Chapter Six: Bridge Over Troubled Water

At 7:33 on the night of March 7th, Addison was having a drink at Joe's when her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Addie, it's Richard. Jim just called. I put him on hold. I think you'd better come back here."

"I'm on my way."

She hung up, threw some cash on the counter, grabbed her coat and left the bar.

When she arrived back at the hospital, she headed straight for the Chief's office. Addison knocked and was invited inside. She was surprised to see Derek already seated and nervously sat down opposite him. They both looked nervously at the Chief who silently pressed the speaker phone button on the telephone resting on his desk.

"Jim? Addison and Derek are both here."

"Good," The voice of James Holden said, "Alright, the good news is that today we were able to diagnose Natalie Giambattista's cancer."-Addison's eyes grew wide in happiness and excitement-"She has a Krukenberg Tumor."

"I've never heard of it," Addison said curiously.

"Well, it's quite rare. It only accounts for about 2 of Ovarian Cancers. It's most often found in middle aged women. One of the symptoms that Natalie showed was abdominal or pelvic pain. It is usually identified by an abdominal mass. We aren't certain yet how it spreads…I hate to say it, but the prognosis gets worse if the metastasis to the ovary is found before the primary tumor. The prognosis rate ranges from a few weeks to a few months to a few years."

Addison's heart sank.

"What about the primary carcinoma?" The Chief pressed.

"They are very small and are hard to detect. The tumors on Natalie's ovaries are Signet Ring Cells, which is typical."

"What do you suggest for treatment?"

"Unfortunately, Chemo and Radiation aren't always very effective. You can make your own judgments though. I'm going to fax you all of my notes."

"Thank you so much," Addison said appreciatively, "For everything."

"If you need anything else, don't hesitate to call. I'm sorry it wasn't better news."

"We're all eternally grateful," Derek assured the man.

"Well, good luck. I hope your niece can pull through. It's been a pleasure working with you."

They said goodbye and the Chief hung up. The trio sat in silence for a few minutes before Derek turned to Addison.

"Addie, you have to call Natalie and her family and tell them."

"Why me? You're her Uncle."

"Addison, you're Nat's doctor. It has to be you."

Addison looked nervously at Richard who nodded. She sighed and picked up the phone.

"Hello? Daney?...Sweetie, it's Aunt Addison. Are your parents there?...Thanks…Hi, Dave, it's Addison. I'm sorry to call so late…How's Natalie?…Good. Listen, I think you guys had better come down here tomorrow. We know what kind of cancer Natalie has…Okay. Just have a nurse page me when you get here…Good night."-Addison hung up and drew a shaky breath.-"They're coming after Seminary tomorrow morning."

Addison's shoulders shook as she fought back tears. Derek put a comforting arm around her and Richard patted her leg.

"That took courage, Addie," Richard told her, "I'll be right there with you tomorrow. Treating a family member is one of the most difficult things you will have to do as a Doctor. You are doing a wonderful job."

She gave him a small smile. "Thanks."

"Do you want me to give you a ride home?" Derek asked her.

She shook her head and stood up. "No thanks. I think I'm going to just stay here. I don't really want to be alone at my hotel."

Addison said goodnight and left in search of an empty on-call room.

When Addison got up the next morning, she showered in one of the locker rooms and changed into a pair of clean scrubs. While checking on some patients, her pager beeped, telling her that the Giambattistas had arrived. She made her way to the designated conference room and gathered her nerves before entering.

Natalie, Catherine, Dave, the Chief and Bailey were already seated around the table. Addison slid into the seat next to the Chief. She looked at the Chief reluctantly. He smiled encouragingly at her and she took a deep breath.

"Natalie, you have a Krukenberg Tumor…" Addison told her.

With the help of the Chief, Addison told them everything they knew about Signet Ring Carcinoma. Natalie was quiet throughout the meeting. While Richard was laying out a treatment plan, Addison stole a glance at her niece. The look on her face was unreadable but Addison could tell she was silently praying.

When the meeting was over, Addison wrapped her niece into a tight hug. "Nattie, I'm so sorry this is happening to you," She whispered in her ear, "I wish I knew how to take away your pain."

Natalie pulled away slightly and looked Addison right in the eyes. "Stop apologizing, Aunt Addie. It's not your fault. You couldn't have prevented it. God wanted this to happen to me, so it's happening. It's as simple as that. If it wasn't me, it might have been Daney or Emily or Allison or someone else. God's gonna help me through this. I trust Him. I know you aren't that religious but you have to trust Him too. Okay?"

Addison was taken aback. She suddenly had a newfound admiration for her niece, who could put so much blind trust in her Heavenly Father. "Alright. Call me if you need anything." She squeezed her shoulder and left the room.

Author's Note: I'm sorry it's been so long since I updated. I hope you all haven't given up on me or this story. Although, if you had, you wouldn't be reading this now.

Anyway, on March 8th, 2007, Natalie was diagnosed with a Krukenberg Tumor/Signet Ring Carcinoma. All the information in here came from either word of mouth or the internet. I tried to show a little more of Nat's religious side in this chapter. I think it seemed like she and Addison were being a little hostile to each other, but that was completely not my intention. I didn't really know how to end the chapter so it's kind of abrupt. The next chapter is quite long though.

Check my author page often, I change it about once a week. Please review so I know someone out there is still reading this! Thanks a bunch!