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Trust is Everything Chapter 13

"How can I help you Mr. Gibbs?" Tony asked in a monotone voice. His eyes and face were completely blank, showing no expression what-so-ever. No recognition, no happiness or anger or regret, just nothing at all. The only color to his pale face was a large purple and yellow hand print consuming the right half of his face; and an angry red mark that was about one and a half inches thick that went down the left side of his face, starting at his hairline and going over his eye until it reached his jaw.

"Tony…" Gibbs croaked out, an inexpressible sadness covering his voice as he felt his eyes start to water. He pulled Tony close to him, and bit his lip to the point of bleeding to stop a sob from escaping his mouth. He finally felt a few tears slide down his face when Tony was still completely unresponsive, even though Gibbs was practically crushing him against his chest. He hadn't cried since Shannon and Kelly, but he couldn't hold back the tears no matter how hard he tried. Someone had hurt his boy, and it was all his fault.

"What can I do for you Mr. Gibbs?" Tony repeated after Gibbs had finally released him.

"Tony, what happened to you?" Gibbs demanded, grabbing Tony's shoulders and shaking them slightly.

"Master Tony, who's at the door?" A man asked coming up behind him. When he saw Gibbs' face, his own darkened. "Who are you?"

"My name is Special Agent Gibbs, who are you?" He shot back, bringing Tony closer to him.

"Mr. Gibbs, this is Alden; Alden this is Mr. Gibbs." Tony introduced, stepping away from Gibbs and closer to Alden.

"So you're the one who let Tony get sent back here." The older man scowled, pulling Tony further inside. "I think it would be in everyone's best interest if you left us alone Mr. Gibbs." Alden said trying to close the door in Gibbs' face.

"Wait, please can I just talk to him for one second?" Gibbs asked, almost pleading as he put his foot in the doors path.

"Why? Why do you care?" Alden demanded, getting right in Gibbs' face and not backing down.

Gibbs was slightly taken back by Alden's open challenge. He had to hand it to the guy, he had guts. "Because I promised Tony that he could trust me, and I never break a promise. He saved my life, now I'm going to prove that it was for a reason." Gibbs said resolutely.

Alden searched his eyes for a while before nodding his head. "Five minutes." Was all he said before he opened the door enough to let Gibbs in, squeezed Tony's shoulder and walked away.

"Tony, is there somewhere we can go to talk?" Gibbs asked.

Tony looked at him for a second, and Gibbs could have sworn he saw a flash of something in his eyes, before he looked away and nodded. Tony led him down three different hallways, and Gibbs was disgusted by the over the top display of wealth. Finally stepping outside, he smiled up at the large oak tree growing over the house.

"Can you climb?" Tony asked quietly, stepping up to the ancient tree.

"Course I can." Gibbs scoffed stepping up to the first branch and hoisting himself up.

Tony just pulled himself up the same branch and climbed up past Gibbs as naturally as a monkey. Gibbs watched him climb up and smiled at him. To get that good, you had to have loads of climbing experience, he should know.

"This is pretty high up kid." Gibbs commented, once he had finally reached the branch Tony was on. Luckily it was a thick enough branch that it could easily support both of them.

"What do you want to talk about?" Tony asked, pulling his blue bean out of a cubby in the tree behind him and pulled it over his head, still keeping his head down.

Gibbs smiled when he saw Tony grab the familiar hat, at least he looked more like he used to when they first met. "Tony, you can still trust me. I want to get you out of here, get you somewhere you belong." Gibbs said trying to make eye contact.

Tony was silent.

"Please, Tony, at least say something to me." Gibbs pleaded, completely ignoring every rule he had and what he believed in about apologies. "I'm so sorry Tony, I never should have let them take you like that. Please, just say something!" Gibbs begged again.

Still nothing but silence.

"Damn it, say something! Say something Anthony!" Gibbs yelled, hoping that using his first name would evoke some kind of reaction.

And it did, just not the one he was hoping for. As soon as he heard his full first name, Tony's head snapped up and anger filled his previously blank face. The anger was quickly overpowered by loathing, and his whole face contorted with hatred. "Don't you ever, call me by that name." Tony said in a quiet and deadly voice.

"Why?" Gibbs asked, pushing in every way that he could now that he had finally gotten a response. "Why don't you want me calling you by your name? That's your name isn't it Anthony? Answer me Anthony!" Gibbs demanded.

"Don't!" Tony threatened, a fire starting behind his eyes and burning straight through Gibbs' own.

Gibbs was slightly taken back by the sudden flash of emotion on Tony's face. He went from emotionless to burning anger within a few seconds. Not only that, but the hatred on his face was so intense, it changed his entire face and demeanor. A few seconds before he was slouched and his face was softer, but now, his back and shoulders were ramrod straight and his face was harsh with disgust and his eyes could have melt a lesser man's soul. None the less, Gibbs just kept pushing. "Tell me why Anthony!" Gibbs yelled back.

"Because I'm not him!" Tony screamed, lashing out and pushing Gibbs square in the chest with his uninjured arm, forcing him backwards and off the branch.

Gibbs gasped as the air was forced from his lungs, and just barely managed to grab ahold of the branch before his body fell off completely.

Tony watched in shock and what seemed like slow motion as Gibbs fell backwards off the branch, just barely hanging on. Right as Gibbs' hand slipped, Tony reached forward and grabbed it, looking him in the eyes as Gibbs' hand closed tightly over his own.

Gibbs looked up at Tony and was happily surprised to find that the old Tony was back. Sure it came at the cost of almost falling out of a tree, but it was worth. He knew what Tony had done, he thought by shutting down his emotions that he wouldn't have to face reality. But he had brought him back, the real Tony, and that was all he could ask for.

