Justice At Morgan Mesa. Jenna Night

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       THREE

      Vanessa was once again behind the wheel of her grandfather’s reliable old truck. Just like last night, she hoped that driving would give her a sense of control as she steered it into town. So far it actually had helped her calm down a little. And it gave her mind something to do other than replay the terrifying scenes from last night.

      “Maybe I should scrap my plans and stick with you,” Rosa said as Vanessa pulled into a parking space and left the engine idling.

      Grandpa had wanted to come with them, but Vanessa eventually convinced him to stay at the ranch. Physical work would calm him down, which was exactly what he needed and what Vanessa wanted. Plus, Rosa had her pistol. She could protect Vanessa quite adequately if it came to that.

      “Rosa, I’ll be fine.” Vanessa’s response came out sounding like a snarl. That was not her intention. She tried again. “You’re just making excuses so you don’t have to let Marisol Beltran’s granddaughter show you a thing or two about technology,” she added, while focusing on making her tone sound lighter and putting an awkward smile on her lips.

      Truly, she was grateful to Rosa for accompanying her into Torchlight, but she didn’t want to be coddled. She wanted the long list of tasks assigned to everyone to be completed on time so they could open the Silver Horse Guest Ranch on schedule.

      Rosa had already made arrangements for today to meet with a technology coach to get help upgrading the simple website she’d set up to include an online reservations system. She’d been miffed to discover her “coach” was only twenty years old and the granddaughter of a friend. Rosa had held her when she was a baby and that didn’t seem all that long ago.

      Rosa opened the door, but instead of getting out she turned to Vanessa. “Maybe instead of you dropping me off, I should drive you to the accountant’s office and make sure you get inside safely.”

      Vanessa took a deep breath and squeezed the steering wheel as tight as she could before releasing it. It was a tension-relieving technique she’d learned years ago and at the moment it was helping a little.

      She understood the concern behind Rosa’s offer, but having her loved ones hover just made her feel more anxious. Of course she was afraid. Every time she’d glanced at the truck’s mirrors on the drive over she’d seen the dark purple bruises. A reminder that if Levi hadn’t shown up when he had, her night could have had a far worse ending.

      But she was determined not to let fear paralyze her. She’d seen what had happened to her mother after her father’s death. And again, after her mom had married a man whose attitude and behavior were poisonous.

      Vanessa did pro bono legal work for women living in a shelter in Las Vegas. And as so often happens, in helping others she’d received more than she’d given away. Among other things, she’d heard counselors talk to the women about being cautious and safe, but also about doing their best to not let anxiety torment them and create a stronghold in their minds.

      Vanessa was not going to let some idiot with a hammer torment her. She was not going to let some violent jerk control her the way her stepfather had controlled her mother.

      She would be cautious. Smart. Reasonable.

      “I’ll be fine,” she said to Rosa, managing to keep her tone light and easy. “I’m going to the accountant’s office and then by the library. And the police station is smack in the middle of town so it’s close to both places. Everything will be fine. Now, you get in there and learn something about the exciting world of online reservations processing.”

      Rosa hesitated for a few seconds before finally nodding in agreement and exiting.

      Vanessa steered the truck back onto the road, drove a couple of blocks over and found an open spot where she could park on the street directly in front of the public library. She cut the engine and sent her grandpa a text, as promised, on the phone Pablo had lent her, letting him know she had arrived safely.

      And then, sitting alone in the truck, she realized she didn’t feel quite as brave as she had a few minutes ago. But she couldn’t just sit there. She turned in her seat and took a look through the windows all around the truck before she opened the door, just in case someone was there waiting to jump her. A trio of cars slowly drove by and she found herself closely watching them, heart in her throat, half expecting to see that nutjob from the mesa with his hat pulled down low and a bandanna over the bottom of his face riding inside one of them.

      Of course, that was not the case. They were just normal people going about their business in a small western town in Nevada. Nothing threatening about that.

      So much for willing herself to be calm and fearless.

       Dear Lord, I pray for Your presence and protection and I thank You for it.

      Why was prayer so often the last thing she thought of for comfort when it should have been the first?

      Pondering that, she crossed the street heading for the accountant’s office. Hopefully, СКАЧАТЬ