NCIS (2003–…): Season 3, Episode 7 - Honor Code - full transcript

[PEOPLE CHATTERING]

TANNER:
Hey, Zach. Zachary.

What did I say about wandering off?
You have to be careful of strangers.

- Sorry.
- Here.

Dad, balloons are for babies.

Right. What about
that cotton candy? Is that still--?

Oh, no. That's fine.
We could share it after my ride.

I'll try to save you some.
It looks awfully good to me.

- Ahh!
- Dad. After the ride.

[TANNER LAUGHS]

I'll be watching you.

[LIVELY MUSIC PLAYING]

Dad.

Dad.

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

A whole hour for a lunch run,
probie?

Yeah, while Ziva and l were out,

she asked me to show her
the best routes to work.

Her driving has gotten a lot better.
Barely broke any laws this time.

Let me get this straight.

Ziva asked you,

who can barely navigate the Navy yard,
to show her the best way to work?

- That's right.
- Well, what about me?

I know every shortcut
in the metro area.

I could shave ten minutes off her
commute like that.

I don't know what to tell you.

It doesn't make any sense.

Unless...

...maybe I intimidate her.

Yeah, I'm sure that's it.

I've seen it happen before.
It's a chemical thing.

- Hard to explain.
- I do hope you try.

I told you not to do that again.

Sorry. I was so intimidated by your
presence, I must have forgotten.

Seriously. I do apologize for not asking
your advice on my commute.

Don't worry about it.

If I would have known you would have
felt so emasculated--

- Is that the word? Emasculated.
- Yes, it is. Emasculated.

I would have asked you first.

It takes a little more
than an exotic accent

and some stealth ninja moves
to emasculate me.

Only a little more?
How disappointing.

[MCGEE CHUCKLES]

Don't take sides, probie.

Gear up. We have a missing person.
Coleman Park Carousel in Arlington.

- A child?
- Father.

Lieutenant Commander
Alex Tanner.

Disappeared an hour ago.

Do you always respond to
missing persons cases so promptly?

Special circumstances, Ziva.
His 6-year-old son called NCIS.

He's in the park, alone, waiting for us.
DiNozzo, you drive.

Ooh. I think McGee
wants to drive, boss.

You know what, Tony?
I would really rather have you drive.

Heh. Afraid to run over another
fire hydrant?

I'm sure that wasn't your fault.
It was, according to the police report.

- |'l| drive.
- One more word, you're all walking.

You got it, boss.

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

Ah. I deserved that.

[PEOPLE CHATTERING]

[INDISTINCT VOICES ECHOING]

Zach.

Hey, I'm Special Agent DiNozzo,
you can call me Tony, okay?

That's a smart thing to do,
calling NCIS. Good boy.

I know this really scary, but I want you
to be brave. Can you do that?

Okay, I want you to think back
to what happened today.

Try to remember the details.

[CHUCKLES]

There's no wrong answer here.

- What do we know?
- Nothing. I think the kid's in shock.

ZACH:
No, I'm not.

I'm waiting for Agent DiNozzo
to ask me a question.

What kinds of questions
was I supposed to ask?

What I saw. Why I called NCIS.

What did you see, Zach?

Two men were watching us.
I think they kidnapped my Dad.

Describe them.

Dark glasses.
One had a military haircut.

One had a shaved head.

- How old?
- About your age.

They had iPods too.

It's like a Walkman, boss. An iPod.

They were only listening
in one ear like this.

GIBBS:
Be back in a minute, Zach.

- Dark glasses, eanNigs.
- Sounds like feds.

You think the FBI would arrest a man
and leave his kid in the park, DiNozzo?

Maybe our commander took a walk.

My father left me in the Maui Hilton
for two days.

He didn't realize I was missing
until he got the room service bill.

Sad, but enlightening.

Boss, Ijust spoke
with the commander's C.O.

He's very concerned.

Apparently, Commander Tanner
was working

on a highly classified DOD project.

What project, McGee?

|-- He wouldn't say
over an unsecured line

but I'm going to find out.

Footage from the security cameras?

Park Security released them to me.

Okay, get ahold of Zach's mom.
And then she can pick him up at NCIS.

Boss. Boss.

Um... His mother's dead.
Killed four years ago in a car accident.

Primary next of kin?

There is none.

Just Commander Tanner
and his son.

TONY:
These guys are definitely pros.

They keep their faces
from the camera.

All we've got to go on
is the kid's description of them.

