Dare he admit to the newfound feeling growing in his heart and the reason he had a constant smile?
They hadn’t spoken much this morning as they readied for their outing. Of course, he dressed in the separate small room before leaving and allowing her to dress. He’d paced back and forth in front of the door to their room, wondering who had been their visitor last night. Had it been someone who’d gone to the wrong room? Or worse… was it someone involved with the mayor’s disappearance who was trying to make Rick and Cecily stop their investigating?
Cecily looked so lovely today. She dressed in a beautiful, short-sleeved deep blue gown with thick white lace around her neckline and the bottom of the sleeves. Around the lower part of the gown was also a thick trim of white lace. She wore elbow-length white gloves and held a matching parasol as they strolled down the street. Her hand hooked around his elbow, and he felt so grand walking beside the prettiest woman in the world.
“You look very dapper this morning with your derby hat,” Cecily said with a grin. “I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you look so refined.”
“Oh, my dear wife,” he stroked her fingers softly, “I’m nothing compared to your beauty this fine day. I just feel privileged to be the man by your side.”
She giggled and cuddled more intimately against his arm.
As they passed a shop, Cecily stopped and peered at the large-picture window that displayed a pretty gown. She stared at it with wide eyes.
“Isn’t this lovely?”
“Indeed, it is, but it’s a ball gown. Have you made plans to attend a ball anytime soon?”
Chuckling, she pulled her gaze from the window and met his stare. “Of course not, but it’s better to be prepared, don’t you agree?”
“Actually, you are correct. But let’s purchase it later, after we’ve gone to City Hall.”
“Yes, I know, but—”
“Mr. Tanner,” a voice called out from across the street.
Rick spun around. Hurrying from the telegraph office, shuffled a mousy man waving a piece of paper. Rick had dealt with Mr. Chambers a few times in his travels. In fact, Rick had befriended several telegraph offices since he’d become a Pinkerton Agent.
Rick glanced at Cecily. “Feel free to take a few more minutes admiring the gown. I shall be right back.” He leaned in and kissed her forehead. When he withdrew, her eyes sparkled.
The grin he hadn’t been able to get rid of today tugged wider as he stepped away from her and met Mr. Chambers.
“Good day, Mr. Chambers.”
The small, thin man nodded. “It is a good day. I have a telegram for you.”
“You do?” Rick arched an eyebrow as he dug through the pocket in his suit jacket and pulled out some coins.
“It’s from Mr. Gordon in Denver.”
“That’s odd. I wonder why he’s sending me a message.” Rick exchanged the coins for the telegram. “Thank you, Mr. Chambers.”
“Have a pleasant day, Mr. Tanner.”
His grin reappeared. “Oh, I definitely will.”
Rick really should pocket the message until later, but curiosity got the better of him. Of course, Cecily was still admiring the gown, so he had a few more moments to look over the message.
He glanced down at the paper and skimmed over the words. Confusion filled his mind and he focused harder. What he was reading couldn’t be correct…
Rick, I received a letter today from Ruth Livingston’s family. She died in a stagecoach robbery. The woman you married is an imposter. Find out who she is and report back.
Rick shook his head. Archie couldn’t be right. Ruth Livingston… dead? But he married her.
He glanced at his wife. She was no longer admiring the gown, but speaking with an older woman who’d stopped beside her. Cecily’s face was alight with kindness as she chatted with the other woman. Was his wife Ruth Livingston? Then again, she’d wanted him to call her Cecily, not Ruth. And she also had a plausible story to why she’d never been to San Francisco, even though her family was supposed to be from around this area.
A painful knot twisted his heart and left his throat dry. This was so difficult to believe. Who would steal a dead person’s identity? Perhaps this was why he hadn’t been able to read her well. At times he’d thought she was lying, but then a second later, she’d say something that wiped that idea from his head.
His gut twisted, and the smile he hadn’t gotten rid of since last night, finally disappeared. Anger filled him, along with confusion. Who was she – a crazed person?
