A/N: Here's another chapter folks! I'm continuly blown away by how much & how many people are loving this! Thank you to all the newest followers & favourites, it so great to have you with us!
To my reviewers, you rock! I really love hearing peoples thoughts & comments, they inspire me! Sorry I haven't been able to reply individually to you this time, but I'm running out of battery on my iPad & want to get this chapter up, so apologises!
Now, lets see how things are progressing at the hospital!
Shannon walked out the front of the hospital & did her best to dismiss the hectic scenes still going on, she was concerned about her husband, and hoped the scans he was getting done now would show that there was no serious damage. Her spirits lifted as soon as she saw kids, she'd never take having them close for granted! She saw them at a picnic table with their grandfather, Harry & another young fellow, and not too far away another pair of SWAT personel, now in uniform who were watching over them as well.
Ted was walking towards the kids with Shannon when two of his men approached them "Shannon, this Sargent Evans & Officer Lyons from my team, boys, Shannon Gibbs"
"Ma'am" the SWAT officers greeted.
"Hello, thank you very much for all your help" Shannon replied.
"No thanks required ma'am, just glad we were in Houston & were able to help" Sgt Evans replied.
Shannon was surprised, she turned to Ted "You were in Houston?"
"We were participating in a training summit there when Jethro called me. I came straight to Mac's residence with teams from LA, Miami & Seattle, we got there about 3 hours after you left" Ted explained "been following you & your clues all the way, that letter was something & Martha can't wait to see you, she got the message you left with her to Gibbs & it really help us" he finished, he saw her reaction to it & motioned his men to take over from Robertson, so they could get checked.
Shannon had hoped all those clues & the letter would help, but Ted had gone there 3 hours after she left? "I should have stayed" she said quietly
"No Shan" Ted countered instantly "By the time I got there the place was deserted, the man had his entire staff leave to chase you down. Jethro told me they saw footage of his reaction when he'd gotten the word about you having made a dash & that he looked furious, I wouldn't have wanted you there for that. You did the right thing, don't doubt that" he'd leave out all about Quinn's attempt on Nix & what he did to Kelly, that could wait for Gibbs.
Shannon nodded "Thanks Ted, for everything and.."
Ted had to interrupt her "The only thing that matters now is that you're back home, and that you & the kids are safe. Having you & them happy is all the thanks I need & you can see they'll be fine, they're strong sorts those two, I've seen that already. Though I'll be honest, I think you created a clone of a son"
Shannon had to let out a chuckle "tell me about it, he's Jethro, but at least he's got my hair"
Ted smiled, he was glad she was relaxed in his company & planned to keep it that way "I think I prefer it, but let's go, think you could use something to eat, I just hope they're some cookies left"
Shannon didn't know what he meant until they got closer & she spied some containers on the picnic table, she was now wondering just how her kids had found her husband? Or did he find them? "what have we got here?" she asked, as she reached the table and instantly caressed her daughter's head.
Kelly looked up & instantly leaned into her mum "just some cookies" she answered, but couldn't see her dad "where's dad?" she asked concerned.
Nix had been on the other side of the table & looked at his mum with concern too.
Shannon sat herself down next to her daughter but looked to her son "come here darling" she could see he was about to bound to her anyway.
"Where's dad?" Nix asked as soon as he was sitting in his mum's lap, loving being held by her, many of his friends had stopped doing such things, but he wouldn't stop anytime soon, he needed that physical contact.
Shannon looked between the pair, she was holding on her son & caressed her daughter's face "he's fine, just getting some scans, they'll let us know as soon as they're finished & we'll go see him" she could see the concern on both of their faces, she was too but had to sooth them "he will be fine, ok?" she was glad when she finally got some nods.
"Want a cookie?" Nix asked his mum.
"I would love one darling" Shannon smiled, she reached into the container & took one, but she took in the young man that was looking a little awkward standing on the other end of the picnic table area "Hello?"
Kelly saw who her mum was looking at & guessed the introduction hadn't been done yet "mum this Tim, he's on dad's team at NCIS"
Tim had gotten nervous & became more fidgety as he saw Shannon approach, his palms had even started to sweat, he was glad that Kelly come to his aid & made the introduction, so he didn't have to, he wasn't sure why, but this was more nerve racking than meeting Jackson, he gave Kelly a small smile before taking a deep breath "Special Agent Timothy McGee, pleased to meet you ma'am"
Kelly smiled at Tim, she'd seen he'd gotten nervous.
"And you Timothy, thank you" Shannon replied, but she took note of the unspoken but brief exchange between him & Kelly.
"How long will dad's scans take?" Nix asked, how long were they going to take? He didn't like not having his dad with them.