You know, it doesn't look
like a kidnapping to me.

- They don't have guns.
- Barely touched the commander.

They could have threatened his son.

Explains why they left him alone
in the park.

What do we know
about Commander Tanner?

Well, boss, he is a brilliant man.

A dual Ph.D. from Caltech
in Number and Chaos Theory.

I was reading his thesis online.

He manages to link
non-relativistic quantum effects--

Well, that's useful
to this case, McGee.

Uh... Last three years he's been
the Navy's liaison

with a defence contractor,
Q and R Software.

Been the project lead on Honor.

- Which is?
- Classified.

I put a call to the head of security over
there. No one's gotten back to me.

So I thought I would pay them a visit?

Yeah, that's a good answer.
Tony go with him.

The sketch artist is done
with Zach's descriptions.

The boy has a remarkable memory.

There's also someone here
from Social Security to pick him up.

Services, Ziva.
Social Security is for older people.

Noted.

- Do you want me to tell the boy?
- No, I'll handle it. Here, sit down.

Put out a BOLO on the composites.

Hey, Zach.

- Good job on the sketches, man.
- Thanks.

- That's Social Services, huh?
-Mm-hm.

They'll take care of you
until we get your dad back.

I can take care of myself.

I don't doubt that.

- But I still have to go.
- Yeah, just for a while. Come on.

What if you--? What if you don't find
my dad, Agent Gibbs?

I'll find him, Zach. I'll find him.

Hey.

If you ever need me
or even if you just want to talk,

you call, okay?

I'm sorry we didn't get back to you
right away.

We've been having some problems
of our own.

- What kind of problems?
- Honestly, I don't know.

I'm only Mr. Connell's assistant.
I'm--

[LIGHTS CLICKING]

That's been happening
for the last half-hour or so.

[BEEPING]

They should snap back on.

[SCOOTER HONKS]

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

Are you all right, Ms. Osgood?

- It's Laura.
- Laura.

Ms. Osgood.

I'll take it from here.

- Frank Connell, Q and R security.
- You certainly got here fast.

We just found out about the break-in
ourselves an hour ago.

At 0300 this morning,
our network was breached.

We didn't detect the intrusion until we
attempted to boot up our main servers.

Since then, we've had our hands full
tracking the viruses

they embedded in our system.

Do we know yet
what data's been compromised?

It's clear they were after
a working copy of Honor

but fortunately it's protected by a key
that exists outside our system.

Key doesn't sound very high tech.

An asymmetric algorithm key
that's committed to memory.

Without it, the software won't work.

So you see, NCIS has nothing
to worry about, gentlemen.

Great. Except that's not
why we're here.

Who has the Honor key
committed to memory?

Our project leader,
Lieutenant Commander Tanner.

[CLICKING]

[POP MUSIC PLAYS LOUDLY]

[CELL PHONE RINGS]

- Yeah, Gibbs.
TONY: We may have a problem.

- May have?
- The Honor code thingy

Commander Tanner was working on
may have been stolen.

I'm trying to confirm it right now.

- What's it supposed to do?
- Break any encryption in use today.

Well, yeah, DiNozzo.
I'd say that sounds like a problem.

And it gets worse, boss.

According to the people here

Tanner's the only one
who can make it work.

All right. I'm heading your way.

Just got to drop off
Zach's pod thing first.

[LINE RINGS]

Agent Gibbs.

You calling about your pod thing
you left on my desk?

No. He's here.
The man from the park.

Let me talk to your
social worker, Zach.

I'm not in her office.
As soon as I saw him, I took off.

- Where are you?
- Outside on the street.

Zach, I'm a few blocks from you.
Stay right where you are.

- I can't. He's leaving.
- Zach, listen to me.

- I need you to--
- He knows where my dad is.

We can't let him get away. Hurry.

Zach.

[TIRES SQUEALING]

[GASPS]

[TIRES SCREECHING]

[TIRES SCREECHING]

[SOBS]
Help. Help.

- NCIS. Let the kid go.
ZACH: Gibbs.

[ZACH GRUNTING]

Ahh! You little bastard.

[G RUNTS]

[GUNSHOT]

Go. Go. Go.

[TIRES SCREECHING]

It's okay.

[PEOPLE SHOUTING]

[BLOWING]

New hires just keep getting younger,
Madam Director?

Obviously you didn't get the memo,
Agent DiNozzo.

What memo?

