Gibbs was relieved when he turned into the parking lot at Bethesda and found a spot to park. The drive home had taken them longer than he expected due to the fresh dusting of snow and every extra passing minute made his blood pressure rise. During the drive he'd been in touch with Vance and was reassured that Ducky had made it through surgery with minimal complications. However, he needed to see the older man with his own eyes before he truly believed that everything was going to be all right.
"Gwapa Duck?" Timmy mumbled around the thumb in his mouth and pointed toward the hospital.
"Yeah, Grandpa Ducky is inside that building, son." Gibbs sighed as he unbuckled his seat belt and turned around to face the toddler. "Remember how I told you that Grandpa got a boo-boo?"
Tim's brow furrowed and he nodded. Gibbs reached back and gently stroked the youngster's knee, "We're going to go into the hospital and see how he's doing. Tony, Ziva and the rest of the team are in there waiting for us, but you have to be very quiet. Can you be a big boy for Daddy?"
"Kay." Tim whispered and squirmed in his seat. Gibbs figured he was in need of a diaper change, but decided to wait until they were inside and had the latest information on Ducky's condition. Tony had texted him the room number, informing him that Ducky was in intensive care and that only two people were allowed in the room at a time. The younger man also mentioned the team had taken over one of the waiting rooms and because of his bronchitis the staff wouldn't let him visit with Ducky. Grabbing his phone from the console as well as an extra bottle out of the cooler, Gibbs climbed out of the car and shivered as a gust of wind smacked him in the face. Opening the passenger's side door he stuffed the bottle inside the diaper bag and slung it over his shoulder before unbuckling Tim from his car seat.
"Remember we have to be very quiet, Timmy." He reminded the toddler as he zipped his coat and put on his hat. Gathering the little guy in his arms he lifted him out of the car seat and hugged him tightly against his chest. Closing and locking the door he trudged through the snowy parking lot and in to the bustling hospital. Following the signs to the elevator, they walked down a long hallway and packed emergency room until reaching their destination. Tim's eyes lit up when he saw the buttons and he immediately reached out to press both the up and down buttons before Gibbs could stop him. The older man stepped back as Tim emitted a small giggle and reached for the buttons once more. "No, Timmy, the elevator is on its way. You did a good job, kiddo."
Finally the elevator doors opened and Tim was delighted when his daddy showed him which button to push. Gibbs' stomach was in knots as the elevator ascended to the sixth floor and the doors slid open. Taking a deep breath he stepped off and followed the signs down another long hallway to a small waiting room. Tony, Ziva and Abby were deep in conversation and it wasn't until Gibbs cleared his throat that the trio realized they'd arrived. Abby leapt out of her chair and wrapped the two Gibbses in a bear hug.
"I'm so glad you two are finally here!" She strengthened her grip around them and continued rambling, "Poor Ducky! All he was trying to do was help that poor girl and now he's fighting for his life. You have to find out who did this Gibbs!" Tim shrieked loudly and struggled to breathe as he was squished between Gibbs and Abby.
When Abby ignored Tim's cries, Ziva grabbed hold of her shoulders and pried her off, "Do you not hear Timmy crying? You are smothering him, Abby!"
"Abs, let's give the kid some air, huh?" Gibbs huffed, taking a step back to allow Timmy some breathing room.
Abby bowed her head when she saw Tim struggling to breathe, "I'm sorry, Timmy. I was so relieved that you two were finally here and I wasn't thinking..."
"That's right, you weren't thinking!" Gibbs snapped as he brushed the hair off Tim's forehead. "We'll talk about this later."
Once he was certain that Tim was okay, Gibbs glanced over at Tony and did a double take when he saw the mask the younger man was wearing. His mind suddenly flashed back to Norfolk where he first met Tim over ten years ago. At the time, Tim was following protocol and wearing a mask as he worked a crime scene. He cringed as he remembered making fun of him and calling him Michael Jackson. Shaking his head as if to clear it, he hugged the toddler closer to his chest and spoke, "Any new information?"
Ziva shook her head, "They are keeping him sedated and he is on a ventilator. The Director and Jimmy are sitting with him now and I told Jimmy I would text him when you got here."
