Diana ducked her head. She dreaded to think what Adler Behr would say when he heard all the details of their escapade at the speakeasy and its outcome. “Yes, Dr. El, we saw the newspaper on the train. Miraculously, we were gone before that became public.”
“The timing was fortunate for us,” Dr. Elmsford agreed. “But it does remind us how easily we could have been involved in the inquiry.” He paused. “And still may be.” He cocked his head in Adler’s direction. “Has Trey explained the substance of our dilemma, Behr?”
“Most ridiculous thing I’ve heard since the last time you instigated some farce and Trey pulled some adolescent prank.” To Diana’s amazement, Adler Behr actually smiled. “Mind you, it wasn’t as well-planned as the time you put Procter’s Bearcat in the chemistry lab, but it was a much bigger risk. A couple of staid Eastern professors discovered in a Texas speakeasy in the company of two beautiful flappers? The scandal would have rocked the university and made faculty history.” His smile broadened. “Wish I’d been there.”
Wishes he’d been there? Diana almost choked on her coffee. Is there a sense of humor hidden somewhere inside that Horned Owl exterior? And did he say “two beautiful flappers” or was I hallucinating?
“Wish you had been too, Adler. You might have persuaded Charlie to tell his tale straight out, and we’d have been gone before anything more sinister happened.” Trey put one hand over Pam’s. “Then we’d at least have kept the girls out of the last act of that little drama.”
Elmsford puffed his pipe, sending a hint of smoke through the room. “Hindsight and wishful thinking aside, we find ourselves facing a change in our strategy. We had thought to send Diana to you, Behr, believing she’d be safely out of the reach of the men who might object to any living witness to their activities. As you are here, sending her on tonight is impractical. She knows no one and will not have help in Pfeiffer finding the people we wish to interview until you return. Therefore, she will not leave tonight. She’ll stay here, with her sister, where we can be certain she’s safe until we can make other arrangements.”
Adler Behr leaned back in his chair. “I’ve done what had to be done here. My duties are finished, though I still have responsibilities and will have for some time to come. I’d thought I’d be returning later in the week, but I can change my tickets. I find there’s a train late tomorrow evening. If it’s acceptable to Miss Woods, I’ll get tickets on that train for her as well.” He shifted his attention to Diana. “I believe I can still get Pullman sleeper accommodations, so you should be quite comfortable. We’ll be home before breakfast.”
“That’s a fine solution, Adler.” Trey spoke before Diana could answer. “As far as anyone knows, the Woods sisters are on their way to Colorado to visit an ailing aunt. The professors left the day before, planning to continue their investigations into the cowboy’s world in San Antonio. All very innocent and blameless. All far removed from a certain sordid event at a speakeasy in Fort Worth.”
“Unless someone somehow connects four people talking to Charlie at Tommy Gunn’s to a small squib in the paper about Sheldon Haver’s visit to that same local night spot.” Pamina gave Elmsford an apologetic look, her lips pinched and pale. “I feel an awful fool for giving that gossip columnist even a hint of what we saw.”
“Spilt milk and vain regrets.” Elmsford waved off her contrite words. “You couldn’t guess you were leaving a trail. You didn’t know both men would lose their lives.” He hid a brief smile behind his pipe. “Besides, my dear, just think of the tale a band of rather elderly, frequently ignored, scholars will have to tell back at our quiet world of academia. Our colleagues will be quite envious of our adventure. I may be premature, but I believe we’ll all find ourselves dining out far more often this fall. I could almost scold you for not including me in the outing.”
“Diana will stay with me tonight and leave with Mr. Behr tomorrow?” Pamina addressed her question to Elmsford. “What are we supposed to do between now and the time her train leaves? We can’t just hole up in that room all day.”
The men exchanged looks. “What is it that young women normally do when they find themselves with an unscheduled day in a strange city?” Pearce asked in honest confusion. “Read? Perhaps take in a lecture or visit an art gallery?”
Pamina laughed. “No, Archie. They go shopping. They visit a hairdresser. Have lunch at some elegant tea room. Or see if a Valentino movie is playing.”
