An Agent for Frances
The Pinkerton Matchmaker Series
By Marie Higgins
Copyright © 2019 by Marie Higgins
Edited by Teresa Pearson and Veronica Mesia
Proofreaders – Debbie Turner, Linda Hillman, and Deanna Dent
Cover Art by Virginia McKevitt
Edition License Notes
This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
An Agent for Frances (The Pinkerton Matchmaker)
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
Pinkerton Matchmaker stories
Other published stories by Marie Higgins
Author’s Bio
Pinkerton Agent Vincent Brooks wants only one thing – to stop the southern rebels from uprising and creating another war. His assignment is to be the temporary sheriff of Bonham, Texas, which seems easy enough... until he runs across a woman he’d met eight months earlier, Frances Carlton, sneaking around in the dark, spying on the bank. Not only is the confounded woman following him around and prying into his Pinkerton business, but she has a strange way of filling his mind with desirous thoughts that shouldn’t be there. He can’t be distracted, and yet she seems to accomplish being his greatest diversion quite well.
Frances Carlton is determined to show Agent Brooks that she would make an excellent Pinkerton agent. Eventually, she’d make him a wonderful wife, too. However, the stubborn man refuses her help, and he reminds her of that every time she gets in his way. It’s difficult to focus on catching the outlaws when Vincent is around since he seeks out her kisses almost on a daily basis. Now it is up to her to change his mind – and his heart.
ONE
TEXAS, 1873
PINKERTON AGENT VINCENT Brooks stood behind the livery stable, peeking around the corner toward Bonham, Texas’ one and only bank. As temporarily appointed sheriff, Vince had caught wind of something going on down here tonight. He took his job seriously, especially if lives were involved. And they were. Someone could get hurt – or die.
Walter Shipp, manager of the bank, was one of the men the Pinkerton agents suspected of being part of this whole south uprising mess. It had only been eight months since Vince’s good friend, Agent Blake Bentley stumbled across a gang of men scattered across the southern states who were trying to overturn the Civil War’s decision – that the north and President Lincoln had won. Allan Pinkerton sent some of his agents out to put a stop to the secret society before any further damage could be done.
Vince glanced toward the horizon. The sun would make its debut within the hour. Once the sun peaked in the sky, he doubted Walter would do anything of a suspicious nature. The man would be foolish not to keep up appearances within the town. But as much as Walter wanted everyone in Bonham to think he walked on water... Vince knew differently. He’d read the telegrams sent between the bank manager and Phillip Matthews from South Carolina. Both men had been up to no good. At least Pinkerton Agent Blake Bentley and his wife, Claudia, had put Phillip Matthews in jail for his crimes.
A shadow moved near the bank’s front door. Vince hovered his hand above his pistol, ready for anything. His gut told him something would happen soon... and his gut was rarely wrong. One of his skills as a Pinkerton agent was being a sharpshooter. He’d get his outlaw – or die trying.
The shadow moved again, but this time it headed along the front wall to turn around the back. Vince darted from one tree to the next, trying to keep from being noticed. Of course, because the clouds continued to pass over the moon, there was very little light – or none at all.
When he neared the bank, he hurried his steps until he was flat against the outside wall. He listened intently for any sounds. Crickets still created their annoying chirping, but so far, that’s all he heard.
Slowly, he peeked around the corner and peered down the long, back wall of the bank. It seemed even darker than in front, so he used his other senses to try and detect if someone was out there.
Nearby came the crunching of leaves, and seconds later, a twig snapped. It sounded as though the person sneaking around the bank was coming his way.
In the night’s light breeze, he smelled something... almost like flowers. But he couldn’t tell if there were any flower bushes nearby. And then suddenly, someone ran right into him. The startled umph that came from the other person was a much higher tone than he figured a man would make.
Vince grasped the woman by her arms just as she swayed. She struggled to get out of his clutches and kicked him hard in the shin. He grimaced, biting back the stinging pain. He was as determined not to release her as she was fixed on getting away.
“Let me go!” she whispered roughly.
“Calm down,” he said in low tones, “or you’ll cause a commotion.”
She sucked in a quick breath. “A commotion? Outside in the dark with nobody else around?”
“Shhh...” he placed his hand over her mouth. “You’re too loud.”
She was a petite woman; the top of her head barely reached his chin, and from what he had felt of her arms when he stopped her from falling, she was slender. As he held his hand over her mouth, he could tell she had soft skin, too.
She yanked his hand away. “Will you stop touching me?”
His thoughts shifted, and he wondered what a woman was doing at the bank this time of the morning. Immediately, he concluded that she must be part of Walter Shipp’s gang – because there were both men and women who were trying to reorganize the southern states to rebel and start a new civil war.
Suspicion rose inside of him and he clamped his hand on her upper arms again. “Who are you and what are you doing out at this time... and in the dark... and near the bank?”
