[MAN GRUNTS]
- Dang, you gain weight, Hill? - Oh, it's too much beer.
[HILL HICCUPS]
Puke on me and I'll leave you right here.
All right.
Adams?
Yo, Adams, come on, man.
Get up. You hear me?
Come on, man, I'm not gonna drag both y'all's sorry asses back to the ship.
Adams, come on, we're back by 0600.
[GASPS]
[WHISPERS] It's been over an hour and still not one word.
I know. It's heaven.
ZIVA: I'm worried, McGee.
What if he's sick?
He'd be whining. He always whines when he's sick.
You two really suck at whispering.
Believe it or not, I can hear you.
And I'm not sick.
Every once in a while, I just need to power down, be still.
Reflect on this little trip through the cosmic rip.
I need to find my deep calm.
- Yeah, he's sick. - [IN NORMAL VOICE] Yeah, heh.
Let's check for a fever.
What is this?
Last year's performance appraisal review, ha!
How did you get this?
The NCIS fairy left it under my pillow.
- What do you think? - You stole it?
Aah, ooh, McGee, Gibbs wrote something in the comment section.
"Agent DiNozzo displays exemplary skills,
heh, though he can be too talkative in the field."
If by "too talkative," he means you never shut up.
Heh. Well, I think Gibbs was being a bit too gracious.
After ten years, he doesn't know this is how I work?
I thought it was a mild case of Tourette's.
- Heh. - It's my process.
You guys know that.
It's how I focus, you know. I talk it out.
Talkative. Huh!
Coming from a functional mute, that's rich.
Maybe that's what he's...
Maybe that's what he's doing. He's trying to tell me something.
Maybe I should dial it back.
Get...
Get my quiet on. Ha!
I think you're, uh, overreacting a bit, Tony.
I'll kill the next performance appraisal.
Next time he writes down in his little margin here, "DiNozzo: Professional.
DiNozzo: Focused. DiNozzo..."
Too much yabba-yabba.
Sorry, boss, I was just...
Suppressing the "yabba."
Good. Grab your gear. Got a dead petty officer in Baltimore.
So now it's "too much yabba-yabba?" When did that happen?
In the womb, would be my guess.
ZIVA: Any chance we may bump into your old coworkers?
Or even Wendy, perhaps.
Wendy and I decided to leave it alone for now.
- Really? - Turns out OI' Blue Eyes was wrong.
Love isn't always lovelier the second time around.
In fact, it's kind of painful and strange.
GIBBS: Yabba. - Enough chitchat. Man's gotta work.
[SIREN WAILS]
[OFFICER SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY OVER RADIO]
GIBBS: McGee.
McGEE: Wallet was found near the body. No cash.
Victim is Caleb Adams, 23,
petty officer second class on the DD-350 Hagen,
a destroyer docked for liberty at Chesapeake Bay.
Check for surveillance in the area. Those two with him?
They found him this way. I'm still getting the details.
- Duck? - Abrasions on his hands and face
indicate the possibility of a fight,
which was ended by this single stab wound.
- Ugly. - That's it, Tony? Only one word?
No wisecracks about wayward sailors on shore leave?
No obscure On the Town references?
Is that a movie?
ZIVA: I understand that sailors often refer to this liberty
as their annual beer-and-crabs week.
Not those kind of crabs, Ziva.
Aah! There's the Tony we know and love.
Boss, Baltimore P.D.'s got a suspect in custody.
Got a 911 call about Petty Officer Adams
before the sailors found him.
Came from an auto repair shop two blocks away.
Said they found a mechanic there
trying to wash blood off his hands and jacket.
[POLICE SIREN WAILS]
OFFICER: Got the suspect's jacket.
TONY: Lot of blood, boss.
Is this your jacket?
Look, I'm being railroaded here.
What's your name?
Michael Thomas.
You got a lawyer to call, Mr. Thomas?
No, I wanna call someone else.
They've got this all wrong, Leon.
Just do what they say, Michael.
I'll take him to Processing.
Your wife's kid brother?
- He's my family too, Gibbs. - Then you'll be recusing yourself.
- For what reason? - He's a murder suspect, Leon.
Those are your rules, not mine.
I'm well aware, Gibbs, but as long as he's your suspect, I'm going too.
Gibbs, give us a minute.
Is that a problem?
All right, just tell me. Tell me you didn't do this.
