Road To Acceptance, chapter 15

With each kick dealt to her stomach Marcie know what this beating could mean, the loss of a baby, her baby. Only with that did her maternal instinct really kick in. Marcie tried to draw her knees to her chest but her body was too weak to be able to do so. Her body was too weak to do anything at all. The kicking to her chest and stomach forced blood up into Marcie's mouth and with a single cough for air it splattered across the dirt. Just then Marcie felt a warm sensation on the inside of her crotch and thighs. The baby had gone.

Brittany, Yas and Eileen were all in the front of the van, scanning the view outside of the windscreen looking for Marcie. The headlights preceded the van shedding light on to the road, into the darkness. The three girls were panicking as they knew the danger that was out there on the prowl, stalking their best friend. Then the lights fell on a limp body lying motionless at the side of the road. Brittany stood on the brakes then threw herself out of the van. She ran over to her best friend and fell to her knees. She held Marcie's arm gently, her fingers searched for a pulse. She eventually found one in Marcie's wrist but it was week and faint. Yas and Eileen ran over and gasped at the state Marcie was in. Yas looked over her unconscious best friend.

"Blue... she's bleeding." Yas stated

"Well done for stating the fucking obvious!" Brittany yelled.

"No, Blue... I mean... down there."

Brittany looked down at Marcie's crotch which was soaked with blood, "Shit. Phone 911!" Brittany shouted, "Don't just stand there do something!" she cried then held Marcie's upper body in her arms, "Come on Marcie... don't die on me... I need you."

The medics came in the ambulance and strapped Marcie's limp and motionless body to the stretcher before putting her into the back of the ambulance. Brittany asked to ride in the ambulance with Marcie since she was in hysterics. Yas and Eileen followed in the van. Eileen was calling various people to inform them about what had happened. Then the time came to phone Adrienne... she didn't want to be the bearer of bad news but she knew she had to do it. Adrienne had the right to know that her daughter was in hospital and had lost her child. The phone rang in Eileen's ear, she decided to put it on loud speaker so Yas could hear the reaction. Then phone clicked and the soft buzzing noise started.

"Hello." came a tired female voice.

"Adrienne. It's Eileen and Yas. Listen if we woke you we're sorry."

"No, no it's fine girls." Adrienne paused to wake Billie Joe, "Is something wrong?"

"We're erm... on our way to Woodland General Hospital... We need you and Billie Joe to come up here." Yas answered since Eileen had begun to cry.

"Wait... what's happened? Where are Marcie and Brittany? Why is Eileen crying?" Adrienne asked.

"Billy came after Marcie... I guess he found her before we could. Brittany's riding in the ambulance with her. Adrienne we have to go, we're at the hospital. We'll see you when you both get here." Yas answered then hung up.

It took Adrienne and Billie Joe nine hours to get to Woodland General after driving non-stop. The middle aged husband and wife ran through the corridors of the hospital looking for the three girls. They eventually found the three teenagers and one baby. Brittany was leaning on the wall crying silent tears, her entire body was shaking uncontrollably. The three girls had withdrawn into themselves. Eileen played with her son half-heartedly, the colour had drained from her face. Yas was just staring at the floor circling her foot on the floor. Adrienne and Billie stepped into the corridor. Yas looked at the pair and gave a fake smile before staring at the floor once again.

Adrienne swallowed a mouthful of saliva, "Has there been any news on Marcie?"

"No." Eileen replied, "They won't let us see her either... Said it would be too disturbing with all the cuts, bruises and swelling."

With that comment Brittany began to sob again loudly then ran off down the corridor to a fire escape. Billie Joe said that he would be right back and jogged off after his stepdaughter's best friend. When he had heard the news of Marcie's assault an anger within Billie boiled over. Whilst he was driving through the pitch black night only one thing was on his mind - getting revenge. By the look on Eileen's face Billie Joe had worked out that Marcie had miscarried. The thought of that made Billie's heart sink, he always said that no woman should have to lose a child - born or not. Billie walked on to the fire escape and looked at the dark auburn haired girl and strangely felt her pain. He leant on the railings and overlooked the car park. After a moment of absorbing the silence Billie decided that Brittany needed to talk about things.

"How are you feeling?" Billie asked, "I know it's a stupid question but it has to be asked."

"No... it's not a stupid question. How would you feel if you thought your best friend was going to die in your arms? I can't lose her Billie, she can't die like this."

"Hey come on, don't think like that. Marcie won't die... she's a fighter. You should know that more than I do." Billie said with a slight smile.

"Who are you trying to convince, me or yourself? She's never fought back against her dad. I suppose it was out of fear. Why didn't she do it earlier? Marcie's free of him now... she could have done something."

"When you've been abused for so long it's natural for someone to fall back into their old way. Kinda like survival instincts, it's the only thing you can do to sometimes to stay alive... Marcie will be ok... just give her body sometime to heal itself."

"How do you know that Billie?" Brittany asked looking at Billie.

"I don't know that for sure. Have faith in her, it's hard, I know, but just have faith."

"Billie I'm scared." Brittany said then began to silently cry, Billie drew the young girl into his chest and tried to comfort her.

"So am I Britt... So am I." Billie confessed holding Brittany tighter.

