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Title: Flowing Honey
By: Stacy L.A. Stronach
Pairing: Tony/Gibbs
Fandom: NCIS
Rating: R
Series: 1) Darkening of the Light
A/N: This was originally posted December 2005.
Summary: Gibbs, Tony and Abby go after Ari; set post Twilight.

***

"It (revenge) is sweeter than flowing honey."-- Homer

"Vengeance is mine and I will repay." – Leo Tolstoy

"No more tears now. I will think upon revenge." – Mary, Queen of Scots

The next morning, Tony woke up and didn't recognise where he was at first. Then he remembered… Cait was dead. He'd come home with Jethro, not wanting to be alone and they'd ended up in Jethro's bed. Tony lay there for a few minutes, gathering his thoughts. The weight of sadness over his friend's death still hung upon him but had been lightened, somewhat, by what had happened between him and Jethro.

Climbing out of bed, Tony felt doubts creeping in. He hoped that Jethro had been serious last night, when he said he wanted them to have a relationship. Looking at he clock, he saw it was just past 7 a.m.; the empty bed then, should not be looked upon as a bad omen. Tony knew Gibbs was an early riser.

Stretching and yawning, Tony realised he didn't have anything to wear except last night's clothes. Tony saw his kit bag at the foot of the bed, Jethro must have brought it up for him. Having stayed at Gibbs' before, Tony knew his way to the bathroom to take a quick shower. He shaved and got dressed before heading downstairs.

Jethro was sitting at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. Tony saw that Cait's death had made the front page. He sighed. "Morning, Jethro," he said.

"Get yourself some breakfast then we'll head in, Tony," Jethro replied.

Tony was getting some cereal ready when he heard the scrape of Jethro's chair, so he wasn't totally surprised when he felt arms slide around his waist. Jethro nuzzled the side of Tony's neck, smiling when he turned around.

Jethro pushed him against the counter and Tony slid his arms around Jethro's neck. They stared at each for a moment before inclining their heads forward, their lips meeting in a kiss.

"Mmm," Tony murmured as they drew apart. He opened his eyes to see Jethro smiling at him.

"So, you still okay with this?" Jethro asked.

"I was wondering the same about you, but yeah," Tony replied. He shrugged. "I've had feelings for you for a while but didn't think… Cait's death made me realise just how short life is."

Jethro nodded. "Me too." He pulled back, and Tony's arms fell from his neck. "Get your breakfast, then we'll head in. We've got a meeting at nine with Morrow and Cassie's team," he said.

*****************************

One week later
Ducky's morgue

Ducky peered through his glasses, leaning forward, hands supporting him on the empty metal autopsy table. "Resigning from NCIS?"

"Yep. Only way I can go after that bastard," Gibbs said evenly. Quietly.

"Jethro, is this what Cait would want, really? If you'd been shot, yes, she'd've gone after Ari but she wouldn't kill him," Ducky pleaded with his friend, worried Jethro would do something he might regret.

"I didn't say anything about killing him, Ducky. And no, I'm not telling you anything further. In case you haven't noticed, I'm not Cait. Cait is dead, in the ground, gone." Gibbs was silent for a moment. He then reached out to shake Ducky's hand. As the older man returned the gesture, Gibbs spoke, quietly. "Thank you, Donald, for your friendship all these years, all your help. I plan to come back but if I don't…thanks."

"You'd better come back, Jethro, or I'll hunt YOU down and kick your ass!" Ducky said, smiling. "Take care and if I can help you in any way…let me know."

"I will, Ducky. Good-bye."

Ducky didn't speak until Jethro was on the elevator. "Good-bye and good luck, my friend."

*****************************

Director Morrow was waiting for Gibbs when he arrived upstairs. "Gibbs, my office, now."

Sighing, knowing that until the end of the day he still worked for NCIS, Jethro followed.

Once they were in his office, with the door closed, Morrow picked up two sheets of paper from his desk. "What the hell do you know about these?"

Gibbs took the pages. One was Tony's request for a year's leave; the other was Abby's request for the same; both were marked "approved". He looked up at Morrow in surprise. "Nothing at all, sir. Neither Tony nor Abby discussed their plans with me. I had no idea they were doing this. I'm sorry, sir."

