Chapter 4 - No Way Out

From that moment on, I just wanted to run; run as far as I could! But I couldn't...

For a start, I could barely stand - never mind run - and then there was the matter of getting passed Jess and Adam; and that seemed very unlikely...

I was still looking down, staring at the bed, in the hope that Jess would just give up; though it was obvious that she wouldn't "just" give up, she would fight until she got the answers that she was so desperately trying to find.
Yet more tears fell down my cheeks, as I began to think more and more about what was to come next.

Jess noticed this and looked up; she, herself, looked as if the tears were about to fall...
"Please, just tell me your name! I want to help you; I need to help you!" She exclaimed.

This time I really had no other option...

"Ellie..." I whispered, voice trembling in fear.
She smiled ever-so slightly, "okay, Ellie, what's your surname?"

I was already regretting answering; Jess could find out about what had happened or who I was, I wouldn't see the end of it!

As much I did regret it, I still needed to answer... "Lawson..." I replied.
She nodded, "and you're... 12?"
"11." I corrected.
"Thankyou," she replied, "I promise, it'll be okay..."
I nodded slightly; from her perspective I would be alright, after all, I was just another patient! But from my perspective, well, things would never be 'alright'...

She placed her hand on mine. "Look," she began, "Adam still needs to check you over too..." she thought for a second, "just in case I've missed anything... I know it's not ideal, but..."
I looked up at her for a second, then nodded nervously; I was beginning to trust Jess and Adam more, so surely I didn't mind Adam checking me over as well?

To be honest, I didn't really have a say in things anyway, and I would just have to go with it for now; they couldn't find out about what my parents had done. I wouldn't let them.
"Thankyou..." Jess whispered, before standing up and walking out of the cubicle; shutting the curtain behind her.

It wasn't long before she returned, this time accompanied by Adam; he towered over her, yet she didn't seem to mind.

"Ellie?" Adam asked.
I looked at him and nodded; he quite clearly didn't think that it was my real name...
"Okay," he smiled slightly, "just relax. I promise, this won't take long."

Once again I kept my head down, as Adam looked at my frail body. Jess took my hand, just as the tears started brimming in my eyes; this was soothing in a way, as the images that filled my head were unimaginable, and I just wanted to cry until there was nothing left in me.
Adam finished, and sat down on the bed.
"You have a lot of old injuries, Ellie! Can you tell me how you got them?" Adam asked, wary of the answer.

I didn't reply...

I couldn't.

He was about to continue, but Jess intervened. "If not your other injuries, then how about your head? How did you do that?" She asked calmly.I thought for a minute before answering; "I was walking home and I tripped," I began, voice still quiet and trembling, "I felt dizzy, that's why I was still on the ground..."A blanket of silence suddenly fell on the room, as Jess and Adam just looked at each other.

Adam was the first to speak. "Okay, well, we need to call your parents, so do you have a contact number for them?"
"I don't know it... Sorry..." I replied, honestly.
"It's okay." He responded, turning to look at Jess. "Can you check the database for next of kin details please?" He asked; she nodded in acknowledgement, before turning and leaving the cubicle.

Adam continued once she had left. "We're going to keep you in overnight for observation, and then, if everything is fine, you can go home in the morning! Providing a parent has come to collect you..."

I nodded, faking a smile in order to reassure him.

He sensed that I had nothing else to say - not that I'd said much anyway - and stood up. "You know, anything you tell us is confidential - you don't have to worry about anyone finding out..."

I looked down at the bed. What was I meant to say? How could I explain what was happening to me, without my parents finding out? Adam left the cubicle after yet more silence; leaving me alone once again.

Pain seeped through my body as I leant back on the bed, and I was suddenly much more aware of how much worse things were getting. My whole life was like a living hell, being beaten for simply being born.

And I couldn't live it any longer...

Hello there! Yeah, it's me! Did you miss me? Nope, didn't think so...
Anyway I think I should apologise for not uploading for a while. And when I say 'a while' I mean since May 23rd last year... Oopsy... I've been trying to make myself write more and upload often, but my audience seemed to die down to about 1 person, so I didn't really see much point to be honest! Also, I had lots of performing during the last 2 Christmas', Summers, Winters, Springs and Autumns, and then tests, residentials and new schools to worry about... But I decided to post what I'd already written and hope that there was still someone out there who might read it...
So basically, sorry that it's so short, and that it's taken so long to upload, but hopefully I might start uploading more frequently again!
~gracey97
((Also, if you are actually reading this, then could you pretty please with a cherry on top post a review? It would be really good to know that someone has!))