Growing Up McGee

The Tragedy - Chapter 4

Mrs. McGee left early a couple days later. Morgan had only emerged from her room a handful of times, and Tim was starting to get worried. Before Mrs. McGee left, she assured Tim that Morgan was going to be alright, but he was still concerned. Delilah's parents wouldn't be there for another couple of hours, so McGee used that time to clean up the house and get ready. He didn't bother asking Morgan to help, since her broken wrist disqualified her from doing too much. Once the house was clean he went up to her room and knocked on the door.

"Hey, Grandma and Grandpa are going to be here in a few minutes." McGee said, hoping she'd emerge. To his surprise, she opened the door, looking the same that she would any normal day.

"I'm ready." She stated before walking past him and down the stairs. McGee just sighed and followed her downstairs.

They waited in the kitchen for the unwanted arrival of their guests. When they arrived, they weren't carrying any bags, which meant they weren't staying the night. Father and daughter both let out sighs of relief and met their guests. Mr. and Mrs. Fielding barged into the house, offering no sympathies, which annoyed McGee. They simply said hello and sat in the chairs across from the couch, where he and Morgan sat.

"Oh, Morgan," Mrs. Fielding said, "did you not straighten your hair?"

This infuriated McGee. She lost her mother and twin brother in a car accident, and all you can do is ask her why she didn't straighten her hair?

Morgan only blushed before firing back, "Well, it was kind of hard to straighten my hair with a broken wrist." This made McGee chuckle slightly. It sounded exactly like something Delilah might say.

"Oh, yes, of course." Mrs. Fielding stuttered, taken aback. "Well, let's get right to business."

McGee didn't like the sound of that. "Business?"

"Yes." Mr. Fielding replied.

"We know that the thought of raising a young girl must be terrifying," Mrs. Fielding added. "So, we have come to do you a favor and take her out of your hands."

The room was silent. Morgan shifted uncomfortably, not understanding what they meant.

McGee was shocked. Take her out of my hands? Why would they do that?  He felt Morgan scoot slightly closer to him.

"Oh, no, Mrs. Fielding," McGee stuttered, "that's alright. We'll be fine."

"No, I insist." She replied, rather forcefully. "We'll take her to come live with us. You can have arranged visits once or twice every month and..."

McGee was taken aback. Was this lady out of her mind? She wasn't just going to show up and take his daughter. "No." He replied, a little louder than the last time he refused the offer. "She's staying here."

Mrs. Fielding sighed and said, "I knew you were going to say that. Well, I have already set up a court date for custody of her. The details should be mailed to you soon."

Tim was speechless. Morgan could tell, so she spoke up. "Grandma, I want to stay here with my dad."

Mrs. Fielding let out a laugh that sent a shiver down both Tim and Morgan's spines. "Oh, darling, you don't know what you want."

This made Morgan furious. She knew she was only thirteen, but that didn't give this lady any right to talk down to her. "But I know what I don't want. I don't want arranged meetings with my dad, I don't want to move schools, and I most certainly don't want to live in the same house as you. There isn't reason why I should leave."

Mrs. Fielding stood up, and icily said, "Oh, don't worry. My lawyer is one of the best in the state of Virginia, so he'll find some for me." She gave a look to her husband, telling him that they were leaving. They didn't say a word as they walked out the door. Tim and Morgan were silent until they heard the car pull out of the driveway.

"Dad," Morgan said softly, "are they really going to take me away?"

McGee could hear the fear in her voice, and that made his heart ache. All they needed was for her to be taken away by those snotty people. He wrapped her in a hug. "No, honey, no. I won't let them." She hugged him back, holding back tears. He reassured her, and inwardly himself, that she wasn't going to be taken away from him. Why did they want her anyway? They never showed any interest in her until now. These thoughts would haunt McGee, as well as Morgan.

A couple days later, McGee got the court date in the mail, and he knew he had to do something. He called his mom to look after Morgan while he went to NCIS. When he walked into the bullpen, everyone was at their desks. They all turned to him in surprise.

"McGee!" Gibbs shouted a little more forcefully than he meant to, walking towards him. "What are you doing here? I told you not to come back for a couple of months."

"Boss," McGee started, a little embarrassed, "I need your help."

Gibb's face softened and asked, "What's' wrong?"

McGee stared at him desperately, "Delilah's parents came over a couple of days ago. They started questioning my parenting skills and told me they would take Morgan 'out of my hands'. I told them no and that we would be fine on our own. But, of course, Delilah's mother insisted on taking Morgan with her and having me have arranged visits. I declined it again, and that's when they told me they had already set up a court date to try and get custody of her. Morgan was terrified, Gibbs." At this point, McGee was in tears. "And to be honest, I was too, and I still am. I've already lost Delilah and Johnny. I can't lose her too."

Tony and Bishop stared at McGee in disbelief. Gibbs patted him on the back and said, "Tim, we're not going to let you lose Morgan. Come on, let's go up to Vance's office. I'm sure NCIS can give you a lawyer." Tim nodded and the two walked up to Vance's office.

"That's BS!" Tony growled once they were out of earshot. "There's no reason Morgan should be taken away from him."

"I agree." Bishop chimed in. "After all they have been through, it's not right that they be put through another traumatic experience."

"Who do those people think they are?" Tony shouted. Everyone working turned to look at them, and Tony awkwardly chuckled and cleared his throat in embarrassment.

"Apparently, very powerful people." Bishop responded softly.

When McGee and Gibbs arrived in Vance's office, they explained his situation. Vance assured McGee that he would provide him with NCIS's best lawyer. McGee expressed his thanks and went back home to his daughter, explaining to her that NCIS gave him the best lawyer they had, so it would be very unlikely that her grandparents would get custody. This eased her mind a little bit, but she still had her doubts.

A couple hours later, McGee heard his doorbell ring. He nervously walked over to answer the door. Morgan, who had also heard the rings, curiously stood at the top of the stairs, and watched her father open the door.

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As many crime and law-related shows that I watch, I don't really know that much about the legal system, and I'm not sure if this is something that could actually happen. However, for the sake of this fanfic, we're going to pretend lol. 

Also, I would really appreciate it if y'all left comments! I would love to hear from you, whether it's constructive criticism or a random thought you had while reading! Thanks! :)