Trouble on the Orphan Train

by Marianne Hering

  Agent Wilson sat in the only chair. He looked neat and tidy. Even his vest and tie were white.

  Beth looked around for someplace to sit. There was a small table with some packages on it. The stove was too hot to use as a seat.

  A black safe was against the wall. It had gold lettering painted on it.

  Beth decided to sit on top of it. The safe was so tall that her feet dangled in the air. “What’s going to happen to me?” Beth asked.

  Agent Wilson said, “I’ll keep you here till we get to Little Rock, Arkansas. They have a jail.”

  Jail? Beth didn’t like the sound of that.

  “Then what?” Beth asked.

  Agent Wilson scratched his head. “I really don’t know for sure,” he said. “You’re the first child criminal I’ve ever met.”

  The agent studied her. “You don’t look dangerous,” he said. “Perhaps it’s the lace around your collar. You look like an angel.”

  Beth smiled her most angelic smile. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said. “I promise. Please let me go back to the passenger car.”

  “Mr. Pinkerton is a famous detective. He says you may be part of the James gang,” Agent Wilson said. He shook his head as if he didn’t believe it.

  “It’s rotten of those brazen bandits to use children as spies,” the agent went on. “Robbing should be a man’s business.”

  Beth thought that no one should be in the robbing business.

  “Let’s hope the train doesn’t have trouble,” Agent Wilson said. “Things will go easier for you at the trial.”

  Trial? Beth didn’t want to go to trial.

  She’d have to take an oath and put her hand on the Bible. Then she’d have to tell about the Imagination Station. She would have to mention Patrick. That meant he might get in trouble too.

  Agent Wilson took out a silver pocket watch. He read the time. “Looks like we may gain back some of the time we lost. If so, we should arrive in Little Rock before midnight.”

  “And if Jesse James attacks this train?” Beth asked. “Who will help us? Mr. Pinkerton just left.”

  Agent Wilson showed Beth his pistol. It had a fat, black barrel.

  “Then it will be the James gang’s last robbery,” Agent Wilson said. “I intend to capture that scoundrel. No one has stolen anything from me and my pistol yet.”

  Pistol? Beth hoped the Imagination Station would appear. She wanted nothing to do with guns.

  “Then I’ll get the ten-thousand-dollar reward,” Agent Wilson said. He tucked the pistol back inside his suit jacket. “I’ll be rich.”

  Gad’s Hill, Missouri

  Patrick’s eyes opened slowly. He heard men talking. Leonard was shaking his shoulder. The orphan wasn’t being very gentle.

  “Leave me alone,” Patrick said. He slapped Leonard’s hand away.

  “If that’s what you want,” Leonard said. “But you’re missing all the fun.”

  “What?” Patrick said.

  “Jesse James and his gang are robbing the train. They will probably start with the safe. It’s in the Adams Express railcar,” Leonard said. “Then they’ll come here.”

  Patrick got out of the bunk. He looked around the sleeper car.

  The rich men were acting strangely. One man wore a bowler hat. He was hiding money in one of his socks. Two others were ripping up the carpet at the back of the train.

  The two women were crying. They wiped at their tears with linen handkerchiefs.

  Only Reverend Hagerty was calm. He was sitting still with his hands folded in his lap. Patrick noticed they were smeared with soot. One hand looked burned and had a red and swollen thumb.

  Patrick asked the reverend, “Is it true? Are we being robbed?”

  “Something went wrong at the Gad’s Hill stop,” Reverend Hagerty said. “A man was waving a red warning flag. So Mr. Alford went to investigate. Now there are horsemen circling the train.”

  “Why didn’t you wake me?” Patrick asked.

  “Sleep is a gift from the Lord,” the reverend said. “I didn’t want to rob you of it. You may soon be robbed of everything else.”

  Patrick turned and reached toward the cloth window shade.

  “Don’t touch that,” Leonard said.

  Patrick lifted up the fabric just an inch anyway.

  He peeked outside. A horseman with a rifle was outside. The man was wearing a white hood and a thick, navy-blue coat. He raised his rifle in the air.

