She came forward and did a small courtesy, “Yes’m miss?”
“Take this.” The empty glass of whatever the liquid had been was handed to her. “Get me another one and make it quick.”
“Yes’m miss,” Arielle uttered.
She dashed away to the kitchen and told the head server that another glass of the wine was request. It was poured and like lightning, though none too eager, she hurried back to the woman and Mrs. Wilder.”
“Here ya go, miss.”
The women took the glass. Mrs. Wilder gave her a brief look, then glanced away without any interest.
Going over the parts of the conversation she’d heard, she knew that Anna Wilder could be on the list. Her obvious dislike for Matthias was more to do with the way things used to be. But the question still remained, did Mrs. Wilder resent it so much she’d want Matthias dead?
Arielle looked around and saw Captain Gerard King, part of the beaten confederacy from what she recalled from Caleb’s notes, pausing by the Governor’s table. Swiftly she made her way over to the table, or as close as she could get to it, and listened.
“I see you still got the colored politician here,” he’d clipped out.
“Captain King,” Matthias answered with a calm, implacable voice. “I detest the word, ‘colored’, Captain. As others of my race have said, I am a Negro and proud of it.”
She’d gone around to a table that sat across from the governor’s. The captain’s face was red. From either temper or inebriation or possibly both.
“I’ll call you whatever I like you uppity—“
“There will be none of that,” Governor Wallace warned. “If you’re here to stir up trouble again, Captain King, I suggest you leave.”
“You really want to put this boy’s name on the ballot?” Captain King said indignantly. “If you do that, your career will be finished.”
“The voters will decide that matter, Captain.”
“You’re just letting everything go, aren’t you?” the man snarled. “I saw that savage you let just walk in here with that woman. Calling her his wife. In my day, we took care of savages who had the gall to put their hands on our women.”
“This is not one of your scintillating moments, Captain,” Governor Wallace said, narrowing his eyes on the man. “I suggest you leave until you can enter this house with respect to all the people here.”
She went around the table picking up the fallen cloth napkin one of the guests had dropped. Standing to the side, head down, waiting, she listened, a strangulated sound of…loathing? Hatred? Spewed from the Captain’s mouth.
“You need to put these people in their place.” He pointed a finger at Matthias, “He’s not even of our race!?”
“Race is an interesting word, Captain,” Matthias said slowly. “You may say you and I are of different races but as far as I can tell, we both have all the same body parts as each other. Which means, we are both of the same race. Therefore, I do have the potential to be the best state representative to work towards both equality for my people and justice for all.”
The captain lunged forward, his arms outstretched as if he wanted to wrap them around Matthias’s throat. Two men hurried forward and grabbed the captain from behind and dragged him away.
“You better know your place, boy, “Captain King shouted. “Or I’ll be wrapping a nice rope around your neck.”
The governor made a motion with his hand and the two men who had grabbed the captain escorted him away.
Unlike the dubious nature of Anna Wilder, it was evident from this conversation that the captain was definitely on the list of suspects. His eyes had practically bulged out of his head, face red and furious.
Arielle went back to the kitchen. Catching Caleb’s eye, she hurried around the bustling area to where he stood. Gesturing toward the door behind them, they went out of it. A pile of wood was nearby and Arielle surmised he’d been told to cut more wood to supply the appropriate fuel for the house.
“What did you learn?” he said without preamble.
She related everything that she’d seen in short succinct words. They didn’t have a lot of time as it was dangerous but he had to know.
Once she finished, he gave a nod. “I was sent over to the saloon again. Sheriff Morrison and Sam Meredith were at it again. Meredith pouring and Morrison drinking. This time, I heard him say, “…can’t wait too long. Need to get him out of the way.”
“I wonder who he could be referring to?” she said out loud.
“I don’t trust the sheriff or the bartender. They’re involved in something but I’m not sure what. Get on back in there and find out what you can.”
“All right,” she said.
Caleb’s eyes twinkled. Lifting his finger, he let it trail down the side of her face. “You’re doing well, Arielle. Or perhaps I should say, Agent Smith.”
She beamed and then rushed back inside, determined more than ever to find out who was the one who sent the death threat to Matthias.
Chapter Eight
“Last evening didn’t yield anything,” Arielle pouted to Caleb as they sat on the bench in the cool of the day. All around them, the gardens bloomed with flowers of every color. It reminded her of home.
Most of the partygoers had gone. Though they had both worked the morning and most of the afternoon, they had been allowed a couple hours of time in the afternoon.
“It did yield some things,” Caleb disagreed.
“Such as?”
He lifted an arrogant eyebrow. “Need I remind you about—”
“Oh!” Arielle stuttered. How could she have forgotten the one thing that had embarrassed her the entire night?
She had been watching their list of suspects for most of the night when she saw Anna Wilder get up from the table. Quick as she could but without drawing attention to herself, Arielle followed her. Once she gained the halls, she made sure to lag behind but kept the woman in sight. Mrs. Wilder seemed more preoccupied than watchful. Arielle had kept with the trail, turning the corner to see the woman enter the Governor’s study.
