My Lighthouse

Reality strikes hard

Mark's phone rang. "Sheila" he said as he looked on his screen and blinked smiling at Nicky who sat together with him in the dressing room. "Sweetheart I am so glad you're calling" Mark tried to say as happy as possible, when all the blood disappeared out of his face, when he heard a man's voice asking, "Sir, am I speaking to Mark Feehily?" His heart was beating like crazy, but he tried to answered as calm as possible. "Yes, speaking" "with whom am I speaking and why do you have my wife's phone?" He asked.

Nicky just wanted to stand up to give Mark his privacy, when suddenly Mark raised up his hand and Nicky heard him ask where Sheila was. Shocked he looked at Mark. "What the hell...?" Nicky frowned his eyebrows, while he tried to understand what was going on.

"This is Officer Lewis speaking sir. Is there someone with you?" Tears came in his eyes, when the Police-Officer asked him this particular question. "No! Don't tell me she's dead" Mark whispered in the phone. Nicky lost all color in his face and ran to the door of the dressing room to scream Shane's and Kian's names. Nicky ran back to Mark, sat down on his knees beside him and put his arm around Mark's shoulders, while he cried with his hand before his face and listened to what the officer had to say. Crew members came from all over to listen what was going on with Mark.

"Sir, your wife has been robbed in your own house and I am sorry to say, but as it seems now, she's also been raped." Mark couldn't believe what the officer told him and while tears fell down his face, he wasn't even able to speak. "The burglar broke into your home through the kitchen window" the Officer continued. "Your wife probably forgot to put on the alarm. The neighbors heard her scream several times and thought it sounded suspicious and called the police. When we arrived at the scene the burglar had left and we found your wife within her own blood. Mark felt like throwing up when just Shane and Kian came running into the dressing room. Shane looked at Nicky with fear in his eyes. Something has happened to Sheila, he whispered.

"I have to warn you though Sir." "When you arrive at the hospital, please prepare yourself, as much as this is possible, that she looks badly damaged".  The burglar beat her up terribly and she probably fell with her head on the kitchen table. We found blood on there as well. Mark handed the phone over to Nicky and ran to the toilet to throw up.

Within three hours all the lads where on their way back to London in a private yet, where Louis had taken care off. Shane had called Louis to tell him what had happened, while they took care of Mark who was still in a shock and Louis immediately arranged for transportation to London. Interviews were being cancelled, as well as the last gigs and all with the announcement "because of private circumstances". Unfortunately the consequence of it all was, that the press immediately dived into the story behind "the private circumstances" part. They all realized, that the press would definitely think everything was aloud, to get their story, because "Westlife" refused to talk in every possible way.

Arriving at London's Heathrow, four taxi vans were waiting, in case the press would find out the lads were landed in London. Mark stepped in one of them, Nicky and Shane in another and Kian went in the third one to pick Jodi up and go to the hospital later on. The fourth just drove of to drive around. Thankfully it worked, because there was no press around what so ever when Mark arrived at the hospital.

With fear in his heart he stepped into the emergency department, when doctor Dave was waiting for him. Looking at Dave's face he got even more scared than he already was. He embraced Mark, something he would never do and looked him in the eyes with tears in his eyes. "I don't know what kind of beast did this to her, but the police is doing everything they can Mark". Mark bit his lip. "May I see her?" Dave hesitated. "Are you sure? Please be prepared for the worst Mark", he whispered and lay his hand on his shoulder. Nicky and Shane came just running in, when Mark decided to see her now.