0 January Secret Agent #41

TITLE: The Bootlegger's Bible
GENRE: YA Alternate History

One letter—that’s all it would take to destroy us. As my father returned from the mailbox, I knew that letter had arrived.

“Deliver this as soon as possible, Evelyn,” Papa said.

Reviewing the envelope, I caught sight of our boss’s seal—a shimmering golden C. It may not have been the draft letter we were expecting, but it was just as dangerous.

I prayed my father wanted me to bring it to anyone else but them. I’d even prefer it be for Mr. Mitchell. At least he was decent. As decent as an irritable speakeasy owner could be, I guess. But those dogs across town put his curt demeanor to shame. Stealing from under our noses and lying their mouths off. They were the nastiest bootlegging rival we could’ve come by. Even their polite nods scared me straight into the pews.

I ignored the sudden tapping of my foot. “Shouldn’t one of the boys do it?”

“No, that would give us away.” Papa peered over his shoulder to my older brothers sitting at the kitchen table, scrutinizing the latest newspaper headline about the war. “God has a plan, and He needs you to do this for us.”

The worried eyes behind my father’s glasses provided no comfort. “Are you sure this isn’t Capone’s plan?”

After a sharp hush, he covered my mouth with a calloused hand. “Take this to the Cohens.” I held back a gasp at the mention of their name.  “And whatever you do, don’t read it.”