The Escort

by Gina Robinson

  "But you will always bake for me, coccola?" He caressed the Italian word. He lifted her wrist to his lips, kissing the pulse that leapt beneath his touch.

  Darling! He'd called her darling! Her heart thudded wildly. She stared desperately into his eyes and could find no mocking there. He must be drunk. "For you, yes."

  "Do you know what profiterole reminds me of?" He turned her chair to face his and pulled her gently to his lap. With one hand he removed the pins that held her bun in place, freeing her hair to tumble wildly over her shoulders. He held her wrist firmly in his other hand. He released it as he circled her waist with his arms and nuzzled into her freshly scented hair to find her ear and whisper softly.

  "A woman's bosom. Profiterole are exactly like a woman's bosom—soft, creamy, and ever so inviting." He ran his hand under her chin and tilted her face to his.

  She leaned into him as his mouth came down on hers. Her head spun with excitement. He stood and pulled her with him, his mouth never leaving hers. She crushed against him thrusting her own tongue boldly into his mouth, her fingers finding their way into his thick dark hair.

  He pulled away slightly and cupped her face in his hands. "Sei la mio coccola. Sei il mio tesoro d'oro belissima. Sono—"

  The kitchen door swung open and the electric lights flashed on. Angelina lurched against Tonio, blinded and confused. A man she didn't recognize stood highlighted in the doorway.

  "Tonio. Baker wants to see you right away."

  "Tell Baker to teach his henchmen some manners. You ever heard of knocking?"

  "Are you coming or not?"

  "Not. Baker can wait until morning."

  "Mr. Baker insisted I bring you to him immediately." The man pulled his coat back slightly to reveal a revolver.

  Tonio remained calm. "Scare tactics don't impress me."

  The man didn't move. "Mr. Baker requests your presence, I comply."

  Tonio muttered under his breath. "I'm sorry, Angelina. I have to go. Tell May I'll be back late." He grabbed his coat and followed the man, leaving Angelina to stand stunned in the center of the kitchen, shaken and frightened.

  "You are my darling," he'd been saying. "You are my beautiful golden treasure. I am—" And he was cut off. I am what? she wondered.

  "Porco cane!" she uttered under her breath. It was easier to curse than dwell on her fear. Mr. Baker was a pig dog! A very dangerous pig dog if he employed such henchmen. She cleared the dishes, but they shook in her hands. She gave up on washing them, worried she would shatter them as fear for Tonio's safety rattled her nerves. She had to find Al and May. Fortunately, at that moment the back door opened and May and Al appeared.

  "One of Ed Baker's men insisted Tonio go with him to see Mr. Baker," Angelina blurted out, explaining the situation and the threat with the gun.

  "We know," May said, putting her hand on Angelina's shoulder. "Al and I saw them. Don't worry. Tonio can take care of himself."

  Al nodded his agreement. "Ed would be a fool to harm a partner in the Jupiter. We've made sure to keep our noses clean."

  "Come. I'll make you a cup of tea. We could all use one." May turned to put a kettle on.

  May and Al's calm attitude eased Angelina's worries only so far. She remembered Tonio's warnings of the dangers of the Valley and wished he'd taken his own advice and stayed away.

  "Tonio, I don't know what's got you so worked up about this Bunker business," May said.

  She, Angelina, and Tonio were seated around her kitchen table the following afternoon. For Angelina's part, she was filled with relief that Tonio had returned unharmed from his meeting with Baker.

  "It's not like we're going to be affected much. We already employ only union help and we pay them scale. If there's a strike and our two union men join in, well, we can work without them. It won't slow us down much. Harry will have to go work his share instead of hiring it out and the rest of you fellows just work harder. Business as usual."

  Angelina watched the two of them closely. Something was going on beneath the surface that she couldn't quite grasp.

  "May, I don't think you realize the scope of the problem. You remember the strike of ninety two."

  "Everyone who lived here does. Most of the mines were closed for quite a spell."

  Tonio didn't answer directly. He poked at his eggs with his fork. "The Bunker didn't reopen until the men passed around a petition stating that they'd work below scale until market conditions improved."

