Ranger didn't force me to be completely on bed rest. He let me work on my capture plan one hour at a time, as long as the intermitting hours I spent resting. It actually worked out slightly differently. I did half an hour of work, then Mellie took Tia for a walk, Ranger went down to his office, and Livy came up for my appointment. As she walked in and saw me, she started. "My God!" she said. "How are you feeling?"

"Better than I was yesterday."

"This is better?"

I laughed. "God, don't make me laugh. It hurts."

"What happened?"

"I was attacked by a horde of elderlies with mobility aids, and those mobility aids make surprisingly vicious weapons." I explained what had happened.

"Ranger said that you have a broken rib?"

"And a severely twisted ankle."

"How did you twist your ankle?"

"One senior was stomping on my foot and was holding it down while another senior was pushing me to the ground in the opposite direction and another senior was whacking me over the head with her purse. Just judging by the weight in the purse, I think she is like my grandmother and carried a very large gun in it. Joe, the detective from the TPD that was with me, noticed that the television crew was filming it. He is going to confiscate the tapes today to try to identify those seniors in the video. He wants to charge them with assault."

"That's good. Did you recognize anyone?"

"No. I had my eyes closed."

"How do you feel about the attack?"

I blew out a breath. "I was stunned when it happened. I mean, I could have stopped it if I fought back, but if I did I probably would have broken a hip or caused similar injuries that would last them for the rest of their life. I couldn't do that. The only thing that I could do was cover my head and hope for the best, and that was hard. I'm not used to feeling so helpless during an attack. The last time I felt this helpless was probably when I was thrown over the bridge with a cement block attached to my ankle."

"Are you serious? What happened?"

"The Mafia decided to get rid of me. Luckily, Ranger got to me in time and he jumped in the river as well. He got the block off and pulled me to safety. But this time, I knew that Ranger was home with Tia and wouldn't be able to help me. And I shouldn't have needed help. I was just going to church."

"What happened to the detective that was with you?"

"He was trying to arrest the fake minister, but the raving elderlies cut him off and he wasn't able to get to the minister before the minister disappeared. He then fought his way through the crowd to get to me. He was pretty upset about it all."

"Has he caught the fake minister since?"

"No, he hasn't. I'm working on a capture plan in between naps today. We're worried that he's flown the coop but, if he did, we'll catch him. We are probably just a little more determined than the other cities who have arrest warrants out. The TPD protects their own, and they see me as one of their own."

"Okay. So you were viciously attacked, but you are taking control and finding that fake minister."

"Yes."

"How else are things going?"

"My grandmother was at the doctor's this morning, and he is referring her to the neurologist. He thinks she might have something called Pick's Disease."

Livy paused and thought about that for a moment. "That would explain a lot."

"You've heard of it?"

"Yes, I have. It's rare, less than 0.005 percent of the population in the US has it, but the results are devastating. Most people in the medical community don't know about it, so your grandmother's doctor is very on top of things to even consider it as a potential diagnosis. Sometimes the progression of the disease is short, only a couple of years, while others is long, over twenty years. I would think that the progression of your grandmother's disease was one of the longer ones. Symptoms often start in the patient's sixties, but it can start both earlier and later."

"Is there a cure?"

"Unfortunately not. One of the problems with it is that those who are afflicted often cannot see it in themselves. They blame others for their behavior and cannot see anything wrong with what they are doing. It requires a lot of forbearance and tolerance and patience in the caregivers. And the caregivers require a lot of support."

"My poor mother."

"Your mother may want to consider putting your grandmother in a home."

"My mother doesn't have the money for that."

"One of the problems with Pick's Disease is, because it is so rare, people aren't aware of the symptoms and they think that it is just the person's personality. With it creeping up so slowly over your grandmother, most people wouldn't even question that something was wrong."

"What can I do to support my mother?"

"Primarily, just be there to listen to her and empathize with her. As much as you can, give her time off by taking your grandmother out for lunch or shopping or something. Try not to take the things that your grandmother says personally, and remember that she is ill and it's not her saying those things. It is the disease."

"That's hard to do."

"Yes, it is. However, it's important. You've been, so far, handling things perfectly. You've been setting boundaries as to what is acceptable and telling her what she can and cannot do, and you've been telling her when she is out of line. However, you have mostly done it in a calm fashion and haven't gotten angry at her. That will be harder and harder as the disease progresses, but you will have to remember that she isn't going to respond to you getting mad because she has lost her sense of empathy. Because of the disease, she no longer cares if your feelings are hurt."

"It is actually helpful recognizing that my grandmother may be afflicted by the disease. It makes the things that she says less hurtful."

"That's true. You may want to think about paying for your grandmother's nursing home."

"To tell you the truth, I can't see my grandmother ever going willingly and because she is still mobile she would just as likely leave. It's a bit of a mess."

"Does your grandmother have a power of attorney?"

"I don't know."

"Because it sounds like now is the time to enact it and, if your grandmother doesn't have one, now is the time for your mother to talk to your grandmother's doctor and her lawyer to try to take over your grandmother's affairs. I understand that, without the power of attorney, the process is quite lengthy."

"Okay. Thanks for the advice."

"Any time you want to talk, you know where I am."

We talked about a few other things, but it wasn't much longer before my appointment was over. Livy left and told me that she'd pop into Ranger's office to let him know that the coast was clear for him to return to the apartment, and I shut my eyes as a wave of futility washed over me. All I could think was 'my poor mother'. I thought about how my grandmother had been while I was growing up. She had been loving and kind, and the most understanding person in the world. She had lived in the neighborhood and, whenever things got a little too tough at home and I felt particularly overshadowed by Val's perfection, I would escape to Grandma's house and dance in her living room as I told her stories. She would often get up and dance with me, and she never tired of hearing my tales. She never seemed to mind me not being perfect, and she took delight in all my accomplishments, even if they weren't as astounding as Val's. I had always felt loved by her.

