The silence that filled the stairwell followed Raya out of the doorway and drowned every sound. Raya had no answer to give Q about why she needed to return to a life that had not made her smile as much as she had since she boarded the Elsewhere Express. None of the words in the stairwell helped. No matter how she arranged and rearranged them, nothing could explain the crime she had committed nor the sentence that she needed to serve.
“I think it’s coming from over there.” Q pointed to a cobweb bridge gently swinging between limestone cliffs.
Raya surfaced from her thoughts. “What is?”
“That buzzing. Don’t you hear it?”
She angled her ear, becoming aware of the sound. “You’re right. It’s from the bridge.”
Q squinted.
“What is it?” Raya said.
“Are those dragonflies?”
The cobweb bridge swayed beneath Raya’s feet. Here, the buzzing was so loud, it vibrated in her teeth. Her heart pounded louder, demanding that she turn around and run back. She reached for the railing. A large hand grabbed her arm. Raya glanced up. A man the size of a bear, his pale hair flopping over a brown leather eyepatch, stared down at her with one clear blue eye. Raya yanked her arm free.
“Back off.” Q jumped between Raya and the man, rocking the bridge.
Raya grabbed on to the railing.
“Just trying to help.” The man’s soft-spoken tone did not match his size, but compelled Raya to pay attention to his lips and listen closely, lest she miss a word. “Getting stuck to the bridge can be a bother, especially if you’re hungry. I heard they’re serving Hainanese chicken rice tonight.”
Raya tried to let go of the railing. Her fingers were stuck. She tugged harder.
“Allow me.” The man pulled out a metal ladybug, half the size of his palm, from his satchel. “Or I should say, ‘allow Beatrice.’ I named her after the woman whose thoughts I made her out of. She was very upset after catching her fiancé cheating. Beatrice has very sharp teeth. Don’t move.” He set the insect on the railing. “Off you go, B.” It crawled over to Raya and nibbled at the cobwebs around her hand.
Raya’s fingers came free, silver residue dripping from them. “Thank you,” she said, trying to shake the residue off. The ladybug flew away and crawled back into the man’s pocket. “What is this stuff?”
The man shut his good eye and turned an ear toward her hand. “It sounds like someone grumbling about their boss. You can wash it off when you get to the dining area.”
“Sorry?” Raya said.
“I’ll explain while we walk.” The man proceeded down the bridge. “The railing’s the stickiest part of the bridge, but the other parts get stickier the longer you linger. It’s the nature of anything built from worries and grudges. If you don’t let go of it, the stronger it will hold on to you. Didn’t the conductor mention this during your orientation?”
Raya shook her head. “No.”
“She might have been a bit distracted during our orientation,” Q said.
“Ourorientation?” The man stopped. “You had the passenger orientation at the same time?”
Raya nodded. “We both boarded this evening and that got us off to a bit of a chaotic start. Q boarded through the back door and so his name wasn’t on the manifest.”
The man raised eyebrows so pale, they vanished against his skin.
“And then lightning set a sail on fire,” Q added.
“I see.” The man nodded, his tone flat.
“We’re on the way to meet up with the conductor.” Q held his arms out slightly, balancing on the swaying bridge. “I’m guessing she asked to see us so we can cover the topics we missed.”
“That’s not the reason for the meeting,” the man said.
Raya tilted her head up to look at him. “How do you know?”
“Because the conductor asked to see me too. I’m Other Rasmus, by the way, but you can just call me Rasmus since you probably haven’t met my other versions yet.”
“Other versions?” Q said.
