable to better explain it than that. “My gut is saying that we can figure it out. If we stick together on this,” he added.
“Do you think he’s another Gibbs?” Tony asked quietly, looking from one to the other. He felt more in tune with his teammates in this moment than he had in a long time, probably ever.
“I think the possibility is there, Tony, as scary and bewildering as that may be right now. How else can we explain it?” Leaning forward, Ziva put her hand on Tony’s shoulder again, giving him the support she knew he required.
Ziva’s words were just what he needed. Tony reached for Ziva’s hand as well as Tim’s, stacking them one atop the other. “Teamwork,” he said seriously, his version of a college football rallying cry. “Team Gibbs. Team DiNozzo for now.”
“Team DiNozzo works fine, Tony.” Tim smiled at his teammates, his friends. “Long live the campfires,” he said, lightheartedly.
“You guys hated those,” Tony said affectionately. This was different than last time. He could feel the support now. “We’re a team, guys. We’ll get through this and figure things out together. I know…” He shrugged. “Things have been crazy since LA, but we’re a team and we do our best work together. We owe it to Gibbs.”
“We tolerated them, Tony. We did not hate them. They were a part of your progress as much as Gibbs’ methods are his. We will find a way through this, as a team, as friends. Gibbs missing, losing Jenny, the team being disbanded and sent around the world, we have much to work through, but we will.” Putting her other hand on top of the stack, Ziva squeezed their hands together.
Tony cocked his head, shrugging a little. It hadn’t been a good time for any of them. He’d tried, they all had, but it hadn’t worked out very well despite all the best intentions. “Okay, we need to work with Abby and this guy. Ziva, we’re gonna need him back at Gibbs’ desk or Vance’ll get suspicious fast. We can fake going over cold cases, but he may need a little coaching. I’ll run interference with Vance and the other agents so the rumor mill doesn’t start churning.”
Tony paused, looking at first Ziva and then McGee. “Any questions?”
“No, not really. Other than how in the hell something like this could happen. But none of us can answer that.” Tim looked in his rear view mirror at Ziva who nodded as well. “No, we’re good, Tony.”
“Don’t know that one. You’re science guy, Probie,” Tony teased lightly. “You guys want coffee or just go back in?”
“I think we’re all going to need coffee. And lots of it to get through this.” Tim laughed, a short one, but a laugh nonetheless.
From the back seat, Ziva smiled. “I agree. We will need to make sure to be at our sharpest. The coffee will help. We also need to consider Abby’s Caf-Pow.”
“Yeah, don’t want to think of Abbs without it,” Tony added, enjoying the camaraderie. He’d missed this. “Onward, Starbucks. Think the new Gibbs drinks it black too?”
Ziva laughed along with him, hearing Tim in the front chuckling as well. “In this dimension or the other, he is still Gibbs. Strong and black is the only way he will take his coffee, I am sure.”
“Why don’t we get him one then and a Caf-Pow for Abbs?”
“Sounds good, Tony,” Ziva replied as Tim pulled the car into the Starbucks parking lot. “Then maybe, when we get back, Abby will have figured something out. But minimally, we need to get this Gibbs in place before Vance gets suspicious.”
“Yeah, we’ll need to get him to fake it. If he leaves for the day, even with no case, it could be a lot more suspicious. If he’s the man we know, he’ll be able to think on his feet.”
At least Tony hoped so…
~*~
Jet sat quietly, sensing that Abby was ready to break. He finally decided to interrupt the silence. “Have you ever tried a spell before?”
His voice broke the almost deadly stillness of the lab, making her jump in her chair. Looking up from her computer, Abby answered him hesitantly, but honestly. “No, no, I haven’t. And I don’t even believe it actually exists. And I have no idea how it even worked.”
“If it doesn’t exist, how am I here?”
“You got me there. But how is it possible that, on my first time, I managed to create this mess? That, as a novice, I happen to find a spell online that gives me the directions to find exactly what it was I was looking for?” Leaning back in her chair, Abby crossed her arms over her chest as she tried to reason the problem out.
“Could someone have been screwing around on my end too?” But who? Nobody he knew was into that stuff.
