A Dangerous Passion by E.E. Burke

Author:E.E. Burke
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780989819244
Publisher: E.E. Burke

CHAPTER 19

Lucy crept alongside the stationary train. According to the schedule, its final destination would be Denison, with numerous stops along the way. This much she’d learned from the station manager, who’d asked if she wanted a ticket then looked at her oddly when she said no.

Odors worse than those in a barnyard assailed her senses when she passed by a car enclosed with wooden slats. A snort sounded near her ear. She scrunched her nose. Hogs. Ugh. Her plan to hide away in a boxcar might bear rethinking. At the next rail stop, she could buy a ticket under an assumed name. Even the smelliest passengers crowded into coach weren’t this odiferous.

The next two cars were closed.

Ah, this one looked promising. Loaded with crates marked for delivery to Fort Gibson. That meant the car would be unloaded at the first stop in Indian Territory, about an hour away.

After glancing around to make sure none of the crew had noticed her, Lucy grasped a handrail to haul herself up. Inside, she squeezed between two of the largest crates. She stepped on something.

“Ow!” came a cry.

Startled, she backed up. “Who’s there?”

“Who’s askin’?” The owner of the high voice inched out from behind the back of a crate. Oversized bib denims hung on his lanky form. The hems were rolled up above his bare feet. He held his chin down, which hid his face.

It had to be the boy she’d seen in the rail yard. The one who’d run away from her. Henry had told her he had a home. Finding him here would suggest otherwise.

She recalled the name Henry had mentioned. “Billy?”

The boy pushed an engineer’s cap upward and cocked his head. “You. How come you’re after me?”

For both their sakes, she didn’t want him to run. The crew might see him and investigate. She put her hands up, a peacemaking gesture. “I’m not after you. This car appeared to be empty—”

Three loud raps sounded on the side of the car.

Billy grabbed her sleeve to pull her behind a crate. He crouched down then held a finger to his lips. She went to her knees, quietly.

“All clear,” someone shouted.

The door slid shut with a bang. Daylight seeped through cracks between the boards.

Billy remained still. Obviously, he was used to hiding in rail cars. Maybe he even lived in them. Some children ran away because of poverty or abuse. His uncertain situation roused her sympathy. She couldn’t imagine being without a home and family.

Henry knew of the boy’s situation. Maybe he didn’t have a heart for children.

Her chest ached. He didn’t have a heart, period.

A whistle sounded. The floor beneath Lucy’s feet shuddered as the train began to move.

She squinted, trying to see. “It’s very dark in here…”

Billy slipped away. In another moment, a match flared. Threads of black smoke curled upward. The sharp odor of kerosene stung her nose. He’d lit the wick inside a wire-framed globe. He plopped down, cross-legged, on the dusty plank flooring. Put the lantern within reach. The light played across his freckled features.

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