The Family Way (Molly Murphy, #12)

Another long pause before he said, “I was caught wrong-footed at a meeting with John Wilkie and several Secret Service men. They asked how I was getting on with trying to locate the anarchist group and then one of them told me, with great satisfaction, that my wife had been meeting secretly with her brother—one of the men we were trying to find. Imagine what a fool I felt.”


I continued to give him a frosty stare. “I would have thought that any loyal and devoted husband would have said that he couldn’t comment on the statement until he had asked his wife in person.”

“You’re probably right.” He sighed.

“I know I’m right. You’re always going on about husband and wife having to trust each other and now it’s quite clear that you don’t trust me.”

“I wouldn’t have gotten so upset but it’s such a crucial matter, Molly.”

“Do you know that Liam is involved in some kind of anarchist plot or are you just putting two and two together because he’s here at the same time as a new anarchist group has sprung up?”

“I’m afraid we have good information that this plot is somehow linked with the Irish Republican Brotherhood. And your brother’s name is on John Wilkie’s wanted list.”

“John Wilkie asked me to report to him if my brother tried to make contact,” I said.

Daniel looked up, suspicious. “He did? When?”

“He came back to the house after that luncheon. He asked me to report straight to him.”

“The devil he did.” Daniel’s face flushed with anger again. “Going behind my back with my own wife. I see it now. They want my cooperation and the use of my men, but it’s still their case and they want all the glory when it’s busted open. Typical.”

“Then leave them to it. Withdraw your men.”

“I’d love to, but the directive comes from President Roosevelt himself. I can hardly go against him on a matter of national security.”

“Do they think the anarchists might be plotting to strike here in America?”

“We just don’t know. They are working in utmost secrecy and we haven’t managed to get anywhere near them yet. We only have hints of names but not where they might be meeting or what they might be planning. I’m just praying we don’t have to wait until a bomb explodes on the president before we find out.” He looked up at me. “So did you report your encounter with your brother to Wilkie?”

“I had already met Liam when I spoke to Mr. Wilkie and I saw no reason to mention my encounter to him, since Liam had given me no information of any kind.”

He was still staring at me, “And would you have gone to Wilkie if your brother had chosen to contact you again?”

“I suppose it depends what Liam had wanted of me. If he had contacted me again I would have warned him that the police were after him and he should get out of the country immediately.” Another point occurred to me. “And if you had asked me to let you know if I made contact with my brother, I might have done so. But you choose not to share any information with me and keep me completely in the dark on your cases.”

“I have to, Molly. You know that.”

I stood up. “Your dinner is in the oven. You’d better eat it before it’s dried out.”

He got up too. “Molly.” He put a tentative hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry I yelled at you. We have to think what would be the best thing to do next. Your brother gave you no idea where he was staying, I take it?”

“I told you once, Daniel. He wanted to get away from me as quickly as possible.”

“I don’t want you going back to that part of the city in the hope of bumping into him again.”

“I’m not stupid, Daniel. I’m not going to be used as bait to catch my brother.”

He sucked in air through his teeth. “This is a tricky situation. I don’t want John Wilkie putting pressure on you either. I think the best thing would be to get you away from the city all together. I keep suggesting that you go to my mother during this hot weather, and that would seem like an admirable solution to remove you out of harm’s way.”

I was about to stand up for myself and say I refused to be shipped off like a piece of baggage, when it struck me that this time it was an admirable solution. If I was not in the city I had absolutely no chance of running into Liam again. Sid and Gus could continue to be my spies while I was safely far away in the country.

I nodded demurely. “Very well, Daniel. If that’s what you want.”

He looked at me suspiciously for a moment, trying to gauge if there was any underhanded reason for my sudden meekness. Finding none he came over to me, put his hands on my shoulders, and kissed me. “That’s my girl,” he said. “I’ll send a wire to my mother in the morning to say that you are coming.”

For the only time in my life I did not protest.