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  GAMBLING ON FOREVER

  Becky Lower

  Gambling on Forever

  Copyright© 2018 Becky Lower

  Cover Design Livia Reasoner

  Prairie Rose Publications

  www.prairierosepublications.com

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real.

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  This book is dedicated to my sister, Patricia Lynch, who never passes a floating casino without going in. She’s a true modern-day riverboat gambler.

  CHAPTER ONE

  St. Louis, Fall, 1865

  Elise Lafontaine kept the two rangy men in her sights as they wended their way through the raucous streets of downtown St. Louis. The fine hairs on the back of her neck prickled in alarm as she held her breath.

  Or, possibly, they prickled in anticipation.

  She fingered the whip wrapped around her waist. Those grimy Confederate uniforms hadn’t seen a scrub brush probably since the war started, and the men’s faces sported weeks-old stubble.

  Elise had become accustomed to seeing both Union and Confederate soldiers on the streets since the long, drawn-out war finally came to a close, and the soldiers began to trek back to their homes from the Civil War battlefields.

  Up until today, the soldiers had only appeared weary and eager to get back to their lives—not threatening. But these two? They were carrying her father’s missing saddlebag.

  She could tell the bag belonged to her father, because it sported the family insignia burned into the leather on its flap–a large letter “L” with a feather wrapped around the tall part of the letter.

  She couldn’t let these men steal from her father without doing anything. The contents of the bag were too important, and her father had been devastated at the loss.

  But she also had to protect herself, as well as her sister-in-law Susannah, and her nephew Emil, who were with her.

  Susannah’s focus centered on her three-year-old son who kept darting away to pet the horses hitched up on either side of the busy street. She hadn’t yet noticed the men. Elise hoped to keep them in range while acting nonchalant with her sister-in-law. She didn’t want to tip her hand to the men too early.

  When the pair broke away from the center of town and headed toward the docks where the big riverboats were tied up, her father’s saddlebag flapping incessantly against the shoulder of the taller of the two, she ran out of time. Elise’s jaw clenched and she made a hasty decision.

  “Can we stop in here for a moment, Elise?” Susannah pointed to the general store. “If I can buy a piece of candy for Emil, he might behave himself instead of constantly darting from my grasp.”

  “How much money do you have?” Elise grabbed Susannah’s arm, bringing her close.

  “Certainly enough for a piece of candy. Why do you ask?” Susannah appeared confused and she held tightly onto Emil’s hand.

  “Because I need you to give me whatever you have and then run back home and sound the alarm. I just found Father’s missing saddlebag. The two men who have it are headed to a riverboat, and I need to follow them.” Elise pointed to one of the large boats docked in the harbor.

  “I don’t understand. Why do you need to chase after them?” Susannah’s gaze whipped from Elise to the boat and back again.

  “I’m not letting them out of my sight, since Big Mo’s papers are probably still in the bag and those idiots don’t have a clue what it is they have. I’ll get the bag and the papers from them if I can before the boat docks in New Orleans. You and Emil go to the ranch and tell my family what I’m doing. Tell them the men with the saddlebag are about to board the Delta Queen and I’m going after them.” Elise tapped her foot on the cobblestones. “But to board the boat, I need money.”

  Susannah’s eyes widened. She opened her reticule and tugged out her money pouch. “I only have a bit, but it’s yours.”

  She handed Elise her money and Elise counted it. “Good. That, combined with what I have, should give me enough for a room aboard ship. Food and clothing might be a problem, but I’ll deal with it once I get Father’s bag back.”

  “Can’t you wait for your brothers?” Susannah’s question made Elise pause. “They can probably follow the boat and board it the first time it docks.”