The one where it explains
the next person

who calls her madam
gets keel-hauled.

Whatever that is.

- It's--
- Unpleasant.

Tell Gibbs I want him upstairs.

- What did the director want?
- You.

Upstairs.

I better check on those sketches.

I got a BOLO out on a black Chevy
Suburban, boss, but without plates.

DiNozzo, you will spend the next
24 personally checking each one

in Virginia, Maryland, and DC.

That's like an impossible--
I'm on that.

You keep an eye on him for me.

I'll be right back.

[COMPUTER KEYS CLACKING]

You know, he wasjust kidding
when he said keeping an eye on me.

I couldn't remember when Gibbs
asked me, but I think I got it right.

- Got what right?
- The numbers on the license plate.

[TIRES SQUEALING]

I was scared, but I remember
most of the numbers.

flAUGHS]

All right, Zach.

My man. Come on. Give me five.

Come on, meet me up high.

All right. We'll work on that.

Good job.

Always admired your way
with children.

Ever think of having
any of your own?

Is that an offer, Jen?

No, it wasn't an offer, Jethro.
It was merely an observation.

You know why I get along with kids
so well?

Because when they lie,

[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]

they don't have
the guile to get away with it.

You wanted to see me?

I have spent the last hour on video
conference with the directors

of the FBI, NSA
and Homeland Security.

Your kind of tea party.

If Project Honor's compromised,
it will cripple our intelligence networks.

They all want jurisdiction
on this one.

- And you said?
- I have my best agent working it.

Now, tell me you have something.

The same men who kidnapped
the commander went after his son.

Have you considered that he might not
have been kidnapped?

- I have. I don't buy it.
- And?

- Your famous gut again?
- No.

His son.

Abs, give me good news.

My God. I got this e-mail that says
I may have won $50 million.

And I'm really, really psyched.

Oh, you mean about the case?

I went through
Q and R security logs.

[COMPUTER KEYS CLACKING]

It's like the Fort Knox
of computer systems.

Next generation anti-virus software,
intrusion detection.

- Crypto processors, ACLs, firewalls.
- Hey, hey.

Okay. No one can penetrate
the system, Gibbs.

It could be disabled if someone had
a high enough clearance.

- It's an inside job.
- Q and R is monitored 24/7.

All employees have passwords
to gain access to the system.

Like digital fingerprints.
Every keystroke recorded for posterity.

At 3 am. this morning, someone
planted a virus into the network.

It shut down the security system
exactly one hour.

Long enough to breach the network,
remove the software, plant the viruses.

Go.

The virus originated from
Commander Tanner's terminal, sir.

- Someone else could have used it.
- No, sir. The data is very clear.

Pointing out that Q and R's security
system was designed to be accurate.

He's right about the design, though.

Who designed it?

Q and R's risk management team.

But all of their people are
former law enforcement and military.

- At the highest level.
- Tanner was at the highest level too.

Tony is reviewing statements
from the employees.

I'm reviewing the computer terminals,
but the virus wiped a lot of files.

It doesn't look good
for the commander, boss.

Wipe that dirt off your lip.

Dirt?

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

[BOTH CHUCKLE]

I feel like I've wasted your time,
Agent DiNozzo.

- Bite your tongue. You've been great.
- I just feel bad for that poor little boy.

Well, listen.
If you think of anything...

...you give me a call

day or night.

[WHISPERS]
Home number's on the back.

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

[CHUCKLES]

Where have you been?
I could've used your help

- with those interviews.
- Oh.

You look like you had your hands full
with her.

Watch your sexual innuendo
around the kid. He's had a hard day.

He's taking it better than most adults.
He's resilient.

Do you see the way he's been acting
around me?

I think it's because
he doesn't like you, Tony.

Kids dig me.

No they don't.

[SNORTS]

Zach. Zacharoo, buddy.
Come on over here, man.

I was gonna wait until tomorrow
when everyone was here

but considering
what a brave little boy you've been

and how much you've helped us,

I'm gonna make you
an honorary NCIS agent.

Thanks. I've got to go to the head.

[LAUGHS THEN SNORTS]

Yes, Tony. I was mistaken.

Your way with children is only rivalled
by your way with women.

He's under a lot of stress.

- Where's Zach?
- Potty break, boss.

You gonna speak?

I got an ID on one of our suspects.
His name is Vincent Pazzo.

Italian-born. Freelance mercenary.
Black ops mostly. Some wet work.

