A/N Thanks to everyone who alerted, favourited or left reviews for Rising to the Bait. I appreciate all the support. I have been enjoying reading the reviews as people speculate about where the story might be headed. Keep them coming :) You'll no doubt all be relieved that Faldo has kindly agreed to beta the story. Thanks so much Faldo and as always people, any mistakes you find are my bad :)
Hope you enjoy this chapter!
Rising to the Bait
Chapter 4
The Federal Deputy Marshal Judy Kendall moved to the bed and grasped the hand of the small girl who was beginning to wake up from the sedation and thrash around, distressed.
"Tia honey, it's time to wake up now. It's Judy, sweetheart, c'mon open your eyes."
She continued to comfort the child who seemed to be responding to the familiar voice and Tony was relieved that the marshal had turned up when she did. Seeing and hearing his little girl's distress and knowing that she wasn't going to find solace anytime soon was breaking his heart. Jessie came over and stood next to him her arm wrapped around him while he snaked his arm around her waist, hugging her to him. He wasn't sure who was comforting who but Tony was pleased and relieved that Jessie had come with him. Just like she had, six months ago, come running to help capture Macaluso, here she was again standing beside him as they tried to pick up the pieces of a catastrophic mess that had started a decade before.
Judy was sitting on the bed, cuddling the sobbing child into her breast. Tia was crying inconsolably for her missing mother and father. The LEO comforted her gently, but allowed her to cry herself out until finally she was lying supine and spent as Judy spoke to her gently.
"Tia sweetie, there are some people here who want to see you. They're good friends of your Mommy and they came a long way in a plane to meet you again. This is Jessie, she's Mommy's best friend and this is Anthony. Your Mommy asked him to look after you while she can't."
The little girl looked at the two grownups standing by her bed smiling at her even though they looked sad. She rubbed at her eyes and spoke haltingly, "My mommy named me Antonia Jessica Mae Cooper after her and her two best friends."
Tony nodded. He'd been dead against Melissa calling their daughter after him, but when his fiancé went into WP she'd overruled him, compromising by shortening Antonia to Tia. Giving Tia a name that reflected the three friends had been her way of connecting them to her new life but Tony reflected sorrowfully, it would also come in handy now in helping instil trust for them both into his daughter.
"I know, Tia. She called you after Jessie and me. Jessie's real name is Jessica but she likes to be called Jessie or Jess. My name is Anthony which is sometimes also said as Antonio in Italian but I like to be called Tony by my friends, although Jessie mostly calls me Tone or T. And Mae is you mother's middle name although Jess calls her Mel-Mae. I think she's allergic to using real names," he joked gently.
"Momma said that you all lived together before I was born and you used to eat cheesecake sandwiches. That sounds gross!" The nine year old sounded disgusted.
"Yeah it does sound pretty gross, doesn't it? I think she got that a bit mixed up because we used to go out to eat cheesesteak sandwiches. But sometimes your mom and Jessie used to sit up all night at home and eat a whole baked chocolate cheesecake and not save any for me."
Jessie had been staying quiet while Tony talked to his daughter, letting him establish a rapport with the little girl but she couldn't remain silent in the face of such an egregious lie.
"That's so not true, Tone. Don't lie. We always saved you a small piece." She punched him gently on the arm while he pouted and Tia smiled at their silliness. They reminded her of her momma and daddy sometimes and her eyes filled with tears.
"My Daddy's died and the angels have taken him to heaven."
"I know Tia. I'm so sorry. My mother died when I was a bit smaller than you and went to live with the angels too. Maybe she was waiting for him when you dad arrived to show him around." Tony could tell that the little girl liked that idea because her eyes smiled at the thought.
She sobered up and asked, "When can I see Momma? I need to give her a great big hug. She'll be missing me."
He sat down on the bed and took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Jessie and I will take you to see her soon. The doctor had to operate on her head because she hurt it when the other car hit yours. As soon as she's back from the operation and the doctor says we can see her, we'll pop you into a wheelchair and you can give her a gentle hug."
Jessie sat down gently on the other side of the bed and warned. "Momma might take a while to wake up Tia. She sleeping so her brain can get well again but she can still hear you even if she can't speak. And she might look a bit different too. She's got lots of bruises on her face and it's a bit puffy around her mouth but she still looks like my Mel-Mae."