“Wait a second! That’s it! I found something, a website…it had instructions!” Bounding out of her chair, too intent on her mission, Abby tripped on her newest pair of patent leather boots and collided with Jet, wrapping her arms around him to save herself from falling.
When she went running to her computer, Jet grabbed her and they both fell to the floor. He whacked his tailbone hard, grunting. “Couldn’t be like five two and anorexic, huh?” he teased.
Brushing the strands of hair that had fallen from her pigtails away from her face, she looked down at him. “Ha, ha. Very funny. Like I haven’t heard that before.” Abby struggled to sit up, but their limbs were tangled. Suddenly, the wave of desire that had teased her earlier crested as she met his piercing eyes and her body started trembling in response.
“You’re in a hurry,” he said, his voice lowering, his arms relaxing even as he pulled her closer. “There’s something between you and him, isn’t there? You’re shaking.” And she was rubbing her body over his. “You know what happens to a guy when a beautiful girl does that,” he whispered, his mouth suddenly very dry.
“There was never anything between me and Gibbs. He’s family. That’s it.” Her gaze traveled down his face, locking on his lips. Why hadn’t she ever noticed how delicious his lips were? Why did she, all of a sudden, need to taste to see if they were really as delicious as they looked? “What happens?”
“You can’t feel?” he asked, arching an eyebrow. Something about the women in this place had him on a hair trigger and when she started rubbing against him, he’d gotten painfully hard. He closed his eyes, letting his head fall back. “Been far too celibate too long,” he admitted, gasping a little at their contact.
When Abby realized what he was referring to, she blushed at her mistake. Ducking her head, she looked at him through her lowered lashes, trying to figure out what to do. She tried to stop from moving, only her body seemed to control her movements without her consent. Watching him laid out underneath her, Abby was beyond tempted. But after all that had happened, how much distain he had shown for her earlier, she was afraid. “Why celibate?”
“Nobody interesting,” he replied, a little short of breath. “You gonna tease me or you plan on changing that?” he asked, lifting his head up and looking at her intensely, tongue running over his lower lip.
Her eyes fluttered down to his lips again, entranced as his tongue slicked over his bottom lip. She wanted to taste the trail he left behind, her own tongue darting out between her red lips in an unconscious imitation. Unwittingly, Abby moved closer, her mouth a hairsbreadth from his. She was hypnotized; by his touch, his lips, his voice, his eyes. His warm breath drifted over her skin and the strength to resist fled. Closing the distance between them, she pressed her lips to his, tentatively seeking out his approval.
She brushed her lips against his lightly and he breathed in a shocked gasp. He wasn’t sure she would actually kiss him, but he couldn’t help holding her close, kissing her deeply and gently as if they had all the time in the world to explore each other’s mouths. As if he wasn’t in a foreign world. As if she wasn’t the one who caused him to be here.
His arms tightened around her and he rolled her over, lying on top of her, commanding the kiss and grinding into her.
Gasping at the feel of him thrusting against her, she let her legs fall apart, digging her heels into the ground and arching up into him. Reaching up, she ran her hands through his hair, loving the feel as it slipped through her fingers. She held his head between her hands as she opened her mouth to his tongue moving against her own.
He was losing himself in her kiss, reaching over to stroke along her neck, her shoulder, squeezing her breast gently. His heart was racing, his blood heating, and he wanted more of her. He lifted her leg, pressing harder against her, drawn to her in every way.
A cry, half plea, half moan, escaped her lips and into his mouth when he pressed his rigid length against her aching core. Her kisses become more frantic as she arched into him again, the need to be possessed by him overwhelming her. Her body screaming for his, she wrapped her leg around his leg, pulling him in tighter as she moved against him. Traveling her hands down his muscled back, she lifted his shirt and pushed her hands underneath, desperate to feel his heated skin.
“Not doing this on the floor of your lab,” he gasped, trying to maintain some sort of self-control, even as he pressed harder against her, seeking the pressure of her against his aching length. He was so close to giving in, despite the craziness of the situation.
Everything was out of control. She was out of control. And she liked it. Her world was as crazy for his entrance into it as his was for being pulled out of all that he knew. But they had a connection that had nothing to do with either of their pasts and everything to do with each other. When he pulled away from her, she followed him, trailing kisses and nibbles over his jaw. “Why not? I’m not complaining. Don’t you want to?” She had a futon after all. It technically didn’t have to be on the floor.
