Maria Bello: Jack Sloane

Handle with Care

Jack Sloane

John Ross: You know, I had a, uh, great-great-grandfather, I-I don't know how many "greats", but he was named after George Washington at the request of George Washington himself.
Jack Sloane: That is impressive.
John Ross: My family's been fighting for this country since it was founded. Where'd you serve?
Jack Sloane: Who said I served?
John Ross: You called your coffee "battery acid", so...
Jack Sloane: Ah. Dead giveaway, huh? Afghanistan.
John Ross: Oh. That's a... that's a tough part of the world for a woman.
Jack Sloane: Tough part for anybody.

Jack Sloane: I see a lot of anger hiding behind that happy face of yours. Bottling up what happened to you is dangerous. You get that?
John Ross: And how would you know?
Jack Sloane: 'Cause it happened to me, too, okay? Nine months. They wanted Army intel. I never said a word. Screamed a bit.
John Ross: I'm... I'm so sorry.
Jack Sloane: I don't know if you had this, but it was like... they kept moving me around. So I-I didn't know how long I'd been there or where I was.

John Ross: My problem isn't what happened to me over there. I've... come to terms with that. It's the life they took away from me over here.
Jack Sloane: What... what do you mean by that?
John Ross: I had a girlfriend when I got sent to Iran. She was more than a girlfriend. She was... she was really special.
Jack Sloane: What was her name?
John Ross: Clara. A few weeks into the mission, before we left base, I got a letter from her saying she was pregnant with our child. And, uh... I was thrilled. My life was all lined up. And I was gonna ask her to marry me the second I set foot back on American soil. But then... everything changed.

John Ross: You know, they held me for five years. And after two rescue attempts went south and my captors cut off all communications... uh, everybody thought I was dead.
Jack Sloane: So she moved on.
John Ross: When I got back, she had a new husband, and my daughter had a father that she believed to be her own. I made her mother promise to never tell her. I mean, I-I just... I was in no shape to be a dad. They... they had to move on. I was a... I was a broken man for quite a while. You know, in a lot of ways, I still am. I th... thought I was better at hiding it.

Leon Vance: What do you mean Ross seemed off?
Jack Sloane: Oh. It was sad. He seemed really scared.
Leon Vance: You think he sent that package?
Jack Sloane: Not sure.
Leon Vance: Sounds like there's a "but" in there.
Jack Sloane: Well, I did some digging. Ross has a checkered past.
Leon Vance: How so?
Jack Sloane: He had some violent outbursts after his rescue in Iran; a bar fight in '85, road rage in '87. Fired from several jobs.
Leon Vance: Sounds familiar.
Jack Sloane: Well, when he came back, they didn't have the same sort of psychiatric support system they do now. They barely knew what PTSD was back then.
Leon Vance: So you think he may be unstable?
Jack Sloane: Uh, I-I don't know. Uh, I-I'd like to meet with him somewhere where he feels safe. Could get a better read.
Leon Vance: All right, but do it quickly. There's a hold on all care packages to the military 'till this gets sorted out.

John Ross: How do you take your coffee?
Jack Sloane: Oh, I like my battery acid black. I'll handle my own sugar, though.

John Ross: So, uh... why'd you ask about Whit Dexter? He killed that sailor, didn't he?
Jack Sloane: I never said that.
John Ross: Well, you wouldn't have mentioned it if it wasn't a possibility.
Jack Sloane: You think he'd do it?
John Ross: He definitely hates our military. Came after me personally, too.
Jack Sloane: Listen, there is nothing that man could say to you that would be worse than living in a cage for five years.

Donald Mallard: How may I be of assistance?
Jack Sloane: I was hoping that you could help me with a bit of profiling.
Donald Mallard: Well, I'm always up to a challenge.
Jack Sloane: Okay. The subject is retired armed forces with past trauma they refuse to talk about, and their whole life is stil wrapped up in the military.
Donald Mallard: Unable to move on?
Jack Sloane: Unwilling, at least.
Donald Mallard: History of aggression?
Jack Sloane: Sporadic.
Donald Mallard: Intelligence?
Jack Sloane: High.
Donald Mallard: Has the subject ever sought counseling before?
Jack Sloane: No.
Donald Mallard: What about the family?
Jack Sloane: None.
Donald Mallard: Huh. And... well, your concern is what?
Jack Sloane: What happens if the subject continues to internalize what happened?
Donald Mallard: Almost certainly, they'd be on the road to disaster.
Jack Sloane: Yeah. That's what I thought.
Donald Mallard: Well, you... you just have to use all your tricks to get him to open up.

John Ross: I know I shouldn't have gone after that idiot.
Jack Sloane: Hey, I don't... I don't blame you. I just want to talk about why. Why you did it.
John Ross: 'Cause some nutbag's out there telling everybody that I killed a sailor.
Jack Sloane: John, you have a history of aggression.
John Ross: I am not interested in talking about my feelings.

Jack Sloane: Where's Clara now?
John Ross: She and her husband both passed on. She had a heart attack.
Jack Sloane: I'm sorry. And your daughter?
John Ross: Oh, she still doesn't know anything about me.
Jack Sloane: Well, maybe she should.
John Ross: No. Just too much time has passed.
Jack Sloane: You have this mountain of family history to share. Don't you think she'd want that?
John Ross: Family is who's there when you need 'em the most. And I was never there for her. She's got her own family history now. She'd reject me if I brought all this stuff to her and dumped in her lap. She'd probably hate me, even, so... it's too late.

Jack Sloane: I told him what happened to me.
Leon Vance: I know that's a very difficult thing for you to talk about.
Jack Sloane: He has a daughter that doesn't even know he exists.
Leon Vance: Does he know where she is?
Jack Sloane: He wouldn't say. He's fighting the demons that came after his escape, not the experience itself, so...
Leon Vance: What about that scares you?
Jack Sloane: Seeing what burying his feelings has done to John. He's, uh... he's angry. He's lonely.
Leon Vance: You're not like John Ross.

Leon Vance: Takes a long time to get past what happened to you.
Jack Sloane: This is not about getting hooked up to a car battery! These are not emotions I can just get over. This is not a problem that can be solved!
[her voice breaking, she starts to cry]
Jack Sloane: I should have saved them.
Leon Vance: You didn't kil them.
Jack Sloane: But I let them die, right?

Leroy Jethro Gibbs: You all right, Jack?
Jack Sloane: Yeah. I'm, uh... perfect. So, um, John is still living a life where he can't even talk to his own daughter. He says he doesn't even know where to find her.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs: You don't believe him.
Jack Sloane: I think he knows exactly where she is.
Timothy McGee: [overhearing] How old do you think she'd be?

John Ross: I am so nervous. This could change her whole life. What if I screw everything up?
Jack Sloane: Hey, I think she'll be glad to know the truth.
John Ross: I just want her to know how much I loved her mother. And I'm ready to tell her it's okay if she doesn't want anything to do with me.
Jack Sloane: Stop it! You're a good man. She'll see that. It's gonna be a big step for both of you.

John Ross: You know, Jack, you're the first person I could ever talk to about what happened to me.
Jack Sloane: I don't, uh... I don't talk about my experience much, either, John.
John Ross: It was hard, but... it definitely helped knowing that you understand.
Jack Sloane: Good. I'm glad to hear it.
John Ross: Maybe I was able to help you, too.