A New Woman: Chapter 1
An Agent Carter Fanfic
Late one foggy afternoon, a woman walked the streets of Chicago, her shoulders sagging as though the fog weighed heavily on them. The moisture left most of her tawny curls sagging. She had given up on wiping the dampness off her brown horn-rimmed spectacles, so her feet dragged her along through rote memory.
Only two more blocks. Two more blocks and she could fall asleep for a few hours before her roommate got home.
“Are you Edith Braddock?”
The woman stopped and cleaned off her spectacles so she could see the man in front of her with his dark suit and matching expression. At the sight of four more men surrounding her building, she felt an intense longing for the office she had left behind.
“Yes, sir. Who are you?”
“FBI. We need you to come with us.”
Edith’s eyes widened and she took a step back. “I–what? Is there some sort of problem?”
“You need to come with us,” the man repeated, firmer.
“Where are we going?” she asked as the man pointed to a black car. “What’s this about?” He silently stared at her until she climbed in. Another man climbed into the passenger seat. He didn’t speak either. She picked at her skirt and straightened it over her knees. The car ride seemed to last forever, and it didn’t help that all she could see through the windows were glowing orbs where the street lamps shone through the fog. She tried to pay attention to what direction they were going, but was soon hopelessly lost.
When they finally stopped, she tried to get out, but her door was locked. She was stuck until her silent driver opened it for her, grabbed her arm, and dragged her out. She tried to pull away, insisting she could climb out of a car on her own, but he didn’t let go and began dragging her into the fog. She thought about the switchblade Thea had given her tucked away in her bag, but attacking an FBI agent sounded like a terrible idea.
A silhouette of a building slowly appeared through the fog. An old bookstore. A bell chimed brightly as they walked in, emphasizing the juxtaposition of the cozy atmosphere with her current circumstances.
An old woman sat in the corner knitting with a sleeping cat on her lap. “Good evening, boys,” the woman called. Then she noticed Edith. “Honestly! Can’t you be gentle with the poor girl? She looks half out of her mind with fright!”
The man who still held Edith’s arm rolled his eyes and gripped her harder, causing her to wince. He dragged her to the back room, which, to her surprise, became an elevator when the door was closed.
When the door opened again, it was to an ordinary-enough looking office filled with people running to and fro, answering calls, and typing away at their typewriters. A large painted eagle monitored the whole affair from a lofty position on the wall with the words “Scientific Strategic Reserve” painted around it.
Edith felt more confused than ever. Wasn’t she supposed to be at the FBI? What was this place? The men at her side didn’t give her much time to wonder. They jerked her down a hall and she tripped as she was dragged along. Only the man’s firm grip on her arm kept her from falling flat on her face.
They led her to a small room and shoved her inside. A large mirror covered most of one wall and a table sat in the middle of the room. The only other furnishing was two chairs, one on either side of the table. Edith swallowed hard.
Another voice came from the hall. “You’ve got her?”
Her driver jerked his thumb into the room. “All yours, Chief.” He and his companion disappeared and a gray-haired man took their place and shut the door. He looked her up and down.
“I’m Chief Cooper. You’re Edith, aren’t you?” She nodded and he smiled at her. The sort of smile a tiger would give its prey. “Sit.”
Edith didn’t move.
His smile morphed into a snarl. “Sit. Or do I have to make you?”
She stiffened, wishing desperately that Thea were here. Thea, who was so much more confident. Thea, who would have known exactly what to say to make this man regret his words. But Thea wasn’t here.
She sat.
He dropped into the other chair and steepled his fingers. “How long have you lived in Chicago?”
“Three years.”
“And before that?”
“Springfield.”
“And before that?” He fixed her with a hard stare.
“Nowhere. I mean, Springfield’s where I was born.”
“Hmm.” His eyes narrowed. Edith chewed her lip.
“Have you ever been to Russia?”
“What? No.”
A soft tapping came from the door. Edith glanced up and saw a man’s silhouette in the fogged glass. Chief Cooper ignored it.
“Do you know any Russian?”
“No, sir. Why–?”
“I’m asking the questions!” he barked and she jumped.
The tapping grew more insistent. The Chief cleared his throat loudly and pressed on.
“Have you ever–”
The door burst open and a much younger man strode in. Was there to be no end to the men harassing her tonight? But he walked in without sparing her a glance and she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Cooper, are you really going to sit in here and–”
Chief Cooper shot to his feet. “Thompson, I told you before, this is not your investigation!”
“No, it’s not, cause if it was, I’d have three more guards on her, and I wouldn’t be wasting time interviewing a girl who any little bit of research would tell me is innocent!” The new man, Thompson, threw down a file, and Edith flinched, but not at the sound. The file had fallen open and a photograph fell out. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from that smile. The same smile she was forced to see in the mirror every day.
“Don’t forget who let her escape,” Chief Cooper shot. “Twice. I don’t know whose crummy idea it was to involve you here, but I’m in charge of this department and I want you out!”
Thompson clenched his jaw, but lowered his voice. “Fine. You’re right. It’s your investigation.” He smiled, but it looked fake.
“That’s right, and don’t forget it.” Placated a bit, the chief sat again.
“I’m just here to help.” The younger man spread his hands and tilted his head in a calming gesture. “Maybe I should call the governor and ask if he can think of any potentially treasonous activities his granddaughter might have been involved in.” Edith might have laughed at the idea of him calling her grandfather if the accusation hadn’t been so serious. Treason was a dangerous thing to be accused of in the current political climate.
