by Jenna Brandt
“That’s what has always made you a good agent, Josiah, your uncanny ability to observe everything around you. Your bluntness, on the other hand, tends to be a little less desirable in our line of work.”
“It’s gotten me this far,” Josiah stated gruffly. “I don’t see it changing any time soon. Rather than dodge the issue at hand, just tell me what is going on already.”
“It’s your brother, Amos.”
Josiah felt nauseous. He heard the next words through a fog.
“He was working a case when he went silent. The Texas office didn’t think anything of it at first, as agents sometimes have to do that in order to get the job done. When it turned into several days of no communication; however, they sent two agents to investigate.”
“Why wasn’t I informed? Why didn’t you send me?” Josiah accused in anger. “I know my brother’s habits better than anyone.”
“That might rightly be so, but you were busy finishing up your robbery case, and I needed you to stay with it. We honestly thought we would find Amos holed up somewhere with an informant, but that’s not how it turned out.”
Josiah lunged forward in his chair, not liking where this was going. “How did it turn out?”
“I hate to tell you this, Josiah, but Amos is dead.”
“What?” Josiah bellowed, jumping from his seat. “You must have your facts mixed up.”
Archie shook his head. “The agents found your brother’s body in the Texas hills outside of Rockwood Springs. I’m sorry, Josiah, but he’s gone.”
“How did this happen?” Josiah growled, his eyes narrowing into slits. “Who killed him?”
“Normally, I don’t do this, but I know you would find a way to get your hands on this file, even if I tried to keep it from you. This file goes over the case he was working on as well as what the agents discovered.”
Josiah took the outstretched file, glanced through it. He tried not to react when he read his brother was found bound, tortured, and shot dead. He had been investigating the Wilkins Gang, notorious for cattle rustling. His brother must have gotten to close to figuring out where their hideout was located, and been killed for it.
“We had Amos’ body brought here and have arranged for his funeral. He will be buried here in Denver. We considered him family as much as you did, Josiah. Of course, the agency is covering all the costs.”
Josiah nodded. Though he didn’t take much stock in funerals, he was glad his brother wouldn’t be rotting away in some unmarked grave. “What’s going to happen to his case?”
“The Texas office will reassign it to one of their agents.”
“No, I want it,” Josiah said without a second thought. “Let me bring these men in and make them pay for what they did to my brother.”
“I get wanting revenge, Josiah, but I don’t think you will be able to handle the case without emotional involvement.”
“That’s exactly why I need to do it. No one is going to want to find them more than I do,” Josiah declared adamantly.
“There might be one person,” Archie disputed, standing up and moving towards the door and opening it. “His widow.”
“Widow?” Josiah shouted in utter shock as he stood up and spun around towards the open door. “You can’t be serious? My brother isn’t married. I would have known that.”
“It wasn’t for long, and we hardly spent any time together while he trained me,” a striking woman with black hair and dark teal eyes said as she glided into the room. The woman approached him, reaching out her hand. “I’m Nadine Bell, by the way. I was supposed to go with Amos to help with the Wilkins Gang case, but I got sick with influenza and had to stay in Dallas. By the time I was better, I found out I was a widow.”
“Wait, did my brother get roped into one of the preposterous marriages being thrust on agents around the agency?” Josiah asked in an accusing tone.
“It wasn’t like that. He wanted a woman to work as the cook at the saloon in Rockwood Springs while he dealt cards. He figured it could help to have a second set of eyes,” the young woman explained as she came over and took a seat in one of the chairs. She removed her fluffy white hat that had feathers and flowers pinned all over it, and placed it in her lap. “I came to Denver for the funeral, and to tell you how sorry I am about your brother’s death. I will do my best with my next partner to figure out who killed your brother.”
“Wait, let me get this straight; she’s going to be assigned to find my brother’s killer and not me?” Josiah asked in incredulousness.
“Mrs. Bell’s stationed at the Texas office and knows the other agents. It makes the most sense for her to marry one of them and finish the case,” Archie defended.
“You’re willing to marry another man, just like that, when your first husband’s body isn’t even in the ground?” Josiah accused in anger as he marched up to stand beside her chair. “What type of woman does that make you?”
Nadine eyes grew wide with anger, and as quick as lightning, she stood up, reached out, and slapped Josiah across the face. “You don’t know anything about me, Mr. Bell. I’m doing what must be done. I don’t have another choice.”
The stinging mark across his cheek begged to be rubbed, but he wouldn’t give her the satisfaction. He had a better punishment in mind. “There is another one. I can marry you and we can work the case together.”
There was a loud gasp from Nadine as her eyes grew round with astonishment at the suggestion. “I hardly think that’s a good idea.”
“I tend to think she’s right,” Archie agreed, glancing between them. “The tension between the two of you couldn’t be good for the case. If it blows up in smoke because the wrong pair of agents handle it, our clients will be none too happy about it.”
“Do these clients matter more than letting me avenge my brother’s murder?” Josiah countered. “I’m not a novice agent, and though I detest the idea of being saddled with a partner, let alone a female one who happens to be my wife out of convenience, I don’t see a better option. I know my brother—where he would start, what he would do; it will save considerable time if I’m in charge of the case. Not to mention, we think alike. His widow wouldn’t have to get used to a whole new agent.”
