by P. Creeden
“Pay attention, Ruby,” Savannah said with a smile, pointing out the window. “We’re getting close to Denver. Do you see how the houses are getting closer together along the way? That’s always a sign that you’re getting closer to a town. The houses outside of Denver are very close. It’s much bigger than Hartford area. You’ll see.”
As if Ruby’s excitement was catching, Savannah sat on the edge of her seat and spoke a pitch higher than usual. Lucas smiled at his wife lovingly before turning to Ruby. “Just stay close to us in the station. It often gets crowded, much more crowded than the other train depots where we’ve been. Because we have luggage, we’ll take a stagecoach to our house. It’s not more than about half a mile from the Pinkerton Agency. I sent a telegram to Marianne to let her know to expect your arrival. So no worries there. Just settle into the hustle and bustle of the city and then we’ll take you over to apply for a position and talk to Archie Gordon after a day or two. He’s a good chap, fair and upright. You’ll get along with everyone smashingly, I’m certain. And don’t worry about whether they’ll accept you for a position. You’re smart and because you already understand the circumstances that come with being a female agent, you’re a shoe-in.”
She swallowed hard and nodded. “Thank you.”
Even though she wanted to say more, she couldn’t think of words to express how she was feeling. Everything was so overwhelming but promising. She’d never been certain about her future before. She’d thought that she’d be married off to someone back in Hartford, that she’d be a homemaker, like her mother. At Vassar, she’d studied music and had hoped to perhaps become a singing instructor. It would have helped her make pocket money the way that their mother did when she made extra baked goods for the baker to sell in his store up the street on Mondays, allowing the baker to spend more time with his family over the weekend.
Now things were heading in entirely different direction. Ruby wasn’t sure if she’d ever want to be married, because she felt so free in this moment. Free of the overpowering influence of men. Free from being told she had to become or do anything. Free from the feeling that a man might become less than a gentleman around her. Could she really give all of this up and become someone’s wife?
At least for a short time, she knew that she would.
The train whistle blew, and a squeal rent the air as the brakes began to slow the train down. Ruby’s heart leapt toward her throat. They were in Denver. She was finally at the place where everything would change. This would be the beginning of a new life for her, and she felt hopeful for it.
Once the train came to a complete stop, Savannah and Lucas both stood, but made a gesture for Ruby to stay with them. Both of them had the habit of waiting for the rest of the train car to disembark before heading for the exits themselves. Although Ruby was anxious to leave the train, she also had that feeling of dread return again. What if things didn’t turn out the way she hoped? What if the man she was assigned wasn’t quite the gentleman that Lucas was? She closed her eyes and breathed deeply while they stood there waiting. She needed to have faith and believe that this was all part of God’s plan for her life. She needed to trust him. He’d not done one thing so far to show her that He was not for her. Just the fact that she was here, in Denver was evidence to His hand on her life. She took a moment to pray for thanks for the blessings that she’d received and the safe travels they’d had. Then she opened her eyes and followed her sister toward the exit of the train.
In the course of a week and a half, John Mark had completed two missions with his brother and found him to be an asset in both cases. His brother was smarter than he’d expected, stronger, and able to think quickly on his feet. Whether it had been the years at college that had taught him to do so well, or if it was just the nature of a Lee brother, he wasn’t sure, but he was happy to see that his brother was doing better than he’d expected. They’d returned from the last mission two days ago and had finally gotten to spend some leisure time at the bunkhouse on the Pinkerton Agency compound. John Mark lay on the top bunk of his bed with his hands folded behind his head, staring up at the plain white ceiling, admiring the artistic strokes the mason had but in the plaster.
It was truly a blessing that neither John Mark nor his brother worked labor with their hands. It was what he’d wanted for his father as well. Opening a mercantile in Buchanan might be just the thing to help his father have a better life. Now that his brother was here, John Mark began to long to see his parents. Maybe he could take some time in the summer, near his mother’s birthday and surprise them. It would be a joy to see them both, he started to believe it after the pleasant reunion he’d been able to experience with his brother.