“You can feel how much I want to,” he said, laughing in frustration. “But not here, not when anyone can walk in, and on the hard floor. I’m civilized…sometimes.” He tried for a smile, having a feeling it was more like a smirk.
Sliding her hand down his body and around his waist, she traced a finger along his erection before cupping him. Rubbing her hand up and down his length, she teased, “Oh, yeah. I can feel… I don’t really care for civilized. I’d rather you just take what you want.” She’d hoped to harden him further, to entice him past his qualms, but Abby had a feeling that he had made up his mind. And like the other Gibbs, when his mind was made up, there was no dissuading him.
He groaned low but wrenched himself away. “It’s wrong. Despite how it feels, it’s wrong.” He touched her face with one shaking fingertip. “But I want you. Trust me, I want you.”
He stood, pulling her to stand beside him. “Let’s figure this out. Doesn’t mean that I want you any less.”
There was something growing between them, despite the shocking circumstances. Despite the bizarre twists of circumstances that had brought them to this point, Abby was a confused mix of nerves and excitement and heat as she watched him.
Giving him a small smile, she said, “You’re right, Jet. Of course you’re right.” Turning away, she headed towards her main computer to run the idea she’d had before toppling into him. And, if she was honest with herself, to put a little space between them, to breathe and try and figure out what just happened.
He leaned in, pulling her close and whirling her around. “This isn’t over. You hear me? I mean it.” He walked them backward, driving her against her desk. “I’m going to have you really soon, I promise.”
His mouth found her neck and he sucked some skin in, nipping it, his hands spanning her waist, his body rubbing over hers. “Can I take care of you?”
Somewhere between a gasp and a grunt left Abby’s mouth when she hit the desk. She guessed there’d be bruises on the backs of her legs before long. But when he started sucking at her neck, she forgot all about it. He was making her forget everything, including how to form coherent sentences or to understand what he was saying. “What? Take care of me?” Instead, she moaned, leaning back and clutched her hands at his chest, needing the contact.
“Your body,” he said, pressing his hand against her core. “Take the edge off. Help you… concentrate.” He found himself falling to his knees, lifting her dress. “Say the word,” he whispered, breathing onto her thighs. He wouldn’t look up her dress, until he was sure.
“Help me concentrate?” she squeaked. The sight of him kneeling between her legs was intensely erotic, almost enough to send her over the edge. She could feel his heated breath on her skin, her body trembling in anticipation. He was tearing her apart, body and soul. With one word, one touch, she would break apart. But she couldn’t manage to say the word he needed to hear. And when she opened her mouth to speak, nothing came out.
He stroked her soft thighs. “Yes or no…yes…or no.” Without waiting for an answer and knowing that he was acting completely out of control, he reached under her dress with shaking hands, removing her thong and parting her legs. “Say the word…”
Panties fell away from her body as he pulled them off of her. When he pushed against her legs, she let them fall apart, opening herself up to him, unable to resist. “Yes, Jet. Yes,” she breathed, her voice barely audible in the quiet of the lab.
He spread her wide, beginning to taste her center, his mouth moving over her body. “You like that?” he whispered before returning to his task, mouth moving over her body, trying to push her toward the edge. It had been a long time since lust overrode common sense, but he wasn’t about to stop now. It had been so damn long since he’d done this.
The intimacy of the moment was almost too much to bear. His dark head slipping between her legs, her body opened and exposed to the lab, the cool air tickling her skin, the sounds coming from both of them… Unable to tear her eyes away from the sight of him, she gasped.
He chuckled against her moist flesh, returning to his task, making love to her with his mouth right there in the middle of her lab where anyone could walk in. It was incredibly kinky and it was turning him on further.
Her whimpers were growing into moans as she tried to stop her body from thrashing around on the table. Digging on hand into his hair, she arched her back, calling out his name as softly as she could, not daring to make too much noise.
He inserted a finger, stroking along her inner walls and feeling her contract around him. “Now. Let it happen now,” he ordered gently, licking, nipping, nudging, pushing her toward the edge. His tongue found her bud and he sucked it hard, driving her closer. He needed her to come apart for him.
