The Fall of Rome Read Online Free PDF

I visit Kat.” Cody bristled. “Who the hell is Kat?”
    “Bulls-Eye’s woman,” Boyd said.
    “From what I’ve witnessed,” the gunslinger said, “a wink and a smile lands you any lady you want, Brady. What’s so special about this one?”
    She’s the only one who got under my skin . “That’s my business.”
    Cody gritted his teeth and glared at their boss. “So instead of making for the border, were going to risk our necks so you can make time with some skin and then swipe a stupid necklace?”
    Snapper whistled low.
    Brady snuffed his smoke. “Counting on you to lead the way, Elroy.”
    “You’re invitin’ him to ride with the gang?” Cody griped.
    “I am.” He glanced at his kin. “If he’s learned his lesson.”
    Elroy nodded. “I have.” Then he buttoned his lips.
    Unlike Cody. “But he’s a damned liability, slow on the draw, quick on the talk. Besides, you said it yourself, Bulls-Eye. The gang’s comprised of seven. Lucky seven. Don’t be an idiot.”
    Mule and Amos peeled away.
    Brady relaxed his bandaged shoulder and smiled. “You’re right, Cody. If Elroy comes along, we’ll be one too many. Admittedly superstitious, I’m the last one to tempt bad fortune. He pulled his iron quicker than hell could scorch a feather.
    “Bull’s-eye,” whispered Mule as Cody took a slug to the heart and crumpled to the dirt.
    Brady winked at Elroy, the man who’d offered up his most earnest desire. “Seven it is.”
     

CHAPTER 6
     
    Santa Cruz Valley
    On the rare occasions Casa Bend felt like a prison, Kat saddled her horse and rode like the devil was on her heels. Which he was. Unless he’d given up. She prayed he’d given up, but given current developments she couldn’t count on it.
    Believing Frankie was safe at the convent for another few weeks, she’d telegraphed a law official in Yuma stating she could bait Brady out of hiding. The first time she’d divulged her real name in more than five years. He’d wired back, saying she’d be visited by a couple of top-notch bounty hunters posthaste. That meant any day now.
    Today, she’d been too anxious to tend bar, so she closed the Star and saddled Blaze. Kat gripped the reins, leaned low, her head ear-to-neck with her horse, and kneed the spirited creature faster. She raced along the Santa Cruz River, the circumstances that had led her to this moment crawling through her mind. Regret, shame, and anger pumped through her body like a runaway locomotive.
    She was so busy berating herself for her past mistakes, she lost track of the present. She didn’t hear or see the two oncoming riders until they were nearly upon her. Fearful Brady had materialized from her thoughts, she pulled up too hard and fast. Spooked, Blaze reared. Unfocused, Kat went head over back end. She landed in the grass with a bone-jarring thud. By the time she caught her breath, the men had dismounted.
    They closed in, their faces shadowed by their Stetsons, their bodies silhouetted against the brilliant blue sky. Judging from the attire and aura, they weren’t cowboys or sheep-herders. Rangers, maybe. Or Federal marshals. Even though she couldn’t read their expressions, she was keenly aware of their powerful confidence.
    The taller one offered her a hand up. “You alright, ma’am?”
    He didn’t sound threatening, but all the same she refused his help. “Backside’s bruised along with my pride. Other than that,” she said, pushing to her feet, “right as rain.” Mortified, was more like it. She brushed off her britches and smoothed damp curls from her flushed face. A gifted horsewoman, she hadn’t been thrown in a coon’s age. Frazzled nerves had made her sloppy. She shifted to make sure Blaze had settled and in doing so, locked gazes with the tall man’s friend. Dear God .
    “Hell’s fire.” He swept off his hat. “Kat?”
    No way, no how was she going to bluff her way out of this one. “Morning, Boston.” Boston Garrett . She couldn’t believe it.