Page 68 of A Brambleberry Summer

Other boots. Other fists. Again and again until she was in agony as vicious words in Spanish called her horrible names and told her she was going to die.

Something whimpered beneath her and the past suddenly receded—she was back in the present with her back throbbing and her dog wriggling beneath her.

Fiona was alive, and was just winded like Rosa. Thank God.

She could not just lie here trying to catch her breath. She had to protect her friend. Already, the man was making his way past Rosa and the dog toward the porch, where Jenna was desperately trying to punch in the code to unlock the door.

“I’m sorry, baby,” Rosa said to Fi, then rose shakily to her feet. Her amazing dog was right behind her and she realized Fi had been whimpering for her to get up so they could both keep fighting.

Rosa ignored her pain as she limped after him.

“Stop. Right now,” she said. He had almost reached the porch and Rosa did the only thing she could think of to slow him down. Though her back groaned with pain, she jumped on him, her arms around his neck as she had been taught in the self-defense classes Daniel had insisted she take.

He cried out in frustration and swung his elbows back, trying to get her off. One elbow caught her mouth and she tasted blood but still she clung tightly.

“Stupid dog!” he cried out again and she realized Fiona must have bitten him again to protect them.

She was so busy hanging on for dear life, she almost missed the sound of the door opening as Jenna finally managed to unlock it. She could see the other woman looked undecided whether to go inside to safety or come to Rosa’s aid.

“Go,” she yelled to Jenna. “Call nine-one-one.”

An instant later, she heard the sound of the dead bolt. She was so relieved, she relaxed her hold slightly, but it was enough for him to shake her off as Fiona would with a sand fly.

She fell to the grass, barely missing the walkway, and rolled out of the way of his kicking boots. Fiona was still growling but had retreated also, and now came to stand in front of her.

“You bitch,” he growled. “You stupid bitch. This is none of your damn business.”

She could hardly breathe, but she managed to squeeze out a few words. “My friend. My house. My business.”

He started for the door and she grabbed the closest weapon she could find, a rock from the flower garden. Rosa stood up and held it tightly.

“I will not let you hurt her,” she gasped out.

He appeared genuinely shocked by that. “I would never hurt Jenna. Never. I love her and she loves me.”

He ran a hand through his hair. The man was definitely unhinged, whether from his obsession or from alcohol, she did not know. What did it matter? She only knew there was no point in arguing with him. She longed for the safety of the house, but didn’t know how she could get inside without him following her and having access to Jenna.

“How can you say you love her? She ran away from you.”

“I’ve been out of my head, worried about her. She disappeared in the middle of the night and no one would tell me where she went.”

He sounded so plaintive that she would have felt sorry for him if she didn’t know the torture he had put Jenna through these past few months.

“How did you...find her?” She was so afraid and in pain, she could barely breathe enough to get the question out, but had some wild thought that if she could keep him talking, perhaps the police would arrive before he killed her.

“Luck,” he growled. “Sheer luck. A friend who knew how broke up I was about her leaving said he thought he saw someone who looked like her working in a gift shop when he was here on vacation with his family.”

Rosa closed her eyes, remembering that day Jen had thought she saw someone she recognized. She had been right. Completely right.

“How did you know it was Jenna?”

He shrugged. “I’m a cop. I’ve got connections. I traced her Social Security number and found an employment record here at some shop in town. I figured they wouldn’t tell me where she lived so I asked at the shop next door.”

All their efforts to protect her hadn’t been enough. Rosa had never thought of putting their neighboring stores on alert. She felt stupid for not thinking of it.

“As soon as I heard she might be here, I had to see if it was her.” His face darkened. “I have to talk to her. Make sure she’s okay.”

“You have seen her. Jenna is fine. She wants you now to leave her alone.”

---