“Your name,” Nick repeated.
That metallic click did its job and the man spat out, “Eddie.”
“Stay real quiet, Eddie, or my partner will put you to sleep just like he did your friend.”
Eddie glanced over at Bertram’s unmoving body, but didn’t have the courage to meet Joseph’s eyes. It was plain to see he couldn’t make much of a sound even if he wanted to.
Nick pulled the body in under the partially collapsed tent. Looking at the redhead, he said, “Come along with me and I’ll get you out of here. Be sure to look happy about it, or this won’t work.”
She nodded quickly and was all too anxious to get out from under the canvas.
When Nick stood up, he put a big smile on his face. Dropping his gun into its holster, he met the eyes of a few other men who were staring at the tent from their horses’ backs. “If you boys are gonna sleep with guns under your pillows, we might not bring our girls out here anymore.”
The men had begun to work their way over to the tent, and their faces brightened unanimously when they saw the naked redhead behind him. She brushed the dirt off her plump backside and legs. Remembering what Nick had told her, she put on a smile and did her best to cover herself with her hands.
Nick took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. “Good job, honey,” he whispered. “Just keep it up and we’ll all be out of here. Where are the other girls?”
“These boys must not’ve touched a woman in a good long while, because they finished quicker than you please. I’m the only one that needed to stay.” Nodding in response to the whistles and hoots that had started coming her way, the redhead added, “I haven’t gotten my fee yet, you know.”
“Earn it by smiling to these men and keeping your mouth shut.”
The other rider who’d met Nick and Joseph outside the camp rode toward them. Although he also took a long look at the redhead, he wasn’t as amused as the other men behind him. “Where’s Bertram?” he asked.
“He heard my message and left. He said the rest of you should do the same,” Nick replied. “Eddie headed out and told me to take this lady into town. He also paid me to show you men to that fort. I’ll gather up this tent and all for free.”
“I didn’t see Eddie ride away.”
“Weren’t you getting the rest of these boys moving?”
“Yes.”
“There you go,” Nick said confidently.
“What was going on in Bertram’s tent?”
Looking over his shoulder, Nick laughed and said, “Just a little argument over who got the last kiss. It’s all in good fun, though. You got a problem, take it up with Bertram once we get to where we’re going. Otherwise, you’ll be arguing with a posse riding up your asses.”
The man nodded. “I sure as hell will take this up with him.”
Just then, the redhead stepped up to the rider so she could reach up and run her hand along his chest. She went all the way down to his crotch and let her hand linger there for a few seconds. “Don’t worry. Have I ever let you boys down?”
“No,” the man said honestly. “You sure everything’s all right?”
“It’s just like he said. Eddie told him to show you men the way, and I’ll make certain he does that. In fact, I can ride back to town on my own.”
Eventually the man nodded and shot a quick glance at Nick. He turned in his saddle and shouted, “Everyone stop gawking and get moving. We’re meeting up with the others, and I don’t want to take all night getting there!”
The redhead strutted over to a light brown mare and pulled a set of britches from the saddlebag. She slipped them on, pulled off Nick’s jacket and tossed it back to him. “If I don’t get my money right now, I’ll catch up to those assholes and set them straight,” she said, taking a dress from the saddlebag and pulling it over her head.
Nick reached into his pocket, took out a chunk of the money he was carrying for Joseph and handed it over. “There’s just under a hundred dollars here. For that, I expect you to keep quiet and back up our story if anyone asks.”
She took the money, counted it and smiled. “I didn’t intend on seeing these cowboys again, anyway.”
“Good.”
“You mind telling me who you are?”
“It’s best that I don’t.”
“Don’t worry about what your friend done,” she said. “I’ve seen worse, and that Bertram fellow was the worst kind of pig. He had me brought out here the last three nights and always tried to cheat me.” When she reached out to straighten Nick’s collar, it was plain to see that she hadn’t buttoned her dress all the way up just yet. “I was just hoping to earn the rest of this money.”
Nick’s hand closed around her wrist. Her skin was warm and smooth. She pulled in a quick, expectant breath that made her breasts strain against the fabric of her dress. Before long, Nick eased his hands away.
“You’ve earned it,” Nick told her. “And then some. Just ride home and forget this whole night ever happened.”
Shrugging, the redhead let her eyes move up and down Nick’s body. She then turned her back to him, climbed onto her horse and flicked the reins. True to her word, she pointed the animal’s nose to the west and never looked back.
When Nick walked back to the camp, he found the collapsed tent was the only one that remained. All the other men were either busy stuffing their saddlebags or had already ridden away. Joseph squatted next to Bertram’s tent, cleaning the barrel of his gun against the canvas.
“What’d you do with the whore?” Joseph asked.
“I let her go. By the way, I had to give her some money.”
“You think she’ll tell those others about what we did?”
Nick shook his head. “She’s got no reason to. If she gave a damn about anyone here, she wouldn’t have cooperated so easily.” Nodding toward the tent, he asked, “What about them?”
“That rapist cocksucker is dead.”
“And I took care of the other one.”
Eddie was covered by the canvas. Peeling back the tent, Nick tied Eddie more securely and shoved a wad of material into his mouth. Making a few unhappy grunts, Eddie strained to look up at Nick.
Even though the makeshift gag muffled most of what Eddie said, Joseph heard enough to make him point his gun down at the man’s head. “This son of a bitch was there, too,” he said as he tightened his grip on his gun until his hand started to shake.
“Are you sure about that?” Nick asked.
Joseph pulled in a breath and let it out through clenched teeth. “Even if he wasn’t, he’s riding with these killers now!”
“We don’t have time for this,” Nick snarled, looking around. “We’re damn lucky those men are riding away from here. Do you want to draw them all back by firing a shot that’ll be heard for a mile in every direction?”
Joseph hesitated.
Nick stepped forward, dropped the heel of his boot against the side of Eddie’s head, and then covered him and Bertram with the tent. “There,” he said as Eddie let out a groan and slumped into unconsciousness. “Now holster that gun and let’s get the hell out of here.”
THIRTY
Only a few words passed between Nick and Joseph before they were on their horses and leaving the camp. Nick set Kazys moving at slightly faster than a walk, while Joseph tore away as if his horse’s tail was on fire. Fortunately, Bertram’s men had just enough faith in what Nick had told them that they waited a while before getting too anxious.
“Where’s your partner?” one of the horsemen asked as Nick made his way to the group gathered away from the camp.