She growled and tried pulling out of his hold, but he wouldn’t budge.
“Who I am and what I’m doing is none of your concern.”
“I beg to differ.”
“You can beg all you like, but that doesn’t mean I have to tell you.”
“Listen, little missy,” he said sternly but still kept his voice lowered, “if you don’t tell me right now, I’m going to haul you off to jail and lock you up until you start talking.”
She gasped and her hand moved to his chest. At first, he wondered why she slid her palm over his shirt, but when her hand touched his sheriff’s badge, she stopped and sucked in a breath.
“You’re the sheriff?”
“Temporarily, yes.”
“Wh-what’s your name?” Her voice shook slightly.
“Listen, missy, if anyone is going to give out names right now, it’ll be you. Now start talking.”
Her intake of breath was quite noticeable because it shook, even when she exhaled. Her body didn’t seem as stiff, either.
“My name is Miss Frances Carlton.”
The name nudged Vince’s memory and he knew he’d heard it before. “Why are you at the bank, Miss Carlton?”
“I’m... I’m... looking for my brother.”
Vince rolled his eyes. Another skill he had that helped as a Pinkerton agent was detecting when people were lying. Even though he couldn’t s
ee her face, her tone of voice told him she was lying. Had he questioned this woman before in regards to another crime? Perhaps that was how he recognized her name.
“Do you care to try again, Miss Carlton? I know you’re lying.”
A low growl came from her and she stomped her foot. “I’m not lying. I’m looking for my brother. He’s not... um, right in his mind, and so he sometimes sneaks out of the house. When I realized he wasn’t in his bed, I came out to look for him.”
“Why did you not wake your parents? Your father should have been the one looking for him... not his sister. A woman wandering alone in the middle of the night isn’t proper at all.”
Her shoulders straightened. “Considering my parents’ residence for the past six months has been the Bonham cemetery, I’m certain neither of them would have been able to look for my brother unless they were ghosts.”
His gut twisted, knowing the pain of losing parents quite well. But he couldn’t let that sway his mind. He still found her very suspicious. “Now for the third question I’d asked. Why are you at the bank?”
“Because... this is where I’ve found him a few times.”
As he pondered the situation, and especially what he should do, the clouds moved away from the moon. He could finally see the outline of her face and that her hair hung over her shoulders and down her back. However, he still couldn’t remember where he’d heard her name before... or exactly how old she was. He believed her to be at least in her twentieth year, but he doubted she was much older.
Suddenly, she gasped loudly and her head swung around as she looked back. That’s when he faintly noticed some light coming from within the thicket of trees. He must have relaxed his hold on her because she yanked free, but then she took hold of his arm and tugged.
“We need to get out of here. Now!”
If the people coming toward them had anything to do with Walter Shipp and the southern group of rebels he was with... then yes, Vince and Miss Carlton needed to hide.
As he moved his feet with hers, he realized she was in the lead. He couldn’t allow that. Not when he was the sheriff, even if it was temporary.
“Come this way,” he whispered, taking her hand and pulling her a different way.
“No.” She yanked her hand out of his grasp. “This way. We’ll be able to hear better.”
His curiosity grew. Miss Carlton was certainly not out here to find her brother. He opened his mouth to argue, but then realized it would be better to hear the men who were getting closer by the second.
Vince followed her until they reached what looked to be... a privy? Inwardly, he groaned. She wanted to hide behind a place where people took care of their body releases.
She crouched down, peeking around the corner. Vince had no other choice but to stand behind her and peer around the edge of the outhouse. Thankfully, the breeze helped to remove the stench that would be inside the structure. At least for now, anyway.
Six men neared the bank, three of them carrying lanterns with dimming lights. All of them carried a large gunny sack obviously filled completely since two of them were straining to carry such a load. They reached the bank, but instead of going through the back door, they stopped near one of the windows. One of them bent and grasped a rope, pulling up on it. When a hidden door began to open and the men started walking down into the hole, it was Vince’s turn to be surprised. If he had taken Miss Carlton with him back to where he’d been hiding, he wouldn’t have seen this.
“What in tarnation...”
“Shhh,” she whispered, reaching behind her to touch his leg. “They’ll hear you.”
He squatted to her level and leaned closer to her. “Miss Carlton, were you aware of that hidden room?”
“Shhh –”
“Answer me,” he said slightly more forcefully.
She turned her head toward his. “Yes. One time while looking for my brother, I’d seen them leaving through that door.”
Once the men had entered the hidden cellar and the door had closed, Miss Carlton jumped up and yanked on his coat sleeve. “Come on.”
There were so many questions buzzing through Vince’s head right now, but he couldn’t take time to ask Miss Carlton what he wanted to know. Instead, he followed her back toward the bank and to the hidden door. At least some of his questions would be answered if he could hear the men in the cellar.
She knelt on the ground and reached for the rope. Panic filled him, and he grasped her hand. She swung her gaze to him and he shook his head.
