An Agent for Josie

by P. Creeden

  A waste of time.

  With a sigh, he stopped at the corner of the alley between the hospital and the post office. He leaned against the corner of the building. He’d always been too busy for drinking. Too busy taking care of his father and brother. Too busy saving lives as a fireman. Too busy working for the Pinkertons. So, he’d never learned to hold his liquor the way other men seemed able to. At least they said they were able to. Billy actually wondered if anyone ever did truly well while under the influence of spirits. It seemed nothing good came out of tucking back a bottle... or even a few shot glasses. He pulled out his pocket watch and checked the time. It was nearly one in the morning. He hung his head a bit and closed his eyes. He was good and tired. That was best. He wouldn’t spend his time thinking about how Josie smelled of lilacs and honey.

  The world spun a little bit as he picked up his head. Too late. He’d already thought about how Josie smelled, and it awakened a desire that he thought he’d buried a long time ago. What would it be like to be married to a woman like Josie? Pretty, perfect, and smart—more than smart, a doctor.

  He shook his head.

  That was never going to happen. Josie was much to good for him.

  He’d already decided a long time ago that he was never going to marry—never going to burden a woman with a dumb oaf of a husband. He couldn’t do anything right. Not even sticking to his own promise to himself. He’d not only gotten married, but the woman he’d ended up married to was much too perfect for him.

  His heart pinched in his chest as he let out a slow exhalation. It didn’t matter. This marriage was fake anyway.

  But what if it wasn’t? What if Josie would stay his wife? His heart leapt into his throat at the thought. She would make a lovely mother, and maybe their children wouldn’t grow up to be oafish like him.

  He shook his head again. How could he be so foolish as to believe that Josie would ever stay married to him?

  He swallowed down the lump in his throat and bit back the tears that threatened to come. It must have been the whisky that made him so emotional. What he really needed was to sleep it off before he did something even more foolish. He stumbled slightly as he entered the tent, and then he righted himself, took a deep breath and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. He hoped that Josie wasn’t a light sleeper as he pulled off his boots and tucked himself into the empty cot on the right side of the tent.

  All that separated him from the life that he wanted... from the wife that he wanted were a few feet of air space and a small table. He turned his back toward her and faced the side of the canvas tent. It may as well have been a thousand miles. It was only a dream that he’d never be lucky enough to attain.

  Josie

  Even though Josie had gotten up early the next morning, somehow, Billy had woken earlier. While she took her time getting dressed and ready for the day, he’d headed out to get a hold of some eggs and more bread and made a quick scramble with toast. She watched him while they ate, noting that his eyes were a bit bleary from his late night and he seemed to have a bit of a headache. She sniffed the faintest bit of whisky on his person and hoped that he wasn’t one to drink much. It would be the first flaw that she’d found in him if he did. She determined that she’d keep an eye on that.

  After breakfast Billy escorted her to the hospital. She sighed as they reached the front step. “I don’t think there’s much danger in the mornings. I believe I could make it here on my own without an escort.”

  Billy peered up and down the road with a frown in the silver morning light. He shook his head. “Those same miners and soldiers who were living it up at the saloon last night are out and about this morning heading into work. It’d still be better if I escorted you.”

  “But you really need more sleep,” Josie said with a frown.

  He huffed a laugh and grinned sheepishly. “I intend to go back and lie down for a bit now, after seeing you off. I didn’t get much information last night. Therefore, I’m going to be spending a lot more late nights at the saloons, so I’ll need to get my rest somewhere.”

  Her heart pricked at his statement. Maybe Billy was, indeed, a drunkard. Maybe he liked the company of saloon women. She swallowed hard, forced a smile and nodded. It was none of her business. She wasn’t his “real” wife. She had no say in what he did or didn’t do. Who was she to judge? She let out a slow breath as she watched Billy sluggishly head back toward the alley between the hospital and the post office. He turned and waved to her just before disappearing.

  If nothing else, she needed to protect her heart. She was developing feelings for Billy Hogge, and maybe he wasn’t the man she thought he was. She needed to consider that possibility. Besides, he did too much for her. Their relationship felt too lopsided. Her hands fisted. If she wanted to earn her keep, she’d have to do so as a Pinkerton Detective—a good partner. So right now, she needed to find out what she could about the uprising through her patients. Determined, she headed into the hospital.

  Many of her patients happily greeted her as she came to their sides. Some of them had already gained a measure of relief from the cold compresses and the teas. The pain level in the room had gone down. As she had considered the day before, she sent nearly half of her patients home with instructions on how to care for themselves. Each assured her that they would return if symptoms worsened or persisted.

  Some doctors liked to keep their treatments a mystery, so they were more needed by their patients. Josie was of the same mind as her father; it was better for the patients to need their doctor as little as possible. If they were able to treat themselves at home, they were much more likely to get better rest and therefore heal sooner.

  Most of the patients wanted to get back to work, but she warned them that doing so would stall their healing. When they finally got a moment to rest, Josie sat with Ruth, who had brought a bit of bread and cheese for both of them.

