CHAPTER 12 - LOST KINGDOM
Carson locked the door to his apartment, and walked to the waiting cab. "Train station," he barked as he lifted the heavy suitcases into the seat beside him. The driver left him alone during the long ride to the station. That was fine with Carson. He was busy planning his departure.
After the two security officers had locked down his office, they cautioned him that it would be in his best interest not to leave town. An investigation was in progress, and it wouldn't help his case if his actions were questionable.
Well it wouldn't help his case to stay around and get arrested either, he thought. Fortunately he had a backup plan for this kind of situation. He had been through this drill before.
He removed his driver's license from his wallet. Then pulling a leather pouch out of his inside jacket pocket he opened it to reveal two rows of licenses and credit cards. Each license had his picture on it with a different name. There was a credit card with a name that matched each license.
He sorted through them and decided on one with the name William W. Pointe. Taking out the matching credit card, he put them both into his wallet.
He patted his coat pocket where Worlds Within was safely stored. This wasn't the first time he had changed identities and towns, but this was the first time he had an escape route to another world. Soon he would be starting a new life, and he wasn't going to go empty handed. With the credit card he would pick up some necessities. He could live life there like a king. He was made for greater things than paltry school administration. Now that he considered it, why stop at governor of a small village? He might even become king of that whole country. But he had to plan carefully. First a trip to a large city where he wasn't known so he could make all the preparations. This time things would be different.
As they pulled up to the train station, a brown, mud spattered jeep passed them and turned into the parking lot. Carson gave the driver his new credit card, adding a generous tip.
"Oh, thank you, Mr. Pointe!" the driver said. With a big grin, he hurried around to help unload the bags. Carson put the credit card into his jacket pocket, picked up the bags, and strode into the terminal.
The cab driver started to pull out into traffic, but slammed on the brakes to avoid a pedestrian. A slim woman with long hair flashed an apologetic smile at him. She hurried in front of the car and entered the terminal.
Carson was purchasing a ticket at the counter. He frowned as he flipped through his wallet looking for the credit card. Then he remembered he had put it into his jacket pocket. He pulled out Worlds Within and laid it on the counter. Reaching into the pocket again he found the credit card, and handed it to the clerk.
A soft voice behind him said, "Mr. Carson?" Startled, he turned around and saw Nitika. His mind raced as he tried to think how to get rid of her without the clerk taking notice.
"No need to be formal. Call me Will."
"Will then," she said. "Funny we should we meet here. Planning a trip?"
"Just a short one. I'm meeting a friend of mine, and we're going to a special soccer game this evening."
She glanced at the two bags. "Traveling light?"
The clerk handed him a ticket and said, "Here you are Mr. Pointe."
Carson snatched the ticket. "Sorry to rush off, but I don't want to miss that game." He grabbed his bags and hurried off.
Nitika smiled at the clerk, and picked up the book. "My friend seems to have forgotten this. I'll just return it to the owner."
"Thanks miss," the clerk said.
She turned and walked out.
As the train pulled away from the station, Carson placed his bags into the storage area. Feeling shaken, he collapsed into a nearby seat. Hopefully that would be the last he'd see of anyone from that town. Smiling confidently, he patted his jacket. Startled he sat up and thrust his hand into the empty pocket. The color drained from his face. No book. No book! In a flash he remembered placing it on the ticket counter. The train rushed on relentlessly, carrying him further and further away from his dream.
The brown, mud spattered jeep headed back to town. On the passenger seat next to Nitika lay a small leather bound book. A smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. Off in the distant the mournful wail of a train whistle could be heard faintly over the noise of the traffic.
Worlds Within Page 13
