"Magnet for Disaster"- An "NCIS"/ Stephanie Plum Crossover Fan-Fic

By: Betherick1985

Summary: When Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo traces a missing Marine's brother to Trenton, N.J., he goes there to follow-up with the local police. Upon arrival, he finds out the Marine's brother has failed to appear for court, and local bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is assigned to find him. These two must work together to find both siblings before it's too late. Set in Season 7, between "Jack-Knife" and "Mother's Day". Involves a mix of the "NCIS" crew, as well as characters from the "Stephanie Plum" books, by Janet Evanovich.

Rating: T (for action, language, innuendo)

Characters: Tony D., Stephanie P., Leroy Jethro Gibbs

Disclaimer: I do not own "NCIS", except for the DVD's! Nor do I own the "Stephanie Plum" series- just a few of the books.

A/N: The idea came to me to mix these characters and stories together while I was doing "Inconceivable". The "Stephanie Plum" novels appeal to me for the same reason "NCIS" does: great characters, good ol' crime solving, and just really funny and entertaining! If haven't read the books, check 'em out! Read, review, and enjoy!

Chapter 1

Twenty-four hours. That is the amount of time NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs and his team had been working on the case of missing Marine Lance Corporal Vanessa Mancini. She had gone off on a seventy-two hour leave, and hadn't come back to Quantico, where she was currently stationed. As far as Gibbs and his team could tell, there was no logical reason for her to abandon her duties.

Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo had tracked her movements up until she went UA. Lance Corporal Mancini was headed to Trenton, New Jersey to visit her brother, Gabriel Mancini. Tony had gotten to work early- a rarity for him- and worked through the brother's background. As of that morning, he was due in court in a couple hours. Gabriel had been arrested for possession of stolen property, and Tony had called the police station to confirm his findings.

"So if I wanted you to hold him, so that I could interview him, you would do that?" Tony asked.

"Of course," the desk sergeant replied. "I'm Sergeant White, by the way."

"I'll be there in a few hours," Tony told him, and hung up. Gibbs had just entered, followed by Special Agents Timothy McGee and Ziva David.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs greeted, as Tim and Ziva tried to hide their surprise. "Sounds like you've found something."

"Sure have, Boss," Tony replied. "Lance Corporal Mancini's brother is scheduled for a court appearance today. I talked to the police, and they're going to hold him at the station, so that I can interview him."

Gibbs glared at him.

"That is, if you'll let me go," Tony sheepishly added. "Honestly, Boss, considering that she was going to visit the guy, he's likely our best lead."

Gibbs was silent for a beat, then motioned to the elevator. "Go on, DiNozzo."

"Thanks, Boss." Tony stood up.

"Stay in touch," Gibbs ordered. " Call me when you get there."

"Of course."

"And don't screw this up," he told him.

"You got it, Boss," Tony replied, as the elevator doors closed.

~*NCIS*~

Four hours later, courtesy of his GPS navigation system, Tony arrived at the Trenton police station. The building was solid brick, and perfectly located in one of the more crime-ridden areas of the city. Tony parked in one of the empty cop car spaces, locked his doors, and headed to the front desk.

"Excuse me," Tony asked, "Are you Sergeant White?"

"I am," he replied, looking up. "Who wants to know?"

"I'm Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, NCIS." He flipped open his I.D., and showed his badge. "We spoke on the phone."

"Oh, yes," White replied. "Let me see where we're keeping Gabriel Mancini, and I'll escort you to him." He began to type on his computer, searching for Mancini's records. His eyes narrowed, and he frowned. "Oh, crap."

"What's wrong, Sergeant White?" Tony asked, growing somewhat impatient.

"It seems our department's computers had some… issues this morning," he nervously explained. "The records now show that Gabriel Mancini was scheduled for court yesterday, and he failed to appear."

Tony folded his arms, pissed off with himself. He had forgotten one of Gibbs' most important rules- don't believe what you're told; double check. Crap, Tony thought to himself. When Gibbs finds out, he's gonna kill me.

A man with short dark hair, dressed in a blue button-down shirt and jeans, walked over toward the desk. "Is there a problem here?" he asked the sergeant.

"This is Special Agent DiNozzo, from NCIS," White said, then turned to Tony. "This is Detective Morelli."

Morelli stuck his hand out. "Joe, please."

Tony shook his hand, and replied, "Tony. Nice to meet you."

"What brings a fed to Trenton?" Joe asked.

"I was told you had a man named Gabriel Mancini in custody," Tony explained. "His sister, a Marine Lance Corporal, has gone UA, and I had planned to interview him after his court appearance. I was misinformed, however- apparently, his court date was yesterday, and he didn't show."

"He's FTA," Joe concluded. "Failed to appear. Sergeant White, who put up the bond to release him after he was arrested?"

"Just a sec, Joe," White replied. "Looks like it was Vincent Plum Bail Bonds."

"Crap," Joe muttered. "I should've known."