I think that's why the story of me sleeping with the football team had been so shocking. It had come out of left field and I hadn't expected my grandmother to attack me like that. She had, previously, always been my greatest supporter.

I pulled up my computer and did a web search on Pick's Disease. And when I read it, I wasn't sure if I wanted my mother to read it or not. The anticipated decline in the cognitive functioning of those that were impaired was intimidating.

When Ranger came up a few minutes later, I told him what I had found out, and that Livy had recommended caregiver holidays. I also talked about the fact that my mother wouldn't be able to afford extra help. Ranger shook his head. "I can't believe that I am suggesting this, but when we have the new apartment in a few months, do you want to start inviting your grandmother to stay overnight once a week or so? We can just designate one of the guest rooms for your grandmother. Additionally, if your mother needs financial support we can provide that, whether it is paying for a nurse to come and look after your grandmother every day or for your grandmother to be put in a home. Until your grandmother needs that level of care, I think we should tell your mother that we'll pay for the caregiver to come in one day a week to give your mom a break and, if she balks, we could tell her that it will be our Christmas and birthday gifts."

Tears came to my eyes. "You wouldn't mind?"

"Babe, we have the money to make your mom's life easier, and personally I think that is a good use of money. I think you should phone your mother and tell her that we are paying for someone to come in every Monday when Val doesn't drop off the kids, and that in about three months we'll start taking your grandmother every Friday night. That way, with not having the kids on Saturday she can sleep in if she wants to. Don't give your mother the choice or your mother will feel bad and not accept the help. From everything you've said, she'll appreciate the time."

"You know what one of the good things about Grandma staying over at our place every Friday night is?" I said.

"What's that?"

"With living in the penthouse apartment, there won't be any bushes for her to pee on. And if she decides to pee on the potted plants on the belvedere, there will be no one around to see."

Ranger smiled. "Thank heavens for small mercies."

I laughed and picked up my phone to call my mother. "Hi, Mom,'' I said as she answered. "Ranger and I were talking. We have done some research into Pick's Disease, and the decline is devastating, especially to the caregiver."

"I know. I was doing some research as well."

"How do you feel about it?"

"Honestly? Overwhelmed. I don't know if I have it in me to look after your grandmother and Val's kids as well."

"I know. That's what Ranger and I were thinking too, so this is what we've decided that we are going to do, and we aren't giving you the option to say no. First of all, Mellie said that she can take care of Val's kids when she is looking after Tia whenever Grandma has appointments if they aren't on Mondays, and that way I'll be available to take you to the appointments and can be there for support, even if it is just to sit in the waiting room. Secondly, Ranger and I are going to pay for a caregiver to come in every Monday so that you get a day to yourself. I think that will be important for your own mental health. And thirdly, once our new apartment is built, we will take Grandma every Friday night and she can stay over at our place, and you can have some alone time with Dad. Our new apartment is slated to be completed by the end of January, but there may be delays. If there is anyway else that we can help, please let us know. But at this point, that is what we are going to do."

"I can't ask you to do that. She's my mother, and I will just have to suck it up."

"Mom, first of all, she is also my grandmother. Second of all, you're my mother, and Ranger and I would like to support you as best as we can."

I could hear my mother sniffle over the phone. "I just can't ask you to do that."

"But you aren't asking. I'm telling you that we are going to do that. You don't have a choice, Mom. We want to do this for you."

Ranger whispered to me for a moment, and I smiled at him. I really did marry the most compassionate and generous man that I had ever met. "Mom, Ranger just told me that, as Grandma needs more care, we'll either pay for a nursing home or, if she won't go, we'll increase her caregiver visits to daily rather than once a week. Grandma is stuck with her disease and you have been and will continue to take care of her well. However, Ranger and I want to make sure that you are taken care of too. We love you, Mom."

My mom was now openly crying. "That is the nicest thing that anyone has ever said to me."

I smiled in embarrassment. "You deserve it, Mom. You are a good person, and you deserve a little help."

"Thank you so much."

"Okay. So that's our game plan? I will go with you to the neurologist's on Monday; if you have any future appointments on any day other than Mondays, Mellie will look after the kids so that I can drive you there; Ranger and I will look into hiring a caregiver to come every Monday, ideally to start two weeks from now; and, when our apartment is built we'll start having Grandma over every Friday night so that you get some alone time with Dad. As Grandma gets worse, we'll pay for either putting her in a home or paying for a caregiver to come more frequently. And we'll also leave it so that, if there is any other way that we can help, you'll let us know."

"I was very lucky when I had you."

"Let's talk legally. Does Grandma have a power of attorney with you?"

"No, she doesn't."

"That may be something you want to initiate with her doctor. From what I understand, that takes a while to do since Grandma hasn't already signed the paperwork." Ranger whispered to me again. "Ranger just said that we'll set up an appointment with the lawyer we used for our own wills and powers of attorney. He was very good. Ranger said that we will tell the man that we will pay for that as well. If you want me to take Grandma shopping or something like that while you are meeting with the lawyer, let me know. That may be one meeting that you don't want Grandma present for."

"Ranger is incredibly kind and generous, isn't he?" said my mother.

I smiled. "Ranger is the kindest and most generous person I know,'' I said. "I was very lucky when I met him."

"So was I", said my mother.