The Outlaws: Rafe (14 page)

Clearly stunned, Angela gasped.
 
"Father left that much?"

Rafe was impressed, but he had other things on his mind.
 
"Do you know for a fact that the mine is played out, Mr. Goodman?"

"I'm no miner, Mr. Gentry.
 
I had no reason to doubt Baxter.
 
Do you know something I don't?"

Rafe and Angela exchanged speaking glances.
 
"Nothing we can prove, sir.
 
What can you tell us about Simon Abbot's death?"

"About as much as anyone else.
 
His wagon went off the cliff.
 
Baxter found him.
 
He told the sheriff that the wagon's axle snapped, sending Simon plunging over the cliff.
 
If it's any consolation, I made sure Simon's funeral was a grand affair.
 
He had many friends in the area and they all came to bid him a final farewell."

"Where is he buried?" Angela asked.

"In the cemetery at the edge of town.
 
It's a pleasant spot.
 
I'm sure you'll approve."

"Thank you for providing Father with a proper burial.
 
Is there anything special I need to do to withdraw funds from Father's account?"

"Just a note from me.
 
The account is in your name as well as your father's.
 
His will clearly stated that you were to inherit his entire estate, both funds and property.
 
You should encounter no problems."

"Thank you again.
 
If you'd be so good as to write the note, I'll be on my way."

"Of course."
 
He dipped a pen in an inkwell and scribbled a brief note.
 
"If there is anything I can do for you, don't hesitate to ask."
 
He folded the note and handed it to her.
 
"Please accept my congratulations on your marriage.
 
I wish you and Mr. Gentry happiness."

Rafe offered his hand.
 
"Please call me Rafe."

"Very well, Rafe.
 
Are you a miner?"

"No.
 
After returning from the war, my brothers and I tried to make a success of the family farm in Kansas.
 
Two years of drought wiped us out.
 
Much obliged for your help, sir.
 
We'll certainly call on you if we have need of your services."

"Fifty thousand dollars," Angela said on a shaky sigh as they left the lawyer's office.
 
"That's a lot of money.
 
No wonder Anson was so determined to marry me."

"I'm not sure either Chandler or Dexter knows about the money," Rafe mused.
 
"They may have guessed but they had no way of knowing the exact amount your father left in your name."

"Thank God for that.
 
Let's go to the bank.
 
I want to withdraw some cash for my immediate needs."

"I realize I have no business telling you what to do, but if I were you I'd wire the assayer's office in Denver and hire an expert to come down and check out the mine.
 
I wouldn't take Baxter's word about the condition of the mine as gospel."

Angela beamed her approval.
 
"That's a wonderful idea!
 
Would you take care of it while I make myself known at the bank?"

Rafe nodded.
 
"I'll meet you at the bank after I've sent the telegram."

The first thing Rafe saw when he walked into the telegraph office was the wanted poster identifying the Gentry brothers as bank robbers with a five hundred reward on each of the their heads.
 
The picture alone would hardly identify any of the three brothers, but Rafe feared enough people in Canyon City knew his name to make sticking around dangerous.

Glancing over at the clerk, Rafe saw that he had his back turned.
 
Without a smidgen of guilt, Rafe ripped the picture from the wall and stuffed it into his pocket.
 
Then he calmly walked to the counter and wrote out his telegram, signing it Angela Abbot of the Golden Angel mine.
 
Without glancing at Rafe's face, the clerk sent it out.
 
Rafe paid him and beat a hasty exit.

Meanwhile, Angela made the bank president's acquaintance.
 
They briefly discussed her inheritance, then Angela withdrew a small amount of cash.
 
As she was walking out the door, something caught her eye.
 
A poster on the wall featuring three men.
 
Drawn like a moth to flame, Angela approached the poster with a feeling of dread.

 
She nearly lost the ability to breathe when she recognized a very badly drawn picture of Rafe, along with his two brothers.
 
Their names appeared in bold lettering above the words, "Wanted for bank robbery.
 
Five hundred dollars reward for each man, dead or alive."

Dazed, Angela staggered out of the bank.

Who
was
Rafe Gentry?
 
He had robbed a bank; could he have killed five people and robbed a stagecoach?

Dear God!
 
Did she even
know
the real Rafe Gentry?

Rafe saw Angel leave the bank and strode over to meet her.
 
Anxious to leave Canyon City before someone recognized him, he grasped her arm and all but pulled her toward her horse.
 
When he placed his hands around her waist to lift her aboard, she shrugged free of his grasp and stared at him as if he were someone she didn't know.

"Don't touch me!"

Rafe went still.
 
His silver gaze searched her face.
 
She was pale and shaken, her blue eyes glazed.

"What happened inside the bank?
 
Did someone accost you?
 
For godsake, Angel, talk to me!"

Angela shook her head and hoisted herself onto her horse.
 
Then she dug in her heels and took off as if the devil was nipping at her heels.

"Angel, wait!"

Rafe caught up with her on Red Rock Canyon Road.
 
Grasping the reins from her hands, he brought both horses to a halt.

"I want to know what this is all about and I want to know now."

"As if you didn't know!" she shouted back.
 
