Sonoma Rose: An Elm Creek Quilts Novel by Jannifer Chiaverini Read Free Book Online Page A

Rosahesitated. “What about John? He’s still out there looking for you, looking for us.”
    “No, he isn’t.” Lars lifted the lantern and eyed the baskets and bundles. “We need to move quickly. Can we leave any of this behind?”
    “I didn’t pack anything I didn’t think we’d need. Lars, wait.” She grabbed his arm as he stooped over to pick up the tarpaulin. “John wouldn’t give up as easily as you seem to think. He’s armed and he’s looking for us.”
    Lars spared another glance for Marta and Ana. “No, he isn’t, at least not right now. He’s been arrested.”
    “What? But he didn’t find you. Why would—” Rosa felt the blood drain from her face. “Oh, no. Elizabeth.”
    Quickly Lars grasped her by the upper arms, keeping her on her feet. “Elizabeth is fine,” he said, quietly and firmly, his gaze locked on hers. “She’s fine. I’ll tell you what happened, but it’ll have to wait. The creek’s rising and we have to get out of this canyon.”
    She took a deep breath and nodded. “Marta, Ana, wake Lupita and come help us,” she said. While Lupita yawned and stretched, clutching her doll, Lars spread the tarp on the floor of the cave, piled the sacks of clothing, their remaining food, and the children’s other belongings into the middle, and quickly tied the bundle shut with a rope he took from his coat pocket. Marta picked up one of the valises and Ana the other. Rosa held Miguel, who rested his head drowsily upon her shoulder, and awkwardly lifted the sewing basket, the quilts piled on top.
    “Stay close,” Lars warned as he hefted the makeshift sack over his shoulder, raised the lantern, and led them from the cave. The girls followed, although Ana threw Rosa a dubious look before stepping out into the rain, and Lupita balked at themouth of the cave until Rosa gently nudged her with her hip to steer her forward. Covering her head and Miguel with her shawl, Rosa brought up the rear.
    The gravel path had become slick with mud and rivulets of rainwater running off the cliff side. Rosa was soaked through in an instant, and as they made their precarious descent, a new roaring filled the air, loud and insistent. Miguel stirred beneath the shawl and lifted his head to peer out into the darkness. She murmured soothingly and rubbed her cheek against his until he rested his head upon her shoulder again, clinging to her blouse with his small fists. Lars glanced back often, offering a hand to Marta when she stumbled and lifting Lupita over a puddle. His eyes met Rosa’s, and she managed a shaky smile to assure him all was well, but his expression told her that the worst lay ahead of them.
    And then, just as they approached level ground, she spotted it—the creek, rushing and tumbling over its banks, higher than she had ever seen it. In the thin light cast from the lantern, she saw that the pool at the base of the falls had swollen to nearly twice its breadth since she and the children had passed by it before. A few yards ahead, a dark shadow moved over the path, and when Lars abruptly halted, she realized that the trail was submerged in water. “Wait,” he called over his shoulder, shouting to be heard over the roaring of the falls.
    Rosa drew the girls back, away from the floodwaters, and they watched as Lars waded ahead, stopping to catch his balance as the current swirled about him. The water nearly reached the tops of his boots, and when he held the lantern high, Rosa glimpsed the path appearing above the surface nearly eight feet beyond him. He forged ahead, his boots becoming completely submerged before he reached the other side. Dropping the tarpaulinbundle and setting the lantern high on a rocky ledge, he turned and waded back to them. By the time he reached them, the creek had risen past his knees.
    “The current’s strong,” he told Rosa grimly, picking up Ana and taking Marta by the hand. “Wait for me here.”
    Rosa nodded and watched them cross, her heart pounding,