life.
For two years he’d drifted aimlessly, hoping to escape his demons. Then he’d met Sarah and Abner. Somewhere within his barren soul he’d discovered a tiny spark of compassion he thought he’d lost forever. He realized now that compassion was the emotion that had kept him in Carbon. He’d fought against accepting responsibility but couldn’t find it in his heart to leave Sarah and Abner to fend for themselves. Even now he felt a pang of guilt for having taken off like he did.
A part of his conscience argued that he should have stayed longer. He should have been more concerned about how Sarah and Abner would survive after he left. Yet a darker, deeper place inside him whispered that he’d done more than was required of him, more than most men would have done under the circumstances. Though the thought was new and frightening, Chad prided himself for not bedding Sarah when he wanted her so badly. Had he bedded her, he wouldn’t have been able to leave her. He realized that making love to Sarah would mean he would lose himself to her. Thank God he hadn’t let his loins rule his head. If he hadn’t left when he did he knew he would have succumbed to the desire pounding inside him and taken Sarah.
Chad imagined Sarah’s slim body stretched out beneath him and felt himself harden. He gave a snort of disgust Obviously he needed a woman. His first order of business upon reaching Medicine Bow was finding a willing whore to ease his discomfort. Unfortunately he feared that no woman but Sarah could alleviate the persistent ache inside him. Flopping over on his stomach, he welcomed sleep when it finally arrived.
Freddie Jackson kept up his furious pace until he reached Medicine Bow, unaware that Sarah trailed behind him. He reined in before the High Rollers Saloon and dismounted. It was very late. Abner was sound asleep and he eased the boy from the saddle and carried him inside the saloon.
One of the girls ambled over to him, eyed Abner, and asked, “What have you got there, Freddie?”
“A kid,” Freddie said. “My kid. Will you do me a favor, Sadie?”
Sadie’s eyes narrowed. “What kind of favor? I don’t know a thing about kids.”
“I got an errand to do. Will you watch the boy for me? I won’t be gone long.”
“How much?”
Freddie snorted with disgust. “Ten dollars. That’s more than an hour of your time is worth.”
“Take him in the office, the boss is gone tonight,” Sadie said, indicating a doorway. “He won’t wake up, will he?”
“Naw, the kid’s dead tired.”
“He better not or it will cost you more.”
“I said I won’t be gone long.” He placed Abner on a leather sofa and made a hasty departure.
Freddie stripped the saddlebags from his horse and crept along the shadows of the nearly deserted street until he reached the bank. He’d passed through Medicine Bow on his way to Carbon and had already cased the town and the bank. Medicine Bow was a small town hardly worthy of the name. It consisted of a depot and baggage room, a store, two eating houses, a saloon, a bank, and several shanties. About thirty buildings in all.
The bank was newly constructed and not very secure. Few people knew that the railroad used the bank to deposit its payroll. But Freddie knew and had been planning this job for a long time. He walked around to the back and pried open a window. No alarm gave him away as he crept through the dark bank to the small safe in the back office.
He lit a match, got his bearings, located the floor safe, and knelt before it. The safe was no different than a dozen others he’d cracked. He’d have it opened and the money out in record time. He fiddled with the dials, listening to the clicks as he slowly spun it first to the right and then to the left. When he began to detect a pattern he memorized the numbers and continued on. Forty-five minutes passed before the last tumbler fell into place and the heavy door opened.
Freddie smiled grimly. He could have used
For two years he’d drifted aimlessly, hoping to escape his demons. Then he’d met Sarah and Abner. Somewhere within his barren soul he’d discovered a tiny spark of compassion he thought he’d lost forever. He realized now that compassion was the emotion that had kept him in Carbon. He’d fought against accepting responsibility but couldn’t find it in his heart to leave Sarah and Abner to fend for themselves. Even now he felt a pang of guilt for having taken off like he did.
A part of his conscience argued that he should have stayed longer. He should have been more concerned about how Sarah and Abner would survive after he left. Yet a darker, deeper place inside him whispered that he’d done more than was required of him, more than most men would have done under the circumstances. Though the thought was new and frightening, Chad prided himself for not bedding Sarah when he wanted her so badly. Had he bedded her, he wouldn’t have been able to leave her. He realized that making love to Sarah would mean he would lose himself to her. Thank God he hadn’t let his loins rule his head. If he hadn’t left when he did he knew he would have succumbed to the desire pounding inside him and taken Sarah.
Chad imagined Sarah’s slim body stretched out beneath him and felt himself harden. He gave a snort of disgust Obviously he needed a woman. His first order of business upon reaching Medicine Bow was finding a willing whore to ease his discomfort. Unfortunately he feared that no woman but Sarah could alleviate the persistent ache inside him. Flopping over on his stomach, he welcomed sleep when it finally arrived.
Freddie Jackson kept up his furious pace until he reached Medicine Bow, unaware that Sarah trailed behind him. He reined in before the High Rollers Saloon and dismounted. It was very late. Abner was sound asleep and he eased the boy from the saddle and carried him inside the saloon.
One of the girls ambled over to him, eyed Abner, and asked, “What have you got there, Freddie?”
“A kid,” Freddie said. “My kid. Will you do me a favor, Sadie?”
Sadie’s eyes narrowed. “What kind of favor? I don’t know a thing about kids.”
“I got an errand to do. Will you watch the boy for me? I won’t be gone long.”
“How much?”
Freddie snorted with disgust. “Ten dollars. That’s more than an hour of your time is worth.”
“Take him in the office, the boss is gone tonight,” Sadie said, indicating a doorway. “He won’t wake up, will he?”
“Naw, the kid’s dead tired.”
“He better not or it will cost you more.”
“I said I won’t be gone long.” He placed Abner on a leather sofa and made a hasty departure.
Freddie stripped the saddlebags from his horse and crept along the shadows of the nearly deserted street until he reached the bank. He’d passed through Medicine Bow on his way to Carbon and had already cased the town and the bank. Medicine Bow was a small town hardly worthy of the name. It consisted of a depot and baggage room, a store, two eating houses, a saloon, a bank, and several shanties. About thirty buildings in all.
The bank was newly constructed and not very secure. Few people knew that the railroad used the bank to deposit its payroll. But Freddie knew and had been planning this job for a long time. He walked around to the back and pried open a window. No alarm gave him away as he crept through the dark bank to the small safe in the back office.
He lit a match, got his bearings, located the floor safe, and knelt before it. The safe was no different than a dozen others he’d cracked. He’d have it opened and the money out in record time. He fiddled with the dials, listening to the clicks as he slowly spun it first to the right and then to the left. When he began to detect a pattern he memorized the numbers and continued on. Forty-five minutes passed before the last tumbler fell into place and the heavy door opened.
Freddie smiled grimly. He could have used
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