CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Admiral McGee pulled into his garage and turned off the engine. He sighed deeply and leaned his head back against the headrest as he listened to the deep thrum of the garage door closing. What a nightmare this had all turned out to be. He pulled the key out of the ignition, opened the door and slid out. He felt a hundred years old. Maybe it was time to start thinking about retiring.
He'd lied to Gibbs about going to the airport. In fact, he really had no idea when his mother, daughter and ex-wife would be arriving from Japan. He just needed an excuse to leave so he could think. Nothing about this day had gone right.
He plodded into the condo dropping the keys on the kitchen counter and flicked on the light. Damn. He needed a drink. He turned and headed to his study, the small desk light he always left on created a welcoming glow.
He strode over to the antique sideboard next to the fireplace and picked up a glass. Examining the array of liquor bottles before him, he finally picked up a bottle of Maker's Mark bourbon and splashed a couple of fingers into the glass. He downed it in one gulp.
"Hello, John."
Choking in surprise, the admiral dropped the glass onto the marble hearth where it shattered with a crash. Still coughing, the admiral whirled to glare at the figure sitting in the chair behind his desk.
"Goddam it, Mother! What the hell are you doing here? Trying to kill me?"
"Maybe," replied Penny evenly. "Depends on what you have to say."
The admiral stooped down and began to pick up the pieces of shattered glass. Dropping them into the trash, he grabbed the bottle and filled a second glass before turning to face his mother.
"Say about what?"
Penny Langston was gray with exhaustion. It had taken close to thirty hours for them to get back from Japan and it showed. "I want to talk about what's going on with Timothy."
The admiral sighed and settled down into the deep leather chair across from the desk. "Of course you do. What do you want to know?"
"I had a long conversation with Miss Abby Sciuto this evening and she told me some rather disturbing things."
"Who?"
Penny rolled her eyes. "Abby Sciuto. Works with Timothy at NCIS. A forensic scientist. Very talented young woman."
The admiral took a sip of his bourbon and waved her on. "Whatever. Go on."
Penny pursed her lips then forged ahead. "When Agent Gibbs called me in Japan, he told me Tim had been shot while protecting you. And that's true, correct?"
"Yes."
Penny was silent for a moment as if digesting this information. She drummed her fingers on the desk. "All right, I understand that's part of his job, although I can't imagine NCIS assigning someone to protect their own father." Penny paused to rub her bloodshot eyes. "But I digress. When I heard that, I was so very proud of him. Once I got over the shock, of course. That he would put himself in harm's way for his father, and then I thought perhaps now things would change between the two of you. But then, she told me about some things that had happened prior to that."
The admiral said nothing. He knew where this was going and he knew his mother. Until she got it out of her system, nothing he said would have any impact.
"She told me that NCIS put you in a safe house to protect you from some nutjobs that were trying to kill you. But these guys kidnapped Tim when he interrupted them planting a bomb on your car, then they tortured him to find out where you were. Is all of that true?"
"Yes."
"John!" Penny leapt to her feet and slammed her hands on the desk. "Your son was tortured and that's all you can say?"
"What can I say? I didn't know about any of that until much later. Tim insisted they not tell me. So, don't blame me for that." He gulped down more of his drink as he glared at the woman across the room.
Penny began to pace, a sure sign she was really upset. "Abby said that despite being tortured, he never revealed the location of the safe house. So he sacrificed himself for you more than once during this whole fiasco."
The admiral opened his mouth but Penny abruptly held up her hand.
"No. Wait. I haven't gotten to the good part yet." Penny walked around the desk until she stood before her son, her folded across her chest, dark eyes flashing. "Then I hear that these killers arrived at that safe house with Timothy tied up, using him as a hostage, but when help arrives, you left your own son lying on the floor still tied up! Is that true?"
The admiral drained his glass. His mouth twitched as he studied the empty tumbler. "Like I said before, I didn't know he'd been tortured until much later. Tim didn't want me to know." He looked up her and scowled. "And dammit, I thought he'd led them straight to me. That after a few threats, he'd caved in and told them everything he knew. I didn't see a mark on him. How was I to know he had a bunch of broken ribs and a concussion? Or that they'd planted a tracking device on him?" The admiral's voice rose to an angry crescendo. "I made mistakes, okay? But I love my son!"
"Bullshit." Penny's voice was cold. "If you really loved Tim, he wouldn't have had to take a bullet in his chest to get you to admit it. And what's this I hear about your aide, Lt. Owens? Abby told me he tried to kill Timothy with an injection of amoxicillin."
The admiral got to his feet and stalked over to his bar to refill his glass. "She's quite the Chatty Cathy, isn't she, this Abby Sciuto?" He turned back to Penny. "And as far as Owens trying to kill Tim, I don't believe it. Jason is a good man. I've mentored him for years. All that father-figure crap Gibbs and his bunch keep spouting is just a load of bullshit. There is no compelling reason for Jason to try to kill Tim. It simply doesn't make sense."