Leon, no. I was just trying to help the guy.
And you didn't know Petty Officer Adams? You'd never met him?
Never seen him before this morning. Hand to God.
Look, the cops got it all wrong.
You know I would never do this. You gotta believe me.
You believe me, right?
- Yeah. - Ah.
But it's not me you need to worry about.
Oh, please, just don't tell Jackie.
And it's not your sister either.
Gibbs is my best agent.
Convince him. Tell him the truth.
Everything will be okay.
Minute's up.
No record. This your first arrest?
Yeah, first and only.
I'm a good person, Agent Gibbs. Ask Leon.
I'm not asking him. I'm asking you.
MICHAEL: I just meant he knows who I am.
He knows I'd never kill anybody.
GIBBS: Cops say they found you with blood on your hands.
Trying to stop that kid from bleeding to death.
You were acting skittish. You couldn't get your story straight.
They wouldn't let me talk. I tried to tell them what happened.
They wouldn't listen. They just assumed I was lying.
Okay.
I'm listening. Talk.
I was headed into work on 57th.
Today was my day to open up the shop so I took the 5 a.m. Bus into town.
Just got off and headed down State Street and that's when I heard...
It was awful.
Sounded like a dying animal.
And then I got to the corner.
And that's when I saw him.
And he was lying there on his side and, uh, there was all this blood and...
But he was still alive.
- What time was that? - It was just after 5:30.
Okay, then what?
Well, he reached out his hand, like he was asking for help.
And I tried to apply pressure to the wound.
It was too late. He was gone.
GIBBS: When did you call 911?
I called from my cell on the way to work.
About a quarter to 6.
GIBBS: You left him there?
MICHAEL: I felt bad, but I had to leave.
GIBBS: Man was dead? - Yeah.
My boss gets mad if I'm late.
I need this job, Agent Gibbs.
Did you tell the 911 operator that Petty Officer Adams was dead?
Gave them the location, my name, the address where I was at.
Any other witnesses there at the scene?
Just me. That's why I called as soon as I could.
I didn't wanna leave him out there alone.
You ever watch someone die?
Not me.
And now I can't stop seeing his face.
You know, his eyes.
I swear I'll never forget his eyes as long as I live.
MICHAEL [ON RECORDING]: He wasn't breathing. I saw him die.
There was blood.
- Oh, God. MAN: Okay, sir, calm down.
Tell me where he was. I need an address.
MICHAEL: In an alley off of 57th. You gotta send someone out there.
MAN: We will, but I need you to stay on the line with me, okay?
- Call came in at 5:47 this morning. - Tracks with Michael's account.
- Sounded upset. - Connection to the victim?
None that I can find. I searched e-mail accounts and phone records
for both Michael Thomas and Petty Officer Adams.
No communication between them.
Michael's boss said Adams was never a customer at the shop.
- Background. - Petty Officer Caleb Adams.
Joined the Navy right out of high school.
Had two overseas deployments and a spotless record.
CO called him a bright and hardworking man.
Assigned to the Hagen destroyer in 2010.
Adams was one of 215 sailors off the ship last night for liberty.
TONY: Tracking down others with him, but we do have this.
He called someone named Meredith Bilson five times in five hours.
The last call came in at 4:34 a.m.
That's an hour before his death. Location?
Manager at her last known address says she hasn't lived there in months.
[PHONE RINGS]
- Keep looking. What else? - Checking account shows one charge.
At Sposare's Pizza in Baltimore just before 3 a.m.
Pizza and beer. That's a hell of a last meal, right, bo...?
Go.
Boss, we may have a situation. That was the ship's commander.
All 215 sailors reported back for duty this morning.
All except Petty Officer Adams and this man:
[COMPUTER BEEPING]
Twenty-one-year-old Petty Officer Brian Smith from Virginia.
Maybe a second victim.
LEON: Or maybe involved.
- No way to know that yet. - Figure it out.
Go on.
MAN: Hey, I'm just grateful for this time of year.
Liberty Week, the sales almost double my regular day.
But you do not remember ever seeing Petty Officer Adams this morning?
No. It's a real shame about that kid, but, no, I never saw him.
I mean, heh, look around.
Not exactly easy telling them apart, you know.
I think it was Mae West who said:
"You've seen one sailor's anchor, you've seen them all."
No, I just kind of meant that it gets hectic in here, heh.
