Work Text:
Cascade, Washington, 1878
Breakfast with Aunt Effie was normally a quiet affair. She read the morning edition of the Herald and Madison read one of her library books while they enjoyed hot tea, eggs scrambled with smoked salmon, and toast with cherry jam. They were both early risers, which meant poor Frances had to get up while it was still dark to get the range prepped and ready for the day’s cooking. (On her days off, Madison and Effie simply didn’t use the range at all.)
“A-ha!” Effie crowed, shaking the paper. “You’ve been holding out on me!”
“How so?” Madison replied, only half listening.
“The police have hired a Colored man. You might have mentioned it.”
“I might have if I’d known.” She slipped her bookmark in and closed the book. “Do they say which department?”
“The same department that handsome Detective Rafe works out of.”
“Oh! Then I might have the chance to meet him.” Madison took another bite of her toast. “Does it say when he starts?”
“Monday next. They’re making him the captain, if that doesn’t beat all. That man’s going to have a struggle.” Effie made a tsking noise.
“I for one applaud the Cascade police for making such a bold and forward-thinking move.”
“It says here he worked with a Sentinel during the Rebellion. That must be how he got the job.”
Madison wondered how Sentinel Ellison felt about the change. Until now, he’d been the de facto head of the investigative service. To have a complete stranger take up that position could be a hard pill to swallow and would likely be just as difficult for the new captain, coming into a department without knowing anyone.
“And what does the Herald make of all of this?”
Effie turned down a corner of the paper and gave Madison her use-your-head-girl look, her eyes much too big behind her magnifying eyeglasses. “You know very well what they make of it, same as everyone else in this town will do. He’ll have to be a huckleberry above a persimmon if he wants to keep his fancy new job.”
“I hope they give him a chance to show what he can do. Obviously, someone in City Hall thinks highly of him or they wouldn’t have given him the opportunity.” Madison spread more jam on her toast; Widow Harby’s cherry jam was legendary in the neighborhood. “What’s his name?”
“Simon Banks. It’s a white name. That’ll help.”
“I look forward to making his acquaintance.”
Effie gave an unladylike snort and retreated once more behind a wall of newsprint. “We’ll see if he feels the same about you.”
“I don’t understand,” Madison said, reading the brief note from Captain Banks that Guide Sandburg had just delivered.
She’d been surprised when Blair showed up on her doorstep, as they hadn’t scheduled a get-together. He’d waited to give her the note until they were comfortably ensconced in the parlor with a tray of Frances’ whitefish spread sandwiches.
“That’s why I wanted to deliver it in person,” Blair said apologetically. “The new captain… he’s making some policy changes. The Investigative Service is the most highly paid in the territory, and he thinks we need to make cuts elsewhere to justify the expense.”
“Yet he’s giving me the chance to defend the consultancy work I do?”
“He’s not a bad guy. He’s just trying to make a place for himself in the department.”
“I should think he’d want to get the lay of the land before he started implementing changes.”
Madison was less confused than angry. She’d worked hard to become a consultant, and her work with the department more than bore that out. To have an outsider come in and question her worth… it was demeaning.
Blair reached across the table and covered her hand with his; she hadn’t realized her hands had curled into fists.
“I know how you feel, Madison. I truly do. Just know you’re not alone in this. All of our consultants are being interviewed, overtime is being re-examined, and every last nickel in or out of the police department is being tabulated.”
Madison let the calming wave of Guide energy move over her and felt her anger level drop.
“Jim knows the benefit you bring to the work we do, and he’s already spoken to Captain Banks on your behalf.”
“You’ll have to give him my thanks.”
“You can thank him yourself,” Blair said, pulling his hand back and taking another sandwich off the tray. “He’s insisted he be there during your interview.”
“Now I’m doubly thankful.”
Madison knew how lucky she was to have the Sentinel of Cascade on her side. She vowed to do her best to prove herself worthy of his trust.
Madison arrived ten minutes early to the Cascade Police Station, leather case filled with her work materials firmly in hand and ready to defend her consultancy with Captain Banks.
“Miss Miller. How nice to see you.”
“Good morning, Mr. Crenshaw,” Madison said with a polite smile. “I have an appointment with the Investigative Services.”
Mr. Crenshaw manned the front desk of the station, directing the public or taking their statements when necessary and then sharing that information with the correct officer. He looked fearsome thanks to a thick scar that ran diagonally down his left cheek to his chin, but he was always very polite to Madison. He checked his ledger and nodded.
“They’ll be waiting for you. You know the way.”
The police station occupied a three-story brick and stone building that also included jail cells in the basement. The Investigative Service occupied a corner of the third floor, a handful of desks separated from the captain’s office by solid wall and a door filled with reeded glass. Copper air handlers pulled up the cooler air from the basement, but also the musty, mildewy smells and the vague murmurings of anyone who was in the cells.