The quiet of the room was put to an end when Geoffrey came barging back into the room. “Johnny! There’s a girl here... I mean a lady... a really pretty one. She’s applying to be a female agent. Mrs. Gordon... I mean Marianne. She wants us to come down to Archie’s office.”
John Mark’s heart leapt into his throat as he sat partway up and leaned over the top of the bunk. His jaw flexed as he tightened it. “Both of us?”
Geoffrey nodded. “That’s what she said. The lady is really really pretty.”
A frown tugged at John Mark’s lip. Beauty was only skin deep and hard to hold. It didn’t matter if a girl was pretty. It was what she was like that mattered. Being pretty could even be a bit of a liability when it came to being a Pinkerton Agent. She would stand out—and having the ability of blending in was one of the assets that John Mark cultivated. He slid down from the bunk and landed on the floor with flat feet, knees bent. Then he straightened and looked his brother in the eye. “What are you so excited about?”
“There are no other experienced agents here to train her right? Just you, right? So does that mean that you’ll be working with her on a case?” he asked, his eyes still sparkling.
John Mark narrowed his eyes at his younger brother. No one had explained yet the marriage policy that the agency had for new female agents-in-training. Had John Mark’s number finally come up? Dread overcame him. What was he going to do? Geoffrey was right that the two of them were the only agents around. Certainly, after only completing two small missions, they wouldn’t be sending Geoffrey off to train a new agent. That only left John Mark. For a long moment, he just stood there, thinking that maybe it was time to retire from this life as a Pinkerton Agent. Maybe he could move back to Virginia and help his father out in this store that he was thinking of starting.
Foolish thoughts. His father would never really get the money to start the store at all unless he got the portion that John Mark was sending him as well as what Geoffrey planned to send. His hands fisted and then unfisted. The circulation in them felt a bit poor so that his fingertips tingled. Everything, even fate, seemed to be failing him in this moment.
Geoffrey slapped John Mark on the shoulder and then pushed him gently toward the bunkhouse door. “Come on. Let’s go meet this lady agent.”
Spots crowded John Mark’s vision as his heart thrummed in his chest. He followed his brother’s leading, but blindly and he hardly noticed each step he took only keeping himself from stumbling. He felt as a man might if he was facing the hangman’s noose. Was he being dramatic? Perhaps, but the last thing he wanted to do was be saddled with training a new girl, much less marrying her, even if it was supposedly only on paper.
When they reached Archie’s office, John Mark finally looked up. Yes, the girl was pretty in a universal way. Blonde hair, fair skin, delicate features. No one could deny her beauty. She might even have been the kind of beauty that would start wars and launch ships, like Helen of Troy. But there was something haunting those dark eyes of hers. It wasn’t just that she looked a bit unsure of herself or even innocent. It was pain there and a suffering that only she knew about. When she smiled, it seemed she wore a mask over the anguish he’d seen there a moment before.
Archie cleared his throat. “John Mark and Geoffrey Lee, I’d like you to meet Ruby Lockwood. Sh
e is the sister of Savannah McKay, Lucas’s wife and partner.”
“They are brothers?” Ruby asked, her eyes widening slightly as she took in both of them.
John Mark swallowed as the trill of her voice sent a shiver down his spine and made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. How could he be so affected by the sound of her voice? It wasn’t like he’d never heard a pretty woman speak before. His hands fisted again, only this time he was admonishing himself to calm down. The last thing a pretty lady needed to know was the effect she had on a man. It could be his ruin—his downfall—if she discovered the control she had over him. He nodded, but Geoffrey answered, “Yes, we are.”
Somehow the knowledge seemed to relax the woman’s shoulders. Maybe it was because she was coming in as the sister of one of the other agents. Maybe that had made her felt uncomfortable or that others might think nepotism was involved in her gaining a position here. Either way, John Mark felt better that her heart was on her sleeve. A woman whose emotions were easy to read was usually less likely to be full of guile, and guile was the last thing he wanted in a potential partner.