How'd you find out about that?

I sent Zach's sketches to some people
who owe me a favour.

If he has the Honor program and the
guy who knows how to make it work,

why'd they go after his kid?

To force him to cooperate.

There's a possibility
Commander Tanner set this up

to make it look like kidnapping.

- Keep your voice down.
- Shh!

That's what I would do
if it were my op.

Authorities are looking for a kidnapper,
they should look for a traitor.

It doesn't feel right, Ziva.

It doesn't have to feel right
to be right, Gibbs.

Gibbs, can I ask you a question?

Yeah, shoot.

How are you going to get this
out of here when it's finished?

Good question. I don't know.
I haven't thought about it much.

I think maybe you could use a crane
or something.

Yeah? I could dig a ramp.

Knock that wall out
and hoist it out of here.

I went sailing once with my dad
and Commander Wilder.

Didn't go too well.

- Did you get seasick?
- My dad did.

Commander Wilder thought
it was funny.

You know,
my dad being in the Navy and all.

Yeah.

- You're going to find him, right?
- Oh, yeah. We'll find him.

- Promise?
- Yeah.

I promise you.

- Wanna give me a hand?
-Hm.

- Don't know how.
- Come on over here.

Mmm.
I don't wanna ruin it.

You're not going to ruin anything.
Come here.

See, you always want to go
with the grain of the wood.

Put your hand there.
Put your weight behind it.

Back and forth, real even.

[SANDING]

- Where's Gibbs?
- Home with Zach. What's up?

Commander Tanner's
bank statement.

Do Americans usually empty out
their bank accounts

before they take children
to the park?

You're kidding.

Savings, checking, money market,
$23,000.

McGEE:
Gibbs is not gonna like this.

Are we solving this case
to please him?

TONY: Got a trace
on the Chevy Suburban.

[COMPUTER BEEPING]

Zach missed two numbers on the plate
but I found the vehicle.

Rental car out of Maryland.

ID's fake. Credit card was stolen.
But that's our other kidnapper.

Does the car have a navigation
system? We could use the GPS.

Two words for you, McGee:
Lo and Jack.

That's one word.

- A what?
- It's a-- Whatever.

I tracked it down to a parking lot
a couple miles from here.

Good job, McGee.

What?

GIBBS:
Come on, let's roll.

Where's the child?

Now, keep your eye on the coin.

Yeah, like his.

[MAKES A WHIPPING SOUND]

Now that, my young friend,
is magic.

Now, a true magician doesn't reveal
the mysteries of his craft

to anyone else
but another magician.

But would you like to learn?

It's in that hand.

Isn't it?

Oh.

[BLOWS]

So it is.

He's quite observant.

Does he remind you of anyone?

Huh. Very good.

[CHUCKLES]

TONY: Got it, boss.
Black SUV, no rear window.

One visible suspect in the vehicle.

Should we take him now?

Wait. I'm almost in position here.

Copy.

Are you sure you wouldn't
rather be partner with McGee?

The two of you seem to click,
and we're about to storm this vehicle.

- Who knows what's gonna go down.
- Don't worry, Tony. I got your back.

Hah! My back. Listen, lady, if anybody
is getting anybody's back,

it's me getting yours.

McGEE:
In position, DiNozzo.

Take him down.

[HUMMING]

- Ziva, what a pleasure.
- Dr. Mallard.

- Oh, Ducky, please.
- Ducky.

Are you two done
with the name game?

Yeah. Our guest departed this world
only a few hours ago.

But he was in a great deal of pain
before he died.

Seems he was wounded.

Single round.
The bullet lodged under his scapula.

- The shoulder blade.
- Doc, I'm gonna guess

- that slug's from my safe.
- Yeah.

As to the fatal injury, this circular burn
around the entry wound suggests--

ZIVA:
A silencer was used.

It was done in haste by someone
with little, if any, experience.

If a professional did this,
he would have not left his weapon.

It's untidy. Marks of an amateur.

If it were me,
I would have not been so obvious.

There are literally dozens
of effective ways to eliminate a target

without raising suspicions.

Heroin overdose is popular,
but it requires a history of prior use.

Of course, something like insulin
or potassium can be used

to suggest death by natural causes.

I really must ask you over for dinner.
Mother would love to talk with you.

They cleaned house. I wounded him
when he tried to grab Zach.

After that he was a liability.

Once again, I suggest
Commander Tanner may be involved.