Nadine snorted with a roll of her eyes. “You’re nothing like your brother, Mr. Bell. He is…was kind and considerate, which is more than I can say for you in even the short time I’ve known you.”
“Sweetheart, I can be as kind as the next fellow if it suits my needs. I could charm the skirt right off of you, if I wanted.”
“Why, I never…” Nadine stammered out, her cheeks tingeing the prettiest shade of pink that only made her look even more fetching. He quickly brushed the thought aside. He didn’t want to think of her that way. She was a necessary burden, and his brother’s widow to boot. He needed to keep from thinking about her as more than just an obligation. “Sir, you should refrain from saying such crass things to me in the future. I have a good mind to slap you soundly across the face a second time.”
Josiah raised his eyebrows in shock as he rocked back on his heels. He could say one thing for his brother’s widow: she was a pistol. He let out a chuckle as he shook his head. “I’ll take that under advisement.”
Archie tilted his head as he looked at both Nadine and Josiah for several seconds. He seemed to make up his mind as he gestured to Josiah. “What do you say, Mrs. Bell, have you gotten used to the name enough to keep it a little while longer?” Archie inquired as he bent over his desk and scribbled something on a piece of paper.
“You’re giving in to him?” Nadine squeaked out in audible disbelief. “You can’t be serious.”
Archie nodded. “I have full authority in this situation, and I think given the circumstances, this is the best course of action. Give this note to my secretary and she will make the arrangements for your wedding. Good luck on your assignment, and you will report directly to the Texas office going forward until the case is closed.”
Chapter 2
&nb
sp; What a terrible turn of events! It was bad enough that when she arrived at the Texas Pinkerton office they told her she had to marry an agent and train alongside one of their male detectives if she wanted employment. She had sought the job to avoid the very prospect of being thrust into a marriage of convenience, but she ended up in one all the same. The only redeeming grace was that Amos Bell had been a kind man who hadn’t imposed on her. As he trained her in firearms, inventing and using a proper cover identity, basic questioning techniques, and other various skills she needed to do the job, he had been patient with her. It had reminded Nadine of how her brother, Mark, used to be before Cora entered their lives. This was why it had stung so severely when she found out Amos had been killed. It was like losing her brother all over again, and she was left to find a way to survive a second time.
Nadine never would have imagined that would involve being stuck marrying Amos’ older brother; a man whom she wholly despised. She couldn’t wait to be free of him once the rest of her year-long probation was finished. She could then safely end the farce of a marriage and focus on making herself a name as the best detective in the agency. In order to do that though, she needed to pretend to get along with this man beside her. As she stood next to Josiah Bell in the same white dress she had worn to marry his brother, she plastered on her most alluring smile. She wasn’t going to let him derail her chances of being an agent in her own right.
“Do you, Josiah Bell, take this woman, to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do,” he said firmly.
“And do you, Nadine Bell?” the judge’s brows came together in a furrow as he used his finger to go over the name a second time on the piece of paper. “That can’t be right.”
“It is,” Josiah assured the judge. “She’s my brother’s widow.”
“Oh, well then…” the judge said, but it was clear from his tone he didn’t approve of what was going on. He probably had visions of Josiah killing his brother so he could take his wife for his own. A passion-filled act that couldn’t be further from the truth. Neither of them wanted this. Nadine couldn’t care for a man like Josiah, no matter how handsome he was with his curly brown hair, piercing green eyes, and chiseled face and physique. If he weren’t such a smug jerk, he would be rather attractive.
Nadine shook the thought from her head. There was no way she needed to let herself think of him as anything other than a means to an end. He was her ticket to solving this case, proving herself as an agent, and being in charge of her own destiny.
“Did you hear me, Mrs. Bell? Do you take, this man, Josiah Bell, to be your lawfully wedded husband?” the judge asked, and from his tone, he had repeated the question multiple times.
“Yes, yes, I do,” she mumbled out with a nod of her head.
“Please exchange your rings,” the judge ordered.
Josiah slipped on the same gold band used by his brother with PNDA engraved inside to clearly mark their property. The agency didn’t see a need to buy her a new wedding band when this one was perfectly useable. They did supply a new one for Josiah; however, since Amos’ had been taken by the man who killed him.
“Now, by the power vested in me by God and the Colorado Territory, I pronounce you husband and wife.”
Several of the agents wished them luck on their assignment before they exited the Denver office. They headed straight to Nadine’s hotel to gather her belongings before their departure on the train heading south.
“Don’t take too long. I don’t want us to miss our train,” Josiah barked out at Nadine as he stopped at the bottom of the stairs that led to the rooms above.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” she mocked, part of her wanting to do just that to irritate him further. Out of respect for her job and Amos’ memory; however, she refrained. She made quick work of gathering up her two bags and trunk before the bellhop arrived to take her luggage downstairs to load it onto the waiting carriage. It was a long ride to the train depot, filled with awkward silence. Nadine wasn’t sure what she had to discuss with the man beside her beyond the case when she realized she should lay out some boundaries before he got any ideas.
