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Chapter 10: Retribution

The morning after the funeral, Gibbs woke to find Tony sleeping soundly beside him. He breathed a sigh of reliefâ€"most mornings Gibbs had awakened to find the other half of the bed empty and cold, Tony long gone, pacing the house, looking for something to distract him. Gibbs pulled Tony close to him, and Tony snuggled in tight, repositioning and barely stirring.

“I love you,” Gibbs whispered in Tony’s ear.

Tony mumbled something, but it was muffled against his skin and he couldn’t make it out. Gibbs ran his fingers through Tony’s thick hair and looked up at the ceiling. They were both still on leave, so there was no hurry to get up. Gibbs’ brain immediately clicked into action. He had some calls he needed to make today. There was paperwork to be done and charges to be pressed. The funeral was over; the grieving process was in full swing. The time had come for Gibbs to have his revenge.

Gibbs pressed a kiss to the top of Tony’s head. His lover had been put through hell literally. His body and soul had been forever altered against his will, and for that Gibbs decided Tony deserved some atonement. There would be retribution for those who had wronged his lover. They would pay for what they did.

Gibbs would make sure of it.

***

He hadn’t been in front of his computer long, when his cell phone rang.

“Yeah, Gibbs.”

“Boss it’s McGee. I uh, wanted to let you know…Boss we’ve got Tony’s dad in custody.”

Gibbs was on his feet in an instant. “Hold him I’m coming, you don’t let him out of your sight, he’s a slick bastard he’ll get away if you don’t keep an eye on him.”

“Wait…hold on Boss; Director Sheppard wants to speak to you.”

“Jethro stand down,” was the first thing she said.

“Jenny I want to make that sonofabitch pay for what he did to Tony and to my baby.”

“I know that Jethro, but you are too closeâ€"this is only an NCIS case because two agents are involved and SECNAV agreed to let us keep it. But if we screw it up he will pass it over to Sacks and Fornell at the FBI.”

Gibbs paused. Tony hated dealing with the Feebies. He sighed.

“Jethro, I never said you couldn’t work on building your case against him. Press your charges, gather your evidence, work from home and keep a low profile. I will keep you updated. He’s not getting out of this Jethro.”

“Jenny, I…” did he dare say it? “Thanks, Jenny,” Gibbs finally whispered.

Jenny laughed. “The situation must be worse than I thought. Definitely work from home Jethro. I’ll interrogate him myself and call you when I’m finished.”

“Agreed.” Gibbs ended the call. He ran a hand over his face and thought for a moment. Then he got down to work. He had a baby killer to deal with.

***

By the time Tony woke up, Gibbs was showered and in the home-office on the phone. He walked up behind him and wrapped his arms around Gibbs’ shoulders, trying to listen in the phone conversation. Gibbs leaned back against him and tilted the phone so Tony could hear. Tony could make out some of the words, but not all, and what he could hear didn’t really make much sense to him.

He sat down in his own chair and booted up his laptop. He opened his email and grimaced. 68 New Messages. He clicked open the first one and grimaced more.

Tony, sorry to hear about your baby, man. Hope you’re hanging in there. Let me know if I can do anything.

He groaned and clicked the ‘next’ button.

Tony, so sorry for your loss. If you need anything be sure to let us know. The loss of a child is a very painful experience. You’re in our prayers.

“Yeah, because you are such the expert,” Tony muttered, knowing the sender of the email had never even had children, let alone experienced the death of a child.

He clicked through several more messages, all of them basically the same. Sorry for his loss. In their prayers. Need anything let them know. Finally he selected all of the messages and clicked the delete button forcefully.

‘Don’t need anything from anyone,’ he thought to himself, ‘all I need is for my kid to be alive and healthy.’ An unexpected sob tore out of his throat and Gibbs looked up at him concerned, still on the phone. Tony waved him off and left the room. He needed some air.

A few minutes later Gibbs joined him on the back steps. “You alright?” He sat beside him, their arms and thighs touching, gazes drifting out over the backyard.

“Peachy,” Tony muttered, his tears now dry on his cheeks. “Should have known better than to check my email, Jet,” he said quietly.