Detective Rafe was slowly picking out keys on a typewriter, bottom lip pulled between his teeth, but he looked up and gave Madison a quick smile before he got back to work. Detective Mason, an older man with an impressive, heavily waxed handlebar moustache, was interviewing someone at his desk; he looked over at Madison and nodded. There was also someone new at one of the previously empty desks, a dark-skinned, clean-shaven man with a hefty build and a solemn expression.
“Miss Miller. Good morning.”
Sentinel Ellison was waiting for her, leaning back against his desk with his arms bracing him on either side. His jacket was unbuttoned and open just enough to show part of the shiny brass police star pinned to his waistcoat.
“Good morning, Sentinel Ellison,” Madison replied. “I appreciate you sitting in with me.”
“I protect my assets,” he said.
Madison wasn’t keen on being called an asset, but she’d learned to hear the words Ellison didn’t say.
She grinned at him. “Thank you.”
“Let’s get this done.”
Ellison pushed off the desk and walked over to the captain’s door. He rapped briskly on the wooden frame and waited for a response before he opened it, ushering Madison in.
Captain Banks was a pleasant-looking man, hair close-cropped and expression neutral. He wore wire-rimmed glasses and a gray striped waistcoat over a crisp, white shirt. There was a matching notched lapel frock coat hanging on the rack by the door, alongside a gray leather top hat that had a fancy hand-tooled silver band. That told Madison he cared about his appearance and took pride in it; he wasn’t a man who tried to avoid notice.
“Miss Miller. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Captain Banks stood up, and he was even taller than Ellison, who was over six foot himself. He gestured toward one of the two chairs that faced his desk. “Please. Have a seat.”
“I’d like to welcome you to Cascade, Captain Banks,” Madison said, taking her seat and setting her bag on the floor beside the chair. "I hope you're settling in well."
“Thank you. My wife is doing the best she can with the house that was provided for us.” The captain resumed his seat. He pulled a cigar out of the humidor on his desk, but didn’t light it, just rolled it between his thumb and forefinger. “I know you weren’t expecting to be called in this way, but part of my job here is to streamline this department and cut the deadwood.”
“No pun intended, I’m sure,” Madison said.
Captain Banks’ lips twitched up in an aborted grin. “Why don’t you go ahead and tell me what it is you do.”
“Captain, I’ve already –” Ellison started to say, but his new boss quelled him with a look.
“Miss Miller is perfectly capable of speaking on her own behalf.”
Madison reached into her bag and pulled out a sheaf of papers. “I have affidavits from officials here in Cascade, as well as in the Dominion, attesting to the work I’ve done to aid both police and private citizens.”
She handed the papers over to Captain Banks and kept talking while he quickly scanned each one.
"What I do is give the dead a chance to speak their final words. This has been particularly useful in police investigations, and I have helped Sentinel Ellison and his team solve many cases thanks to the information a murder victim has been able to convey."
“High praise,” Captain Banks said when he was done reading the affidavits. He handed them back to Madison. "I've read through the recent casefiles. Your particular talent is helpful, there's no denying that. But it's also inconsistent."
Ellison opened his mouth, no doubt to come to her defense once again, but this time Madison held her hand up to stop him.
"Captain Banks, the dead can only tell me what they knew before their lives were extinguished. If you're referencing the Architect murders, I would like to point out that this villain kills complete strangers and doesn't take the time to give them his personal information. We've learned much more about him and his modus operandi thanks to my 'particular talent' and I have every confidence that Sentinel Ellison and his team will catch this man thanks in part to my contribution."
Madison didn't know who'd given the as-yet-anonymous killer the moniker of Architect – no doubt a reference to the grand design mentioned by the corpse of Frederick Hasselthorpe – but she didn't doubt that they would catch him and justice would be served. Was Kate Heightmeyer, the alienist who was likewise assisting Ellison on the case, also expected to justify her participation?
Captain Banks nodded. “I see. So, you believe I should keep you on as a consultant at the exorbitant rate of four dollars per session, with no guarantee you’ll provide any useful information.”
Madison bristled at the perceived criticism, but this time Ellison was finally able to get a complete thought verbalized.
"If your only concern is the cost, captain, I'm sure we could negotiate."
Her knee-jerk reaction was to protest, but Madison took a moment to take a breath and think things through.
"Miss Miller. If I agree to keep you on as a consultant, are you willing to work at a rate of four dollars per case?"
"Four dollars per case, unless I'm asked to speak with more than two victims, and then it would be an additional dollar thereafter."
"Four victims."
"Three, and that's my absolute limit."
Captain Banks studied her from across the desk for a long moment before extending his hand. "Agreed. We'll get something put in writing and I'll send it around for you to sign."