“Is that what you’d like, Pamina? To go shopping or see a film?”
“I would, but I suspect we can’t do that, since we’re technically on the lam, to quote one of my reporter friends.”
King was fumbling in his pocket for a notebook. “You said ‘on the lam,’ didn’t you? Is that a current expression? Is ‘lam’ with or without a b? I take it to mean one is running away from an adversary?”
“Lam without a b, and yes, running like mad from the cops or some torpedo with a beef.”
“Torpedo with a beef. Very interesting.” King scribbled another line or two and put his notebook away, bending over to speak to Withers. “Remind me, when we are more settled, to spend an hour or two with Miss Pamina. I believe she can explain a good many of the current idioms. I’d like to record them. The English language is changing daily. Someone should take note of the colorful additions made by our younger generation.”
Seeing a possible way to put her time to good use before she had to deal with Behr in the confines of a train, Diana made a suggestion. “Dr. King, Pam and I could spend the morning tomorrow compiling a list of those ‘colorful expressions’ for you. If you have your machine accessible, I would be happy to make a typewritten copy for you to reference. Then, as you come across more, Pam could add to the list and give you the meanings. Would that be useful to you?” Diana ignored the sharp rap on the ankle from her exasperated sister’s French heel.
“That’s kind of you, Diana. Yes, I believe it would be most helpful.” King considered for a moment. “It might even help me to converse with my students. I think they might be quite astonished to find this fusty old professor speaking their private language.”
After they left the dining room and reached the room they would share for the night, Pamina, in quiet but definite words, told Diana she wasn’t enamored of the endeavor planned for the next day.
“I could have had a whole day with Trey,” she hissed. “A whole day. No, you volunteer us to stay in a stuffy room, making lists and pounding a typewriter. Don’t you get enough of that sort of thing every day? Why couldn’t you just go off somewhere with Adler Behr and leave me to practice my wiles on Trey?”
Diana grimaced at the thought of “going off” with the perplexing Mr. Behr. “You’re going to have days and days to spend batting your eyelashes at Trey. I don’t think Adler Behr would have any more interest in spending a day with me than I have in spending one with him.”
“Applesauce! Di, he’s a very attractive man. He’s not at all what I expected from your description. A bit intimidating, I suppose, with that intense way he has of looking down at you. But, golly, he’s so tall, he has to look down on almost everybody, and he’s got IT, and got it in spades. Why wouldn’t you want to spend a day with him?” Pam wriggled out of her silky dress and tossed it aside. “You’re going to be spending a lot more days with him in the near future, at least that’s what El has in mind. You might want to cultivate some warmer feelings, just to make the job a little easier.”
“To quote my favorite sister, ‘Applesauce!’ and get some sleep. We have a ‘King’-sized project to take on in the morning.” Diana stepped out of her dress and carefully put it on a padded hanger, ignoring the cushion Pam tossed at her.
“I will get even with you, I promise that. One of these days, someone will come along. Some swell will finally get Miss Diana interested, and you’re going to want me to help you out. Too bad, because I’m going to be all tied up with other business. Then we’ll see what’s applesauce and what’s not. And I’m going to remin
d you. Often.”
****
Even Diana was ready to admit spending the day compiling a glossary of modern slang for Dr. King was a mistake by the time Trey and Pamina took her to the train station. More than ready to get away from her typewriter and to see something besides the room she’d shared with her sister, after dinner Diana packed her bags and put them by the door. Pamina’s belongings still cluttered the room, bits of lace and flowered frocks scattered where she had dropped them.
“It’s going to feel funny not having you with me all the time. Nobody to share the day with or scold me for staying out late or reminding me to pick up after myself. We’ve never spent a single night apart since you were born.” Pam tugged her hat down, took it off, and still not satisfied with the result, glared at the reflection in the mirror. “If I don’t get a haircut, I’ll be as wooly as old Withers.” She sighed and put the hat back on. “I don’t suppose it matters as long as I can keep up with the dictation without giggling too much at the subject matter. Your muzzy old owls will want you back in two days if they realize I don’t take their quibbling as seriously as you do.”