“Lots of well wishers making the situation worse by trying to be understanding,” Gibbs guessed, one eyebrow raised ever so slightly.

“I had 68 new emails,” Tony said quietly. “I think I read 5 of them before I just couldn’t do it anymore. I deleted them all,” he admitted.

Gibbs put an arm around him. “You made it through more of yours than I did mine,” he said softly. “I had about that many emails too. I read the first one, then deleted all the others.”

They were quiet for a long time before Gibbs spoke again.

“It’s my fault, you know,” he commented casually.

“What is,” Tony asked absently, not entirely paying attention, watching a squirrel in the backyard.

“Everything that happened,” Gibbs said. “I left you alone. Dr. Phillips asked me to come down to the nurse’s station to discuss what needed to happen after you woke up. My gut told me not to leave you, but I thought that for just a couple of minutes it wouldn’t be a big deal. I never ignore my gut…I don’t know why I did that time and look at what you’ve been through because of it…I could have spared you all of this pain…I’m sorry Tony, I’m so sorry,” Gibbs choked out, a quiet sob ripping from his throat.

Tony turned to him, shocked. He wrapped his arms around Jethro’s shoulders, pulling him close. “This isn’t your fault, Jet,” he said. He hugged him tightly, running his fingers through Jethro’s hair. “Everything was going fineâ€"you said so yourself. You had no reason to believe anyone from my family would show up. You couldn’t have known that the doctor put my father’s name on the visitor’s list. He would have still gotten in there, either way.”

“I could have protected you though. I swore to you that I would protect you, would keep you and the baby safe while you slept. You trusted me! When I came back in there…you looked so scared Tony…and I knew it was my fault because I’d left you alone. I didn’t have your six like I promised, and you’ve paid dearly for my mistake.”

Tony shook his head. “No. My father is a mean bastard, always has been. He knew exactly what he was doing when he came in that room. Hell, he even made sure to wake me up before he hit me so I’d know who it was that was doing it. You had no reason not to trust the doctor; you had no reason to fear for my safety for two minutes while you stepped out of the room. I don’t blame you for anything that happened, you hear me? It’s neither of our faultsâ€"we’re both the victims here.”

Gibbs nodded and ran a trembling hand over his eyes. Tony kissed him. “You have always had my six. My father would have killed me but you stopped him. You had my six. I don’t blame you,” tears began to leak out of Jethro’s eyes again and he looked away. Tony gently turned his head back toward him and looked him in the eye. Jethro’s lower lip quivered pitifully. “I don’t blame you,” Tony said again, firmly this time, and kissed his partner. He wrapped an arm around Jethro’s shoulders and pulled him close. Gibbs leaned on his lover’s shoulder, thinking vaguely they were playing opposite roles.

They sat like that for a few minutes until Gibbs got himself together again. “Sorry,” he muttered quietly.

“Not necessary,” Tony said, “you lost your child too. I was concerned because you hadn’t really broken down at all. I’m glad you talked to me about it though,” he added shyly.

“I have a plan…”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “This have anything to do with the phone conversation I tried to overhear this morning,” he asked, a grin starting to spread across his face.

Gibbs nodded. “I was on the phone with the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Bethesda. He was very concerned to hear about what happened with you and Tess. He was absolutely mortified when he heard about Dr. Phillips’ part in all of it.”

“Well it doesn’t actually make the hospital look good,” Tony said.

“No,” Gibbs agreed, “it doesn’t. They’re waiving all your hospital bills.”

Tony blinked. “That’s a lot of money.”

“$38,794 is what you would have been expected to pay after insurance. They’re waiving all of it; insurance won’t even be billed.”

“What about Dr. Phillips?”

“She’s no longer employed by the hospital. Her medical license will be under review by the state of Maryland. And I’ve contacted a lawyer.”

“You’re breaking your own rule! Rule number 13 Gibbs…never involve a lawyer…things are bound to turn nasty.”

