Saving Brooksie

by Scott McElhaney

  He burst through the doors and scanned the seats in the large waiting area. There was no sign of Brooksie or Ben.

  “If you want a ticket for the 8:45, you’re about to miss the last call for boarding,” the man at the ticket booth said.

  Eddie ran toward the door leading to the loading platform.

  “You need a ticket!” the man hollered.

  Eddie rushed out to the platform and discovered a depot loaded with dozens of well-wishers. The ticket collector was already closing the door to one of the two passenger cars while a police officer retrieved the wooden step-stool.

  Eddie’s heart sank as he watched the police officer nudge the group of people away from the train. Without a ticket or a machine gun, Eddie couldn’t fathom a way to save Brooksie. The train whistled and then started to inch forward while several people waved from the windows. Eddie turned to the train station and then back to the police officer. Everything he had hoped for was being destroyed forever. That was when he screamed.

  “Officer, there’s a woman getting attacked in the parking lot!” Eddie shouted, “Hurry, he has a gun!”

  The police officer reached for his gun and then paused as he looked at Eddie. A woman beside him cried out in fear, causing the officer to consider his duty. He drew his weapon and ran for the door while everyone looked on in horror.

  “Hurry!” Eddie said, holding the door open for him.

  He released the door and then ran for the passenger car that was now creeping faster toward California. Just before he ran out of platform beneath him, he lunged for the miniature doorway and held tightly to the handrail. The tall buildings of downtown Silver Falls started to slip away faster while he opened the door to the rear passenger car.

  * * * *

  She glanced down at the gun and wondered if she could somehow get a message to the engineer. Lowell gripped the gun in his lap a little tighter as he followed her gaze.

  “Yes, sweetheart,” Lowell whispered, “As much as I wouldn’t want to, I’d use it.”

  She looked back down at the floor in front of her. Everything was falling apart before her eyes. She was losing everything she had gained over these last few weeks. Her independence would be gone before Independence Day. Edward was out of her life now. It hurt to imagine his reaction when he awoke and realized what had happened.

  I’m so sorry, Edward. If only I would have known, I would have kept my distance. No one would have been hurt. But if it would make you feel any better, I think I would have rather died in Silver Falls than to return to Hollywood with Lowell Barnes.

  An angry huff startled Brooksie from a couple rows in front of her. An elderly woman, whom Brooksie had already named “Big Hat Lady,” was currently putting her adult son in his place. Those angry whispers could be heard clearly throughout the train car. Lowell snickered as he nodded toward the gigantic bobbing hat in front of them.

  “There’s a woman who doesn’t know her place,” he whispered, “Her son must be thirty or forty years old and look at the way she reprimands him.”

  “She’s reprimanding him for running out on his family. Are you deaf or just choosing to ignore what she’s so angry about?” Brooksie asked.

  “The whole train doesn’t need to know all this,” he whispered, “She’s embarrassing the man and I commend his restraint. By now, I would have certainly slapped the old hag.”

  “That’s his mother and he probably realizes the truth to her words. She just called him a selfish slob because she heard he had been cheating on his spouse,” she replied tersely, “Perhaps she’s the one who should be doing the slapping.”

  Lowell snickered again.

  “She hasn’t given him a moment to speak. Maybe he wasn’t getting what he needed at home, so he searched elsewhere. It’s perfectly understandable that he-”

  In a flash of anger, Brooksie sprung from her seat. Her attempt to get away from the imbecile was immediately thwarted by Lowell’s hand on her wrist. She tugged, but instead found herself being yanked closer to the man.

  “Sit down!” he growled through clenched teeth, “Once you create a scene, I’ll have nothing at all to lose.”

  She glared at the front of the train car, struggling to keep her other fist from lashing out. She didn’t need to look down to know that he was pressing the gun into her hip.

  “I don’t want to,” he whispered, “I want what we had in Hollywood, but if I can’t have that, well…”

  He left the rest of his sentence unspoken. She finally sat down and turned to the source of her anger.

  “How can you think I’m so stupid, Lowell? Don’t you even realize what we had? Do you honestly think I had no idea what was going on in other trailers? Is that what you want? You want what you had – not we,” she said, enjoying the realization that played across his features, “Because you can go right back to Hollywood and have all that without me. Why’d you have to come back and bring me into it?”

  The expression of fear mixed with shock in his eyes couldn’t be masked as she held his stare.

  “Well?” she prodded.

  “I think everyone has experienced their share of mistakes in life. Whatever mistakes I’ve made… well, I obviously know what it is I truly want,” he whispered with a slight hint of sorrow in his voice, “I came all the way-”

  “It’s too late, Lowell. It’s much too late,” she spat, “And don’t think I’m too naïve to realize why you truly came back for me. I know how much I’m worth to you. Without me, you’re broke.”

  She snatched her wrist from his grasp and returned her attention to Big Hat Lady.

  “Listen, I’ve…”

  “I don’t want to hear another word, Lowell,” she interrupted, “If you don’t want me to make a scene, then you’d better just shut your mouth and keep it shut.”

