Chapter 31
Quincy couldn’t believe how ungrateful Sarah was being, especially after going through all that trouble to make the meal requested.
Isabelle was a horrible woman who had convinced her daughter that Quincy was a bad man.
Sure, he had done some bad things in his life—he’d be the first to admit that—but he’d been trying to be good to Sarah.
He had told her that he would take care of her and their baby, and he meant every word.
He had to get Sarah away from Isabelle so that she could stop talking nonsense about him behind his back.
She was obviously trying to convince Sarah that she needed her and not him. That did not sit well with him.
No, it was time for them to go. He could see Sarah’s belly growing.
It was still small, but he wanted them to be settled in the new house before she grew too big.
He needed to speak to his men, though. He couldn’t simply leave.
Quincy went from one area to the next, telling them all to meet in the living area in the next twenty minutes.
He didn’t want to put it off any longer, and they needed to know his plans.
He didn’t have to wait long, and soon enough, they were all gathered around the table. He had set some glasses down for them and a bottle of expensive whiskey.
“Drink,” he instructed once they had all poured some into their glasses. “Life is good, and we need to celebrate.”
He got some curious looks, but all of his men started drinking. None of them was the type to say no to alcohol.
“What are we celebrating?” Roy asked.
“I’m going to be a father,” Quincy announced. “Sarah is with child.”
There was a commotion of voices, all talking over each other. Some congratulated him; others appeared confused or worried.
“What does that mean for us?” Brian asked, raising a brow.
Brian was the only one whom Quincy had told about Sarah being pregnant, but he hadn’t shared any of his other plans with him. It was understandable that the men would be worried about what this new development meant for the gang.
“There will be some changes, but we will still be us.” Quincy took a sip of his whiskey. “I’ll be moving closer to town with Sarah, and we’ll be getting married.”
“Are you serious?” one of the men asked.
“How will that work?” another added.
Quincy held up his hands to quiet them. “Yes, I am serious. She is going to be my wife, and I’m going to have a family.
As for the gang, we will still be together.
You guys can stay here in the cave, and I will come and visit often.
I’m not going to move so far away that you’ll never see me again, and we will still be going on raids and carrying on like we always do.
In fact, I have a plan for robbing a bank in the near future. ”
“But wouldn’t that be dangerous for you? What if somebody recognizes you?” Brian asked, clearly concerned.
“We’re not going to live in town. I just wanna be closer to shops and a doctor.”
Not all of them looked convinced, and they were full of questions.
“Did Sarah agree to this?” Daniel asked.
“Who cares?” Roy replied. “This is about what Quincy wants.”
“Exactly,” Brian agreed. “But how will we stay in contact?”
“I’m still worried about people realizing who you are,” Roy added.
“And what about Isabelle?” Howard asked.
Quincy held up his hands again. “There’s no need to be worried about me. I can take care of myself. I’ve gone years without anybody knowing who I am, and I will continue to do that.”
The men mumbled among themselves.
“I understand that this is a lot to take in, but I will be fine, and the gang will be too. As for Isabelle, she’ll be staying here, with all of you.”
“I doubt that the girl will be happy about leaving her mother here.”
Quincy had had just about enough talking about Isabelle. He couldn’t stand the woman. “I don’t care whether Sarah is happy about that or not. Isabelle is staying, and you men can have as much fun as you want with her.”
The men laughed and cheered.
“I think I speak for all of us when I say it’s been nice having a lady around.”
“Definitely,” Brian agreed. “But we’ve all had our fun with her. It might be time for a new one.”
Quincy shrugged. “I honestly don’t care what you guys do with her. Have your fun, and when you’re done, get rid of the body. I’ll make sure that from now on, there’s always a pretty young thing here to entertain you.”
Quincy should have led with this because now all of his men seemed much happier.
It was probably something they should have done a long time ago.
“Just remember,” he added, “you need to make sure you dispose of them when you’re done with them.
We can’t let them go free. We can’t afford for word to get back to the law. ”
“That won’t be a problem,” Daniel chuckled.
“No, definitely not,” Brian agreed.
Now that the men were a little more at ease and happy about the situation, Quincy explained to them the rest of his plans and how they would go about conducting their business in the future.
The more he spoke about it, the more excited he got.
Quincy loved his gang and loved what he did.
One thing he had always felt was missing was his own family, and now he was going to get to have both.
He wasn’t sure that he could trust Sarah, but in time, she would learn to appreciate everything he was going to do for her.
Of course, there was no way he was going to leave her at home alone when he came to the cave or went on raids.
She would have to travel with him and stay at the cave while he and the boys went to do their business.
There were always a couple of men who stayed behind, and they could keep an eye on her when he couldn’t.
They would spend most of their time at their house, but the cave could be like a little vacation once in a while.
Quincy never wanted Sarah to see Isabelle again, though.
He would have to make sure that she was gone by the time he brought Sarah back.
He knew Sarah wouldn’t be happy about her mother’s demise at first, but he was sure that in time, she would come to realize that it was for the best as well.
Quincy had been angry at Sarah for suggesting that they take Isabelle with them, but now, after having spoken to his men, he felt much better.
All he wanted was to be happy and to make his men happy as well.
Being an outlaw wasn’t always easy, and sometimes things got tough, but if they all stuck together, he knew that they would be all right.
Since they were all worked up, they decided to eat what was left of the food and finish the bottle. Quincy felt eager to get his new life started, so he left the men to celebrate and went to fetch Sarah.
It was the middle of the night, but he didn’t care.
As a man, he had needs, and it was up to his future wife to fulfill them.
The room was quiet and dark when he entered.
They were sleeping, so he tried not to make any noise as he walked over to Sarah’s bed, guided by the light of his lantern, and woke her.
She woke up, looking confused. “What—” she started asking, but he cut her off.
“You’re sleeping with me tonight, sweet thing,” he whispered, not wanting to wake Isabelle.
She glanced at the other bed where her mother was sleeping before slipping out from under the blanket.
Quincy took her hand and almost dragged her out of the room, making sure to lock the door behind him.
He did not trust Isabelle at all. He was sure it was her idea to try to escape when they had been traveling, and who knows what else she had been telling Sarah.
Once they were in his room, Quincy locked the door. He might be planning a future with Sarah, but that did not mean he trusted her. She was Isabelle’s daughter, after all. One day, hopefully, he would be able to, but for now, and the foreseeable future, he had to be careful.
“Go wait on the bed,” he instructed and waited until Sarah did as told.
Once she was far enough away so that she wouldn’t be able to see what he was doing, he opened his cupboard, which held his safe, and placed his key inside.
It was a combination safe, so there was no way for Sarah to retrieve the key.
With that done and satisfied that she wouldn’t be going anywhere, Quincy joined her in his bed.
Tonight, he would be sleeping against a warm body and not just any warm body, but one that was growing his baby.