"A little while darling, they've got to scan his shoulder, chest & head, but he's top priority, so it hopefully wont be too long" Shannon answered before continuing "and dad will certainly be pestering them to get it done quick smart"
"Can we get some coffee? Dad would want some too" Kelly remarked.
Ted was on the same page, he looked to Evans "round of Coffees & hot chocolates Evans, enough for everyone!" he called.
"Yes sir!" Evans replied, very much liking this assignment!
Ted looked back to Kelly "done & done" he smiled
Shannon had to smile "Thank you Ted & yes, I'm sure dad would love a coffee" even she had to admit, some coffee sounded like heaven!
Jack wanted to ask Shannon about Joanne, but wasn't quite sure how to broach it, instead he opted for another path "I think it might a good idea to organise for some decent food, how hungry are we all?"
"Starving!" Nix replied, as he reached for another cookie.
"Some real food would be wonderful Jack" Shannon replied, it had been hours since she'd last eaten & cookies, while nice weren't exactly what she was after.
"Let me make a few calls, and we'll have our belly's full of food in no time" Jack offered as he rose.
Shannon nodded in thanks & couldn't help but notice that Ted had one his men follow Jack, clearly he was on the same overprotective page as Jethro.
"Mum" Kelly whispered.
"Yes angel?" Shannon replied.
"Grandma?" Kelly asked hesitantly.
Shannon saw both her kids looking at her cautiously, even Harry was waiting for the answer "She's not the best, but I have no doubt she will be fine, she'll get there"
"What's wrong with her?" Kelly asked.
Shannon made the instant decision that there would be no lies, nothing would be withheld from them "She's got an erratic heart beat caused by receiving some kind of electric shocks. It caused her to…" she took a deep breath "it caused her heart to stop beating a few times, but they were able to stabilise her. The doctor's have had to place her into a coma to help her body recover. It will help her get better, and she will get better, she's going to be fine" she finished determinedly, she wasn't sure she could lose her mum just after having gotten her back.
"How long will she be in the coma for?" Nix whispered.
"Not sure darling" Shannon answered, she really hadn't gotten into many details with the doctor.
Ted could see Shannon had become stuck & he had a feeling as to why "Phoenix, the doctors put your grandma into the coma because it's the best way to allow her entire body including her brain the best chance to recover from what happened. She will wake up when her body has recovered & is ready, from memory, your grandma always kept her own schedule, but when it came to it, she was always there, so don't worry, she'll wake up" he was certain she'd wake up, whether she then had a heart attack from seeing her dead family, that he wasn't sure of!
"Can we see her?" Kelly asked
"When dad's back angel, we'll then go back in & see grandma, ok?" Shannon replied, caressing her daughter's head, she could see the tears slowly coming down her face, she brought into her shoulder "oh my baby girl, shh, it's ok, we'll be ok"
Shannon kept a firm hold on each of her kids, oh how she'd missed them, she would never forgive herself for what she'd done to them, it had ripped her heart out! She closed her eyes as she buried herself into the pair "mum's here, shhh, mum's here"
Ted took himself & his son away from the picnic table wanting to give the family some space, he motioned for Tim to follow as well "see what assistance you can give inside" he instructed the young agent.
Tim nodded "yes sir" and headed in, he wanted to see how Ziva & Tony were doing, and he'd gotten over a dozen messages from Abby wanting to know how everyone was, so he wanted to put her mind at ease by calling when they were all present.
Harry leaned against the nearby wall with his dad right next to him "You think they'll be ok?" he asked quietly.
Ted put a hand on his shoulder "It'll take time, but yea, I think they'll get there" he assured him "now, let's call mum, I'm sure she's anxiously waiting for us to call" he smiled as he dialled.
"Ted! how are things?" Martha answered, she was worried sick!
"Hi Marth" Ted greeted, a sense of relief came over him hearing her voice, he hadn't seen her in like 2 weeks & with everything that had happened in the last 24 hours, he was really missing her, gosh had it only been 24 hours?
"Hi Mum" Harry added.
"Harry!" Martha sighed "you ok?" she was relieved that he was evidently with his dad.
"Tired, but I'm good" Harry answered.
"Everyone's together" Ted remarked.
"You've found Shannon? She's ok?" Martha prodded.
"Yes, I'm watching over her as we speak" Ted answered.
"Thank heavens! Is everyone ok? Wait! If you're watching her, where's Jethro?" Martha prodded.
"Getting checked out" Ted answered, he looked at his son realising something, covering the mouth piece he spoke softly "assure mum you're fine & then go get those scratches taken care of, ok?" his son had some minor scratches, he presumed it was from when he had to bail of the vehicle. He would normally have gone with him, but he had to keep watch over Shannon & her kids "you need me, just call, ok?" he saw the nod of acceptance.
