Saint Denis.
After paying a steep price, Bronte finally helped Davey settle the matter of the trial.
Two death-row inmates were used as stand-ins for the Callander brothers and put on trial in court.
Numerous reporters covered the case, and the news quickly spread throughout the West.
The Callander brothers were infamous—especially for the Blackwater robbery—which had made their names notorious. Their "arrest" therefore caused a huge sensation.
Only those at the very top knew the truth: it was nothing more than a carefully constructed deception, aimed at the general public.
The most displeased of all was Cornwall.
Cornwall wielded considerable influence in Saint Denis. For instance, the city's freight depot was one of his assets.
"These bastards who robbed the ferry's money transport and my trains now get to turn around and become respectable citizens?" Cornwall sneered. "What an absolute joke."
"Mr. Milton, perhaps I need to seriously reconsider employing you. As for that contract—so far, you've shown me no sign at all that they'll ever be captured."
"Has the Pinkerton Detective Agency—once the nightmare of criminals across the country—really become nothing more than an empty threat? Unable to take down even a small gang?"
"This is deeply disappointing, Mr. Milton."
Inside an upscale café in Saint Denis, the latest issue of the Saint Denis Times lay on the table. The front-page headline was the arrest and impending trial of the Callander brothers.
Sitting across from Cornwall were Milton and Ross.
"Yes, Mr. Cornwall, you're right," Milton said calmly. "At this point, Pinkerton really is little more than an empty threat."
"In New Hanover and Lemoyne, we've lost our law enforcement authority. Even when we know where the Van der Linde gang is, we have no legal means to act against them."
"If we were to deploy a large number of agents, I can guarantee that the next headline would be condemning Pinkerton instead. The unions wouldn't miss such an opportunity."
"While we value our cooperation with you, Mr. Cornwall, negative press at such a critical moment would be extremely unfavorable. As you know, some of our company's leadership is currently working to push forward a new law enforcement body."
Pinkerton's upper management had long since realized that the agency's golden age was over. The chances of regaining their original law enforcement powers were slim to none.
Although they still had the support of several federal legislators, far more politicians cared about the massive voting power held by the unions.
After all, the Anti-Pinkerton Act had been in effect for six years now, and in all that time, there had been no hope of its repeal.
As a result, Pinkerton's leaders began pursuing an alternative path—promoting the creation of a new law enforcement agency, with Pinkerton operating under its banner to indirectly regain authority.
As one of Pinkerton's few senior agents, Milton was fully aware of this plan. Cornwall, backed by his own political allies, also understood the situation to some extent.
"So you're telling me I just have to sit back and watch that man called Davey Callander swagger out from under the law?" Cornwall asked irritably.
"Mr. Cornwall should understand," Milton replied, "that Davey Callander is not your primary enemy. Moreover, he has already begun cooperating with Mr. Bronte. From here on out, he'll be entering civilized society—perhaps even doing business with you someday, wouldn't you agree?"
"Our real target, from beginning to end, has always been Dutch van der Linde. He is the true source of all this trouble."
"As for everyone else, they're little more than side characters. Isn't that right, Mr. Cornwall?"
Cornwall was still unhappy, but he saw no better alternative.
In truth, he could have stepped in to block Bronte's efforts to clean up Davey's image. But after giving it serious thought, he chose not to interfere.
He was a businessman, and profit mattered more than anything else. Offending Bronte would bring him no benefit—especially in Saint Denis, the eastern bridgehead where Bronte held enormous sway.
More importantly, Cornwall was currently plotting to acquire a particular piece of land—an Indian reservation rich in oil.
To accomplish that, he would need the support of the Saint Denis city government, the military, and various other forces. Only then could another expulsion of the Native Americans be carried out.
Just as Milton had said, Davey was not Cornwall's main enemy.
"Mr. Milton," Cornwall continued, "if you truly can't deal with Van der Linde right now, then surely handling the O'Driscoll Gang shouldn't be a problem."
"Ever since Van der Linde robbed my train, other gangs out West have started to think I'm an easy target. That's led to even more train robberies."
"Colm O'Driscoll alone has robbed my trains three times. Thanks to prior arrangements, my losses weren't significant—but this is turning my trains into prime targets for every gang in the West."
"It's time to teach them a lesson, Mr. Milton. And this time, I won't be paying you a single dollar. I want to see Pinkerton's sincerity."
"Otherwise, I'll assume you've been playing me all along. And when my friends and I get angry…" Cornwall paused coldly. "You know the consequences, Mr. Milton."
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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