Chapter Twenty-Nine
Nate didn’t like the plan at all. He didn’t want to have anything to do with it, but they didn’t have a choice. They needed someone to get inside and find out about their operations. They had to learn the layout, how many guards were potentially around, and what the operation looked like.
Nate just didn’t want to put anyone in danger, but he didn’t have a choice. He wasn’t about to send Isabelle and Rachel into the Silver Lantern, and he certainly couldn’t go. That left Jack. And he wasn’t happy about it.
As he waited in his office, pacing back and forth, Nate wondered if they were doing the right thing.
Shouldn’t they wait for backup? It would be easier with the US Marshals present, but they hadn’t arrived yet.
However, they couldn’t wait forever. If Vane and Pike knew Daisy had disappeared--and they likely knew by now--then they might be doing whatever they could to cover their tracks.
It was too dangerous to wait any longer.
It was getting close to midnight when there was a sudden knock at the door. He took a deep breath and steadied himself.
He recognized Ricky, a thirteen-year-old from town. He held out an envelope.
“This telegram came for you just now,” he said. “Papa said you should have it immediately.”
“Thank you, Ricky.”
The boy ran off, and Nate shut the door, ripping the telegram open.
It was from his contact in the US Marshals.
Apparently, there were Marshals in Leadville.
They would be dispatched to meet him at first light.
His contact mentioned they already had suspicions about the Silver Lantern saloons, but the owners were slippery customers, and nothing would stick.
He seemed more than eager to get involved.
At least that was something. Nate knew they would have backup, although he wondered how the Marshals would get to the saloon in just one night. Surely, it was a longer journey than that. That was something he could think about later.
He was more concerned about Jack.
Another tapping at the door got his attention, and Nate froze. A moment later, he heard Jack’s voice.
“Nate? Let me in. It’s freezing out here.”
Relief made him slump, and Nate opened the door. Jack came in, bringing a flurry of snowflakes with him. He took off his Stetson and shook himself down with a grimace.
“I swear it’s getting worse. Just when you think the weather is going to calm down.”
“Never mind about the weather. What did you find out?”
Shrugging off his coat, Jack placed it near the fire and ran his fingers through his damp hair. He was flushed, and Nate noticed that his hands were shaking.
“It looks like an ordinary saloon,” Jack stared, pacing back and forth in front of the fire. “There’s music, people playing cards and drinking, and it looks very normal. But then you notice the small things, and it changes the atmosphere of the place.”
“Like?” Nate prompted.
“The staircase is always guarded by large men carrying guns, and a hallway that leads to a closed door at the end has two men outside it.”
Nate tried to remember the map Daisy had drawn for them.
“That has to be Pike’s office.”
“It would make sense. I saw him come out of there once, and then he went back in with Isaac Vane not too long afterward.” Jack’s expression was grim.
“Daisy’s descriptions were spot on, and I could feel a sense of dread when I saw them.
There’s something scary to them, but I can’t put my finger on it. ”
“I know the feeling. I had that same sensation when I saw both of them.”
“And I found out about the girls as well.” Jack rubbed a hand over his face, then moved to the window and stared out at the growing flurry of snow.
“I played a few hands with some regulars. Apparently, quite a few of them actually go there to play cards and have a good time, and that’s it.
It’s a prestigious gambling hall as well as a brothel. ”
“And they don’t partake in the brothel side?”
“Not the ones I spoke to. I was surprised at that, but they seemed to find it distasteful. They would enjoy the entertainment with the girls, but that was about it.”
Nate almost burst out laughing at that.
“I can’t see how any men can be gentlemen in a place like that. Are they seriously saying that they don’t take advantage?”
“I saw it for myself. A few girls came and joined them, but there was nothing salacious about it. They just wanted to play cards.” Jack paused. “I watched them when they were with us, and it looked like they were present, but they were dead behind the eyes.”
Nate didn’t like the sound of that. He knew there was a lot going on, but hearing it made him feel nauseous. How could anyone treat women like that? It didn’t make any sense. Nate knew he could never do that.
“You have no idea how hard it was to sit there and not be able to do anything,” Jack said as he sat down, hanging his head.
“I asked about them with the man I was sitting beside, and he told me that he felt sorry for them. They had to pay off debts, but these debts just kept getting bigger and bigger until they weren’t able to leave. ”
“So they’re holding the women against their will?”
“I would say so. Even if you wanted to buy a girl out to get them away, nobody could afford it.”
So it was a never-ending cycle. It was horrifying that people could be treated like that. How could Pike and Vane sleep at night knowing that they were turning people into slaves and profiting off it? Unless they didn’t see it as slavery.
“Was there anything else?” he asked. “Anything we could use?”
“I heard there was a ledger that had everyone’s names in it. As this is the first Silver Lantern built, everything is kept there.” Jack shook his head. “I wasn’t about to get anywhere near that, though. It has to be in Pike’s office.”
“We need to get that ledger. It will tell us everything we need to know.” Nate looked out of the window. “We’re going to need more than the US Marshals.”
“Perhaps we could contact the sheriff in the next town on the other side of the mountain?”
“We’re going to have to.” Nate headed toward the door. “I’ll go back to the post office. They’ll open up for me if I say it’s urgent.”
“Do you think we’re going to get them out of there?” Jack gave him a worried look. “What if Sandra…?”
“We’re going to find out what happened to Sandra. I can promise you that.”
And he was going to make sure that Rachel was safe and away from all of that. She deserved to have the security of knowing her future didn’t involve looking over her shoulder. He couldn’t let that happen anymore. Not to his wife.
Not to the woman he’d inadvertently fallen in love with.
Thinking it was one thing, feeling it was another entirely. He wasn’t sure when it happened, but it had, and he welcomed the fullness in his chest and the lightness in his step.