"This is one time my instincts failed me.
 
You're an outlaw."

Rafe spit out an oath.
 
That damn wanted poster!
 
There must have been another one posted in the bank, the Lord knows where else.

"You told me you were innocent of any crime.
 
But there it was, staring me in the face.
 
You and your brothers are bank robbers.
 
For all I know you
did
rob the stage and kill those people."

Rafe heaved a weary sigh.
 
"I'm neither a killer nor a bank robber.
 
It was all a mistake."

"That's what they all say.
 
I trusted you, Rafe Gentry."

"Let me explain."

She pulled the reins from his hands.
 
"What's there to explain?
 
That poster said it all."

She slapped the reins against the horse's rump and the chestnut bolted, carrying her upward along the narrow trail.
 
Rafe recognized the danger the moment Angela had taken off.
 
Had Angel not been blinded by fear and anger she would have seen the low-slung branch in her path.
 
It was the same branch they had avoided on the way down to town.

"Angel!
 
Look out!"

His shout went unheeded.
 
Blinded by tears, Angela hit the branch full tilt and was swept from her horse.
 
She fell hard, rolling over and over, finally coming to rest precariously close to the lip of a rocky ledge.

Bringing his horse to a prancing halt, Rafe leapt to the ground and took off at a run.
 
He grasped Angela's arms just as she started to slide downward.
 
He was visibly shaken as he carried her across the road and through the trees to where the ground was relatively level.
 
He found a grassy spot beneath some towering aspens and carefully placed her on a bed of leaves.

She was so still it frightened him.
 
He placed a hand over her heart.
 
It was beating steadily, but that didn't mean she wasn't hurt.
 
Water, he needed water to bathe her forehead.
 
Rafe hated to leave his Angel but he needed his canteen.
 
Leaping to his feet, he went back to the road and fetched the horses, securing their reins to a nearby bush.
 
Then he removed his canteen and dropped to his knees beside Angela.
 
With shaking hands he wet his neckerchief and applied cool water to her forehead.

Angela moaned but did not awaken.
 
"Wake up, Angel.
 
Speak to me."

He dribbled water on her lips.
 
She moaned again and opened her eyes.
 
"What happened?"

"You were thrown.
 
How do you feel?"

She tried to sit up.
 
He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
 
"Lie still a while longer.
 
Do you hurt anywhere?"

She flexed her arms and legs.
 
"Nothing appears broken.
 
I have a slight headache, but I've had worse."

"You scared the hell out of me, Angel.
 
You came mighty close to going over the edge of the cliff."

Angela shuddered.
 
This time when she tried to sit up, Rafe didn't stop her.

"Do you remember why you were hellbent on getting away from me?"

Her eyes widened.
 
"I...oh...God, yes.
 
Don't touch me!"

Ignoring her plea, he pulled her against him.
 
"Don't be afraid of me, Angel.
 
Forget that poster.
 
It's all a mistake.
 
Neither my brothers or I robbed a bank.
 
I can explain everything."

"With more lies?" Angela asked.
 
"I've heard enough of those to last a lifetime.
 
I knew you were running from something.
 
I didn't want to let myself believe it was from the law."

"You're right.
 
I am running from the law, and so are my brothers, but we had no choice.
 
The law was disinclined to listen to our side of the story."

"So am I."
 
She started to rise.

"Dammit, Angel!"
 
He shook her gently.
 
"I need you to believe in me."

Angela was torn.
 
She had seen only the good side of Rafe, but that didn't mean there wasn't another side to him.
 
A side that could rob banks and kill people.
 
She stared into his daunting silver gaze and felt impaled by them.
 
She forced herself to look away.
 
She couldn't think straight.
 
Nothing made sense.

"Angel.
 
Look at me."

She didn't want to, but an unexplainable force compelled her to look into his face.
 
His eyes had darkened, smoky now instead of silver.
 
He caught her wrists and yanked her to him.
 
He was so close she could feel his breath fanning his cheek, feel the scorching heat of his body.
 
She blew out a ragged breath when he dipped his head and settled his lips over hers.
 
He kissed her hard.
 
She tasted his desperation, his longing.
 
He kissed her as if the very force of his kiss could make her believe in him.

"Angel, oh God, Angel."

Her name on his lips loosed something deep and profound inside her as she sank into his embrace.
 
She felt heat surround her, rise intolerably within her, lick tantalizingly at her vitals.
 
This shouldn't be...couldn't be...yet it was.

He broke from the kiss with a bitter curse.
 
"I can't stay now.
 
You know that.
 
When the law comes, pretend you know nothing about my background.
 
They won't bother you if I'm not around.
 
But I swear to you, Angel, I've committed no crime."

She wanted to believe him.
 
Ached to believe him.
 
But a tiny kernel of doubt remained.

His mouth took hers again, shutting off her thoughts.
 
He kissed her deeply, urgently--more intimately, using his tongue to pry open his lips so he could explore the sweet inside of her mouth.
 
He shifted upward.
 
She felt rather than saw him remove his shirt.
 
His boots hitting the ground were but a soft whisper as they stirred the leaves around them.