  “The next person who looks out will regret it,” the horseman shouted.

  Patrick let go of the window shade and slumped in a seat.

  Leonard sat next to him. “Told you so,” he said, smirking.

  Beth knew something was wrong at the next train stop. So did Agent Wilson. He looked at his silver pocket watch several times.

  “We’ve stopped too long at Gad’s Hill,” Agent Wilson said. “We should be moving on.”

  Beth stood on top of the safe. She peeked out through the slatted vents near the ceiling.

  “I can see some men on horses,” she said. “But I can’t tell what else is out there.”

  Beth heard the sound of the railcar’s door sliding open. It made her heart race.

  “Someone’s coming,” Agent Wilson said in a hushed tone.

  Beth quietly got off the safe. She pressed her ear to the compartment wall. “I hear lots of footsteps and thuds,” she said. “It sounds like they dropped something.”

  “That’s the luggage and the mailbags,” he whispered. “They’re looking for cash and jewelry.”

  Agent Wilson stood. He put his shoulder to the safe. He grunted and leaned against the big iron box. The safe moved slowly away from the wall.

  “Get behind that,” Agent Wilson said. “The thick metal should stop any bullets.”

  Should? Beth hoped he was right.

  Agent Wilson held his pistol in his right hand. He pressed himself against the wall close to the door.

  Beth waited for the men to crash it open. Instead someone knocked three times. She crouched behind the safe and began to pray. She didn’t want Agent Wilson to get shot.

  Beth heard the click of Agent Wilson’s pistol. He was getting ready to fire.

  Then a voice said, “Open up, William! These ruffians have a pistol.”

  Beth gasped. The speaker was Mr. Alford.

  Beth heard the door open. She heard boots walking on the wood floors.

  “Put down your pistol,” a deep voice said. There was the sound of something being put on the table.

  “Now open the safe,” the voice said. “Or Mr. Alford gets it.”

  The Diamonds

  Leonard elbowed Patrick in the ribs. The boy pointed at one of the women in the sleeper car.

  Patrick watched as she got out of her seat. She was wearing a fancy red hat and dress. Her earrings and bracelet sparkled. Extra dress fabric was bunched up in the back.

  The woman walked down the aisle. Her dress hem dragged on the floor. The extra bows swayed side to side. She stopped next to Reverend Hagerty.

  “My name is Mrs. Scott,” the woman said. “Please help me. I know you are an honest Christian man.”

  Mrs. Scott held a small blue-velvet bag with both hands. She clutched it near her neck.

  The reverend stood. “How may I assist you?” he asked.

  “My husband owns a jewelry store,” Mrs. Scott said. “He just got back from Chicago. He bought twenty large diamonds there. It took our life savings to buy them.”

  Patrick sensed Leonard’s excitement over the word diamonds.

  “Where is Mr. Scott now?” Reverend Hagerty asked.

  “He had business to take care of,” Mrs. Scott said. “He sent me ahead.”

  Suddenly she thrust her bag into Reverend Hagerty’s hands. “Take the diamonds and hide them on your person,” she pleaded. “Jesse James’s father was a preacher. He won’t rob you.”

  Reverend Hagerty looked stunned. “I don’t think . . .”

  Leonard reac
hed over and tugged on the skirt of Mrs. Scott’s dress.

  She looked down at him.

  “I’ve got a better idea,” the orphan said. “Give the diamonds to me. Jesse James wouldn’t rob an orphan.”

  Mrs. Scott’s face beamed. “That is a better idea,” she said.

  Leonard quickly took the blue bag from Reverend Hagerty. “I’ll keep these diamonds safe,” he said. And then he grinned.

  Beth held her breath. She could see nothing from behind the safe.

  Beth thought Agent Wilson must be kneeling in front of it. She heard the soft clicks of the dial spinning.

  Then she heard a pistol click. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

  “Who’s that?” the voice said. “Come out from behind the safe.”

  Beth tilted her head so it wasn’t hidden by the iron box. She could see the bandit. And he could see her.