She was wild above him, her entire being focused on what he was doing. She almost came apart when he pushed his finger inside her. Almost orgasmed when he ordered her. But she climaxed, moaning his name when he sucked her into his mouth. Her orgasm started low in her body, vibrating out into a breath-stealing climax, his name on her lips.
He laughed at her pleasure, at her sound, at the low throaty cry. Banishing all thoughts but her pleasure and her sounds, the sweet spicy taste of her flesh and her juices. He began to lick slower, trying to bring her down slowly.
Abby felt her body collapse as she came down from her climax. Sliding off the desk, she curled around Jet, vibrations and tremors racking her body. Her chest heaving, she tried to catch her breath, trying to get her mind restarted and working again.
He leaned back, settling her against him. He didn’t want to admit that had been a mistake; that she couldn’t allow herself to get deeply involved with him when she could send him anywhere all of a sudden, but that didn’t matter in this moment. It had taken a lot of years for him to connect with a woman again and he wouldn’t let his doubts or the crazy circumstances change or ruin that. Right now there was no place he wanted to be but here with her.
Slowly, she came out of her headspace, finding herself nestled in his arms. Lifting her head, she looked into his eyes. Within them, she found his desire, banked but still burning. Trying to ignore the doubt she saw creeping into them, she leaned forward and kissed him deeply, tasting herself on his lips, letting her hand trail down his body to the raging hard-on that was still tenting his pants.
He groaned, kissing her just as hard, his hips driving himself against her. “I can’t lose control,” he said, wrenching his mouth from hers, panting. “You have to stop. Maybe later…but for now…need you to stop.”
Quickly, she popped the button opening, sliding the zipper down. “Why can’t you lose control, Jet? I have a feeling you don’t lose control enough.” Sliding her hand inside his pants, she traced his pulsing heat through the underwear. Before he could do anything to stop her, she pressed her lips against his, moaning as she pushed her hand inside his pants.
“Can’t. Your friends…come in…” He choked off a growl when she touched him, his head falling back, body moving. He couldn’t have stopped her, didn’t want to, that cooler hand against his heated cock, the pressure of her grasp driving him crazy. And he gave up and gave in that easily.
He propped himself up, pulling his pants down. “Might as well take a good look. I did,” he teased with a needy sound. His cock was heavy, hard, aching, his balls overfull.
Gasping in a mixture of shock and a little embarrassment, she pinched the inside of his thigh lightly. A devilish look in her eyes, Abby slid down his body, murmuring, “Oh, I plan on having a very good look. And if you’re worried about my friends…guess you’ll just have to keep an eye on the door.”
Her dress fanning around her, Abby knelt on the floor, her breasts pressing into his now naked thigh. A moan escaped her as she licked her lips at what she found at the juncture of his thighs. His cock was standing fully erect, begging for attention. Lowering her head, she licked at the tip, fingernails lightly scraping along the skin of his leg, her hand moving up to grasp his balls.
He wanted to be the gentleman, to push her away, but the moment she licked the tip of his cock and grasped his balls, he was gone, his dick surging into her mouth. It had been a long time, and he had been so busy, he hadn’t dated much. And he’d never done casual relationships.
That reminder shook him up a little, but he shoved it aside, his hand cupping the back of her head, low groans bursting forth. He needed this so much…
Feeling his hand on her scalp, Abby would have smiled if she could. Instead, she moaned, occupied by his invasion of her mouth. Her tongue pushed around his throbbing heat as her hand gently rolled his balls in her fingers. With her free hand, she slowly worked the length of him, her head moving up and down as she drove him higher.
He tried to laugh but instead he groaned low, pumping himself in and out of her mouth. “Look into my eyes,” he whispered. He was getting far too close to the edge already, and that shook him up. He wanted to wait longer but she was working against his control. She was so damned good.
Her moan came from deep in her throat as he thrust over and over. Hearing his order, she looked up, meeting his eyes with hers. Letting go of his balls as they bounced from the force of his movements, she reached around and squeezed his ass, her nails biting into his flesh.
He let out a low growl that went on until he no longer had breath. As he pulled in deep gulps of air, he erupted into her mouth, his eyes finally closing, his entire body screaming out in completion.
