Cuz

“Does.”
“Does not.”
“Does too.”
“Does not.”

Tony and Ziva were entering the squad room and, as usual, arguing.
McGee snapped,
“I wish you two would shut up"
"McGrouch? We have a hangover this morning?”
“No.”
Ziva tried,
“Date went wrong last night?”
“No, now be quiet, I'm trying to work.”
Ziva stared at Tony and mouthed, 'Be quiet?'
DiNozzo predictably would not give up and after about two minutes of torment, McGee jumped to his feet,
“I said shut the hell up, DiNozzo."
Tony pushed him, “I'm senior agent here, don't tell me to shut up.”
McGee pushed back then rested his hands on his desk and glared,
“I don't care if you're the damned president. Leave me alone.”
“Boys, boys.” interrupted Ziva, “Play nice.”
“Hey!” Gibbs walked in and all three fell silent,
"Well, does someone want to tell me what the hell is going on?” All three started speaking at once until Gibbs whistled,
“One at a time, McGee, you start.”
“No.”
There was a deathly silence for about ten seconds as Gibbs stared at McGee. Then he said quietly,
“No, McGee? Did you enjoy working in the basement?” As DiNozzo and Ziva edged away Gibbs said,
“No you don't, you two, stay where you are.”
“Sor..., I mean, no I didn't enjoy it that much boss. It's just a private matter that's all.”
“Date went wrong, told you.” Ziva whispered to Tony who nodded.
Gibbs turned, went to his desk,
“If it was a date, Ziva it's his business.”
She muttered, “How the hell does he do that?”
The phone rang and Gibbs answered it,
“Okay, yep.” Put it down again,
“Gear up, all of you. Hostage situation at Ronald Reagan Airport.”
They slung their backpacks and followed Gibbs. DiNozzo queried,
“Is the Navy involved, boss?”
“Nope.”
“Then it's a matter for the local Leos surely?”
“Nope.”
Ziva sighed,
“Then why are we involved at all Gibbs?”
“Because one of the hostage takers asked for McGee.”

* * *

“Hey McHostage, stop worrying, this'll be like 'Raid On Entebbe.'”
“Where people get shot?”
The team had arrived at the airport and Gibbs had been taken aside by a security officer.
Ziva reassured him, “No Timothy, Israeli special forces successfully resolve a hostage situation.”
“And people get shot.”
“Well.”
Dinozzo said
“It was dramatised in places to make it more appealing.”
“Shut up.”
Ziva said,
“Hey Timothy, why so tense? You've been like this all morning and you have experience of hostage situations, remember the woman's
prison?”
DiNozzo clapped him on the back, “You got your car back in record time after that and grew a pair as well.”
McGee took a deep breath and let it out with a sigh,
“Well, if you must know, my cousin's in town.”
Ziva smiled, “Family reunion? That's a good th..... not a good thing.”
McGee was slowly shaking his head,
“She hates my sister and they fight like cat and erm cat whenever they meet.”
“Did McGee say she?” Tony was grinning.
“Yes I did and forget it DiNozzo.”
“I'll respect her, Tim, don't worry. What do you call her?”
“A cab or an ambulance – depending on whether my sister knows she's in town.”
Gibbs strode back over to the group,
“McGee, you ready?”
“Yeah boss.”
“According to security, these guys are not going to allow you into
the traffic control room without searching you thoroughly. So no wire, no camera.”
“Okay, any idea who asked for me?”
“Not yet and no images from the cameras, they dealt with them before entering the area.”
“Might mean there's security camera footage from outside traffic control which may pick them up.”
“DiNozzo, check that and look for suspicious activity before 0900 hours this morning.”
“On it boss, good luck McGee.”
“Thanks Tony.” McGee smiled, “Tony seemed quite genuine then.”
“Or he wants to meet your cousin.” was Ziva's opinion
“No he doesn't.” muttered McGee darkly,
“In fact I think I'd rather be here than with
the family when she arrives.”

