Chapter 7
Arriving uneventfully at the hospital, he parked and walked in, stopping at the information desk. His father was still being examined, but a room had already been assigned to him on the oncology ward. Following directions given by a helpful volunteer, Tim made his way up to the particular floor, heading for the nurses' station, hoping for an update. He was told his father wouldn't be settled into his room for about an hour, he was still undergoing a breathing treatment and further exam. He left his card with the nurses, asking if they would contact him if anything changed, he had a few phone calls to make.
Walking down the stairs this time, he tried not to think of the call he had to make. He was dreading this conversation with Penny; she had every right to be angry with both her son and grandson. Taking a deep breath, he mentally "manned up" as his father would say. Tim has always thought that phrase was misleading and demeaning as he'd met many women who were as strong as or stronger than many men he'd met. He paused in the lobby, thinking about what Penny would say about that phrase and then gave himself a mental Gibbs-slap, although he was grateful for the very brief respite from the weight of the call.
Stepping outside, he rolled his shoulders and stood straight as he accessed one of his apps to see what time it was on the Greek island he knew his grandmother and sister were visiting this week. Squinting at the time difference, he shrugged, there was no more time to waste, they needed to be told so they could make decisions. Pressing the contact button for his grandmother, he waited through several rings until he heard Penny's sleepy voice.
"Timothy, sweetheart, what's wrong? Are you hurt, oh no, is this really Gibbs or Tony, something's happened to my grandson?"
"It's Tim, Penny and nothing's wrong with me. I'm sorry to be calling at this hour and with what I'm about to tell you. Dad is very ill. I'm at Bethesda now, he's just been brought in by ambulance. He has cancer, Penny, stage 4 and it's getting worse. He's put off telling you, telling anyone for months. I wouldn't know except he got caught up in a case and he had to tell Gibbs during Interrogation."
"Oh my Lord, my poor John. Honey, has he let you in at all? How's his outlook?"
"He's fighting it as only he can, Penny, but you know how stubborn he is, he was "too busy" with his career to see the doctor when he should have. And yeah, we've spent a lot of time together, we've managed to patch things up."
"And you've been handling everything with him alone, my darling boy. We're on a small island with no commercial airport, Timothy, we'll have to catch a ferry to get back to the mainland, and it doesn't leave until nearly midnight. Unless I can somehow find a private plane."
"Tell me exactly where you are, Penny, and while you pack, I'll see if what I can do from this end. Dad won't be in his room for another 45 minutes anyway. I'll call you back in 30 minutes and we can compare notes, ok?"
"Yes, dear, that works fine. Sarah's just waking up, so she can help me."
"Love you both, talk to you in a few minutes." Hanging up, he sagged with relief, then straightened up again. He could think of a couple of people who might have some contacts to help his family get home faster. When his first call went to voicemail, he left a quick message and then called Ducky who answered on the first ring.
"Hello dear boy, I heard your father is in hospital, is there any news or any way I can help?"
"I only know he's being given a breathing treatment and assigned a room, so he'll be staying over one night at least. But Ducky, I'm hoping you might be able to help in another way. " Quickly Tim filled him in on Penny and Sarah's situation.
"Hmm, let me make a couple of phone calls, Timothy, I have a friend who has a friend…"
"Thanks, Ducky, I appreciate that and I know Penny will too."
"I'll give you a call back in a few minutes to let you know of any progress." Ducky said as he clicked off.