Whipping the pages out of Gibbs' hand, Morrow threw them on the desk. "Unfortunately, I believe you," he said, pausing for a moment. "I don't want to know what you're planning on doing. I hope you're just going to work on your boat…but whatever you do, good luck, Jethro. You're one of the best agents I've ever had the pleasure to work with."

Jethro nodded, and shook the hand Director Morrow proffered. "Thank you, sir. It was an honour to work for you."

Morrow looked at his watch. "Why don't you take the rest of the day, Jethro, there's only a couple hours left. Let you get a head start on your retirement."

"I'll do that, thank you, sir. Good-bye."

"Good-bye, Jethro," Morrow said. He sat down in his chair, watching one of the best damn agents he'd ever had walk out the door. He knew Gibbs was going to hunt Ari down and he had no plans to let any other agencies know that. It was need to know information…and they did not need to know. Silently, Tom Morrow wished Jethro well in his quest.

*****************************

Walking through what had been his team's office, Gibbs noted the emptiness; his desk, Cait and Tony's were devoid of any personal touches. Jethro really wasn't sure what to make of Tony and Abby's requests for leave and he wondered what they were up to.

Gibbs noticed McGee, sitting forlornly at his desk. The younger man stood up when Gibbs approached. "Um, you know that Tony and Abby are…um, gone, Boss?"

"Call me, Jethro, Tim. I'm not your boss anymore, and yes, the director told me," Gibbs said. "I've asked for you to be assigned to Janet Thompkins' team. She's good and I trained her." Gibbs smiled at the touch of reservation that came into Tim's eyes. "You'll do fine, Tim. You're a good agent and it was an honour working with you." Gibbs shook Tim's hand.

"Um, thank you…Jethro," Tim stumbled. Calling Gibbs by his first name was just…hinky. "It was an honour to work with you…and Tony and…Cait," Tim finished quietly, eyes lowered. "Thank you for giving me a chance."

"I know quality when I see it, McGee. Good-bye," Jethro said. For someone who didn't have much use for good-byes he was saying his share of them today.

"Good-bye, Boss," Tim said as Gibbs walked onto the elevator.

*****************************
Driving home, Gibbs pondered Tony and Abby's requests for leave. Abby, he could understand her wanting some time, but a whole year? As for Tony, he really didn't know but suspected he wanted to help Jethro in his mission, something he wasn't sure he wanted Tony to do.

When Gibbs walked into his house he heard voices coming from his living room. One was definitely Tony's the other was feminine…Abby? He walked into the room and saw a brand new computer with Abby at the keyboard and Tony sitting beside her.

"Okay, Abs, did you get the money transferred?" She nodded. Tony continued, "Dad released the rest of the money into this account. We should open a second account for that money." He watched as her fingers flew over the keys.

Cocking his head to the side, Gibbs watched his two former team members transfer sums of money around from bank to bank. Finally, he spoke, "What in the hell are you two doing!?" He didn't bother to hide his grin of satisfaction as both of them jumped in their chairs.

"Trying to give a girl a heart attack, Bossman?"

"Jeez, Boss trying to scare me to death?"

"Yes, to both questions. Now. Someone. Tell me. What are you doing?"

Tony looked at Abby and she nodded. He spoke quietly, "When you told me you were resigning, I knew you'd be going after Ari. I wasn't going to let you do it alone…and neither was Abby."

"What makes you think I'm going after Ari?" Jethro asked. At the twin looks of incredulity on their faces, Gibbs sighed. "Okay, so you know me, but what makes you think I need help?"

"Well, first of all, I'm a computer whiz and can find you just about anything, anywhere; secondly, Cait was my lover," Abby said.

"Thirdly, I've got the money to fund your little operation, Gibbs, more than enough. Fourthly, I'm a trained former NCIS agent and you will need back up. Fifthly, I speak Arabic and a few other languages that might help us. And finally, I love you," Tony paused as he counted off on his fingers.

Gibbs heaved a sigh. "Fine, you've made your points," he conceded. As much as he hated to admit it, he really did need them…even without Tony's money, just having the other man with him would be a relief, although he hated the thought of endangering Tony's life once again. "Where'd you get the money…and how much is there?"

"Part of it's from a trust fund my grandmother left me and the rest is money my shares in DiNozzo Industries has earned over the years. I had my father release the money to me. What was the total on that, Abs?"