Sliding up until the tip was left in her mouth, she stroked him with both hands as she licked and sucked him dry. Releasing him, she continued to lap at his cock slowly, making sure she’d had every bit of him.
He groaned and breathed heavily, his body still shaking with aftershocks. “That was fantastic,” he whispered, pulling on her hand. “Come here and kiss me,” he said, his voice low, his body completely satisfied.
Following the pull on her hand, she slid up his body, nestling herself in his lap. Leaning in close to him, she whispered against his lips. “How does it feel to lose control?”
He shrugged at that, a little embarrassed that it had been that easy. “Now I just want to curl up somewhere with you and go to sleep.” His smile faded when reality crashed in. He didn’t have a home, a place to stay. This wasn’t where he was from or where he belonged.
Looking up at him, Abby grew afraid. This wasn’t the look she expected to see. Instead of seeing him satisfied or pleased or even still predatory, he looked…she didn’t know what he looked like. But whatever it was, it wasn’t good. “What, Jet? What is it?”
He shook his head, holding her close, fiercely. “Shh. Just hang on to me. Hang on real tight.” He was half expecting he’d fade away, was dealing with the fact that he wanted to spend more time with her, now torn between the two worlds.
Something had spooked him, whether he wanted to tell her or not. A goose over his grave, her grandmother would say. Knowing his mind was elsewhere, she set about putting their clothes back to rights. Pulling up his underwear and pants, she smoothed the wrinkles out of his clothes, then straightened her own, searching out her wayward panties. Moving back into his arms, she did as he had asked and held on to him, wrapping her arms around his back, burying her face in his neck.
“How can I leave you now?” he whispered into her hair. “How can I leave this? Was easy before. That was home. But you… I don’t want a connection here, dammit.” But he had one, he knew it. She made him feel things he had no business feeling. “I’m torn now,” he finished simply. He couldn’t explain the complex emotions swirling inside, didn’t know how to make sense of it all or even what it meant. But he wasn’t a fool; he knew what it was like to be completely connected to a woman, and with this one he was. It made no sense, it was far too soon, and yet it was happening, whether he liked it or not.
It was far too early to make any judgment calls, but he knew himself and knew how he thought and felt. This was someone special to him, someone it would hurt to give up, even though they’d barely met.
Abby clung to him tighter, not knowing what to say. She could understand their connection; she had a deep one with his counterpart. Only with Jet, they had a bond that was completely different. There was something there, something that had happened when their bodies were out of control. It should have been nothing. They’d just fooled around, nothing more, nothing special about that. But she knew she was lying to herself. There had been something special between them, far beyond the physical. From the moment she’d charged into the squad room and into the middle of guns drawn, Abby’s life had been changed. He’d changed it.
He was Gibbs and he wasn’t. Soon, he’d be gone, back to the home he knew and away from her. And she’d let him, Abby realized. She would probably encourage him to go. Like he said, that other place was home, not here, not with her. And she wouldn’t be selfish, not with him. Having him stay, just for her, would be the most selfish thing she could do. So, she wouldn’t. Even if it meant turning her back on him, she would make sure he got home.
Realizing the pain that was coming, Abby felt warm tears running down her cheeks and into the side of his neck.
“Don’t cry,” he whispered. He knew this sounded stupid, that there was no way he should feel connected to anyone or anything. But there was something brewing between them and he knew in his gut that she felt it as well.
“This is so real,” he whispered, at a loss to say anything else.
Sniffing a little, Abby reached up to brush away her tears. “I’m sorry, Jet. I didn’t mean to cry.” She knew she had to be strong, that she’d have to make some hard decisions. And never more did she wish Gibbs was here. Her Gibbs. The other Gibbs, since they were both hers now in different ways. He’d know what to do, what to say. But he was gone, because of her mistakes.
Whatever was going on between her and Jet was wild and out of control and she craved it. She hadn’t been expecting it and had no defenses against his sudden invasion into her life. And if she was to fix what she had broken, she would have to let him go, regardless of their connection. But for now, until the moment she had to watch Jet leave, she’d hang onto him with everything she had.
“It’s okay,” he assured, just watching her. They’d unleashed something new and frightening. He was worried they might lose themselves in the process.
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