Epilogue

Two Weeks Later

 

Kate almost felt guilty for breaking Tony’s self-imposed visitor moratorium.  While she respected his desire for privacy she also resented a little the way he shut everyone out once he got out of the hospital.  She’d respected his wishes and even given him a week to wallow but now she was on a mission.  And just maybe, she thought, after seeing her he’d finally crack and let everyone else back into his life too.

 

As she made her way to Tony’s apartment the door across the hall opened and a fifty-something man of Hispanic persuasion stepped out.  “Thanks again, Miss Flora. You take care now,” he said in a pseudo-Southern accent that sounded vaguely familiar.  As he turned to leave he flipped a heavily rhinestoned cape in a dry cleaner’s bag over his shoulder and nodded his pompadour in Kate’s direction in greeting.  

 

After politely returning the nod, and suppressing a smile for the too long, too bushy sideburns, Kate lifted her hand to knock on Tony’s door then froze.  She whirled around to watch the man put on an enormous pair of sunglasses then stared after him as he fairly swaggered away.  Just as he rounded the corner out of sight Tony’s door flew open giving her a start.  

 

“Rena,” Kate blurted out.  “I think I just saw Flora’s Elvis.”

 

Mrs. Bornemeier eyed her skeptically.  “That explains the missing doughnuts,” she deadpanned.  “Come on in.”

 

Still unsure of her welcome, Kate lingered in the hall. “I realize Tony doesn’t want to see anyone yet…” she began hesitantly.

 

“So maybe you came to see me,” Mrs. Bornemeier said with a wink as she tugged the undecided agent inside.

 

“Right,” Kate agreed, making an effort to relax.  “It certainly is quiet around here.”

 

“That’s by design.  And don’t think there aren’t a lot of ruffled feathers about it,” Mrs. Bornemeier replied with an evil grin as she shut the door.  “Tony said he wasn’t up to any the mother-henning so I’ve kept the Gerital squad at bay.”  

 

Kate resisted the urge to snort at the biggest hen of them all, glad Tony had someone who refused to leave him all alone.  “So how is he?” she asked instead.

 

The older women idly tucked a stray wisp of hair into her loose bun as she considered how best to respond.  “Well I don’t think he’s taking as much of his pain medicine as he should.  But he doesn’t complain, just spends his time playing that stupid video game.  All that violence hour after hour, it can’t be good for him.”

 

“I know he’s still hurting physically,” Kate pressed worriedly.  “But how is he?”

 

“He’s restless.  Distant.”  Mrs. Bornemeier’s eyes suddenly got misty.  “I don’t know what happened and he’s not talking but it’s like something’s broken inside of him.  He’s lost his spark.”

 

Kate swallowed the lump in her throat and willed herself not to get choked up.  “He’s been through a lot.”

 

“I gathered that,” Mrs. Bornemeier sighed as she patted Kate’s arm and headed for the kitchen.  “Come on honey, I think what this conversation needs is java.  And fudge.  Lot’s of fudge.  Tony, you have company,” she added loudly for the recluse’s benefit.

 

“I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you call him as Tony,” Kate noted as she followed.  Closer to Tony’s room she could hear the tinny gaming music complete with canned explosions and sound effects but Tony didn’t put in an appearance.

 

“He calls me Rena now,” Mrs. Bornemeier explained as she poured coffee and motioned Kate to the table where they both took a seat.  “He’s says it’s impossible to stand on formality since I’ve seen him in his all-together.  He needs a lot more help with bathing and such this time,” she added at the shocked look Kate tried to hide.

 

“I guess that makes sense.”

 

Mrs. Bornemeier intercepted Kate’s hand as she reached for the sugar bowl.  “We are going to get our Tony back, aren’t we?” she asked, searching Kate’s eyes for the truth.

 

“I hope so,” Kate answered earnestly.  “But it’s going to take some time.”

 

***

 

Full of fudge for courage, Kate ultimately let Mrs. Bornemeier herd her down the hall to the lion’s den.  She stood at the bedroom door and watched him for a few minutes noting the lines of concentration etched on his forehead as he studiously ignored her.  Propped up against the headboard wearing only a pair of pajama bottoms Tony worked the control effortlessly with his left hand, a sure sign Mrs. Bornemeier hadn’t been exaggerating the amount of time and energy he spent on the video game.  

