Storing Up Trouble, стр. 78

“We’re here to secure the release of Miss Colette Balley,” she told the officer, who had a nameplate stating he was Officer Greenwood. Beatrix felt irritation flowing freely when Officer Greenwood barely glanced at her before he settled his attention on Agent Cochran.

“What’s Colette Balley in for?” he asked Agent Cochran.

“I have no idea,” Agent Cochran said, withdrawing his Pinkerton badge from his pocket and handing it to the officer, who sat up a little straighter in his chair after he caught sight of it.

“She was obviously arrested for no good reason,” Mamie said, immediately bristling when the officer let out a grunt and sent her a roll of his eyes.

“Not like I haven’t heard that before,” he muttered as he began running his finger down a very long column of names. He stopped halfway down the page. “Here she is.” He lifted his head. “She was arrested for causing a disturbance at the Owen Slaughterhouse last week. Her bail has been set at ten dollars.”

“Ten dollars?” Mamie all but shrieked. “How’s a poor, single woman supposed to post a bail like that?”

“She should have thought about that before she caused a disturbance.”

Beatrix lifted her chin. “I’ll pay it as well as the bail for her sister.”

“And the sister’s name would be?” Officer Greenwood asked.

“No idea.” Beatrix turned to Mamie. “Do you know?”

Mamie frowned. “I think Blanche called that man Mr. Brightman, or maybe it was Bingham, or . . . well, it could’ve been any name starting with a B.”

Beatrix returned her attention to Officer Greenwood. “It appears I’ll need to get the name from Colette, so if you’ll kindly have someone escort me to her cell, I’ll get that information and then you can make arrangements to have Colette and her sister set free.”

Officer Greenwood frowned. “If this sister was arrested for the same disturbance, her bail will also be ten dollars. You have that much money on you?”

Beatrix gave a jerk of her head right as Agent Cochran stepped closer to her and lowered her voice.

“Need I remind you, Miss Waterbury, that you just lost your position? Twenty dollars is a lot of money, and I’m not certain it’s wise for you to spend your funds on bail when you’re currently jobless.”

Beatrix waved that aside. “While I thank you for your concern, Agent Cochran, there’s no need for you to worry about me.” She nodded to Officer Greenwood. “I’m capable of paying the bail, so you may call for someone to take me to Colette so we can get her and her sister out of here with all due haste.”

For a moment, she thought Officer Greenwood was going to refuse. But then he slid a glance to Agent Cochran, who in all honesty was a rather intimidating man, being at least six feet tall and sporting wide shoulders, and gestured for another officer to join him. That man, an Officer Kelly, after getting instructions from Officer Greenwood, motioned for Beatrix to follow him. With Agent Cochran on one side of her and Mamie on the other, Beatrix moved through the main room and down a long hallway, forced to stop when Officer Kelly drew out a set of keys to open the first of many locked doors that led to where the women were held.

Having been arrested and secured behind bars before, and twice at that, Beatrix knew what to expect—despair, weeping, taunts from inmates behind bars, and an atmosphere that seemed to suck the soul right out of a person.

Passing by three cells filled with gaunt-looking women, Beatrix soon found herself standing in front of a cell that had two women huddled up together on a cot, one of those women being Colette.

Mamie rushed past Beatrix and stuck her hand through the bars, ignoring a protesting Officer Kelly in the process.

“We’re here to get you out, Colette,” Mamie said, which had Colette lifting her head, blinking a few times, then jumping to her feet and dashing to the bars, taking hold of Mamie’s hand and looking quite as if she was never going to let go.

“Thank goodness you’re here,” Colette said, her voice trembling and tears in her eyes. “I asked to have a note sent around to Gladys a few days ago but was told that since my brother-in-law had been informed of my arrest, then my note wasn’t going to be delivered.”

Beatrix rounded on Officer Kelly. “That sounds like a clear violation of Colette’s rights.”

“We don’t cater to criminals here, but we would have gotten around to sending her note out at some point, if she was still here in a month.”

“That’s . . . outrageous,” Beatrix sputtered, taking a step toward Officer Kelly but stopping when Agent Cochran took hold of her arm.

“You won’t do Colette any good if you get yourself arrested,” he said quietly. “Perhaps you should allow me to take it from here?”

Knowing Agent Cochran was right, and knowing she’d be of no use to anyone if she let her temper get the best of her, Beatrix gave a slight nod.

Agent Cochran stepped closer to Colette, securing the name of her sister, Ada Bingley, which he immediately gave to Officer Kelly. He then nodded to Beatrix. “I think we need that bail money now.”

Colette peered at Beatrix through the bars. “You’re getting me and my sister out?”

“Of course,” Beatrix said, distracted a second later by the sight of four officers moving into a nearby cell, one of them pushing a cart that held large brown jugs on it and some manner of tubing that was hanging off the side.

“Why do I get the feeling something horrible is about to happen?” she asked to no one in particular.

“They’re here to try to force Ada’s co-workers from the slaughterhouse to eat,” Colette whispered, her hands tightening around the bars, her sister joining her at the bars a second later. “They stopped taking meals after their husbands refused to post their bail. They wanted