  The man was wearing a white hood with small triangles for eyeholes. He also had on a wide-brimmed black hat. His body was covered by a thick navy-blue wool coat. His black boots reached to his knees.

  Mr. Alford stood next to the robber. The conductor gave her a smile. It was meant to comfort her. But it didn’t work.

  Beth was too frightened. The masked man’s gun was pointed at Mr. Alford.

  “It’s a little girl,” the robber said. “The Pinkertons must have sent her. They’re too scared to face me themselves.”

  Beth heard another man laughing. She leaned farther out and saw a second masked man.

  “Which one of you is Jesse James?” she asked.

  The men laughed again. They seemed like young boys at a birthday party.

  “What makes you think one of us is Jesse?” the first robber said.

  Beth shrugged. “I heard the James gang was bold like you,” she said.

  Just then Agent Wilson said, “The safe is open. Take what you want. But don’t shoot the conductor.”

  The second masked man pushed Agent Wilson away from the safe. Then he opened a US mailbag. He stuffed the sack full with the safe’s contents.

  Then he picked up Agent Wilson’s pistol from the table. He emptied the bullets from the weapon. He put the pistol in the bag too.

  The first robber pushed Mr. Alford out the door. His gun was still pointed at the conductor.

  The remaining masked man told Agent Wilson to give him his pocket watch.

  Agent Wilson reached into his vest pocket. He held out the timepiece in his palm.

  “It’s silver,” the robber said. “It isn’t worth much. Keep it.”

  The masked man looked at Beth. He quickly reached into his pocket. He pulled out a coin and tossed it to Beth.

  She snatched it out of the air with one hand. She looked at her catch. It was a silver dollar.

  “Tell everyone that the bold Jesse James took a shining to you,” he said. He gave her a little bow. Then suddenly he was gone.

  In the Sleeper Car

  The man with the bowler hat stood near the front door. He was listening intently. He said, “I hear the gang members in the passenger car.”

  A few seconds passed. Then the man said, “Mr. Alford is talking. He’s okay.”

  Patrick felt like clapping. But he kept his hands still. He was glad Mr. Alford was unhurt. And he wondered what was happening to Beth and Miss Cookson and all the other orphans.

  So far no gunshots had been fired. That gave Patrick hope that everyone was all right.

  Reverend Hagerty stood and asked everyone to take a seat. “We’ll endure this calmly. Remember, the Good Book says your money is in God’s hands. If the Lord giveth, the Lord can taketh.”

  The men and women murmured yes and amen.

  Patrick glanced at Leonard. He seemed skittish, like a cockroach after the lights come on.

  “Let’s go to the back,” Patrick said. “We can get out that door if shooting starts.”

  A few moments later the front door swung open.

  Mr. Alford came in first. Behind him were two very tall men. Each was wearing a white hood. Over the hoods were round black hats. The outfits looked like scarecrow costumes.

  Patrick would have laughed, except for the pistols.

  The pistols were small. They had silver barrels and ivory handles.

  The first masked man held one in each of his hands.

  Mr. Alford said to all the passengers, “Please do as these gentlemen say. No one will get hurt. Prepare to hand over your money and jewelry.”

  The first masked man said, “Mr. Alford is a good example. He kindly gave me his gold pocket watch. I was very touched because it has a picture inside. It’s of his father.”

  The masked man held up the pocket watch.

  Patrick studied the man’s face. The mask was tight. Patrick could see the man’s long, straight nose. The first robber was Jesse James.

  The second robber laughed. “The watch belonged to the conductor’s dear ol’ dad!” he said. “Isn’t that sweet.”

  Anger rose up in Patrick’s heart. He said, “You’re mean. You shouldn’t take something personal like that.”

  Jesse James looked directly at Patrick.

  Patrick felt as if the man could read his mind.

  Then Jesse’s eyes shifted to Leonard.

  “Well, look here, folks,” Jesse James said. “Orphans. And one of them is brave.” He put Mr. Alford’s pocket watch into his coat pocket. “Let’s search the orphans last.”

  The two masked men searched the adults. The robbers began with the man in the bowler hat. They found the money in his sock.