Judy came forward, smiling at her favourite protectant. "Hey Tia, I'm going to go and get some stuff from your home. Is there anything you specially want me to bring you? I'll get your PJs and some clothes for when they let you out of here and your DS3 and some books. Anything else you want?"
"Can you bring my Lulu Bear please Judy? Momma said that she and Daddy bought him for me before I was born."
Jessie reached out and grasped Tony's arm knowing that Tia must be talking about the first stuffed toy that Tony and Mel had chosen for her when they'd returned from the first ultra sound. Although both of them had been shocked at the unplanned pregnancy, after seeing Tia on the ultra sound, they'd been over the moon. If the memory was poignant for her, how much more so must it be for Tia's father? So far he was staying strong and for someone who was supposed to suck at relating to kids he was doing great. He wasn't pushing himself onto her but wasn't acting standoffish either. Since the child had just lost the man she thought of as her dad it was going to be tricky trying to forge a relationship with her.
Jessie knew as soon Tony called today that she would be taking a leave of absence. When he asked her to come she never hesitated. For one thing, they were all family, and she didn't have the luxury of a huge extended family. Then there was the fact that her former partner was notoriously bad at asking for help since he'd been taught that it was sign of weakness and he had practically raised himself and wasn't used to relying on other people. For that reason alone she would never turn him down when he requested her help, ever!
Now, after meeting her god-daughter for the first time and being able to hug her best friend again after ten long years, she knew that she would happily move to DC so that their little family could all be together again. She would need to contact her boss and request a leave of absence for at least a month to start with. While mentally she was preparing for the likely scenario of moving to DC permanently, she wouldn't burn her bridges just yet.
Melissa's neurosurgeon had warned them that if and when she regained consciousness, with the extent of her brain injury she would require months, possibly even years of rehabilitation to recover. He also informed them, that providing the procedure to relieve intracranial pressure worked, it would be days at best before he would allow her to be airlifted to DC. Of course they needed to have a hospital to transfer Melissa to. Jessie knew that Tony had talked to his friend, Brad Pitt about whether as he was Melissa's next of kin and held power of attorney for her and that she was the mother of his child, she could be admitted to Bethesda Naval Hospital. The doctor promised to check with The Powers That Be. Fornell was going to see if he could pull some strings too, as Bethesda's additional security measures made it a good option for someone in the Witness Protection program.
The tough talking Boston cop had initially questioned why Tony wanted her admitted to Bethesda when there were hospitals much closer to his apartment. He'd explained that he was hoping to convince his friend to take over Melissa's case as primary physician. If Mel was admitted to another hospital, Brad could only be brought on as a consultant, even if he had visiting privileges at that hospital. According to Tone, apart from him being an excellent pulmonologist and friend, Bethesda also had a neurologist that was exceptional and Tony wanted the best for Melissa. Their rehab facilities were also outstanding and Mel was going to need a lot more than just simple physical therapy. She may need to learn to speak and eat and who knows what else.
Jessie supposed that she shouldn't be surprised that Tone had so many contacts but she also knew that when it came to schools and the like, Tony would be floundering and need her to do the research. She also knew that they had to work out what to do with the Cooper's house and belongings. Perhaps they could have their possession packed up and placed in storage so that when Mel-Mae was well, they could work out what to do with everything. A more pressing issue was what to do about Dennis Cooper's funeral. They would probably have to organise it and if so, she hoped the insurance executive had left written instructions about his wishes with his lawyer.
There was so much to think about but as Jess refocused on Tia and Tony, she noticed they were involved in an animated discussion about Disney versus Pixar movies which morphed into a dialogue about children's books. Not surprisingly, Tia was a big fan of Harry Potter but she also loved the Black Stallion books and Roald Dahl. When Judy Kendal arrived back with several bags, Jessie flashed her a look of gratitude when she discovered that she'd brought a favourite pillow for Tia and Mel plus two favourite rugs. A familiar pillow and blanket would help make her room a little more homelike for Tia and her mom, while Tia's rug was clearly a much loved vestige of her babyhood since it was obviously a blankey even if no one had the bad taste to call it that. When she sighted it Tia fell upon it with relief.