 

The sight of DiNozzo with his arm encased in plaster from shoulder to wrist, bent horizontally at the elbow and jutting out at a ninety degree angle might have otherwise been amusing.  Especially with the support strut that transferred the weight of his extremity to his similarly wrapped midsection.  But the depth of Tony’s emotional pain was still evident on his face and a little too raw even for Kate.  She winced at the slight discoloration of the skin around his exposed wrist from the all but healed bruises and abrasions, a much more poignant reminder of how he’d been mistreated than the pristine white cast.

 

“How can you do that?” she finally asked to force him to acknowledge her as she put her bag down on the dresser.

 

“Takes a little practice,” Tony offered without bothering to look away from the TV.  

 

“I meant spending all day playing that thing.”

 

“It’s therapeutic,” Tony insisted crabbily.

 

Kate waited him out for a few more minutes but he remained focused on the screen.  “I still think you look like a coat rack,” she said at last.

 

The barb achieved the desired result and Tony smirked a little.   “I remember going into surgery.  I was all doped up but Ducky was there.  He promised I wouldn’t have to wear that stupid sling anymore.”

 

“Be careful what you wish for,” Kate teased, reaching out to tweak his elevated fingers, pleased when he allowed it and even squeezed back a bit.

 

“So you got past Rena, did you?”

 

“She’s a good neighbor.”

 

“Yeah, but a lousy watchdog,” Tony sulked.  “I told her I wanted to be alone.”

 

“So she slipped up once.”

 

Tony grinned but it was a weak imitation of his usual hundred watt smile.  “Yeah right.  Once.”

 

“Gibbs dropped in, didn’t he?” Kate asked, not at all surprised their boss had been by to check on Tony.  She moved to sit on the foot of the bed, trying not to look at the gruesome graphics on the screen.

 

“He’s one of the more frequent visitors.  Down in front.”

 

“Ducky, too?” Kate asked as she got out of the way and stood next to the nightstand instead.

 

“Every day.  Rena says he gets mobbed at the door to the building like a movie star.  I think he enjoys the attention.  Or maybe he just likes soup.”

 

Kate started to frown. “Abby?”

 

“Where do you think I got the cool Xbox?  And before you ask, McGee rewired this thing so I could handle it better with one hand.  But to be fair, I did call him.”

 

With an irritable huff Kate put her hands on her hips.  “And not one of them said a word about it to me.”

 

“That’s because they all think they’re the only one.  Well, except for Gibbs.  I suspect he knows everything as usual,” Tony observed, obviously relishing the opportunity to yank Kate’s chain.  

 

“So everyone came to see you but me.”

 

“I know,” Tony said in mock offense.  “Even considering your anal propensity to follow the rules I still expected you two days ago.  In fact I owe Gibbs ten bucks.  He bet you’d hold out a whole week.”

 

Feeling like she was setting Tony up, Kate was suddenly unable to play along with the comforting banter.  “I talked to Doc,” she revealed hastily.  “He called me at the office yesterday.”

 

Finally faltering, Tony set aside the controller and turned to make eye contact.  “He, uh… how’s he doing?”  

 

“He says he’s fine.”

 

“Sure he is.”

 

“Yeah… he got out of the hospital a couple days ago.  And sometime in the next few weeks he’ll be moving back to Chicago.  He said it was time to swallow his pride and mend some fences.”

 

“That’s good,” Tony approved with a melancholy smile.  “I’m glad he got the chance to do that.”

 

“He said he wants to see you to say good-bye but he doesn’t think he can handle your guilt on top of his own hang-ups.  But I really think you should meet with him, for both your sakes.”

 

Tony turned off the game and dropped his head back to stare at the ceiling.  “I can’t face him.”

 

“Sure you can,” Kate tried to be supportive without being pushy.

 

“You don’t understand.  I let him down,” Tony agonized.  “Don’t you see that?  I failed him.”

 

“He doesn’t see it that way.”

 

“Then he’s wrong!”

 

“You’re angry,” Kate acknowledged carefully.  “That’s perfectly understandable.”

 

“Spare me the psycho-analysis, I start seeing the department shrink on Monday.  I don’t need any extra sessions with you, thank you very much.”

 

“That’s great.  I think that’s the best thing for you.”

 

“Well I don’t.  And I have to complete eighteen hours of therapy before they’ll even let me back on desk duty.”

 

Kate frantically searched her brain for a silver lining. “That’ll give your arm time to heal while you get your head together,” she offered knowing how lame it sounded.

 

“My head is fine.”

 

“Tony, you were just as much a victim as Doc was,” Kate insisted.  She immediately regretted it.

