The Night of the Absentee Agent
Chapter 3
Samuel Treadwell
For reasons of secrecy, Samuel Treadwell was being held under lock and key within the federal building. Artie had mixed feelings about meeting him. When he had first heard his twin was still alive, he couldn't wait to see him. But he hadn't envisaged the fact that his brother would be chained hand and foot as a criminal. Now he was unsure what reception he would receive and what he could possibly say to this man he had not seen since he was six years old.
Never one to shirk an unpleasant task, Artie nodded to the guard outside the room that housed his brother and, after waiting for the door to be unlocked, entered to find Adolphus Gordon, a.k.a. Samuel Treadwell, sitting at a table. He stood up as Artie entered and moved toward him, as fast as his ankle restraints would allow; a smile on his face.
"Artie, I never thought I'd see you again. You're looking well. Excuse me for not shaking hands," he said, holding up his handcuffed wrists.
At first, Artie looked warily at the man in front of him. He looked just like him, though his hair was styled differently, with the fringe brushed forward and to one side.
"Dolphus," he replied, finding his voice and sending a smile of his own. Here, after all, was the brother he had grieved for, the other self he had lost all those years ago, arisen from the grave, to all intents and purposes.
Adolphus gave him a wistful look. "Since you're not restrained, I think it's down to you to hug me," he said.
Artie dismissed his caution and put his arms around his brother and the years began to fall away. He was shocked when he suddenly heard a click and felt the hard barrel of a gun in his ribs. Adolphus had taken the gun from out of his holster but was he prepared to shoot him? Artie had no way of telling. He berated himself for dropping his guard and allowing this to happen.
"Stand back, Artie," Adolphus said.
Artie stood where he was. He grabbed the barrel of the gun and brought his knee up hard under the hand holding it. This dual attack caught his brother unawares and the gun was soon back in Artie's hand and pointing at Adolphus, who was once again smiling.
"You can't blame me for trying," he said. "I wouldn't really have shot you."
"That's reassuring," Artie replied. "Sit back down where I can see you."
"Let's starts again," his twin suggested with another smile, seating himself once more.
Artie regarded him with suspicion.
"I promise not to try anything else," Adolphus assured him.
"Well, if you don't mind, I won't take the chance," Artie replied, leaning back against the wall, arms crossed. "I'll stay over here."
"As you like."
"I like," Artie replied. "I guess I would have done the same in your shoes. In the years since I last saw you, we've taken different paths in life but I think we're still alike in some things," he conceded.
"That's very generous of you. Is this just a reunion or are you after some information?"
Both."
"Ask away then."
"The thing I'd most like to know is how you ended up with the Treadwells and what you've been doing since I last saw you."
"The answer to the first part of your question is easy; the Treadwells were one of the families who lost children to cholera, their only son, Samuel, to be precise. They figured that because our parents had twins, they wouldn't miss one so they stole me in the night. I think they were so overtaken by their grief they weren't thinking straight. Later they took me to settle with them in Wyoming and I had a happy life with them."
"Didn't you try to get away?"
"At first they told me that mom and dad gave me to them because they loved you more. That hurt a lot and it made me give up on going back. Later they told me the truth but I was still too young to realise how it must have affected you all. I was just thinking about me and they were very kind and loving. It was nice not having to share everything with a brother." Here he grinned and that told Artie that he was telling the truth. The fact that he'd been kidnapped hadn't seemed to have affected his happiness. He was glad of that. "As to what I've been doing, well that's a disappointing story of a man who used his talents in the pursuit of easy money."
"Colonel Richmond told me you have a flair for disguises."
"Yes, I started out as an actor in a small troupe. I was called upon to play a wealth of different characters and I found that I could do it so well that no one realised they were all me. I even learned to adjust my height and my voice. But there was very little money in it and we were always travelling from one small town to the next. There was no way to tell them apart and I didn't feel my talents were appreciated by the audiences we drew. I took off for San Francisco and it was there that I ran into The Magpie. He had seen my performance and offered me a share in the proceeds if I would use my disguises to help him in his jewel thefts. I should have turned him down but the lure of the money was too much. You won't believe the fun I've had since then."
"You'd be surprised," Artie said, thinking back to all the characters he'd played over the years with his partner Jim West. He'd even been called upon to play some exalted real-life personages, including the President of the United States. "Speaking of the Magpie, do you know his real name?"
"No and, even if I did, I wouldn't tell you. It would be a betrayal of his trust and it would touch on my honour as a friend."
Artie nodded, he could understand that point of view and he admired his brother for it, even if it meant he wouldn't get the information he wanted.
"Why did he change from stealing gems to taking printing plates from the federal mint?"
"It was an opportunity too good to miss. Who doesn't dream of being able to print their own cash?"
"Uh...are you sure we had the same parents?"
"I keep forgetting you're on the side of the law. So what's been happening to you all these years?"
"I also took to the stage, then the war came along and I managed to get through it in one piece; ended up a Captain, under Grant's command. When he was elected he took a few of us with him to work as federal agents."
"What did mom and dad think of that?"
"I never told them. They died a few years back."
For the first time the smile left Dolphus' face. "Guess I'll never get to see them again then," he said.
"You had forty years to do that."
"You're right. But I didn't know where they were. And anyway, I didn't want to drag up the past and put them through more pain."
"They missed you every day of their lives, Dolphus."
"Maybe I would have contacted them if I'd made a success of my life. Maybe I couldn't face them."
"That wouldn't have mattered to them. But it would have meant everything just to know that you were alive."
Yeah, well..."
"What about the Treadwells?"
"They're long gone. It was a carriage accident; the horses bolted. I sold the farm, not for much, and I've been travelling ever since. My..er..present occupation isn't conducive to settling down."
"I can understand that. I'm a bit of a wanderer myself."
"I don't have any nephews or nieces I didn't know about then."
"No. I'm surmising the same is true of you?"
"Yeah." There was sadness in his voice. That was a difference between them. Artie had considered settling down for a while and knew he wanted it in his future but he had no wish to have children. Maybe he would feel differently once he was married. But it was obvious that his twin was a real family man, at heart. His thoughts were interrupted by his brother saying, "I wouldn't have shot you. I just wanted your clothes. I planned to leave here disguised as you. All it would need is a slight change to my hair and a sour expression."
Did he really have a sour expression? Well, maybe, under the circumstances. "I'm glad to hear you say that," Artie replied. "My job should be quite easy then."
"Artie, don't tell me you're thinking of taking my place. You're mad, it's too dangerous. Artie, listen to me," he shouted, as Artie made for the door.
"Sorry, I have to go, I'm late already," Artie said.
"Artie! Artie!"
Too late, Artie was gone and there was no time for any further warnings.