  “I often provided lunch for the other doctor, too,” Ruth said with a laugh. “It seems that doctors are great at taking care of others but forget to take care of themselves. I always felt that it’s part of the duty of a nurse to help in that department as well.”

  Josie smiled back at her. “Well, I’m thankful, and I’m sure every doctor who might have you as their nurse will be grateful as well.”

  She lifted a brow. “Are you trying to tell me that you’re not going to be around long?”

  “I’m here now,” Josie said with a shrug and took another bite of her bread and cheese. “But the lieutenant only agreed to have me if this was a temporary position.”

  Ruth shook her head. “Of course, he did. I thought it was unusual for him to allow a woman doctor to take care of his soldiers.” She sighed. “I guess desperate times make us more desperate. We haven’t had any real, significant rain since about March of last year. Everything is drying up, and that’s causing more problems in both workers and soldiers. The lieutenant had to do something before he lost any more men.”

  Josie saw this as her opportunity to pick Ruth’s brain. “The camp is here—and the soldiers—to protect the miners from savages, right?”

  “Supposedly,” Ruth said with a smile. “But the Apache around here are peace-loving. They keep to themselves as long as we keep to ourselves. We haven’t had many conflicts with them.”

  “So, there’s no chance of the savages attacking the camp or the mines?”

  The nurse shook her head. “Chances of that are very slim.”

  Josie nodded. Was there really an uprising for people to be worried about? She didn’t see how things were unruly and getting out of hand here at the camp. Perhaps things were just rumors after all. She hoped that was the case as they finished up their lunch and started heading back inside the hospital.

  “Oh,” Ruth said, suddenly, putting out a hand to stop Josie from walking ahead. “I forgot to tell you that Sam Butler will be out tomorrow with his cart to pick you up.”

  Josie frowned. “What do you mean?”

 
; A flicker of irritation went through Ruth’s expression as she rolled her eyes at the building across the street that housed the military offices. “They didn’t tell you then?”

  “No.” Josie shook her head.

  With a sigh Ruth said, “One day a week, we head out to the local farms to check on the families who have sick ones in bed. They don’t like leaving their loved ones when they live a few miles outside of town. And most farming families believe they can take better care of their sick ones on their own. I think it’s because they treat it like the rest of animal husbandry. They do what they can when they can. The doctors at the camp always make rounds on Saturdays, though.”

  “If they are so bent on taking care of their own, will they be all right with me visiting them?”

  Ruth smiled and nodded. “Absolutely. While we were without a doctor, I’ve been making the rounds myself. I didn’t want to leave the families without any medical care at all. Now that you’re here, maybe we’ll see some real progress among their sick. I’m afraid things have been getting worse for them lately, and I’m not sure what else I can do for them.”

  “Did the former doctor diagnose their condition?” Josie asked with a frown.

  The nurse shook her head. “He did not. Whatever it is that they have, it’s something new that’s just popped up this year. It’s not dysentery or valley fever. It’s something else.”

  “Certainly,” Josie said with a nod. “I’ll be happy to take a look.”

  Chapter 10

  Billy

  That night, Billy’d spent more time with the soldiers instead of the miners, but he still got nowhere closer to finding out if an uprising was even being considered. At least the soldiers were more interested in playing cards than they were in drinking. Billy got away with just having a glass of whiskey next to him instead of actually drinking it. And Billy had always been half-decent at playing cards. He’d only lost about four dollars, which was as close to breaking even as he could ask for. None of the soldiers and miners who frequented the saloon that he visited were involved in the uprising rumor. That much was good. However, he had two more saloons to check before he could decide that there were no soldiers involved in the rumor, and perhaps it was just a rumor after all.

  It was just before midnight when he’d returned home to the tent behind the hospital and fell asleep almost instantly. He was getting into a routine, but the next morning, after escorting Josie to the hospital, he broke his routine when he saw three Apache Indians ride into town. Billy wasn’t the only one who noticed them. Several of the townsfolk stopped to stare, though most of the soldiers seemed to ignore the threesome. Others stopped and watched as though making sure the Apache caused no trouble. Out of curiosity, Billy followed them to the general store to watch the interaction between them and the townspeople.

  While the Indians tied up their horses to the hitching post just outside the general store, Billy made his way inside. He decided to buy a bit of dried goods. Maybe he could even make a lentil soup for Josie’s dinner that night. Two of the Apache walked in through the door while the other one tended to the horses and pack mules outside.

  The smile the store manager, Mr. Finney, had on his face a moment before slipped away. “What can I do for you lot?” he asked.

  The taller of the two Apaches eyed Billy, who stood at the counter, and backed away a bit to allow them access to it and Mr. Finney.

  The Apache turned to the merchant. “We’ve brought pottery, blankets and rugs to trade.”

  Both the merchant and the Indians bartered for a short while. Overall the two seemed friendly with each other. Billy had noticed on his last mission in the Nebraska territory more hostility to the natives than he was seeing here in Camp Verde. Just the fact that Mr. Finney didn’t seem offended that the Apaches visited him in broad daylight in the middle of the day and came through the front door was more than what was allowed in the Nebraska camp. In Nebraska, the Indians weren’t even permitted to come into town. The mercantile went out to the Indian trading posts instead to get the same items these Apache were bringing directly to Mr. Finney’s shop.

