“I look my age,” Robbie replies seriously. “I’m nineteen. How old are you?”
“Nineteen, too.”
“When I first saw you, I thought you were older.”
“Now, is that a nice thing to say to a girl?”
He looks stricken, and I laugh. “Just more mature. Not old.”
Before I can jab him some more, a sound like a siren wails through the room, and I nearly jump out of my skin.
“The train is boarding,” Robbie says. “We’ve got to go.”
We grab our luggage and head onto the platform with a bunch of other Negroes. Moments later, we are seated next to each other on a hard bench in the last car of the train, the colored car.
It’s smoky, noisy, and filled with the smell of food: fresh biscuits, stew, chicken, rice, and pies. I even catch a whiff of booze.
“How long is the trip to New York?” I ask Robbie.
“This is the fastest train around. It takes only seventeen hours, not counting delays. That’s three hours faster than it was last year.”
I shrug, not caring so much about how fast it goes, as long as it hurries up and pulls outta the station.
My heart swells with joy as the train departs at midnight—right on time. Relief washes over me like fresh rain. I am safe. I am leaving Chicago. And no one will know where to find me.
Not Tony Schaefer, not Jerry Merriweather, and not thecops. My whole body relaxes as if I’ve just sunk into a warm bath filled with rose water and jasmine.
A lady sitting across from Robbie and me opens a grease-stained paper bag and pulls out a tin that smells like chicken, rice, fried onions, and cornbread.
“Did you bring anything for us to eat?”
Robbie looks at me with a distressed expression. “Sorry, I didn’t bring anything except my luggage and a few supplies in my knapsack. Major Thomas arranged to transport the crate of supplies we’ll need and—”
Raising my hand, I stop him. “Just say,I didn’t bring any food.” I groan. “Are there dining cars on this train? I heard the 20th Century Limited served some good food in the dining cars.”
“It’s pretty pricey,” Robbie grimly explains. “Major Thomas didn’t give me much pocket change. We’ll have to wait and eat in New York.”
“I’ll starve to death by then.” Agitated, I study my surroundings. I might be able to scrounge up enough money using my queen-of-the-fingersmiths skills to buy some food. But I shouldn’t even be thinking about stealing. What about my fresh start? I tap Robbie on the knee. “I thought Mrs. Hartfield and Miss Katherine would be on this train with us. If they’re on board, they might treat us to dinner.”
“I saw them when I went to find a redcap. They have a berth in a sleeping car, but we won’t be able to see them until we arrive at Grand Central Station.”
My disappointment knows no bounds. “Well, that’s just peachy.”
“You didn’t expect them to be back here with us, did you?” he says.
“I didn’t know what to expect. You’re the one who’s probably made this trip a dozen times.”
“I’m not as much of a man of the world as you might think.”
“Then this trip will be an adventure for both of us,” I try not to sound as unhappy or hungry as I feel.
Without a promise of nourishment, I accept my fate: sleeping while hungry. After a while, the train’s rocking numbs my empty stomach and I feel drowsy. I tuck my legs beneath me until I’m comfortable, fold my arms across my chest, and rest my head on Robbie’s shoulder. The next thing I know, the train is jerking to a stop, and I wake up with my head in Robbie’s lap. I sit up straight, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. “Where are we? What time is it?”
“About five o’clock, but we haven’t gotten too far. We’re picking up passengers in Toledo, Ohio.” He pulls back the curtains and looks out the window.
“Sorry for falling asleep on you,” I say.
“I didn’t mind.” He removes his cap and squeezes it in his hands. “I have a confession to make. I hope you can forgive me, but tonight wasn’t the first time I’ve seen you.”