  "And the men have worked in good faith and not broken their end of the bargain." May pounded the table. "They should all join the union, Tonio, and force the Bunker to comply. It's a bunch of pigheaded fools who won't join. The union's goal is to help them out. If everyone belonged we'd give management the what-for."

  "The men signed an agreement stating they'd work below scale until two ounces of silver and one hundred pounds of lead sold for six dollars. It hasn't reached that yet. Management hasn't broken their promise either."

  May looked annoyed. "I thought you were a union man, Tonio. You know as well as I do that an agreement could have been reached based on the price of lead alone. The Bunker's practically depleted its silver. It's a lead mine now. Even Manager Bradley said so back during the big debate over the free coinage of silver. He came right out and said he was mining lead.

  "The Bunker's increased its daily output by nearly $1650 dollars while increasing payroll by only two to three hundred dollars per day. They can afford to pay. All the other mines do."

  "Even still, Bunker management has not broken their end of the agreement."

  "Not yet but I've heard it said that the managers don't intend to keep their promises if prices do rise."

  "You've been talking to Baker."

  "I've been reading the papers. It's you who's been to see Baker."

  Tonio stared thoughtfully out the window. "You'll remember there was violence in ninety two."

  "That shouldn't concern us. A small operation like ours, why would we be a target?"

  From where she sat Angelina couldn't see Tonio's face, but May could. "Could be we have something they want," he said.

  May's mouth dropped open in dismay as understanding dawned. "No, Tonio! Ed Baker is our friend. Why he's courting Harry's sister, Eleanor! Besides, we all support the union."

  "But how far will we go with our support?"

  "Maybe it won't come to that."

  "It's coming, May. And soon. The union's asked Manager Burbidge for two concessions. He may increase wages to scale, but he'll never recognize the union."

  May was still staring hard at Tonio when Angelina chimed in. "What do they want, Tonio? Surely it can't be much. Let's just give them—"

  May silenced her with a look.

  "You'll do what's right, Tonio," May said. Tonio pushed his plate back and rose to leave. May patted him on the arm. As he reached the door he turned back to look at Angelina.

  "Stay away from the mines, Angel. It's no place for a woman. It's no place for anyone." He grabbed his coat and disappeared out the door.

  Chapter 14

  Tonio hung his black-fringed jacket over the chair back and stood gazing out the window to the bustle of Cedar Street below. The temporary offices of the Western Federation of Miners occupied the second floor of the building, above the offices of one of the few lawyers in town. Sparsely furnished, the room had all the necessities—desk, chairs, table, bulletin board. Baker was late.

  Probably intentionally, Tonio thought. Baker liked the element of control. Everything was a power game with him. The door opened and Ed Baker strolled in.

  "Good morning, Tonio. Have a seat." Nearly forty, Ed Baker was a tall, slender man with a receding hairline and a conservative mustache. His appearance belied nothing of his radical nature. Born in County Donegal, he spoke with the slightest of Irish brogues. He had lived in the States for nearly twenty years.

  "I prefer to stand, Ed."

  Baker nodded. "Coming to my meeting on short notice the other night proved
your loyalty to the cause, even if you were slow to leave your lady friend. Have you considered my proposal?"

  "Yes."

  The two men stared at each other coldly.

  "Good, then I'll make the final arrangements. We have not always been pleased with your association with the Bunker management, the likes of Jim Burte. But now it may prove useful to our purposes."

  Baker's personal assistant, Clell, closed the door as the meeting between the two continued. He sat at a small desk in the adjoining room doing nothing more than eavesdropping and waiting for his boss's next instructions, so Tonio imagined.

  "Bunker Hill management has not been listening to us." Baker swiveled in his chair. "The time has come to get their attention. Blowing up something near and dear to them ought to do the trick. You're the best damned explosives guy in region. If anyone can do the job for us, you can."

  "I sympathize with the union's plight." Tonio had to step carefully with his words. A trip of the tongue could set Baker off. "You know that, Baker. That's part of the reason I left the Bunker and went into business for myself. Me, and the gang at the Hole, treat our men with respect. We pay a fair wage and look after safety concerns. Half the time we're down the hole ourselves. We're miners and mine owners. Surely you can appreciate the bind that puts us in?

