Tori's cries pulled Jimmy from his wife's side. He waited for a while expecting Ed to either tend to her needs or bring her down to him. When the child continued to cry and there was no movement upstairs. Jimmy stood and made his way up to his daughter's room. Just by entering the room he knew that Tori needed her diaper changed. He quickly changed the child's diaper before scooping her up to bring her down to the living room. He studied the closed door to his bedroom. Ed had been up there an awfully long time and it was getting near to dinner time. Jimmy shifted Tori to one arm and knocked on the door with the other hand. There was no response and now he was extremely concerned. He opened the door and stepped inside. What he saw caused him to nearly drop his child. Ed was hunched over on the floor by the bed, with a needle in his arm. He rushed Tori back to her room and closed the door behind him. Before returning to the room. He placed his fingers on Ed's neck. The old man's skin was clammy and there was no pulse. He lifted the man's head and looked into his eyes. They were completely void of any life. He would guess that Ed had died some time around three in the afternoon. A knot formed in Jimmy's stomach when he saw that his kit was opened on the bed. On the floor beside Ed was a small piece of paper. Before he even read it he knew that it was a suicide note.
"Jimmy will most likely be the one to find me. He of all people will understand. I cannot go on knowing that my baby girl is dying. That I will have lost my entire family and knowing that she is suffering so greatly. I am sorry for leaving you alone in this battle but I can't go on. Every day is pure misery and grief. I will be reunited with my family and know that Breena will join me soon. Ed Slater"
Even though Ed had left behind a suicide note. Jimmy knew well enough to treat his room like a crime scene. He made sure not to touch the needle or his insulin kit and was extremely cautious about touching Ed. He grabbed his phone and dialed 911.
"911 my name is Carrie what's your emergency."
"This is Jimmy Palmer and my father in law Ed Slater committed suicide."
"Have you attempted CPR?"
"No he was already too far gone when I found him."
"Is there any sign of foul play or a struggle?"
"No"
"We will send somebody right over."
"Thank you"
The next few hours passed by in a blur. Ed's death was treated as a potential murder. Just as Jimmy knew that it would be. The detectives had quickly commented that it appeared to be a cut and dry suicide. Still Jimmy being the only competent adult in the house at the time was brought in for questioning. He knew that it was procedure and complied with orders. One of the detectives stayed behind to keep an eye on Tori. Jimmy opted not to call a lawyer in but he knew what to expect in interrogation. He hadn't exactly been interrogated when he was caught stealing ridiculous tutu wearing opossum from his the rivaling dance school. The arresting officers just made him promise never to do it again and he had to pay for the window he broke and the landscaping he had damaged. The only reason he spent the night in jail was because his mom was up in Boston for Clarke's parents weekend. No he had learned of interrogation during his years working for NCIS.
"Good evening Mr. Palmer, I am office Jenkins." Officer Jenkins greeted as he stepped into the room.
"Hello officer" Jimmy replied.
"Do you know why you are here?" Officer Jenkins asked.
"Yes sir" Jimmy replied.
"Can you tell me why?" Officer Jenkins asked.
"I am a suspect in the death of my father in law Edward Frances Slater." Jimmy replied.
"Very good. Did you and your father in law have a strained relationship?" Officer Jenkins asked.
"We were not exactly friends but we had come to have an understanding." Jimmy replied.
"OK. Now I understand that your wife Breena is suffering from a terminal illness. Was there a sum of money that would have gone to you in the event of both Edward and Breena?" Officer Jenkins asked.
"No sir any of Ed's money would go to a trust fund for my daughter." Jimmy replied.
"Now Ed did leave a suicide note. Had he shown any signs that he was going to commit suicide or said anything to you about ending it all?" Officer Jenkins asked.
"He was depressed about Breena being terminal but he never made any indication that he was going to kill himself. He went up to my room to take a nap. I have been sleeping downstairs with my wife. I went upstairs to check on my daughter and soon discovered Ed's body." Jimmy explained.
"Was there anyone who may have wanted Ed out of the picture? An ex wife or business rival? Possibly the person who would have inherited his position?" Officer Jenkins asked.
"No sir" Jimmy replied.
"Alright well this is coming together to be a suicide. You are free to go but I advise you not to leave town in case you are needed again." Officer Jenkins explained.
"I am not going anywhere." Jimmy assured.
"Before you go. Don't go stealing anymore taxidermy opossums." Officer Jenkins called.
"Hahaha" Jimmy laughed.
Once Tali was at least feigning to be asleep. Tony closed the door to her room and made his way down to the living room. He picked an old photo-album off the shelf and flipped through it. It was mostly family photos. His parents wedding photos and a few pictures from vacations they took. There was his mother's maternity shoot and his newborn pictures. From there it transformed into family pictures and a few stereotypical images of baby him covered in cake. Then a third of the way through the pictures just stopped. That was how it was with all of his childhood photo-albums. The pictures stopped when his mom got sick. She was the one who cared. Senior only wanted expensive shoots in tacky gold frames. The last picture was of him and her when she was sick. She was gaunt and frail. He was scared to death. That was Breena now and he knew that Jimmy was sharing his fear.
"Sometimes life just sucks." Tony remarked gulping down a large swig of his beer, my God he was turning into Gibbs.
Jimmy returned home and fell down onto the couch beside Breena's bed. She remained unconscious just as he expected. As the rhythmic hiss of her oxygen machine lulled him to sleep. He wondered how he would explain Ed's death to her. Should she ever wake up aware again.
A/N: At least Jimmy was cleared quickly. While there was no evidence of Jimmy murdering Ed procedure is procedure. New chapter will be up soon. Please review and thanks for reading.
