Free Outlaws Of Phantom Canyon (Savage Series) by Lisa Rae Page B

as he dug through his trunk and pulled out a .38 derringer. "I'm going to show you how to use this, and you carry it in your skirt pocket while I am gone."
    "Gabriel you are scaring me. What do I need that for?"
    "Just in case, baby." Gabriel played it down. "I don't expect anything to happen, but I don't want to take any chances. Angel isn't here this time to watch out for you, and I will feel better knowing you have that derringer in your pocket while I am gone."
    "You had Angel , your mistress, watching me?" Julianna questioned in anger.
    "Mistres s? Angel is not my mistress. I had her keeping watch over you because she is the best shot in this outlaw camp with a pistol, or her buffalo gun."
    "If she is not your mistress, then who is she?" Julianna demanded.
    Gabriel had already told Julianna too much about what he was doing here in the Phantom gang's camp. The more he told her, the more danger she and the lives of others were in. Because of that he was careful how he worded things . "She is a messenger. We would pretend she was my woman so she could come to camp to deliver and take messages."
    "And if I asked you who she was delivering messages to, would you tell me?"
    Julianna was relieved to learn there had never been anything between Angel and Gabriel, but she still wasn't sure she liked Angel.
    "No, it is better you don't know. For now, you just go along as being my woman, content living in an outlaw's camp, and you will be safe."
    That wasn't going to be hard for Julianna, as she was happy being his woman. She would be content anywhere as long as she was with Gabriel.
    Before going to bed for the night, Gabriel showed Julianna how to load and fire the .38 derringer. Making her promise that she would not leave their shack without it.
    *     *     *
    Upon awakening, Julianna could tell by the position of the sun that she had slept in longer than she had planned. Hurriedly she dressed and went to go help Barry in the cook's shack. Julianna didn't like the idea of putting the pistol in her skirt pocket, but she ha d promised Gabriel she would. Grabbing it from the table, Julianna put it in her pocket as she was headed out the door.
    Julianna's days while Gabriel was gone were uneventful. Majority of her daytime she spent helping Barry in the cook's shack. She would visit Ruby at the mercantile store after the breakfast rush was over, and she would read in the afternoon before supper time. By the time she made it home from cleaning up the cook's shack with Barry, she was tired and ready for bed.
    *     *     *
    The Phantom outlaw gang rode hard all day. They had left just before daybreak, and it now was getting dark as they stopped a couple miles away from the stagecoach road into Texas Creek.
    "BJ said the stage is due to come through this area tomorrow afternoon. We will stay here until then. That way our horses will be good and rested before we hold up the stage tomorrow, just in case we need to make a fast get-a-way," Clayton explained to his outlaw gang.
    "Boss, how about a couple of us go on into Texas Creek, scout around to see what's going on, and get a couple bottles of whiskey so we don't go stir crazy tonight?" Chet suggested, eager to have a drink of whiskey and a whore, and not particularly in that order.
    "Not a bad idea. Levi, Tate, you two go. But don't draw attention to yourselves and don't stick around long," Clayton ordered, knowing it was ill advised to send Chet into town. Chet was the youngest of the outlaw gang members, and still had a lot to learn.
    "Boss why can't I go?" Chet was not ready to give up hope of going to Texas Creek yet.
    "Because BJ also said there is a Calvary regiment roaming around, and I don't need you screwing this up by getting drunk and in a fight, and then thrown in jail. I need every man here to be able to carry off the gold that is going to be on that stagecoach," Clayton said with finality, not leaving it open for anymore discussion.
    Clayton was a little