Diana hugged her sister. “Don’t be a dope. The owls adore you. Just like every other man in the world, they think you’re the cat’s pajamas. You’ll have Trey around all the time, like a fly following the honey. You’ll be fine. I’m the one who should be frantic about leaving. I have to deal with Adler Behr, and that’s no picnic.”
“Poor little bunny, are you scared of him?”
“Not scared, just not comfortable. He doesn’t approve of women who work in a man’s world. I don’t think working with me is going to change his mind, either. Didn’t you see how grim he was every time our little band said something positive about me or my work?”
Pam laughed. “All I saw was one handsome Texas banker who couldn’t stop looking at my spiffy sister in her glad rags.”
Trey’s knock at the door interrupted any more discussion of Adler Behr. As she opened the door, Diana was relieved to see Trey was alone.
“Adler got your tickets, Diana, and left them with me. Here they are.” He passed a blue envelope to her. “He said he had some things to do but would see you on the train.” Trey glanced at the two bags by the door. “Is that everything?”
“Everything but my train case. I’ll carry that.”
“My sisters couldn’t spend one night at our grandmother’s house without twice that much luggage. Glad to see some women can travel light.”
As soon as the bellman transported her bags, Diana followed Trey and her sister down the sweeping staircase and out to the waiting car. Heavy rain showers off and on through the day had left the evening cooler, with a light breeze pushing the last of the clouds across the sky. The big red car rolled through damp streets to the train station while soft pastels began to paint the sky. Diana watched the bustling city, half again as big as Fort Worth, as the car flowed with the traffic, wishing she weren’t going to a small town halfway across the state. She was a city girl and had no longing for rural life. Implacably the car rolled through the streets and up to the doors of the train station. Trey took her overnight bag and summoned a redcap for the rest of her luggage. He and Pamina insisted on going through the station to help her find her train. At the far end, she saw the M-K-T huffing and shaking in preparation for departure.
“The Katy is about ready, and this is your car, Diana.” Trey handed her the train case and tucked a candy bar into her hand. “You may need this later. Now, your bags are being loaded, and your sleeper will be made up by the time you’re ready for it. Adler said he’d meet you in the lounge car. I’m not sure where he’s berthed, but he’ll find you as soon as he’s on board.”
“I know you’re going to have a wonderful trip, Di.” Pamina’s hug warmed her heart, but Diana could have done without the whispered admonition her sister added. “Adler isn’t exactly the worst companion you could find, either. Give him a little encouragement.”
“Let me hear from you.” She looked up at Trey. “Mr. Behr will always know how to find me, and you can contact him to let me know what you’re up to or if there’s trouble.”
“You’ll get word, Diana. I don’t think anyone will be trying to follow any of us, but if there’s even a hint they’ve traced us, I’ll get in touch with Adler immediately. We’ll let you know when we’re headed your way. It’s safer if we keep communications to a minimum otherwise.”
Reluctantly Diana had to agree. Who knew what connections Tommy Gunn might have among the criminal class of Dallas? Or who he might know in San Antonio? She also had to assume the police would have the means to share information with other cities as well. Their little group could only hope no one had made a connection that would bring them unwanted attention.
“I understand, Trey. It’s hard, but I’ll see you in a few weeks.” She managed a weak smile. “Just make sure you look after my sister. She’s apt to leap across the bar ditch without looking to see what’s at the bottom of it.”
Trey reached for Pamina’s hand and squeezed it. Diana saw the sparkle in Pam’s blue eyes. “Don’t worry, my dear. I’ll make Pam and her well-being my personal concern. I won’t let her out of my sight.”
The whistle blew, signaling the train was ready to board even as the conductor called out to the waiting passengers. Diana gave her sister a last hug, clasped hands with Trey, and rushed up the steps. The car was packed with milling passengers searching for their assigned places, and it took her some time to work her way to the back of the car, checking her ticket for the space that matched her number.
