𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐅𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃─𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬

𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙮 𝙤𝙣𝙚.

─☼☼☼─

𝘼 𝙏𝙍𝘼𝙄𝙉 𝙃𝙊𝙍𝙉 blew somewhere in the distance, a defeated sigh tumbling from Charlotte's lips as she glanced around the train yard, "There's like a thousand trains here."

Kiara nodded, looking over at her sister from where the stood atop one of the train cars. "This is going to be impossible."

"Well," Pope reasoned. "We know it's car 750X on the track to Raleigh."

"Yeah, now we just gotta find it." JJ agreed. 

"News flash." Kiara declared. "We're not getting out of here with a giant ass cross unnoticed."

Pope shook his head, "We don't have to. We can nab it somewhere further in the country. We just have to figure out how to stop the train."

"Oh," Charlotte muttered under her breath, "I'm glad that's all."

Seconds after the words had left Pope's mouth, a mischievous smile had spread across JJ's lips. "Leave that to me."

"How you gonna do that?" Cleo wondered. 

JJ lifted his chin in a nonchalant manner. "I got an uncle up in New Bern, right? When he got tipsy, he'd just throw an old chain across the tracks, just for shits and gigs. And that old chain would stop all the trains on the track in coastal Carolina." He finished, as if reminiscing an old war story. 

"A chain?" Kiara challenged. 

"He's actually right." Pope supported. "There's a low voltage current that runs across all rail tracks. Throw a chain on it, you close that circuit. It would read as another train, crossing lights come down. Science is actually pretty sound."

"Science." JJ exclaimed. "I know my science."

Charlotte shot him a look, "You don't even know what an ion is. And besides, I thought we agreed we'd stop doing things your batty old uncles used to do?"

"I don't see you comin' up with any bright ideas, Charls." JJ fired back,  "Uncle Barty knows his stuff, all right?" 

Pope shook his head at the two of them, "Doesn't even matter. We don't have a chain."

Sarah's face flashed in realization for a moment. "No, but I bet Topper's dad has jumper cables in the truck. Would that work?"

As if on cue, a voice sounded from down below them, "Yo! What's going on? Are we doing this or what?"

All six of them turned to lay eyes on the blonde, khaki wearing Kook who was looking up at them with a look of sheer unease. Topper Thornton was less than pleased to be aided and abetting them in this act and that was clear. 

"Okay," Cleo announced, "You all wait here. Me and Pope will go look for it and signal when we find it."

"Do we actually have a plan right now?" Sarah wondered. "That's impressive."

And while it was impressive, it did little to calm the nerves coursing through Charlotte. Just because they had a plan didn't mean it would work. And even if it did work, she wasn't sure relief would be what she was feeling.