Ep. 8 Agent 355 "The Lady"

Some of the most important people in history are the ones whose names we may never know.

British-occupied New York is a city of whispers, secrets, and divided loyalties. George Washington’s Culper Spy Ring is working in the shadows, gathering intelligence that could determine the fate of the American Revolution. Among its mysterious figures is a woman known only by a number: Agent 355.

Moving through a world where one misplaced word could expose everything, Agent 355 must rely on discipline, perception, coded messages, and a carefully guarded network of allies. But when whispers of a devastating betrayal begin to surface, the stakes become greater than ever. Somewhere between the drawing rooms of New York and the defenses of West Point, a secret is moving through the shadows. And someone must make sure it reaches the right hands before it is too late.

Agent 355: "The Lady" is a gripping cinematic audio drama of espionage, faith, sacrifice, and unseen courage. Inspired by the mystery surrounding the woman connected to George Washington’s legendary Culper Spy Ring, this episode explores what it means to answer a calling when there may be no recognition, no applause, and perhaps not even a name left behind. Her story reminds us that history is not only shaped by those standing in the spotlight. Sometimes it is changed by those willing to act when no one is watching.

Featuring acclaimed voice talent including Rachel Hendrix (October Baby) as Abigail Adams, Shari Rigby (Overcomer, October Baby) as Agent 355, Jonathan Stoddard (Crossroad Springs) as John Adams, Brett Varvel (County Rescue, Disciples in the Moonlight) as Robert Townsend, Todd Terry (1923, Lioness, The Unbreakable Boy) as Mr. Whitford, Alex Kendrick (Lifemark, Overcomer, War Room) as George Washington, Matthew Hawk (singer-songwriter/actor) as Matta Neenaw, and Carly LePore (Heartland, 'Tis So Sweet) as Mercy Otis Warren.

Created with immersive Dolby® Atmos sound design, a sweeping original orchestral score, and cinematic storytelling, Defiant Ones transports listeners into the heart of the American Revolution like never before.

Premiering on The Washington Times.

Created by Beautifully Flawed Productions in partnership with The Washington Times, the Tea Party Patriots Foundation, and The Women In My World.

Before America was born, women were already fighting for her.

