Early Dawn Read Online Free PDF

argument.”
    “Oh, dear God,” a woman cried.
    Another woman snorted in disdain. “I refuse to hand over my ruby bracelet! It cost a fortune!”
    “Is it more important to you than your life?” Eden dropped her timepiece and gold locket onto the handkerchief. Then she reached into her reticule for her engagement ring, which she’d stopped wearing after receiving John’s letter. The large emerald, encircled by diamonds, was ostentatious and had never been to her liking, but John had selected it and she’d always worn it with pride. It was one piece of frippery she would never miss. “Hurry, Mama.”
    Eden heard footsteps on the platform at the front of the car and the faint sound of screams coming from the car behind them where other passengers with less coin were packed together in more Spartan accommodations.
    “We must be ready to hand it all over,” Eden pressed. “That’s why they’re here, for our valuables and any gold or cash that may be on board. If we draw no attention to ourselves, perhaps they’ll pass us by without a second look.”
    The door burst open and three disreputable-looking men spilled into the car, all of them wielding Colt .45 revolvers, Eden’s own sidearm of choice. As a youngster, she’d spent countless hours learning to handle all types of weapons, a skill her eldest brother, Ace, had deemed highly important, even for a girl. But young ladies in the upper echelons of San Francisco society had no need to carry a gun. Though Eden still target-practiced on a regular basis to avoid getting rusty, she’d fallen out of the habit of keeping a weapon on her person.
    Eden took the measure of the robbers and was instantly filled with dread. They were the filthiest creatures she’d ever seen, their clothing rank, their unshaven faces gray with grime. But what truly alarmed her were their eyes. Her brother Joseph had taught her to size a man up by searching his gaze. Eyes are windows to the soul , he was fond of saying. Look hard and look deep, little sister. If you can’t see into a man, run like hell . These men’s eyes resembled gray marbles—cold, glassy, and expressionless. The hair at the nape of Eden’s neck prickled. Unfortunately, running like hell wasn’t an option. She could only send up a quick prayer that no one on board would be harmed. The men seemed well practiced in the art of robbery. One rushed to the back of the car, a second covered the middle, and the third took a stand near the front door, brandishing his weapon as he thrust out a soiled drawstring bag to collect the passengers’ valuables.
    “Jewelry, timepieces, money!” he barked. “Keep your traps shut and hand it all over if you want to stay alive!”
    A finely dressed gentleman at the front of the car pushed up from his seat. “Here, now, there’s no need for violence!” he cried.
    That was all the poor man had time to say before he was shot dead center in the chest. The bullet’s impact sent him careening backward onto his wife’s lap. The woman began to shriek hysterically, pressing her hands over the hole in her husband’s shirt, which oozed blood.
    “Morrison!” she cried. “Morrison?” She looked up at the robber, slack-jawed with shock. “You’ve killed him!” she screamed. “You’ve killed him dead !”
    The bandit leveled his gun at the woman’s forehead. “And I’ll kill you dead if you don’t shut up.” He tore a necklace from around her throat and stuffed it in the bag. “Give me the rings. Now . Or I’ll hack off your fingers to get them. Don’t think I won’t.”
    The woman tugged at her blood-smeared rings, trying to pull them over badly swollen, arthritic knuckles. “Morrison, Morrison ,” she chanted softly. “Oh, dear God , dear God .”
    Eden sat frozen in her seat. She’d never seen anyone die. Ace and Joseph had always tried to shield her from the ugly aspects of life, and they’d been mostly successful. For a seemingly endless second, she could only stare