  “I doubt those two men even are aware that beyond the money is the proof of ownership of Big Mo. A steeplechase horse like Mo doesn’t come along but once in a lifetime.” Elise’s lips curled into a snarl and she fingered the whip wrapped around her waist. “The registration document is the reason I need to follow the bag. Your job is to sound the alarm. I can take care of myself until I get to New Orleans.” Elise kissed Susannah on the cheek and tightened the hold on her hand briefly. Then, she crossed the cobblestones and made her way to the docks.

  “Delta Queen, here I come,” she whispered, hoping she wasn’t making the biggest mistake of her life. She could handle wide-open spaces, and campfires under the stars while rounding up wild horses, but on a big, beautiful large riverboat, a floating palace? This would definitely be a challenge for her, since she’d have to act as a refined lady. She touched her whip again and hoped she wouldn’t need to unfurl it. The nerves tightening in her stomach told her she had just entered uncharted territory and the hairs on her neck prickled again. Never a good sign.

  She followed the two men up the gangplank, her fingers itching to yank her father’s saddlebag from the shoulder of the one man. She’d need to be patient and choose the best time to steal it back, and the moment of boarding would not be the best time. Better to wait until they were underway, floating down the Mississippi. Then, those two couldn’t get away. She’d nab it when they weren’t looking, just as they’d taken it from her father. Then, she’d jump overboard and be gone before morning. She took a deep breath and fisted her hands to prevent them from reaching for the bag.

  The pair paid the steward for passage on the freight deck, which meant they were saving most of her father’s money for the gaming tables if they were willing to give up a bed in favor of sleeping on top of cotton and tobacco bales. She hoped she had enough money for an actual stateroom.

  “Are you with the gentlemen?” The steward asked, raking his gaze over her before glancing at the men.

  “Those two?” Elise pointed to the men still standing close by. “No, sir. I’m traveling alone and I’d like a stateroom, please, if the fare isn’t too much.”

  The steward seemed confused. “Ma’am, I’m sorry. Our policy is to allow women aboard only if they are accompanied by a gentleman.”

  “That’s preposterous!” Elise tried for a smile, hoping to charm the steward. “My money’s as good as any gentleman’s.”

  “Your money is not the issue, ma’am. We don’t allow unaccompanied ladies on board. It’s company policy.” The steward clutched his papers to his chest, unaffected by her smile.

  One clean-shaven, well-dressed man stood on the top deck, calmly smoking a cheroot and stroking the black string tie around his neck as he surveyed the crowd coming aboard. Elise pleaded with her eyes for the man to take action. She might be going from the frying pan into the fire but at least he’d taken a bath in the past year. She’d take her chances. She only hoped he would.

  • ♥ •

  James Garnett always enjoyed the start of any trip down the river. He’d stand on the top deck and assess the people coming aboard, selecting his targets. His training in the military held him in good stead for his new gambling pro
fession since he could now read body language better than most. By the most casual of observations, he could tell who would be a worthy adversary at the card table and which men would be an easy mark. He needed the novice players to continue to amass his fortune, but he also appreciated a cunning opponent to keep things lively and to keep his mind on the game.

  The trio currently boarding puzzled him, though. The two men were a part of the now-disbanded Confederate Army. He’d bet his first night’s winnings it had been a while since they’d enjoyed a good meal. But the woman behind them? Much too refined for either of the scruffy men, despite the fact she wore the working clothes of a rancher. She’d followed them on board, but somehow, James didn’t get the impression they were together—despite how the lady kept her gaze on the duo. She had been stopped by the steward while the two men sauntered off, unaware of her existence. The steward said something, and the woman’s gaze flew around the deck, searching. Better sense told him not to get involved. But, at that precise moment, the woman stared up at him. She pleaded with eyes as deeply blue as a Union uniform. Better sense be damned.

  He took the steps to the main deck at double time, meeting the woman and the crewman.

