Quotes
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Donald Mallard : It's a microscopic dart.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Where'd it come from?
Donald Mallard : I extracted it from Corporal Beck's arm here. This contusion alerted me to the injection site. The dart is designed to be left behind, beneath the dermis. It's so small, sharp, and thin that it would've felt like... well, nothing more than a bug bite.
Abby Sciuto : [entering] Botulinum toxin.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : What?
Abby Sciuto : He didn't ask yet?
Donald Mallard : Mere seconds away.
Abby Sciuto : My timing is off today.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Abs, what was in the dart?
Abby Sciuto : Now is when I'm supposed to swoosh in and say...
Donald Mallard : Botulinum toxin. The most poisonous natural substance known to man.
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Leroy Jethro Gibbs : What do we know, Duck?
Donald Mallard : Paramedics surmise heart attack.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Why call us?
Donald Mallard : Well, as you know, Jethro, in many military circles, having "seen the elephant" is a metaphor for having experienced combat. I was in Laos on exchange with the U.S. forces. That's where I actually saw an elephant. Yeah, it was transporting supplies for the North Vietnamese.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Does the elephant have a point?
Donald Mallard : Oh, yes. Often, there is more than one type of beast lurking in the jungle. First responders noticed foaming at Corporal Beck's mouth. That suggests there's more to this story than just a heart attack.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : [noticing a mark on the vic's shirt] That a coffee stain?
Donald Mallard : Well, it could be. Nothing is certain 'till I get him back to Autopsy.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Well, let's get him back.
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Abby Sciuto : Botulinum was the main ingredient, but the injection was a mixture of inhibitors...
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Abs, less words.
Abby Sciuto : Uh, it... has stuff in it that mask the symptoms of the poison.
Donald Mallard : So it hit all at once.
Abby Sciuto : Yeah, and it hit hard. I mean, there's people all over the Dark Web selling this kind of concoction, along with compressed-air guns to fire it into the skin. I mean, they only work at close range, but they're even selling silencers.
Donald Mallard : A discreet killing device in the palm of one's hand.
Abby Sciuto : Exactly. And there's no way to trace who's buying them.
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Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Same kind of dart as the one used in Corporal Beck?
Donald Mallard : Yes, the injection site was here. And Abby confirmed that the botulinum cocktail was once again the means to the end.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Time of death?
Donald Mallard : Approximately 8:00 this morning, which puts the injection some time in the two hours prior.
[seeing Gibbs' expression]
Donald Mallard : Ah, there it is, the classic Jethro look of query and frustration, mixed with a dash of "someone is gonna pay for this."
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Two victims, same M.O. The only connection is she calls the hotline and the corporal picks up.
Donald Mallard : Precisely, which begs the question "What was that call about?".
Leroy Jethro Gibbs : Precisely.
Donald Mallard : [to the victim as Gibbs leaves] Did you hear that? He used a three-syllable adverb. I daresay my years here have made an impact.