  The women’s purses were taken. Mrs. Scott had to give up her earrings and bracelet.

  The men came to Reverend Hagerty’s seat. He stood up. He held his thick wallet in his hand. He offered it to the robbers.

  Jesse James said to the reverend, “Keep your wallet.”

  The other robber asked, “Why? Isn’t his money good enough for you?”

  “Look at his hands,” Jesse James said. “I can tell he works for a living. They’re all beat up and dirty. I want to take money only from the rich ones. They have clean, soft hands.”

  Finally Jesse James motioned for the boys to be searched. “You orphans,” he said. “Get out of your seats. Come on up here.”

  Patrick stood and looked at Reverend Hagerty. The reverend nodded and smiled. His expression seemed to say, “It will be okay.”

  Patrick walked slowly up the aisle. He could hear Leonard shuffling behind him.

  “There’s a funny thing about orphans,” Jesse James said. “They look poor. But they can hide all sorts of treasure.”

  Patrick paused. His stomach twisted like a ball of rubber bands.

  “In fact,” Jesse added, “there was a little orphan in the passenger car. She had nine hundred dollars hidden in her sock. I think someone gave the money to her. Maybe they thought I wouldn’t search an orphan.”

  This guy is smart, Patrick thought. He’ll find the diamonds. Poor Mrs. Scott will lose her life savings.

  Patrick was near the stove when he felt something hit his foot. Suddenly he was falling. Patrick put out his arms to catch himself. But he was too slow.

  “Oof!” Patrick said. He landed on the carpet. Leonard tripped me on purpose, he thought.

  Then Patrick felt Leonard’s hand on his elbow. The orphan was helping him up.

  Leonard bent down to lift Patrick. Leonard’s knee hit the stove. The stove door accidentally popped open.

  “Oops,” Leonard said. He fumbled around with the stove door. Patrick saw a flash of something blue. Then Leonard shut the stove door.

  Jesse James shouted, “That’s enough fooling around. Get up here now!”

  Patrick quickly stood. He moved close to the angry gang leader.

  Jesse James tucked one pistol in its holster. He searched Patrick’s pockets with his free hand. Right away Jesse James found the letter from Eugene. But he tossed it aside without reading it.

  That was close, Patrick thought. He sighed with
relief.

  “Take off your boots, boy,” Jesse James said. “And your socks.”

  Patrick took off his boots one at a time. He turned each one over and shook it. Then he peeled off his long black socks. He wiggled his bare toes.

  Jesse James seemed satisfied that Patrick had nothing of value. The man turned his attention to Leonard.

  Patrick could tell all the passengers were nervous. He glanced at Mrs. Scott. She was biting her fingernails.

  Reverend Hagerty’s eyes were closed. His mouth was moving slightly. Patrick thought he was praying.

  Leonard had already taken off his boots and socks. He stood calmly as Jesse James patted the orphan’s pockets.

  Any second now he’s going to find those diamonds, Patrick thought.

  “What is this?” Jesse James asked.

  He held up something.

  It was a piece of newsprint. Patrick knew it was the article about the James gang. It told about the recent stagecoach robbery.

  Where are the diamonds? Patrick wondered.

  Leonard beamed a smile at Jesse James. “I read all about you, sir,” he said. “You’re my hero!”

  Leonard wrapped his arms around Jesse James and hugged him. “I want to be just like you when I grow up. Can I join your gang?”

  Jesse laughed. “Of course,” he said. “Come find me when you’re twenty-one years old. I’ll always need loyal members in my gang.”

  The bandit took off his hat and put it on Leonard’s head.

  “I’m an official member now!” Leonard said.

  Jesse James stood by the front door. He said, “I had a very pleasant visit on the number seven. Thank you for your donations to the James gang.”

  Then Jesse reached inside his coat pocket. He handed Mr. Alford a piece of paper. “Open that when we’re gone.”

  The second robber waved a silver-and-ivory pistol at the passengers. “Wait five minutes before you go outside. Or you’ll be shot.”

  The robbers left out the front door.

  Suddenly all the passengers began to clap. Everyone was glad the bandits were gone.