Chapter 4: Manchester
It had been about 24 hours since the news broke, and neither the Lyman nor the Seaborn families had gotten much sleep after receiving the devastating news the day before. Connor and Ava, in particular had had a difficult time sleeping, crying about Jed late into the night.
Donna, meanwhile, had gotten up in the middle of the night for a glass of water to find Josh flipping listlessly through old photo albums. Donna approached him quietly, smiling as she saw pictures of the old Bartlet gang at the first inauguration. She remembered being so surprised at Josh's invitation, but Josh had assured her that she was more than welcome.
"That was a good night." Donna said.
Josh looked up, surprised to find his wife standing there. "I thought you were asleep."
"I just got up for some water. Saw the light on down here so I thought I would come check on you." She settled down next to Josh on the couch. She looked at her husband thoughtfully, running a hand through his hair. "Couldn't sleep?"
"Nah." He resumed flipping through the album, pausing at a photo of him and Jed. He remembered at the inauguration how Jed had insisted on getting a photo with the man who had believed in him, a belief and drive that had gotten two Presidents in recent history elected.
"He really was the 'real thing', wasn't he, babe?" Josh asked reflectively.
"Yeah, he was." Donna smiled, thinking about how Bartlet had struck her enough to convince herself to finally leave her boyfriend, and drive 18 hours to Manchester to start a new life. She looked at Josh and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, kissing his cheek.
"Are you really OK?" she asked for what she was sure was the tenth time that day, but she had to make sure.
"Yeah." Josh said, turning to meet Donna's eyes. "And before you say anything, yes, I'm keeping an eye out for any signs of a flare-up." Josh's PTSD hadn't been an issue in years, but with sudden news like this, he could never be too careful.
Donna squeezed his arm comfortingly, before standing up to take her glass to the sink. A photo on the refrigerator caught her eye. It had been taken last Thanksgiving, the last time they had been at the farm. She smiled at the sight of Leo on Jed's lap, smiling delightedly.
Her smile faded as she tried to think back to that Thanksgiving. Had there been any warning signs? No, there hadn't, she decided. Other than Abbey bluntly telling her that she thought Jed probably had less than a year left, he had done a pretty good job of hiding his condition from them, especially from the kids.
She sighed as she turned to leave the kitchen, stopping in the doorway of the living room to watch Josh replacing the photo album on the shelf that Donna kept crammed with photo albums, scrapbooks, any mementos of their 12 year marriage.
"Are you coming back to bed? It's going to be a long few days, you could use the rest." she asked.
"Yep." Josh replied, coming to join her in the doorway and flipping off the lamp. Arm in arm, they climbed the stairs to their bedroom.
…
The next day, Donna entered the West Wing seeing looks of sympathy from her colleagues. She looked up at the television screen in the bullpen to find the Today Show running yet another retrospective on Jed's life and career. She shrugged off her sadness and turned to head to her office, calling back to the bullpen, "Unless you plan on giving me Jed Bartlet's biography for your briefing, I suggest you get to work so you have something to tell me at Senior Staff!"
Senior Staff came and went. Donna was on the phone with a senator, trying to get funding for an EPA bill that had been in committee since the beginning of the administration-business as usual.
"Senator Wilson, I can assure you that we are taking all legal and environmental ramifications into consideration on this." She listened to the older senator blather on about how the bill never should've been waylaid, like it was her fault. Donna rolled her eyes-he was the one member of Congress that had pushed back against having her be Chief of Staff, although there wasn't much he could do about the President's appointment. She still couldn't believe there were people in the 21st century who continued to think that women weren't capable of heavy-duty White House jobs.
"The President will be happy to sign the bill-when the Senate has headed off that rider!" Donna was a shrewd negotiator, giving as good as she got. While she was still on the phone, there was a knock on the door, and Ryan entered. While she was talking, he slipped a note into her hand, then walked out.
"I want to see some form of this bill on the President's desk by the beginning of next month." She listened again. "So, you'll approve the funding? Good, at least we agree on something. Pleasure talking to you too."
As soon as she hung up, she turned her attention to the note that Ryan had given her.
Charlie Young called-funeral for PB set for Saturday at 1, St. Joseph's Cathedral, Manchester. Private burial service to follow. Dr. B requested no press inside church, but will be live-streamed per CNN's request. Visitation set for Friday at Bowman Funeral Home.
