Gibbs tiredly rubbed his eyes and flicked to another window on the computer, bringing up all the information collected on the case. Details and facts collected from three different crime scenes. Details and cold facts that showed a pattern of kidnapping, drugging and torture that resulted in the deaths of three young marines. Details that warned that the killer's violent behavior was escalating. His forth victim was certainly enduring both the horrific emotional and physical pain, which would ultimately result in his death if they did not find him fast. The fact that the fourth victim was one of his own team, sent in by himself, only added to Gibbs' anxiety and fear.


Gibbs hit the computer key hard enough to cause the keyboard to jump as he muttered a curse at it and the world in general. He studied the pictures of the bloodied and beaten figure on the screen searching for some clue, something they missed that might prove to be the clue they needed to get the young agent back. His fist hit the table as a short video flickered across his screen showing Tony being injected with a syringe full of some unidentified drug. He knew the pictures they received were a deliberate attempt to inflict pain upon the team, that Tony's ordeal would be made even worse since the murderer had realized that he was an NCIS agent sent undercover to lure them out.


He sighed angrily at himself. How did the case suddenly go so drastically wrong? They had DiNozzo under full surveillance, just when did they lose him?


Picking up the small transceiver that DiNozzo had been wearing, Gibbs slowly turned it over in his hand, studying it as his thoughts wandered back to a few short hours ago before the case went so wrong.


NCIS NCIS NCIS

Tony stretched and arched his neck back, trying to relieve the stiffness that came from staring at the computer screen for hours, searching for a clue or detail that they might of missed on the first ten times reviewing the current case.


Nothing seemed to have changed from the last time he had studied the crime pictures. The victims all showed the evidence of physical torture they had endured before their death. The violence seemed to increase with each kidnapping, indicating that the killer was becoming more sadistic, more unbalanced. Definitely someone that needed to be caught before another victim accidentally crossed his path.


Each victim had been last seen in nightclubs frequented by military personal and each of the victims had last been seen with a beautiful blonde woman. "A woman whose beauty made you stop and stare!" was the description one bartender had given. A woman who seemingly enticed three men to the most painful deaths that Tony had ever encountered in all the years he had worked as a homicide detective or an NCIS agent. A small shiver ran down his spine as he carefully studied the sketches taken from the eyewitness descriptions. The pouting mouth and perfect bone structure of her face only seemed to hint at her beauty that hid a deadly encounter with anyone unlucky to be drawn to her.


All the victims had similar looks and backgrounds. Each was a marine- late twenties early thirties, just back from deployment from Iraq. All three victims were tall, dark haired, green eyed, physical similarities that he shared with each. The background would be easy to set up; he could pull off being a marine fresh back from Iraq.


Tony sat back a moment as he studied the three photos of the victims. A small smile slowly tugged at his mouth and he glanced across at his boss, wondering how Gibbs would react to the suggestion that might lure the woman out into the open. He studied the photos again and nodded his head before he called "Boss, I think I have an idea of how to draw this sicko out!"