Valarie was horrified when she first saw Tony. The beeps and hisses were the only proof of life. She wondered who could have done such a horrible thing. How could somebody tamper with his IV? How cruel could somebody be? Didn't they realize they could have killed Tony? Didn't they care? Was that what they wanted? But who out there wanted Tony dead? They were all in jail and only allowed strictly supervised and very limited contact with the outside world. Breena was dead and even if she were alive. The woman could not bathe herself in the end. How on Earth could she attack Tony? Ed was not blaming Tony nor was anyone still at NCIS. That left Ducky but surely the old doctor was not that sadistic? He had held back when the others had attacked Tony. Didn't that count for anything?
The MRI showed that Tony had strong brain activity, that was the good news. He would have tests on his heart in the coming days. If he survived. If. That was just unnecessarily cruel. Knowing that her friend might die. She had brought Tali to the hospital but the toddler had screamed and runaway upon seeing her father. That had broken Valarie's heart further. She had finally seen her father and it had terrified her. He looked bad earlier but that was nothing compared to now. Now Tali may never get another chance to see her father, and she had been afraid the last time she saw him. That was not fair. It was just not fair.
"He's actually doing well. Considering." Dr. Garret explained.
"How severe will the damage be?" Valarie asked.
"We won't know right away but him being on the vent saved him from severe brain damage when he stopped breathing. He at least had the support the vent offered." Dr. Garret explained.
"What if he can't take care of himself?" Valarie asked.
"He will more than likely need some rehab. If the damage is severe we would recommend putting him into a nursing home. Unless there is somebody who can care for him at home." Dr. Garret explained.
"I could do it." Valarie offered.
"You will be caring for his daughter, correct?" Dr. Garret asked.
"Yes, sir" Valarie replied.
"That may be a lot to take on but he may beat the odds and make this conversation moot." Dr. Garret explained.
"God willing" Valarie replied.
Valarie stood alone by Tony's bedside. Seeing him like this was killing her. She understood what had fueled Tali running away. If Tony did not need the support. She would run off as well. The visit was supposed to be short and then Valarie would have to take Tali home. She knew that she needed to speak but she could not find the words. Her body shook and she was on the verge of tears.
"Come on Tony. You have to be OK. Tali needs you. I need you. I know how strong you are. If you can beat the plague and then survive the accident. I know that you can beat this. You just have to keep on fighting. Please just keep on fighting." Valarie pleaded.
Tali was trapped in a nightmare and Valarie was too. Valarie was awake but her life had become a nightmare. She was caring for a traumatized child and fighting for her friend's life. Now she was expected to testify in court. She wanted those monsters to fry but she did not want to have to relive that night. Even though she lived that night every time she closed her eyes or looked at Tony's apartment. She relived the scene every time Tali cried out in her sleep.
"Abba!" Tali gasped.
"Abba is going to be OK." Valarie whispered.
"Why did they hurt Abba?" Tali asked.
"They are bad people but they are going away for a very, very long time." Valarie promised.
"Where?" Tali asked.
"They are going to prison. Which is like timeout for grown-ups who did very, very bad things. Where they have to stay for a long time." Valarie explained.
"Why?" Tali asked.
"So they can't do bad things anymore." Valarie explained.
"No more hurt Abba?" Tali asked.
"Never again." Valarie promised, even though she could make no promises.
Ed Slater was officially moved into his nursing home. He sat on his bed in the dark room and waited. He was waiting to die. Death would free him from hell. Breena had known this hell in her final days. Even though he knew that he could not have done anything. He still regretted that he had not done more to help her. Maybe this was his punishment or maybe it was just how his life was. Nothing had made sense, since Jimmy and Victoria had been killed. Somehow even less made sense, now that Breena was gone. He wondered how long he would have to live like this. He wished that things were different and he had died instead of Jimmy, Tori, and now Breena. That was the natural order of thins. None of this was even remotely natural.
Ducky knew that he would be busted soon enough. He knew that the hospital had a video camera system. Once upon a time he could have taken out the cameras but things were guarded now and probably backed up. Instead he left the hospital and began his run. If he were lucky he could make it to England. He could return to his hometown and start anew. He could have at least a few months before he was caught. More likely than not he would be busted right away and his freedom would be gone. What was better being on the run for the rest of his life or being busted and spending his remaining days in prison. At least he would be with Jethro, McGee, and Abigail.
"International Flight 2015 to Liverpool, now boarding." A monotone voice called.
"That would be me." Ducky sighed, Liverpool was the fist flight he could get.
A/N: Will Ducky be caught? New chapter will be up soon. Thanks for reading and please review.