Kidnap on the California Comet by M. G. Leonard

Author:M. G. Leonard
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pan Macmillan UK

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

ROCKY RAILROAD

‘There you are.’ Uncle Nat was sat in the middle of a two-seater sofa at the centre of the sightseer lounge, a book about American railways open on his lap. ‘I’d begun to worry you’d been left behind in Denver.’

Hal smiled. ‘I was with Mason and Hadley.’

‘I’m glad you’ve made friends.’ Uncle Nat moved up so Hal could sit down.

‘Did you read the paper?’ Hal said. ‘They sent one of Marianne’s teeth to her dad.’

‘You saw that?’ Uncle Nat sighed. ‘I was hoping you hadn’t.’

From their sofa they had a panoramic view of the passing landscape. Crowding in from the rest of the train, passengers filled the seats and were standing in the aisle, testing their cameras and flicking through their guidebooks.

‘Let’s try to enjoy this bit of the journey.’ Uncle Nat forced a smile. ‘The scenery is otherworldly.’

‘I don’t understand why Mr Reza doesn’t just pay the ransom and get Marianne back,’ Hal blurted out, unable to help himself. ‘That’s what I would do, and he can afford it.’

‘It’s not that simple,’ Uncle Nat said, lowering his voice. ‘If August pays the money, there’s nothing to stop the kidnappers refusing to give Marianne back and asking for more. Or, even worse, they take the money and Marianne and disappear. The police use ransom negotiations to try to work out who they’re dealing with, and where the kidnappers are keeping their victim. They’ll have told August not to pay the ransom.’ He clasped his hands together. ‘Now, please, let’s not talk about this any more. It’s upsetting.’

Hal turned to look out the window as the California Comet rattled away from the office blocks and highways of Denver, rising on a great curving track cutting into the side of a hill. He pointed to a line of rusting containers in the distance. ‘What are those?’

‘Coal cars filled with rocks and rubble – otherwise known as hoppers.’ Uncle Nat pushed his glasses up his nose. ‘They serve as a windbreak to protect the trains as they go around this curved bit of track – it’s known as the Big Ten. Wind speeds can reach one hundred miles an hour as they sweep down the mountains into the valley. About forty years ago, a freight train was blown right off the tracks. That’s when they put the hoppers there.’

Hal pulled out his sketchbook and drew the curved track, with the coal cars above it in the near distance, plants sprouting out of the rubble-filled trucks. The train was going slower now, carefully handling the tight curves, threading through pine trees and outcrops of rock, and always climbing.

‘I spoke to Zola about Marianne,’ Uncle Nat said suddenly. ‘She’s terribly shaken by what happened. She said that Marianne had approached her in the Silver Scout while August Reza was talking about his new batteries. Marianne said that she had something top secret to tell Zola about her father’s competition. Zola asked her what it was, but Marianne said she couldn’t talk with so many people around.

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