Rule 39: There Is No Such Thing As Coincidence (Tony DiNozzo Love Story)

Alive

Tony's POV

We rush into the bullpen to see a bomb squad at my desk checking the box.

"You can't be up here in case it goes off," an officer says. Gibbs stops and looks at him before towards the box.

"That box holds evidence to where one of our agents is," he says.

"I understand that agent, but we must insure that it's not a live bomb for the safety of your team and the other people in this building," the officer says. I watch as they continue to move towards the box and slowly begin to open it.

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave the building until we can clear the area," the officer says.

"I'm not leaving," I say. The others look to me and I hold their stares for a moment before turning back to the box.

"Tony, we have to," Ziva says and I shake my head.

"I have to know what it is," I say.

"DiNozzo, come on, you're no help to her dead," Gibbs says. Glancing to him, his gaze is piercing and I know he's right. I sigh and glance to my desk once more before turning and heading for the stairwell, the others following after me.

Not for another twenty minutes do we get a call saying that it's clear and that we may be able to inspect the box and it's contents.

We rush back into the bullpen to see the box sitting open on my desk with the officer we spoke with standing next to it and looking uneasy.

"What is it?" McGee asks as we approach my desk and I look in to see a pale blue cloth with dark red and brown spots on it.

"It's a CD, it was wrapped in this cloth," the officer says. Gibbs pulls on some gloves and reaches in and pulls out the piece of cloth that I easily recognize as the blouse Erin was wearing this morning.

The CD gleams inside the shirt piece, red smudges around the disk.

"Was there anything else?" Gibbs asks and the officer shakes his head.

"Just those two things," he says. McGee moves towards his desk and dumps his trash can out and pulls the bag beneath it at the bottom of the can and tears it open. Gibbs places the CD and shirt back into the box and carefully lifts it and places it into the trash bag.

"Get this to Abby," he says and McGee nods before heading to the elevator.

"She's alive Tony," Gibbs says not looking at me, but except at the red tinged gloves he's wearing.

"You don't know that," I say and the words catch in my throat, causing my voice to waver.

He turns and walks towards his desk and takes the gloves off, turning them inside out and holding them in one hand as he reaches into his desk and pulls out an evidence envelope.

"She's alive," he says once more as he turns and leaves in the direction McGee just went a moment ago.

My throat tightens more and my stomach flips. From my peripheral I see Ziva turn and walk away. I stand alone and can't help my heart from aching, the pain so unbearable I'm not sure I can bear what might be on the CD and what is inevitable to happen until we find Erin.