He climbed the metal stairs to air traffic control. McGee could see several uniformed people in the
centre of the room seated on the floor, hands behind their backs.
Probably bound was his best guess. At the workstations, sat several black-clad figures,
Uzis on the floor beside them. One of the hostage-takers guarding the staff noticed him and
moved to the door.
McGee pulled his hands from behind his back and held them out from his body in clear
view. He knew Gibbs had been watching and had seven fingers extended to indicate
the number of what were assumed to be terrorists in the area. For the moment, it was
all the information he could provide. The door opened, he was ushered inside, expertly
frisked by the man who had admitted him. At the workstations, sat several black-clad figures,
Uzis on the floor beside them. One of the hostage-takers guarding the staff noticed him and moved to the door.
McGee pulled his hands from behind his back and held them out from his body in clear view.
He knew Gibbs had been watching and had seven fingers extended to indicate the number of what were
assumed to be terrorists in the area. For the moment, it was all the information he could provide.
The door opened, he was ushered inside, expertly frisked by the man who had admitted him.
One of the others went to him and said,
“Hiya Pudge!”
McGee groaned,
“Oh no, not you.”

Gibbs nodded as he watched McGee enter and turned to Ziva,
“Seven terrorists. Probably armed or carrying explosives set to explode and take out everyone in there
as well as a hell of a lot of equipment necessary to keep the airport running.”
Ziva murmured,
“We need more information than that Gibbs.”
“I know, I know. It's up to McGee now.”
McGee had other problems. He glared at the young woman before him,
“Janice, what the hell?”
“So, you do know each other then.” said one of the masked men and he pulled her ski-mask off.
She stood still and said,
“I told you I did know someone in NCIS. This is my cousin Timothy McGee.”
He groaned, “What have you done now?”
As he was pushed past her, McGee could see that she had the barrel of a side arm pushed into the small of her back. Its owner nodded,
“That's right Agent McGee. Your cousin dies if we don't get what we want.”
“That's dumb – you know the government doesn't negotiate with terrorists.”
“Freedom fighters.” snapped the man behind him and smacked him on the head with the butt of his weapon.
McGee went to his hands and knees, head singing with pain. He shook it and the dizziness cleared gradually.
He was pushed over to the other staff and his hands secured behind him with adhesive tape.
“Why not let her go anyway? You'll get more leverage with a federal agent than someone like her.”
Janice kicked him, “Whaddya mean, someone like me?”
“Janice, shut up.” he hissed, “I'm trying to help you.”
“Oh sorry.”