Transcript

Copy Transcript Copied

[Speaker 2]: Defiant Ones, a podcast presentation by Beautifully Flawed Productions in partnership with The Washington Times, Tea Party Patriots Foundation, and The Women in My World.
[Speaker 1]: Boston, all is here. Who would have thought we would still be fighting in 1780? That the world we once knew would tremble beneath the weight of it all. And so much loss of life.
[Speaker 3]: At least it has moved from us. Rumors of British movement in New York continue.
[Speaker 1]: I pray it's all over soon and patriots can return home to their families.
[Speaker 3]: And yet, my dear Abigail, it is often not the armies we see that decide the fate of a war, but those who move quietly between them.
[Speaker 1]: My dear General George Washington, a man burdened with the fate of a nation, has employed those who he calls unseen. There are whispers only of a network hidden within the very fabric of this war. Men and women who carry secrets more dangerous than muskets. And truths that could topple empires.
[Speaker 3]: History may one day crown Washington, but those cloaked in silence and sacrifice will help him secure freedom. He too knows this.
[Speaker 1]: Precisely. One who will stand in the gap for a nation. A mysterious asset known only as Agent 355. New York
[Speaker 2]: City. Every face tells a story. The question is which one is true. British uniforms fill the streets while prison ships fill the harbor. Every chain I hear reminds me. What's waiting if I fail?
[Speaker 4]: The port's market is the perfect cover for secret meetings. This is why you must belong so completely that no one thinks to look twice. Look around and take notice of each man, woman, and child. Loyalty rarely announces itself. It leaks out with the slip of the tongue.
[Speaker 2]: My father, he did not raise me for comfort, but for composure. He taught me as a young girl that a lady must be gracious in all things, yet ever watchful.
[Speaker 4]: Good day, miss.
[Speaker 2]: And to you. Tonight. Headquarters. Immediately. Townsend.
[Speaker 4]: Miss.
[Speaker 2]: Good day, sir. May I see what you've just hidden? Did you hear me? Now. It's just a delivery order, sir. Give it to me. Fly! Seize her! Easy, Trinity. It's time to fly. After her!
[Speaker 4]: Come on, Trinity! Go! She went towards the church! She went towards the docks! Remember, read men before they speak. Enter the room with grace and influence it with wisdom.
[Speaker 2]: My father, he taught me to read rooms like battlefields. You're late. I almost brought company.
[Speaker 5]: Quiet, please. Quiet, please. Quiet, please. I have your attention. The unthinkable has happened.
[Speaker 4]: Robert Townsend. Sir, what is
[Speaker 5]: It? The Continental Army has been infiltrated. We've received word that John Andre has turned Benedict Arnold. Quiet, please. Quiet. Quiet. Now stationed at West Point, Arnold is preparing to hand over the fortress, the key to the colonies. If he succeeds, the war could be lost overnight. The flags I place on the map represents each one of you as decoys. Going to different places to throw off the British. And the Chosen One will carry the truth to Washington.
[Speaker 4]: A map of New York. Memorize every detail you see. Yes, Father.
[Speaker 5]: Agent 355, you've been chosen. The others will be your cover. Take with you the letter of invisible ink. It has a seal only known by those who have created it.
[Speaker 2]: Robert, you've confirmed your sources are of truth.
[Speaker 5]: Yes, encoded intelligence. The message confirms Arnold is in active betrayal with British officer John Andre. He's coordinating the transfer at West Point. You must reach Washington before the meeting is complete.
[Speaker 2]: I will see the truth reach Washington before darkness seals its course.
[Speaker 5]: Wait. Yes? A ring for safe
[Speaker 2]: Passage. It has an inscription.
[Speaker 5]: Fear thou not, for I am with thee. My lady, my love, you are as beautiful as the day I saw your face for the first time. Miss Whitford, I am Robert Townsend. I believe we've not been introduced, though I feel as though I should have found you sooner. Well,
[Speaker 2]: Then perhaps you've been standing in the wrong rooms.
[Speaker 5]: Mr. Whitford, sir, may I have this dance with your daughter?
[Speaker 4]: You may, Mr. Townsend.
[Speaker 5]: I believe I should like to remember this dance.
[Speaker 1]: Some moments have a way of being remembered long after they've passed.
[Speaker 4]: We are not only deciding our own fate, gentlemen, but the world our children must live in. I, for one, would have them inherit more than submission. Freedom does not announce itself with comfort. It arrives with consequences. Everything that I've taught you, this land, will need those who move where no one else is watching. No, Father, no. Pray that God... Please, please, stay with me. Father! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