Gibbs shook his head. “We’re going to have our revenge Tony. I’ve decided to press charges against Dr. Phillips. McGee called just a little bit ago. They’ve got your father in custody. Jenny is interrogating him as we speak. They are going to pay for what they did to us,” he said. The seriousness in his tone nearly made Tony shiver.

“Do I need to file charges too or can we do it jointly?”

“The lawyer said we could file jointly. I wanted to wait and ask you about it, but once the process got started…I couldn’t stop myself. They need to pay for what they did. They need to realize how wrong they were.”

Tony grinned, malice evident in his eyes. “I think that’s exactly what needs to happen,” he said quietly.

***

It didn’t take long for the hearings to begin. DiNozzo Senior’s trial was pretty much open and shut. Protestors had a field day with his trialâ€"some walking around in support of Jethro and Tony bearing signs that proclaimed Senior to be a “Baby Killer” while others paraded with signs in support of Senior saying “Mommies are Women” and “End Fag Baby Making.” Tony shuddered away from the signs as they entered the court house the first day. After that he didn’t spare them a second glance, instead focusing on the task at hand.

Anthony DiNozzo, Sr. was convicted and found guilty of second degree murder, assault and battery, and attempted murder of a federal agent. The jury deliberating on their case took less than an hour to reach the verdict. Tony’s father would be going to prison for the rest of his life. He was not given the death penalty. He was sentenced to live and die in his cell, alone and cut off from every creature comfort he’d attained for himself. It would be a long and lonely sentenceâ€"exactly the justice Tony and Gibbs felt he deserved. They’d specifically requested that he not be given the death penalty, even if it was a possibility. Death would be too merciful.

Tony looked at Gibbs. Neither showed emotion; neither smiled when the verdict was reached. Gibbs looked at Tony’s fatherâ€"the man who should have protected and loved his son; the man who’d caused his only child nothing but painâ€"and he smiled a very dangerous smile. “I hope you rot, you bastard,” he whispered quietly, not loud enough for even Tony to hear him.

As DiNozzo Senior was led out of the courtroom he looked at Tony. “You filthy faggot! You got everything you deserved! I hope you live everyday for the rest of your life knowing how worthless you are and how much I fucking hate you! I hope you die! I can’t standâ€"” his words were cut off by the door shutting behind him as the officers led him away.

Shocked murmurs whispered through the courtroom. The judge banged his gavel. Gibbs looked at Tony, expecting him to be upset by his father’s outburst. Instead, Tony had a slight smile on his face, peace in his eyes that hadn’t been there before, if ever.

“You okay,” Gibbs asked softly.

Tony nodded. “He can’t hurt me anymore. He’s gone. Don’t have to hear his shit ever again. The next thing we hear about him will be news of his death.” He smiled slightly at Gibbs. “I can live with that.” Gibbs pressed a kiss to his forehead and led him out of the courtroom, ignoring the press and the cameras.

***

Tony contacted the judge that afternoon. Together they agreed that under no circumstances should the press be notified of anything related to his father or his father’s case once the news of the sentencing was complete.

“The man lives to be in the spotlight. The more you can keep him out of it, the easier the lives of the prison employees will be and the more effective his punishment will be. Even if something were to happen and him be injured or killed or get sick and die or something unforeseen of that natureâ€"don’t alert the press.”

The judge agreed. Not only would Senior not get out of jail, but he would be forgotten by the culture that he thrived on manipulating. Tony smiled. A fitting punishment.

***

The second hearing was not like the first one. This was a civil hearing, not a criminal trial. There was no jury. Because of the publicity their story had drawn, reporters filled the courtroom, notepads and sketchbooks ready to go. The protesters were back outside again, bearing the same signs as before.

Dr. Phillips wept on the stand.

“I just couldn’t imagine how someone wouldn’t want their own father to be on a visitor’s list,” she sobbed quietly. “Then his father came to me and told me how he and Mr. DiNozzo were trying to rebuild their relationship, how they were working things out, how he was so excited to see his first grandchild…I thought that there had been some mistake on Mr. Gibbs and Mr. DiNozzo’s part.”

“Why didn’t you ask Mr. Gibbs to clarify?”