  He sighed and then turned his attention to the window beside him. She shook her head as the tears began to well up. There was only one voice she wanted to hear right now and it definitely wasn’t her agent.

  The door to the other passenger car opened behind her. With luck, she thought, maybe it would be a security officer. And maybe he would see the gun. Maybe he would ask her if she was alright.

  The stranger nudged her – no, he squeezed her on the arm and then walked past.

  Startled, she looked up to discover Edward. Her heart fluttered. He was ignoring her as he sat in the row across the aisle and two rows up from her. But since he squeezed her arm, he must want her to know that he saw her. In that moment, she discovered a true hero. No matter what would happen – no matter the outcome, he was a hero.

  Edward turned to Big Hat Lady across from him and smiled. She barely acknowledged him before returning to her hushed conversation. It didn’t take Edward long to realize that there was a family quarrel happening close by. He frowned and then tried to make himself comfortable.

  Then he casually scanned the train car and caught her eye. His left eye looked a little swollen, but he didn’t seem troubled by it. He raised his eyebrows in question. She cautiously peered into the seat beside her and realized that Lowell was looking out the window.

  Brooksie held her hand down in the aisle way and pointed her finger and thumb into a gun shape. She cocked her thumb up and down so he wouldn’t think she was just pointing to the floor. Edward looked down and then nodded. She recognized the fear in his expression, though he was making a poor attempt to conceal it with a smile.

  He looked to the front of the train again for a moment before rising from his seat. He stretched and yawned – his first endeavor at acting. She would have to teach him a few things when they got out of here. He then turned around and looked at her. He squinted at her for a moment and then rubbed his eyes. The horrible actor, taken aback by the discovery of something exciting, sputtered as his eyes few open wide.

  “No way!” he hollered a little too loudly, “You’re that woman. What’s her name again?”

  As he walked toward her, Lowell cleared his throat. He covered
the gun with his other hand as Edward approached.

  “I saw you last year in that one movie,” he said with a giant grin on his face, “You’re… wait, don’t tell me… Patience West... No, it’s Webb, right? You’re Patience Webb! Hey everyone, this is Patience Webb!”

  People were turning in their seats and looking on in wonder. Many however didn’t look convinced, but the disruption was enough to bring on the questions.

  “No, you must be thinking of Louise Brooks,” the reprimanded adulterer said, pointing to her hair, “Patience is the one with the curly blonde hair. But she’s not Louise Brooks either.”

  “But look at her face,” one of the ladies said, “She does look a little like Patience.”

  “This is the greatest day of my life!” Edward shouted, drawing a laugh out of Brooksie, “I always wanted to meet Patience Webb!”

  He reached out for her hand and drew her up from the seat. The others still didn’t seem fully convinced.

  “It’s a wig, isn’t it?” Edward asked.

  “You caught me,” she said, feigning timidity.

  She reached up and pulled it off. Though her hair was pinned down, there could be no further doubt. People started cheering and getting out of their seats. Immediately, many of her excited fans rushed to her with their overlapping questions of Hollywood and her films.

  “Miss Webb, you’ve got to meet my wife. She would never believe me. Would you please?” Edward asked.

  She paid a quick glance at Lowell and then shook her head as she looked down at Edward’s hand.

  “Well, I really can’t right now. I-”

  “No, you don’t understand. She’s in a wheelchair and she can’t get up,” Edward said, “She’s sleeping in the back car right now, but she’d wake up for you, Miss Webb. That’s an honor, you know. She doesn’t wake up much since the accident. She…”

  “You’ve got to, Miss Webb,” Big Hat Lady inserted.

  “She adores you,” Edward added, wiping his eye as though an imaginary tear had appeared.

  If she could kiss him right now, she would. His acting was improving by the second.

  “Well, I guess if it’s just for a moment…” Brooksie said, refusing to look back at Lowell seated behind her.

  “She’s never going to believe this!” he cheered, reaching out and tapping Lowell on the shoulder, “I’ll have her back in a second, sir. Your wife is the greatest actress in the world!”

  Lowell gave a cautious and speculative nod while trying to smile. Edward took Brooksie by the hand as people continued to crowd her.

  “My wife is a huge fan,” Edward said, opening the door at the back of the car.

  They were hit with a rush of air as they now stood on a small walkway between the two passenger cars. She squeezed his hand tightly and gave him a peck on the cheek.

  “Not yet,” he hollered over the noisy wind, “You can bet that I’ll collect when we’re off the train, though.”

  He opened the door to the next car and guided her quickly inside. Together, they ran through the long passage.

  “I never realized you were such a great actor. We’ll have to work together on a movie sometime,” she said joyfully.

  He held her hand as he led her to the side door on the far end of the car.

  “As long as you can be my leading lady,” he said, walking down the short set of stairs, “You’re going to hate me, Brooksie, but we’re going to have to jump.”

  She tried to laugh, but immediately realized that they were truly headed out the side door of the train car.

