Hand in Hand

Chapter 47

Don and Meryl were walking hand in hand up to Dana's room at Lennox Hill hospital. As they approached Dana's door, Don turned Meryl to him and held her head in his hands. "You give me the word at any point and we leave. I hope that he really is sorry, but if he turns on you then you don't need to put up with it. You have always done everything you can for him; it is no longer about him. This is about you and you getting what you need. I love you."

"And what I need is you; I love you, my Don Man, thank you." Meryl whispered with a kiss to his lips as she nodded her head and Don opened the door with Meryl leading them in, surprised Mary wasn't there. "Hi, Dana; I'm here like you wanted."

Dana's eyes got huge as he shook his head. "Oh great, it's my fucking perfect sister who is of no good to any of us. The whole world thinks she's a fucking saint, but she's not. What? You came to rub how amazing you are in my face."

"Dana." Meryl choked as she felt her husband's grip on her tighten and pull her protectively against him. "You wanted us to come; you told both Don AND Mary you wanted to see me. That is why I am here."

Dana shook his head. "I sure as hell don't ever want to see you again...GET...OUT...NOW!"

"Come on, baby." Don said glaring at his brother-in-law; not wanting in his wife in that room one more second. As much as he wanted to unleash his fury on Dana, Don could feel his wife trembling in his arms and he was becoming more and more concerned about her health. "Let's get you out of here."

As soon as Don pulled Meryl out of her brother's hospital room, she felt herself melt into Don's embrace, sobbing into his chest as his arms formed a safe cocoon around her. "I thought he was different, Don. I thought he changed."

"I know, baby." Don whispered into her hair as he placed kiss after kiss on top of her head. "I really did as well; or else we wouldn't be here. Everything he said was absolutely awful and NOT true. You have always been an AMAZING sister to him, especially through all of this. You are the best fucking person I know, and I love you more than anything, so do our children."

Meryl lifted her head so she could look at her husband while he wiped away her tears the best he could, but they were just coming too quickly. "That is all that truly matters to me; and I love you so damn much, Donald Gummer."

"Don? Meryl?" Mary asked walked up. "Did you see Dana?"

Don kept his wife close as his face grew bright red. "She did, and he was an utter bastard to her. Yelling at her. Saying he never wanted to see her. Being a fucking jackass to her; trying to abuse her spirit and mental state. That wasn't a man who changed. I knew it was too good to be true."

"Don, Meryl, it's the tumors." Mary tried to explain to her in-laws. "He's going to have these personality changes until the tumors are removed."

Don shook his head. "That doesn't give him the right to tear down my wife."

"I'm just so tired." Meryl sighed as she looked up at Mary but Don kept her close. "I feel like crap, and I just can't deal with this anymore. All I want is to go snuggle my babies and see my granddaughter; talk to my kids."

Don nodded as that was all he wanted as well. "Then that's what you will do. First of all, you don't deserve any of this; and second of all, you are supposed to avoid stress. You were in the hospital yourself this morning."

"She was?" Mary asked shocked. "Concussion?"

Meryl nodded as she grabbed her husband's hand in hers. "Mary, he's my brother and I love him; but I just can't do this anymore until I really know he's different. I can't put myself through it, I can't put my husband through it and I can't put my children and babies through it. Please let me know how the surgery goes, but we're not staying. My first priority and responsibility is to my family."