Here Comes Goodbye

“Gerard!” Mikey shouted as he saw his brother in the airport terminal. Gerard looked up from Bandit’s suitcase and smiled at his younger brother.

“Mikey!” Gerard shouted back. Liz watched as the two brothers hugged, suddenly nervous. She didn’t expect to start meeting her family this soon, but she knew it was better now than later. A woman ran up to Gerard after Mikey, and she was followed by a teenage boy about two years younger than Bandit.

“Oh, hey, guys,” Gerard said, holding his hand out to Liz. She flinched and drew back, staring at his hand with wide eyes. “Sorry,” he muttered with a sheepish look. “Mikey, Alicia, Jeremy, this is Liz, Liz, this is your uncle Mikey, Aunt Alicia, and cousin Jeremy.”

“H-hello,” Liz stammered, hugging her arms around her waist. Jeremy rushed forward so suddenly, it frightened her. She shrieked and rushed backward, nearly colliding with a wall.

“Jer, Jer,” Gerard said quickly, grabbing his nephew. “She doesn’t like to be touched dude.”

“Why not?” Jeremy asked, confused.

“Don’t worry about it, just, let her have her space.” Mikey replied to his son, glancing up at Gerard. They hung back, further than Liz, as they walked from the terminal. “What was that about?” Mikey asked Gerard.

“I told you, Eliza fucked her up big time. Let men beat her and treat her like dirt. It’s taken over a month for her to get used to us. Give her time, she’ll come around.”

“You better warn her about Mom and Dad then,” Mikey pointed out.

“Already have,” her replied as they walked out of the airport. After finding the rental car, Gerard, Lindsey, Bandit and Liz all followed Mikey, Alicia and Jeremy to the house.

“Wait, Daddy, where was the Iero’s?” Bandit asked after a few minutes of them driving.

“They’re catching a later flight,” Gerard replied. Bandit nodded and sat back in the seat, turning on her mp3 player. She held an earphone to Liz, who just shook her head and turned to look out the window. It amazed her how similar this place looked compared to her home in Chicago. It wasn’t a big city the way Chicago was, but it still reminded me of the place.

“So, Liz,” Gerard said as they drew closer to Mikey’s house. “I’m pretty sure everyone else is going to be here waiting, so I’ll let you know, Ray and Bob are really good friends, and when we’re all together, it gets pretty crazy, but we know how to keep things civil. So if there’s anything that makes you uncomfortable, just let us know and we’ll stop whatever we’re doing.”

“Okay,” Liz replied slowly. She felt her heart start to race even more as they pulled into a driveway. Just as Gerard expected, two cars was parked along the street.

“Stay in the car Liz,” Gerard said as he got out quickly. Two large men attacked Gerard, smacking his back and messing up his hair. Liz watched, fear going through her body. She knew one of the men. He had blonde hair and blue eyes and was the biggest of them all. He lived in Chicago as well, and her mother’s had him over to the house quite a few times.

“Ray, Bob, there’s something I need to tell you two,” Gerard said as he looked back toward the rental car. “Remember how Eliza told me she miscarried a baby?” They both nodded, looking confused.

“She had the baby, she never lost it, her. She never lost her. I have a fifteen year old daughter in my car right now.”

“The stupid bitch!” Bob shouted, so suddenly it made everyone jump. “She fucking lied to my face!”

“What are you talking about?” Mikey asked, looking at his friend.

“I’ve been to her house, over the years, not by choice, but I’ve been there. I’ve seen a teenage girl every time I was over there. The last time I was there I saw the girl’s face, and knew she looked like you. I asked Eliza, and she said no, the girl was born two years after you two broke up.”

“You’ve seen my daughter?” Gerard asked, shocked. “Did you know what was going on with her?”

“What do you mean?” Bob asked, obviously oblivious to what happened to the teenager.

“You can’t touch her, no matter how tempted you are, you can’t touch her. She’s terrified to death of getting touched.”

“Why?” Ray, the second man, asked.

“She’s been abused, by Eliza, Eliza’s boyfriends, a lot of people.”

“Damn, I’m so sorry Gerard, I didn’t see her enough to realize it was going on.” Bob said quickly. “You know if I would of known I would of done something.”

“I know Bobert, but she’s here now, it’s all that matters to me.” Gerard assured the other man. Back in the car, Bandit stayed with Liz until their father told her it was okay to come out. Liz took a deep breath and walked up to the group. Alicia and Lindsey had already went inside the house.

“Liz, this is Ray, and I guess you already know Bob?” Gerard said as Liz joined them. Liz nodded, not meeting the blonde haired man’s eyes. She didn’t want to get him in trouble with her father, since she knew he was a good friend of his.

“He admitted he’s seen you before, your mother lied to him.” Gerard explained, noticing her hesitation. Liz just nodded, looking at him finally. She forced her eyes to stay connected to his for a few more minutes before dropping them to stare at her shoes.

“Bandit, why don’t you take Liz up to your usual room so she can rest before we go to your grandparents house.” Gerard suggested. Bandit nodded and held her hand out to Liz. Liz stared at the hand before slowly taking it.

“She did her in good didn’t she?” Bob muttered, guilt rushing through him as he watched the teenager girl hesitate to enter the house.

“You’ve no idea,” Gerard muttered. A sudden thought entered Gerard’s head, a memory from when he first met Liz. She said her mother said she talked to a few people she used to know when they were together. “Bob, come here,” Gerard said, walking toward his car. “Did you talk to Eliza about me?”

“Not that much, I swear. I didn’t give her anything personal, the basics.” Bob said, looking alarmed.

“Bob, if you did I won’t be mad, I just want to know how that sixteen year old in there knew where to find me.” Gerard replied, holding up his hands to slow Bob down.

“My cell phone went missing once while I was there. It had your address and phone number in it. I guess Eliza got the phone and copied the information from it.”

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Gerard muttered, sighing. “I need to let this shit go, I have her with me, and that’s all that matters. I’ve known her a little over a month and I can honestly say I love her. She’s not like her mother, she’s not like any other girl I know. She’s level headed, unselfish, and she had no reason to be treated the way she was.”

“I swear to you Gerard, I had no idea things was that bad there,” Bob said, crossing his arms. “If I would of known about it, I would of gotten her out of there a long time ago.”

“I believe you Bob,” Gerard said, clapping his hand to Bob’s shoulder.

“So, how long you in town for?” Ray asked as he and Mikey walked up to Gerard and Bob.

“Just for the weekend. Have to get the girls home for school.” Gerard replied, leaning against the car.

“What grade is Liz in?” Mikey asked. He wanted to get as much information about his niece as he could.

“Tenth, same as Tony.” Gerard replied. “She seems to be doing good so far. She’s actually getting Frank’s son more into doing his homework.”

“Really? Frank’s son is doing what he’s supposed to?” Bob asked, his eyebrow raising.

“She’s a good influence on him, even Frank’s admitted that.” Gerard said, raking his hand through his hair. “I know one thing though, nothing is going to take her away from me again."