She located it just as the train gave a sharp lurch, knocking her book and handbag out of her hands and tumbling her into the seat with her hat tipped over her eyes. She barely managed to keep a grip on her travel case. Pushing her hat up, she took a quick look around to see if she’d had an audience for her awkward tumble. No, she appeared to have the space to herself. Scanning the ticket, she saw she was assigned to a lower berth. Relieved she wouldn’t have to clamber into the folded-away upper, she pushed her bag under the seat and reached for her book, prepared to take a few minutes to unwind from the day. Then she remembered Trey had said she was to meet Adler in the lounge car as soon as she could.
I suppose I may as well get that first encounter behind me. Adler Behr and I need to come to some kind of understanding before I start my work for my sweet old owls. He may not approve of women going to work, but he’s going to have to adjust to the reality.
Choosing to get that hurdle out of the way, Diana smoothed the skirt of her gray suit, checked to be sure the seams of her stockings were straight, and tightened the gentlemanly tie under the collar of her overblouse. Certain she was tidy, she took her handbag and started for the lounge car two cars ahead.
****
The lounge car was almost empty when Diana entered. Two men were playing cards in one booth, and at the other end, a man and a woman were staring intently into each other’s eyes, oblivious to the rest of the world. She took the smallest booth, one in the center, where the window gave her a view of the setting sun, and ordered a cup of coffee.
“I hope you haven’t been waiting long, Miss Woods.”
Adler Behr’s voice rumbled behind her just slightly louder than the click-clack of the wheels. She turned to assure him she’d only been in the car a moment, but her words stopped in her throat. Adler Behr wasn’t alone. Beside him, a small girl of perhaps four trotted merrily, taking two skipping steps to each of his. Her flaxen braids brushed the shoulders of her smocked green dress, and her blue eyes danced, trying to see everything at once.
“Uh, no, I’ve only been here long enough to order coffee.”
The little girl clambered onto the bench seat and knelt so she could look out at the passing countryside. “Look, Unkler, the sky’s all pink and gold. And the sun’s going down to bed.”
“And so will you, in just a little while.”
“In the funny shelf thing over your bed.” She leaned clo
ser to the window and waved. “Night-night, Mr. Sun.”
Diana would never have expected such an indulgent look to wash over Adler Behr’s somewhat stern countenance. Clearly he doted on the little girl.
“The reason I was delayed getting to the station, Miss Woods.” He glanced toward the child waving at the sun. “I had to get Elizabeth. It became a bit more complicated than I expected.”
“There’s a bigger window on that side.” The child squirmed down to dart to the larger observation portal and peer into the golden light. “Come see, Unkler.”
“Yes, I see, but you need to come back and sit with us. You can see the sunset from here.”
The little girl hesitated, gave another long look at the brilliant colors, and reluctantly came back. “Not as pretty over here.”
“Same sunset, Elizabeth. We can all see the big window from here.”
“Your daughter is a lovely little girl.”
Behr brushed a hand over the silken braids. “Not my daughter, no. Elizabeth is my niece, my sister’s child.”
“Unkler came to take care of me ’cause Mama had to go to Heaven. Now I’m going to live with him and Papa, so Mama won’t worry about me. She said she’d be well in Heaven.”
Adler lifted Elizabeth into the booth and turned her attention to the passing terrain. “There’s your sunset, young lady. See the way the clouds are spreading color over the sky?” Elizabeth knelt on the seat to look out at the flood of gold filling the vista beyond. He turned back to Diana and lowered his voice. “That’s what called me away from Fort Worth. I had word that my sister was very ill, too ill to take care of the little one here. I went to see what could be done. Unfortunately, nothing more could be done. She was dying, and she knew it. I was able to ease her mind a little by assuring her I would take Elizabeth home and Papa and I would see she had everything—a home, a family, a good place to grow up.”
Elizabeth twisted around on the padded bench. “Do you think Mama can see the sunset, Unkler? She always said she liked the gold ones best.”
Diana and the Three Behrs Page 11