NCIS began with a flashback to Gibbs’ first confrontation with Sergei Mishnev and the murder of Gibbs’ ex-wife, Diane. In the present day, two cops are driving along a road and discussing a lawyer and a judge who are apparently always flirting. They see a car in front of them weaving erratically and when they pull him over, they go to the car and see the driver has a bottle of bourbon on the console. The camera pans to show it’s Tobias Fornell.
Tobias has called Gibbs to bail him out the next day, hoping that of all the people he’d have to deal with, Gibbs wouldn’t lecture him too much. He tries to play off the bourbon has being the main reason for him driving like that, blaming beer and pain medication for a gunshot wound from Gibbs. Gibbs gets a phone call and hands Tobias his keys before leaving.
Gibbs arrives on a ship to see Director Vance, who tells him the team has arrived. An explosion occurred and they aren’t sure if it was just a gas leak, especially since there were international dignitaries for a summit on global terror. While Gibbs goes to see his team, Vance reminds him to continue thinking of this as being a gas leak.
Going down to the scene, Tony welcomes Gibbs as Tim tells him that six people were injured and Ellie tells him one female petty officer died. Gibbs doesn’t smell gas and they find a piece of a grenade that has Russian writing. He automatically believes it is Mishnev.
Gibbs thinks Vance could have been the target and the director tells him the Russian dignitary couldn’t come and that they sent Counselor Plavenko, the one they dealt with when Gibbs and Tim went missing in the premiere episode. Plavenko arrives late, asking about injuries and when he finds out they suspect Sergei, he informs them that he himself was the target.
Pavlenko tells Gibbs and Vance that he is being targeted because despite working with Sergei once, the man now views him as a traitor for helping Gibbs when the helicopter crashed, much to Gibbs’ annoyance since he wasn’t much help to begin with. Pavlenko says they are practically “golf buddies” to Sergei, with Gibbs mentioning that he doesn’t play, leading to a funny comment from Pavlenko. He asks Gibbs how he can prove that he only wants to help Gibbs, to which the agent tells him not to get in the way.
Ducky arrives to examine the body and when Gibbs asks for an update, he tells him that they are tired of Sergei. Tim tells Gibbs they got the other bomb fragments and he is ordered to get them to Abby. Gibbs ends up barking the order at him, making Tim move faster. Ellie tells Gibbs the victim is Petty Officer Third Class Katherine Gomez and Gibbs asks about interviews with the survivors, but they notice he is still acting more crass so Tony tells him they can handle the interviews. He gently tries to tell Gibbs that he is too close to the case and Ducky vehemently tells Gibbs that Tony is saying “take a breath, Jethro!” Before Gibbs can respond, his phone rings and the caller ID says ‘Diane Incoming.’ He knows it is Emily and she asks to see him.
Emily and Gibbs talk in the interview room. She tells him her dad is acting self-destructively and that she isn’t able to do much for him, especially since she has her own grief. He asks how she’s doing and she tells him some days are alright and some are not. She asks him to help her dad and he agrees. Emily is about to leave when she turns back to hug him.
Abby tells Tim about the grenade, which is a Russian RKG-3 antitank grenade and they still find them in places like Afghanistan and Iraq. She is going to do all she can to find where it came from and Tim gets a call from Tony that Gibbs is asking for an update. Tim tells Abby they just got back and she knows Gibbs is “on fire” based on what he told her, but he reveals that this is worse than she’s ever seen. She tells him emphatically they will get Sergei.
The team tells Gibbs that Gomez was setting up for catering at the time of the bombing and none of the survivors saw where the blast came from. None of them saw Sergei’s face either. They are surprised when Tobias comes in and they reluctantly keep going when he presses them about helping. But when they begin talking about a grenade, Tobias is suspicious and Gibbs tries to get him to leave, but not before Vance calls the both of them to his office.