"Just over $10 million, Tony. A cool 10 mill!" she answered.

Jethro looked at Tony in surprise. "That much money and you worked as a federal agent?"

Tony shrugged. "I supplemented my income, obviously, but I don't want all that money. Now it's going for a good cause."

Abby looked at Gibbs expectantly. "So, Bossman, what's our plan?"

***********************
Four months later
A private island off the coast of Greece

Tony, Abby, and Jethro climbed out of the taxi in front of the "little" villa they'd be staying at. After they'd gotten their luggage out of the car, Tony had paid the driver and thanked him, in Greek of course.

"This is a small place?" Abby asked, glancing at Tony. The villa wasn't what she would classify as 'small'. It was two floors and huge, from what she could tell.

Tony laughed. "Well, compared to his mansion in London, it's positively tiny," he said. The villa belonged to an old school friend of his, Richard St. John. As far as Richard knew, Tony and his friends were here for a relaxing vacation.

"C'mon, let's get our stuff into the house," Jethro said, picking up his suitcases.

Two hours later, Abby had finished setting up her equipment, which had been shipped ahead of time, and was checking email. She squealed in delight. "Gibbs, Tony—he took the bait!" she shouted.

The two men came into the room where she was. "What's it say, Abs?" Jethro asked.

"He's agreed to the meeting, where and when you said. Ten days from now and he's really looking forward to the deal, or so he says."

Tony and Jethro looked at one another, smiling. "He's a greedy bastard," Tony said.

"Lucky for us," replied Jethro. They'd spent the last few months building up their reputations as illegal arms dealers and finally managed to lure Ari in with an offer. Jethro had called in a few favours, discretely, of course and with Tony's money they'd been able to do what was needed to get here. Abby had helped them by creating some very convincing fake documents and visas. All that was left now was this final meeting.

*******************
Ten days later
Cairo, Egypt

"Haswari, are you sure about this, about these men?" Muhammed abd al-Rashid asked.

"Yes. I've checked them out. People I trust have dealt with them. It'll be fine, besides, we need the weapons," Ari replied, irritated with his friend's concern.

"But to meet alone…"

"It's how they do business. Besides, they're just gunrunners, I can take care of myself. Stop fretting," he replied. He looked at his watch. "And I'd better be going if I'm to make the meeting on time. I should be back in a few hours. Don't worry, my friend."

The other man watched as Ari climbed into the driver's seat of the old truck he'd be using to transport the weapon. His gut told him something was wrong, but it was impossible to convince Haswari of that. He waved good-bye to his friend, hoping that his gut was wrong.

A half hour later, Ari pulled the truck up to a small house in a little village outside of Cairo. The house was rather isolated, no neighbours nearby but other than that it looked like any of the other houses in the village.

He knocked on the door and waited. "Who is it?" a male voice asked in Arabic.

"Haswari. Jamal sent me," he replied, using the code phrase the dealers had sent.

"Are you alone?"

"Of course. I'm not stupid enough to bring others. Let me in," Ari demanded, growing impatient with the man's seeming paranoia.

"Come in."

Ari smiled as he pushed open the door. Once he was through, he was shoved to floor, his arms held as a man kneeled on his back. A cloth sack was pulled over his head before he was roughly dragged to his feet. "What is this, what's going on?" he demanded.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Ari," Tony replied, still speaking Arabic.

Gibbs and Tony dragged Ari over to a bed that was in the middle of the unfurnished room. Once he was down, Gibbs tied his hands, while Tony secured his feet, with a final vicious twist of the bindings. Leaning over, he picked up two metal pipes, handing one to Gibbs.

Vainly, Ari tried to free himself, twisting and turning. He had no idea who these men were or what they wanted. "Who are you? What have I done to deserve this?"

"You've done too many things to list, Ari. But murder is at the top of the list," Tony said.

"Who did I murder? I am not a murderer," he said. The voice of the man speaking to him sounded familiar, and he was trying to place it when the first hit to his body happened. Ari screamed at the pain as he felt his kneecap shatter.
"Not only are you a murderer, but a liar as well," Tony said. Gibbs had taken the first swing, now Tony took his turn, bringing the pipe down on Ari's other knee. He was surprised, almost, at the pleasure the sound of Ari's pain brought him.