Why would Mrs. Wilder be there? Was there some sort of document she was trying to get her hands on?
Arielle had had a difficult time deciding what to do. Remembering what Caleb had told her, she went with her instinct. Racing down the hall, she crept on cat’s feet till she reached the door. It had been left slightly ajar.
She’d eased her way ever so carefully. There was just enough of a narrow slit to see.
And what she saw made her cringe in disgust.
“Suffice it to say, Anna Wilder and Aaron Roberts are not out to kill Matthias Blackburn.”
When she related the event to Caleb, he’d laughed. It sounded rusty but she liked it. “That only leaves Captain Gerard King, Sheriff Morrison, and Sam Meredith.”
Caleb grinned. “I wish I could have seen your face when you caught them.”
Arielle stared at that expression of mirth. How wonderful it looked on his face. After learning what she had about his past, the fact that he was smiling with her caused her to feel an almost overwhelming sense of humbleness.
How often had she taken for granted men’s admiration? Too many times to count. Yet, once her initial pleasure at having gained their attention had faded, then she looked for the next one to fall for.
Thinking of the kiss she shared with him, she wondered if they had a future together once this mission was over. When night fell, for the first time, she had no qualms about snuggling into his body. In their brief time together, she’d become accustomed to the weight of his arm across her waist.
Could she give that up when this was over? She’d learned so much about him but she knew there was more. A man who had survived the vilest treatment, and still continued to do what he could to help others…surely that was a sign of a man worth having.
“What are you thinking about, Arielle?”
The waning sunlight rested behind them. To her eyes, Caleb Smith was the most handsome man she’d ever
seen. A gentle, strong man with a depth of compassion any woman would want to explore.
Greedily, she wanted Caleb Smith for her husband. Not for the duration of the case but…till death did they part.
Was this need, this craving, this longing – was it love? She had no idea.
“You and I,” she stated bluntly.
The dark honey eyes narrowed. “Why is that?”
“Caleb,” she scooted closer, “I don’t think I want this marriage to end when this case is over. I want to be with you for the next one. And the next. And the one after that.”
“So, you think you can be an agent?”
“I know I can. But…I have no intention of giving you an annulment when this is over.”
“Arielle,” he said her name like a prayer.
“Cher,” she whispered, grabbing his hand and holding it in her own. It was twice her size. The inner palm hard with patches of skin from the work over the year. Old scars fat with thick folds of skin. Yet, he’d caressed her so gently as they shared in his sorrow.
“I don’t know if I am in love with you, Caleb. I do know that when I think of you, I know you are the only man that I want. We work well together.”
Deliberately, she added, “I wonder what else can we do well together.”
His nose flared and heat lit the honeyed depths of his eyes. “Talk like that will get you in trouble, Mrs. Smith.”
She gave a saucy grin. “I certainly hope so, Mr. Smith.”
A low growl was her only warning. He gripped her hand and dragged her close into his arms. His head bent and he devoured her lips. Arielle met his ardor, happy to bask in this thing she hoped was called love. Wonderingly, she let her fingers trace the contours of his face, shaping his forehead, running along the ridge of his ear, and along the thick cords of his neck.
He murmured something and kissed her deeper as if he were drawing sustenance from her. Maybe he was. Arielle was more than willing to give him what he needed from her.
Hope in love again.
How long they sat there, in the waning sunlight she had no idea. When he dragged his mouth away and pulled her close to his heart, Arielle found the rhythm of the beat like a lullaby. He brushed his lips against her temple. “Let’s take one thing at a time,” he told her.
“I’m not asking for an answer now, Caleb.” She nuzzled closer, inhaling his masculine scent. “I just wanted you to know.”
He held her for a little bit longer and then, he reluctantly drew away. “I thought Sorcha was the only one who could make me feel like this. But with you, it’s…even better.”
“Well,” she couldn’t resist saying, “What did you expect?”
Caleb smiled. “You arrogant, beautiful woman. I need to go back to the cottage and change my shirt to prepare for tonight.”
Arielle opened her mouth when her eyes caught someone waving at them. It was Claudette. She hadn’t had much chance to interact with her. She and Bronco had their own investigation they were undertaking and it was important they didn’t jeopardize it.
“I thought you were going to be at the party this afternoon?” Arielle called out in French as Claudette came closer.
“I just have to grab my wrap. I’ll be headed back there in a minute.” Claudette went in the direction of the guest cottages.
Caleb got up too and headed in the direction of their cottage. Arielle sat there on the bench, thinking of nothing more than Caleb’s kisses when she heard a scream rend the air. It was coming from the cottage shared by both Claudette and Bronco.
She raced up the narrow pathway and into the cottage. Claudette had fallen on the ground. Seeing Claudette on the floor, her lovely face smoothed in unconsciousness, Arielle let out a yell of her own.
A band of steel wrapped around her, hurting and cruel while a sweet-sickly smelling cloth covered her mouth. She shrieked and kicked out a foot, slamming the edge of her heel into a shin.
Someone cursed and the cloth was pressed deeper into her face. She struggled against it but felt the effects of it begin to take over. With the last of her conscious thought, she trailed her hand down the front of her dress and tore the arabette pin from her.
