A Changed Agent (3 page)

“It’s best if she answers for herself, Mr. Benton. She needs to get used to interacting with me.” Directing her gaze to Minnie, she asked, “Can you tell me how your reading is coming along?”

Minnie fidgeted in her chair, then stood up, walked over to Harry, and whispered in his ear. It was Harry who said, “She’s halfway through the first-year primer, Miss Mitchell.”

“You’re doing quite well now, aren’t you, Minnie?” Miss Mitchell looked over the top of the children’s heads to Will. “Mr. Benton, might I have a word with you outside?”

He followed her out into the warming air. The sun was rising over one of the high peaks that surrounded the town, burning off the morning fog, drying the dewy grass, and warming the brisk spring air. Heartston was beginning to wake up. Will inhaled the smell of the fresh-baked bread coming from the bake shop. He watched as store owners hung out their “Open for Business” signs.

“The child’s shyness is quite severe,” Miss Mitchell said. “Do you know what the cause of it is?”

Turning the brim of his hat in his hands, Will pondered her question.

“Minnie and Harry’s parents—my sister and her husband—died in an accident six months ago. As far as I know, she hasn’t spoken to anyone other than her brother since then.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss. This has to be a most difficult time for you and the children.”

“Have you ever worked with a child with Minnie’s ailment before?” Will asked.

“I haven’t seen anything as acute as this. Has she been living with you since her parents’ death?”

He shook his head. “I only took charge of them a few days ago.” His remaining sister, Mary Beth, had taken custody of the children first. Then she’d selfishly decided to put her needs above theirs, telling Will there wasn’t room in her life for children. She was a downright mean-spirited woman, set in her ways. He’d tried convincing her to keep Harry and Minnie until the fall, thinking that perhaps this particular assignment would be over and he’d be able to help out, but his words had fallen on deaf ears.

A myriad of emotions flickered through her violet eyes. “I see.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” He hadn’t meant to sound defensive, but he was tired and frustrated. He knew that Minnie’s condition would get better with time; he just hoped it would be sooner rather than later.

Her hands went to her hips as she frowned at him. “It means that Minnie will have to be handled with special care. I imagine it’s a very big thing for those children to be in a new place, with a new parent, and now having to make new friends. Don’t you understand how that might feel, Mr. Benton?”

Narrowing her eyes, she studied him, and then, with her head cocked to one side, her gaze softened. “Or are you one of those so hardened by life that you can’t even care?”

His hackles rose. “Look here, lady, I cared enough to bring them with me to this town while I’m starting a new job! I cared enough to agree to bring you into their new home. And I cared enough to bring them to school today.”

“Raising children is more than just putting them in school for the day. But I suspect most single men in your position would have left them at the nearest orphanage. So I do commend you for taking them in.”

Despite his anger, he managed to say thank you as he looked beyond her to the children streaming into the school yard. “It must be near time to start your day.”

She waved to a few of the students as they began climbing the steps.

A little girl with dark-haired pigtails tugged at her skirt. “Miss Mitchell, I can write my
A
’s perfectly. I practiced on our break, just like you told me to.”

“Good job, Clara.” She patted the child on the back. “Why don’t you go in and sit in the front row today? We have some new students, and I think you’ll be just the one to help them out.”

“Thank you, Miss Mitchell!” Beaming, the girl ran up the rest of the steps into the classroom.

Will didn’t want to leave the children. The feeling was unexpected. He’d thought he’d be happy to leave them in good hands while he took the time he needed to get settled. Instead, his stomach twisted into a ball of knots. What if Minnie thought he was abandoning her?

“Let me come back inside to say good-bye to Harry and Minnie.” He waited while she went ahead of him up the stairs. “Is there some paperwork I need to fill out?”

“No. I can have them tell me, or rather, Harry can tell me about their schooling. Simple testing should indicate where they left off in their studies.”

The excited chatter of the students spilled out the door. Following the teacher into the room, he began to feel marginally better about leaving the twins in her care. But then he noticed the metal lunch buckets lined up below the coats in the open coat closet. It never occurred to him to make lunches for the children.

“I didn’t pack lunches for Harry and Minnie.”

“Please, don’t worry, Mr. Benton. I always bring extra just in case.” She smiled up at him. “The children will be fine, trust me. Children are some of God’s most resilient creatures.”

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For putting my mind at ease.”

“It’s all part of my job. And you’re welcome. Now come say your good-byes.”

