legs was tempting.
But it was the other one who sidled up to him and pressed a weighty hand on his arm. “Hey, handsome, you look much too serious tonight for your own good.” Batting heavy lashes, she patted her bare collarbone. “I have a place where we could see to that serious ailment of yours.” Her laugh was raw.
“As tempting as that is, I’m all about business tonight, ladies. After all, a man has to earn his keep.”
The woman pulled away and turned back toward her friend.
They weren’t so different from him. He knew when a mark wasn’t going to pan out, and so did they. Waving him off, they turned toward the next prospect. Lewis needed to do the same thing. Focus. That’s what had worked for his daddy.
At the edge of the hazy room, he assembled his faro table with a showman’s finesse. Like bees to honey, a buzz of gamblers landed at his table. A couple of cowboys. One he guessed to be a lawyer or a newspaper man. A fourth man stood across from Lewis. He’d seen horses with smaller noses than the one on this guy. He’d been at this faro table before, although Lewis couldn’t say where. Lewis had drifted far too much the last couple of years.
Stacking his chips, Lewis made eye contact with each player. “Shall we, gentlemen?”
“You were in Cripple Creek last year, weren’t ya, mister?” The guy’s voice was familiar. It sounded like he’d been chewing rocks.
His natural instinct was to run, in case he’d cheated the man with the big nose, but since he had a fist full of bills, Lewis stayed put and shuffled his deck. Something jogged in Lewis’s memory.
“Name’s Whibley.” He laid the deck facedown on the table. “We had a good game, as I recall. Ollie’s place in Cripple Creek, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah. I’m the paymaster over there at the Mary McKinney Mine.” He pulled a cigar from his jacket and lit it.
Lewis traded chips for cash from the other players. “I’m headed back to Cripple Creek in a few days.”
“Heard you all had a couple of nasty fires up in Cripple Creek last month.” The cowboy to Lewis’s left shoved a wad of tobacco in his cheek and arranged his chips in neat stacks.
“Two big ones in four days. A bartender started the first one, fightin’ with his…woman.” The paymaster sneered at the leggy gal hanging on one of the cowboys. “The second one in the kitchen at the Portland Hotel. Six people died. One of ’em was a no-good high-grader, hauling ore out in his lunch bucket, stealing from my mine.” He fanned out his cards. “Found out afterward. The devil welcomed Paddy Maloney with a round of drinks, you can be sure.”
Lewis dropped a stack of chips, sending them rattling to the floor. Paddy Maloney was dead? Well, that changed things. His return to Cripple Creek was going to be easier than he thought. With Paddy dead, all he had to do was move back into his place. His luck was certainly changing.
But first things first—his train fare.
“Enough chatter, fellas. Let’s get down to business.”
S IXTEEN
A fter breakfast Saturday morning, Nell embraced Edith out on Hattie’s front porch. Then she hugged Thelma and kissed the baby cradled on her hip. Having the sisters and their children in the house had kept Nell busy in the kitchen. She’d miss them, and the activity that made waiting for Judson a little less worrisome. Unlike her sister, Nell didn’t like being alone, especially now.
“We’ll be praying for all of you.” Thelma followed Lucille and the other children down the walkway.
“God bless you all!” Hattie waved from the doorway. “You be sure to come back and see me anytime.”
Kat had already said her good-byes and taken Rosita upstairs to get ready for their trip to the mine and into town to send the telegram she didn’t get sent the day of the fire. Her sister was wise to distract the little girl right now. Rosita had warmed up to having other children around, and she was bound to miss them as much as Nell
But it was the other one who sidled up to him and pressed a weighty hand on his arm. “Hey, handsome, you look much too serious tonight for your own good.” Batting heavy lashes, she patted her bare collarbone. “I have a place where we could see to that serious ailment of yours.” Her laugh was raw.
“As tempting as that is, I’m all about business tonight, ladies. After all, a man has to earn his keep.”
The woman pulled away and turned back toward her friend.
They weren’t so different from him. He knew when a mark wasn’t going to pan out, and so did they. Waving him off, they turned toward the next prospect. Lewis needed to do the same thing. Focus. That’s what had worked for his daddy.
At the edge of the hazy room, he assembled his faro table with a showman’s finesse. Like bees to honey, a buzz of gamblers landed at his table. A couple of cowboys. One he guessed to be a lawyer or a newspaper man. A fourth man stood across from Lewis. He’d seen horses with smaller noses than the one on this guy. He’d been at this faro table before, although Lewis couldn’t say where. Lewis had drifted far too much the last couple of years.
Stacking his chips, Lewis made eye contact with each player. “Shall we, gentlemen?”
“You were in Cripple Creek last year, weren’t ya, mister?” The guy’s voice was familiar. It sounded like he’d been chewing rocks.
His natural instinct was to run, in case he’d cheated the man with the big nose, but since he had a fist full of bills, Lewis stayed put and shuffled his deck. Something jogged in Lewis’s memory.
“Name’s Whibley.” He laid the deck facedown on the table. “We had a good game, as I recall. Ollie’s place in Cripple Creek, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah. I’m the paymaster over there at the Mary McKinney Mine.” He pulled a cigar from his jacket and lit it.
Lewis traded chips for cash from the other players. “I’m headed back to Cripple Creek in a few days.”
“Heard you all had a couple of nasty fires up in Cripple Creek last month.” The cowboy to Lewis’s left shoved a wad of tobacco in his cheek and arranged his chips in neat stacks.
“Two big ones in four days. A bartender started the first one, fightin’ with his…woman.” The paymaster sneered at the leggy gal hanging on one of the cowboys. “The second one in the kitchen at the Portland Hotel. Six people died. One of ’em was a no-good high-grader, hauling ore out in his lunch bucket, stealing from my mine.” He fanned out his cards. “Found out afterward. The devil welcomed Paddy Maloney with a round of drinks, you can be sure.”
Lewis dropped a stack of chips, sending them rattling to the floor. Paddy Maloney was dead? Well, that changed things. His return to Cripple Creek was going to be easier than he thought. With Paddy dead, all he had to do was move back into his place. His luck was certainly changing.
But first things first—his train fare.
“Enough chatter, fellas. Let’s get down to business.”
S IXTEEN
A fter breakfast Saturday morning, Nell embraced Edith out on Hattie’s front porch. Then she hugged Thelma and kissed the baby cradled on her hip. Having the sisters and their children in the house had kept Nell busy in the kitchen. She’d miss them, and the activity that made waiting for Judson a little less worrisome. Unlike her sister, Nell didn’t like being alone, especially now.
“We’ll be praying for all of you.” Thelma followed Lucille and the other children down the walkway.
“God bless you all!” Hattie waved from the doorway. “You be sure to come back and see me anytime.”
Kat had already said her good-byes and taken Rosita upstairs to get ready for their trip to the mine and into town to send the telegram she didn’t get sent the day of the fire. Her sister was wise to distract the little girl right now. Rosita had warmed up to having other children around, and she was bound to miss them as much as Nell
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