Chapter Five
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daughter up to him, and Ashley knew this. For a couple of months
after Ryan's and Ashley's wedding, Ryan and Joel fought violently and
daily without Ashley knowing, supposedly. Ryan would go work, and come
home with a bruise on his leg from the fight with Ashley's father.
Ashley would ask where Ryan had gotten the bruise and Ryan would say
that he bumped his leg on a chair. But Ashley knew better. She knew
that her father and Ryan had been fighting.
On the way home from the store one day, Ashley was feeling terrible.
The day before, Ryan came home with his arm badly bleeding, and a lie.
Ashley was driving home and was thinking why her father hated Ryan so
badly. At the intersection, the light turned green and Ashley took
off. She was in the middle of the intersection when a truck coming
from the left smashed into Ashley's car. The truck hit the driver's
side of the car, which injured Ashley. Ashley was taken to the
hospital within minutes, losing as much blood as a person can lose.
Later, At The Hospital
"Mr. Madden and Mr. Pethybridge, I am sorry about your lost." said the
doctor.
Both Joel and Ryan was surprised and ashamed. They fought over a
person that they thought they would never lose. That person was each
other lives, and they lost her. After all the fighting and all the
violence, they were ashamed. They fought over nothing. Out of the two,
Joel was more ashamed of himself than Ryan was of himself. Joel should
of gone with his daughter's words: give Ryan a chance and talk to him,
then make a decision; not coming to a conclusion by talking to Ryan
for a minute and not giving Ryan a chance.
"I'm sorry." said Joel.
"It's okay." said Ryan.
"I'm sorry not only for the loss, but for what I have done to you and
Ashley."
Ryan gave Joel a confused look.
"I fell so guilty for not giving you a chance and taking Ashley's
word. She said you were really loyal and I didn't believe her. But
after all the yelling, screaming, fighting, you never gave up on me.
You would never give up on Ashley, no matter how much I tried. And now
she's dead," Joel takes a deep breath, "I just feel so guilty."
finished Joel.
Joel started to bulge his eyes out with tears. Ryan then put his hand
on Joel's shoulder, opposite shoulder of the shoulder that Ryan was
on.
"Apology accepted." said Ryan.
"Really?" asked Joel.
"Yeah." answered Ryan.
Then Ryan's daughter came running into the visitor's room with tears
in her eyes. Ashley's grandmother fallowed Ryan's daughter. Ryan
hugged his daughter, comforting her as much as he could, telling her
that it's gonna be okay.
The Next Day
The next day, Ryan's daughter went to school and Ryan stayed home.
Ryan was feeling horrible, and soon will be feeling more horrible.
The school bus rolled by, not stopping at the stop where Ryan's
daughter got on and off the bus. Ryan called the school to see if she
was there. Supposedly, she never arrived at school. Ryan remember
walking his daughter to the bus stop and remembered seeing her walking
onto the bus. Ryan called Joel.
"Hey, Joel?" asked Ryan.
"Yeah, Ryan?" asked Joel.
"Yeah." answered Ryan.
"Hey, what's up?"
"Um, not too much, just wondering if you picked my daughter up from
school when she got off the bus?"
"No, why?"
"Well, she didn't get off the bus, and I called the school and they
said she didn't even arrive at school, so I thought you had picked her
up.'
"Nope, didn't pick her up. Last time I saw her was last night."
"Oh, okay. See ya!"
"Wait, what?"
Ryan hung up the phone and drove to the school and ran to the front
office.
"When the buses arrive in the morning this morning, who was out in the
bus lot watching the kids?" asked Ryan.
"Mrs. Crawford, Mrs. Amen, and Mrs. Smith." answered the person at the
front desk.
"Okay, thanks."
Ryan was walking away from the front office to Mrs. Crawford's
classroom when his cell phone rang.
"Hello?" asked Ryan, answering his phone.
"Ryan?" asked Joel.
"Yeah, Joel?"
"Yeah, what the hell? Tell me what's going on? Where is she? I want to
know."
"I don't know, she didn't come home from school, the school said that
she wasn't even at school, and she's not with you. I don't know where
she is."
"Wait, where are you?"
"At the school."
"Why?"
"To see if anyone of her teachers saw who took her or where she went."
"Call me when you're done and tell me everything. I'll do as much as I
can to help you."
"Okay, thanks."
"Your welcome. Bye."
"Bye."
Ryan hung up his cell phone and knocked on Mrs. Crawford classroom
door.
"Well, hello, Ryan," said Mrs. Crawford, "It's a pleasure to see you.
How are you?" asked Mrs. Crawford.
"Good, how about you?" asked Ryan.
"Good, very good. What can I help you with?"
"Were you in the bus lot when they pulled in this morning?"
"Of course I was, why do you ask?"
"Did you see my daughter at all?"
"Yeah."
"Was she with anybody?"
"Why are you asking me all these questions?"
"Because she never got off the bus today. I called the school earlier
and they said that she didn't go to any of her classes."
"Oh, why didn't you just say so, I saw her going with her aunt this
morning. She didn't tell you that she was going to her aunt's house?"