You know, all of them in here at once, a bunch of them all yelling for service.
Anyone get out of control? Start a fight?
No, nothing like that.
No, no. These are all good kids.
I never had any trouble.
Are you guys here about Caleb?
I'm Seaman Robert Epplund.
We're on the Hagen together.
You knew Petty Officer Adams?
We were friends, yeah.
I just found out what happened. I can't believe it.
He was doing fine when I saw him last night.
- What time was that? - Uh... Like 11 or so.
His crew was the first section off for liberty.
We were the second. He was in a great mood.
He was gonna see his girlfriend, like, totally in love with her.
Kept saying she was the one, heh.
The one's name wouldn't happen to be Meredith Bilson, would it?
Yeah, that's her.
Does she know?
- We'll stay in touch. Thank you. - Thanks.
The director has always been very protective of his family.
That should come as no surprise.
No, it's not just that. It's something else. Can't put my finger on it.
And you're worrying that whatever it is
may prevent the director from seeking the truth?
It's not him, doc. It's me.
Family or not.
- I gotta do my job. - You have news, Dr. Mallard?
- I was just about to brief Agent Gibbs. - Good. Let's hear it.
DUCKY: Well, as suspected,
Petty Officer Adams' death was caused by a single stab wound.
The knife perforated his spleen and stomach,
resulting in massive internal bleeding.
The angle of the blade suggests that he was attacked from the front.
- Straight on. - He was face-to-face with his killer.
- Knew the person. They were familiar. - Not necessarily.
Prints that we managed to lift from the body are being analyzed as we speak.
Was there anything unique about the weapon?
Not that I could see.
No, the edges of the wound were precise and clean,
with no evidence of a serrated blade.
Ms. Sciuto is performing further tests on the tissue.
- What about the bruises, Duck? DUCKY: Ah.
They're informative, actually.
They had begun to change color and that tells me
that the fight occurred several hours before his death.
He fought with someone other than his killer?
It's possible. It's also possible that the...
Killer came back to finish the job.
LEON: Thank you.
[BELL DINGS]
- Michael didn't do it, Gibbs. - I never said he did.
And despite my ties to him, I won't try and sway this investigation.
I never said that either.
[PHONE RINGS]
Hey, honey.
Yeah, I'm sorry I didn't call you back.
No, I don't think I'm gonna make it home for dinner.
Looks like it's gonna be a late one here tonight.
Yeah. No, no, everything's fine.
Just a lot going on.
Back-to-back meetings.
Yeah.
I love you too.
It's complicated.
Family, Leon.
Always is.
So you think my chattiness is annoying?
I think you asking me about your chattiness nonstop
for the past 20 minutes is annoying, yes.
Wanna know who else thought my chattiness was annoying? Wendy.
[ZIVA SCOFFS]
She said it made me sound nervous and insecure.
- Like that's even possible. - Stop it, Tony.
It was one little comment Gibbs made, okay? Nothing more.
And as for Wendy,
I believe you were right to turn the book on that relationship.
Turn the page. Close the book. But, yeah, I guess I was.
Oh.
- Meredith Bilson? - Who are you?
Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo.
This is Agent David, NCIS.
We need to talk to you about your boyfriend, Petty Officer Caleb Adams.
- Is something wrong? - May we come in?
Uh, I'm sorry. I can't right now.
MAN: Hey, Meredith.
- Petty Officer Brian Smith? - Yeah.
There's a whole ship full of people looking for you.
May wanna put a shirt on. You're coming with us.
Stay with her.
Stop!
[BRIAN PANTING]
[TONY GRUNTS]
- Look out! WOMEN: Oh, ugh.
TONY: I said stop!
[BOTH GRUNTING]
Hey, I know a dead guy with bruises just like yours.
Look at it.
Oh, is that a little tough to look at? Here, how about this one?
Maybe a closer shot.
I didn't do that. It wasn't me.
Says the guy who just ran two blocks to get away.
- I can explain everything, all right? - Oh, you can?
Well, thank goodness for that.
Because finding you in the dead guy's girlfriend's apartment
with your pants around your ankles doesn't exactly scream innocent.
In my business, it's called motive.
Think I killed him for Meredith?
People kill for a lot less.
I woke up around 6 and Brian was pounding on my door.
Said he and Caleb got into a fight.
Was that fight about you?