Being a Pinkerton Agent for six years, he’d realized that he needed facts before he started making assumptions. He would have to find the determined investigator he’d once been that he’d somehow lost on this trip, and use that skill to figure out who the woman was that had been portraying his wife.
Swallowing down the lump of distrust that had gathered in his throat, he inhaled deeply and walked toward his wife. She looked up at him and smiled.
His heart twisted. She was so lovely, and she’d made him feel things he hadn’t experienced for so long. But he couldn’t trust her fully. Not yet.
He also couldn’t make her aware that he doubted her.
Straightening his shoulders, he smiled the best he could under these strained circumstances, and he moved beside her. He placed his hand on the curve of her back, right above her bustle. “Mrs. Tanner? Are you ready to visit City Hall?”
She nodded and excused herself from the other lady. Rick and Cecily walked in silence for a few seconds as he prepared questions in his mind that might help him understand who she really was. He tried not to walk too fast. After all, he didn’t want anything to interrupt their conversation. And he needed to keep her mind off the telegram Archie had sent him.
He tried to recall what Archie had told him about Ruth Livingston. Her father had been a sheriff, and she was the only child. He recalled what she’d done to mislead the Stephens women into admitting their lie. Perhaps it was time for Rick to do that to Cecily.
“Do you know what I was thinking?” he asked, glancing down at her.
“Please tell me.” Her eyes sparkled beautifully.
“I would love to meet your family after this case is over.”
Watching her closely, he noticed her holding her breath. But seconds later, she breathed normally.
“But… my father is dead, remember?”
“Of course, I remember. But I was thinking about meeting your brother… or did you tell me you had more than one brother?”
She swung her attention in front of them, and he couldn’t see what her eyes were doing. He’d bet money that her mind was scrambling to try and remember what she’d told him about her family. He wouldn’t give her the opportunity to think about their previous conversations.
“I know you didn’t talk about a sister,” he continued, “but I specifically remember a brother. Maybe two or three?”
“I… told you about my brothers?”
“You’d mentioned it briefly.” He nodded. “So there is more than one, right?”
“Uh, yes. I have two.”
He nodded. She was telling the truth about that, but she suddenly looked very nervous. “Where do they live?”
She forced a small laugh. “Heavens, I haven’t talked to them for ages.”
The innocent Cecily had returned, as did her genuine smile.
“Why not?” he wondered.
She shrugged. “They were older than me by five years. They moved away from Father and I and started their own lives. In fact,” she tapped a finger to her chin, “if I remember correctly, Benjamin lives in Colorado, and Theodore lives in New York.”
Rick breathed a little easier. At least he knew she wasn’t lying about her brother’s names because she’d said them quickly. However, she had lied about where they lived because of the brief pause before naming the states.
He was certain she’d used a shortened version of their names, too – Ben and Theo.
“What about your fa
mily who lives around here?” Rick asked.
“I have an aunt and uncle and some cousins.”
“I’d love to meet them, too.” Rick winked.
“I’m sure you will one day.”
Another lie. She had quickly looked away as she told him that.
His mind scrambled with her brother’s names. Something in the back of his memory told him he’d crossed a Ben and Theo who were brothers once before, and yet Rick drew a blank to where he’d met these men.
“Rick? What was the telegram about that you’d been given?” Cecily asked, sweetly.
No way was he going to tell her about that. “I…” He glanced ahead of them. Relief washed through him. “Look, we’re at City Hall now.” He gave her a wicked grin. “Let’s get some answers about the mayor’s disappearance now.”
She nodded. “I’m ready when you are.”
* * * *
Although Cecily tried to appear calm and collected, her heartbeat hammered in panic. Why was Rick asking questions about her family? And had she really told him about her brothers? Part of her wanted to believe she hadn’t, only because she knew Rick would remember Ben and Theo Sheldon. Yet Rick had acted so nonchalant about the subject. She prayed it was just her nerves acting up, and not that he suspected something.