All the evidence says
he stole the software.

He cleared out his bank accounts.

He likely killed this man.

From an investigator's point of view,

the pieces fit together quite well.

Or not.

- Abby.
- Ballistics lab, sir.

- Serving in the military?
- No, sir, I--

- Stop standing at attention.
- It's good posture, sir.

[LOUDLY] What? No Zachster?
- Abby, you're yelling.

- Oh, sorry. Where is he?
- He's upstairs.

He's a cool kid. Reminds me of you.
He's like a mini-Gibbs.

- Austin Powers?
- You calling Zach a Mini-Me?

Gibbs, I am so impressed
with your pop-culture reference.

Tell me about the weapon.

All right. It's a Makarov .380.

It matches the hollow point slugs
from the body downstairs.

And this bad boy that we pulled
from his shoulder matches your SIG.

- Any prints from the .380?
- Dead guy's.

- You have something else?
- I do.

- What?
- Chip shaved.

I didn't notice.

He didn't notice?

He doesn't notice
unimportant things, Chip.

Sorry, Chip. Didn't mean it.

- You getting off, director?
- Looking for you actually.

I saw Ducky's report
on the body downstairs.

- That was fast.
- One of the perks of being director.

I get to read all the good reports.

What's next, Jethro?

Finishing this conversation.

- Don't give me a hard time.
- I didn't realize I was.

The man who supposedly kidnapped
Commander Tanner

is lying dead in our autopsy room.

Tanner is looking
less and less like a victim.

You want back in the field again,
Jen?

Tanner has technology

that could set back
our intelligence monitoring 30 years.

Pardon me for taking an interest.

And here I thought you just wanted
an excuse to spend time together.

[CHUCKLES]

I just want to know that this is about
more than a fatherless child to you.

Boss.

Didn't you notice we're in the middle
of a conversation, Agent McGee?

Sorry. Should I come back?

- No.
- Yes.

I'm simply trying to solve
your case here, director.

Speak.

Commander Wilder is here.

He works with Commander Tanner
at Q and R.

Commander Wilder.

I went by his house
to grab some stuff for him.

Your agents wouldn't let me in, so
I bought him a Nintendo to play with.

That's the DS.
It's an excellent system.

I've heard.

This is a hell of a situation.

Zach's been through so much
in his life already.

Is there a reason you wanted
to see me?

Tanner is a close friend.
I was hoping for information.

At Q and R,
they're saying he's a suspect.

Do you know the sacrifices he's made
to serve our country?

I do.

I don't care
what the computer log says.

Commander Tanner is no traitor.

- What's it gonna take to prove that?
- Finding who is.

Then you should look
at Q and R's civilian employees.

They're falling all over themselves
to try and protect their collective asses.

What about Zach,
where's he staying?

With me.

I'm the closest thing he has to family.
I can take him home with me.

Can't do that.
He's under protective custody.

You mean they're after Zach too?

We'll take good care of him,
commander.

I'm just gonna say goodbye.

Boss, so did you tell him
we think Tanner's innocent?

We don't know he is.

Do you have something to say,
McGee?

[SIGHS]

I've been going through the evidence
we bagged from the vehicle.

Prepaid burn phone. Guess
whose number's on the caller ID.

Frank Connell, Q and R office.

- What the hell are you doing in here?
- I couldn't stop them.

It's not her fault.
She's ovenNhelmed by search warrant.

This is out of line.
I've been cooperative.

Explain why you called the kidnappers
from this office

the day the Honor code
went missing.

- That's a ridiculous accusation.
- Denying you were here?

I said in my statement
I was working late that night.

So you made the call.

[COMPUTER BEEPING]

Someone tampered
this hard drive.

Tried erasing the command logs
morning of the robbery.

We had a virus.
It corrupted thousands of files.

- Is that what happened?
- Can't tell until we get to the lab.

Okay, bag and tag.

You cannot remove that computer
from this building.

- Don't worry. You're going with it.
- Go up and call the lawyers.

You have the right to remain silent.

Anything you say can and will
be used against you.

Hey.

- Gibbs got Connell talking?
- His lawyer won't let him,

so Gibbs is giving him the old stare.

Gibbs does it much better.

- Apple for teacher?
- For McGee.

He's been very generous with me.
Helping me adjust to this new city.

So you're giving him an apple?

It's a small gesture.

If you wanna thank him,
get him a date. Heh.

Gibbs wants to know if you've got
anything he can use on Connell.