I didn't wanna tell Caleb over the phone,
but he called right after he got off the ship and he wanted to come over.
I said no.
- What time was that? - Just after 11:30, I think.
I told him I was sorry.
I didn't mean to hurt him, but I couldn't help how I felt.
I told him I was in love with Brian.
And he...
...Iost it.
Next thing I know, Caleb's dragging me behind some store.
Starts pounding on me.
I fought back a little bit and finally I pushed him off me.
Then I ran.
Never saw him again.
Then where'd you go?
Walked around for a while, cleared my head.
Got to Meredith's around 6.
That was seven hours after the fight.
You just walked around clearing your head?
Caleb was my best friend, all right?
I would never hurt him.
We grew up together. Went fishing every weekend.
We were practically brothers.
Look, I know I'm a bad person for betraying Caleb that way.
But I didn't kill him.
The last time Caleb called, he was rambling,
saying that he was gonna win me back, buy me a ring.
He sounded so out of it.
He was slurring like he'd been drinking.
Caleb hardly ever drank.
And that was the last time you spoke?
I can't believe I'm never gonna hear his voice again.
Meredith, look at me.
Do you think Brian killed Caleb?
No, of course not.
But...
I washed it.
- What? - Brian's shirt.
There was a lot of blood.
I asked him if it was from the fight.
He wouldn't answer me.
I got scared.
He was acting so crazy. I didn't know what to do.
I washed it.
I'm so sorry.
Doesn't look good for our shirtless wonder.
His alibi is definitely shaky,
but we also cannot ignore the fact that she washed his bloody shirt.
- To be young and in love. - Ah.
McGee, any surveillance video from near the crime scene yet?
No, but I got something else. Come here.
It's about Michael Thomas and it's not good.
Oh, as if Gibbs isn't in a tough enough place with the director.
Turns out that Michael has a record as a juvenile.
I got a hit on a charge in Maryland from 1996. Records were sealed.
Come on, let's not panic, okay?
Kids do stupid stuff. May not mean anything.
- Well, it depends on the charge. - Assault with a deadly weapon.
[ZIVA GRUNTS]
Well, that goes beyond stupid.
Agent Gibbs. Is Leon coming too?
Assault with a deadly weapon?
You left that one out the last time we talked.
Uh...
Well, I was just a dumb kid who didn't know any better.
I mean, it wasn't that big of a deal.
You put someone in the hospital. I'd say that was a big deal.
What's this got to do with anything?
One, you lied to me. Two, you have the potential for violence.
Yeah, when I was 14 years old.
Look, I admit, I had some tough times as a kid, you know.
And I made a mistake. I lashed out.
But I learned from it and I moved on. It never happened again.
- What else don't I know? - I told you everything, Agent Gibbs.
I didn't do this. Why can't you just accept that?
Because a young man is dead and I can't accept anything yet.
All right, that's enough.
Michael, don't say another word.
You should be focusing your energy on real evidence.
- Real suspects. - Michael is a suspect.
The person you need to be worried about is Petty Officer Brian Smith.
UA after the crime, fight with the victim...
I thought you were gonna let me do my job.
I'm not satisfied with the job you're doing.
- It's not about me. You know that. - I'm not just gonna stand by
and let you grill him about something that happened 16 years ago.
He lied to me, Leon. What's more important is you let him.
That's not true. His records were sealed.
It still matters.
I told you it was complicated.
More than complicated.
Why the kid gloves?
LEON: Stand down.
Michael was 8 when Jackie and I met.
Both parents passed away.
The kid was struggling.
I filled a void. I tried to steer him right.
Leon, it's tough taking things like that on.
Yeah, and it wasn't always easy.
But I got him into private school.
I got him into counseling.
He was lost for a long time, Gibbs, and now he's finally finding his way.
And the last thing he needs is people giving up on him.
- People like you? - Yeah.
I've come a long way with him.
I'm not about to give up on him now.
[PHONE RINGS]
ABBY [OVER PHONE]: Gibbs. - Yeah, Abby, I'm on my way.
- Talk to me, Abs. - Hi.
Wow, Director Vance. What a surprise.
I mean, not like a surprise.
I mean, I know you have a special interest in this case
because your family member is involved.
No, that is not what I meant.
I am sure that your brother-in-law isn't involved in anything at all.
LEON: Ms. Sciuto,
just proceed as if this were any other case.