Once they entered City Hall and Rick had introduced them, she and Rick waited while they gathered more city council members. It took ten more minutes before they assembled in a large meeting room.
She allowed Rick to take over, only because her nerves were still shot from their earlier conversation about her family. As she stared at her husband, she admired the way he took charge of the meeting. She loved hearing his voice, especially when he introduced her as his wife.
So far, the council agreed that they hadn’t seen the mayor for almost two weeks. Each man sitting around the table explained to Rick what they knew about the mayor and the things going on in his life. Rick wrote down notes on his folded paper with a pencil.
“Tell me,” Rick said once the other men were finished, “what laws has the mayor passed lately that might upset the city.”
One man answered the questions, more than the others. He mentioned the law about arresting drunks, and also about closing down the brothels in San Francisco, which there were apparently, quite a few.
Cecily’s father and brothers would have rebelled over those laws. She rolled her eyes. They couldn’t live in a town unless there was a saloon and brothel.
From out of nowhere, a memory resurfaced. Her father and brothers had been drinking one night – as usual – and she was trying to sleep in the other room, but their voices were so loud, it was impossible to rest. They had discussed moving, again. They’d heard there was still gold in California…
Cecily’s heart dropped. She’d overheard this conversation only a few days before she stumbled across the stagecoach robbery and the dead woman, Ruth Livingston. What were the odds that her family was here in San Francisco? And worse… could they have been involved somehow with the mayor’s disappearance? After all, they wouldn’t like to be arrested when drunk, or for the brothels to be taken away.
Her stomach churned with dread. If her family was in San Francisco, she needed to tell Rick the truth. She’d rather him hear it from her than have a run-in with her outlaw brothers and father.
“But,” one of the councilmen said, “if the mayor doesn’t return by tomorrow evening by six o’clock, those bills will become vetoed.”
Rick nodded. “Then we must make sure to find Mayor Stephens before then.”
Less than an hour later, she and Rick walked out of City Hall, no wiser than when they went in. The aggravation on his face matched the frustration she felt. Neither of them said a word, but Rick led the way toward the park. The first bench he found, he sat and removed his hat, placing it beside him on the bench. He bent forward with his elbows on his knees and he rested his face in his hands.
“Although we suspect the reasons for the mayor’s kidnapping,” Rick mumbled, “I fear we’ll not find him in time to sign the bills.”
She sat next to Rick and rubbed his back gently. She didn’t know what to say. Were there any words that could soothe him? It hurt her to see him troubled like this. If only there was something she could do to help with the case. But her mind was as blank as his probably was at this moment.
Cecily watched the couples strolling through the park. Most of them appeared to be in love as they gazed into each other’s eyes, but the ones who had no love between them stuck out like a third eye on someone’s forehead.
To deny her love for Rick would be wrong, but once she told him about what she’d done, he would hate her. Regardless, she was tired of living the lie. That’s why she’d left her father and brothers – because she was sick of lying for them every time the law showed up at their house, looking for them.
Inhaling deeply, she summoned the courage to tell Rick the truth, but as the air slipped out of her mouth, so did the courage. Tears burned in her eyes, so she blinked quickly. She’d gotten herself into this pickle, and she was the only person who could get it out.
She licked her dry lips and swallowed. “You know, Rick, the more I think about it, the more I recall that we have met before.”
He snapped to a sitting position and stared at her intently. “So we have met before?”
Her body started shaking, so she clutched her hands and rested them in her lap. “Yes, I think we have. In fact, I believe you came to my house, looking for—”
A familiar face jerked Cecily out of her thoughts and she peered beyond Rick and toward the boardwalk going through the middle of town. A middle-aged woman walked briskly with her head down as she grasped a book to her bosom.
