Author's Note: I am not a doctor so if any of this is
medically wrong you have my deepest apologies. This
note also applies to further parts of this story.
“It’s good to see both of my sons.” Isaac Ziegler
said as he opened the door of his house to his sons.
“It’s been too long, Dad.” David said.
“Yes, it has.” Toby agreed.
“I’m sure both of you are tired from your flight.”
Isaac said. “How’s Meghan doing, Toby?”
“She’s fine. I brought some photos and other stuff
for you.”
“Good, pictures of my only grandchild. Your mother
would have been disappointed that there are not any
more.”
“Yeah, she would have been.” David said.
“I’m certain you are both wondering why I wanted to
see you.” Isaac said.
“Yes, we were.” Toby said
“Sit down then” Isaac said.
Toby and David sat down on the balcony with their
father.
“Okay, I wanted to see both of you once more before I
die.”
“Dad...” Toby and David said at the same time.
“No, let me finish. I was diagnosed with cancer a few
weeks ago. It’s an inoperable brain tumor. They gave
me six weeks to live.”
Toby and David sat in shock for a few minutes before
speaking.
“You’re certain?” Toby said.
“Yeah, I am.” Isaac said.
“Maybe you should get a second opinion.” David said.
“I already did.”
They set in silence for a few minutes again, before
Toby finally asked the question that was on both his
and David’s minds. “How much longer do you have Dad?”
“Six weeks.”
Toby was silent for a few minutes. In the last ten
years, since his parents had moved to Israel, he had
drifted further and further from his father. They
spoke on the phone now and then. Mostly on the major
holidays, and the conversations had become more
frequent since he and CJ had married. Isaac had even
come to Washington when Meghan had been six months
old. But still the conversations were mostly about CJ
and Meghan. Sitting there looking at his father, Toby
found himself speechless.
“Dad, you know we love you.” David said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CJ was sitting next to the phone when Toby called.
She picked it up on the first ring.
“I guess you made it safely to Jerusalem?” She asked.
“Yeah.” He answered. “How’s Meghan?”
“She’s fine. What’s wrong?”
“What makes you think anything is wrong?”
“I hear it in your voice.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, and you haven’t answered the question.”
“I...well we found out the reason Dad wanted us to
come over here.”
“Which was?”
“CJ...he’s dying...he wanted to see David and I once
more before he died.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry. What’s wrong?”
“An inoperable brain tumor.”
“I’ll ask Leo for time off and fly out there.”
“No, don’t. I think he wants it to be just David and
I.”
“Yeah, I realize that. But my point is you need me
there.”
“I want to honor his wishes.”
“Okay. Then I guess you’ll call me everyday?”
“Probably more than once.”
“Okay.”
“CJ...”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
“I know. I love you too.”
“I’m...feeling right now like I haven’t told him that
often enough.”
“I know you are. He knows how you feel.”
“Yeah. Give Meghan a kiss for me.”
“Okay. I will. Love you.”
“Love you too. Bye.”
“Bye.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CJ sat and stared at the phone after she had hung it
up. Everything Toby had told her had shocked her,
although part of her had thought that could be the
reason Isaac wanted to see Toby and David. She got up
and looked in on Meghan, who was asleep. She was still
recovering from the ear infection she had earlier in
the week. CJ had stayed up most of the nights with
Meghan. CJ went back in the living room and sat down
to read the memos she had brought home.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Dad.” Toby said stepping out onto the balcony where
his father was sitting.
“Come out and join me son.” Seeing the distaste on
his son’s face, Isaac smiled. “I know you don’t
exactly like being outdoors son, but humor me.”
“Yeah, I don’t like being outdoors.” Toby said as he
poured some orange juice from the pitcher.
“I never understood why.” Isaac said.
“Maybe I just don’t like the fresh air.”
“Maybe you don’t.” Isaac laughed. “I know I asked you
yesterday but how are CJ and Meghan?”
“They’re both fine. Meghan had an ear infection a few
days before I left, but she’s doing better now. She
felt well the morning I left, and CJ said she was okay
last night.”
“I guess that you told CJ what I told you and David?”
“Yeah, I did. She wants to come here.”
“No, listen Toby, it’s not that I don’t like her, or
Melanie for that matter, but I wanted to spend this
time alone with my sons.”
“I explained that to her. I don’t think she liked it
though.”
“She thinks she needs to be here for you?”
“Yeah.”
“And she will be, when you go back to the States. You
know you having someone takes one worry off my mind.
“What do you mean by that?” Toby asked.
“Your mother and I always worried that you would end
up alone.”
“Hold on I was married to Andrea when Mom died.”
“Yeah, I know that. But your mother and I knew she
wasn’t the one.”
“You did?”
“Yeah, Leah said that would never last, and that
someday you would meet the person you were meant to be
with.”
“She always was quite the romantic, wasn’t she?” Toby
laughed thinking of his mother.
“Yeah, she was.” Isaac agreed. “She would have liked
Claudia you know. And that’s what she would have
called her, Claudia, your mother was too Old World to
call your wife by her initials.”
