Chapter 14

They gathered in the waiting room in the hospital at Fredericksburg, just like before. Dr. Grayson had been surprised to have Tim back, but Ducky had asked him to consult with Dr. Jessop about Tim's situation. He had agreed and now, they were waiting to hear whether or not Tim was going to recover.

Abby was fidgeting beside Gibbs who was unmoving. Ducky was reading some information that Dr. Jessop had given him as a distraction while waiting. Tony and Kate were alternating between sitting on a chair and pacing.

No one was speaking.

After a few hours, Dr. Grayson came out and they all stood up together.

"I'm sorry to keep you all waiting but I'm afraid you'll have to wait a while longer," he said.

"What have you discovered?" Ducky asked.

"We're going to attempt to surgically remove the wires and the device in Agent McGee's brain. Dr. Jessop is working on the process that will be required to do so safely. Once we've done that, it will be a waiting game to see whether or not Agent McGee will be able to recover."

"What kind of brain activity are you finding at this point?" Ducky asked.

"It's consistent with a coma. I don't know how long this surgery will take, nor how long it will be before you're able to see him. You're welcome to stay here, but it will likely be hours."

"We'll wait," Kate said, softly.

Dr. Grayson nodded and then withdrew. Everyone sat down again.

"Do you think it will work, Ducky?" Tony asked.

"It could... or not," Ducky said. "Everything about this situation is so far removed from my experience that I couldn't venture a guess as to whether or not it will be successful. We can only hope."

"And a few months ago, we didn't even know him at all," Kate murmured.

"What if he hadn't been part of our team?" Abby asked. "What do you think would have happened to him, then? Would he have had people to help him?"

"I wonder why he didn't call his family," Tony said. "Do you know anything about them, Abbs?"

Abby shook her head. "Tim doesn't really talk about himself that much. I do most of the talking."

Kate smiled. "Of course you do."

"Once, though, I was talking about my parents how they worried about me a lot when I first came to D.C.," Abby added. "I asked him if his parents worried about him being here all by himself. He said that his parents had enough to worry about and he didn't want to add to it. I asked him what he meant but he just said that he was an adult and didn't need to report in. I figured that he was just trying to be independent."

"Maybe he was before this," Kate said. Then, she sighed. "I guess all we can do is wait."

"Precisely," Ducky said.

They all resumed waiting through the long hours.

Waiting and hoping.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

There was a brief flash of light and he mumbled his dislike.

"Timmy? Are you awake?"

He did know that voice.

Another flash of light. He didn't like it and he mumbled again.

"Timmy! He's awake! ...I think."

He felt a hand squeezing his, and he found that he liked it. He tried to squeeze back but it was way too hard. All he managed was a little twitch.

"Don't jostle him, Abigail. Timothy, can you hear me?"

He mumbled for a third time.

"Good. Just relax. We're very glad that you're awake."

Awake? That was overstating things quite a bit, he felt.

"Hey, McGee's responding!"

"That's wonderful. I'll get Dr. Grayson."

He tried to say something, but the problem was that he didn't know what he was trying to say and it seemed as though something was sitting on his face, hampering his ability to speak.

The hand holding his didn't go away, though, and he did like that.

"Hello, Agent McGee. It's Dr. Grayson. Now, I know you won't enjoy this, but I'm just going to flash a light in your eyes. "

He mumbled something that he wanted to be a protest but was just more garbled sounds. Then, he jerked back as a light flashed in one eye and then the other. He tried to escape it, but he couldn't really move.

"Pupils are equal and reactive, albeit a bit slow. That's great. He's probably not going to fully awaken right away, but this is encouraging. I'll have a nurse come in and give him some additional tests. This is a definite improvement."

After a time, there was someone poking and prodding at him in unpleasant ways. He didn't like it and he tried to say so, but he failed to do anything but make noise. Then, after all that, he felt tired again and everything faded away.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Three days later...

Ducky was taking his turn sitting with Tim. He was gradually becoming more conscious, but it was a very slow process and he had awakened more than once showing signs of distress. They didn't want a repeat of what had happened when they had first found him and had set up a schedule to make sure someone was there with him.

But nothing else happened. No power surges. Nothing moving that shouldn't be. Ducky hoped that this was a sign all would be well. However, until Tim was fully awake and aware, they wouldn't know.

For a couple of hours, Ducky sat watching for signs of consciousness. Finally, Tim began to stir and started mumbling. At the same time, the EEG began showing a little more activity. Ducky leaned forward and took Tim's hand.

"You're safe, Timothy. Just calm down and let yourself wake up."

Tim's eyes fluttered open more than once and then closed again. Ducky continued to encourage him and, after about ten minutes, Tim's eyes opened and stayed open. He didn't move much but he was looking around a little bit.

"Timothy, can you hear me?"

Gradually, Tim's eyes moved over to him and stayed there. He was genuinely looking at Ducky.

"Hello, lad. How are you feeling?" Ducky asked, smiling.

For a long moment, Tim didn't respond, giving Ducky a major concern that the damage to his brain might have been too extensive.

But then, Tim took a long, deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Awful," he mumbled.

"Any pain in your head?"

Tim shook his head slightly.

"Heavy," he said.