“I did…when he gave me the list I asked him why there was no one from Mr. DiNozzo’s family listed. He told me they had a terrible relationship, and that they were sure Mr. DiNozzo would miscarry if anyone from his family showed up. I thought they were exaggerating…I never in a million years dreamed something like this could happen.”

“So even after my clients told you that they were certain they didn’t want that man’s name on the list, you went ahead, against hospital policy, and added an unwanted name to their visitor’s list. This resulted in Anthony DiNozzo Sr. attacking his son, my client, and causing him to enter preterm labor. Correct?”

She nodded, sobbing quietly into a handkerchief. “Yes,” she moaned, “It’s correct.”

Gibbs rubbed a gentle hand over Tony’s back. Tony’s eyes were wide with shock and his face looked stricken with pain. Silent tears dripped from his eyes and he made no move to wipe them or stop them. With every word their former doctor spoke Gibbs became more angry. Tony should have been safe in this woman’s care. He was so angry he felt he could break his own rule and beat the woman to a pulp, but he knew he’d still be angry.

The lawyer continued, “and after Mr. DiNozzo entered preterm labor what happened?”

“I’m not sure; I was removed from his case.”

“Who removed you?”

“Mr. Gibbs, Mr. DiNozzo’s partner, told me that I needed to find another doctor for Mr. DiNozzo because he didn’t trust me to keep his partner and child safe,” she replied, tones of sarcasm and spitefulness now audible in her voice. She sounded as though she really didn’t understand why she’d been removed from their case.

“Do you blame him,” the lawyer asked dryly.

“I may have made a mistake in allowing Mr. DiNozzo’s father into the room, but I am still a qualified medical doctor, specializing in pregnancies, male pregnancies and child birth.”

“But after you disregarded such simple instructions from my clients, how were they to know you would really act in their best interests? My client already spoke of how you kept him away from his partner for hours on end, even though he begged you to call him back from the waiting area. His partner already told us how you questioned nearly every decision they made and bullied them into making some decisions they weren’t even comfortable with. Why should they have trusted you?”

“Because I’m a doctor…”

“THAT MEANS NOTHING! TELL ME WHY, IN LIGHT OF YOUR ACTIONS, YOUR EDUCATION WOULD MEAN ANYTHING TO MY CLIENTS? WHY SHOULD THEY HAVE TRUSTED YOU?”

Tony startled slightly at the loud bitterness in his lawyer’s tone as he interrogated the woman on the stand. Tony stared at him in aweâ€"he could put Gibbs and himself to shame. Gibbs squeezed Tony’s hand slightly when he jumped. Tony cracked a small smile at him, then refocused his attention on the stand.

The doctor folded under the barrage of questions.

“I don’t know,” she said softly.

“What was that,” the lawyer snapped. “Please speak loud enough for us to hear you.”

“I don’t know why they should have trusted me. Oh God this is just such a mess…I’m so sorry…” she looked at Gibbs and Tony, “I am truly, honestly very sorry,” she said quietly. Neither man responded.

“Let’s go over what happened next,” the lawyer sneered at the woman.

She looked up at him fearfully. Clearly she did NOT want to know what happened next.

“Because of your actions, Mr. DiNozzo’s preterm labor was unable to be stopped. His child was delivered two months prematurely. Because of the attack he received at the hands of his father, there was significant damage done to the placenta, resulting in it rupturing. During the time spent trying to stop the preterm labor, Mr. DiNozzo miscarried the child.”

She gasped softly and her hands covered her mouth, eyes wide in shock. Brad Pitt had done an excellent job of keeping the scuttlebutt down. No one but the few required people were aware of the death of the child. Their jobs had been threatened if the rumors started.

Tony was still crying silently, though harder now, watching the exchange before him. Gibbs reached over and squeezed his hand again.

“It’s gonna be okay, Tony,” he whispered.

Tony didn’t respond. He couldn’t believe the things he was hearing, the clinical sound to everythingâ€"it sounded almost pristine, scientific…it didn’t sound as dark and morbid as Tony recalled it being. It didn’t sound as dangerous. He had no doubts the lawyer was getting the job done…he just couldn’t understand the impersonal quality to the account. He shuddered. He needed to get out of there.

