The Mountain Lion
Part II
Chapter Eight
Jeremy stopped and inhaled deeply. He tried to calm himself down by taking several deep breaths. Just then he heard what sounded like a woman crying, followed by the rustling of some leaves. He approached the woman slowly, realized it was Candy, then caught sight of the mountain lion perched on a branch high above the woman, waiting to pounce.
He quickly reached for his shotgun, but realized it was still back at camp.
He immediately sprang into action, shouting "NO!" before pushing Candy out of the way.
Candy screamed as the mountain lion jumped on Jeremy. Her screaming brought several men running, with Jason shooting a bullet up in the air. The wildcat was distracted enough to stop clawing Jeremy and run for the hills. "Get him, Josh - quickly!" Jason shouted, and Josh plus two other men tore out of there.
Jeremy rolled onto his right side, away from the others. He tried to get up with his elbow, but fell back down again.
Jason immediately went to him and gently rolled him on his back. He was horrified by what he saw; Jeremy's face and torso had been badly slashed, and his bloodied eyes were both swollen shut.
"Candy…. C-Candy…" whispered Jeremy.
Jason looked over to where Candy was still standing. Thank goodness she has not fainted yet, although she might when she sees his face, Jason thought.
"Candy, he's calling for you," Jason said softly. "Just brace yourself for a bloody face."
Candy went up to Jeremy, knelt down next to him, and said "I'm here, Jeremy."
Jeremy tried to open one eye. "C-c-candy, are you all right?" he asked weakly.
"Yes, yes, I'm fine," she replied softly.
"I didn't hurt you with… pushing…?" He whispered.
"Oh, no - you saved my life!" Candy said comfortingly.
"Candy, I…," then Jeremy lost consciousness.
Candy screamed again. Jason felt Jeremy's pulse at his neck and said "Candy, he's still with us - do you hear me? He's still with us!"
Candy was crying almost hysterically when Jason turned to Big Swede and said "Take her back to the dorm by way of Dr. Wright's office. Then tell Dr. Wright to meet us at our cabin. And someone, get me a litter!"
Just then, Josh ran out of the woods and said triumphantly, "We shot him! Jason, we got him!"
Jason looked wearily at Josh and said "But at what price, Josh… at what price?"
Chapter Nine
Back at the Bolt cabin, Dr. Wright was finishing cleaning up and bandaging Jeremy.
"Well," she said. "There's no doubt about it; you Bolt brothers have a lot of fight in you. He must have attacked that wildcat as much as it attacked him. I don't know how he came out with no fatal wounds, even if he does look like a mummy."
"Does this mean he'll be all right soon?" Josh asked nervously.
Dr. Wright paused before answering, then said, "Yes, if we keep these bandages and dressings changed often enough. He ought to regain consciousness by morning, so hydrate him with water and broth until I return. Here is some laudanum for pain."
"How's Candy?" Jason asked.
"Well, she was quite hysterical, as any gal would be if her man came near death. I gave her a sedative. She also should be better by tomorrow."
Both Jason and Joshua breathed huge sighs of relief.
Chapter Ten
What Jason did not count on was Jeremy not regaining consciousness by morning, or afternoon, or evening. When Dr. Wright came by that evening, he said "What does this mean?"
Dr. Wright wanted to be encouraging, so she said simply "I think his body is still in shock, and well as his mind still worrying about Candy. We'll give him another day or so, at least, before getting alarmed."
With that, she left.
The following morning, a small tap-tap -tap was at the door. Jason opened it to see Candy,
"Why, Miss Pruitt! I'm very glad to see you up and around!"
Candy just stood still, with no expression. "May I see Jeremy?" she asked.
"Certainly! He's not awake just yet, and he looks like a mummy, but he seems to be healing fine under all those bandages." Jason hoped he was being optimistic enough for Candy.
"I can't believe he endured all that," Candy whispered. "It's a miracle he is still alive."
"Blame it on the Bolt brothers' stubborn will to live," chuckled Jason.
"Um-hmmm," mumbled Candy. "Um, do you still have work to do meeting that deadline from Mr. Stempel?" She asked.
"Well, why yes, we do, but—"
"Then why don't you go up to camp, and I'll stay here with Jeremy."
"Are you sure you're feeling up to it, Miss Pruitt?" Jason asked.
"Yes, I am," she replied.
"Well, we thank you, Miss Pruitt, for assisting us in meeting this deadline." With that, Jason and Josh left for camp.
Chapter Eleven
For some unknown reason, Jeremy still did not wake that day, or even the next two days. Dr. Wright thought long and hard before she talked to the brothers and Candy.
"There is no reason why Jeremy should still be unconscious. He is getting weaker every day, but I hate to forcibly rouse him at this point."
"Isn't there anything that we can do?" Asked Josh.
"Well, I guess you can read to him, or just talk to him, since he can probably hear you, but I don't know if he will respond to that stimulus or not. I don't want to trouble you, but it seems as if Jeremy might be willing himself to die."
Everyone gasped at that information. "Can people really do that?" Candy asked.
"Well, you've heard of people starving themselves in order to pass from this life. There might be something traumatic that happened to Jeremy that he might think life is not worth living anymore…"
Candy immediately held her handkerchief to her face and ran out of the cabin.
"Oh," said Dr. Wright. "I think we may have hit the nail on the head."
Chapter Twelve
Jason went to find Candy. She was not at the dorm, so he walked around a bit and gently called her name; "Candy! Miss Pruitt?"
Candy emerged from behind some bushes.
Jason said, "I'm certainly glad you didn't wander off again. I think we need to talk."
Candy started trembling, but she approached Jason anyway.
"Miss Pruitt, you know how much you mean to my brother, and how much he means to you, don't you?"
"Y-yes…" Candy meekly said. "But the way we have been fighting, I didn't 't know if he would send me packing back to New Bedford!" she exclaimed.
"Oh, he would never do anything like that," Jason said comfortingly. 'What he would do, however, is worry that you would want to return to New England and forsake him and your future life together."
"Oh, I couldn't possibly do that," Candy said.
"Then why don't you tell him that?" Jason suggested. "Dr. Wright said he can hear, and he might respond to your voice above anyone else's. Do you think you can give it a try?"
"Oh - um - all right. I'll give it a try."
When Jason and Candy entered the cabin, Dr. Wright was just finishing up. She told Jason, "I'll be back later tonight. Let me know if his condition changes." With that said, she left, after putting a comforting touch on Candy's shoulder.
Jason said, "Josh, why don't you and I finish up that lumber order for Stempel, and leave these two alone for a while?" He ushered his brother out the door. "If you need anything, Miss Pruitt, just send someone to fetch us!" Then they left.
Chapter 13
Candy didn't know just how to approach this, or approach Jeremy. She pulled a chair up to his bed and began talking.
"Oh, Jeremy, I am SO sorry for everything that has happened between us! It's all my fault, I know." She began sniffling. "I don't want you to ever think that I would want to go back to New Bedford, or anywhere else. I fell in love with you on the voyage here, and I'll always love you." She began outright crying. "Oh, Jeremy, please don't leave me now!"
Sobbing, she put her head in her hands and rested them on the bed. Soon, she felt something touch her lightly. Jeremy's hand was on hers.
She exclaimed "Oh! Jeremy!
He opened his eyes - a bit - and whispered to her, "C-Candy, p-p-please don't cry. You know how it gets to me when you cry…"
Candy replied softly, "OK, but only if you'll accept tears of joy now!"
They gazed lovingly at each other, still touching hands.
The End - or not?
Want to see if/how Jeremy heals? Stay tuned….!