Meryl and Don-Love and Only Love Chapter 32, Part 4
It was Sunday afternoon, and the Gummers had just returned to New York. Meryl started a pot of soup on the stove while the girls were doing their homework, and she went in search of her husband who seemed to have disappeared as soon as they got home. As crazy as it might sound, she missed him. They both felt like teenagers who had just fallen in love. Neither of them could get enough of the other, but they tried to cool things around the girls. While Meryl was looking for her husband, she couldn't stop herself from looking at her new ring on her finger. She refused to take her old band off. She loved looking at the two together, one showed where'd they'd been, and the other showing their present and future. She finally found him in their office. "There you are."
"Hey, baby." He smiled looking up from the pile of mail. "There's alot of statements here."
Meryl walked over to him and sat on his lap. "The girls are busy." She said placing wet kisses all over his face. "Can I distract you?"
"I wish." He moaned as he accepted kiss after kiss on his lips. "I want to get through this stuff so I can devote my attention to you and the girls tonight."
Meryl smiled as she picked up half the stack. "In that case, I'll help."
"I've sure let things slip through the cracks lately." He sighed going through everything.
Meryl got up and sat in the large leather chair in the office, cross-legged. "You've been a little busy."
"What the hell?" Don sighed as he looked at a statement. "Louisa's college fund that my parents set up has a 0 dollar balance."
Meryl looked up from what she was doing. "What?! There was tens of thousands of dollars in there."
"I don't know." Don sighed as he looked through the pieces of paper. "It says here they sent it to us because the total balance was withdrawn and closed. He did this you know."
Meryl got up and walked over to him. "Don't get worked up yet, we don't know."
"I know." Don was already getting angry as he read through the paperwork. "The only other name on this account is my father."
Meryl stopped him as he reached for the phone. "Sweetheart, we had an amazing weekend. Mann is put away forever. We are renewing our vows, the kids are all happy and healthy. Please don't let your father ruin that. IF he did withdraw that money, it doesn't matter. We can certainly pay for Louisa's college ourself. Not to mention we can afford it, but we also have eight years to save."
"That's not the point, Meryl. Of course we can afford it, and of course we will make sure she receives the best education possible. Dad has basically denied her ever since we found out you were pregnant. When they did this, I took it as a sign he had FINALLY come to his senses. But now he is pissed at me, and he is using my daughter. That is NOT okay, and I want answers."
Meryl took a deep breath before she said the next thing. "Don, do you remember what I said the night before Thanksgiving? You were so worked up because of your father your blood pressure was dangerously high. You promised you wouldn't let his venom poison us anymore. As I said, I would never tell you to cut ties, or give you an ultimatum. But you promised me you were done with him. So every time he does something we go back?"
"Baby." Don sighed as he took her hands in his. "I know exactly what you are saying, and I know what I promised. I HONESTLY don't want to start anything with him. But if I don't find out what happened here, if I just ignore it, then he will think he can keep hurting us and our kids. You know I can't let that happen."
Meryl nodded as she looked at her beautiful ring. "But Don, I'm afraid he will tear you down so badly, that there won't be any of you left."
"I understand what you're saying sweetheart, but I won't let that happen. You have EVERY right to feel what you're feeling. I need to find out what happened. Please say you understand and support that." Don said hopefully.
Meryl looked at him for a long time. She could never fully understand what he had gone through with his father, and his argument did make sense. "PLEASE don't let him get to you, please Don."
"You can take the phone away if needed." He said with a kiss to her lips as he reached for the phone and dialed. "Good, you answered."
James Gummer sighed as he held a scotch in his hand. "Dear Lord, why are you calling? I thought I was dead to you."
"To me, yes, but not to our kids-they still love you. Which is why I want to know why Louisa's college fund account that YOU and Mom set up for her is now at a 0 dollar balance. I just received a statement in the mail." Don said as Meryl was proud of him for staying calm so far.
James shook his head. "Simple...she's not a Gummer."
"Dad, I swear." He sighed when Meryl gave him a warning look. "We've been over this...YES she is. She is MY daughter which means she is YOUR granddaughter.
"We don't have any proof of that." James pointed out.
Don gave Meryl a look as he was trying to keep calm. "She looks just like a Gummer-proof enough. Besides, no matter what you think, Meryl has NEVER cheated on me and NEVER will." Don smiled at her.
"Wake up and smell the infidelity, Donald. I took out the money to pay for the lawyer." James said.
Don looked at Meryl confused. "Lawyer? What lawyer?"
"Sam Kellerman...Kevin Mann's Lawyer." James laughed.