The students gathered around her as she walked up the wide aisle, each of them vying for her attention. It became even clearer to Will how much they adored her. He spotted Clara sitting on the right side of Minnie. Harry was dutifully keeping a watch on his sister. Will wished even harder for Minnie’s speech to return so that the boy could make new friends on his own. Hearing his heavy-booted footfalls, they turned to look up at him.

Squatting next to Harry, he said, “I have to leave now. You’ll be in good hands with Miss Mitchell. Don’t give her any trouble.”

“We’ll be good, Uncle Will.”

Minnie hugged Hazel closer to her chest, looking at him without a smile, and Will thought he saw a well of wariness and a few unshed tears in her eyes. Knowing he was leaving them in capable hands helped him exit the building alone.

His boss had given him the rest of the week to settle in, making it very clear there were two things he had to accomplish in that time. He had to get the house livable for the children and see that the apartment was put in order for Miss Mitchell.

Following the directions Oliver had given him, Will found the house on South Street. It was in better shape than he’d imagined. The white clapboard, two-story building stood on a corner lot. A picket fence surrounded the front yard. A few pickets were missing here and there. The front porch, though sagging, would suffice. He could see where the steps had been recently repaired.

Unlocking the front door, he entered a narrow, musty-smelling hallway through a curtain of cobwebs. Brushing the webs from his clothes, he moved farther into the house. The wide floorboards creaked under his feet. To the right was a small room that probably had served as a parlor at one time. On the left was a doorway that led to a large kitchen with a cook stove and a sink. Brushing aside more cobwebs, he made his way to the staircase. The newel post was shaky, and a few of the steps creaked under his weight. Upstairs there were three bedrooms. He thought it would be nice for each of them to have their own, but he worried that Minnie wouldn’t want to be separated from her brother.

Back downstairs he found a doorway off the kitchen, leading to a small apartment. Here there was a bedroom, a small washroom, and a sitting area. He hoped Miss Mitchell could live in these sparse quarters. Remembering the silk stockings that had fallen out of her trunk at the train station, he knew she might expect more finery. It had been a long time since he’d shared a living space, and Will didn’t know a thing about Miss Mitchell’s habits.

Was she an early riser? From what he’d seen of the tidiness of the schoolroom, he guessed she would keep her rooms neat. And he never did ask if she knew how to cook. Good meals would be nice to come home to after a long day. Still, the one thing that set in his mind was the fact that he’d be sharing his life with another person, someone who might very well want to know about things he couldn’t reveal.

As Agent Oliver had said, Will would have to figure out how to make this arrangement work. Backing out of the rooms, he felt satisfied he’d made the best decision. For him, this house seemed like a gift from God. With a solid roof over his head and sturdy floorboards beneath his feet, Will had no doubt he’d be comfortable settling in here. This house was a darned sight better than most places he’d laid his head. But for Miss Mitchell, it might not be enough. Still, the condition of the house would have to suffice. Will shouldn’t be worrying over her . . . and yet he found the violet-eyed woman was never far from his thoughts.

If he was going to get through the chores, he couldn’t ponder the situation any longer. He shut the door, going back into the cooking area to begin the inventory of the house’s contents. By the time he was finished, he had a list of food supplies as well as another list detailing what repairs needed to be made. He didn’t need to worry about the trunks because Roy Wells would have them brought over.

Going back through each room, he pulled the dusty white sheets off the furniture and opened a few windows to let out the musty smell. Never far from the back of his mind was the real reason he was here. On a normal assignment he would have already known where the contacts could be found, but then again this was as far from a normal assignment as one could get. But he was quite good at adjusting to the unexpected. After all, as a Pinkerton agent, he had to be. Finally feeling in control of the situation at hand, confident he could get the job done and provide for the children, he set about the rest of his day.

Leaving the house, he walked into the village. Unsure of where exactly the dry-goods store was located, he stopped a young lad who was busy sweeping the walkway in front of a shop to ask for directions.

He pointed down the street. “Heartston’s Dry Goods is two doors on the right, past the telegraph office, mister.”

Tipping his hat, Will followed the directions. The doorway outside the large two-story building was flanked by barrels and stacks of crates. A man stepped out from behind the ones to Will’s right. He wore a long canvas apron and carried an armful of packages that were about to topple over.

“Howdy! Mind getting that door for me?”

“Sure thing.” Will stepped in front of the man to get the door.

“Thanks. My wife is under the weather, so I’m working at our store by myself today.”

