An Agent for Regina

by Marianne Spitzer

  Another decision presented itself as Regina stood on the wide front porch. Should she knock or just step inside? It was an office and people usually just entered, but the house made it seem more private, and she opted to knock.

  Her knock was answered by an attractive young lady with luminous reddish-brown hair and dressed in a dark brown skirt, cream blouse, and a jacket to match the skirt.

  “Please come in, I’m Miss Chapman. Please have a seat. Would you care for a cup of tea?” Miss Chapman’s soft voice asked.

  “No, thank you,” Regina replied and took a seat on one of the chairs in front of the desk Miss Chapman stepped behind.

  “What can I do for you?” Miss Chapman inquired while smiling brightly.

  Regina felt at ease immediately. “I came to apply for one of the female agent positions.”

  “Oh dear,” Miss Chapman said biting her lip and frowning. “I’m afraid you’re nearly a week early. The paper said May 16. I can give you an early appointment that day, say ten in the morning.”

  Regina’s crestfallen face touched Miss Chapman, and she explained, “We set the date to give women across the country a chance to send us letters. I didn’t expect any to show up in person. If you wrote a letter, I will give it to Mr. Gordon today for his consideration.”

  Regina nodded and removed the unfolded letter from her briefcase. She handed it to Miss Chapman and said, “I hope this is adequate.”

  Miss Chapman glanced at the letter and raised her eyebrows a bit. “You are accomplished. Did you come all the way from Chicago just to apply for this job? You certainly traveled fast if you did.”

  “No, I was planning on coming here when I decided I’d had enough schooling in subjects I had no interest in. My heart lies with learning detective work. I would be happy being a sheriff or U.S. Marshal, but the odds are they’d laugh at me. I believe Kate Warne opened a door for female agents and I want to be part of it.”

  “That she did. I can’t say whether or not Mister Gordon will hire you, but I am impressed by your letter,” Miss Chapman said and reached into her desk. “This is the application form we need to be filled out for your appointment. Please bring it back with you on the 16th.”

  Miss Chapman handed Regina the application and Regina fought back the urge to shout her happiness, but smiled and thanked Miss Chapman. Regina assured her she’d be back on the 16th for her interview and tried not to dance as she stepped out of the office and onto the porch.

  Hurrying down the stairs, she nearly ran into a tall man whose blonde hair fell into his deep blue eyes and Regina stopped quickly, and stammered, “I’m sorry. I’m in a hurry.”

  “Can I help?”

  “No, I need to find a carriage back to my hotel,” Regina answered while looking up the street.

  The handsome man pointed down the street, “You can usually find one near the corner by the café. I would be happy to escort you.”

  “No, thank you,” Regina responded. “I’ll find it.”

  She hurried down the street in the direction the man suggested, and he stood on the street watching her to assure she arrived safely and because, to be honest, he enjoyed watching the lovely lady walking away. When she disappeared around the corner, he turned and walked up the stairs to the agency door and strode into the office.

  “Good Morning, Luke,” Marianne said.

  “Good morning. Who was that lovely woman that just left?”

  “She’s one of the applicants for female agents. She’s extremely bright and personable. If Archie hires her, don’t flirt with her. She’ll be a fellow agent,” Marianne advised.

  Luke smiled, “She may be an agent, but she’ll never be a fellow.”

  Marianne raised her eyes to meet Luke’s and shook her head. “Luke.”

  Luke raised his hands in defeat. “I know. Best behavior. Remember the Pinkerton code. Be a gentleman. You know I can do all three and still admire the loveliness of a woman.”

  Marianne laughed. “You, Luke, are the only one who can say that and get away with it.”

  Luke bowed, “Thank you, ma’am. I do try. Do you suppose all the female agents will be as lovely?”

  “Lucas Tucker, you know as well as I do that agents are hired for their abilities and not their looks.”

