End of a Beginning (Book 4)

Chapter Ten - Breaking and Entering

The plan is extremely complicated and required skills that I've never used before. Derek seems confident that he can do all this but I've never seen him with mechanics before either and we're low on supplies as well. That's when he shows me his bag of goodies that he's been carrying the whole time. He's been taking things here and there of things that could be useful along our journey. He has all sorts of wires and nuts and bolts stuffed in from various clocks and gadgets. My mind can't wrap around any of this. "You really do know everything," I mutter to myself.

Derek glances over to me quickly and my cheeks turn red. He wasn't really supposed to hear that. "I'm rusty at the mechanics. I was trained more with memorizing." Trained. What did his father do to him?

We set down for lunch but Derek doesn't really eat. He's fully concentrated on building a timer and a jammer. I'm not familiar with the word jammer, so Derek explains, "It uses a certain frequency to block out other frequencies. We'll need it if we're heading over the border." My hands start to fidget. His plan is dangerous. I don't like any of it but it seems too late to turn back now. When we're only a couple hours away, Derek starts to set in motion the plan. "You need to be seen getting off a train," he says as we head into a town looking for loose laundry.

"What if they ask for a ticket?"

He shakes his head. "You'll only be on the train the last five minutes. They won't ask." Derek suddenly snatches a blouse on a clothesline. After stuffing it underneath his jacket, he keeps moving without ever turning around. We make through the town hastily as I see Derek pick up more items before heading out. I never thought he would be such a thief.

When we're out of town, we make a small camp before we split up for the first time in months. Derek fidgets with one of his gadgets when he goes over the plan again. "Train systems in Floriea are always on time. Each day, three cargo trains run along and four passenger trains. Two going south each day and two north. You need to get on the very last train that stops at the Lim and Sica border. Because it's the last train of the day, there should be less people on the train but you should still be careful of which car you enter from." My nerves skyrocket. There's no way this will work. And if it does...

We go on like that the rest of the meal and when I have a grasp of how everything is going to go, Derek turns to me, "Ready?"

"No," I honestly say. Even though this was my idea to come to Lim, I still don't like the risk. Derek walks up to me now and embraces me. I put my head on his shoulder and feel as much as I can. This might be the last time I see him.

"Everything will be alright," he says into my hair. We hold this position for a while until I sense his urgency. "I have to go."

I only hold him tighter. "If we get caught, I'm blaming you."

I feel him laugh underneath me. "I could say the same thing." We finally pull back and there's that damn look in his eye. "I'll see you on the other side," he says and turns. I watch him go with all our belongings because my mission would only slow me down with the extra baggage. While Derek treks to the border by himself, I have to sit here and wait for the next train in. In the meantime, I change into the blouse that Derek stole. It's a long-sleeved silk blouse that thankfully covers the majority of my skin which should hide all the scars I have on my body. Though I'm not a fan of the tan color, it'll have to do. We couldn't find any shoes to steal so I try to wipe off as much dirt as possible.

Before I even know it, the time ticks faster than it should and my watch alerts me that it's almost time. I shove my jacket and my knives in a farmer's bag, to help the ruse of my stolen identity. I'm supposed to be a farmer who is meeting with wealthy distributors in Lim which would explain wearing my best blouse to the meetings but yet still look riled enough to be a farmer looking for aid. Not the best plan, but it will do on our short time and funds.