"Gibbs, step on the branch below you." Tony instructed, struggling to keep Gibbs' grip.

Gibbs nodded, and carefully swung his body to the next branch, before climbing down the tree. Tony was quick to follow, and by the time he was standing next to the on the ground, his whole body was shaking. "I'm sorry." Tony mumbled, slumping back into the tree.

"Hey, it's fine." Gibbs said softly, going over to Tony and pulling him into a tight hug. "Everything's fine, it was my fault, I shouldn't have pushed you so far."

"Why do you care Gibbs? Why do you care about me or what happens to me?" Tony asked just above a whisper.

"Because you're an amazing person who's worth something Tony. Because you deserve to have a good life, one filled with happiness and love, not hatred and fear. Because I care about you for who you are Tony." Gibbs replied just as softly.

As soon as Gibbs was done talking, Tony's body started shaking harder. Soon the sound of heart wrenching sobs filled the air and Gibbs was practically holding Tony's entire body up. He was like a wet noodle in his arms, sobbing his heart out. Gibbs was broken by the sounds coming from the boy in his arms, and lowered both of them to the ground before pulling Tony into his lap, mindful of his shoulder.

Alden heard Tony crying almost immediately and ran to the windows overlooking the backyard. What he saw made him stop cold, but it was a good thing. He saw that federal agent with his arms wrapped around Tony, holding him closely and running his fingers through his hair in a calming motion. And Tony was clinging to him as if his life depended on it. Smiling to himself, Alden walked back to the book he was reading, and prayed that things would finally change for the better.

After a few more minutes of Tony crying, he finally pushed away from Gibbs and sat next to him, still keeping his head down. "I still don't get it."

"Don't get what Tony?" Gibbs asked quietly, ignoring the hurt he felt at Tony pushing him away.

"How can an almost complete stranger care about me, when my own parents wouldn't even give a second thought to seeing me dead?" He asked, looking up at Gibbs with heartbroken eyes. "How can you possibly care about me, when my own father told me the world would be better off if I was dead?"

And staring into those beautiful green eyes, that was when Gibbs saw the truth. All of Tony's life he had been told that he wasn't good enough, that he was nothing and everyone would be happier if he was gone. He didn't trust because he didn't know how. He didn't love because he didn't know what it truly meant. He had been torn down by the people who should have built him up, and he was slowly dying from the inside out.

And that was when Gibbs understood why he cared so much. He loved Tony. Somehow a rich kid turned street rat had wormed his way into his heart, and that was no small feat. He got loyalty because he didn't ask for it, he charmed people by being himself and being honest, and Gibbs loved him because he didn't ask for it. He could talk your ear off but still say the simplest things that just made everything better. He never gave up, he always kept fighting no matter what happened, and he had been standing on his own two feet longer than anyone his age did.

He was determined, intelligent, thoughtful and caring. He killed a man to save another's life, but still befriended an abused dog and gave a young girl a new chance at life. He was a paradox, but at his core he was still a good person, and was fighting to hang onto that core instead of conforming to the world. He was a fighter.

"People say things every day, doesn't make it true. They were wrong Tony. The world would be a much darker place without you, and people would care if you were gone. That's why I want to get you out of here, so that you can have a life you deserve." Gibbs told Tony, lifting his chin to look into his eyes.

"I won't fail you again Tony, I promise. And when I make a promise, it's never broken."

Tony sat there for a while, just staring into Gibbs' eyes. Quite honestly if felt like a soul search, and made him feel vulnerable, but Gibbs didn't mind. If that was what it took to get Tony to trust him again, than he would gladly do it a thousand times over.

"Tell me something." Tony finally said turning away and staring at the setting sun.

"What do you mean?" Gibbs asked cocking his head to the side.

"Tell me something that you've never told anyone, a secret." Tony said looking back into his eyes with a hard determination. He had that look back in his eyes, the 'don't you dare lie to me' look.

Gibbs swallowed at the look, and actually found it hard to return his gaze. It was as if Tony already knew everything about him, and was just waiting to see if he would lie to him. Damn, the kid would be a great interrogator. Gibbs thought absently. Steeling himself, he plowed ahead before he could change his mind. "I lost my family years ago, and I killed the man who did it. I followed him down to Mexico and put a bullet through his head."

Tony continued to stare at him, and Gibbs was shocked at the emotions on his face. He wasn't horrified or afraid, but understanding and surprisingly ok with it. "You trust me with something like that? Something that could destroy your career and put you in prison?"

"Yeah, I actually do." Gibbs answered truthfully.

Tony nodded, a sad look crossing his face. "My mom hung herself when I was seven, and I was the one who found the body. When I saw her, I screamed for my dad and when he saw her, he blamed me. I've never told anyone that. You know Benjamin Franklin once said that three people could keep a secret if two were dead. You make three, Gibbs. Let's hope Ben was wrong about that." Tony said standing and walking back inside, not waiting for Gibbs to follow him.

After a few more seconds of thinking, Gibbs followed Tony inside and found him standing by the door. "I'll help you Gibbs, but only to stop my father so that he doesn't hurt other people. We can talk about the specifics later, and bring Fornell with you. My father should be home soon, so you better get going." He said opening the door.

"Tony…" Gibbs started but left his sentence hanging, not sure of how to put his feelings into words.

"Don't Gibbs, we'll talk about it later. Just get out of here before he comes back." Tony said opening the door wider.

"Thank you for saving my life that day Tony." Gibbs said softly as he walked past him.

"Yeah, well let's just hope I didn't make a mistake." Tony said closing the door right as Gibbs turned around.

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