Of course. Yes, sir.
So we know that the killer struck Petty Officer Adams hard and fast.
The wound is 4 inches in length and 5 inches in depth.
The knife was stuck in once to the abdomen.
The killer thrust it in deep and then tilted it up and pulled it out.
- What's the weapon? - A 5-inch boning knife like this one.
It's the favorite of avid fishermen everywhere.
The wound pattern matches the blade's design.
But that's not all that matches.
The only prints on the body belong to none other than...
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
LEON: Petty Officer Brian Smith.
You have your guy.
That's a good thing, right?
Hey, DiNozzo.
Search Petty Officer Smith's belongings.
[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]
The weapon's a fishing knife.
I want Michael released into my custody.
You need to keep him close, Leon.
I'm taking him home tonight.
[RACING SOUNDS PLAYING ON TV]
Hey, Dad.
All right, kids, that's enough of that for now.
Somebody here wants to say hello.
- Hey. - Uncle Michael.
Ha, ha. What's up, man?
Unh, unh! Poof!
Wow, my favorite little kids are not so little anymore.
- Are you staying long this time? - He's not staying.
Kayla, Jared, go get ready for bed.
I'll be there in a minute.
I want him out of my house now.
The only time you ever go over my head
- is because of Michael. LEON: Calm down.
JACKIE: What problem are you bailing him out of now?
- It was a misunderstanding. - Always is.
He was trying to do the right thing.
He ended up a murder suspect.
- A murder suspect? - We have the killer in custody.
- He didn't do it. - Of course he didn't.
But how does he get into these messes in the first place?
With you dragged into it?
- This is different. - Is it?
His whole life's been one bad decision after another,
knowing you're gonna be there to save the day.
People change.
JACKIE: You have fathered him long enough.
When are you gonna let him stand up on his own two feet?
He's getting ready to open a repair shop, Jackie.
His repair shop.
And two years ago, he was gonna finish college.
A year before that, he was selling that miracle drink.
Well, at least he's trying, Jackie.
He's come a long way from where he was.
You do not need to remind me where he was.
You know that I love him and I always will.
And I have to let him go. And I just... I don't...
I just wish you would too, you know?
Why do I have to be married to such a good man?
[LEON CHUCKLES]
Who I'm still mad at.
He will just stay the night, Jackie.
- And he's out by morning. - Yes.
GIBBS: Abs?
- Abby. - Gibbs.
[GRUNTS]
Unh, sorry I woke you.
I woke you.
I woke you first when I called you.
You spent the night here?
Yeah, Tony found the knife in question in Petty Officer Smith's sea bag.
And I kind of got on a roll testing it
and the next thing I knew, the sun was coming up.
- Was it worth it? - Totally.
I mean, even through my little windows, the light was just gorgeous.
Abs, I haven't had my coffee yet.
Ooh, right. The knife.
So it tested positive for blood, but in the trout family.
These scales that are lodged in the handle suggest rainbow or steelhead.
No blood from Adams. Means Petty Officer Smith
- wasn't our killer. - But somebody is.
And, you know, it's probably somebody that we don't even know yet.
Or someone we do.
Abs, you stayed here overnight trying to clear Vance's brother-in-law?
Well, the director's like family.
I mean, you'd want me to do the same for you.
Tox results.
ABBY: Low doses of methaqualone.
Downers. Ludes. Disco biscuits.
Very retro, but making a comeback.
It was just enough to impair Petty Officer Adams' motor skills.
I mean, these babies can increase your sex drive,
but it also can cause drowsiness and slurred speech,
low heart rate, vomiting.
Ah, well, so much for the sex part.
So the question is who slipped it to him, and where?
Well, test everyone who was on liberty that night.
- Can I borrow McGee to help? - Absolutely.
[ALL LAUGH]
And I swear, your grandma got these crazy eyes
and took off after your mom like a cat chasing a mouse.
- Ooh, I can still see them eyes. MICHAEL: Oh.
- Would Grandma have chased us? - Yeah, she sure would have.
No, she'd be spoiling you guys every chance she got. Right, Jack?
Yes, Michael, she would.
Hey, thanks for letting me stay.
- Well, the kids miss seeing you. - I miss them.
Just gonna let the old man sleep through the party, huh?
Uncle Mike's got great stories, Dad.
- You finish your paper? BOY: Yep.