Tony walked over and gently tickled Tim's tummy. "Want to come to Uncle Tony?" Gibbs studied his Senior Field's Agent's face and scowled, the younger man looked horrible. His face was as white as a ghost, his voice was muffled through the mask, but Gibbs was sure it was hoarse and a thin layer of sweat glistened on his forehead.
"You look like hell, DiNozzo. Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't want Timmy catching a cold." Gibbs growled as he took a step back and continued, "I appreciate you being here and taking care of the team, but you need to go home and get some rest, son."
"Nice to see you too, Boss." Tony sighed and flopped back down in the chair. Gibbs was right, he felt terrible and all he really wanted to do was crawl into bed. Now that the older man was there he felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders and he was able to relax a little bit. "You're right, Boss, I feel terrible but there was no way in hell I wasn't going to be here for my family."
Gibbs smiled softly and patted Tony's shoulder, "You did good, son." Removing the diaper bag from his shoulder he set it on an empty chair and glanced at Ziva and Abby, "All of you did good."
Vance appeared in the doorway, "I told them that I was very proud of the way they rallied around Doctor Mallard. I also mentioned that you would be proud too." Gibbs smirked, "That's one thing we can agree upon. How's Ducky doing?"
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Vance sighed, "He's stable, but the doctors want to keep him sedated to allow his body time to heal after surgery. Mr. Palmer didn't want him to be alone so he opted to stay with him until you're ready to go in."
"See Gwapa Duck?" Timmy questioned hopefully and flashed his cute puppy dog eyes.
"I think you're too young to see Grandpa Ducky right now, sweetie."
"Wanna see Gwapa Duck!" Timmy wailed as newly formed tears threatened to fall from his eyes.
Taking a seat in the chair, Gibbs wrapped his arms around Tim and pulled him into his chest, "I know you do, kiddo, but Grandpa is very sick and only big people can see him right now."
Tim's sniffles erupted into full on sobs as he tried to break free from his daddy's grip. Gibbs was relieved the waiting room was empty except for the team as he attempted to soothe his son. "I know it's not fair, Timmy. I promise you'll be able to see him very soon. Don't feel bad, Uncle Tony hasn't gotten to see him yet either because he's not feeling good."
"That's right." Tony responded as he moved to the chair next to Gibbs and lightly stroked Timmy's knee. "The doctors are taking good care of him for us."
Between the combination of Gibbs stroking his back and Tony stroking his knee, Tim eventually calmed down and intermittently hiccupped. Gibbs knew it was close to Tim's naptime and his reaction was not only one of disappointment but also exhaustion. He wanted to spend some alone time with Ducky and decided to come up with a plan. "I know you've all been up all night and I want you to go home and get some sleep while I sit with Duck. Ziver, do you mind taking Timmy back to my place and you can both rest there?"
"I would be happy to Gibbs."
"I'll bring dinner and Jethro by the house later tonight after I've had a nap." Abby responded, covering her mouth as she swallowed a yawn.
"Abs can you drop me off at my place? Ziva and I rode over together and I think it would be better if she went straight to Gibbs' house."
Abby nodded, "Jimmy and Director Vance each have their own cars here so we can go straight to your place."
"Good luck prying Mr. Palmer away from Doctor's Mallard's bedside. The kid has really stepped up over the last twelve hours and held it together better than the rest of us."
"Doesn't surprise me, Leon. Palmer considers Duck to be his father and we all know how proud the doctor is of his son. Remember when Duck had his heart attack and Palmer didn't leave his side the entire time? They have a special relationship and Duck will be so proud when he learns that Palmer held it together."
Vance nodded, "Yep, he did good and I've already told him that. It might be nice hearing it come from you too, Gibbs."
Gibbs ran his fingers through his hair and sighed, "I'll see what I can do. Have you heard anything from Metro?"
"I talked with the Chief over an hour ago and he told me the young lady that Doctor Mallard attempted to help was working with a sketch artist. Apparently she got a fairly good look at the shooter and the building in which the shooting took place has high tech security cameras. They're combing through the footage and using facial recognition to see if they get a hit."