  The steward threaded his hands through his sparse sandy-colored hair as he eyed the woman. “I don’t need any trouble on this trip. And I certainly don’t need a single woman without an escort. I’m sorry, ma’am, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

  “Ah, there you are, sweetheart. I thought you were going to stand me up.” James wrapped his arm around the woman, drew her in close and kissed her on the mouth. Her quick intake of breath made him grin. He turned to the steward. “You mustn’t mind the little lady. I bet she gave you the story she was traveling alone, didn’t she? She’s such a kidder, this one. Which is only one of the reasons I love her. This is my fiancée, and we’re traveling to New Orleans to get married. So, if you don’t mind, I’d like to reserve the cabin next to mine for her.”

  He gave the steward a long, slow wink. “And if there’s a connecting door between the two rooms, so much the better, if you get the picture.”

  “Of course, Mr. Garnett. Anything you want, Mr. Garnett.” The steward dropped his clipboard in his haste to do James’s bidding.

  The woman rolled her eyes, in spite of her precarious situation. Despite his caution to himself not to get involved, James became intrigued. He stared at the woman while he waited for the steward to regain his composure. Petite in stature, but not in personality, her waist-length black hair blew around her cheeks as the breeze wafted in over the Mississippi, an indication of her mixed heritage. James suspected some Indian blood.

  Unusual eyes, as blue as the sky at twilight, snapped as her gaze rolled between James and the steward. She wore a white shirt and tan gaucho pants which ended at her well-worn and muddy boots. Wrapped securely around her waist was a whip made of a strip of black leather. All in all, a most enjoyable and interesting picture.

  James’s lips curved upward as the steward collected the payment from him for the extra room.

  The woman gazed up at him, her eyebrows rising as they left the steward behind. “I’d say thank you for your assistance, Mr. Garnett, but I somehow have the feeling you’ve got an ulterior motive. I must caution you that I object to being called a ‘little lady.’ I am also an expert at using this whip around my waist and I throw a mean left jab.” She curled her fist to prove her point.

  James placed his hand over his heart. “Duly noted, although you wound me deeply, madam. I have no ulterior motive. You seemed to need my assistance in getting on board, and I’m eager to find out why you are here alone. Besides, you’re the prettiest thing to come aboard so far.”

  He glanced at her and noted her still-speculative gaze. “Honestly, I only have one motivation for this trip, and that’s to make money at the gaming tables. Why don’t you introduce yourself and tell me why you had such an urgent need to float down the muddy Mississippi without so much as a steamer trunk or even a satchel?”

  She took a long gaze at the distance from the boat to the shoreline before she shifted her gaze back to him. Her left hand uncurled from the fist she’d made earlier, and James let out his breath slowly. She wouldn’t be using her mean left jab on him. Not yet, anyway.

  “I’m Elise Lafontaine, from St. Louis. My father owns a large horse ranch outside of town.” She wound her hand around his arm as they made their way along the deck. “Those men who boarded ahead of me have a saddlebag they stole from my father. The bag contains some paperwork vital to my family. There’s money in it, too, which is, I’m sure, all those men want. But I need to get that paperwork back. I’m keeping an eye on that saddlebag until I can retrieve it, but word has been sent back home for my four brothers to meet me in New Orleans.”

  “I’m sure we can arrange for that to happen. Now, tell me why you are wrapped in a whip.” James casually put forth the question that most intrigued him at the moment.

  “I’m used to being around horses, but those men are horses’ asses. Although I appreciate your assistance getting me on board, I’m not yet sure you don’t fall into the same category, Mr. Garnett.” To drive home her point, she unfurled her whip and slapped it across the deck.

  James raised his hand in surrender. He had plenty more questions for this unusual woman, but his mind turned to a pool of jelly, and all he could concentrate on was her intoxicating scent. She carried the aroma of the outdoors mixed with musk and cinnamon. He had to get away from her before she inflicted all kinds of harm, and not merely with her whip. Grateful their rooms were within view, he took a deep breath. Not the right thing to do, since her unique scent overtook him again. He groaned internally.