Donna felt a lump in her throat rise, but she quickly swallowed. At least now she had something concrete to tell the President and the Secret Service. She took a deep breath and headed into the Oval Office.
…
"You're notifying the former Presidents?" Sam asked.
Donna nodded. "Yes, sir. We'll probably pick them all up on Air Force One on the way to New Hampshire."
"All right." Sam sat back thoughtfully. "Have you talked to the Secret Service about what time we're leaving Saturday?"
"Wheels up at 5, sir. AM." Donna smiled sympathetically: like the previous two presidents she had worked for, Sam was not a fan of being woken up early in the morning.
"5:00 am?" Sam asked dumbfoundedly.
Just then, Ainsley walked in. "I was called?"
"Yes, I was just letting the President know that funeral arrangements for President Bartlet have been set." Donna explained, then filled her in on the schedule.
"We'll be ready to go." Ainsley said. "What's the route?"
"We leave Andrews at 5, then fly into Houston at Ellington Field to pick up the Santos family at approximately 8 am."
"Who's coming?" Sam asked, his curiosity piqued. He hadn't seen Matt and Helen Santos since the inauguration, and even then he was too busy to chat.
"President and Mrs. Santos, obviously, and I think Miranda's coming with them."
"Peter?"
"I'm not sure, I know he's busy with graduate school. I'll confirm who when I talk to them. Anyway, after we leave Texas, we fly into Missouri at 10am via Whiteman AFB to pick up President Walken, then it's on to Manchester, where we will land approximately half an hour before the service begins."
Donna hesitated. "Mr. President, I have a request to make."
Sam nodded. "Shoot."
"Do you think it would be all right if I didn't fly back with you on Air Force One after the service? I thought I could stay the night at the farm with everyone else." She had talked to Zoey, who had mentioned that the core members of the old Bartlet team were staying at the farm.
Sam sat for a moment in thought, then said graciously, "Of course you can." He knew that after the sadness of the funeral, that Donna would want to be around her family.
"Thank you, Mr. President." Donna said gratefully. "I'm going to go make those calls."
A few minutes later, she was in her office, filling Former President Walken in on the details. He assured her that he would make sure to be at Whiteman by 10.
Then, she asked Ryan to connect her to the Santos family home in Houston. A minute later, she heard, "Santos home on line 1."
She picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Mrs. Lyman? It's really you!"
Somehow, 19 year old Miranda's enthusiastic voice brought her back in time to the early days of the Santos administration, when the kids were almost constant fixtures in their mother's office.
Now she smiled. "Hi, Miranda! How are you?"
"I'm great, Mrs. Lyman. School's going great, and I finally figured out what I want to major in."
"Yeah?"
"Drama."
"That sounds awesome. How's Peter doing?"
"He's good." There was a pause. "I guess you're not calling just to check in."
"No, actually. Are either one of your parents in?"
"My dad's out, but my mom's here. Mom?" she yelled, putting down the phone.
About thirty seconds later, she heard the phone being picked up. "Donna, hi!" Helen Santos greeted warmly.
"Helen, it's so good to finally have time to talk to you! I'm sorry I was a little busy at the inauguration."
"Yeah, I get that. Chief of Staff, huh? How's that going?"
"It's going really well. I think I'm slowly becoming more accustomed to it."
"Well, you'll get used to it. You ran my office for eight years, don't forget."
"Listen, wonderful as it is to talk to you, I'm actually calling on official business."
"I figured this call was coming." Helen sighed. "When are the funeral services?"
Donna filled Helen in on the details. Then Helen asked. "How are you all holding up? I know you guys were pretty close to the Bartlets over the years."
"We're holding up, I think, as well as can be expected. Staying focused on work has helped. Josh and the kids are flying up to Manchester this afternoon to help with the arrangements."
"That's good. So, Ellington Field, 8 am?"
"Yes. Are the kids coming?"
"Well, I'm not sure Peter's going to be able to get away, but Miranda really wants to come, so I guess that makes three spots on Air Force One."
"All right. I will see you bright and early Saturday morning."
"See you then, Donna."
"Thanks, Helen. See you Saturday." With that, she hung up and turned her attention back to work.
