The Ballad of Katie: Somewhere Under Heaven Series

The Last Days of Jackson Kelly

Casey's POV

It's been about a week and a half since Katie's scare when I get home from a meeting at work to find Rob on the couch. He looks like he's been through hell. "Darling, what's wrong," I ask him. 

"Casey, we have to get to Langhorne," he says to me. "It's your dad."

I knew my dad had cancer but we didn't know how bad it was until a few days ago when Uncle Colin called me after we got home from the hospital and said it was inoperable. After I heard this, my heart really broke.  

I get Eric to hang out at the house with Katie as we head to the hospital with Shane to see what's going on.  Dad's oncologist is in Langhorne so as a result he is at St. Mary. We meet with the doctor who gives us the grim news. He's stage VI and the cancer has spread to several parts of his body. The news hits all of us like a ton of bricks.

At lunch, I tell the guys what I'm thinking. "I know dad wouldn't want to die in a hospital," I tell them. "I want Dad to spend his final days with the family on Long Beach Island."  Shane had a vacation house on LBI so we decide to set things up there. He would also get Dad treatment through the hospice program at Penn Medicine which arranges for nurses to go out to LBI for the care. This is going to be the toughest battle. 

I told everyone that Rob and I will have to stay in Princeton for a couple of days since we're gearing up to get Katie down to CHOP for the next step in her transplant recovery. Uncle Colin says he'll keep us posted and he even offers to take Ashton with him on the trip to LBI. We agree to that and say we'll be down there as soon as soon as we can.

Rob and I would then take the drive to University City with Katie where they begin the first batch of vaccines. CHOP would then arrange for their facility in Princeton to take care of the rest and we would go home, and I would keep in touch with everyone on LBI. 

One night after the final batch of vaccines, Dr. Macy informs us that so far things are looking good. We then pack up and make the drive to LBI to spend out last few days with Jackson Kelly. 

When we're on LBI, Dad would spend as much time with the kids as possible, sharing all this knowledge and wisdom. 

Ashton's POV

I'm aware that my grandpa's time is limited. I traveled with Uncle Colin to LBI, and shortly after, Mom and Dad came down with Katie, who was advancing to the next stage of her transplant recovery. My time with Grandpa Jackson is mostly spent playing board games, sharing jokes, and watching playoff hockey, especially since the Devils are competing. Grandpa, like Mom, is an avid New Jersey Devils fan. We went to several games together, and Mom has been gradually introducing Dad to hockey.

One night during the intermission report, Grandpa tells me a little something about life and love. "Ashton, I know you're going to grow up to be a heartbreaker like your dad. Just so you know, the one thing you should never do is treat a girl like rubbish because there's always that one who has a father who would kick your ass."

"You had that experience, Grandpa?"

"Oh yeah. Your Aunt Cheyanne married a loser. Also, you should have seen the bastards that your mom dated before she met your dad. Only thing I can say about your parents' relationship is that I always approved of him. I saw how your dad was with her early on when they were just a couple of friends hanging out together. That whole thing where he acts like a gentleman with class is not an act, I can tell you that for sure. He was always opening doors for her, and I still remember when she needed knee surgery after a mountain biking accident, your dad did everything to nurse her back to health and took her to her appointments with the surgeon and physical therapy."