Forty-Nine

The thoughts collided like cars, resounding painfully in my head:

I only had Terry’s word that he’d boarded in Fargo.

The ticket stub from Chicago in his duffel.

Terry giving Jed the heebie-jeebies.

Me never, ever telling Terry about the mob.

Then, in the moment of silence right before it becomes terror and pain, everything clicked. Doghn had not lied about Sofia Ramos. She likely had been a childless housekeeper in Brooklyn, and she had been poisoned in the cabin next door to me. She had been posing as Dana Alvarez, so Dana could pose as a man and further protect herself and her daughter. I didn’t know what their relationship had been—sisters? Some bond deep enough for Sofia to risk and then give her life so Dana could escape with Aimee, one step ahead of the mob.

Except not now, because I had brought the devil to their doorstep. They stood in the cupboard, Aimee holding Mr. Bunny and a now-undisguised Dana holding Aimee, their faces pure masks of terror.

Slicing his own neck must have taken a sick, incredible act of bravery, but it had thrown the heat off of him, at least as far I was concerned. The ruse that he didn’t care where Aimee had been hidden was a nice touch, as well. But he’d blown it all by letting on he knew about the mob connection. My only hope in saving Dana and Aimee from my blunder now was in pretending I didn’t know Terry was the bad guy.

“Aimee!” I tried to make my voice sound excited, but I couldn’t hide the quaver. Terry’s eyes zeroed in on me, and they were as flat as bits of coal. He knew.

He reached for his waistband.

I saw a flash of silver.

Aimee screamed.

I punched Terry’s throat. Blood began to flow freely.

“Run!”

But the woman and girl couldn’t run. Terry had one hand over his throat, the other holding a gun trained on Dana. I shoved him, and we both fell to the floor. He was a big guy, though, and he had the advantage. He picked me up like a rag doll, kicked at the exit door to open it, and brought me into the bladder separating the cars. Aimee and Dana were trapped behind us, and I was about to be erased.

The train was now traveling at normal speed, and apparently we were rounding curves, because Terry’s footing was uneven. He almost lost his balance twice. Shoving his gun into his waistband, he pulled the emergency exit cord. A whole panel of the bladder fell away, revealing mountains close enough to touch.

I gasped at the icy chill of the air, and the terror of how fast we were moving. My hair blew back from my face, and the wind sliced at my skin. One easy toss, and I’d be out of the train. If I was lucky I’d survive the fall, making it a toss-up whether I’d bleed or freeze to death first. The skinned-alive feeling of absolute terror consumed me.

I kicked and screamed with everything I had. Except it didn’t do any good. Terry had gone into the no-pain zone. He lifted me in the air. He propelled me forward. His arms twitched as he flexed.

And then, in a flash, we were both thrown to the floor as a force struck Terry.

“Mira!”

It was Jed. I was so relieved I could cry, but that emotion quickly turned to horror as Terry roared to his feet, slamming Jed against the opposite wall of the narrow space. His head made a sickening cracking sound before he melted to the floor. Jed lay limp as a doll, unconscious. I jumped on Terry’s back, digging my fingers into the open wound at his throat. He gurgled, and I dug deeper.

Outside, the quality of the light changed. Rather than mountains, we were in space, a limitless blue sky on the other side. Terry picked up my friend. Jed’s eyes were closed, a trickle of blood leaking from his temple. His beautiful brown curly hair was matted with red. It was excruciating to see his face, normally so full of joy and openness, so pale and motionless. I needed to get to him. I needed to see if he was still alive.

I ground a finger into Terry’s eye, but he continued into the open area where the diaphragm had been, the icy winter air rushing around him, the mountains fallen away, leaving only a vast, empty space. The train lurched, but he didn’t lose his balance.

He tossed Jed into the endless blue.