CHAPTER 6

Jeremy opens his eyes from his nap and sees Candy staring at him. "How long have you been awake?"

"Not long. Jeremy, I need to tell you something."

"Okay, but are you all right?"

"I will be. Jeremy?" she pauses as her voice begins to quiver and her eyes fill with tears. "Jeremy, he didn't. . .he didn't rape me. At least, I don't think he did."

Jeremy hugs her tighter. "I know, Candy."

"You do? How?"

"Allyn told me after she examined you." He pauses for a few seconds. "Thank God, he didn't succeed."

Candy pulls away from him so she can look into his eyes and whispers, "Oh, because if he had raped me, you wouldn't want me anymore."

"What? No, I didn't mean it that way. I meant that I don't want you to have to live the rest of your life knowing he did that to you. It's bad enough that you'll remember him attacking you. Candy, you have to know that no matter what happened, I still want you for my wife. I love you. I'll always love you."

Candy lays her head back on his shoulder. "He told me you wouldn't want me. That you wouldn't even look for me this time.

"Well, he was wrong. If he had kidnapped you again, I would never stop looking for you. I would look for you until I either found you or until the day I died. You are my life, Candy Pruitt Bolt," he says as he kisses her lips softly. "Does that hurt? Me kissing your lips."

"A little, but please don't stop." She kisses his lips and he returns the kiss. "Jeremy, he kept slapping me and shaking me, so I told him I was pregnant hoping he would stop. But he didn't. It was like he went completely crazy instead. He called me a slut and said he would get rid of your baby and replace it with his. Then out of nowhere, he punched me in the stomach with his fist," she cries. "And. . .and when he threw me down on the floor, he kicked me. . .he kicked our baby. I didn't think he would ever stop kicking. I tried to protect our baby, but I couldn't. I couldn't save our ba-baby. I couldn't," she says as she begins sobbing.

Tears are running down Jeremy's face, too. "Candy, I can only imagine what torment you had to go through. Shh, you don't have to talk about it anymore, right now. Just rest."

They lay in each others arms when several minutes later Candy thinks of something else she has to talk to Jeremy about. "Jeremy, are you asleep?" she whispers.

"Um? No, I'm not asleep. What's wrong? Can I get you something?"

"No, nothing. I was just wondering about something. Richard was determined to um, have me, uh, um, you know, have sex with me, to teach me a lesson, he said. Why do you suppose he stopped all of a sudden? Did you see him when you got here? Or was he already gone? Maybe he heard you coming and left."

Jeremy is wide awake now. "Uh Candy, what is the last thing you remember about what happened?"

"Well, I remember trying to escape out the window. He caught me and threw me down on the floor. And him kicking me. . .and the baby," she cries. "Then he got on top of me and pinned me to the floor. He was slapping me because I kept calling for you. He. . .he told me that what was happening was all my fault because I wouldn't listen to him. Oh, Jeremy, I was so scared. I thought he was going to kill me."

"Candy, that's enough."

"No, I have to know what made him stop. I-I-I felt him down there. He was hard. I told him I couldn't breathe so he raised up and laughed at me. Said that he was going to leave me breathless, anyways. For me to just, um, enjoy it, that he was going to." Her crying turns to sobbing.

"Candy, please. Don't say anymore. We can talk about this later."

"No Jeremy. I need to tell you. He then went to kiss me, and that's all I remember. The next thing I know is I'm up here in bed hitting you. What happened to him? Why did he stop?"

"I don't know where Rafe is, and frankly I could care less. He can rot in Hell for all I care," he says angrily.

"Jeremy, don't be mad at me. I just wondered, that's all."

"I'm not mad at you. I could never be mad at you about this," he says as he kisses her forehead.

"Jeremy! Jeremy, you don't think he'll come back, do you? I can't go through that again," she says trembling.

Jeremy holds her tighter. "No, Candy. I know in my heart that he won't ever come back. I promise you're safe from him. He will never hurt you again."

"How can you be so sure? Jeremy, he's ruthless. And he said he always gets his way. Am I going to have to worry about him coming back for the rest of my life?"

"Candy, I told you he's not coming back. Please trust me on this."

Candy raises up some and looks Jeremy in his eyes. "Jeremy, did you do something to him? Did you. . .Did you kill him?" she manages to squeak out.

Shaking his head, Jeremy says, "No, I didn't kill him. I wish I had, but I didn't."

"Well, thank God for that. I don't want you to be hanged for killing him. I can't lose you, too."

"You're not going to lose me, I promise." Taking her hand in his, he raises it to his lips and kisses her fingertips. "Now, we're not going to talk about this anymore right now. We'll talk later if you want, but just not anymore right now."

"All right," she sighs with relief. "Jeremy, I love you."

Jeremy gives her that smile she loves, "I love you, too." They lay in each other's arms and feel the warmth of their love for each other.