"I don't think we should do it though, my daught..." Mr. Hampton started."Your daughter didn't go against her father's back and become a slut." he int...rrupts with a growl and a little laugh leaves my mouth, enough for them to hear. Dad comes all the way down and my stomach sunk, he had a belt in one hand and a bat in another. I started to cry before he even threatened me with them. "What the fuck are you laughing at?" he growls raising his belt and I half flinched. Before remembering what he. The contact only lasted an instant, then she let her eyes slide off me and turned them to the stage in the other room. I could tell, though, that she was still aware that I was watching her, and that she didn’t seem to mind. She was one of the girls Chapman had been talking to when I’d first seen him outside, and the first word that came to mind when I noticed her was proud, the way she held her head, chin up, the way she endured my stare. She had dark, crimped hair that fell to her shoulders. Stopped, and beat, and beat... Pain, searing through his chest. He coughed weakly, tasting blood.Darkness, inside his head. Were his eyes open? He couldn't tell. His heart fluttered, and beat... , and beat twice again. Paused, and beat, stronger now. He had to open his eyes! Rand! He was Rand! Remember... Remember.The jump. Skryben jumped. Distortion... The instruments, and the mind of Skryben, seeing distortion, but too late to stop the jump. Black hole? In a black hole? Was that why it was. We are leaving and going into the ship. The Samutz will not be able to hurt us then."She heard my words but could not believe that such a thing were possible. Her mind along with the rest could not grasp that idea. I walked forward and she shuffled back till she hit the wall. I took her arm and pulled her to me. "I will protect you."The words seemed to sink in and a small amount of clarity came into her mind. She came to the decision that the only one that would protect her was her husband. Her.