She lifted her gaze to the Wonder Wheel, now lit up against the darkening sky. Thoughts spun through her mind, but like the cars on that wheel, they went nowhere.
A breeze picked up, blowing someone’s cigarette smoke in her face. Turning away from it, she scanned the line still waiting to be served at the counter.
And there he was again, the man in the bowler and tweed suit. At least this time, he wasn’t watching her. He pumped mustard onto a frankfurter like any other tourist.
“Here you go, hon.” Ivy slid a paper basket across the table to Elsa and sat across from her. “And extra napkins, too.”
“Thanks.” Elsa glanced at the man and met his gaze. His expression immediately changed. He motioned her over to join him, as if she would do such a thing for a stranger. “Ivy, do you see that man standing by the condiments? Do we know him?”
“Never seen him before. But he sure is looking at you. What’s his deal?”
“I don’t think I care to find out.” The idea of strolling along the boardwalk with a creep fixating on her didn’t sound like a good one. Besides, the walking she’d already done had begun to catch up with her. If she was going to save some strength for the trip back to the Beresford, she ought not spend it all here. “Change of plans. Let’s go home.”
“I’m all for it. I don’t like that man’s vibe.”
“He was watching me before we saw the Incubator Babies.”
“Nope. Uh-uh. We don’t stick around for that applesauce.” Ivy scooped up Elsa’s paper basket. “Hot dogs travel. Now where is a knight in a shining Rolls-Royce when you need one?”
Elsa spared no more than a moment scanning the crowd in the off-chance they’d see Percy or Archer. “My guess? Gambling, the both of them. I’d settle for Wesley Spalding, but I don’t see him either. Let’s go.”
Zigzagging through the crowd, they crossed the intersection to the Stillwell Avenue station. The cacophony inside rattled Elsa, but Ivy took charge, navigating through the stream of people, all the while holding the garlic-flavored hot dog aloft. At the turnstiles, she paid the fares for both of them and guided Elsa through.
After a few glances over her shoulder, Elsa still didn’t see the man. But he was tall. If he came looking, he’d find her as easily as Wesley had. Her limp made her stand out in any crowd.
Ivy looped an arm through Elsa’s as they made their way to the right platform. “He could be harmless,” Ivy said. “He might not even be following you, and even if he was, what could he do in front of all these other people?”
Elsa was about to concede the point when she spotted him. “There he is.”
Ivy squeezed her arm tighter. “Never mind.”
A blast of air whooshed over them, billowing their skirts andtugging the scarves that wrapped their hair. They walked away from the man in pursuit until the train doors opened and they could get on. They quickly slid onto a bench.
“Are you kidding me?” A fellow traveler gripped a leather strap from the ceiling and scowled at the aromatic hot dog. “You don’t bring hot food on the train.”
“Sorry.” Ivy lifted her eyebrows at Elsa. “You hungry yet?”
Elsa took a bite, but she was too agitated to eat more.
“You sure?” Ivy proceeded to eat the rest herself in what felt like record time. “This is nothing,” she told Elsa. “You should see the Fourth of July contest eaters. They eat dozens in a matter of minutes.”
“Ivy,” Elsa whispered. “Get up. He just got on at the other end of the car. He’s coming this way. Or trying to.” The car was so jammed with riders, his halting progress was slow.
Immediately, Ivy was on her feet and moving toward the still-open door, blocking Elsa from the man’s view. They stuffed their scarves in their pocketbooks in case he was looking for the brightly colored head coverings.
“If we get off now, he’ll chase us in the station,” Elsa told her. “Wait until the doors start to close, and then we jump at the last second, before he has time to follow.”
“Right. I’m ready.” Seconds later, the doors began to shut, and Elsa and Ivy slipped through.
Safe on the platform, Elsa’s heart thudded as she watched the train roll by. The man in the bowler slapped a hand to the window and shouted something she couldn’t hear.
But she read his lips. A chill raced down her spine.
Ivy gasped. “Did he say, ‘See you soon?’ He was looking right at you.”
Elsa’s mouth went dry. She didn’t know who he was, what he wanted, or if he would be waiting at some station along the way. She licked her lips. “We’re taking a taxi home.”
CHAPTER