"That's as far as they've gotten over the past twelve hours? If it was us, we would already have a BOLO out on that bastard!"
Tim whimpered as the roar and vibration coming from Gibbs rattled against his back. He didn't like it when his daddy yelled and got upset.
"This isn't the time or place for this conversation, Gibbs. Besides if you could see the frightened look on your son's face right now you would be mortified. Our primary concern right now is being here for Doctor Mallard. Lets give Metro some time to catch this son of a..." Vance screeched to a halt, remembering there was a baby in the room who didn't need to be exposed to bad language. He cleared his throat and continued, "Metro is perfectly capable of solving this crime so let's give them room to work before we go in there guns blazing. Most of our team is incapacitated at the moment anyway."
Gibbs leaned down and kissed the top of Tim's head and whispered, "Sorry sweetie. Daddy's not mad at you, he's upset about Grandpa Ducky." Tim nuzzled closer to him and stuck his thumb in his mouth, fighting to keep his eyes open. Ziva smiled at the sight and whispered, "I think it is best if I get the little guy home. He is starting to fall asleep."
"That's a good idea." Gibbs stood up and moved Tim to his shoulder where the youngster buried his face in the crook of the older man's neck and sighed contently. "I need to find somewhere to change him before you take him home."
"I saw some family restrooms down the hall, Boss."
"Thanks, Tony." Grabbing the diaper bag from the chair he flung it over his free shoulder and headed in the direction of the restroom. He was relieved to find the restroom clean and spacious as he dropped the diaper bag on a bench and looked around. There was a changing table that extended from the wall and he used his free hand to pull it down. Removing the changing pad from the bag he spread it out on the table and laid Tim down. The toddler groaned as he was awakened and frowned as Gibbs removed his pants. "Shh baby you can go back to sleep. Daddy just needs to change your diaper before you go home with Aunt Ziva."
"Kay." Timmy mumbled and stretched lazily as Gibbs unfastened the diaper and pulled it down. Carefully examining the little guy's bottom, Gibbs was relieved to see the rash slowly fading. Smearing on a new coat of cream he winced when Timmy shivered, "I know you hate this part, kiddo. I'm almost done." Sliding a fresh diaper under Tim's hips he continued, "Daddy might be gone for quite awhile and Aunt Ziva might have to change your diaper; can you be a big boy and let her do it?"
Tim's eyes widened and he shook his head in disbelief, "No, no Dada!"
"Listen sweetie, I know you don't want anyone else to, but I won't be able to all the time. Daddy doesn't want you to sit in an icky diaper for too long. How about if Ziva has to change your diaper then you get a nice big treat afterwards?"
The youngster folded his arms across his chest and blew raspberries at him. Gibbs chuckled as he slid Tim's pants back on and pulled him into a sitting position. Brushing the hair off the toddler's face he responded, "You'll be fine, Timbo. Aunt Ziva is going to take really good care of you. Plus, Abby is going to bring Jethro home tonight. You like playing with doggy, right?"
"Yesh."
"I promise I'll be home as soon as I can. As much as I would love to go home and take a nap with you, Grandpa Ducky needs me right now. I'll be home in time for your bath and cuddles before bed."
"Kay" Tim muttered, while Gibbs attempted to soften the blow of being separated by peppering his face with kisses. Tim squealed as the whiskers on Gibbs' face tickled his skin. Laying one final kiss to the toddler's forehead the older man packed up the diaper bag and gathered Tim in his arms, "I know you're going to be a good boy for Ziva and if you really need me I'm only a phone call away."
When they returned to the waiting room everyone was bundled up and ready to go. Abby had run down to the cafeteria while they were gone and now held an extra large coffee in her hand. Gibbs assumed it was a peace offering for nearly smothering Tim earlier and he accepted it with a small smile. "Thanks Abs. Now it's time for all of you to go home and get some rest. None of us will be helpful to Ducky if we run ourselves ragged. We can work out an arrangement of who will stay with Duck later tonight as I know each of you will be chomping at the bit. Except for you DiNozzo, you need to get better before coming back."