  He opened the door and ushered her inside the cabin, which, while not the most luxurious, at least appeared clean and smelled of freshly starched linen. She glanced around the room, her whip swishing across the floor.

  “I’ll leave you to your own devices now, since women aren’t usually allowed in the gaming room and the start of any trip is when I typically make the most money. The men are in high spirits and the drinks and the money are flowing.” James doffed his hat to her. “Later tonight, I’ll join you for dinner, and we’ll discuss how best to get your property back from those men. Also, Miss Lafontaine, since we have given the steward the impression we are about to wed, you need to call me James and I’ll refer to you as Elise. Have a pleasant afternoon.”

  Her string of expletives as he left the room told him she didn’t appreciate his involvement as much as he thought she would. Either that, or she didn’t appreciate the delay in getting what she’d come for. He couldn’t help but be impressed by her abundant raunchy vocabulary, but he hoped she’d quiet down in a few minutes. Otherwise, the crew would kick both James and the lovely Miss Lafontaine off the boat. Which, when he thought about it, might not be a bad thing. Either way, he was in for one hell of a ride.

  • ♥ •

  Clay and his younger brother Cody sat on cotton bales on the freight deck. Clay removed the fancy saddlebag from his shoulder and peered inside. Now that they were safely on the deck of a riverboat and soon would be sailing away from St. Louis, he took out the money and, for the first time, counted it out. “There’s a couple hundred here, Cody. Enough to maybe buy back a portion of our ranch. But, if we use some of this money at the poker tables, we can buy back all of it, rather than just our house and an acre or so.”

  Cody rummaged inside the bag, searching for any hidden coins. “We’ll be pitting our luck against professional gamblers, Clay. A far cry from the occasional hand of poker we won at the Confederate campsites. I say no.”

  Clay punched his brother on the arm. “Ah, Cody, don’t be such a stick in the mud. We’re already on a lucky streak, having made it out of St. Louis without any police tailing us. Daddy lost the ranch because we were off fighting and not able to help him out. We’ll never see a dime of payment due us for our services, since the Confederacy lost the war and has no
money. This is our big chance to look good in Daddy’s eyes—and I say we should take it. If we can come home with a wad of money, Daddy will be so proud of us.”

  Clay took back possession of the bag and its contents. “There are some papers in here, too, which we might be able to use instead of coin for betting, if we can figure out what they mean. That way, we can hang onto our money.”

  Cody shook his head. “I guess we can try our luck tonight. Bet just a bit of the money and if we win, we can continue. But if we lose, we’re done for the rest of the trip.”

  “Fair enough. Let’s head up to the gaming room.” Clay stood and threw the saddlebag over his shoulder again. “We owe it to Daddy. It’s either play cards or sleep, and while sleeping on a cotton bale sure beats trying to get comfortable on the ground, it’s not where I want to spend my time. This boat takes five days to saunter down the river, and with no single women on board, I’ll be bored to death if we don’t gamble.”

  Cody shook his head as he followed his brother up to the gaming room. “I have a bad feeling about this, Clay. You always try to bluff your way, but it never works. You lose much more often than you win.”

  Clay grabbed his brother’s arm and pulled him into the shadows. He then proceeded to tug several high-value cards from his shirtsleeve. “This is how I’m going to win this go-round.”

  Cody gulped for air. “You’ll cheat? Jesus, Clay.”

  “Only if necessary. Don’t know why I didn’t come up with this years ago.” Clay repositioned the cards in his sleeve, threw the saddlebag over his shoulder again and climbed the stairs to the gaming room.

  “Now I’ve really got a bad feeling about this.” Cody’s shoulder brushed his brother as they entered the gaming room.

  Clay smiled at the assembled men already at the various tables. “Relax, I know what I’m doing. Are you ready to get rich? Let’s sit at table where the best-dressed men are. Like that one over there.” Clay motioned with his chin toward a table where a lone man sat, wearing an expensive maroon leather jacket, and the pair strode toward his table.