Don couldn't believe what he just heard. He was shaking. He looked at his wife, her eyes were full of love and trust for him and couldn't take it. HIS father paid for the lawyer who defended the man that tried to rape her TWICE, who terrorized her and their family, the man who almost killed her. Don just hung up and started crying. Meryl had no idea what happened but she was on his lap in an instant, taking him in her arms, loving him. She whispered soothing words in his ear, but he couldn't bare to tell her what was going on. After awhile, his tears were replaced by rage. He had to get out of there. Don patted her hip and she got up. "I gotta get out of here."
"Don, where are you going? What in the hell happened?" She asked as she chased after him.
Don grabbed his wallet, keys, phone, and coat. "I love you and the kids so much, but I can't deal with this right now."
Meryl stood there dumbfounded as he closed the door on her. Meryl didn't stop the tears that streamed down her face. She had no idea what her father-in-law had done, but whatever it was, it was bad. Bad enough for Don to feel like he couldn't be in the same apartment as her and their kids. She grabbed the phone and tried calling him but it just went to voicemail. "DAMN IT!"
***
Meryl put off dinner hoping Don would walk through the door at any moment and they could have dinner as a family. Luckily the girls were busy with their homework allowing Meryl to worry incessantly, alone. She couldn't stop thinking about him. She just wanted him in her arms. Whatever his father did they could face it together, surely it was nothing compared to what they had just been through. Meryl called his phone over and over and over. If he was out drinking she was going to KILL him. She finally decided to call the girls down for dinner.
"Why are we eating in here?" Louisa asked as they sat down at the breakfast bar.
Grace looked around and didn't see her father. "Yeah, where's Dad?"
"He had to run an errand, eat up. I need to go check on something, I'll be back." Meryl said as she went to the office to look for any clue of what her father-in-law could have done. While she was in there the phone rang and she quickly picked it up. "Hello?"
"Is this Mrs. Gummer?" The man on the other end said.
Meryl didn't have time for telemarketers. "Yes, I'm sorry, I'm very bus-"
"Mrs. Gummer, I'm Lieutenant Morasco from the NYPD. Ma'am, your husband was in an accident earlier this evening." The man said.
Meryl felt her breath leave her as the tears frantically rushed down her face. Not Don. Not her Don. He was her life. Her breath. Not after everything they had been through. "Is he, well, is-"
"His vitals were good when the ambulance took him." Lt. Morasco explained he didn't want to tell her what he observed before the doctor talked to her.
Meryl was dying on the inside. "What happened? Where is he?"
"He was crossing a cross walk when what we assume was a drunk driver didn't see him and hit him. We have witnesses who saw the driver driving eratically." The lieutenant explained.
Meryl felt sick. "Oh my God!"
"He was taken to Beth Israel, I'm sorry but that is all I know. We are working on a profile to catch the driver." He told her.
Meryl was grateful for that much. "He's alive, and that's all that matters." She smiled. "Thank you so much." Meryl quickly hung up, put on her shoes, and got her stuff together as she ran down to where her girls were. She kept replaying the phone call over and over in her mind and noticed the police officer didn't say how he was other than his vitals were good, and that worried her to no end. "Girls, I need to talk to you."
"Yeah?" Grace asked.
God, Meryl hated to do this to her babies, but she didn't want them at the hospital not knowing the extent of Don's injuries, and she couldn't shake this bad feeling. "Listen babies, Daddy has been in an accident. I need to get to him."
"We're coming." Louisa said immediately.
Grace knew that look on her mother's face. "Want us to stay here?"
"I think it would be best." Meryl nodded as she hugged and kissed each one. "I am going to call Uncle Third and have him come pick you up. I PROMISE to call you as soon as I know what Dad's injuries are, and that you can see him AS SOON as the doctor says it's okay. Are you two okay with that?"
"Yeah." Louisa cried. "Did the mean man hurt him?"
Tears came to Meryl's eyes when she saw the fear in her daughter's eyes. "No baby, he didn't. He's jail. It was someone who drove when they shouldn't and hit Daddy while he was on a walk."
"Is he okay?" Louisa choked.
God, Meryl really didn't know, and she hated lying to her kids, but she didn't know what to tell them. "Yes sweetheart, he is. Now, I'll call Mamie and Henry once we know more."
Grace wrapped an arm around her sister. "We understand, give Daddy hugs from us."
"I will." Meryl said hugging them both. "I love you both so much. Now remember..."
"Keep the doors locked, don't answer the phone, and don't leave the apartment." Louisa ad Grace both said together.
Meryl couldn't help but smile. "I'll call you soon."
***