- Nine whole pages, single-spaced. - Nice.
Uncle Mike fixed the dishwasher.
- Oh, just a loose valve. No big deal. - Well, I appreciate that, Mr. Fix-It.
But let's go. It's my day to drop the kids off at school.
- Can Uncle Mike come? - Well, he's coming to work with me,
so I guess that's the plan, if that's still the plan.
Up to you.
There are a few things around here that need repairing.
All right, kids, go get your things for school. I'll be at the car.
- Michael. BOY: I call front seat.
GIRL: Come on, my turn, Jared. You had it yesterday.
Now, you're released into my custody until this case is solved, Michael.
So if I let you stay, you do understand, you can't leave.
Yeah, of course. I'll do whatever you want.
That's the least I owe you.
And listen, I'm, uh...
I'm sorry again for putting you through this.
After today, this is all behind us.
And you can get back to focusing on your repair shop.
- You find a space? - Got a few I'm looking at.
I'm gonna pay you back every dime, you know. With interest.
And free repairs for life.
Hey, tell your man Gibbs I'll miss him.
You lay off Special Agent Gibbs. This hasn't been easy on him.
Eh, I don't like the way he looks at me.
[CHUCKLES]
He looks at everybody like that.
Where is he, Leon?
According to my morning brief, you recovered a knife from the suspect.
It came back negative. It's not our weapon.
- Then what next? - Could Michael be a flight risk?
LEON: He's with his sister. He's not about to fly anywhere.
Agents David, DiNozzo, anything?
Abby found drugs in Petty Officer Adams' system
that probably impaired him before he died.
Abby and McGee are testing sailors to see...
[PHONE RINGS]
- There they are. Video conference. - Ziva, put it up.
Hi, Ziva... Whoa, hi, everybody.
What's the latest?
Out of 215 sailors on shore leave,
three of them tested positive for some kind of sedative.
ABBY: Too soon to know if it was the same drug,
but if I was a betting man...
Interview them there. Find out if any of them were with Adams before he died.
McGEE: On it, boss. - Over and out.
I love to say that, heh.
All right, keep me in the loop.
Like I could keep you out of it, Leon.
I was in this bar.
You know, having fun, but thinking about where to head next.
A bunch of guys were heading to this, you know,
gentlemen's club across town.
- Go on. - Well, we hear this guy
just bragging about how he just won a ton of cash playing blackjack.
I'd never been to Vegas, much less a casino,
so I figured, what the hell? Let's make it rain.
Bad idea, huh?
I lost every dime of liberty pay inside an hour.
- Who was this guy? - Who knows?
Actually, I heard it from a friend who heard it from somebody else.
The night was a blur.
I swear, that's the last time I ever gamble this messed up.
- Where was this casino? - It wasn't a casino.
It was in a crappy little game in the back of a pizza place.
Hey, NCIS is back.
How many slices can I get you, gentlemen?
Where's the game?
Whoa, you can't go back there.
[ALL GASP]
NCIS.
Do not move.
Okay, look, I admit to hosting the game.
But it was all in good fun.
I mean, all this nonsense about drugging anybody, that's just crazy.
Found this in the cabinet next to the oregano.
Try again.
All right, what can I say?
I'm not proud.
But times are tough.
I mean, who doesn't need a little extra cash?
Cash? Off the backs of young sailors
serving their country on liberty in a crooked game?
Hey, the game itself is not crooked.
We deal straight. There ain't no sleight of hand here.
Just a little shot of this crap to give you the edge.
Heh! What?
They don't comp drinks in Vegas?
You're not Vegas, Marty. This is a drug. It's not a drink.
- This kid died playing your game. - Oh, no. No way.
One of these pills, it'll make you woozy.
But it never killed anybody.
Never.
Tell me about that night.
Ugh, the kid was breaking our hearts,
telling us about his girlfriend dumping him.
You know, saying how much he had to win
in order to buy her an engagement ring.
We kept saying that he should just forget about her,
but, no, he just kept playing.
Until you stole all his money.
I thought about giving some of it back.
Yeah, that's right.
But then that kid, he just went nuts.
Flipped the table over and he just ran out.
- Where? - How should I know?
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
Hate to break rule 22, boss, but his lawyer's here.
Then I'm done talking.
Oops.
Got the same story from the blackjack dealer.
If what he says is even half true,
Petty Officer Adams could have left that game
and picked a fight with the first person that he saw.