"No?"
"Oh, she seemed so excited when I was talking to her this morning
before her aunt picked her up."
"Oh, okay, thanks."
"Your welcome. Bye."
"Bye."
Ryan walked away from Mrs. Crawford's classroom, picking up his cell
phone. He called Joel.
"Joel, do you want to tell me something?" asked Ryan.
"What do you mean?" asked Joel.
"Mrs. Crawford, one of my daughter's teachers, said that she went with
her aunt. Ashley has a sister that I don't know about?"
"No, not that I know of. Why are you asking me? Don't you have a
sister?"
"No. I have a brother, that's it."
"Okay, meet me at my house, we'll talk this over when you're here."
"Okay, see ya."
"See ya."
Ryan hung up his phone and did what Joel had said, drove over to his
house.
A Couple Minutes Later
When Ryan arrived at Joel's house, he rung the door bell. Joel
answered the door.
"Hey." said Joel.
"Hey." said Ryan.
"Come on in," said Joel. "make your self at home."
"Okay."
Ryan came into Joel's house and took off his shoes. He hung up his
coat after he took it off and sat on the coach in the living room.
Joel closed the door and sat down next to Ryan.
"So, she's with her aunt?" asked Joel.
"That's what her teacher said." answered Ryan.
"I can't believe that she has a sister that she never told me about.
She usually tells me these things."
"Well, before we get too far into this, do you remember who Ashley's
mother is?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Maybe we can call her and ask her."
"I don't know her phone number."
"Look her up in the phone book."
"Ok."
Joel got up and walked into the kitchen. He opened the cabinet door
and grabbed the phone book. He then grabbed the phone and walked back
into the living room and sat back down onto the coach. Ryan got up to
go to the bathroom while Joel looked up Ashley's mother's phone number
and called her.
"Hey, is Vicky there?" asked Joel, calling Ashley's real mother.
"This is Vicky." said Ashley's real mother.
"Hi, this is Joel Madden, do you remember me?"
"The guy that got me pregnant. Yeah, I remember."
"Yeah, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"Just why did you give Ashley up?"
"Cause I didn't want her."
"And?"
"And what?"
"Okay, Ashley's dead. Her daughter is missing. Told her teacher that
she's with her aunt. Explain that?"
Vicky took a deep breath.
"Ashley's dead?" Vicky said, trying to change the subject.
"Yeah."
"When? How?"
"Yesterday, car crash. Answer my question. Do I have a daughter that I
don't know about?"
Vicky took another deep breath. There was a long pause.
"Vicky, you there?"
"Yes, Joel, you have another daughter that you didn't know about. I
had twins and wanted only one, so I gave you the other one, saying
that I didn't want it, thinking that you would just leave me alone
after."
"Okay, thanks. I just don't understand why you just didn't tell me in
the first place."
"Cause I thought you would freak out if you had two kids."
"Do you still have contact with her?"
"Sometimes."
"Can I have her phone number?"
"Yeah, it's 555-8576."
"Okay, thanks. Bye."
"Wait, Joel."
"What?"
"You said she had a daughter."
"Yeah.
"Can I meet her?"
"Yeah, after I find her."
"What do you mean, you don't know where she is?"
"No, she's supposedly with her aunt. Wait, what's my other's
daughter's name?"
"Brandy."
"Okay, I'm gonna try to get a hold of my granddaughter, okay?"
"Okay, call me when you find her, I would like to meet her. Also, I
really never told Brandy about you, but maybe Ashley has."
"Okay, I will. Bye."
"Bye."
Joel hung up the phone. Ryan flushed the toilet and washed his hands.
After that, he walked out of the bathroom and sat down onto the coach
next to Joel. Joel then called Brandy.
"Hello, is Brandy there?" asked Joel.
"This is Brandy." answered Brandy.
"Hi, this is Joel Madden."
"Oh, hi, I'm sorry about your lost."
"Wait, what?"
"I know who you are."
"You do?"
"Yeah, you're my father. Ashley had told me a lot about you."
"Really?"
"Yeah, she really looked up to you. From what Ashley had told me, I
really wanted to meet you, but mom wouldn't let me."
There was a long pause. Joel had a few tears in his eyes.
"Dad, you're okay?" asked Brandy.
Joel took a deep breath and swiped his tears from his eyes.
"Yeah I'm okay. You just sound a lot like Ashley."
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Ya, you know that Ashley had a daughter, right?"
"Yeah. She's the sweetest little thing."
"Yeah, I know. Well, today, she didn't get off the bus and she didn't
make it into the school. One of her teachers said that you had here.
Is that true?"
"Is Ryan there?"
"Can you please answer my question?"
"I will once you answer mine."
"Yes, he is here. Now answer mine."
"One more question, did you mean what you said at the hospital
yesterday about not giving Ryan and Ashley a chance?
"Yes. I did mean it. Now, do you have my granddaughter?"
"Yes, I have your granddaughter."
"Where?"
"At my house."
"Can I pick her up?"
"Sure."
"Where do you live?"
"123 Fake Street."
"Ok, I'll be there."
"Ok."
"Bye."