The judge noticed. He banged his gavel on the podium.

“This court is in recess. Meet back here in half an hour.” He banged his gavel.

Gibbs led Tony out of the courthouse. There was a park across the street. They sat on a bench; hands clasped tightly together, and were silent as the other members of their family joined them. McGee sat on Tony’s other side and put an arm around his shoulders.

“You alright, man?”

Tony blinked then nodded slightly.

“Jethro, Tony looks to be in a bit of shock. Does his skin feel clammy to you?”

Gibbs nodded and then turned to face Tony. “Tony? Babe? You with me?”

Tony blinked again and shivered. Gibbs took off his sport coat and draped it over Tony’s shoulders. He knelt on the ground in front of him.

“It’s going to be alright, Tony,” he said. It was the same thing he’d been telling him for months now, close to a year. Gibbs was beginning to wonder if he was lying.

“I can’t go back in there,” Tony finally whispered. Gibbs looked at the others, before looking back to Tony. “I can’t listen to it anymore…can’t look at her…I’m sorry, I just…”

“Hey shh…it’s ok…You don’t have to. You can sit out here and wait.”

Tony shivered again in the hot July sun and Gibbs grew more concerned. He looked at his watch. Damn he had to go back.

“Tony I have to go back inside now. Ducky and Abby are going to stay with you, is that alright?”

Tony looked up at Gibbs. “Get her,” he whispered, his voice trembling with rage that Tony hadn’t displayed before now. “I want her medical license, I want her savings account, I want her house, I want her car, her dog, her goldfish, everything she has that is valuable to her. I want her to know what it feels like to lose…to lose everything, and then I want her to go to jail and think about it,” Tony whispered. Tears were streaming down his face and there was a slight bit of madness in his eyes that Gibbs felt matched his own. Tony wasn’t a vengeful person, but in this situation, no one would tell him he was wrong for his feelings. Justice needed to be served here, and it needed to be served swiftly and with huge consequence.

Gibbs kissed him softly. “We’ll get her. But you need to remember you haven’t lost everything. You’ve still got us. You’ve still got me.” He kissed him again. “I love you. I’ll be back soon.”

***

The judge awarded Tony and Gibbs a huge monetary settlement to cover the loss of their child and the damages related to that. The judge revoked Dr. Phillips’ medical license, and decided that the state should bring her up on criminal charges for violation of HIPPA laws as well as being an accessory to murder. Ms. Phillips was taken into custody and escorted out of the courtroom by an officer and led to a holding cell. As the door slammed shut behind her she inspected her quarters, the tiny cot, the stainless steel toilet, the bars surrounding her. They’d given her one phone call, but her lawyer was already with her, so there was no one to call. Her husband had left her when he found out what had happened. She’d called him looking for a listening ear and instead of him supporting her he’d gotten angry and had ended up leaving her, asking her over and over again how she could do such a thing and hurt such an innocent family.

She sat on the bed and put her head in her hands. She had lost everythingâ€"her husband, her home, her job, her career, her money was gone, everything…she was completely alone, had nothing left in this world for her at all and no one cared in the slightest. She rubbed her hands through her hair and kept her eyes on the floor. What had possessed her to act so stupidly? She feared she’d never know the answer.

***

As he left the courtroom with Tim and Kate following him, Gibbs smiled. Tony had gotten his wish. Now he could say with confidence that everything would be alright. He collected his lover and his friends from the park bench and they went home. There was much to do.

***

In the criminal trial for Ms. Phillips that followed the civil trial several weeks later, the jury returned to its box.

“We the jury find the defendant, Natalie Phillips, guilty on all charges.”

The judge sentenced her to five years in the Maryland Women’s Facility. She flinched as the cell door slammed shut behind her. Life as she knew it had ended. All she had left was the clothes on her back, and the memory of two devastated parents and a little dead baby.

TBC
Chapter End Notes:
Some angst. Some Hate Speech.
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