  "We don't want any trouble. We've decided to remain neutral in this fight for the sake of our business, as well as to preserve Harry and H.L.'s political careers."

  Tonio hoped that Baker's friendship with Harry and the other Days would allow him to respect Tonio's decision and not take it personally. No one wanted to experience Baker's wrath.

  "I can't get involved without jeopardizing our own concerns. You'll have to find someone else."

  Tonio stood. By refusing the task, he'd put himself on dangerous ground, but he wasn't going to do anything criminal. He used his skill to mine legitimately, not destroy other people's property.

  Without spinning around to look at him, Baker called out for his assistant. "Clell! Show Mr. Domani out."

  Baker faced the windows. He looked back over his shoulder as Tonio left. "Make no mistake. It's still war."

  Small and wiry, Clell was not the kind of bouncer one would expect the union leader to employ, except that every ounce of him was muscle. Tonio had never liked him. He liked him less now. Clell's small eyes leapt with malice as he showed Tonio the door.

  He leaned close and looked up at the much taller Tonio. "Watch your backside. A word of the plan leaks out…" He smiled significantly as he opened the door and stepped back to allow Tonio to pass by.

  Tonio stepped out into the street and the cool morning air, shivering slightly as he left the warmth of the building. "Bastard!" he said under his breath.

  He doubted Baker knew of his assistant's violent nature. Baker was an honest man as far as he could tell, radical only where laborers' rights were concerned.

  Angelina was about to turn the corner off Cedar Street when she spotted Tonio coming out of a building farther up the street. He stood in his shirtsleeves on the boardwalk for a moment, then suddenly turned to reenter the building he'd just emerged from. He should have worn a coat. It was too chilly to be out without a coat, though the day held the promise of warmth.

  "Tonio!" She wanted to catch him before he got away. He turned in her direction. "Tonio!" She was breathless with excitement as she approached him. "What a beautiful day, don't you think? Look at the lilacs, they'll be blooming soon."

  "Angelina, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be locked in the kitchen baking at this time of day?" He looked genuinely pleased to see her.

  She took his arm and smiled. "I've just come from the Colonel's. Good news, Tonio! The Colonel wants to start a baking business and I'm going to be his partner. I'll be doing all the baking. We'll be selling only exotic, fancy confections. My talent is being wasted on cookies. That's what the Colonel thinks."

  Tonio leaned close to her and whispered in her ear. "I think so, too."

  She ignored the pleasing innuendo in his tone. "He thinks he can sell them to fancy restaurants and rich people as far away as Spokane. The Colonel has connections." She sighed. "Connections I don't have on my own."

  "Does this mean you won't be up at the mine selling them anymore?"

  "I hope not as often. I don't like the mines." She took his arm playfully. "Come, Tonio. Let me buy you a cup of coffee to celebrate. You look like you could use some warming up."

  "Indeed I could, Angel. But I have a better idea. Why don't I take you out to dinner this evening? That would be a real celebration."

  "I'd love that, Tonio." His offer sent her heart pattering. "But why not do both?"

  "I have business to attend to right now. I'll be back at the house around seven to pick you up."

  "Are you courting me then?"

  He looked at her oddly. "Courting so soon after being widowed? I thought you were turning down all suitors."

  "I'm being selective."

  "Well then, if you can survive the scandal, yes, I am courting."

  "See you at seven, Tonio." She patted his arm, and turned towards home, giving her skirt a flirtatious flip as she did so.

  The dining room of the Fuller House twinkled with candlelight and white linen tablecloths. The dim electric lights created an intimate atmosphere. Tonio and Angelina were led to a quiet table away from the kitchen. Tonio held her chair as she was seated. "Two glasses of wine. Something dry and light," he instructed the waiter.

  Bright red tulips closed in tight bud decorated each table. Angelina set her small purse on the chair next to her. She wore her green day suit, hoping to impress Tonio.