"I'm assuming you're familiar with them?" Tony asked.

"Yeah," Joe replied. "My girlfriend, Stephanie, works for him. Since Mancini is FTA, Vinnie has to have one of his bond enforcement agents find him, and get him rescheduled for court. Your best bet would be to work with them, and hope they find him. His case file is with them."

"Sounds fair," Tony replied. "Where exactly is this bail bonds agency?"

"You can follow me there," Joe told him, "But I'd recommend ditching the jacket and tie first. Everyone here will peg you for a fed, and no one here talks to feds. Hell, they barely talk to me."

"Noted," Tony replied.

~*NCIS*~

Stephanie Plum stepped into the office, and collapsed onto the couch. "Connie, I need another pair of handcuffs," she said.

Connie Rosolli, Vinnie's office manager and junkyard dog, looked up from her stack of files. "Again?" she asked. "That's your second pair this week!"

"It's that damn Danny Tripp," Lula, the office file clerk and occasional assistant to Stephanie said, as she entered the office. "He's a wily little bugger."

Connie stood up, and went to the back store room. "Here you go, Steph." She handed a fresh pair of cuffs, along with a file. "I've got a new FTA for you, too. Gabriel Mancini. Wanted for possession of stolen property. Didn't show up for court yesterday, so you gotta find him."

Lula looked over Stephanie's shoulder. "A first-timer, huh? Should be pretty easy."

"Not quite," a male voice replied. The three women looked up, and found Joe Morelli standing by the entrance, with a man they didn't recognize. Stephanie smiled- anytime Joe showed up, the temperature went up about ten degrees. Stephanie stood up, and gave Joe a peck on the cheek. "Hey."

"Hey, Cupcake," he replied, then moved toward Connie's desk. "Mancini is not just a FTA." He motioned to Tony. "This is Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, from NCIS."

"NCIS?" Lula asked. "Is that like 'CSI'?"

Only if you're dyslexic, he thought to himself. "Gabriel Mancini's sister, Vanessa Mancini, is a marine that has gone missing," he explained. "I'm hoping you all will help me find him, so I can find out what he knows."

They all nodded, taking in the sight of the special agent. Stephanie could see that he was a couple inches taller than Joe, with brown hair and intense green eyes, dressed in black slacks and a gray button- down shirt. Not to mention the gun and badge attached to his right hip. Definitely older than Joe, she thought to herself- probably in his late thirties.

Tony took in the sight of the Stephanie and her co-workers. Stephanie was relatively pretty, with curly brown hair pulled back into a ponytail and blue eyes, clad in jeans, sneakers, and a stretchy red v-neck t-shirt. About thirty years old, he guessed. However, the other two looked… unique. Connie was large-chested, with teased dark curly hair to match her Jersey attitude, and an upper lip in need of bleaching. Lula had dyed blonde hair, chocolate skin, and just enough clothing on her plus- size frame to not be arrested for indecent exposure.

"We'd be glad to help out," Connie told him. "I'm Vinnie's office manager, Connie Rosolli." She stuck her hand. "And this here's Lula, our file clerk."

"Nice to meet you," he said as he shook their hands.

"I'm Stephanie Plum," Steph said, shaking Tony's hand. "I'm one of the Bond Enforcement Agents, or BEA's."

"Nice to meet you, Stephanie," he replied. "You can call me Anthony, or Tony." He looked down at the file. "So that's Gabriel Mancini's file?"

"Yeah," she replied. "Should have everything we need to find him- address, work history, car and license plate number."

Tony looked around, and asked, "Is there a bathroom I could use?"

"Sure," Lula replied. "It's the second door, before the store room."

"Thanks." Tony walked past them, and they heard the door close.

"I have to get going," Joe told the ladies. "Stephanie, will you let him tag along while you're looking for Mancini?"

"Sure," she replied. "Can't be any worse than Lula riding shotgun with me."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lula asked. "Don't I protect your skinny behind?"

"You get a 'A' for effort," Stephanie told her, "but sometimes you cause more trouble than getting me out of it."

"Your face," Lula retorted. "I'd be more than happy to go back to filing until Agent DiNozzo leaves."

"Then it's settled," Joe said, leaning over to kiss Stephanie. "I'll call you later, and check in." He headed to his SUV, and drove off.

"That man is fine as heck," Lula exclaimed, "but he's still a cop, and cops give me the willies. Now we've got a fed into the mix. A cute one, but still."

Stephanie nodded understandingly. When she had started working for her cousin, Lula had been a hooker, working a street corner in a bad neighborhood. While her profession had changed, her wardrobe and attitude toward law enforcement had not. "If you don't want to work this case with me, I understand," she told her friend.

Tony emerged from the bathroom. "Where'd Joe go?" he asked.

"He had to go back to work," Stephanie replied. "You're working with me now."

Tony smiled. "I can deal with that. So, where do we start?"

~*NCIS*~