Will followed him into the store, blinking at the items spread out before him. One side of the store held fabrics and sewing notions, while the other was filled with canned goods and every type of household utensil imaginable.

The man set the packages on the countertop. “What can I get for you?”

“I’m setting up a house. So I need cooking supplies. Canned food, sugar, flour. I’m sure there are a lot of things I’m forgetting.”

Pushing his glasses up his nose, the man studied Will. “You new here in town?”

“I am.”

“Thought so. I know everybody for miles in these parts. Sooner or later they all come here for supplies. I’m Francis Moore.”

“Will Benton.”

Francis stuck his hand out and Will shook it.

“Do you get a lot of new people here in Heartston?” Mr. Moore seemed like a fountain of information about the locals.

“Not so much. Usually just a few lumberjacks coming on for the season. Sometimes we get visitors off the weekly stagecoach. None that I noticed lately, though. Families like yours are few and far between.” He took a pair of scissors from behind the counter and cut the string off one of the packages. Still holding the scissors, he asked, “If you don’t mind my asking, where is this house of yours?”

“Over behind the church.” Will saw that the package contained bolts of fabric.

“Only one place over there that’s been empty. Ida Oliver’s old place. Is that where you’re staying?”

Will nodded.

“I’m surprised John is letting the place go.”

“He’s letting me live there as part of my salary with his lumber company.”

Mr. Moore gave Will another once-over. “I guess you
could
be a lumberjack.”

Will hid a grin, then walked over to the section of the store where the canned goods were kept.

“Give me your list, and I’ll help you get started.”

“I’ve got the list right here.” He handed it to the man.

Mr. Moore glanced over the piece of paper and asked, “How many you buying for?”

“Three of us.” Quickly, Will corrected himself. “No, make that four.”

“You don’t know how many you’ve got living in your house?” The man slanted him a look. “Kids?”

The man was sharp, no doubt about it. He’d make a good agent. “Two kids.”

“Family of four, then.” Joining him in the aisle, the man began handing Will all sorts of cans. When his arms were bulging and he feared he couldn’t fit one more can inside them, the man added another can of beans and then ushered Will back to the counter.

The cans tumbled out of Will’s grip onto the countertop.

“I expect you’ll be needing a sack of flour, sugar, cornmeal . . . Didn’t your wife bring any of that stuff with her when you moved here?”

“You sure are a nosy fella.”

The man winked at him. “Just trying to make sure you got enough stores for your family.”

“I think this will do.” After paying for the goods and arranging to have the supplies delivered, Will left the store.

Then he made his way over to the schoolhouse to pick up Harry and Minnie. Brushing off his dusty pants and tucking in his shirttail, he realized he was even looking forward to seeing the schoolmarm again.

Chapter Three

All in all, Elsie thought Harry and Minnie’s first day had gone well. The other children had been welcoming, and although Minnie hadn’t left her brother’s side, Harry managed to make a few new friends. Gently laying a hand on their shoulders, Elsie walked them out into the warm afternoon. She shielded her eyes from the bright sunlight and spotted Mr. Benton waiting at the bottom of the steps. He appeared to have had a hard day’s work. His clothes still had a bit of dust and dirt smudges on them. Harry and Minnie scampered toward him.

“Uncle Will!” Harry practically threw himself into his uncle’s arms, but at the last moment drew up short.

She noticed how their uncle held his arms at his sides, not reaching out when Harry came to him. He seemed to have no idea how to interact with the children. She longed to tell him that touching and holding Harry wouldn’t bring either of them any harm.

Minnie followed at a slower pace. It broke Elsie’s heart to know that the girl was in so much emotional pain and that Harry still wasn’t sure about how to act around his uncle. She had no doubt that losing their parents had crushed their spirits.

“Hello, Harry,” Mr. Benton said. “How was your first day at school?”

“It was good.”

He looked up at Elsie for confirmation. She nodded. “They had a good first day, Mr. Benton. I take it you had a busy day without the children to distract you?”

“I was at the house, attempting to make it livable.”

“That house hasn’t been lived in for quite some time. There must have been a mess of spiderwebs to greet you.”

“Spiderwebs and a mountain of dust.” He tipped his hat back, revealing the dirt smudges on his forehead. For a brief moment Elsie wondered how he might look clean-shaven.

Then he said, “I plan to make it suitable for all of us in no time. If you’ve time right now, I’d like you to come over and tell me what you’ll need for your apartment.”