Madison shook his hand. "Thank you, Captain Banks."
"For the record, I do think the service you provide has value. I wanted to get a feel for your moral character."
Ellison shook his head. "He's been doing a lot of that since he started."
"There's a lot riding on this department's success," Captain Banks said unapologetically. "I need to make sure the people doing the day-to-day work are up to the task. I won't tolerate corruption or shortcuts on my watch."
"I understand."
"Your ears, Ellison," he said, the only warning he gave before he bellowed, "Taggert!"
The door to the office immediately opened, and the new detective stepped in.
"Yes, sir?"
"Detective Joel Taggert, this is Miss Madison Miller. She's a consultant to the department."
"Pleasure to meet you, miss." Taggert was a large man, but he was very soft spoken.
"Taggert has been with me for a few years now," Captain Banks explained. "It's always good to have a man you know you can trust when you're starting off somewhere new."
"Welcome to Cascade," Madison said.
"Thank you."
The captain hastily scribbled a note and handed it to Taggert. "Write up a consultancy agreement between the department and Miss Miller. The details are there, and I assume her address is on file."
"It is," Ellison confirmed.
Madison didn't know what was written on that note, but when Taggert read it, his eyes widened and his eyebrows lifted, and he shot a quick look at Madison.
"I'll get right on it."
Captain Banks chuckled as Taggert hurried back out. “We’ve never met anyone like you before, Miss Miller. You’ll have to excuse a little wide-eyed wonder.”
“The next time I’m called on for a case, you and Detective Taggert should come along. See what it is I do while I’m actually doing it.”
“I’ll take you up on that. Although you’ll pardon me for saying I hope we won’t need to call you with any regularity.”
Madison nodded her understanding; when she was busy, that meant a lot of people were dying, and she didn’t want that either.
“I’ll see you out,” Ellison said.
Madison stowed her paperwork back in her bag and snapped it shut. She nodded at the captain as she exited his office and let out a breath once she was fully out of sight.
“That was a lot.”
“You handled yourself well,” Ellison assured her. “He seems to be man who appreciates confidence and capability, and you have both.”
“I appreciate your support.” Madison had the impulse to give him a hug, but there were strict no-touching rules when it came to Sentinels. If they didn’t initiate, it didn’t happen. “If you’ll excuse me, I promised Nick I’d stop by his office once I was done here, to let him know the result of the interview.”
“Of course.” To her complete surprise, Ellison gave her shoulder a quick squeeze. “I’ll see you around the morgue.”
At a sudden loss for words, Madison merely nodded and quickly made for the stairs. Having such full acceptance from a Sentinel was hugely important, and not to be taken lightly.
By the time she made it back out to the street, Madison had a spring in her step and a happy glow warming her from the inside.
“I knew you’d win him over!” Nick picked Madison up and spun her around while she laughed. “I’m glad he appreciates what you do.”
He stopped spinning and leaned in for a kiss, which made Madison’s head spin in a different way. She pulled Nick closer than decorum allowed, kissing him back with all her happy emotion behind it, not caring one whit if someone should see them.
“This calls for a celebration,” Nick said once they finally came up for air. His face was flushed, and his breathing was quick, and Madison was faring no better. “Let me take you out for dinner tonight. You and Aunt Effie. We’ll go to Green Ivy.”
“The fanciest restaurant in the whole of Washington Territory? I’m not sure my news deserves that type of reward.”
“It’s never a hardship to celebrate you, Madison Miller. Besides, I like showing you off. Beautiful and brilliant and… what’s another good word that begins with B?”
“Bricky.”
“Beautiful and brilliant and bricky, whatever that means,” Nick said with a flourish that made Madison giggle. “Say yes, and I’ll have my assistant make a reservation.”
Madison looked down her nose at him and tried for a haughty tone. “Yes! I demand to be treated to only the very finest cuisine Cascade has to offer!”
“As you wish, milady.” Nick gave a low bow. “Eric! Where are you, my good man?”
His young assistant poked his head into the room. “Boss?”
“Would you be so kind as to make a reservation for three at Green Ivy tonight? Say seven o’clock?”
“Sure thing.” Eric ducked back out.
“I do have to get back to work,” Nick said apologetically. He took both of Madison’s hands in his own and leaned in for one last, brief kiss. “I’ll pick you and Aunt Effie up promptly at half past.”
“We’ll be ready,” Madison promised.
She couldn’t imagine how the day could get any better, which was such a relief from the trepidation she’d felt at the start of it. Now all she had to do was pick out a dress to wear for dinner and wait for Detective Taggert to bring her the contract to sign.
It had always been Madison’s personal policy that her belief in herself mattered more than outside validation. Today, though, she was willing to make an exception. Because the outside validation felt pretty darn good!