“Don't apologise, it's a sign of weakness.”
McGee smiled
“Says who?”
“Says John Wayne and LeRoy Jethro Gibbs.”
“Who he?”
“My boss.”
“Sounds like an interesting man.”
“Don't even think it.”
“Be quiet!”
They did as they were told until she whispered,
“Well? Don't you have some secret agent type gizmos to get us free?”
Their guard pulled her to her feet and looked at McGee,
“Does this constant talking run in the family?” McGee shrugged but said nothing.
The man sighed, “Very well, she is unimportant,”
“Hey!”
“Be quiet.”
The man and McGee said together. Janice was pushed out of the door and she started down the staircase.
“Stay still.” barked a voice, “Hold your hands where they can be seen and turn slowly around.”
She did this, understanding that they had to be careful, she might, herself, be one of the terrorists.
“Hmm, nice....”
“DiNozzo, check for explosives and nothing else.”
Tony used binoculars to sweep over the girl's body and smiled until he felt Gibbs' stare on him,
“Nothing there as far as I can tell boss, I might need to examine her in more, not an option is it?”
“No, it isn't.” Ziva moved to the foot of the staircase, Glock still trained on Janice,
“Start to move carefully down the stairs. Keep your hands where I can see them.”
The girl toyed with the idea of teasing the Feds,
“If you reach behind you or make any sudden movements I will shoot you.”
Janice decided it was not such a good idea. When she reached the bottom, Ziva stepped out of her reach and nodded,
“Seems clear Gibbs.”
“Check her all the same.”
“Okay boss.” Ziva holstered her weapon and moved to Janice, making sure she didn't block Gibbs and Tony's line of fire.
She frowned slightly, the girl seemed worried. Then as Janice pulled the zip down on her leather jacket, Ziva stopped and said,
“Gibbs, we have a problem.”
* * *
* * *
“You did what?” snapped McGee, “Why, she's no threat to you?”
“No but you are until you tell us what we need to know.”
“Which is what exactly?”
“Clawhammer.”
“Claw...what?” The man walked over to him, bent down and hissed,
“You want your cousin to die along with most of your team as well? You want we should
start misdirecting air traffic?”
McGee shook his head violently, “No, of course not.”
“Then tell us where the final piece of Clawhammer is and they will be spared.”
McGee thought furiously, their accents seemed a little off and they refused to show their faces.
He had never heard of this Clawhammer but guessed it to be something to do with
Homeland Security's taking over of the Jackson/Stoner case recently.
These could be part of the 'force within a force' that had been hinted at in the squad room.
The last part, therefore, was the last drop that Stoner had been unable to make and
would give the vigilantes essential information as to the whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden.
He had to play for time as well as getting more information out to Gibbs and the others.
* * *
Gibbs examined the device strapped to the girl's midriff, looked over at Ziva,
“What d'you think Ziva?”
“It's very sophisticated...”
“Could you admire it after you take it off me?”
Ziva murmured,
“Please do not worry. I have extensive training in removal of these kinds of devices.”
“Training hell, have you actual experience of removing them?”
“Yes, I have. I am still here so I cannot have done too badly.”
“Well, that's true enough. Oh you're Ziva, of course, Pudge told me about you and
that funny way of talking.”
“Pudge?”
“Yeah, my cousin Tim as in McGee.”
“I must speak with Timothy if we survive this.”
“If?”
Ziva slowly removed Janice's jacket and placed it on the rail,
“Or should I say when. It will take a little while.”
“Agent Gibbs – if she removes that device I will detonate it.”
crackled a voice in Gibbs' earpiece. He held a hand up to Ziva,
“Hang on, they've tapped into our radio transmitters.”
“I heard it too.” nodded the other and she backed away from Janice.
“So what do you want from us?” asked Gibbs.
“You've heard of Clawhammer?”
“Nope, unless you mean the woodworking tool.”
“Don't play games with me, Special Agent Gibbs.” barked the voice,
“Your agent here seems puzzled too. Your security is admirable.
Need to know basis is always a good idea.”
“Well, if nobody has heard of Clawhammer – what's the point of all this?”
“Somebody has heard of it though. All you need to do is to find out where
that information can be obtained.”
“I want to speak to McGee.”
“How touching – very well. But I warn you, no tricks.”
“Boss?”
“McGee, you okay?”
“Yeah, bit of a headache that's all, so please don't have Tony boring me with movie references.
Especially the Dirty Harry ones, really didn't like them.”
“McGee, can you tell me anything useful?”
“Not much, they're threatening to blow up my cousin and bring down passenger airliners
if we don't cooperate. Nothing else.”
The transmission ended with a sharp hiss and Gibbs indicated to DiNozzo to him,
“Well?”
“Nothing unusual on camera, boss. But,” he stopped,
Gibbs said, “Go on.”
“Ah, nothing.”
“Sure?”
“Yep.”
But the senior agent sensed that something was wrong and said,
“Need to use the head?”
“Certainly do.”
Tony was fast on the uptake and followed Gibbs into the men's room.
He pulled off the earpiece and microphone,
“Boss, that remark McGee made about Dirty Harry movies?”
“Yeah?”
“One of them, “Magnum Force” involved a group of vigilantes inside the police department
that were killing off criminals.”
“Force within a force? Makes sense, still don't know anything about 'Clawhammer' though.”
“Well,” mused Tony, “The pieces we have point to this group needing intel about various
terrorist groups, not just Al Qaeda.”
“But if they wanted information about them, what would be most important?”
Tony sucked in his breath,
“Bin Laden, is that possible?”
“Yeah it is possible DiNozzo.”
They left the men's room and Gibbs spoke into his mic,
“We know what you want now.” Another voice, British this time said,
“Well done, Agent Gibbs. The point is can you lay your hands on it?”
“I'll need time.”
“Quite understandable old man, the rest of the day adequate? We really don't want to
hurt innocent people.”
“Funny way of showing it.” snarled Gibbs, then,
“DiNozzo, phone Vance and.....” Tony handed the phone to him,
“Ahead of you boss.”
He nodded, took the phone and when Vance answered, he told him what was required.
“Not possible Agent Gibbs, we don't negotiate with terrorists, you should know that by now.”
“Look Leon.” Gibbs barked, “They're not terrorists. At least two groups of our own people are involved,
British Special forces and American. SAS and SEALS at a guess.”
“Damn,” muttered Vance, “I'll have to call in a favour or two at Homeland Security...”
“Then do it.” snapped the agent and hung up.
“Well done old man.” said the voice in his ear, “I hope your director succeeds.”
“Me too.” said Gibbs.