[Speaker 1]: We got him! A
[Speaker 5]: Woman? You … you work for the Crown? Answer me! You know what they do to spies, don't you? Take her away! There was a time... I...
[Speaker 1]: My heart... Still... Still belongs to you.
[Speaker 5]: May you return to know...
[Speaker 2]: I must take my leave now.
[Speaker 5]: Lady.
[Speaker 2]: There, there, boy. Trinity, my trusted companion. You have carried me through every shadow and kept my secrets. You are all that I have.
[Speaker 4]: My dear daughter, you are a lady. But never forget, you are called for more.
[Speaker 2]: Even after your passing, I still hear your voice.
[Speaker 6]: Men, I know the cold has found its way into your bones tonight. I see the weariness on your faces, and I do not turn from it. I carry it with you.
[Speaker 4]: We bear it together, General Washington.
[Speaker 6]: Soldier, we have not chosen the easy road, have we? But we have chosen the righteous one. Gentlemen, I bid you a good night.
[Speaker 4]: Sir, your quarters are ready. As you commanded, the maps are unrolled
[Speaker 5]: And awaiting your inspection.
[Speaker 4]: There is a note for your eyes only attached to the map.
[Speaker 6]: Traitor within. Hold until confirmed.
[Speaker 4]: Did you hear that? There's nothing there.
[Speaker 2]: Oh, we're out. Nice. It's okay,
[Speaker 5]: Boy. It's okay.
[Speaker 2]: He may be yet a friend to George Washington and a friend to me the night is long but the dawn remembers
[Speaker 5]: I am here for you
[Speaker 4]: The road you travel is closed to the one you seek closed
[Speaker 2]: But if I don't reach Washington thousands may pay the price for my failure
[Speaker 4]: You will have to take another path
[Speaker 2]: I know no other way I will do it you
[Speaker 1]: That is right. Come on, let's go, Trinity. All of these gravestones. Twenty-three. And gone. They are but boys, Mercy.
[Speaker 3]: The earth grows heavy with them.
[Speaker 1]: I read the lists now before I sleep, as if knowing their names might somehow keep them.
[Speaker 3]: I'm sure their mothers and fathers take heart of those like you reading about their children, who have given their lives for freedom.
[Speaker 1]: My heart aches. John writes of hope of progress
[Speaker 3]: Abroad. He is where he must be.
[Speaker 1]: In France, in courts and halls, speaking of liberty to men who have never seen this cost. He seeks alliances, loans, recognition for a nation.
[Speaker 3]: And those words may yet save lives. Wars rarely end when we wish them to, but they do end, my dear friend.
[Speaker 1]: And when they do, what will be left of us?
[Speaker 3]: Truth. If we are brave enough to write it. And if we are not? Then others will write it for us.
[Speaker 1]: I want it to end, Mercy. I want the guns to fall silent and the letters to speak of home again. I want John...
[Speaker 3]: Let's go in and pray for the Lord to bring home your John and stop the bloodshed.
[Speaker 1]: We must stay alert. There you go, boy. Come on. It's okay. It's okay. Hold still. I'm sorry, Trinity.
[Speaker 4]: You need a new shoe. I will wait. Can I help you? What do you need at this hour? The
[Speaker 2]: Lady is in need. Sir, can you fix his shoe for me? Time is of the
[Speaker 4]: Essence. He can't go another mile.
[Speaker 2]: I've been riding for days, and we're still hours away. What if I don't make it? Please. Please, I need your help. Many lives depend on it. Liberty
[Speaker 4]: Depends on it. I will try. But he needs to find another place to wait. Out of sight I shall be and wait. I am with you.
[Speaker 2]: I will make my way to the tavern for food, and I will return in an hour.
[Speaker 4]: Keep your eyes forward, child. You must learn to listen for what is not said. See what is common. Trust God only.
[Speaker 2]: Warm yourself. Here's a pence for your generosity.
[Speaker 4]: What's a late night for a woman to be in a tavern?
[Speaker 2]: I'm only passing through. And I'm in need of some
[Speaker 1]: Food and warmth, sir.
[Speaker 4]: You look familiar. Do I know you?
[Speaker 2]: I look like many, sir. But I assure you, we have not met.
[Speaker 4]: Oh, I do know you. You're Whitford.
[Speaker 2]: I will take my leave. Not so
[Speaker 4]: Fast. I'm not done with you.
[Speaker 2]: Unhand me.
[Speaker 4]: Don't shoot without hesitation. You have but one shot. Metinina! Vantanina! I am here. Not he can. There is never just one. Come on, come on. Lady, he's not ready. Come on, boy. Come on. This isn't the way. Where are you taking us? We do not follow the road. We go where those who hunt us will not.
[Speaker 2]: You believe they ride behind us? I
[Speaker 4]: Believe. They do not stop.
[Speaker 1]: Then neither do we. Yah! Yah!
[Speaker 5]: This is where my path ends.
