Remember Forever (Book 9 in Nemi Forever Series)

Chapter 10

Jerry

I tried not to feel bad about letting that crazy man into the building because Dad assured me he would have found a way in, regardless. I guess when the police went to the man's house, they found photos of Mercy that the guy had taken. Apparently, he had been obsessed with my sister for a while & targeted her, waiting for an opportunity to get her alone. He also had touched other girls in other cities. It made me pretty angry, but not nearly as angry as it made my dad. I could see the veins popping out in his temple & I could see his face turn red when the police were telling him this. Dad didn't realize I was listening or he would have sent me away. I probably should have left when the police started talking about this man's past, but I didn't.

Dad stayed in the hospital with Mom, since she wasn't awake yet. He didn't want her to wake up alone & I didn't blame him. I'd hate to wake up alone, myself & thinking of Mom waking up alone made me pretty sad. Mercy cried when we had to leave the hospital because she wanted to stay with Dad, but there wasn't anywhere for us to sleep. Glammy was going to be at home with us & Grandma insisted she would stay over at our house that night, too, so finally Mercy left.

It was pretty late when we got home so the kids were all asleep. Glammy was awake, waiting up for us & hugged us both really tight, Mercy a little longer. Glammy tucked us into bed with the help of Grandma & I hadn't been in my bed for five minutes when I heard a tiny knock on the adjoining door between mine & Mercy's room. It opened a second later & Mercy popped her head in. I could see by the light from my baseball light that I never turned off, that Mercy had been crying.

"Jerry?" Her voice was faint. I sat up & she came into the room more. "I don't want to go to sleep. Every time I close my eyes I see that man hurting Mommy. What if he comes after me?" I could hear the fear in her voice as it shook.

"Come lay with me." I said, moving my blanket so she could get in my bed. She got under the cover & I laid on my back with one hand under my head. Mercy laid her head on my shoulder & I heard her sniffle. We both stared up at the ceiling, at the stars & moons that were still stuck there, but had lost their glow since they had been up there since we first moved in. I didn't want to take them down because they gave me comfort & reminded me of when I was little & would look up at them as I fell asleep. "He's not gonna hurt Mommy anymore, Merce. Daddy will make sure of it. He's in jail & he's not getting out. He's not gonna come get you & even if he tried, you know Daddy made sure we had the best security system in the world. No one is getting in this place. You don't have to be scared."

"What if he tricks Glammy or climbs through a window after he disables our system." Mercy asked.

"First of all, he can't get over the fence because if he tries he'll be electrocuted. And even if he manages to get over our fence, he can't disable the system without an alert being sent to Daddy's phone & the police. And if he has some super power that lets him do all that & he somehow manages to get in our house, I won't let him hurt you. I promise." I looked down at the side of Mercy's face, then smiled when she looked up at me.

"You're the best big brother even if I don't tell you all the time." She said as she turned toward me & cuddled up against my side. "Jerry?"

"Yea?" I whispered.

"Do you think Mommy will ever wake up?"

I swallowed & took a deep breath. "She has to. Dad needs her. God wouldn't take her from him or from us. He knows how much we love her & need her." I felt tears burning my eyes, thinking about Mom not waking up. Dad would never be the same. When Mom thought Dad had died in that plane explosion, she was a mess. Dad might be worse. He's never loved anyone like he loves Mom & if he ever lost her, he'd be half of what he is now. He tells me all the time that I need to find someone that completes me like Mom completes him. She's his other half, his better half, as he would often say. Dad tells me that I need to marry a person who makes me better & makes me want to be the very best I can be. I should be with someone who wants to lift me up, not keep me down. I was still pretty young, so I had plenty of time to find someone to be with for the rest of my life, but I'd always remember Dad's advice.