"What do you mean getting checked? What happened? Are you both ok?" Martha exclaimed.
Ted had to smile "ran into some trouble, but he should be fine" he replied & passed the phone.
"I've got a couple of scratches, but I'm fine mum, promise" Harry assured his mum.
'Scratches?! What kind of scratches?" Martha asked, she didn't like the sound of that
"Just what I said, a few scratches, nothing major mum, no blood pouring out of me, or x-ray required, just a couple of scratches I need to get cleaned, I'm fine" Harry answered & passed the phone back to his dad.
"He's fine Martha, our boy here will more than likely be getting his first commendation" Ted remarked, he eyed his boy, he'd heard exactly why & while he was momentarily terrified that he'd been in that situation, he was proud as punch!
Harry just grinned before heading off.
"What did he do!?" Martha exclaimed, getting a commendation usually occurred after doing something dangerous!
"He can tell you that later, he's gone to find a doctor" Ted said gently "I assure you he's ok, so are Kelly & Phoenix"
Martha took a few calming breaths "that's good, so?"
Ted caught her up on everything that had happened since they'd last spoken, which was right before Gibbs had those nasty visitors on the way to Stillwater.
Martha couldn't say she wasn't shocked at everything she heard "What are they saying about Joanne & prognosis?"
"They have to wait until she wakes up to see what the damage is & she may need a pacemaker" Ted answered.
"Well, from what I recall she was a tough lady, I'm sure she'll pull through" Martha commented, she then decided to tackle something she'd been thinking about all morning "Ted, should I go over to Jethro's and fix a few things up? Get some food in the fridge? Organise some fresh bedding on his bed, get some stuff sorted out?" she knew their neighbour didn't really keep food in the house, nor did he sleep in that bed, but she didn't want them coming home to the place like it was.
Ted hadn't even thought that far ahead, but she was right "Good idea, definitely food in the fridge & some bedding on his bed, any idea if there is still a bed in Kelly's room?"
"If there is it wouldn't be satisfactory" Martha replied "but they've got beds in the place her & Phoenix were living in, I'd say, those would maybe get moved across? I could call my brother & see if he's got a truck we can have to move their things, wait, Ted are we getting ahead of ourselves? Trying to do too much? I don't want to be too overbearing, I just want to help"
Ted knew what she meant, he was watching Shannon & kids, they'd barely moved from each other, Buster was even lying at Shannon's feet, he wanted to do everything he could for them. He wanted to make things as easy as possible but not cross the overbearing line "Ok, how's this, get some food in the fridge, clean bedding for the bed & a quick tidy up. Call Jim & pose the question, so he knows we may need a truck sometime soon." He then realised something else, the front door had no working lock! "Also, call Jeff at the hardware store & ask if he can come over & have a look at the lock on their front door, see if he's still got the key on file & could cut some new ones. I don't think we should replace it as Jethro will likely want to replace it entirely"
"Ok, sounds like a good plan, if you think of anything call me, I'm going to drop Stacey over at my parents place for the day and they're going to pass her on to your parents for the evening, that way I can get everything sorted" Martha explained, glad her daughter was in her room at the moment.
Ted counted himself lucky that he still had both his parents alive, as well as Martha's, the support they had was amazing "Sounds good, tell my folks I'll call them later. But how is she? Have you spoken about any of this with her?" he asked.
"She knows something is going on, seeing Harry come over straight after shift & then having the two of us go to see Jethro at his work, she's not blind. I just don't know how to tell her, it was hard enough telling Harry. All I've said is that we are helping Jethro with something important" Martha answered, she was glad it was her husband that had told her about it all!
"I know it couldn't have been easy hon, ok, maybe our parents can keep her distracted enough this weekend & I will be home as soon as I can, we'll explain it to her together" Ted said, he wished he could have helped his wife tell their son about it.
"Sounds wonderful, you don't have to go back to Houston to get your stuff do you?" Martha asked, that would mean a further delay.
"No, we packed up all our personal gear when we left, there's nothing we need to collect" Ted assured her, though their vehicles will need to be returned somehow.
"Good" Martha replied "how are you darling, you holding up ok?"
"Could use some sleep hun, but I'm ok" Ted assured her, he just watched Shannon continue to hold her kids "who know how long it will take for them to get through everything, it's…"
"I know darling" Martha agreed "it's beyond anything comprehendible, it will take time, all we can do is be there for them, everyone will need to adjust to a new reality"
Ted just nodded, she was right, all of them were living in a new reality & it would take some adjustment, he saw Jack head back out "better go, but I'll speak to you soon"
"Ok, try to get some shut eye before heading back please" Martha asked, he'd been driving for 24 hours, the last thing she wanted was for him to do even more driving without sleep!
