Chapter 1. Before the Event
Geoff
“Geoff, don't let
Ben wander off exploring.” Mom repeated the same thing she'd told
me at least twice a day since she'd agreed to send us on our own to
the grandparents' place. She lifted my six-year-old sister, Franny,
from the train station platform for one last kiss.
As the oldest at
sixteen, I'd be in charge for the three day train trip, and probably
even after we arrived in Heartville. The Grands had a tendency to
spoil my brother and sister. Still, all I'd only have to keep Ben
corralled and make sure Franny ate her meals. I tried not to think
what that would entail, because I was already nervous.
Mom and Dad claim to
be Anglophiles, so they named me Geoffrey and actually pronounced it
Jofry. And Ben is really Benedict. Then they really got fancy and
went Spanish; Franny is short for Francesca.
Ben, who'd never
been on a train before, must consider our trip an adventure. Who knew
what he'd find fascinating? It certainly wouldn't be anything that
could awe me and it might easily get him into trouble.
He ran toward us,
followed more sedately by Dad. “Guess what? I can sleep in the
upper bunk bed, Dad said so.” That just proved my point about what
he'd be excited about. I'd much rather have the larger, lower bed. At
least he should be safe. But then where would Franny sleep?
Mom and Dad helped
the three of us onto the train. Dad stowed our large suitcase on the
lower level, and we marched single file up the narrow, winding stairs
to the corridor above. We each carried a backpack filled with a
change of clothes, toiletries, and whatever else we thought was
essential for survival. Our bedroom for the expedition was the first
one we came to. The compartment was too small for all five of us to
fit, even with my bed folded into a couch, so Mom took Franny inside
first, settled her on the chair in a corner of the room and kissed
her. Our parents said goodbye to Ben and me out in the hall.
“The attendant
will tell you when you should go for dinner.” Mom smiled, then
disappeared down the stairway. Were those tears in her eyes?
Dad handed me some
three twenty dollar bills. “You might need this before you get to
my parents' place.” Then he, too, was gone.
Ben entered the room
before me. “Where's my bunk bed?”
“I think they only
open it at night. For now we can sit on this couch thing.”
“Geoff, when will
Mom be back?” Franny clutched her stuffed bunny to her. How she
could stand the sour smell of Floppy I'll never know. She'd never let
it out of her hands long enough for Mom to run it through the washer.
“Franny, remember?
This year, we're going to the Grands on our own for three weeks and
then Mom and Dad will come to get us.” Would she ask for Mom every
other minute? I hoped she'd stop soon.
“But where are we
going to eat? I'm hungry.” She pouted. When my sister pouts her
lower lip doubles in size so you can see the inside of it and her
forehead wrinkles like an old lady.
I didn't know the
answer. “What kind of snacks did you bring?” Mom told us each to
throw something in.
She dug through the
backpack at her feet. “I have raisins, but if I eat 'em, what'll I
eat later?”
Ben piped up “Yeah,
Geoff, what did Mom mean about an attendant?”
“I think there's a
restaurant or something.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “They'll
tell us when and where we can go for supper.” Why were they so
concerned about food already? We had lunch with Mom and Dad before we
drove to the train station.
Ben's attention
shifted. “We're moving!”
“Yeah, train's
move.” I rolled my eyes.
“No, I mean we're
leaving the station. This is awesome!”
Franny pressed her
nose against the window next to her seat. “I can still see Mom and
Dad.” She waved. “Bye, Mom and Dad. See you soon.”
“They can't hear
you.”
Franny turned and
frowned at me, then buried her face in Floppy's smelly fur.
Oh, great. Now I
made her cry. How could I make her stop?
A woman slid open
the door to our room and poked her head in. Medium height and slim,
she wore a uniform. “Hi. You three are traveling alone, right?”
I nodded. “I'm
Geoff, and I'm in charge of my brother and sister.”
She smiled in a
friendly fashion. “I'm Marlene. I'm the attendant for this car.
You're scheduled for dinner at...” she looked at a sheet in her
hand “...five.”
“Thanks. Ben and
Franny were asking about sup...dinner. Which way is the restaurant?”
