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Brug held up the appendage and offered her an easygoing smile in the
rearview mirror.
"Martha and I got a flat tire last night. I had trouble getting the
spare loose and scratched it pretty good, didn't
I? "
"It looks painful," she agreed while her heart continued to pound.
"I've had worse. We saw a pretty good movie last night, didn't we,
Martha?" The woman made a sound Brug took for assent, and he launched
into a detailed description of the picture and other movies he'd
liked.
Josy didn't know what to think. Brug acted so relaxed and normal she
couldn't believe he was the man she'd struggled with last night. He'd
made no attempt to hide the cut, and he kept trying to jolly Martha
into joining the conversation, while offering Josy apologetic looks in
the mirror.
Was she seeing bogeymen in everyone?
Brug dropped them at a shopping center, insisting he'd finish his
errands and take them to lunch before running them home again. Josy
regretted coming along. Martha made it clear she didn't want to talk
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and didn't care if Josy followed her or not.
"Did you invite me along just to give me the silent treatment, Martha?"
she finally asked as they walked from the bank to the grocery store.
"You know why you were invited. You're just like his other one,"
Martha snarled.
"What are you talking about?"
"Alyssa screwed anything in pants--including my husband--and she didn't
care if I knew, either." The bitter words were filled with venom.
"I am not Alyssa," Josy told her firmly, "and I have no designs on Brug
at all."
"Then why was he so anxious for you to come with us?" Why indeed.
"I
don't know, Martha--you tell me. " Martha snorted and strode off more
quickly than Josy could manage. Her leg was giving her fits. Why had
Brug wanted her along? Martha's jealousy she could understand. Brug
had flirted with Josy from the first. Josy chewed on her lip as she
considered Brug. He was the same general height and build as her
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assailant, but the man who'd tried to force her over the railing had
panicked when she'd stabbed him and he'd heard Adam coming. Brug, on
the other hand, hadn't blinked an eye when she'd noticed his wrist.
The reactions were inconsistent.
But then, everything was inconsistent unless someone wanted to scare
her away. And that brought her right back to Martha--and Brug. She
still believed Martha was the one at the window and behind the phone
calls, but Adam would never believe her without proof. Josy followed
Martha into the grocery store feeling vulnerable.
"Martha, is there a ladies' room?" For a moment, she thought the other
woman wouldn't answer.
"Through the double doors next to the meat counter. Go down the hall
to your right, second door on the left." Martha spit out the words and
turned back to the shelves.
"Thank you," she told the woman's back. The double doors bore a bright
red sign that said No Admittance. Josy hesitated. There were no
employees nearby to ask permission, and need overcame her
reservations.
The bright, busy store yielded to a dark hall stacked with boxes and
crates waiting their turn on the shelves. The sense of being where she
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didn't belong almost sent Josy back out front where there were bright
lights and people.
The bathroom was what you'd expect in a house, not a public rest
room.
Obviously, this wasn't intended for customer use. Josy turned the lock
and hurried to use the facility. She was washing her hands when the
doorknob began to twist with excruciating slowness. She started to
call out that she'd be right out, but there was something terrifying in
the slow slide of that knob as it settled back into place without
making a sound. Why hadn't the person knocked or called out? Heart
pounding, Josy stood with one hand in the running water, her eyes
riveted on the knob. "Martha, is that you?" She tried to sound
annoyed instead of scared to death.
A thin plastic card suddenly slid between the door and the jamb.
Someone was trying to force the lock!
There was no way out of the tiny bathroom except the way she'd entered.
Any minute now, the credit card would pop the lock and whoever was on
the other side would enter.
Josy flung her body against the door, sinking to the floor so she could
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brace her feet against the far wall. The lock gave. Someone pushed
hard against the door. Josy prayed her bad leg would hold up as she
braced herself against the opposing force. The door opened inward a
quarter of an inch against her back. Josy did the only thing left for
her to do. She screamed.
The sound reverberated in the small room. The door slammed tightly
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