Post-Op

"Leo, Jenny. Mallory's out of surgery," Scotty advised as he re-entered the waiting room.

"And?" Leo asked as he put his glass of juice down.

"She's in rough shape, she lost a lot of blood. They had a tough time because of a tear in her right lung. They thought they might have to remove part of it, but were finally able to control the bleeding. That's what took so long. They were waiting to see if the repairs would hold."

"Is she going to be all right?" Leo asked.

"How she does from here really depends on how her body responds, and quite frankly, her will to live. The next twenty-four to forty-eight hours will be critical, but the doctors are cautiously optimistic about her chances. I guess that she showed 'em something on the table."

"She's a McGarry," the President observed.

Leo turned around to face Jenny. "Yeah, she's an O'Brien, too."

"Yeah. She got stubbornness from both sides."

"Jenny, I'm sorry. It's because of me that this happened. I can't make it right, but I promise I'll try to keep it from happening again," he apologized.

"You can't promise that, Leo," she responded, "and whether you want to believe it or not, this isn't your fault. There are people in this world who have problems and think the only way to solve them is through hurting other people. Mallory knows that, and she'd be the first one to tell you so. She needs you, Leo, so don't let her down." He turned toward the window, trying to hide the tears that had returned. "And whether you know it or not, there are a lot of other people who need you, too."

"That's right," the President chimed in, "so get any ideas you have about taking a leave of absence or, heaven forbid, resigning out of your mind, okay?"

Leo hung his head slightly, then nodded, "Yeah." He swiped at his eyes as he turned back to Mallory's mother. "You know, you raised an incredible daughter, Jenny," he said, reaching for her hand.

"She's her father's daughter," she acknowledged as she squeezed Leo's hand tight. "She loves you more than you'll ever know. Before you went to rehab, she'd come to me and we'd talk, sometimes all night. She understood, Leo. She always knew what we needed, what I needed." Jenny dropped her head slightly, "She knew what you needed, too."

"Yeah, well, until I knew what I needed, nothing was going to change."

"I'm glad you figured it out."

"Me too." He turned to his little brother, "Scotty, did you find out when we can see her?"

"She'll be in recovery for quite a while, then they'll move her to ICU. They said they'd send someone in to let us know when she's settled into her room."

Leo turned to his ex-wife and reached for her once again, "Jenny, when they bring her down, do you want to go see our daughter together?"

For the first time since she'd arrived, Jenny genuinely smiled. "I'd like that."