Tony held his hands up in surrender and sighed, "You're not going to hear an argument from me, Boss. I already know I'm going to get yelled at by Ducky for being here today when I should be at home."
Gibbs nodded and handed the diaper bag off to Abby and then squeezed Tim tightly against his chest, "Go have some fun with Aunt Ziva, kiddo." Tim leaned into Ziva's outstretched arms and grinned when his hand connected with her silky long hair. All the adults in the room chuckled lightly as he immediately began playing with it and leaned his head down on her shoulder. Any reservation Gibbs had about leaving Tim with Ziva vanished when he saw the gratified look on his son's face. Fishing the car keys out of his pocket he handed them to Ziva who accepted them with a confused look on her face. "I have my car here, Gibbs. Why would I need the keys to your car?"
"Because Timmy needs to be in a car seat. I figured it would be easier if you took my car and I would drive yours home at the end of the day."
"Ah, yes, I forgot about Timothy needing to be restrained." The Israeli took her own keys out of her pocket and handed them over to the older man.
"He definitely needs a car seat with the way you drive, Ziva. Boss, are you sure you want Timmy to be riding with her? What if..."
"DiNozzo..." Gibbs growled and held up his hand to silence the younger man. "I trust Ziva will take her time and remember that she can't drive crazy with such precious cargo in the car." Glaring at Ziva he continued, "Isn't that right, David?"
Ziva swallowed hard and nodded, "You have nothing to worry about Gibbs. I will take very good care of Timothy."
"That's what I thought. Now go on, get out of here so I can go see Ducky and send Palmer home."
"Buh Dada." Tim mumbled around his thumb as the team scurried out of the waiting room and headed toward the elevator.
"Bye sweetie. Be a good boy!" Gibbs responded and continued waving until the group had rounded the corner. Taking a deep breath he turned around and was startled to see Palmer standing a few feet behind him. "Geez Palmer! What are you doing out here? Is everything all right with Duck?"
"Sorry Agent Gibbs I didn't mean to scare you. Doctor Mallard's condition hasn't changed at all. It had been awhile since Ziva texted me and told me you arrived so I decided to come out and make sure everything was okay."
Gibbs examined the younger man's face and could tell he was hanging on by a thread. There were heavy bags under his eyes and his hair was an unkempt mess. He steered Jimmy over to sit down and pushed the extra coffee Abby had bought into his hand. "Drink," he ordered as Jimmy gave him a confused yet grateful look.
Jimmy took a sip of coffee, leaned back in the chair and mumbled, "It should have been me." His confession caused Gibbs to sit up in his chair and face him, "What do you mean it should have been you?"
"Doctor Mallard asked if I could go check on Tony, but Breena and I had dinner reservations with her family. If I would have just met them at the restaurant instead of allowing him to go then none of this would have happened."
"Hey! Look at me!" Gibbs waited until Palmer slowly lifted his head to meet his gaze before adding, "Did you pull the trigger?"
"Well no but..."
"Then don't put all this guilt on yourself. Ducky is a strong, stubborn individual and eventually he's going to be fine. I know for a fact he wouldn't want you to feel guilty in any capacity and would probably give you a strong head slap for thinking it's your fault. It's not anyone's fault except for the bastard that shot him. He's going to be caught and will have to answer for the crime he's committed. That's one thing I'm certain of, Palmer."
"I only wish there was more I could do." Jimmy admitted sadly and took another sip of coffee.
The older man patted his knee in reassurance and replied, "We all feel that way and when Ducky is feeling better and out of the hospital there will be plenty for us to help out with. From what I've heard from Vance and the others, you've already stepped up plenty over the past twelve hours and I know Ducky is grateful you made sure he had the very best medical care. You're exhausted and need to go home and try to rest. Call Breena and have her come pick you up as you're in no condition to drive."
Jimmy adamantly shook his head, "I'm not leaving. Someone has to be here to talk with the doctors and nobody knows Doctor Mallard's medical history better than me."