It took the two men less than an hour to do what they had planned. At one point, Ari had passed out from the pain of the beating he was enduring. Gibbs had lifted the hood and thrown cold water in his face putting the hood back down before Ari saw him.

Ari moaned as he came back to consciousness. "Please, stop, or kill me, please," he begged.

"We'll stop when we're ready? and we have no intention of letting you die," Tony replied.

After they were done, Tony and Jethro carried Ari's body out and put him in the back of the truck, none too gently. They climbed into the cab, and with Jethro driving sped toward Cairo.

*****************************

They dropped Ari's battered body outside of a hospital, ignoring his moans of pain. Taking the hood of the barely lucid man, Gibbs leaned in, smacking his face. "You didn't really think I'd kill you, do you Ari? I'm an honourable man?and there's no honour in murder." With one final kick to Ari's shattered knee, Gibbs turned and walked away.

"Enjoy the rest of your miserable life, Ari," Tony said, leaning down to whisper in his ear before following Gibbs and blending in with the crowds on the street.

Ari moaned from his pain and from the fact that Gibbs had bested him?probably for the final time.

*****************************

An hour later, Jethro and Tony were on a flight out of Cairo to Rome. From there they would fly back to Greece and go back to the island. They were travelling on forged Swiss visas that Abby had created. Things had gone well and soon, this would be over.

Neither man spoke, each lost in thought. Tony had his face turned to the window, but wasn't really seeing anything. Hurting Ari had felt?good and he felt guilty for that, for enjoying inflicting pain. He was glad they hadn't killed him for that would make them no better than Ari. By torturing him they weren't much better. At the thought, a mental picture of Cait laying on that rooftop, a single red hole in her forehead her blood spreading out behind her head and the feeling of her blood and brains splattered across his face flashed through his mind; his guilt was assuaged somewhat. Besides, it wasn't like Ari wasn't a trained fighter and killer, up until they'd restrained him, he'd had a better than average chance to escape, to kill them.

Tony looked at Gibbs but could tell nothing from his expression. Sighing, he leaned back in his seat and decided to nap for a little bit. Within moments he was asleep and for one of the few times since Cait's death, he slept dreamlessly.

Gibbs looked over at Tony, who was breathing slowly and deeply as he slept, almost snoring but not quite. The younger man looked tired and drawn out; Jethro wondered how he was dealing with what they'd done. He had felt only satisfaction with the punishment that had been meted out to Ari Haswari, and it wasn't as much as he deserved, really. Jethro felt very little guilt; they'd avenged Cait's death. They were the only ones who would?or could. He took no joy in what they'd done only satisfaction. Jethro Gibbs could look in the mirror with a clear conscience. Deciding that he should rest while he had the chance, he closed his eyes and slept.

*****************************

One week later
Athens, Greece

"Hey, Gibbs, there's an article in one of the Cairo papers about Ari," Abby said from the sofa where she was sitting with her laptop.

"What does it say, Abs?" Tony asked, turning his attention away from the game on the TV and leaning over to look at her monitor.

Gibbs walked in off the balcony of the hotel suite the three of them were sharing, waiting to hear what news she had.

"It just says an unidentified man was found outside the hospital, with multiple broken bones, cuts, and minor internal injuries. He hasn't been conscious long enough to give them his name," she paused as she scrolled through the article. "They've printed his picture, asking if anyone knows who he is."

Nodding and smiling Gibbs walked over to look at the picture of Ari; he was barely recognisable, with the bandages, bruises, and swelling. "Well, if we're lucky, one of Ari's old 'friends' will recognise him," he said.

Tony moved to look at the picture too. "Yeah, if we're lucky."

Abby looked confused for a moment, then it hit her. "Oh, so someone else might recognise him, might not want him to talk or might even be out for revenge of their own?"

"Yep, he's a major liability now," Jethro said. There was a chance, of course, that the people Ari worked for would want to keep him alive; it didn't really matter one way or the other to Jethro. If Ari lived he'd be crippled with pain and unable to do much; if he died, then justice would be fully served. Jethro went back onto the balcony and resumed reading his book.

A few minutes later, he heard someone in the doorway and looking up he saw Abby. "Hey, Abs, how're you doing?" he asked softly, setting down his book. She looked like she needed to talk.

