“Is he?”
She nodded. “He has an assignment for you.”
“Excellent.”
“You seem pleased.”
“I don’t like long waits between assignments,” he said with a nod.
Marianne looked at him knowingly. “You could take a vacation,” she suggested. “Perhaps go visit your family in New York.”
“And how exactly did you know my family is from New York?” he questioned.
She smirked. “Not only am I Archie’s wife, but I’m also his assistant. Furthermore, I do read the files of each agent.”
He chuckled. “Ah, my apologies, Mrs. Gordon.” He started walking toward the door. “Thank you for the cookies, Pearl.”
“You’re welcome, agent,” came the cook’s reply.
As Lincoln walked down the hallway toward Archie’s office, he found himself feeling excited for his next assignment. He thoroughly enjoyed being a Pinkerton agent, despite the occasional kill.
He stopped outside of Archie’s door and knocked.
“Come in,” was the gruff reply from within.
Lincoln opened the door and walked into the office, leaving the door open. “Marianne told me you wanted to see me.”
“Yes, I do.” Archie tipped his head toward the door. “Would you mind closing the door? I’d prefer this conversation to remain private.”
Lincoln lifted his brow at his boss’s request, but he knew better than to ask questions.
Archie leaned back in his chair and placed his quill in the inkpot. “How did your case go?”
Walking further into the room, he admitted, “Unfortunately, Henry didn’t want to go back to prison.”
“Just as I expected,” Archie sighed. “Did you have to kill him?”
“I did.”
Archie tossed him a look filled with compassion. “I’d hoped that it wouldn’t come to that, but Henry had been on the run for nearly six months. I knew he wouldn’t go quietly.”
“That he did not,” the agent confirmed. “He was holed up in a brothel, and he took one of the girls as hostage.”
Archie picked up a file from his desk and opened it. “Do you have the report filled out for me?”
Reaching into his brown vest pocket, Lincoln removed a folded-up piece of paper. “I do,” he replied, extending the paper toward Archie.
Archie accepted the paper and unfolded it. “Did you ever discover why Henry was in Denver in the first place?”
Lincoln nodded. “He was visiting his favorite lady at the brothel.”
“The one he took hostage?”
“That would be the one.”
Archie huffed. “That was a poor decision on his part.”
“I thought so, too.”
Putting the paper into the file, Archie closed it and placed it at the edge of his desk. He didn’t speak as he reached for another file and opened it up, pulling out a piece of paper.
“I have another case for you.”
Lincoln sat down in front of the desk. “What is it this time?”
“Jacob Tiner’s wife was found dead under mysterious circumstances,” Archie said, reading from the paper, “and he’s hired us to find her killer.”
“Can you define ‘mysterious circumstances’?”
“Her body was found in the woods near their home, and she’d been strangled.”
Lincoln attempted to hide his displeasure as he said, “Most likely, Mr. Tiner killed his wife and is hiring us to try to repair his good name.”
“I don’t believe that’s true,” Archie replied. “I’ve met Mr. Tiner before, and he doesn’t seem like a murderer.”
“Impressions can be wrong.”
“True, but I’m generally a good judge of character.”
Lincoln shifted in his chair. “This case sounds straightforward enough. Where does Mr. Tiner live?”
“In the town of Longworth, Colorado,” Archie said. “He owns a large cattle ranch.”
“That’s good news.” He rose. “That’s only a few hours away by train.”
Archie put his hand up. “Hold on. There’s something else that I wish to discuss with you.”
Lincoln slowly returned to his seat. “About what?”
With hesitation in his voice, Archie said, “I’ve decided to assign a partner to help you work this case.”
“Absolutely not!” Lincoln exclaimed, jumping up from his chair. “I work alone.”
“True, but I’m in a bind here.”
“In what way?” he asked, his anger slightly dissipating.
Archie leaned back in his chair and sighed. “The Chicago office is transferring an agent here, and I need someone to ensure she is properly trained.”
“She?” he asked, running a hand through his dark brown hair. “I don’t want to get saddled with a wife like the other agents have had to do.”
“Her name is Miss Amey Barney, and she is a highly competent agent. At least that’s what Mr. Hopkins told me,” Archie explained, ignoring his last comment. “She’s solved many cases and is one of the top women in the Female Detective Bureau.”
“Then why the need for a trainer?”
Archie sighed. “According to the wire Mr. Hopkins sent, she’s rather obsessed with Billy Joe Campbell.”
“The criminal?”
He nodded. “Yes, that one. She spends all her free time trying to bring him to justice.”
“Is that so bad?”
“It is when it starts to consume a person,” Archie pressed.
Lincoln turned his gaze toward the window, knowing he didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. “Would I be required to marry her?”
“Yes, but you can seek an annulment after the case has been completed, and you have turned in your report,” Archie replied. “I just need to know if her obsession has gotten in the way of her doing her job.”
Lincoln frowned. “You want me to spy on my partner.”
“I wouldn’t call it spying, per se.”
“What would you call it?”
Archie sat forward in his seat. “I don’t know, but you can figure that out yourself. After all, you’ll be the lead agent on this case.”
“Fine.”
Archie let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Lincoln. I thought you would put up a much bigger fight than you did.”
He shrugged. “I’ve worked with incompetent soldiers before in the war,” he replied. “I have no doubt that I’ll be able to work with Miss Barney.”
It was Archie’s turn to frown. “Miss Barney is not incompetent,” he said. “She’s solved more cases than a lot of the men in the Chicago office.”
“But she’s still a woman,” Lincoln pointed out.
Archie closed the file in front of him, and the disapproval was evident on his features. “Some of my best agents