Tobias wants in on the case, but Vance feels he is a danger to himself. He asks him to step out so he can talk to Gibbs, who tells him to listen if he wants a go at Sergei. Vance tells Gibbs they can’t cover for Tobias and he has to tell the FBI, but Gibbs tells him he will willingly walk away from his team to help his friend. Vance is surprised by this and Gibbs asks him to either trust him or put him on the bench.
Tobias wakes up in the car as they come to a stop. He asks Gibbs where they are and when he sees a cabin, he is shocked and upset. Tobias believed they were going after Sergei, but Gibbs says he never agreed to that. His friend thinks this is an intervention over his drinking. Gibbs pulls out two bottles of alcohol and tells him if he wants to drown, then Gibbs is coming too and they both take a sip of alcohol.
The next morning, the team discusses Gibbs’ whereabouts and Ellie suggests he could have left because of Tony’s suggestion and that he took it to heart that he was too close to the case. Tim’s theory is that Gibbs wouldn’t have left without a plan and he gets a call from the hospital that the two victims are awake and ready for an interview. Just as they are about to leave, Gibbs calls Tony’s phone and he asks where they are. He is surprised when he finds out they don’t know where he is and Tim hadn’t told them he already pinged their boss’ phone. They tell Gibbs they are still looking into the ships’ deliveries and were on their way to the hospital when they hear someone wretching (Fornell). Tony asks if he is choking someone and Gibbs tells them to call him after they finish the interviews. Tim asks about a plan, only to get the answer “Catch Sergei.”
Tobias asks who Gibbs was talking to as the latter chops wood. Gibbs isn’t too forthcoming and when Tobias asks about Emily, he informs him that his daughter is with friends. He hands Tobias an ax to chop wood since it is cold and probably not good for his “ass wound.” Gibbs goes to make coffee.
Tim interviews Frankie Boulos, whose father is with him. Frankie wasn’t Navy, but was setting up sound check equipment for officials who couldn’t attend the summit. He only remembered thinking a torpedo had hit the ship.
Tony interviews a female victim, who talks about Gomez being happy and that they were joking about eating pastries before the explosion. She inquires about Gomez’s parents since Katherine always talked about them. Ellie comes and gets Tony, who tells his co-workers how much he hates Sergei. Ellie and Tim agree, and she tells them she needs to vent. Jake just called her and informed her that apparently, Gibbs had asked Jake about the relationship between Russia and Palestine, as well as Pavlenko and Sergei. She wonders why he wouldn’t tell her and Tony figures Jake just now told her. Gibbs had called Jake to send them everything and they would know what to do. Ellie gets an email with a big file attached.
At the cabin, Tobias kicks up a chest to find the bourbon, but Gibbs dumped it. They still are getting nowhere and Tobias is still pretty upset. They have a tense talk, where Gibbs asks if he is not only done being an embarrassment to himself, but to his badge, before Tobias punches him in the face, only for Gibbs to ask if that is all he has in him. Tobias tries again, only for Gibbs to toss him out of the cabin. Gibbs tells Tobias he knows he blames him because he was the one who got Diane killed. However, Tobias tells him that he himself is the one to blame, not Gibbs.
Vance asks for an update regarding the intel from the NSA and the team tells him they just started. Tim finds information that Pavlenko and Sergei were college buddies and had gone their separate ways, with Sergei going into the drug trade in Afghanistan. Tony calls him a “sentimental, duplicitous creep.”
In an alley, Pavlenko meets with Sergei and tells him he has asked Russia to give him complete asylum in exchange for killing Gibbs. Sergei wants to know why he is suddenly helping him and Pavlenko reveals that Nelly Benin, the Russian defector, is actually alive. He tells Sergei he knows where Gibbs is so he can get the murder done today.
Back at the cabin, Tobias and Gibbs are fishing. Tobias talks about fishing when he was younger and that he should do it again. He gets a good sized fish and tells Gibbs he won’t share and they should get a fish for him.