She walked over and sat on his lap, hugging him. He returned the embrace, gently rubbing her back. Jethro waited, willing to let her talk when she was ready. Finally, she lifted her head and staring off toward the crystal blue ocean, she said, "I watched the vid. You were right, I'm glad I didn't go with you. I could barely watch the whole thing. I'm not sorry you did what you did to him. I'm glad I could help?Thank you."

Jethro didn't speak immediately, he regarded Abby's profile, glad he hadn't let her come along. While she had the most right in avenging Cait's death, she wouldn't have been able to deal with what they'd done, had she been there. "You're welcome," he said, and then using his fingers under her chin, he turned her face to him, staring into her blue eyes. "Will you be able to live with what we did?"

She stared back at him and nodded. "I didn't think I'd ever want to see someone hurt as much as I wanted to see him hurt. What you did to him?the pain he felt isn't even close to what I felt when he killed Cait," she paused. "Do you think someone else will kill him?"

Gibbs nodded. "If he has any friends, they'll take care of him. If he doesn't then he'll live?with a life full of pain and discomfort. If the people he worked for keep him alive, there's still a good chance, down the road, that someone will take him out," he said quietly.

Abby nodded, and then laid her head on Jethro's shoulder and he held her.

*****************************
The next day
Washington, DC, Director Morrow's office

Morrow looked up when the door opened. "So, Tobias, to what do I owe this honour?"

Fornell didn't say anything, throwing a printout on Morrow's desk and sitting in one of the chairs opposite.

Reading the report, Morrow nodded his head. "Gibbs?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. Near as my contact in the CIA was able to ascertain, Gibbs, DiNozzo, and Abby spent the time when Ari was attacked on a private island in Greece," Fornell replied, shrugging.

Morrow didn't speak for a moment. "Either way, Ari Haswari will no longer be a problem."

"Pretty much guaranteed. Of course, there are hundreds waiting to take his place, " he said.

"Unfortunately, I think you're right. Thanks for the update, Tobias," Morrow said, standing.

Fornell stood, reaching out to shake Morrow's hand. "No problem. Good day, Tom."

*****************************

Two weeks later
Ari's hospital room, Cairo

Ari groaned as he woke up; even with all the painkillers the doctors prescribed for him, he was in constant pain. Every inch of his body seemed to hurt and he desperately wished that Gibbs had killed him.

"So, Sleeping not so Beautiful finally awakes."

Even if he had been able to, Ari had no need to raise his head. The voice was one he knew well. Maybe his wish to die would come true after all. "Ariel," he managed in harsh whisper.

"The one and only," the other man said, leaning over so Ari could see his face. "I've been waiting most of the evening for you to come out of your slumber, my old friend."

"Are you my friend?" Ari said, closing his eyes.

He opened them again when he felt Ariel's hand on his face. "Yes, I am, Ari. Oh, there were so many discussions about what to do with you. They want me to bring you back, let you heal. Even though you'd be useless as a field agent they want your brilliant mind."

"No, please, Ariel?" Ari trailed off, his eyes desperately pleading with his childhood friend.

"I'm half tempted to follow the orders I was given. However, since I _am_ your friend, one of the few you have left in this world?I will take their punishment for my failure to bring you back alive," he said, and as he finished speaking, Ariel raised a gun and put it to the centre of Ari's forehead.

"Wait, what about the ones who did this too me?"

"Those men you were meeting? They don't exist, other than as a paper trail. We're not sure who it was, do you know?"

"It was Gibbs and DiNozzo, from NCIS? Will I be avenged?" Ari asked.

Ariel laughed harshly. "He was on our list of possibilities, after all, the man hated you. We checked on him. Apparently, Gibbs, DiNozzo and a woman, Abby Sciutto, were all vacationing on a private Greek island when this happened to you, Ari. Unfortunately," he shrugged, "they were very, very careful. I'm sorry."

Ari sighed, unsurprised that nothing would be done. He felt no fear over what was now going to happen, only relief. He thanked his God for being merciful. Then he thanked his friend. "I understand," he said. "And, Ariel, thank you," he whispered, closing his eyes.

"You're welcome," Ariel said, squeezing the trigger.

***

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