"Will do" Ted agreed "I love you Martha, tell my pumpkin I love her too" right now he felt so compelled to get his family together & keep them close.
Martha smiled "I love you too Ted & I'll tell her, we'll see you soon"
Ted hung up just as Jack had gotten to him "Breakfast ordered?"
"Yes" Jack answered "I called in a favour from a friend who owns a bakery here in Bloomsburg, we're lucky it's a Saturday, because he's got plenty of things already made. He's going to organise a load of breakfast rolls, pastries & alike from his place & the café next door, we just need to collect it is all" he'd gone for Ted because he saw the man was clearly giving the family some space.
Ted nodded, he motioned to his man that had been following him "Lyons" he called softly.
"Boss?" Lyons asked as he got closer.
"Escort Mr Gibbs to collect the breakfast supplies he's organised, see if you can wrangle another person to go with" Ted instructed, he saw glee on the man's face "and no partaking in the food until its back here Lyons, I want all of us to eat"
"Will do sir" Lyons smirked, he turned to Jack "Shall we get going Mr Gibbs? I have to admit, I'm rather hungry"
"Watch him Jack, he's got a bottomless stomach" Ted noted.
Jack had to chuckle "clearly"
Ted just leaned back against the wall as he looked over the front of the hospital, his last man Woods & one of Peters's - Abrams were both nearby on a different picnic table standing watch over the family & hospital entrance. The entrance itself, seemed to have settled down, but he was guessing that was mainly because they were the last vehicle to arrive requiring any real assistance, all in-bound EMT's had already been diverted, so at least the number of the casualties the hospital was taking care of wasn't still growing, though he hoped there weren't that many requiring assistance.
He saw Lt Robertson approach, he had a strange look "news?"
Robertson leaned against the wall next to Ted, he was exhausted! He knew why Ted was against the wall, he was trying to give the family some space but at the same time able to watch over them. He'd just come out of the hospital "well, the punk we brought in under escort, he just died on the operating table, they couldn't save him, too many wounds apparently." He couldn't say he would mourn the loss.
"Not going to cry over that one" Ted responded "what about our guys?" he didn't care about that guy, he was just worried about them.
"Dayle's the worst" Robertson offered "he's being operated on as we speak, shoulder's pretty bad.. That Franks guy has been pumped full of morphine & will need to undergo surgery on his leg wound, but it's not life threatening, a couple others are getting stitched up & x-rayed, with small chances of surgery required"
"Any civilians injured?" Ted asked.
"Surprisingly nothing serious" Robertson admitted "a few scratches, glass shard wounds & alike, for a Saturday morning we really are lucky the streets weren't as packed as they could have been" he was actually a little surprised at the lack of civilian injuries.
"Small mercies" Ted remarked, that was a remarkable thing indeed.
"Yea, I spoke with that FBI guy, Fornell" Robertson started "he's got a detail from their local office in Scranton on their way to help out. He's got a team heading into Stillwater to take over custody of the 2 men that are being held there, Wallace though will stay in command until they're safely tucked up in a federal holding cell back in DC" out of all of them, Fornell's pair of agents were the freshest but Wallace was the only one to be totally fine.
"Good" Ted yawned, he was glad about Wallace staying in command, he knew Jethro wouldn't want a brand new team coming in & handling everything.
Robertson smiled, they were all exhausted "he's also got some agents coming here to take over protection detail if still required, what do you think?"
"Gibbs will want to have them protected at least until we're back in DC" Ted answered "but getting some extra bodies to give us all downtime before we head back & you guys depart would be good"
Robertson shook his head "my guys are unanimous, we're with you all the way back to DC, spoken to Lt Peters & Dayle's Sgt, they're coming along for the ride too" he wouldn't rest easy until the family were all back safely in DC.
Ted nodded "I'm sure Gibbs will be appreciative, so am I"
Robertson nodded in understanding "I'm going to sort out a roster of bodies to provide protection, so we can all start to get some downtime. One man for every protectee?" knowing they should have one man for every family member.
Ted nodded "yes, Jackson is currently off getting breakfast for everyone, Lyons & Banks are with him, Evans & Brown are sorting the coffees"
Robertson smiled "ahh, the important stuff!" he was running on empty & in desperate need for more!
A/N: Seems like things are being sorted out, which is a good thing. Martha's on top of things back in DC for the family, while Fornell is getting more bodies to help, as I'm sure they'd all welcome a rest!
Shannon's now been introduced to Gibbs's entire team, which is nice, but just how will her introduction go with Jenn?
How's Gibbs doing? How's Tony? What about Mike, Dayle & Joanne? There's still a few people that need looking after..
You know I love to hear your thoughts, so review away! More up soon!