Glorious Angel Read Online Free PDF

to tremble when she heard Bobo’s voice.
    “Ah, hell. We was just havin’ a little fun, and then she went and bit me!”
    “Why?”
    Angela stepped back and looked up at the face of her rescuer, ready to explain. But the words stuck in her throat as she stared up into the bright golden-brown eyes regarding her quizzically. Dark though it was, she still knew those eyes.
    “You look scared to death, girl. You’re safe now. No one is going to hurt you.”
    Angela couldn’t speak. This was as close as she had ever come to Bradford Maitland.

    Bradford smiled. “What was the trouble here? Did you really bite this boy?”
    Angela managed to utter, “I had to. It was the only way I could get away from him.”
    “Don’t you be tellin’ no lies now,” Bobo warned in a menacing tone.
    Angela swung around to face him, her eyes shooting sparks of rage. “You shut your mouth, Bobo Deleron! You ain’t got me at your mercy no more and I don’t tell lies like you do.” She turned back to Bradford, and his look of concern dissolved her anger. She started crying again. “He—he was gonna rape me. Both of them was. And the other one was gonna keep my pa’s rifle. We’ll starve without it.”
    Bradford pulled Angela back against him, but at the same time he reached inside his coat and withdrew a handgun. He pointed this at Seth, whose eyes bulged in fright.
    “Drop the rifle,” Bradford said in a soft but deadly voice. “And then move away from it.”
    Seth did as he was told, but Bobo was more angry than intimidated. “You shouldn’t be buttin’ in here, mister. The girl’s nothin’ but white trash and no concern of yours. Besides, she’s lyin’. We wasn’t gonna hurt her none.”
    “Maybe we ought to let the sheriff decide,” Bradford suggested smoothly.
    “Now, there ain’t no call for that.” Bobo backed off quickly. “Ain’t no harm been done.”
    “I think the girl disagrees,” Bradford replied.“What do you say, honey? Shall we talk to the sheriff?”
    Angela whispered against his chest, “I don’t want to cause you any more trouble.” But then she added forcefully, “But you can tell Bobo if he ever comes near me again, I’ll blow his head off!”
    Bradford burst out laughing, much to Bobo and Seth’s chagrin.
    “You heard her, boys.” Bradford chuckled. “I suggest you move along quickly before she realizes her rifle is within easy reach and she starts to regret letting you off so easy this time for what you”—he paused before ending—“didn’t do.”
    It didn’t take Bobo more than a second to take off, and Seth quickly followed.
    Angela wasn’t thinking about revenge. With Bobo and Seth gone, the street seemed awfully quiet. The only sound she could hear was her heart beating. Or was it his? She felt so utterly comfortable she wanted just to stand here and lean against the tall frame of Bradford Maitland all night. But she knew she couldn’t do that.
    She stepped back, ready to express her gratitude, but Bradford was regarding her with a mixture of amusement and curiosity, and she found herself tongue-tied once again.
    “It’s not my habit to rescue females in distress,” he remarked thoughtfully. “Usually they have to be rescued from me. So why don’t you thank me for saving you from a fate worse than death? You are a virgin, aren’t you?” he asked frankly.

    His question shocked her out of her silence. “Yes—and I—do thank you.”
    “That’s better. What is your name?”
    “Angela,” she replied slowly, still finding it difficult to talk to him.
    “Well, Angela, don’t you know better than to be out alone, especially in this part of town?”
    “I—I had to find my pa.”
    “And did you?”
    “No, I reckon he’s gone home by now,” Angela answered more easily now.
    “Well, I think you should do the same, don’t you?” he said, and retrieved her rifle for her. “It has been a delight and a pleasure, Angela.”
    There was nothing she could do but