Gibbs admired the younger man's tenacity and dedication to his mentor, but he wouldn't be of any help to the doctor until he got some much-needed rest. Sighing, he responded, "I'll make you a deal, if you go home now and get some sleep you can come back and relieve me tonight. Don't worry I'll call if anything changes and remember Ducky will be disappointed if you don't take care of yourself too. Now call your wife and have her come and get you. I'll take care of everything here."
Jimmy realized this was not an argument he was going to win and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket to text Breena. Receiving a quick reply from his wife he turned to Gibbs and smiled wearily, "Apparently Breena was out running errands and is only a few minutes away. I'm going to head downstairs to meet her, but I'll be back at eight for the overnight shift."
Nodding, Gibbs retrieved Palmer's coat from the back of his chair and handed it to the younger man. "Go, get some sleep and I'll see you back here at eight."
Following Jimmy out of the waiting room, Gibbs watched until he turned the corner to the elevator, then he headed toward Ducky's room. Once he entered into ICU there was a receptionist who took his name and gave him a visitor's badge before pointing him in the direction of the doctor's room. He was relieved to see that Ducky's room was right across from the nurses' station and wondered if there was any reasoning behind it or if it was the only room available. Taking a deep breath he practically collided with the nurse who was leaving.
"Oh, I apologize I thought all of Doctor Mallard's family had gone home for the day."
Gibbs shook his head and extended his hand, "Special Agent Jethro Gibbs, Ma'am...I'm one of Ducky's closest friends and just got back into town." Gibbs peered over the woman's shoulder, gazing at a very frail looking Ducky. Swallowing hard he continued, "How's he doing?"
"Gibbs...ah yes I remember seeing you in Doctor Mallard's chart as an emergency contact." She smiled softly and added, "He's improving, but he has a long road ahead of him."
Running his fingers through his hair, Gibbs nodded, "How much longer will he be sedated and on the ventilator? Is that normal procedure or is there something more serious going on that the doctors haven't told us yet?"
The nurse lightly touched his arm and shook her head; "It's normal Agent Gibbs especially when we're dealing with an older patient. Gives them time for their body to rest and recover after trauma such as being shot and having surgery. We encourage visitors to talk to the patient, hold their hands, and let them know that they're there for them. I'll leave you alone and don't be afraid to call if you need anything."
"Thanks, I appreciate it and thanks for taking such good of Ducky. He means a lot to all of us."
Once the nurse left the room and Gibbs was left alone with the constant beeping of the heart monitor along with the continuous sound of the respirator, his stomach churned. Taking another deep breath he walked over and stood at the foot of Ducky's bed. His gaze travelled amongst the different equipment that was helping sustain the older man's life. Besides the respirator there were several IV bags hanging with what he assumed were antibiotics, pain medications and a general solution to keep him hydrated. Sighing, he took a seat in the chair next to Ducky's bed and studied his face. There was a small bruise on his forehead that stood out against his pale skin and Gibbs made a mental note to ask where it had come from. There was a possibility that he'd hit his head after he'd been shot and fell to the ground but he wanted to be certain. Wanting to let Ducky know he was there, he gently clutched the older man's hand and ran his thumb over his knuckles. Careful not to disturb any of the equipment, Gibbs' free hand travelled upward to Ducky's forehead and hovered over the nasty bruise. Slowly lowering his hand he brushed his hair over to one side and cherished the connection he had with his old friend. He felt terrible that the last words he'd spoken to the man he thought of as a surrogate father were of anger and disgust and he couldn't wait until he'd be able to apologize. Suddenly he remembered the nurse also recommended talking to Ducky and he sandwiched the older man's hand between both of his.
"Duck...it's me...I'm here now and everything is going to be all right." He paused, trying to rein in his emotions before he continued, "I'm sorry for taking out my anger over my father on you when you were trying to help. You didn't deserve to be treated like that after all you've done for Timmy and me." Blinking back tears he buried his face against an empty spot on the mattress and mumbled repeatedly, "I'm sorry."
When the nurse appeared ten minutes later she smiled at the sight in which she was greeted by. Gibbs was sound asleep clutching Ducky's hand, while the older man appeared much more peaceful and relaxed than she'd seen him since he arrived in the Intensive Care Unit.