“Ruby comes to us from Connecticut and is ready to go on her first mission. She understands all of the stipulations involved in becoming an agent-in-training. So, John Mark, are you ready to become her training agent?” Archie asked in that Scottish accent of his.
He didn’t want to answer for a long moment, but he felt that it was his duty. If he didn’t go through with this, he wouldn’t be able to send money to his parents back east. If he didn’t, it was possible that Geoffrey would have to. Neither of these two things were ones that John Mark wanted to see come to fruition. Slowly, he nodded. “I am.”
Archie clapped his hands together gently. “Excellent. Then Geoffrey, will you be a witness?”
Geoffrey’s brows furrowed as he looked between Archie and John Mark. “Witness to what?”
John Mark swallowed hard before answering, “A wedding.”
Chapter 8
”You don’t have to go through with this, Johnny. It wouldn’t stand up in court,” Geoffrey said with his frown deepening. “It’s preposterous that they are asking Pinkerton Agents to do with this. I cannot believe that the men have tolerated it for so long. As a lawyer, I advise you that this isn’t necessary. We can take the agency to court. We can inform the newspaper what is going on here. I’m surprised someone hasn’t done this already.”
“You’re getting yourself worked up over nothing,” John Mark said, even though he felt better just hearing his brother say the words. “Even if what you’re saying is true, it’s not really a big deal you know. It’s not like this is a real marriage. It’s just a contract on paper. Judge Hotchkiss is prepared to annul the marriage upon my return. We can rest assured in that. It will be like this marriage has never happened.”
Geoffrey’s lips thinned, but stayed clamped together while he glared at him. Then he finally shook his head. “If that’s what you believe, fine. But I’m not happy about this situation. It scoffs in the face of both the institution of marriage as well as the law of contracts. It’s a travesty.”
John Mark nodded, feeling giddy as his brother defended both him and the fact that he was putting into words all the things that John Mark felt about this marriage of convenience, himself. Footsteps scuffed at the top of the stairs, drawing both their eyes to the landing. Marianne led Ruby down the last few steps and around the banister. John Mark’s heart skipped a beat. The light behind Ruby made her look angelic as she wore an all white dress with a high neckline. Her hair had been pinned up to show the rest of her long, swan-like neck. If John Mark had been one to believe in love at first sight, he’d have thought himself struck by it. He bit the inside of his cheek to wake himself from the stupor he felt. Her beauty was making him drunk, like wine, but the metallic taste of blood in his mouth from the wound he’d inflicted was waking him to the fact that she was not just an ornament or an object to be lusted after. She was his partner and agent-in-training. He took his job very seriously, and this would be no exception.
When the two of them stood in front of Judge Hotchkiss, Ruby set her gloved hand in John Mark’s. The heat of her fingers warmed his heart, even though there was a slip of fabric between her skin and his. He wondered for half a moment what the touch of her skin might feel like. Then he pushed that thought back down as it only made his heart start thrumming again. The vows they spoke were simple and not quite the same as he’d heard in other wedding ceremonies. The concentration of the promises they made to one another was upon respecting and protecting each other, rather than loving and cherishing. And that was just fine by John Mark. Afterward, they both signed the marriage certificate. Geoffrey frowned deeply as he bent over to sign as a witness. He glared at Archie and then narrowed his eyes at everyone to let them know the displeasure he felt as he did so.
Ruby let out a long breath. “That much is over with then.”
Her hand still rested in his. “Yes, it is.”
“Now do we find out what mission we’ll be fulfilling? I’m ready to get past this and on to the next task,” she said, but her eyes were wide and her voice had the slightest tremble to it.
He squeezed her hand to reassure her. “Whatever it is, I’m sure that we can handle it. As I promised in my vows, I’m here to train and protect you. I plan on fulfilling my promises.”