  Luke stared down at his boots and nodded, but then rose his head a broad smile crossing his face. “Yes, I know that, but couldn’t you persuade Archie to choose the prettiest of the best applicants? It would make life easier if ladies coming and going through this office were lovely to look at.”

  Marianne squinted her eyes at Luke and asked, “Did you need something, or did you stop in solely to inquire about the lady you saw leaving?”

  “I do have some information for Archie but seeing that woman was definitely a plus. You know her name, don’t you?”

  “Of course,” Marianne replied. “It’s on her letter of inquiry.”

  “Well?”

  “Well, what?”

  “What’s her name?” Luke asked a bit of frustration showing in his eyes.

  “You know as well as I do that personal information isn’t shared unless needed for a case. Archie may not hire her. If he does, you will be introduced, I’m sure,” Marianne responded and shifted the papers on her desk to hide Regina’s letter from Luke’s roaming eyes.

  Luke leaned forward a bit and stared at Marianne. “If he doesn’t hire her, will you tell me who she is and where she lives? She might need someone to console her.”

  Marianne slowly lifted her head to meet Luke’s gaze. “You are incorrigible. If you weren’t one of our finest agents, I’d…umm, I’m not sure, but I’d think of something.”

  Luke threw his head back and laughed, “I’m sure you would. Just remember there’s nothing in our code of honor that says we can’t admire a young lady or speak to one. Because Archie is such a stick in the mud doesn’t mean we all have to be.”

  “Archie is no such thing. He’s only working hard because he’s dedicated to his job,” Marianne insisted.

  “And you’re dedicated to Archie. I hope he realizes what a gem he has in you,” Luke complemented a blushing Marianne.

  Marianne held out her hand, “Give me the paper you have for Archie and leave before he hears you.”

  Luke complied and bowed before leaving the office and a smiling Marianne behind.

  Chapter Three

  Regina found herself fighting anxiety as she stood on the porch of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency at precisely three minutes before ten on May 16. Her new burgundy walking suit fit perfectly, and she said a silent prayer that she would answer all the questions correctly and make a good impression. What surprised Regina were all the other young women arriving and crowding together on the porch behind her. What should she do? Miss Chapman had told her there was no need to knock, but with so many young ladies, she didn’t feel right just walking in. She knocked, and the door was opened by an attractive young woman who introduced herself as Pearl. She ushered them inside, and Regina made her way to Miss Chapman’s desk.

  Miss Chapman looked up from her desk and said, “Good morning, Miss Caulfield. Please come in and take a seat. Mister Gordon will see you presently.”

  “Thank you, Miss Chapman. I brought my application,” Regina said and handed the application to Miss Chapman.

  “Please, call me Marianne. Everyone does, and if you’re hired, we’ll see a lot of each other. Please, ladies, have a seat. I will call you when it’s your turn to meet with Mister Gordon.”

  Marianne took Regina’s application and left in a swirl of skirts heading for Archie’s office.

  Marianne knocked and entered after hearing Archie bid her inside. “Miss Caulfield is here for her interview. Here is her application. Shall I show her in?”

  Archie nodded, and Marianne returned in a moment with Regina. “Miss Caulfield, I would like you to meet our head agent, Mister Archibald Gordon. Archie, umm, Mister Gordon, this is Regina Caulfield.”

  Arch
ie flashed Marianne a quick scowl and then smiled at Regina. “Please take a seat, Miss Caulfield.”

  Regina sat as she heard the door close quietly behind her. She watched Mister Gordon as he reached for the application and read through it.

  “I see you decided to leave college before finishing your final year. Would you explain why?” Archie asked as he laid the application on his desk.

  “I didn’t feel I would learn more than I needed if I stayed. My step-mother convinced my father that a school where I could learn nursing and teaching would be best, but I do not wish to work in either field. I read the textbooks for the final semester and didn’t think I would be happy in those positions,” Regina explained.

  “You read the entire textbook for each class? Why?”

  “To gain whatever knowledge I might need someday and tuck it away if needed.”