She met his gaze with a surprising jolt of trepidation. She’d had the flurry of activity that always came with preparing for the start-up of school to distract her from the decision they’d made yesterday. Now that the other students had all gone home and it was just the four of them standing here on the steps, Elsie was beginning to think maybe she might be in over her head. She knew that God wanted her to take on this task. Still, worry pecked its way into the back of her mind.

She didn’t know this man. She didn’t know where he came from, who his people were, or what kind of a man he was. Certainly, the fact that he’d brought these children with him rather than leaving them at an orphanage meant something. And John Oliver, a pillar of this community, had hired him on as a foreman for his lumber company. In Elsie’s mind that meant he must be a decent man. But was it enough for her to keep her promise to care for Harry and Minnie while he was working? And what of their close proximity to each other? She knew they would be living in the same house, but in separate quarters. Still, perhaps now would be a good time to set some ground rules.

He must have sensed her shift in mood because he said, “You can’t back out on our agreement, Miss Mitchell. The children need you.”

Minnie sat on the steps by her feet, and Harry was dragging a stick he’d found in the school yard through the dirt. After seeing how withdrawn Minnie was even with her brother by her side, and knowing that poor Harry wanted to make more friends but had loyally stuck by his sister’s side all day, Elsie knew in her heart of hearts that she couldn’t back out of their agreement.

Quietly, she spoke. “I know they need stability.”

“Walk to the house with me so I can show you around. You can look at your accommodations.”

“I’ll meet you there in half an hour. I have to gather some papers together so I can grade them tonight. As soon as I lock up the building, I’ll come over.”

He folded his arms across his chest, taking a wide stance with his legs.

She could tell he thought she wouldn’t come. “Mr. Benton, I always keep my word. I’ll be by, I promise.”

“We’ll look for you in half an hour, then.”

“Yes.”

He motioned for the children to join him and then walked away. Elsie was about to start back up the steps when she saw Mr. Craig from the telegraph office come up to Mr. Benton and hand him a piece of paper. He read the paper and then with a nod to Mr. Craig turned to walk home with the children.

Will scanned the telegram and then stuck it in his shirt pocket. He turned, about to ask Miss Mitchell whether Harry and Minnie could stay with her for a bit longer, but she’d gone back inside. Giving a shrug, he thought now would be as good a time as any to look like a family man. With Harry and Minnie in tow, he set out for the other side of the street. Leaving them within eyesight of the swinging doors, he entered the saloon, scanning the room until he saw her.

Busy pouring a glass of whiskey, she pretended not to notice him. He sauntered across the wide-planked floor. Peanut shells crunched beneath his boots. Cigar smoke swirled around him, leaving a haze in his wake. The woman with brilliant red hair in the bright-red dress didn’t acknowledge him until he stood in front of her.

The feather in her headband swayed back and forth as she leaned across the bar. “What’ll ya have?”

“The usual.”

She poured two fingers of whiskey into a short glass and slid it across the bar to him. “You new in town?”

“Sort of,” he answered, playing along with the charade. Will scanned the mirror behind her, noticing three men playing cards off in a corner. “I received a message.”

Resting her elbows on the bar, she batted her long, dark lashes at him. “Did you now?”

“Come on, Lily, don’t hold out on me. Why are you here?” He studied her face, noticing she’d been a bit heavy-handed with the stage makeup. Those pockmarks on her face looked real.

Lily Handland’s brown eyes sparkled with mischief.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve worked together, Will. Maybe I needed a change of scenery.”

He knew better than to be deceived by the flirtations of the best female Pinkerton in the agency. He brought the glass to his lips, pretending to sip from it, and then set the glass on the bar. In the mirror he watched a man in a black vest and white shirt sit down at the piano. His long fingers wandered over the keys. Tin notes echoed off the walls.

He heard Lily’s voice close to his left ear. “Word is your mark is coming here.”

“Description?”

“None right now. I’ll get word to you if I find out anything more. Just be on the lookout.”

He nodded. Holding the glass in his hand, he swirled the amber-colored whiskey. Lily left the bar and sashayed across the room to join the man at the piano.

Elsie set about ending the school day. Returning to the classroom, she paused by the desk that Minnie and Harry had shared. Harry had done very well on his testing. He could actually read out of the third-grade primer. He needed a bit of work on his writing, but Elsie felt that with a little effort there would be improvement.