"So we're talking about Jason Owens, that same little smarmy assistant you've had for the past few years, right?"
The admiral glared at her. "He is not 'smarmy', whatever the hell that means. He's been a tremendous asset to my staff. He's hardworking, loyal, and has a good head on his shoulders."
With a lift of her eyebrow, Penny shook her head. "You're kidding right? That kid is the biggest brown-noser I've ever seen, and believe me, after all those years married to your father, I've seen a lot. Guys like him weasel their way into staff positions in the hopes of furthering their careers. This guy is using you to help him advance."
Admiral McGee laughed. "Of course he is! Everyone in the military is looking for ways to advance their career. It's the way of the world, Mother. But wanting to get ahead does not make one a murderer."
"No, but jealously can." Penny stepped closer to her son, her eyes narrowed. "John, you have a strong personality. In an admiral, that's a good thing. As a father, it can be a problem. I understand Lt. Owens' own father abandoned him when his parents divorced. Owens looks up to you not only as a mentor but as a father figure. I've seen it with my own eyes. When Tim saved your life, I'm sure Owens suddenly saw him as a threat to his relationship to you."
"Oh for the love of…not you too!" The admiral slammed his glass down, spilling a generous portion of his drink across the aged cherry of the sideboard. He pulled himself erect and faced his mother directly. "Why is everyone so goddamned convinced Jason tried to kill Tim? You answer me that. Is it to hurt me? Okay, I'll admit it. I've been the worst father on earth when it comes to Tim. I screwed up royally. There? Are you happy? But why does Jason have to suffer for my mistakes?"
"Because this was his mistake, not yours, John. And why are you so determined to ignore the evidence in front of you and declare him innocent? His fingerprint is on the syringe with Tim's blood on the needle. He had the vial of amoxicillin in his pocket. He was seen by the nurse and by your own son! I understand that he even spoke to Tim, telling him it was better this way and that he would just be a distraction. The man is guilty, John, but you're rather believe him than a mountain of evidence. I want to know why."
The admiral ran a hand through his closely cropped hair. Why indeed? He was willing to believe Tim led those killers to him without a single shred of evidence, yet when presented with a pile of compelling facts, he refused to even consider the possibility that Jason Owens had tried to kill Tim. Why?
"Are you so afraid of being wrong, that you will continue to stand up for a killer and deny your own son?"
Admiral McGee lifted his troubled gaze to meet the unforgiving one of his mother.
"You are a hard man, John McGee, much like your father. But he was also a compassionate man. Never in his entire life would he have ever treated you like you've treated Tim. You are so focused on your own version of success that you can't even begin to consider there might be others." Penny studied her son as if looking for answers he had deeply hidden.
"I love you, John, but I can't believe you are the son I raised. Family comes first. Or it should. I know you believe the Navy is your family, but we are too. Where will you be when the Navy finally puts you out to pasture? You'll just be one more old admiral with boring sea stories that no one wants to hear. You need your family. You still have a chance to repair things with your children. It's not too late."
Admiral McGee gave a bitter laugh. "I think you may be wrong there, Mother. I tried to apologize, but Tim informed me, in no uncertain terms I might add, that he wanted me gone."
"Do you blame him?"
There was a long moment of silence as the admiral stared into the deep amber of the bourbon. "No."
"It's going to take more than a simple apology to repair this, John. Besides, if I know you, I doubt the word 'sorry' was ever even mentioned."
The admiral could feel his face go warm. She knew him all too well.
Penny sighed. "This is going to take a lot of time and effort on your part to win Timothy back. All he ever wanted was your love and respect, the two things you refused to give him. He idolized you as a child but you constantly rejected him. Frankly, I think you're lucky he didn't just hand you over to those killers or shoot you himself. You certainly deserved it."
"All right Mother, that's enough," snapped Admiral McGee, with growing irritation. "I've admitted I've made some serious mistakes. Tim will come around eventually. Family is too important to him. In the meantime, I've got to decide what to do about Jason."
"You'll do nothing." Penny poured herself a glass of the bourbon. "Let the court decide his innocence or guilt."
"I've already found him a lawyer."
Penny sipped her bourbon. "Then let that be the end of it. That fact your own aide is accused of attempted murder isn't going to do your career any good. Add that to the fact it was your own son he tried to kill, you need to step way back."
"But I don't believe he's guilty!" The admiral began to pace the room. "I can't just abandon him."
"But you'll abandon your son?" demanded Penny, her voice rising. "Goddam it John, what the hell is wrong with you? Quit being such an idiot and open your eyes! The man is guilty!" She gulped down her drink and slammed the glass down beside her son's. "But, I'm warning you, if you openly support Owens and forsake Timothy, your family will be lost to you for good."
Then, without another word, Penny turned on her heel and stalked from the room. A moment later slam of the front door echoed through the condo.
Admiral McGee stood staring after her long after she'd disappeared, then slowly he sank into his leather chair and with a deep sigh, buried his head in his hands.