As Torres and Sloane run protection detail for U.S. Senator John Phillips in Afghanistan for the holidays, they must urgently return to the states after hearing the senator's son is in the ICU. Also, Gibbs and the team investigate the altercation that caused the life threatening injuries to the senator's son.

After a seemingly happy and successful Navy Lieutenant appears to have taken her own life, Gibbs and the team conduct a thorough investigation, interviewing family and friends from her past and present.