“What are you doing?” he whispered.
“Opening up the door a little so we can hear them.”
“Then allow me.”
He still couldn’t see her expression well, but the tightness to her mouth told him of her irritation.
“Fine,” she snapped quietly and released the rope.
Being so very careful – and quiet – Vince slowly lifted the rope, which started to pull up the door. When he could detect voices, he stopped, not daring to lift it any higher.
Miss Carlton lowered her head, closer to the opening. The light from the cellar highlighted her face better than the moon had done those brief times the clouds hadn’t covered it. There was something very familiar about her, and yet he couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was.
“Tell me we’re ready,” one of the voices said in exhaustion.
“Not quite, but we are closer now,” a man with a gruff voice said.
Someone grumbled. “I’m ready to take back what’s ours!”
The men’s voices rose in agreement.
“But we must wait,” the man with the gruff voice spoke again. “With Phillip Matthews in jail for now, we’ll need to wait to see what Walter Shipp wants to do.”
Vince grinned, nodding. He’d at least been correct when suspecting Mr. Shipp to be the gang’s new leader.
“Where is he?” another voice asked. “I thought he was coming tonight to look over the supplies.”
“He’ll be here shortly... any minute now, in fact.”
Vince inhaled sharply and looked at Miss Carlton, just as her head snapped up and met his. If Walter Shipp was on his way this very moment, Vince and Miss Carlton would get caught if they didn’t leave quickly.
Slowly, he lowered the door. Miss Carlton jumped to her feet, sweeping her hands over her skirt. She glanced around them. It wasn’t as dark as it had been earlier, but he still couldn’t tell if anyone was coming.
Vince quickly stood and grasped her hand. He had no intention of going toward the privy again, but this time, they needed to get out of here. The sheriff of Bonham couldn’t be spotted anywhere near the bank now.
He took them toward the thicket of trees. At least they could hide behind one of those if the situation called for it. But just up ahead, another light bobbed its way through the trees. Vince’s gut feeling told him it was Walter Shipp... and the man would most definitely see them. Running a different way now would only bring more attention to them. Shipp wasn’t a foolish man. He would know why they were running.
Vince stopped the same time as Miss Carlton. She looked up at him with wide, panicked eyes. Not only did Vince need to protect himself, but now he had to protect this woman. He grumbled under his breath. This was the very reason he wanted to work alone. Women were such an annoyance!
TWO
FRANCES’ HEART WAS beating quickly, and the fear rushing through her made her grasp at any idea on how she and Vincent could get out of this predicament. But one thing was certain. Mr. Shipp would see them.
She glanced at Vince who also looked stunned as if he couldn’t think, either. What kind of Pinkerton agent was he anyway? But she’d worry about that later. Right now, there was only one thing they could do.
Grabbing Vincent’s hands, she backed up against a tree and pulled him toward her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Play along. This might work,” she whispered as she slid her hands up his muscular chest and linked them around his neck, bringing his head closer to hers. “Kiss
me.” She leaned up to meet his mouth. Thankfully, he followed her lead.
When his lips landed on hers, they were stiff, but at least they were in the right position. Mr. Shipp didn’t need to know that they weren’t really kissing, as long as it appeared like it.
However, seconds later, Vincent’s mouth relaxed and he took over. His passionate kiss was more than she had expected, and her racing heart couldn’t keep up with the rhythm of her fast breaths. She tried to follow him in the way he kissed her, since she’d only been kissed once in her life when she was sixteen, and the boy she’d been kissing definitely didn’t know what he was doing. Ahhh... but Vincent Brooks was very knowledgeable.
Releasing a sigh, she melted against him, which made his arms tighten around her. Her mind spun in dreamy thoughts, and she realized that she’d been imagining this since the first day they’d met. She’d been a maid for Claudia Cummings in South Carolina before her employer had married Pinkerton agent, Blake Bentley.
When Frances had been injured, it was Vincent Brooks who had come to her rescue. She knew at that moment, he was the only man for her. And now as they kissed, her swelling heart testified that indeed, Vincent was the only man she would ever love.
Of course... she had to convince him of that and help him to feel the same way toward her.
When the light from Mr. Shipp’s lantern shone on them, she jumped as Vincent broke the kiss. She buried her face in his chest – just as any woman would do after getting caught kissing a man in the dark. His arms tightened protectively around her shoulders as he turned slightly toward their intruder.
“Pardon me for interrupting,” the man’s voice said. “I didn’t think... I mean, I didn’t see you.”
“Uh, yes...” Vincent said. “Well, can you at least lower the light from my face?”
“Oh, forgive me.”
Once the light wasn’t as bright, Frances dared to peek toward the other man. She said a silent prayer that Mr. Shipp wouldn’t suspect the real reason they were here.
“Can I ask,” Mr. Shipp continued, “what you and your... um, woman friend are doing here?”
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