Could be anyone.
Thoughts?
Well, with no security cameras at the pizzeria,
Ziva and McGee are checking neighboring stores.
Yeah, I know that. I asked you your thoughts.
My thoughts?
I thought you didn't like my process. My yabba-yabba.
Doesn't mean I don't depend on it.
Oh.
Well, in that case, pizza guys are slimeballs.
Thin crust beats deep dish every time.
And every suspect in this case has an answer for everything,
- but one of them's gotta be lying. - Yeah? Which one?
I don't know. It's gonna take a little more yabba-yabba.
Good.
Go help Ziva and McGee.
I gotta see a lady about a card game.
- Anything, Abs? - Four decks scanned, two to go.
Naturally there's no shortage of fingerprints.
GIBBS: IDs? - Mostly sailors.
And the blackjack dealer, of course. He touched every card.
You know, it would help to know if I was looking for someone specifically.
Yeah.
Just keep looking.
That the best you got, McGee?
Well, the only surveillance of the pizzeria
was from a rooftop across the street.
Lucky us, all the video files were corrupted.
ZIVA: But we believe this is Petty Officer Adams,
based on the time he's seen leaving the pizzeria
and the direction he's headed.
- Anyone else? - There's this man.
Left a few frames before.
Who is he?
Well, we still don't have a clear shot of his face yet, director.
Wait. In the window. Is that a reflection?
Enhance it, McGee.
ZIVA: He appears to be a civilian.
The sailor said a guy bragged to him about winning money.
TONY: A ton of it. Only he was too impaired to remember who it was.
ZIVA: The game was rigged.
- No one won a ton of money. - That would make that winner a shill.
Somebody who's in on the con, lying to recruit players.
It's as good as it gets, boss.
ABBY: Gibbs, Gibbs, Gibbs.
- Director. - Abs, what?
I got a hit on the prints.
The person is in NCIS custody.
Leon.
[RACING SOUNDS PLAYING ON TV]
MICHAEL: You're cheating. How do you brake?
[ALL CHUCKLE]
Oh, man. I know that look.
Hey, homework starts as soon as they're done kicking my butt.
Babe, I didn't see the harm. Dinner's almost ready.
You and the kids can start it without us.
Come on. Come on, come on.
Uh...
It's my fault, not theirs, you know.
I pushed them into playing.
Yeah, you're good at that.
Why'd you do it?
The card game.
The kid you found dying in the street.
How about not lying to me for once in your life?
I was trying to get out from under.
These guys, they had my money.
Whose money? The money for the shop?
The money you loaned me, it wasn't enough.
Well, I thought maybe if I can double it, maybe triple it...
Behind a pizza place?
A small outfit like that, I couldn't believe I lost it all.
Couldn't ask you for more, so they made me a deal.
Bring some fresh meat to the table and I can get you your money back.
Why, Michael? Why?
You were doing so good.
I tried to make it right, Leon.
On my own two feet.
But watching that poor kid lose his last dime...
I couldn't take it. I got out of there.
And he came after you.
Yeah, he blamed me for, uh, bringing him into the game.
He said I ruined his life,
ruined his chances of ever getting back with his girl.
Then he pulled a knife, you know, he came at me hard.
I tried to get away, but he just kept coming at me, you know.
Everything happened so fast, Leon.
Next thing I know, he's...
He's face down and the knife's in my hand.
It was an accident.
I didn't mean to kill him.
- But you did. - Yeah, I know.
Believe me, I know. I watched him die right in front of me.
But I'm gonna spend the rest of my life making up for it.
You know? If you can help me out,
I promise I'm gonna make it up to you and the whole damn world.
Hand to God.
I will.
I will help you, Michael.
More than I've ever helped you before.
JACKIE: No, please.
Not in the house.
I'm sorry, Jackie.
Me too, Mike.
I was so close with him, Gibbs.
- He was becoming a good man. - It's not your fault.
You didn't fail, Leon.
It's just time to let go.
When's Uncle Mike coming back?
Not for a while, son.
Come on, kids. Let's leave your dad be for a few minutes.
Oh, boy.
[WHIMPERS]
I'm sorry I played Xbox before doing my homework.
But it wasn't Uncle Mike's fault.
I know, son. It's okay.
Jared?
Will you show me how to play this?
- Sure, Dad. - Come here.