At the mention of that word the older woman clapped her hands over her ears and turned away with a loud moan. She doubled over, sinking to the floor, her body racked with sobs of rage and shame.
"Oh, it's wonderful, Mother," Candy screamed, not caring if the neighborhood heard. "You can't imagine how it feels to be lying there, naked, spread out, waiting while he grabs his cock and holds it just over your cunt!"
"Get out! Get out of my house before I kill you!" her mother shrieked, backing away, refusing to touch her own daughter.
"Oh, oh, I'm… sorry, I…" Candy cried, both hands on her mouth, realizing with horror what her rash act had accomplished.
"Get out, out!"
Candy rushed up the stairs, the sound of her mother's screaming voice ringing in her head. Oh God, how could she have done something so stupid as that? Knowing what kind of fanatic her mother was how could she have let something like this slip out… and in such hatred? Behind her she heard her mother screaming for her to leave the house this instant.
"I don't care where you go… out in the street where sluts like you belong. Let your boyfriends take care of you. Let's see just how high and mighty you're going to be when you get pregnant… just like I did when…"
The older woman's words were choked off by sobs. Candy ran into her bedroom and slammed the door. The world spun dizzyingly around her as she looked at all the familiar things. No, she had to leave… at least for a while. Stumbling around, half blinded by tears, Candy packed a small suitcase, finding enough money around for at least a few nights at the downtown Y. There she'd be able to get her thoughts together for a better confrontation with her mother.
"Get out, slut, get out!"
Candy rushed out of the house, one hand covering her mouth, stifling then sobs tearing at her throat. Tears streaked her cheek as she ran down the street, the suitcase banging against her legs. The cold night air didn't affect her now. All she felt was the sting from her mother's slap. All she heard were the woman's damning words as she threw her own daughter out of the house!
Candy didn't know how long she'd run. When she finally came to her senses she found herself some distance from her home. It took her several minutes to realize she'd run in the opposite direction from town.
"Oh my God!" the young woman sobbed in despair. She was farther from the Y than she'd been when she started, and it was nearly four-thirty! There were no buses running now, and taking a cab was almost out of the question. It would eat up what little money she had, and payday was nearly five days away! Of course she could ask Chuck for money. But somehow that idea repulsed her. It was almost like prostitution! Then her mother's accusations about her would be right! No, no, she couldn't face that responsibility!
Forcing herself on, Candy bit her lower lip, determined to walk the distance. She'd walked for nearly forty minutes when the teenager was aware of something or someone following her. Carefully Candy turned her head as she quickened her step, rolling her eyes to one side. She saw a large black van trailing her.
"Oh God!" she murmured, feeling fear race through her veins. There were no other cars on the street at the moment and all the shops and restaurants were closed. There was nowhere for her to run if they were to try something! How stupid it was for her to walk all this distance alone! That thought shot through her now.
"Hey, need a lift?"
That voice shot through the night air. Candy increased her speed, refusing to turn her head around. Oh God, wasn't there somewhere she could run to safety? Wasn't there an all-night diner in the area?
"Hey, honey, come on, it's not too safe to be alone in this area."
Candy stopped at a corner and looked down the four avenues. No one! Not a soul! It was as if everyone had died!
"Hey, come on. We're not gonna hurt you."
We? That settled it! No way! No, she wasn't about to throw herself in a van with a bunch of guys she didn't know.
"No thank you," she said modestly, crossing the intersection and praying to God they'd leave her alone. But the van continued, cruising along the gutter, one window rolled down while the words still poured out.
"Come on, honey, come on, we'll show you a good time and give you a ride at the same time." In the background she could hear other men laughing! That did it! She had to run, scream for help, run for the police!
"Oh God, help me, help!" she cried, breaking into a fast run while crossing the street.
"Man, shut her up! She's gonna make trouble for us!" someone cried out in the van. Doors opened and two men jumped out as the vehicle squealed to a halt in the deserted street.
Candy ran as fast as she could, dropping her suitcase behind her as the men closed the distance between her and them. Candy felt her lungs bursting as she ran down the street. Her long blonde hair streamed out behind her while she stretched out her hands, still screaming for help as her feet pounded the filthy sidewalk pavement.
"Shut the fuck up!" one man shouted back.
"Help!"
At that point she felt fingers curl around the long blonde strands and yank back. Instantly Candy felt pain in her scalp, pain that made her scream, forced tears to her eyes, made her stop and stumble to the ground.
"No,no, no!" she cried as she tumbled head over heels. She screamed incoherently, kicking, biting, scratching at her attackers. They moved around her cautiously as she swiveled around on her butt, trying to drive her heels in their crotches. Candy maintained enough cool to remember some of her classes on self-defense. She had to keep them at a distance while she regained her balance, scrambled to her feet and continued her escape attempt.
But the men seemed to know their business, circling her, keeping her off-guard, then moving in for the kill. The blonde teen felt hands scooping her up off the sidewalk, holding her arms pinned behind her, moving her forward while they told her to shut up. When she fought back and then screamed one of the men shoved a filthy rag in her mouth and pushed her forward.
"Came on, baby, we're gonna take care of all that energy. Hey, man, it ain't gonna be such a bad night after all," he said, reaching down and pinching her bottom hard.
Candy squealed at the sudden pain. Looking up, she saw the van draw closer as they stumbled across the street. There, some thirty feet from the large vehicle, her clothes lay scattered on the pavement. Something about the way they were thrown about made her break into tears.
"Hey, honey, don't cry. By the time me, Ben and Jack get through with you you'll be so fuckin' hot you're gonna cry 'cause we ain't fuckin' you enough."
"Who is she?" a drunken voice asked from the back of the van as they shoved Candy in.
"Who knows? Some runaway… just like the others."
"Man, Kevin, what the fuck's the matter with you? We got enough trouble with the law," the voice said, a little more alert now. They shoved Candy in the middle of the front seat, making sure the gag was in place while slamming the doors shut and squealing down the street.
"Hey, ain't no reason why we can't have no entertainment," the tall blond man said, curling his fingers around the wheel and staring angrily forward.
"Yeah, just like your idea about holding up that fuckin' liquor store last night was supposed to be fun… easy, piece o' cake, right? Christ, almost got killed 'cause that old coot had a gun!"
"Hey, watch it, all right? I done right by you guys up to now. So take it easy and let's enjoy a little," he said, reaching over with one hand and running his fingers up her skirt. Debbie cried out, snapping her knees together when she felt the tips reach the elastic leg band of her bikini bottoms. "Got a real nice girl here… wears panties or somethin'. Nice."
"Where the fuck we goin'? We can't go back to the old place. Cops are probably around there."