Realizing it would be impossible for Minnie to read out loud, she’d had her work only on some small arithmetic problems and copy some simple sentences out of the first-grade primer. Minnie tested out a grade level below her brother. Mildly worried, Elsie knew that time and the Lord’s helping hand would heal the child. Elsie was hopeful she would catch up by the end of this semester.

She emerged from the building a little over half an hour later. Hating to be even the tiniest bit tardy, and imagining Mr. Benton pacing impatiently in wait of her arrival, she hurried along the planked sidewalk toward the house. She had gone about halfway when a fuss outside the saloon caught her attention. A man wielding a broom came toward two small children on the walkway in front of the building. Raising the broom, he shouted at them.

She immediately recognized the riot of curls flowing down the little girl’s back. What on earth were Harry and Minnie doing outside that building? And where was their uncle? Fear pumped through her veins, spurring her forward. She could see Minnie and Harry trying to run away from the man. Minnie cried out as her brother tried to shield her by pushing her behind him.

By the time Elsie got to the building, her fear turned to anger. Drawing in a deep breath, she steeled her shoulders for a fight. It was all she could do to temper her emotion as she made her way to the frightened children. In front of them, the barkeep hoisted the broom handle behind his back, preparing to swat at them. Harry cried out and stumbled.

The noise of men laughing and some of the most dreadful piano music she’d ever heard spilled out onto the street. Hoisting her skirts above her ankles, she rushed up the steps to stand between the children and the horrid man who was missing two front teeth and smelled as if he hadn’t taken a bath in quite some time.

With her nose twitching and her heart pounding, Elsie grabbed at the broom handle. “Leave these children alone!”

“They’ve no business playing here,” he replied, then spat a steady stream of murky, vile tobacco juice from between his teeth.

“Oh!” Jumping back in disgust to avoid the brown splatter, and at the same time reaching out to grab the arm of each child, she pulled them up to stand one on each side of her. “You, sir, are disgusting.”

“And this is no place for a
lady
.” He drew out the word like he believed her to be no such thing, adding, “And those young’uns got to move along.”

At least on that she agreed with the wretched man. Looking down at the children, she gazed from one surprised face to the other, demanding, “Where’s your uncle William?”

“He’s inside,” Harry answered, trying to squirm out of her reach.

“Stay still, Harry. You’re not the one in trouble. How long have you two been out here?” she asked, quickly looking them over to make certain they were unharmed.

He gave a quick shrug of his little shoulders. “We came here right after we left the school yard.”

She forced herself to soften her tone. “What is your uncle thinking? This is no place for children.”

“Are you going to yell at Uncle Will?”

Sighing, Elsie fought to rein in her temper. After all, this was not their fault. It was William Benton’s, and he was about to be told in no uncertain terms how the saloon entryway was not an appropriate place to leave children. Taking Harry and Minnie by the hand, she walked them to the opposite edge of the boardwalk. “You two stay right here until I come back. Don’t move a muscle; don’t speak to anyone. Do you understand me?”

Harry’s head bobbed up and down. “Yes, Miss Mitchell.”

Putting a smile on her face, she added, “After this, I’ll take you over to the bakery for a treat. How does that sound?”

Minnie hugged her doll to her chest while Harry beamed. “We’ll stay right here, Miss Mitchell. We won’t move one bit. Right, Minnie?”

The little girl nodded.

“All right, then. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

After straightening her short jacket, she secured her bonnet and marched right up to the swinging shutter doors that led to what was surely Heartston’s very own version of Sodom and Gomorrah. Taking a stance a mere inch from the doors, she opened her mouth and, heaven help her, yelled, “William Benton, you get out here right this minute!”

Raucous laughter greeted her demand. A swirl of red and black in the form of a scantily clad saloon girl appeared before her.

“You looking for your man, lady?” The girl’s brilliant red hair was adorned with a sequined headband, which had a colorful ostrich feather sticking out from it.

Her face had seen better days. Pockmarks scarred her heavily rouged cheeks. If she were in a better frame of mind, Elsie might have felt sorry for this creature’s plight and would be praying for her salvation. Right now, though, she could concentrate only on getting William Benton out here. Feeling as though the entire town were staring at her, Elsie bit back a tart remark as she felt a heated blush spreading across her face like wildfire.

“He’s not my man.” Forcing herself to remain calm, she said, “I’d be grateful if you could find him and send him out here, please.”

The thought of her and Mr. Benton as a couple made her tremble in fury. A man who could abandon children like some animals on the side of a street while he sated his lust would never be the man for her!