The slightest smile came to her lips, though wrinkles appeared around her strained eyes. She pulled her hand from his fingers. “Thank you.”
It was a stiffness she’d not had before. Was it part of the costume she’d grown accustomed to wearing, like the mask of a smile? Although there were times when her emotions were easily read and she seemed vulnerable, there were other times when she clammed up tightly and became much harder to distinguish. His hand felt the slightest chill at the loss of her heat. Marianne came over and gave Ruby a gentle hug. “Now, follow me to Archie’s office and we’ll get you started on the case you two will be working on. Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Ruby answered, standing a bit straighter.
“As ever,” John Mark said and then started for the door. His brother grabbed hold of his arm, forcing him to turn around for a second.
Geoffrey leaned in toward him and whispered harshly, “Are you sure about this, brother?”
“It’s only on paper. Everything will be fine. It will be just like when we went on our training missions together. I’m accustomed to this. Not to worry.” He tried to add a bit of bravado into his words, more than he felt. He hoped that he’d convinced his brother of his surety, even if he was much more unsure than he let on.
With a shake of the head, Geoffrey released his arm, and John Mark headed into the office after Marianne and Ruby. There, behind the desk, Archie sat, shuffling papers around. Finally, he settled on the one he was looking for and then sat down, paper in hand. He skimmed it with his eyes before looking back up at the two of them. “There has been a rash of saloon girl abductions in Texas. It started with two in Frisco and three in Dallas. The marshals believe that the culprits are moving west, and expect that Fort Worth is the next stop in their spree. There are two marshals in the town now, undercover and watching things. They specifically requested a female Pinkerton agent to pose as a saloon girl for the job. At first, I intended to send Savannah and Lucas, when they got back from their vacation in Connecticut, but when Ruby arrived, and I heard about her singing talents, I feel that she would make much better bait.”
“Bait?” John Mark asked, frowning. “Isn’t this too dangerous a mission for a rookie agent? She’s got no experience going undercover, and certainly none in saloons. She’s not even from the west.”
“It’s all right,” Ruby said, setting a hand on John Mark’s shoulder. “I can get a job in a saloon in Fort Worth and sing there. I don’t mind being bait. You said that there are two marshals in town already and Johnny will be there?”
John Mark’s skin prickled when she’d said his nickname. Only his
family called him Johnny. Heat rushed to his cheeks, but he didn’t correct her.
Archie nodded. “You won’t know who the marshals are in town unless they decide to reveal themselves to you. They are undercover and so are you. So be careful with everyone you meet. The only thing they will know is that you are to wear a red rose in your hair whenever you’re in the saloon. That’s how they’ll know you’re the Pinkerton Agent we send. Can you do that?”
“It’s a bit early in the spring for roses, isn’t it?” Ruby asked with a laugh.
“There’s a hot house here in Denver where you can get a few to start with, and from what I understand, Spring comes earlier in Texas, and the roses are already starting to bloom,” Archie said with a smile.
The only one not smiling still was John Mark. Nothing about this mission felt easy or safe. He wasn’t thrilled with how things were heading, but right now, it seemed that he didn’t have much say in it, as Archie and Ruby spoke, they were already making plans without him. He was being tossed about in the current like a paper boat. The only thing he hoped for was that he wouldn’t get waterlogged and sink.
The train ride to Frisco was much shorter than the one Ruby had taken all the way from her home in Connecticut. She was glad that she got to spend three days in her sister’s home before setting off on another journey again, so soon. But the train ride wasn’t even the worst of it. They then spent nearly all day long in a stagecoach to run the fifty miles between Frisco and Fort Worth. When they finally arrived in Fort Worth, they found the town to be a rather open and bustling city as they could imagine with three general stores and eight saloons. Ruby swallowed hard as she peered about, growing nervous. Although she’d auditioned for musicals and ensembles in school, this would be her first time auditioning for a working position. She didn’t know if she was quite ready for that.