Caleb would find it. She knew he—
Caleb prayed for Arielle and Claudette’s safety as he and Bronco went through the cabin where they both had been seen last. When his eyes landed on the arabette pin, he felt an invisible fist slam into his stomach.
Someone had taken his wife. She would never leave this pin here.
Was she hurt?
Bronco, though he tried to keep his professional distance, nonetheless wore the look of a man trying to keep from going mad. Caleb recognize the inner turmoil because it reflected his own.
Had it been just a few hours ago that he and Arielle had shared drugging kisses? Or that he listened to his wife tell him she wanted to be his partner in both the Agency and in life.
Caleb took in a shuddering breath. He hadn’t been able to tell her the truth then. That he wanted her by his side but was too afraid something like what had happened to Sorcha would happen to her. That maybe he wouldn’t be able to protect her.
Bronco looked at all the papers on the ground. “These are our correspondences with the Denver office. If someone saw these, they would know that Claudette is a Pinkerton and not a museum curator.”
Bronco’s face had tightened.
“What do you think will happen?”
“I pray they don’t find out, because if they do, I’m afraid they might kill her.”
Caleb gulped. If whoever took Claudette could kill her without a second thought, then what about Arielle?
They had to find her.
Working with Bronco, they kept lifting up every rock, and checking in every nook, and cranny until, through a series of questions and interviews, an elderly man told them about the tunnels which existed under the streets.
For Bronco’s investigation, Caleb was pretty sure the case had opened wide. For him, he just wanted to be sure he got to Arielle in time. Tunnels under the city meant the people could be transported without being seen. He’d done it many times himself when he acted as a conductor for the Underground Railroad.
Bronco followed the trail with the tenacity he was known for, eventually finding the entrance to the tunnels and starting to go through them. Caleb followed along, knowing that where Claudette had gone, his wife had gone, too.
Would he find Arielle before it was too late?
No, it would never be too late. He’d find her before anyone tried to harm her.
The frightened women were being shoved down the tunnels to whatever fate these two men, the sheriff and Sam the bartender had in store for them. Arielle knew she and Claudette had to do everything they could to protect these women.
Though she knew that both Bronco and Caleb would find them, they were Pinkerton agents themselves.
When she’d awakened in the darkness, at first, she’d been terrified and uncertain. This wasn’t going to be the way it ended for her. Not, in some dank, dirty place surrounded by hopelessness. Then, she pulled herself together and made a promise to herself.
She was not going to die here or anywhere else.
Claudette had showed her aptitude for being an agent when she began to gather details from the frightened women. Together, they talked back and forth in their own tongue as the men who had kidnapped them, started to move them.
By that time, they had come up with a plan and Arielle began to execute it.
She stumbled into the wall as if she’d lost her balance and slid the bracelet from her wrist. The men with them never suspected. Back and forth, she and Claudette worked together, trying to stall for a time, trying to make sure everyone went away from this unharmed.
Waiting for both Caleb and Bronco to find them.
The men leered and jeered at Claudette and herself, trying to frighten them with implied things of what would happen to them. Frightened, Arielle did her best not to show it but her skin crawled when the sh
eriff made a crass remark.
In that brief span of time, Arielle made a promise to the good Lord above. She would never again bask in the attentions of men. If she could gain the love of her husband, she’d consider herself the most blessed woman on earth.
Claudette‘s voice finally said, “J'ai un pistolet et un couteau.” I have a pistol and a knife.
Arielle would have grinned if the situation wasn’t so dire. Of course, Claudette would have a knife and gun. She married Bronco, after all. He was bound to teach her a thing or two.
“Où sont-ils?” Where do you have them?
The sheriff hollered at them. “Stop it, you two. I don’t want you saying anything more until we get to where we are going. Understand?”
Claudette’s faint words made it to her ear. “Dans ma jupe. Nous avons besoin d'une distraction. In my skirt. We need a distraction. To the vile man with them, she’d said. “Of course, Sheriff. Whatever you say.”
Arielle waited, listening and waiting for the opportunity. It came when the sheriff, once they reached an area where the underground tunnels were interconnected, discovered they had been leaving a trail. The rage on his face had almost transformed it completely to a monster.
When, in his fury, he grabbed at Claudette, Arielle grasped one of the torches that lined the walls and brought it down upon his head with every ounce of strength she had. The man toppled to the ground unconscious.
Claudette whipped her skirts up and pulled out her pistol, aiming it at the sheriff’s prone form.
Movement from behind her caught her ear and Arielle turned. It was Bronco, rushing toward them.
“How many are there?” he quickly asked as he slid to a stop in front of Claudette. Arielle looked in vain for Caleb. He had to have come, but maybe he’d gone a different route in his efforts to get the men.
“Two. Keith and Sam.”
“You okay?” She nodded. “We are fine. Go. Go!”
Bronco gave Claudette a strong, passionate kiss made all the more so by its brevity before going after the bartender who had run further ahead.
Trying to not appear anxious, nonetheless, she wondered where Caleb was.
An Agent for Arielle (The Pinkerton Matchmaker Book 12) Page 7