Woodland General Hospital became a temporary home for the six people. Every now and then either Billie Joe or Adrienne Armstrong would take one or two of the girls out of the hospital for a break. On a Thursday afternoon in May, Billie was walking around the backstreets of Woodland to escape everything. He wore the familiar thick soled black Chucks on his feet, tight black cotton pants, a black leather belt with silver studs around his waist, a fitted black cotton shirt with a thin red tie around his neck. Billie's long black hair was in its signature ruffled state. His emerald green eyes were darker than usual. Those emerald green eyes laid themselves upon a male figure walking toward him.

This man seemed a little taller than Billie Joe, had greasy dark brown hair tied into a tight ponytail and his eyes were dark blue. The male figure was wearing mid-blue jeans, a mid-blue denim jacket and a black t-shirt. On this guys feet were light brown Timberland desert boots. Billie instantly recognised the person.

"Armstrong." the man smirked.

"Bisson." Billie said monotonously, then he flew at Billy and pinned him to the floor.

The Californian punk rocker curled the fingers on his right hand to clench a fist. The whole of his right arm tensed and shook violently. Billie Joe's green eyes turned dark, almost black. Billie gripped Bisson's denim jacket and black t-shirt with his left hand. Both middle aged men were breathing heavily. It seemed like time had frozen on the edge of this epic moment. Both men's eyes met and conveyed the rage between them. Bisson still held the bitterness of when Adrienne chose his rival over him. Armstrong purely wanted vengeance for his hospitalised stepdaughter.

"So how is my fiancé?" Bisson asked.

"My wife," Billie Joe spat, "is currently in a hospital beside herself with fear of her daughter dying."

"That would be better for you thought wouldn't it Armstrong? Having Marciella dead." Billy said trying to pick at Armstrong's conscience, "She fucked your life up didn't she?"

At the end of that sentence Billie Joe launched his clenched fist into Billy Bisson's face. This punching action was repeated maybe two hundred times. Once Billie Joe was overly satisfied with the beating he had given, he rose to his feet and walked away. Billie Joe Armstrong strutted out of the back alleys and out into the street. He looked down to his knuckles. They were red, bruised and bleeding. Drops of blood fell to the floor behind him. He felt no pain in his body but inside he was pleading for his stepdaughter, Marciella, to still be alive when he returned, just because he didn't want his stepdaughter to die in horrific circumstances.

Billie Joe walked back up the hospital stairs with a cloud of dread hanging over him. Inside his heart and soul he prayed that Marcie would somehow be fine and ready to go. Billie knew that this hope was unrealistic but it was there all the same. Billie pushed open the door and Eileen stood up from the chair she was perched on.

"Adrienne needs to talk to you." Eileen said with no emotion whatsoever, "She just round that corner." she added.

Billie thanked the blonde drummer and went to find his wife. Walking around the corner of the corridor there she was. Adrienne's dreaded blonde and brunette hair was tied back. She was wearing a black tracksuit and white trainers. To Billie Joe, Adrienne just wasn't the same. Her sparkle had gone. All because of her ex partner beating her child. Adrienne turned her tired head and saw her husband of nearly fifteen years standing to the side of her.

"Adie? Honey what's wrong?" Billie asked concernedly, "Marcie's alright, isn't she?"

"I've just been to see her... Billie it's horrible in there. She's so bruised, swollen. They've put this tube... down her throat because apparently she's too weak to breathe by herself." Adrienne said then began to cry, "She's my little girl Billie... she lost her child Billie. I tried to touch her... honest to God I did but... I'm scared that I'd hurt her. I want my daughter back."

Billie drew his wife into his arms and held her tightly. Adrienne's fingers grasped Billie's dress shirt. Her face was buried in her thirty eight year old husband's shoulder. Her perfectly formed shoulders heaved releasing fresh sobs from the woman's lungs. Adrienne was dying on the inside from guilt. The Lebanese woman felt an excruciating pain in her chest but she knew it wasn't a physical inflicted pain. Only one thought remained in her track of thinking - what would happen if Marciella died in that very hospital? Adrienne had already lost a grandchild, she wouldn't be able to take losing her daughter.

At eight o'clock on a Sunday night Billie Joe had taken Yas, Eileen and Zach out into the car park for a break from the corridor. He had hoped that Brittany and Adrienne would come out as well but they said they wanted to stay with Marcie. The four American people sat in the parking lot. Billie was holding Zach in his arms and looked at him in admiration. Light blonde hair, dark brown eyes, he looked a lot like Eileen.

"Do you ever talk to Zach's father?" Billie asked.

"No... I don't think he would have wanted me to have the baby. It doesn't matter now. I have my son and that's all that matters to me now."

Yas curled up on the bench as the conversation between Billie and Eileen continued. Yas' eyes turned dark as saltwater filled them. Yas' bottom lip trembled as a solitary tear bled from her eye. Yas placed both of her feet firmly on the floor, then stood up and walked away from the conversing pair and the sleeping baby. More hot tears bled their ways down Yas' cheeks. Her green eyes were glazed over barely showing any emotion.

When Billie Joe saw Yas leave the bench he told Eileen to go back inside the hospital and handed her a sleeping Zach. Billie and Eileen parted ways and Billie Joe set off after Yas. The girl in front of him was physically introvert. He tried to catch up with Yas but he was trying too hard.

"Yas slow down man." Billie called.

"Leave me alone Billie." Yas replied failing to hide the fact that she was crying.