 

“Don’t ever say that,” Tony snapped, pointing at her with his good hand as his voice steadily grew in volume.  “I was there.  I know what happened and to who.  Don’t you dare presume to tell me what’s what in all this.”

 

She let him vent, holding up a hand to forestall a wide-eyed Mrs. Bornemeier when she appeared in the door.  

 

Tony abruptly halted his tirade and closed his eyes as he took a few deep breaths.  “I couldn’t stop him,” he went on softly as he dropped his chin to his chest.  “I couldn’t even look away,” he finished in defeat as he furtively wiped his eyes.  

 

He looked miserable but pulled back when Kate reached for him.  She sat on the edge of the bed anyway and watched helplessly.  The anger finally seemed to drain away leaving his face blank and eerily calm.  

 

“I gave up.”

 

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

 

“It is.  That sick bastard broke my spirit.  For a little while.”  They sat in silence for a few minutes.  “Don’t tell Gibbs, okay?”

 

“Nothing to tell,” Kate vowed, meaning it.

 

“I’m sorry I took my aggression out on you,” Tony apologized.  “That’s what the video game is supposed to be for.  I guess I’m just not very good company right now.”

 

“I understand,” Kate said as she got up and went to get her bag, bringing it back with her.  “I’ll go if you still want to be alone.”

 

Tony nodded.  “Just for a little while longer.”

 

“Call if you need anything.  Even if you just need someone to yell at,” Kate offered sincerely.

 

“I said I was sorry,” Tony pouted as he glanced up at her through his eyelashes with just the teeniest suggestion of a flutter.  “Don’t be mad.”

 

“Does the little boy lost routine work on Rena?” Kate asked, putting every effort into not escalating Tony’s already heightened insecurities by keeping the conversation as normal as possible.

 

“Of course.”

 

Mrs. Bornemeier, who had continued to hover in the doorway harrumphed in contention and disappeared back down the hall.

 

Tony managed a devilish smile at the rapid retreat.  “You can come back and see me.  If you want,” he invited.

 

“I will,” Kate agreed as she paused before reaching into her handbag.  “I brought you something.”

 

“A present?” Tony asked, actually perking up a little.

 

“Oh God,” Kate quickly backpedaled, imagining her good intentions blowing up in her face.  “I guess I didn’t think this through.  I’m so sorry, Tony.  This was a bad idea.”

 

“Gimme,” Tony persisted.  He grabbed the strap of her bag and reeled her in then pulled her hand out still holding a small white box.  “Is that what I think it is?” he asked in surprise.

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

“Stop saying that.”  

 

“I thought maybe you could crush it or something,” Kate suggested sheepishly.  “Scatter the glass?  For closure.”

 

“Open it.,” Tony requested as he turned his whole body to put his feet on the floor.

 

Kate sighed and did as she was asked.  Sitting the box aside she held the imperfect angel up by a piece of string since its golden chain was long gone.  One wing was chipped badly but the light danced brilliantly over the fractured surfaces.

 

“I guess it’s not evidence anymore.”

 

“This was the one that was left over,” Kate explained.  “They found it in Kenny’s closet.  Abby spent hours putting it back together.”

 

“This one is for Doc,” Tony decided, apparently mesmerized by the display of light as he reached out to take it.  “He was the twelfth victim.  It’s fitting his is the one that was shattered I suppose, since he lived to carry the scars.”

 

“Doc’s scars are going to heal.  So are yours.”

 

Tony laughed.  “Scars don’t heal, Kate.  Scars are what are left to remind you of the things that hurt you.”

 

“I meant that figuratively,” Kate muttered under her breath.

 

“Does Abby know what you planned for this thing?”

 

“Yeah, we dreamed the idea up together.  I guarantee it didn’t sound so bizarre in her lab at three a.m.”

 

“Things never do,” Tony agreed with a been-there, done-that nod.  “Can I keep it?”

 

“I’m surprised you’d want to,” Kate stammered, “But, yeah, it’s yours.”

 

“Thanks.”

 

Kate leaned in and kissed him on the forehead.  “I’m really leaving this time.”

 

“Don’t let the screen door hit you in the ass,” Tony said with a weary but genuine smile.

 

“Turn off that damn game,” Kate shot back.  She stopped in the door to watch Tony carefully settle the angel on his nightstand.  “And call Doc.”

 

“I will,” Tony promised.  “Just not today.”

 

 

The End