…
Donna had been given the afternoon by Sam so she could help her family get off to the airport. Josh had booked the five of them on a short-order flight out of Dulles directly to Manchester at 4:00.
She entered the house and immediately heard Josh yell, "Donna, is that you?"
"Yeah. Do you need me to come up?"
Josh appeared at the top of the stairs with an armful of clothes. "Please. I can't find half of what I need, and the kids don't have what they need, and things are just falling apart. This is why you usually handle packing."
By now, Donna had almost reached the top of the stairs. "What is it you can't find?" she asked calmly.
"My black tie that I only wear for funerals."
In response, Donna walked over to her husband's dresser. She opened the drawer and fished out the tie. "You mean this one?"
"I looked in that drawer five times!" Josh said exasperatedly. "How'd you find it so fast?"
She shrugged. "Experience living with your organization for twelve years, I guess." She smiled at him, bringing a small smile to his face.
"Thanks, baby. What would I do without you?" Josh said, leaning in for a kiss.
"I have no idea." she said. "Now, what was that about the kids."
"Oh," he said. "I realized that we never bought the kids any funeral clothing."
"Well, you can always run out to town tomorrow and buy them some." Donna replied. "As long as they have something semi-formal to wear to the visitation tomorrow."
"That makes sense." Josh agreed.
Donna then headed down to the twins' room. Their suitcases were open on their bed, mostly full.
"You two need help?" she asked.
"We've got it, Mom." Abby replied.
"I need help." Anna told her.
"What do you need help with?"
"This. It won't fit in my suitcase." She held up the one dress she owned, a simple red plaid dress. It wasn't any failure on her parents' part; she just hated dresses.
"I'll get you a garment bag." Donna said. "Dad's going to take you guys shopping for funeral clothes once you get to Manchester."
"Okay." they both said.
She stepped further into the room. "Are you girls doing OK?" she asked, smoothing back Anna's hair.
"I guess." Anna said. Abby concurred.
"Well, if you need to talk, you know I'm only a phone call away. And I'm staying at the farm with you guys Saturday night."
"Okay, Mom." Anna said. She threw her arms around her mother.
Donna held her tight. "I love you kids more than anything. You know that, right?"
"We know, Mom." Anna said into her ear.
Donna smiled at her 10 year old daughter as they pulled apart. She put one hand on her daughter's cheek and turned to go help her sons with their packing.
…
About four hours later, the Lyman family (minus Donna) had landed in Manchester. Leo was tired and hungry, so Josh stopped and got the kids dinner before they went to the farm. He was sure no one had thought about getting dinner for them at the house.
When they pulled the rental car into the driveway, Zoey met them on the porch. Her eyes were bloodshot, but she smiled as they approached the house.
"Well, well, well! If it isn't the Lymans!" She said, embracing Josh as soon as he climbed the first step.
"I'm so glad you're here." she whispered in his ear.
Josh gave Zoey a sympathetic smile. "How are you holding up?"
Zoey shrugged. "It's hard, but we're all trying to keep it together, more for my mom than anything else."
Josh nodded, then the kids and him followed Zoey into the kitchen. "Charlie? They're here."
Charlie came out of the kitchen alcove. "Hey, guys." he said tiredly. He had obviously been through a lot over the last 36 hours.
He and Charlie hugged, as Zoey turned her attention to the kids. "Are you kids hungry? The other kids already ate, and we all ate something, but I'm sure you guys haven't."
"We ate on the way." Matty supplied.
"Oh." Zoey replied.
Suddenly, there was a strained voice behind them. "Well, hi, guys. I didn't even hear you come in."
Josh turned to see Abbey Bartlet. Dressed in a simple black outfit, she made her way into the kitchen.
"Abbey." Josh said simply. "I'm so sorry." He moved to hug the older woman. "Donna sends her love, she's flying in with the President on Saturday."
Abbey nodded. "It'll be good of her to come, I know how busy she is."
Josh smiled sadly. "How are you holding up?"
"I have my moments, but other than that, I've just accepted it. And how are you all?" she said, turning to the kids who had crowded her.
"Holding up, I guess." Josh said. He nodded in understanding as they all sat down at the kitchen table.
Abbey began quizzing the kids on how they were doing in school, and Josh could only watch in amazement at the woman who had held everything together for so long.