  “From a moving train?” she asked.

  “Brooksie,” he said, squeezing her hand in his, “According to my history, you will die today. And that man in there has a gun. If we don’t jump…”

  She walked down two of the stairs and looked out the small window on the door.

  “But…” she started to say, looking back toward the car she had just escaped from.

  “Do it for me, Brooksie. You have to make good on our arrangement.”

  “Arrangement?” she turned to him with confusion in her eyes.

  “You said that you’d marry me,” he stated, “You said there would be a fireworks show on July fourth.”

  She laughed and then looked back toward Lowell’s car. Just then, she caught a glimpse of him standing between the cars and peeking into the door window.

  “He’s coming!” she shouted, “I’ll do it.”

  Edward turned quickly and opened the door. He stepped out onto the tiny platform, watching the cornfields speed past. He reached back to pull her out onto the tiny platform with him. The winds buffeted them as they held onto the rail.

  “Together or one at a time?” he shouted.

  Her eyes were wide with fear as she stared into the rushing wind.

  “Together.”

  “Then let’s do it while there’s a lot of grass.” Edward shouted, “Ready? Jump!”

  They leapt together and landed hard on the thick grass before tumbling and sliding into the nearby ditch.

  * * * *

  Eddie finally stopped tumbling only to notice that his arm felt ablaze. He tried to sit up, but the dizziness brought his head back to the ground.

  “Edward?”

  It was Brooksie and she was still alive somewhere close by.

  “Brooksie, are you alright?” he asked, attempting to sit up again.

  “My cream-colored skirt is now very green,” she said with a chuckle, “I must have slid on my bum for a mile!”

  His equilibrium had finally returned and he could now see the train continuing on in the distance. The car they had jumped from was probably more than a half-mile away by now. In spite of such a distance, he could still make out the figure of a man leaping from the train. Another figure - quite possibly in a dress - followed directly behind.

  “He jumped, Brooksie,” Eddie said, “He’s coming for us.”

  He turned to her and watched as she rose from the tall grass a few feet away. She seemed perfectly fine as she stood up and looked toward the train in the distance.

  “You are one tough woman,” Eddie said, rising from the ground.

  The burning sensation in his arm had disappeared, leaving a stinging feeling. He lifted it and examined the scrapes that extended from the base of his palm to the end of his elbow. The seeping blood mixed with the bright green scrapes explained the burning sensation he had felt. Instead of sliding safely on his bum as Brooksie had done, he had somehow chosen to use his forearm as a brake.

  “You’re bleeding,” she said.

  “It’s just a big rug burn,” he said, turning to the figures a half-mile away, “We need to get out of here.”

  He rushed to the low fence at the edge of the cornfield and then rushed over to it. He held out a hand to assist Brooksie over the fence. She took his hand and then paused for a moment.

  “We’re off the train now, Edward,” she said, inching closer.

  He reached up and touched the side of her face. Then he quickly brought his lips to hers and kissed her hard because he thought he had surely lost her. Then he kissed her a second time, a little more gently to express his joy at having her back. Then, before she could climb the fence, he kissed her again. This kiss was a fearful kiss intended to hold him over just in case something should…

  “No,” she said, somehow reading the meaning in that last kiss, “We’ve come this far and we’re going to defy whatever magical object you used back there.”

  “Yes… yes, we are. Let’s get moving,” he said.

  They climbed the fence then dashed through the cornfields, into the bean field, beyond the cow pasture, and into the dense forest beyond.

  * * * *

  They located a road at the edge of the forest that neither of them recognized. Rather than stand out in the open where they could be discovered, they returned to the forest and used it for cover while they followed the road. They agreed that being seen would only cause people to question their tattered appeara
nce.

  “How much money do you have left?” he asked, pushing a thorny branch out of their way.

  She reached into her shirt and felt for the money. It was still there.

  “More than a hundred still,” she said, walking on top of the giant fallen tree, “What are you thinking?”

  “Sadly, I don’t know. I just wanted to know what options we had,” he replied, “I’ve got no money at all anymore.”

  She reached into her shirt and pulled out the small bundle of money. Then she took a twenty and stuffed it back into her shirt before handing him the rest.

  “If we get split up again, you need to have bus, cab, or train fare to come rescue me,” she said, shaking the money at him, “Take it, because I’m totally depending on you to save me, Edward.”

  He smiled as he finally took the money and shoved it into his pocket.

  “So who else was on that train? I saw two people jump and the other looked like a woman in a dress of some sort,” he said.

  She shook her head as she leapt over the little creek. A vehicle could be heard passing by on the nearby road.

  “Lowell was the only one I knew about. Ben left right after he delivered me into Lowell’s hands,” she said.

  “I still can’t believe he would do that to his own sister.”

  “Lowell must have tricked him somehow. Ben really isn’t that bad of a person,” she said, “I’d be willing to bet that he not only paid Ben a large sum of money, but he probably told him that you kidnapped me or brainwashed me.”