Frank Connell's a deacon
at his church.

Never had a moving violation,
let alone a parking ticket.

He calls his mother every Sunday.
The man is spick-and-spam.

The saying is spick-and-span.

- Spam is lunch meat.
- Oh.

- What exactly is span, then?
- Span is--

I'll get back to you on that.

In my opinion,
Frank Connell's not involved.

Good. I'll let Gibbs know right away
because he loves to hear our opinions.

He's distracted by his affections.

- Gibbs doesn't get distracted.
- What do you call it, then?

The boss moves in mysterious ways.
Get this to him.

- Why me?
- I'm gonna go see your buddy McGee.

- Hey, put that back.
- I'm just bringing it to him.

[SIGHS]

Progress report, McGee.

Uh... I think that Frank Connell
put a trace

on Commander Tanner's computer.

- Think?
- Well,

I've got scraps of code,
protocols, commands.

He might have put the trace in,
collected Tanner's passwords,

stolen the software.

"Might have" and "think"
are not going to make Gibbs happy.

Whoever wiped his files did a good job.
There is nothing left but fragments.

Can't Gibbs just bring Connell
in interrogation?

Not with a $500-an-hour defence
attorney breathing down his neck.

Puts it on you, McGee.

Nothing I have found contradicts
any of the evidence

we have against Commander Tanner.

I'm with you, probie. But he's feeling
pretty strong about this one.

Has anyone considered the fact
that Gibbs may be wrong this time?

[GASPS]

McGee, bite your tongue.
Gibbs knows what he's doing.

- We just have to show him love.
TONY: We show the love, Abby.

Just don't want to let the bad guys
get away while we're doing it.

Almost blocked my shot there,
Chipper.

- Ever play ball?
- College.

Yeah? Me too.

- Tony ran point for Ohio State.
- What conference did you play in?

- We didn't exactly have a conference.
- Division?

Not really.
It was more of an intramural thing.

Skins and moustaches?

[CHUCKLES]

What do you got for me?

Chip?

Fingerprint analysis results.

Hmm.

- You're free to go, Chip.
- I don't mind staying late, ma'am.

Go home, Chip, please.

- Is that an order?
- Yes. Go.

[GROANS]

[SIGHS]

I don't know how you concentrate
around him.

I know. No, no, no.

No. I'm too good at what I do.

No, you're not.

- I am. Gibbs is going to hate me for it.
- What happened?

I was following up
on the murder weapon.

- Double-check for anything I missed.
- Was there?

- Fingerprints.
- On the gun?

- On the rounds in the magazine.
- That's great.

Most people get obsessed
cleaning the grip and trigger.

They don't think twice
about the bullets.

We've got a nice partial thumb,
a forefinger

- and a perfect index print.
- Amazing.

- Yeah, I know.
- So whose prints are they?

Commander Tanner's.

Yeah.

Yeah. At this rate we'll have her
seaworthy in no time.

Maybe my dad can help
when he gets back.

Hubba-hubba.

Dinner at the White House?

A date, actually.

Must be an important guy for you
to get all decked out.

I'd prefer if you just told me
that you liked my dress.

I haven't decided yet.

Do you mind giving us a moment?

Zach, why don't you go upstairs
and grab a soda.

How long are you planning
on keeping Frank Connell locked up?

You make a house call
to reprimand me, Jen?

You got Commander Tanner's
fingerprints on the bullets

- of the murder weapon.
- Well, I'm not sure he did it.

Why? And don't tell me
your famous gut again.

Zach is a great kid, Jethro.

Doesn't mean
his father's not a bastard.

He might be,
but Zach's our only link to him.

He might make another attempt
to get Zach back?

If he does I'll be waiting for him.

My dad didn't do anything wrong.

It's a complicated situation.

- It's not.
- Zach.

Zach, there is evidence
he did something wrong.

It doesn't matter.

I know in my stomach
he didn't do anything wrong.

You promised
you'd bring him back to me, Gibbs.

Please.

McGEE: Where's Zach?
- Ducky's.

Listen, I spent half the night taking
Frank Connell's hard drive apart.

There's nothing. We need to accept
Commander Tanner sold the software.

I'm not accepting anything.

- Boss--
- Look at this a different way.

I agree. Ijust talked to the CIA.

They were very cooperative.

- They were?
- He owed me a favour.

How many people owe you favours?

How many dates
does Tony go on a month?