Ziva was frowning at Janice or rather at the explosive strapped to her body.
She reached for her and Janice backed off,
“Hey, what the hell are you doing?”
“Please stop worrying.”
Ziva took out a knife and cut the device away from the others body and dropped it onto the floor.
Janice was down the stairs and behind DiNozzo before Ziva could speak again,
“Crazy, she's freaking crazy.”
“Bloody hell.” said the SAS man, “How did you know m'dear?”
“C-3 is clammy to the touch, your device was dry as a cone.”
“A what?”
“Don't worry about it, Agent David is...”
“...from Israel and hasn't mastered all the idiosyncrasies of the English language.”
Ziva's lips tightened, “Seems like you have files on us, Mr...?”
“Good try little lady.” chuckled the voice, “Yes I know about that as well.”

For a tense half-hour, the vigilantes and the NCIS team waited. Then Gibbs' phone rang.
He answered, “Well Leon?”
“Tell them the book drop will be made at the designated place.”
“I think they'll have heard.”
“Certainly did. My compliments to you Gibbs. It's been a pleasure to work with a reasonable man.”
The device Janice had been wearing began to gush thick smoke that soon filled the area and blocked
their view of the control tower. By the time the smoke had cleared, the only people left in
the tower were the staff and McGee.
The agents entered cautiously and freed everybody.
“Damn, that was clever.” murmured Gibbs, “Smoke bombs to cover their escape.”
He holstered his sidearm, pulled McGee to his feet.
They just nodded to each other then McGee groaned as he saw his cousin enter holding DiNozzo's arm.
He shook his head,
“Tony you really don't want to....”
“Hey, back off probie. We're just going to explore downtown DC tonight, that's all.”
His cousin glared at him and Tim just shrugged. Turned away as Gibbs said,
“Naturally you'll be putting those hormones on hold until you finish work.”
“Certainly will boss.” The team left the airport and dropped Janice at the hotel she had named.

As they reached their office, Gibbs let Tony go on ahead then stopped McGee,
“I know he can be a clown but that doesn't mean he's not good enough for your cousin.”
McGee scratched the side of his head then said,
"That's not the reason, boss.” he looked around then said something quietly to Gibbs who raised his eyebrows,
“She does?”
“Oh yeah, she does.” Gibbs began to grin widely,
“I always think new experiences are good for you.”

The following day, Tony entered the office slowly, evidently in some pain. Gibbs glanced at the clock,
“You're late DiNozzo.”
“Sorry boss.” he winced as he sat down. Ziva asked sweetly,
“Good date Tony?”
“Different.” he answered shortly then hissed to McGee,
“You could have warned me.”
“I tried but you didn't want to know.”


A week later, Vance called Gibbs to his office. Gibbs shut the door and the director said,
“It'll be all over the news channels soon anyway but....”
“They've caught Bin Laden.”
“He tried to fight and they killed him.”
“Who exactly?”
“A contingent of SEALs, dropped inside Pakistan.”
“And that's all we know?”
“That's all we know.” Gibbs stared at the director for a moment, nodded and left the office.
In the squad room, DiNozzo was still growling at McGee who smiled at Ziva as they
enjoyed his discomfort. Gibbs shook his head. Tony, he decided, needed to be a little
more careful when dating. In the meantime, there were loose cannons out there,
this time it had been a success. But, he mused, there were many targets and many
opportunities for something to go terribly wrong.
The End