Cecily sucked in a quick breath. “Rick, look. That’s Mrs. Stephens, the mayor’s wife.” He peered in the direction she indicated. “And she’s hurrying like her life – or that of someone she loves – depends on it.”
“We should follow her,” Rick said, rising and putting on his hat.
Finally, Cecily’s mind started working. “Or…” She touched his arm. “I should stop her and talk to her.”
Rick gave her a scowl. “Why would you want to stop her when she could be leading us to the kidnapper?”
She smiled widely. “Because if someone stops you from doing something important, are you not more irritated and impatient?”
Rick arched an eyebrow. “Irritated enough, perhaps, to slip up and tell you where her husband is?”
Cecily nodded. “Exactly.”
“Then let’s—”
“No, Rick. I should do it. Not you.”
His scowl returned. “Why?”
“Because,” she slowly started heading toward Mrs. Stephens, “it’s like Mr. Gordon told me when I interviewed… Sometimes women will talk to women better than they can talk to men.”
Rick’s expression relaxed and he nodded. “Then go get her, and pray she reveals the location of her husband.”
Excitement bounced in Cecily’s chest. She grasped Rick’s hand and squeezed it softly. “I won’t let you down.”
ELEVEN
Cecily hurried to catch up with Mrs. Stephens. The woman seemed to be headed toward the other end of town. Just as Cecily reached her, something fell from the woman’s book. Money?
Quickly, before anyone else on the boardwalk noticed it, Cecily picked it up. Benjamin Franklin stared at her from the one-hundred-dollar bill. Heavens, she’d never held this much money in her life. What her outlaw family wouldn’t give to have this money. But she wasn’t like her family, thank goodness.
“Mrs. Stephens, you dropped this,” Cecily called out as she ran toward her.
The woman stopped and swung around. Her eyes were red and brimmed with tears. Cecily’s heart tightened. The woman appeared in desperate need to talk to someone. If only that someone would be Cecily.
“You dropped this,” Cecily said, handing the money to the mayor’s wife.
Her eyes wid
ened as she took the bill and slipped it inside the book. Cecily couldn’t see how much money Mrs. Stephens had inside the book, but there were many bills inside.
“Thank you, Mrs…” The other woman’s forehead creased.
“Mrs. Tanner.”
“Oh, yes. Thank you, Mrs. Tanner.”
The mayor’s wife turned to leave, but Cecily placed her hand on the woman’s shoulder, stopping her. “Please, Mrs. Stephens, let me help you. I know what’s going on, and I know you cannot go through this by yourself.”
Although the woman kept her gaze to the ground, Cecily could still see tears brimming inside.
“No… It’s almost over. I cannot say—”
“Yes, you can,” Cecily said softly. “Because I can tell you don’t trust them to bring your husband back as they’d promised.”
Slowly, Mrs. Stephens lifted her gaze to Cecily’s. “I… don’t trust them. But I have no other choice.”
Cecily tried not to get too excited that the mayor’s wife was finally opening up. She just needed to talk to her as if they were best friends. Perhaps she could show Mrs. Stephens a little caring that would encourage her to trust Cecily.
She laid her hand over the other woman’s hand that rested on the top of the book. “Mrs. Stephens, there is always another choice. Allow me to help you, please.”
The woman was silence for a few impatient moments, before she glanced up the street slowly, and then down the street, as if searching for someone. When the woman’s eyes met Cecily’s again, they held a hint of fear.
“We cannot talk here,” Mrs. Stephens whispered. “People might see.”
Cecily nodded and motioned toward the church they stood in front of. “Let’s go in there.”
Mrs. Stephens kept up with Cecily as they moved inside the old church. Candles were lit up toward the front as pictures of Jesus and Heaven hung on the walls. But thankfully, nobody was inside praying. Even the minister wasn’t present.
Cecily took the mayor’s wife’s hand again in a tender gesture. “Please, tell me.”
An Agent For Cecily (The Pinkerton Matchmaker Book 8) Page 8
