How to uninstall Linus and regain CD drive

I found a useful "how-to" post on this site for how to safely uninstall Linux from Windows 7 and use fdsk to put the boot sequence right again, and I would like to ask if the solution also applies to my case, where I am using a Windows 8 upgrade from XP. After installing Ubuntu my CD/DVD drive is no longer detected. There appear to be 3 partitions on the C drive, only the first has the useful stuff like boot etc on it, but I can't identify which one Linux/Ubuntu is on. Perhaps my father, whose PC it is I'm trying to fix installed Ubuntu twice, thereby creating 2 additional partitions, but he can no longer remember. He does have 2 HDDs. When I disconnect the second drive, Grub will no longer load, so I presume Ubuntu must be on the 2nd drive, but I only see one drive, and that is C (in disk management), with 3 primary partitions. I wonder if a complete reinstall might not be the easiest, as I don't quite know what my father has done, but am afraid to do so because at the moment I cannot boot from the CD drive as it is not detected. I would be most grateful if anyone can help as I only have till Monday to fix it before leaving for several months!