Page 40 of The Journey That Never Ends

His dark eyes were trained on her. The wind changed direction, and she caught his unwashed scent. The hair on the back of her neck stood at attention, and something inside her told her to run away.

“Are you done, Jack?” she called out.

“What’s your hurry? You must be new in town.” A slow grin stretched across his tobacco-stained teeth, and he took a step closer.

She turned her back to leave when she felt his hand clamp down on her arm.

“That’s rude. You can’t leave. I’m not done with you.”

Fear clawed its way up her throat and came out in a scream. He slammed his dirty hand across her mouth and wrapped his arm around her waist to keep her from drawing attention from people. In her attempt to get away, she dropped the leash.

Suddenly Jack let out a growl and raced toward them. From the corner of her eye, she saw Jack launch himself at the stranger and bite him on the arm.

The man let out a yell and released her. He cradled his arm and stared down at the growling and barking dog in fear.

The stranger began backing away while keeping his eyes on Jack.

Elana, coming to her senses, pulled out her cellphone and snapped a quick picture of the criminal.

“I just sent a picture to you to the cops. You need to leave before they get here.”

His eyes widened with this new knowledge, and he turned and ran away.

Shaking, she picked up Jack’s leash and ran back to the van. Her grandmother was just coming out with a shopping bag.

“Guess what…” Grandma Cecilia saw the look on Elana’s face and stopped in her tracks. “Elana, what happened? You’re as pale as a sheet.”

Elana fumbled with her keys to try to open the door. Jack was looking back at the park where they’d been, barking his head off. “Someone attacked me. We must leave.”

Her grandmother’s eyes widened. “Did he hurt you? Where is he? Did you call the police?”

She shook her head vehemently. “No. I just want to leave.”

Her grandmother touched her arm. “Elana, did he hurt you?”

Elana investigated her grandmother’s worried gaze. “He grabbed me, put his dirty hand over my mouth when I screamed. But Jack bit him, and he let me go.” Hot tears slid down her face before she could control herself.

Grandma Cecilia looked truly horrified. “We need to tell the police.”

Elana shook her head. “I don’t want to stay here. I just want to leave. Please.”

Her grandmother worried her lip with her teeth. Finally, she pulled her into her arms and held her tight. “Okay, we can leave. But I want to make a call to the police, so they are aware of this person.”

Elana wiped her tears with the back of her hand. Jack sat at her feet and whined.

She bent and pulled the dog into a hug. “Thanks, Jack. You saved me.”

Grandma Cecilia rubbed the dog between the ears. “You’re getting a nice dinner tonight, Jack. Such a heroic animal.”

Jack looked at her and let out a bark in agreement. This brought a smile to Elana’s face.

“Let’s go.” Her grandmother opened the side of the van for Jack to get in.

Elana didn’t need to be asked twice. She hurried into the driver’s seat and slid in.

On their way out of town, Grandma Cecilia dialed the local police and informed them of the incident.

While they were disappointed that Elana didn’t make a formal police report, they were grateful for the information and the photo that she had sent.

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