  "Wine?" she said. "Shall I dare be so scandalous? An American woman wouldn't."

  "But it would be perfectly acceptable for an Italian girl."

  "Is that what I am, Tonio? I don't feel like I am so much anymore."

  He reached out and took her hand across the table. "I'd say you weren't a girl anymore at all."

  She smiled. "You know, we could eat May's food at home."

  He put a finger to his lips. "Shh. This is a celebration. The Fuller is the nicest place in town. Someday I'll take you to Spokane and we can eat in real splendor."

  The waiter arrived to take their order and disappeared quietly. They exchanged pleasantries and chatted about her new partnership with the Colonel, but Angelina had the sense that his thoughts were elsewhere, his attention diverted. He sat opposite the door, a position that allowed him to scrutinize people as they came and went and his gaze never strayed far from it.

  He acted different than usual. She felt that he studied her, looking for something, weighing his words carefully, as if he wanted to make a confession. They had finished their dinner and were being served dessert when a friend of Tonio's interrupted them.

  "Isn't this a cozy setting?"

  "Hello, Nokes," Tonio said.

  Nokes moved around the table to look at Angelina. "So nice to see you again, Signora Allessandro."

  Charley Nokes was a regular at the Fuller House. Charley frequently hung out by the kitchen, watching her work and snitching samples. She supposed he could be described as handsome in a pale way. Charley liked to flirt with her, with anyone. She enjoyed sparring with him but nothing more. He sometimes complained to her that Tonio had claimed her before he'd even had a chance with her. She'd told him that he was not her type of man, which did not seem to dampen his spirits greatly.

  Uninvited, Charley pulled up a chair and sat down next to her. "I hear this dog has taken up residence with the Halls, the same home that you are staying in Signora."

  "It was his home first, Mr. Nokes. It is I who intruded on his territory."

  "Nokes thinks he saw you first, Angelina."

  "Mr. Nokes, Tonio and I are old friends. We met in New York."

  Nokes smiled. "The lady defends you."

  "She has good taste."

  Nokes summoned the waiter. "I think I'll join you and have dessert."


  He was about to order when Angelina interrupted him. "Mr. Nokes would like coffee and sweet biscuits, the currant studded ones that I made this afternoon," she said. "They are the very best ones." She winked at Nokes. "I know they are your favorite so I saved you a few."

  Nokes returned her wink. "You see how she looks out for me, Tonio? You better watch yourself or I might just steal her away yet."

  They chatted for a moment until Nokes' dessert arrived.

  "I hear there's going to be a big union meeting the twenty fifth," Nokes said. "They'll probably call a strike. They're asking all the union brothers to go to the Bunker in a show of support."

  Angelina interrupted before Tonio could respond. "If you men are about to talk mining, I will have to insist that Tonio take me home now. I am in no mood to hear another word about mining difficulties. This is a celebration, Mr. Nokes."

  Something in the distance caught Tonio's attention. Angelina turned to look but saw nothing. He rose and pulled her chair out for her.

  "Come, Angelina. I think you're right. It's time to take you home." Confused, she stood up.

  Tonio looked at Nokes as he rose. "You have a winning way with the ladies, Nokes." He threw some money on the table. "Angelina, wait for me at the cloakroom. I need to talk to Nokes."

  Tonio joined her just minutes after she retrieved her cloak. They walked back to the Halls' in silence, taking a circuitous route that led them under every streetlight in town. Tonio seemed uneasy and on guard. Neither spoke. Finally, as they arrived at the front walk, Angelina couldn't stand the silence. "Thank you for dinner, Tonio."

  "Yes, very nice. Poor old Charley, he needs to go home and marry a socialite who'll keep him in his place. He's just play mining out here." He hardly seemed aware of her as he spoke. He'd been distracted since Mr. Nokes had interrupted them.

  They stopped in front of the door. As Angelina reached for the knob, Tonio grabbed her hand to stop her. "I'm not going in, Angelina."

  She looked at him, puzzled. "Don't tell me you have more mysterious business to attend to at this time of night."

  "No, I'm heading back to Burke."