Chief Cooper’s face turned red and he shot up again. “Out!”
Thompson assumed a look of polite confusion. “Sir?”
“I said out!” In case he hadn’t made his wishes entirely clear, Chief Cooper jerked a hard finger at the door. “And take her with you if you’re gonna be so insistent.”
Thompson pursed his lips and nodded in a gesture of mock deference. He started to leave, then turned for the first time to Edith. “Are you coming?”
With one last glance at the photograph, she scrambled up and left the room.
“Thank you,” she called as she sped up to keep up with him. “But could you please explain to me–”
A dark-haired woman appeared in their path and Thompson stopped, almost causing Edith to run into him.
“Jack, what is going on? I heard–” The woman drew up short when her eyes caught on Edith. “Oh, are you Miss Braddock? Did Chief Cooper clear you to leave?”
“Yes,” Edith said. “Though I still don’t know–”
“He was going to keep her indefinitely even though he knew she was clean,” Thompson said. Edith glared at him for interrupting.
The woman raised her eyebrows. “Did you break her out?” She didn’t sound particularly concerned by the idea. Edith cast a nervous glance between the two of them.
Thompson gave a tight smile. “Very funny, Carter. No, I offered to call the governor.”
Carter snorted, then covered it with a cough as another man walked past. Then she smiled politely. “I’m sure he appreciated that.” She turned to Edith. “Regardless, I’m afraid your home is full of agents at the moment. Do you have any friends you could stay with for the night?”
More strangers? In her home? Going through her things? “Umm . . .”
Carter’s expression softened. “Do you not have anywhere to go?”
There were the girls at the theater, but they were Thea’s friends. She had her old schoolmates, but they were all back in Springfield. She was shaking her head before she knew it.
Thompson cleared his throat. “Well, I’ll let you two work that out. I have other things to do.”
Carter turned around as he walked past. “Oh, did Cooper give you his supper order?” she asked innocently.
“Good night, Carter,” he called back.
Carter turned back to Edith and looked her up and down, pursing her lips. Edith bore her scrutiny until the other woman appeared to come to a decision. “Why don’t you stay the night with me?”
“What? Oh, no, I couldn’t–”
“You can, and you should. You can’t go home tonight, and you said you don’t have anyone to ask, so stay with me.”
Edith chewed on her lip, considering. “If you’re certain.”
“Yes, I am. Now that I’m finally here, I have a bit of paperwork to do, but I’ll be ready to go in a minute if you don’t mind waiting. Sit here and I’ll come to get you.” She gestured to a row of chairs lined up against a wall and Edith sat gratefully. Carter picked up a stack of files on the chair next to her and headed off down the hall.
She got a lot of strange looks, sitting in the corner. She imagined they didn’t have many guests there, and most of the criminals looked nothing like her with her flowered yellow dress, newly polished (though very old) brown heels, and bright nail polish.
Chief Cooper passed her once. He shot her a dark look, but didn’t stop. Edith pulled her feet under her chair and squeezed her hands together. She didn’t understand why he seemed to hate her so much.
When Carter returned, she was wearing a red hat, dark coat, and was carrying a suitcase. She smiled. “Ready to go?”
Edith shot to her feet. “Yes! Thank you!” She glanced at the suitcase, which Carter raised slightly.
“I just got into town today,” the woman said. “A friend is letting me borrow his house.”
Edith’s eyes widened. “Oh, I can’t stay there! If it’s your friend’s house–”
“Oh, he can share,” Carter insisted. “It’s fine.”
“If you’re sure . . .”
“Definitely.”
Edith smiled. “Thank you, Miss Carter.”
“Oh, call me Peggy.”
When they arrived at the house, Edith was stunned. “Is your friend a millionaire?”
Peggy paused and looked up at the house, cocking her head to one side. “You know, I’ve never actually asked how rich he is. He’s probably told me multiple times, but I tend not to pay attention when he talks about himself.”
Edith glanced at the other woman with a new appreciation. “How can I make a friend like him?”
Peggy laughed and looped her arm through Edith’s, dragging her up to the door. “Oh, darling, you don’t want a friend like him.”
Palace. That’s the word she would use. There were more rooms than she could ever count, she was sure. The ceiling was two stories high in the entrance hall and floor-to-ceiling windows lit the entire space. It was a far cry from the upstairs room she and Thea rented.
Thea. She would be home by now, having arrived to find strangers going through all of her things. Should she call her? Let her know what was going on? But she had probably already found someone to stay with, and Edith didn’t know how to contact any of Thea’s friends. Better to explain everything in the morning.
“I have some nightclothes you can borrow,” Peggy said as she led Edith up the stairs. “And tomorrow you can stop by your room to pick up more clothes.” Edith’s heart sank. Would this confusion not be cleared up by the next day?
She forced a smile. “Thank you very much.”
“Don’t mention it. My roommate had to stay in Los Angeles for a performance, and it was going to be too quiet here without her. You’re doing me a favor.”
When Edith crawled into bed that night, everything was too quiet. The bed was too large without Thea beside her. Too much moonlight was streaming in through the large windows and gauzy curtains. But as she curled around the pillow and caught sight of the borrowed, polka-dotted nightclothes, she smiled. At least she got a new friend out of this.