Back at the lab, the team finds information that Sergei’s father was Russian and that his mother was a doctor who had roots in Palestine. As they hear this, Vance, Tony, and Tim all begin to realize what this means. Ellie is out of the loop and they tell her about Ziva having a half-brother. She knows the story of Ari Haswari and they tell her who Ari’s mother is and that it could be possible Ari and Sergei were half-brothers, which explains why he hates Gibbs. They wonder if they should tell Gibbs and Tim mentions he’d only be able to punch a bear. Tim gets a call from Abby, who asks which of them wants to be “Gibbs.” He tells her he is on his way.
Tobias and Gibbs begin talking about Diane and a table that Fornell tried to build. He tells Gibbs she liked the “manly man” stuff and Gibbs reminds him that she married him over and over. Tobias begins reeling his line in, saying one fish is enough.
Abby is telling Tim about the grenade fragments and while she didn’t find fingerprints, she does tell Gibbs and Vance the grenade had a detonator and that it could have been placed near or inside the sound equipment, making Tim wonder about Frankie Boulos.
Gibbs finishes cooking the fish but Tobias won’t eat. He reveals that he and Diane had a huge fight and he told her they were a mistake. She had called him the next day and left a voicemail, but he didn’t get back to her. It was why he wanted his phone back, which Gibbs had taken away. After giving the phone back, we hear the voicemail is Diane telling him that she doesn’t think they are a mistake and it turns out to be the last voicemail she ever sent him before she went to meet who she thought was Gibbs. Gibbs finds out the reason Tobias can’t forgive himself is because of the words he said to her. He wonders if Gibbs could do that, and he reveals that if he had a daughter, he could. Gibbs tells him he can show Diane through caring for Emily.
Tony, Ellie, and Tim wait for Frankie to wake up and they question him about knowing Sergei. However, he doesn’t recognize him, but when his father comes in, he drops a tray of food seeing the picture. He asks his son what he told the team and Tony goes to arrest him.
Tony calls Gibbs to tell him about the suspect, but his phone breaks up and Tobias wants to go. He got a wake up call from Gibbs and wants to see Emily. However, Gibbs tells him they aren’t leaving yet and Tobias is curious as Gibbs looks out the window.
Tony and Ellie interview the father as Vance and Tim watch. He informs them that he wanted nothing to do with Sergei, who he knew as a boy, and that the man came in wanting to deliver a package to the Navy since he knew they were under contract. He thought his son would be safe and then he surprises them by informing Tony and Ellie that Sergei asked him for a device that day that could jam cell-phone towers. Vance and Tim silently look at each other before Vance makes an urgent call to Gibbs hoping he’ll pick up.
Sergei stalks the cabin and makes his way inside to find Fornell alone. He tells Fornell he had only meant to harm Gibbs and when Fornell walks toward him, Sergei says he won’t hesitate to make his daughter an orphan. Fornell holds his hands up and when Sergei is about to shoot, Gibbs hits him over the head.
In the forest, Sergei wakes up and thinks Gibbs is there. But it is Fornell and Sergei tells him that he wants Gibbs since this doesn’t concern him and mentions his family tree. Fornell knows all about it though and he gives Sergei the option of surrendering or running. However, Sergei holds up his gun that’s in the holster so Fornell shoots him. Gibbs comes up and asks if he is feeling any better, and Fornell admits he is a little.
In the squad room, Vance tells Gibbs that Tony and Tim said Sergei is still dead. Fornell comes in and talks about wanting to have a hot dinner with his daughter, who comes in with Ellie. She gives her dad a hug after asking for sushi and they leave. Ellie goes home to have a talk with her husband. Vance asks Gibbs if there is anything he needs to know and Gibbs shakes his head.
At his house, Gibbs welcomes Pavlenko after he knocks on his door. Pavlenko had apparently worked with Gibbs against Sergei and had thought the man wouldn’t buy the story about Nelly’s death being a fake. They shake hands and Gibbs thanks him.
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