When the little girl was joyfully reunited with her Lulu Bear, a chocolate coloured teddy wearing an OSU basketball jersey that Tony had made especially for the teddy bear, Tony lost it and had to leave the room.
Rising to the Bait
Gibbs was feeling distinctly out of sorts. McGee hadn't been able to find any record of Tony boarding a flight out of Dulles and with no way of tracking his senior field agent, well it was fair to say he was not a happy camper. His gut was telling him that this situation was the portent of massive changes and he didn't like change, especially when it involved him and the team. After the breakup of the MCRT six month ago, he was still trying to sort out the team dynamics that particular change had caused although things had been slowly improving. Now he strongly suspected they were about to be tossed on their asses again.
Heading off to get a coffee refill, he called Fornell to see if he had any more information about his second in command. He wasn't comfortable with anyone else watching his back so he felt compelled to protect what he thought of as his, and DiNozzo had belonged to him for almost eight years now. Having him off where Gibbs didn't know where he was and not being contactable, was driving him nuts.
"What can I do for you, Jethro?"
"You can give me a Sit Rep on what's going on with DiNozzo, Tobias."
"Sounds like a serious case of separation anxiety, Gibbs. Look, I don't have much at the moment. His friend needed surgery and they are waiting for her to get back from the procedure. Won't know much more today. No sign of trouble so far and the crash looks to be an accident at this point. Gotta go!"
Gibbs grunted, peeved that Tobias and Tony both seemed to be using the same techniques for dealing with him on the phone. Succinct report and then hang up before he could ask additional questions. It was incredibly frustrating to have his own tricks turned against him, so he decided to take the team down to the gym to burn off some of his frustration.
Rising to the Bait
Tony was out in the corridor pacing up and down, focusing on breathing deeply because seeing Tia's Lulu Bear had broken him up. They had been so excited that day when Mel had gone for her first ultrasound, especially when they saw Tia's heartbeat for the first time. Sure he'd been scared silly at the thought of being a parent but Jessie and Mel had convinced him that just because his parents sucked, it didn't mean he couldn't be a great father. When he and Mel saw the bear, it was so soft and fluffy that he convinced Melissa that they had to get it for their child and Mel had threatened to dress it up as a fairy. Since they didn't know at that stage what sex Tia was Tony decided to get one of his old college friends to make an OSU jersey and he'd sent the teddy down to Ohio for her to custom fit it.
As he was approaching the Nurse's Desk for the umpteenth time, he heard a woman enquiring about Tia Cooper's room. Stepping up, he inquired if he could help her and instructed the nurse to ask Deputy Marshal Kendall to come out. Tony asked the woman to identify herself and she explained that she was Clare James nee Cooper and she was Tia's auntie. When the police had informed her of her brother's death, she'd driven from Phoenix to make sure that Rebecca and Tia were okay and to see how she could help. The ICU informed her that her sister-in-law was still in surgery, so she'd come down to see her niece instead.
Judy came out and he explained briefly what Clare had told him and Judy nodded and asked to see some form of identification. She explained to him in an undertone that Dennis had a sister but she hadn't ever met her. After checking her driver's licence she told Tony she would check out her identity and see if anyone at the office had met her and could vouch for her. Meanwhile Clare didn't seem surprised by the security procedures surrounding Mel and Tia which suggested on of two things to the federal agent. Either Dennis Cooper had told his sister about them being in WP or she wasn't who she purported to be and already knew. Sending in a female assassin might seem to be an unlikely move but having worked with Ziva, Tony wasn't about to be taken in by the fairer sex. Not where his family was concerned.
He introduced himself as David Paddington; an old friend of Rebecca's. He didn't mention that he had her Power of Attorney or that he was also Tia's legal guardian. He'd wait and see what Officer Kendall managed to turn up about Clare James before he revealed too much information.
It occurred to him that if Clare was who she claimed to be, she would probably want to organise her brother's funeral and he was selfishly grateful that they might not have to deal with that task as well. They had enough to deal with as it was. Dennis' sister might even help them pack up the house and put everything into storage as Jessie had suggested and he'd agreed not to make any hasty decisions about Mel's possessions til they knew more about her prognosis.
Next chapter: They head back to DC, Jessie gives Tony a serve and Tony tells Gibbs he'll request a transfer.
