Texas is Forever (Tony Perry's Daughter)

Chapter 7

The next four months pass by pretty much the same. I get kicked, punched, beaten, and bruised every day. I cut nearly every day in response. I don't know if I could take another year of this. Their custody battle isn't over, but I finally get to see Tony for the first time in months today.

I drive out of the farm to his house. I didn't have the energy to hide the bruises today. I knock on the door and Tony looks shocked when he sees me. "Come in." I go to his living room and sit down. I know I am deathly skinny. I am covered in bruises and he can see my cuts. He reaches out to touch me and I immediately flinch away.

"Please don't touch me." Some tears stream down my face. "Hey, it's okay. I won't touch you. I won't hurt you. Is it your mom and her husband that have been hurting you?" I nod. "C'mon, honey. I'm going to get you out of that house." I sit down in his car and he drives.

We end up at the courthouse. He takes me in. I'm shaking. The lady sees me and comes up to me but stops when I back away. "Honey, who did this to you?" "My mom and her husband. Please don't let me go back. I want to stay with Tony. Please." She nods.

"You definitely have enough evidence to make it clear that you were suffering from a lot of damage under their custody. I will make an immediate custody order for you to be sent to Mr Perry's custody. Your brother will be sent back up to your grandma in Washington. Everything will be going to you, but it's your choice what to do with it."

I nod. I watch her call something in and then she signs out a paper. Tony signs it and I hear over the radio. "Okay, they are both arrested. I would suggest taking her to a hospital to assess the damage." Tony leads me to the car and we go to the hospital. I haven't stopped shaking.

He signs me in and I'm brought back. They hold my arm down to put in an IV and I'm extremely panicked. I hear a doctor over my panic. "Honey, I'm going to give you a sedative, it will help you calm down right now." I feel cold through the IV and my body begins quickly relaxing.

I feel Tony's hand slip into my own. "It'll be okay, honey." I feel myself get moved. They take a MRI and then I'm taken back to the room. I feel Tony put back in my piercings but he leaves off my ring.

"Okay, I'm going to start a nasogastric tube. It will help her gain weight quicker because she is dangerously low. I say she'll probably be in the hospital for a few weeks minimum." "Can I get her transferred to Rady's Children Hospital?" "Yeah."

I feel something get placed in my nose. "We're going to completely sedate her for the way down there. How long do you need to get down there?" "10 hours." The guy nods. "We'll keep her sedated until you get there." I feel more cold through my IV before I fall asleep.

I wake up in a different area and I see Tony nearby. I'm anxious, but not anywhere near as anxious because he is staying plenty far away. "Hey honey, are you feeling a little better?" "I'm scared." "I won't let anyone hurt you unless it is a hurt to help like blood draws or shots." I nod.

Two doctors come in but stand close to the door. "Rachel, the doctor on the left is Jaime's mom." I look at her. "Rachel, this is Dr Harvey. She works specifically with fears and she is going to try and help you not be as scared of touch or people being near you. You're going to do sessions with her every day to try and lower the fear."

I nod a little. "I'll be back in later. Your dad can stay with you as long as you are in here." I nod. Dr Preciado leaves and I see Dr Harvey smile. "Hey kid, I'm going to get a little closer to you and I want you to tell me when I get too close, okay?" I nod.

She slowly begins walking towards me. She gets about three feet from the bed before I shake my head quickly. She takes a few steps back. "Okay honey, let's just talk some, okay?" I give a small nod.

"Your dad told me you like playing guitar?" I nod. "Do you like playing electric or acoustic?" "E-Electric." "I bet that is fun. What is your favorite song you have learned?" "T-The Middle by J-Jimmy Eat W-World, C-Carolyn by B-Black V-Veil Brides, or C-Circles by P-Pierce The V-Veil."

She smiles. "Are they fun to play?" I nod. I realize she is right at my bedside. "Hey honey, how are you feeling?" "Anxious. Please don't touch me." "I won't. What we are working on currently is just trying to make you comfortable with people being near you. We're looking at at least three sessions of working on you feeling comfortable with people near you before we work on you getting comfortable with touch."

I nod. "Are you fine with your dad coming closer?" I nod. He comes around the same side as the doctor and I watch him walk closer to me. "Can you please talk?" "Alex is taking your horses. He said you could come visit them at any time. Um, Vic's featuring on a song on Kellin's new album. Our new album is set to release in April. We are starting to tour the second week of May with Sleeping With Sirens, Black Veil Brides, and All Time Low. Liam, Rowan, and Copeland were going to play as another band but they don't have a lead guitarist and singer."

"Wait, really?" He laughs. "Yeah." I see the nurse smile. "Honey, you are doing really well. You recognize your not being hurt, right?" I nod and feel Tony's hand in my own. I give it a light squeeze. "Do you feel okay?" I nod. "Less anxious than before. He makes me feel safe." She smiles.

"That's all we are going to do today. Dr Preciado will be in here soon." She leaves. "Tony, what injuries do I have?" "Miraculously, it was all just bruising. You have some more stitches and a nasogastric tube to help you gain weight quicker but otherwise all the harm was mental."

I nod. "Dr Preciado said she is going to put a splint on your right leg for a week and then you'll have another X-ray because there is heavy bruising which might mean a stress fracture she didn't see." I nod again.

I see her come in. "Hey honey, I'm going to need to put a splint on you. Are you going to be okay or will I need to sedate you?" "I-I think I'll be o-okay." She nods. She comes closer to me and I hear Tony begin talking to me. "Why were you so interested in Liam, Rowan, and Copeland wanting to be a band but not having enough members?"

"I have always wanted to be in a band." "Oh, you are a singer and guitarist!" I smile a little and go back to watching Dr Preciado. "Kellin says they want you to join." I look towards him. "Really? They don't even know how well I play." "Kellin told them."

I roll my eyes. "Alright." I watch Dr Preciado slip the stocking onto my leg. She wraps it in cotton. I watch her dip the splinting material in water and then wring it out. She put it against my leg and wraps it with an ACE bandage.

"We're going to allow her to go home since her leg is the only big injury and she is comfortable enough near you she doesn't appear that she would have need to be sedated. We are going to send you guys with some heavy dose anxiety medication just incase. She does need to come here to work on getting more comfortable with touch, but I think she'll snap back quickly with your support."

Tony nods. After the monitors are taken off me and the IV is out, I am handed crutches. I stand up with them and follow Tony out of the hospital. "In a day or two, we are going to drive down to Texas with either just Vic, or Vic and Kellin so we could retrieve the cars you want and sell the others. Your mom and her husband were sentenced to life so it is all your's."

I nod. It's pretty cold still, so my tank top and shorts are gonna make me freeze. We get to a house. "I'm gonna let you know now that they were having a tour meeting so there is 37 people inside if I counted correctly." I nod. "They all know not to touch you and to give you some space." I nod again and we head inside.