  Billy stayed until the transaction ended, took his lentils from the store, and headed back to his tent with a frown. The nearby tribes appeared to be on good terms with the people in the camp. So why did the lieutenant even fear the possibility of a massacre like what had happened at Camp Grant? It seemed altogether unlikely. But a rumor was a rumor, and before they could rule out the possibility, Billy needed to explore every option.

  Josie

  Josie headed to the first farm, shocked by what she found there. The drought was hitting the farmers much harder than it was the soldiers and miners in the camp. Outside of the camp, it was just as dry as anywhere else, but the mercantile and general store brought in goods from other camps and towns where they traded them from. The farms were sustaining themselves. If the farmer didn’t grow it himself or from his own farming friends on trade, he rarely got things from outside sources. Many of the farms in the area couldn’t go to the general store at the camp because they already owed the owner too much money, and he’d cut them off until they could pay.

  Pain, fatigue, fever, and rashes almost made it seem as though the valley fever affected the farming families as well, but there was one significant symptom that separated them from the others in the camp. Bleeding gums. Josie swallowed hard. She’d never seen so many people afflicted with scurvy. As they continued around the farms, Josie’s heart broke more and more. Eighteen people were showing severe signs of scurvy, mostly the parents of children, as they gave to their young ones what they knew was needed to survive. The other farmers seemed to already show minor signs of the same condition.

  If they didn’t start working on the issue posthaste, people would be dying within weeks.

  The first thing that Josie did when they got back was to turn to the driver. “Is there any chance that you can take me out to the farms again tomorrow. I’m going to talk to the merchant at the general store myself and see what I can do about taking them something to start alleviating symptoms.”

  Mr. Butler, the driver, nodded. “I can do that. I’ll pick you up at seven in the morning, same as today.”

  Josie nodded and watched the cart leave. Ruth frowned at her. “What can you do for them?”

  “I have to do something.” Josie formed her hands into fists to keep them from shaking so much. “I can’t just let all those people die. We need to get them some fruits; there’s not enough nutrients in vegetables to help them recover quickly.”

  “Scurvy?” Ruth’s eyes went wide. “I didn’t realize. I had thought it was valley fever, but when some started bruising and bleeding and losing teeth, I knew it was something else. I just didn’t realize it was all about their food.”

  The sun sat lower in the sky making the shadows of the buildings in town long across the streets. It was the first shady reprieve Josie had all day from the heat. But she’d hardly noticed her own problems. Her mind was already fixed on what she could do for the farmers just outside of town. She said her goodbyes to Ruth and then marched over to the general store and searched the aisles. Fruit was a rarity. Although the store had a few bottles of marmalade, there wasn’t enough here for the twenty farms that she’d been out to that day. When the last customer had left for the day, she stepped up to the counter and introduced herself. “Hello, sir. I’m new in town and this is the first time I’ve had the opportunity to stop in. I’m the new doctor, Josie R—Hogge.”

  A wide smile spread across his lips. “Dr. Hogge. It’s lovely to finally meet you. I’m Carl Finney. Your husband never stops talking about you. He’s thoroughly enamored. Newlywed love is quite enviable.”

  Heat rushed to her cheeks. Did Billy really talk about her that way? Was that the impression he gave others? She shook her head and pushed those useless, superficial thoughts aside. “Thank you, Mr. Finney. I’ve actually come by today to see what we can do about the farmers in the area.”

  W
rinkles formed on the man’s forehead as he lifted a brow in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  She let out a slow breath and then continued. “I understand that the farms have a great deal of debt to you. For seed, supplies, other things that they’ve needed to make it through the winter. With the drought, they are suffering a great deal.”

  “That’s true, Mrs. Hogge, but everyone is suffering due to the drought.”

  “It’s Dr. Hogge, actually,” she said, drawing herself up to her full height. “And the farmers are suffering worse because of the debt that they have with your store.”

  He frowned. “Now there’s not a whole lot that I can do about that, Doctor. If I don’t make a profit of some kind here, then I have to close up shop. No one wants that to happen.”

  “How much debt can twenty families really have, sir? Is it so great that you’d let them die instead of forgiving it?”

  “That’s a terrible thing to say, young lady.” The man’s voice grew deep and indignant. “I have to buy wares in order to sell them. If I give everything away on the promise that I’ll be paid back someday when it might rain again, I might not see the money for months, maybe even a year or more. Then how am I supposed to pay my suppliers? How am I supposed to feed my own family? I am not so cruel and heartless as to hope that anyone would die, and if there was something that I could do for them that would not honestly hurt my own family in the process, I would.”

  “How much is their debt?” she asked, her own voice deepening.

  “I can’t discuss that with you. Their debt is theirs. If they want to tell you the amount, that’s up to them. But for me to do it would be breaking a confidence and putting some of them to shame.”