  Archie nodded, “You list having a photographic memory as one of your best talents. Truly, you have a good memory, but not a photographic memory. People with that talent are extremely rare.”

  “That is what one of my teachers told me, and although I could recite any answer they asked correctly and memorize complete passages, they had their doubts.”

  “I see,” Archie said and glanced at the far wall. “Did you do a lot of reading while in school?”

  Regina dropped her head. “I need to be honest. I was able to complete any assigned class work easily and did spend my free time reading quite a bit, but not the type of books the school would have thought proper for young ladies.”

  Archie raised his eyebrows, “What exactly did you read?”

  Regina blushed, “Dime novels. My best friend, Christina, bought or borrowed nearly everyone she could find in town.”

  “Then you haven’t read any of Jules Verne’s works?”

  “No, but I have heard of him. I prefer my adventures to take place in the West with sheriffs and U.S. Marshals.”

  Archie nodded and wondered how truthful Miss Caulfield was about her abilities, and if she was untruthful, he could never hire her although all her other traits and credentials were of the highest quality. He reached behind his desk and handed a large book to Regina. “Please, open the book to any page. Read it and then hand it back to me.”

  Regina shrugged, took the book, flipped it open and scanned a page and handed the open book back to Archie.

  “All right,” Archie said. “Please tell me the gist of the page you read.”

  “I’d prefer to tell you exactly what I read.”

  “Certainly, go ahead,” Archie said and sat a bit mesmerized as he read along in the book while Regina recited the entire page word for word. Maybe it was a fluke, and he handed her the book back. “Try it again.”

  Regina again flipped the book open, read the page, handed the book back, and recited what she read.

  Archie leaned back in his chair and said, “I do believe Miss Caulfield that you would make a good agent. Of course, you would be trained by one of our existing agents, have a place to stay, a small wardrobe for your first case, and a small stipend.”

  “Of course, I understand. We all need to learn, but I am staying at a local hotel, have a considerable wardrobe, and an inheritance to support me.”

  Archie was not expecting her response, and he cleared his throat, “Yes, I see. You can work that out with Marianne, my secretary. We do have accommodations for all our new female agents.”

  “That’s acceptable. I didn’t want to cause you any undue expense. Thank you, Mister Gordon. I will do my best and not let you or the agency down,” Regina answered and held out her hand.

  Archie shook his newest agent’s hand and watched as she left his office. He was impressed by her education, abilities, personality, and dedication. Now, who to partner her with? Perhaps he should interview all the women and then decide, but something about her ability to memorize entire pages as soon as she read them brought Luke to mind. The former gambler was successful in his former career because of his ability to remember which cards had been played in previous hands. While he played as honestly as anyone who could remember those types of details, he was accused of cheating and barely escaped with his life after a night of gambling in St. Louis. Turning his talent into a helpful asset when becoming an agent along with his sharp mind and woman swooning good looks make Luke a formidable agent. Yes, he might do well with Miss Caulfield. Archie made some notes on Regina’s application and set it aside.

  ~ * ~

  Regina wanted to jump for joy, scream, giggle, laugh, and send a telegram to her step-mother just to let her know her step-daughter was now a Pinkerton Agent and she’d never be able to bully Regina again, but she held her emotions in check. She was, after all, an agent of the country’s finest detective agency and as such she needed to act dignified. The telegram could wait until later.

  Regina waited until Marianne escorted the next woman into Archie’s office and returned to her desk.

  Marianne smiled, “Since you are still here, I assume Archie hired you.”

  Regina returned the smile and nodded, “Yes, he did, and I’m excited. He told me to discuss wardrobe and living accommodations with you.”

  Marianne explained that all the new agents needed to stay in the accommodations the agency provided for training purposes. Regina was free to wear her own things if they were respectable. Marianne could tell from Regina’s manner that she didn’t need to add that, but it was part of Archie’s requirements.

  “You don’t know my step-mother,” Regina whispered. “Nothing I owned since she married my father would be considered anything but extremely proper and, to be honest, I prefer it that way.”