[Speaker 4]: You're not coming with me. I cannot walk where you must go. The one who brought you here has already come before you. But you will not walk alone. We are here, in the wind, watching. I will not forget. The dawn remembers. Go. Godspeed.
[Speaker 2]: Whoa, Trinity! Oh boy! I know it's dark, boy. It's okay. It's okay. Freedom! Liberty! Freedom! Who claims it? One who will not bow. You may approach.
[Speaker 1]: Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the full armor of God. Lord, protect me.
[Speaker 5]: General, a messenger has arrived. Send him in.
[Speaker 6]: Soldier, you are? The one with no name. A woman. God has given everyone a name. Call me Lady, sir. Lady, please approach. You have the seal.
[Speaker 2]: Yes, General. It was given by your trusted friend, Townsend.
[Speaker 6]: I write with urgency and sorrow. One you have trusted has chosen betrayal. Benedict Arnold conspires with the British to deliver West Point into their hands. A meeting with their officer, John Andre, is already in motion. If this treachery succeeds, the river and perhaps the war will be lost. Act swiftly. Trust no word from him. Here. They press along the river, believing we will meet them head on. But we will not give them the battle they expect. Send word to the Eastern Regiment. Have them move under cover of night. No drums, no light. Can you do this?
[Speaker 2]: Yes, sir. At once. May God be with you. As with you, sir.
[Speaker 4]: Freedom does not announce itself with comfort.
[Speaker 2]: It arrives with consequences. We were never promised our names would be remembered. Only that freedom would outlive us, and that liberty was worth fighting for.
[Speaker 1]: If only one life
[Speaker 2]: Could help preserve it, then every sacrifice was worth the cost.
[Speaker 5]: My dearest Abigail, I've received orders from America that I must remain here in Europe for a time. Please write to me and send by any vessel heading this way. I shall find your letters whether they be delivered to the Netherlands or France or Spain. And my dearest, you've promised me a description of the castle you were building in the air, but I have not received it yet. I long to hear your hopes and dreams for the future. It carries me forward, knowing that we will be together there. Your affectionate husband, John.
[Speaker 1]: My dearest John, our castle in the air is no longer a dream, but a promise. I received news today from Mercy that the woman known as 355 made it through enemy lines to deliver news to General Washington about the treacherous deeds of Benedict Arnold just in time. Can you imagine what might have happened to the Mission of Freedom? She changed history. Sadly, they will never know her name. History will remember generals. It will remember the traitors. It will most certainly remember the victory. Today we will write about the women. The ones who risked it all. Patriots, prophets, poets and spies. And we have only just begun. The night is long.
[Speaker 2]: But the dawn remembers.
[Speaker 1]: You are Agent 355? I am
[Speaker 2]: But one of many. Another has fallen. Your mission awaits. Come quick. This land will need those who move. Where no one is watching.
[Speaker 1]: The Faceless have locked these shadows for centuries, long before me and long after. In quiet rooms, across distant colonies, in homes, in cities, in the spaces no one thought to look they have listened, watched, and moved when called. Armies march on roads, but information arrives first.
[Speaker 2]: It seems like an impossible task, but the Lord will find a way.
[Speaker 1]: Let them come. We shall be ready. Hide me beneath the shadow of thy wings. All you need to know is I'm a friend of this cause. My name is not yours to know, not for my life, nor for those who came before me or those who will come after. Agent 355, a woman and part of the Culper spy ring who risked everything to secure the future of a nation. Many believed there were countless women who carried that name. Women unseen, a whisper in the dark, and a ghost in the revolution. Many faces, many voices, one purpose, liberty.
[Speaker 2]: Defiant Ones, a podcast presentation by Beautifully Flawed Productions in partnership with the Washington Times, Tea Party Patriots Foundation, and the Women in My World. Starring Rachel Hendricks, Sherry Rigby, Jonathan Stoddard, Brett Varvel, Todd Terry, and Alex Kendrick. Featuring Kim Farrell, Hugh Berkey, James Galbraith, Matthew Hawk, Carly Lepore, Mark Oliver, Ian Russell, Donna Schutte, Jackson Trent, and Tim Perez-Roz. Inspired by the book Defiant Ones by Heather Blanton. Written and directed by Sherry Rigby. Producers Billy Hollowell, Claire Uridalee, Julie O'Reilly, Katie Kinney-Phillips, and Sherry Rigby. Casting by Donna and Lottie Schuette. 

Immersive audio mix by Kim Farrell and Joe Cruz. 

Original score composed by Luke Snyder. Production mix by Dan Rivera.