Travis lost ground as Stephen gained. Travis would go out and see the two of them together. They were so happy; it was like a red-hot knife through ...is heart. Eventually, Rachael made it known that she had chosen Stephen. He was the better man and could provide for her. That very moment, a part of Travis died right there on the spot. He wept for days. The pain was worse than all his physical ailments combined. It hurt so badly that one night on the bathroom, he knelt and prayed to God. "Mom... " she started."Cathy Larissa Hamilton, I want you to march straight into your room and stay there. I will be up shortly, after I have a little talk with Mr. Shepard." She turned her full formidable attention back to me. "Now, Mr. Shepard... " No," Cathy said quietly.Her mother paled, then stared at her. "What did you say?" Her voice was low, but dangerous.Cathy trembled, but stood her ground. "I said 'no', mom."Her hand snapped up, heading for her daughter's cheek. I reached out and. I heard him hiss gently not to wake me up, and she said out loud "Oh, don't worry, he's wide awake. Aren't you, honey?" I timidly said that I was, unsure how he was going to react. We'd talked about our sexual exploits in private, but actually being there and touching her while it happened was a different story. Then, that sweet southern belle said to him, "That was amazing, baby! Being out here in the wild has got me feeling a bit wild myself, so I have a special offer for you. If you'll. Henry knew he had a case, but didn't care. He wanted him gone and gone he would be. It was only a matter of the cost, and nothing else. There was silent applause when the staff announcement was made and his successor named. There would be no going-away party for Ron Dixon.Terry Timple, the reluctant Human Resources Manager, was frightened this would be a black mark on his record, but Henry told him to "suck it up and do the paperwork because Ron Dixon was fired, no matter what." Timple.