  “Excuse me,” Marianne said as a young woman scurried past her desk and out of the office. “I need to escort the next applicant to Mister Gordon’s office.”

  Regina nodded, “Of course.” She hadn’t met the young woman who apparently wasn’t hired, but she could feel for her. If Mister Gordon hadn’t hired her, what would she have done? This was her chance to do what she dreamed of and hoped for ever since she read her first dime novel and then read an article about Kate Warne.

  Marianne returned to her desk, and the two women continued their conversation. Regina assured Marianne she would return to her hotel and gather her things and return to the home where she and the other new lady detectives would reside. Regina rose to leave as another young woman approached Marianne’s desk. From the smile on her face, Regina knew she must have been hired and hoped to get to know her when they shared accommodations.

  Marianne waved at Regina as she left the office and began to speak to the second new agent wondering if any of the ladies would return if they knew that had to marry their agent-trainer. That was Archie’s problem Marianne thought as she greeted the young woman standing by her desk.

  Chapter Four

  Regina was mumbling to herself as she pulled on her blue traveling suit that matched her favorite blue hat. If she had to get married, she might as well look nice, but she didn’t like the idea. Imagine having to get married just to travel together and solve a crime. Ridiculous and she still had no idea who her groom would be.

  They met all the male agents and learned a lot from each. They were all talented, and Regina hoped she could live up to the Pinkerton reputation of excellence. Each had a distinctive personality, and she enjoyed meeting each of them except possibly Luke. That man was handsome beyond words, and he knew it. Maybe that was part of his agent persona. The man everyone liked and women loved. Regina snorted and caught herself before she laughed out loud. Yes, Luke Tucker was someone she’d avoid.

  The other female agents were in the process of dressing and primping for their weddings. Regina still wasn’t convinced how you could marry someone, travel together to solve a case, and then have the marriage annulled. For propriety’s sake indeed. It seemed more ludicrous than anything else. She shrugged as she gazed into the mirror and adjusted her hat. If it were protocol, she’d accept it, but she didn’t have to be happ
y about it. Not that she expected to be sent out on a case alone the first time, but if she and her male partner abided by the code of conduct, there wouldn’t be a need for marriage. Mister Gordon was just looking out for her reputation, she supposed. It would be a small price to pay to earn her status as an official agent.

  Regina’s thoughts were broken by her new friend, Arielle Bradford. Arielle’s soft accent always brought a smile to Regina’s face. Their love of literature drew them together, but their outlook on life and adventure bonded them. Each had thought of arriving early before the date mentioned in the paper hoping their determination would help them achieve their goal of becoming an agent. Neither knew if it did or not, but here they were newly hired agents in training and about to be married.

  “Are you ready?” Arielle asked.

  “As much as I can be. I hope these assignments don’t last for months and I can get back and have this marriage annulled as quickly as possible,” Regina confided.

  Arielle nodded and linked her arm with Regina’s as they strolled toward their futures.

  The two women arrived and looked around the large room full of men and women. Tables with food and beautiful white cakes stood against one wall. Archie was at the front of the room talking to Judge Hotchkiss. The judge was there to assure the legality of the proceedings, but Archie was going to perform the marriages.

  Regina stood quietly near the back wall of the room and watched her new friends marry one by one. She thought she’d been forgotten or didn’t make the grade after all when she heard Mister Gordon say, “Have I forgotten anyone?”

  Regina appeared from the back of the group and waved her hand. “Ahh, Regina. Yes, I remember you. I have you with Luke Tucker.” Archie looked around the room. “Where’s Luke? He was here a minute ago.”

  Luke walked out from behind the other couples. He cleared his throat and straightened his tie. “Ma’am,” he said as he reached for Regina’s arm.

  “Don’t touch me,” Regina snapped.

  “But, we’re getting married?” Luke stammered.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Regina whispered. “It’s in name only and don’t get any ideas about an after-wedding kiss. If you try, I’ll shoot you.”