“I think in the interest of making this partnership work, we need to lay out some rules.”
“Rules? Sweetheart, you should know, I’m one of the least rule-following agents in the Pinkertons. I tend to bend and sometimes break them outrightly if I need to get the job done.”
“That right there needs to be a rule. You won’t call me sweetheart anymore,” she demanded. “Additionally, this is strictly business. There will be no romantic entanglement.”
“Believe me, that’s the last thing on my mind when it comes to you,” he said. “I prefer my women to be less prickly and more obliging. I don’t find I need to work to earn a woman’s affection.”
“I’m sure with the type of women you entertain that’s true. A proper woman, however, wants to be wooed. Though that doesn’t matter in this situation since there will absolutely be no wooing going on.”
“I can’t agree more,” Josiah said with a shrug. “What else do you want to tell me to do or not do, darling?”
She could tell he used the new endearment to get under her skin and frustrate her. She wasn’t going to let him see that it did just that. She ignored the pet name, and decided to move on to her other conditions. “I want to be treated as an equal, which means you will discuss all matters with me pertaining to the case. I also want you to refrain from doing anything that would embarrass me as your wife. Before you say it, I know that it’s only for the sake of the agency, but it still doesn’t mean I want to be made to look like a fool.”
“Are you saying you don’t want me to spend time with other women while we’re married?”
She nodded, hoping he would agree. “Is that too much to ask?”
“Did you make all these rules for my brother?”
Nadine shook her head. “I didn’t need to; your brother never gave me a reason to suspect his character.”
“That’s my brother, the consummate gentleman. Sounds like you’ve got us both figured out quite nicely,” Josiah stated, his jaw tightening as he clenched his lips shut afterward. The way he said it made Nadine wonder if he wasn’t always as contrary as he was currently being. If that was true, was he putting on a façade because of her? And if he was, why? Wouldn’t it be easier to be nice to her rather than try to keep her in a constant state of fluster? Perhaps he had some reason, unbeknownst to her, to keep her at a distance. Either way, she’d had enough of his abhorrent behavior. She wanted to be on the way to their destination so that they could start their investigation without further delay. The sooner they reached Texas, the sooner she could figure out a way to prove to the agency she was capable and didn’t need a husband to be an agent. She couldn’t imagine staying married to Josiah for an entire year.
“Listen darling, I understand you wanting to be in control. Many men would play into that need, letting you think you are in charge. The problem with that is that I’m not most men. I don’t give away my power, pretend or otherwise. I’m one of the most seasoned Pinkerton agents, so let me lay down some rules of my own. I’m the boss of you. You will follow my lead without question. You’re going to do exactly what I say, when I say it. Do I make myself clear?”
“Crystal,” she snapped before climbing out of the carriage without waiting to see if he was going to follow her. Nadine needed to focus on anything other than her new husband. Right now, she was determined to find the train car they needed to board.
“That was rather rude to take off on me like that,” Josiah rebuked, coming up beside her as she scanned her ticket to make sure she was headed to the right end of the train.
“Was it now? Maybe in the future you’ll remember to treat me better and I won’t have to leave you again,” Nadine stated with frustration. “I get that you’re upset because of what happened with your brother, but you don’t need to take it out on me.”
“That’s not what I’m doing,” Josiah
protested. “I’m just not good at having a partner. I prefer to do things on my own.”
“I can see that,” Nadine confirmed. “You’re working extra hard to make sure you keep it that way. The problem is, I need this job, and my condition for keeping it is that I stay married to you until the end of my probation. Unless I’m able to convince them I am capable of working on my own. I don’t have anything else, Mr. Bell, so if I lose my position, I’m going to end up out on the streets. I’m not going to let that happen.” Letting out a heavy sigh, she added, “If you would just give me a chance, I could be a true asset. I’m smart and very observant. I can read people well, probably from years of watching others over the top of a book.”
“Do you know how many times I’ve heard a new agent tell me they can handle this job? All of whom were men. Pardon me if I don’t think you have the fortitude to handle the toll this job takes on you.”
Nadine wanted to argue his point, but she realized she was better off showing him. Once she helped him figure out who killed his brother, he wouldn’t have any other choice than to take her seriously.
The only advantage to traveling by train was that it was faster than stagecoach, and slightly less bumpy. The list of disadvantages, however, was significantly longer. Josiah hated the myriads of people who boarded the train. Most of them were loud, several of them obnoxious, and the rest crowded in around them in a way that made Josiah want to push his arms out in all directions to make them give him space. What he wouldn’t give to have a set of first-class tickets at this very moment.
He glanced over at his wife who was sleeping soundly with her head propped on the edge of the window. She was even more strikingly gorgeous when she was relaxed and unaware anyone was watching her. He didn’t want to think about her that way; after all she was his brother’s widow, which meant he had no right to her. He knew his brother’s marriage had been in name only, but somehow it still didn’t sit right with him to desire his widow. He owed it to Amos to protect her, and make sure she didn’t get hurt during the investigation, but it couldn’t go beyond that. Josiah wouldn’t let it.