“The dining car is
four cars down. Go through the door next to the stairway and go
through the next two sleeping cars. You'll come to the observation
lounge. The next car after that is the dining car.” She focused on
Franny. “Can I get you anything before then? We have juice and
water.”
Franny studied her,
glanced at me for permission, and then said, “Orange juice,
please.”
“Sure sweetie.”
“My name's
Franny.” She wiped her cheek with the sleeve of her sweater.
“Francesca.”
“That's a pretty
name.” Marlene turned to me and Ben. “Do you boys want anything?”
Before Ben could ask
for something outrageous, I replied, “Bring us both bottles of
water.”
“I'll go get your
drinks. I hope you know where the toilet is.” She waved a hand to
the space behind the tiny sink. “And it's also the shower.”
“Really? Both in
the same space?” Ben had to go check it out. “Cool! But what
happens if someone wants to shower when someone else is using the
toilet?”
“We'll worry about
that when the time comes.” I was curious about that, too, but it
wouldn't be mature to say so.
Marlene smiled at
us. “I'll knock on your door when it's your time for dinner.”
Just
then, all the lights went out.
Marlene
Franny
cried out, but before I could comfort her, as quickly as they went
out, the lights came back on.
Geoff
rested a hand on her shoulder. “We went through a tunnel, Franny.
That's all. It's OK. We'll go through a few more. Remember when we
made this trip in the car with Mom and Dad and we drove into tunnels
under the rivers and through the mountains?”
“I
think so. Was it like that?” Her pretty little face scrunched up.
“Yes.”
“Now,
settle in and I'll be right back with your drinks. And I'll call you
in about an hour for dinner, OK?” I looked at each of their faces
to make sure they were all right. When I returned with their juice
and water, Ben was engrossed in a video game and Franny stared out
the window, clutching her stuffed animal.
Knowing
they were fine, I continued on to check on the other passengers in
the five other bedrooms in the car.
Two men and two
women played cards in the second room. They told me their names as I
checked them against the list I had, Eddie Tyler and Josh Vega, who
shared the room, and Mimi LeBlanc and Abby Block, who shared the next
room.
“I work with these
two clowns,” Mimi told me, pointing to the two men. “We're headed
to a conference in Denver. Josh's girlfriend, Abby, is along for the
ride. Josh is such a wuss, he hates to fly, so Eddie and I agreed to
travel by train with him.”
Eddie smirked. “Next
you'll be telling her our life stories.”
Sarah and Charles
Bailey, an older couple, sat side by side on the couch in the fourth
room. Sarah twisted a linen handkerchief in her gnarled hands. “Maybe
during this trip my husband will be able to see some of the scenery
instead of staring straight ahead at the pavement like he did when he
drove. I say 'maybe' because my husband's failing eyesight forced him
to give up driving.”
I winked at her.
“Then the train is a good choice.”
“As fast as the
train is going, it's all a blur anyway.” He patted her hands.
In the next room,
Patricia Malone read a fashion magazine. Her blond hair and makeup
were as finished as the model on the cover. Her teenage daughter
Jessica's head tilted forward as she tapped out message after message
pn her phone.
“Is Internet
service as spotty on the train as my friends tell me?” Jessica
stopped long enough to look up at me.
“It depends on the
line. This one has some dead spots, but most of the way the reception
is pretty good.”
Patricia smiled.
“We're on our way west to check out colleges before Jessica starts
her senior year in high school.”
I wondered whether
they'd intended the trip as an opportunity to spend time together.
Had they run out of things to say to each other before they even left
the train station? Because, as I left, Patricia went back to her
magazine and Jessica to her phone.
A single passenger
sat with eyes closed in the last car. He was listed on the manifest
as Dr. Reginald Wainwright, Ret. I think that meant retired.
I didn't want to
disturb him so I pushed his door open slowly, but he opened his eyes.
“Dr. Wainwright, may I bring you something to drink? Tea or coffee,
or perhaps some water?”
“Why, tea would be
lovely. Thank you, my dear.” He spoke with a clipped British accent
and had a salt and pepper mustache and a full head of matching hair.
A proper English gentleman. We didn't see many of those on the train
from Chicago to L.A. He smoothed his mustache. “You will let me
know when I'm to go to dinner, won't you?”
“Yes. Of course.”
