Sabrina's Man by Gilbert Morris Read Free Book Online Page A

simple enough. You have the papers here?”
    â€œHere are the Articles of Partnership,” Will said, opening up a folder. “And here’s the papers for the mortgage on the house. Still a little bit owing on it.”
    â€œWell, this will be fairly simple. You gentlemen just wait one minute. I’ll get this matter out of the way.”
    Waco watched as the lawyer worked on the papers. He appeared to be rather messy and almost turned the ink bottle over once, but he got through the business without total disaster. “Here, you two gentlemen sign right where I have marked. That’s all that will be necessary. You’ll need to go to the court with this at the capitol building.”
    Will shook his head but leaned over and signed his name carefully. He handed the pen to Waco, saying, “I still don’t like it, Waco.”
    Waco shook his head. He signed his name and said, “How much do we owe you?”
    â€œTen dollars ought to cover it, I reckon.”
    Waco fished in his pocket, but Will beat him to it. He came up with cash and said, “Thank you, Mr. Simms.”
    â€œWell, good luck to you both.” He turned to Waco. “And you dodge them bullets now.”
    â€œI’ll do my best.”
    As soon as they were outside, Waco said, “I guess we might as well head for the train station. From what I hear, the train will be pulling in sometime this afternoon. Trains don’t run on schedule with this war going on.”
    The two walked along the boardwalk, and finally Will said, “Waco, can I ask you something?”
    â€œSure.”
    â€œAre you scared? I mean scared of getting shot?”
    â€œNot right now, but they’re not shooting at me.” Waco managed a grin. “I will be when about five hundred Yankees are trying to kill me.” He glanced over and saw a flight of blackbirds circle the town, making their harsh, guttural cries, then disappear behind the taller buildings. “I remember when I served the last time. I didn’t like it a bit.”
    Will was quiet for a while and said, “We’ve never talked about this, but do you believe in God?”
    â€œOf course I believe in God. What do you take me for? Just look around you. With a world like this, there’s got to be a world maker.”
    The two trudged silently on, threading their way between the people going to work and soldiers wandering the town, and finally Waco said, “You know I’m not afraid of dying.”
    â€œI would be.”
    â€œWell, it’s what comes after that bothers me.”
    Will shot a quick glance at his partner. “Maybe you’d better go talk to the minister.”
    â€œNo, I reckon not.”
    â€œI expect he can tell you how to get right with God.”
    Waco turned and shot a hard glance at Will, saying, “Will, I’ve been ignoring God all my life. Now you think if I run to Him and tell Him I’ve been a bad boy, He’s going to let me into heaven? That would be like trying to buy insurance on a house when a house was on fire. I may be a sinner, but I’m no hypocrite.”
    They continued their walk, and when they approached the train depot, Waco said, “Look at that crowd.”
    Will shook his head. “They don’t look like much, do they?”
    â€œNo, the Confederacy is skimming the bottom of the bucket.”
    The two of them moved back and leaned against the station house, and Waco’s attention was drawn to an older man.
    A woman was hanging to him and weeping, and a young woman with a small boy was standing by, watching with a worried look in her eyes. “You’ll be all right, Carl,” the young woman said.
    â€œSure I will.”
    The boy perked up and said, “Are you going to kill the Yankees, Grandpa?”
    â€œI reckon as how I’ll do my best.”
    The woman was weeping violently. “Why’d they have to take you, Les? You’re fifty-five