“You think she would have liked CJ?”
“Yeah, she would have. She would have seen how happy
she makes you and that would have been enough. And of
course she would have adored her granddaughter. Oh,
why haven’t you shown me those pictures you mentioned
last night?”
“There in the house. I’ll get them in a minute. She
was glad to come back here wasn’t she?”
“Who?” Isaac asked.
“Mother.” Toby replied.
“Yeah, she was. She had missed Jerusalem. But she
liked New York too. It was just Jerusalem was home for
her. After, I retired and you and David were grown up
she wanted to come home.”
“Yeah, I remember. I wish I had kept in touch more.”
“You kept in touch.”
“I called you on the holidays.”
“You have a busy life, I always understood why you
didn’t call more often.”
“The fact that I was busy is no excuse for not
calling you.”
“Yeah it is. Don’t worry about it son. And don’t sit
and brood over it when I’m gone.”
“I won’t.”
“Yeah, you will. And I’m going to call CJ and tell
her not to let you.”
“You would, wouldn’t you?”
“Yes.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“CJ.” Leo said as the rest of the staff left the
meeting.
“Yeah.”
“You’ve talked to Toby?”
“Yeah, last night. His father is dying.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. When are you leaving for Jerusalem?”
“I’m not. Isaac wants to spend his last days alone
with his sons. I don’t like it. I feel like Toby needs
me there, but what can I do?”
“There’s not much you can do.”
“No, there’s not.”
“Is Meghan feeling better?”
“Yeah, she’s fine. I have to take her back to the
doctor later today. But she’s feeling much better.
She’s slept the entire night the last two nights.”
“What time is the appointment?”
“Three. Josh or Sam one will do the afternoon
briefing for me, if that’s okay?”
“Yeah, that’s fine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“So, she’s feeling better?” Meghan’s pediatrician,
Dr. Bauer asked.
“Yes, she is.” CJ replied. “I think the ear infection
has cleared up, and she slept the last two nights.”
“That’s good, the tests indicate that the infection
has cleared up. Has she taken all the antibiotic I
prescribed?”
“No.” CJ replied.
“Well finish the entire dosage, just to make sure the
infection doesn’t come back. And I’ll see her for her
regular appointment in January unless something
happens.” Dr. Bauer said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When CJ was leaving Dr. Bauer’s office, she ran into
her doctor, Dr. Santos, who’s office was next door.
“Claudia, hello.” Dr. Santos said. “How are you?”
“I’m fine.” CJ replied.
“Well, that’s good. That can’t be Meghan. She can’t
be that big now?”
“She’s almost two now.”
“I guess she is.”
“Dr. Santos, since I’ve ran into you, may I ask you a
question?”
“Certainly.”
“The birth control bills that I’ve been on the last
two years. I missed a couple of dosages earlier in the
week...”
“Did you back up and take the pills after you
realized it?”
“No.”
“I see. And now you’re thinking you could be pregnant
again?”
“It is possible that I could be.”
“Take a home test in a couple of weeks and if it’s
positive come and see me.”
“Okay, thank you.”
“Your welcome, Claudia. Have you told Toby any of
this?”
“He left for Israel three days ago, his father is
ill. So I really don’t want to tell him over the
phone.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Is Meghan still awake?” Toby asked after he and CJ
had been talking for a few minutes.
“No, she went to sleep about an hour ago.”
“I was hoping to talk to her. How did the doctor’s
appointment go?”
“The infection has cleared up, but Meghan has to take
the rest of the antibiotic.”
“I see. I bet she’s loving that.”
“Yeah, she really hates that yucky medicine. You have
a much easier time giving it to her than I do.”
“I do?”
“Yeah, you do. How’s Isaac?”
“The same, if he hadn’t told us. I wouldn’t think
he’s sick.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I see you’re off the phone now.” Isaac said when
Toby joined him in the kitchen.
“Yeah, and I’m surprised you’re not on the balcony
yet.”
“I was waiting on you. How’s CJ?”
“Fine, I think.”
“You think?”
“She sounded worried, and I’m wondering what about.”
Toby said.
“You could always ask her.” Isaac suggested.
“She won’t tell me. At least not right now.” Toby
said.
“She doesn’t want you to have anything else to worry
about.”
“No.”
“I’ve always been surprised that you two haven’t had
another baby yet.”
“What brought that up?”
“David told me last night that Melanie can’t have any
children.”
“I see. CJ had problems when she was pregnant with
Meghan, remember?”
“Yeah, but from what I remember you telling me,
there’s no guarantee that would happen again.”
“There’s also not a guarantee that it wouldn’t happen
again. I can’t see her go through that again.”
“Well, you know what you can take.”
“Yeah, I do and I don’t think she could take going
through that again. ”
“It was tough on both of you?”
“Yeah.”
“And if she were to get pregnant again?”
“There’s a small chance. We’ll deal with it if that
happens.”
to be continued...