"Your head?"

"Yeah."

"I can well believe it. Just relax. There is nothing you need to do right now except recover."

Tim just nodded and his eyes closed again. However, he didn't seem to be sleeping. His brain activity remained at that elevated level, but as Ducky had said, he just needed to relax and recover so he didn't press Tim to speak again. However, a couple of hours later, Tim's eyes opened again and he seemed a little more aware than he'd been the last time. It took only a few seconds for him to find Ducky.

"What... happened... Ducky?" he asked, although each word seemed to be a chore to speak.

"Do you remember driving to the power plant?" Ducky asked.

Tim's eyes closed once again and his head lolled back a little. Ducky didn't rush him.

"I was... on fire. My brain..."

"I'm sure it felt that way to you. Do you remember anything else?"

"Had to get there... gates opened... fire... That's all."

"Well, you managed to save Anthony and Caitlin, but the amount of energy it required nearly killed you. We weren't sure if you were going to survive it. I'm very glad that you did."

For another long moment, Tim just lay there with his eyes closed. Then, he moved his head around and opened his eyes again.

"Can't do that again..."

"I don't think you will. You've had surgery to remove the wires, but they had already been disconnected from the device that was implanted in your brain, much like a filament burning out in a light bulb. From what I was told, it was a relatively simple matter to remove them."

"What about... the... the thing they... put in?"

Ducky squeezed Tim's hand again.

"They haven't removed it yet."

"But..."

The EEG and the EKG both began to show an increase in activity. Tim was definitely getting worked up. That was something that should be avoided, given his weakened condition.

"The wires came out easily, but that device is implanted deep inside your brain and they aren't sure whether or not the risk would be worth it."

"What risk? Like being on fire?" Tim asked, his voice starting to rise. "Or destroying things with my mind?"

Ducky leaned forward and took hold of Tim's shoulders.

"Like chronic pain, memory loss, aphasia, and worse if something goes wrong."

Tim sagged a little in Ducky's grip.

"I don't... want to be... like that again. I want them to... take it out."

"Would you like me to get Dr. Jessop?"

Tim nodded. Ducky wasn't sure about this, but he did Tim asked. When Dr. Jessop arrived, he gave Ducky a significant look, but then, he focused his attention on Tim.

"All right, Agent McGee, I understand that you're anxious to get that device removed from your brain."

"It shouldn't be there," Tim said.

"No, it shouldn't, but it is. It's possible that we might be able to remove it safely because of how small it is, but... at the same time, it may be an unnecessary risk since it doesn't appear to be functioning."

"I want it out," Tim said.

"Would you like to talk this over with your friends first?"

"No. I want it out," Tim said again.

"All right," Dr. Jessop said, finally. "I'll speak with Dr. Grayson and we'll see how soon we can get the surgery set up."

Tim nodded.

"Dr. Mallard, could you come with me for a moment?"

"Of course. I'll be right back, Timothy."

Tim just nodded again and lay back, looking very tired.

Ducky stepped out into the hallway.

"What do you think, Dr. Jessop?" he asked.

"I think that this may not be a necessary surgery, but at the same time, there's no question that it's a foreign object and it already interfered with Agent McGee's normal functioning. This persistence, regardless of risk, could either be a natural desire to be normal again or it could be as a result of that device interfering with his brain, keeping him from truly understanding the risk."

"In either case, since he is insistent," Ducky began, "it seems that the surgery may be necessary. If it's interfering with proper brain function, then, it should be removed because who knows the extent of the damage or if it will spread. If it's just that Timothy is determined to take that risk, then, his wishes should be respected unless failure of the surgery is expected."

Dr. Jessop nodded.

"I don't think it's a given that the surgery will fail. There are methods for removing lesions and tumors from the thalamus and we could treat it like that to some extent. It's just that brain surgery is always so risky and with this device being completely unknown, I'm worried that it might be more dangerous than it appears. Do you think that anyone could convince him to change his mind and wait until we know it's necessary?"

Ducky shook his head. "I doubt it. I don't know Timothy as well as I might like, but he has shown surprising moments of determination that took those with him by surprise. He's also very intelligent and while I'm afraid of that being lost if something goes wrong, I'm inclined to accept his decision."

"Okay. I will speak with Dr. Grayson and we'll get prepared for the surgery. It might take some time."

"Understood."

Ducky went back into the room. Tim was lying on the bed, his eyes closed.

"Timothy?" Ducky asked very softly.

No response. He must be asleep again.

Ducky sat down beside the bed and considered the man sleeping before him. This entire situation had forced him to see Tim in a new light. For good or ill, Ducky had mostly seen Tim as a computer person, complete with the awkwardness that was the stereotype of people with those interests. Tim tended toward some shyness and he was quite reserved. And yet, in this situation, he had been afraid, yes, but he had also shown a surprising determination to free his teammates, even though it put his own life at risk. Apparently, Tim had not hesitated.

With this new view of Tim in mind, Ducky did hope that nothing would go wrong with the next surgery. Since they did not know what powered the thing, even if it wasn't functioning now, there was a possibility, no matter how remote, that it would begin operating at some point in the future. If so, then, it would be best to get rid of it.

All he could do was hope for the best outcome possible.