This is from Kosovo
in the late '90s.

The man with the shaved head
is Vincent Pazzo.

The one on the left is Willis Hirst.

They were mercenaries
for the Kosovo Liberation Army.

- Freedom fighters.
ZIVA: Not exactly. Heh.

They worked for a warlord
as specialists.

- What specialty?
- Coercion.

Torture.

But the evidence we have
against Commander Tanner?

This is a covert operation.
Take nothing at face value.

They framed Commander Tanner
as a diversion.

While they torture him
for the access code.

Maybe he won't talk.

Have you ever been tortured,
McGee?

There's only so much torment
a human body can bear.

Strong men break in a few days,
nobody holds out forever.

Not even Gibbs.

To a trained interrogator,
can be done in less time.

I can get that code in hours.

They've had him for two days.

He's running out of time
if he hasn't talked already.

A few hours, huh?

Give or take.

I'm putting you in a room with
Frank Connell, you have 40 minutes.

TONY: I'd hold off on that, boss.
- Where have you been?

Tracking down the store
where our dead guy

purchased his cell phone.
Not easy, by the way.

The language barrier between me and
Mr. Singh was no piece of cake either.

Once I convinced him I wasn't
going to shut down his store

he gave me his
surveillance video tapes.

- Is this poppy seed?
- Where is the video?

Abby's lab. Sorry, boss.
She's scanning the tapes now.

The phone was purchased with cash,

a week before Commander Tanner
disappeared.

Pause the tape.

[COMPUTER BEEPS]

That woman's got four phones
in her hands.

Zoom in, Abs.

[COMPUTER BEEPING]

Oh, yeah. The lips and the angle
of the chin, the curve of the neck.

Okay, we got it, Tony.
She's attractive.

It's Laura Osgood.
Frank Connell's assistant.

I'll make you a print.

I hate it when they do that.

[MACHINE WHIRRING]

[WHIRRING STOPS]

You bought phones connected
to a robbery, kidnapping and murder.

[PHONE BEEPS]

Her number matches several calls
on the kidnapper's phone.

You're done.

Only way to help yourself
is tell us everything you know.

I want a lawyer.

[SIGHS]

Commander Tanner's been gone
for 47 hours.

If he's not dead yet,
he soon will be.

Maybe we can convince her
to change her mind about the lawyer.

I can convince her
far more than that.

How long?

Not long.

McGee, are you thirsty?

Come on.
I'll buy you a cup of coffee.

[DOOR LOCK CLICKS]

[SCOOTER WHIRRS]

I don't want to know.

LAURA [SOFTLY]:
It was a three-man team.

I was on the inside.

I put a trace on Commander Tanner's
computer to get his passwords.

I planted the virus using his log-in.

Keep going, Laura.

Pazzo and Hirst grabbed Commander
Tanner to get the access code.

- Who set it up?
- I don't know.

We were contacted separately.

Money was wired. Instructions
e-mailed on an anonymous server.

Where is he?

Commander Tanner,
where is he being tortured?

That wasn't part of my assignment.

Please, they'll kill me.

[LAURA SNIFFLES]

It's a garage near Coleman Park.

[PHONE RINGING]

[PHONE BEEPS]

- Yeah?
MAN: Code checks out.

- Proceed as planned.
- All right. I'll go clean up.

[BANGING]

[YELLS]

[GUNSHOTS]

[YELLS]

[GRUNTING]

GIBBS:
Clear.

Commander Tanner.

- Zach?
- All right. He's safe. We've got him.

[GROANS]

They told me they had him.

If I didn't give them the code,
they'll kill him.

- You gave them the key?
- I had to.

They had my son.
They showed me proof.

What proof?

[G RUNTS]

Agent Gibbs?
What in the hell's going on?

[G RUNTS]

I'm not resisting.

Too bad.

I could have never hurt Zach.
It was strictly business.

We'll be sure to let him know that.

[CUFFS CLICKING]

Are you okay?

Iguess.

Commander Wilder was my dad's...

He was my friend, Gibbs.

I should have known.

I shouldn't have let him
fool me like that.

Zach, sometimes really bad people

are good at fooling you.

Anybody bad ever fool you?

Oh, yeah. More than once.

Someday I'm going to find them
and put them all in jail.

I believe you will.

TANNER:
Zach.

Dad. Daddy. Daddy.

You're all right.

I knew you'd never leave me.

- I'm all right. Everything's all right.
- I love you, Daddy.