The Endless Run

Chapter three | Sleepless night

CHAPTER THREE

I sat down next to mom. It took me a few minutes to build up the courage to ask her the endless line of questions I had for her.

"Mom I never got to ask you... Something... Well a few things."

She looked up at me with a confused expression.

"And what is that dear?"

"The night of the attack... before it even happened, you seemed to know it would happen. How did you know the planes were going to attack us? How did dad know? And how did you guys know we had to get to the train? I don't understand."

Mom sighed, almost like she knew these question would come sooner or later.

"When your great grandmother was twelve years ol-"

"Mommy I'm hungry!" Kayla interrupted, as she opened her eyes.

Mom shuffled through the back pack with food and pulled out some bread and handed it to her. "Don't show anyone." Mom then whispered to her.

"You were saying..." I continued.

"I'll tell you some other time."

I rolled my eyes but, didn't bother arguing with her.

~~~~~~~~~~~

When the sun started to set and the sky got darker, everyone went to sleep except for me and the man that had carved M.G into the wooden door. He sat across from me, watching the fields zoom by, probably on look out. I watched the little stars appear in the sky, trying to make myself look as busy as I could... Which was obviously not working at all, if all I could do was stare at the sky.

"Couldn't sleep?" He asked, taking his eyes off the fields.

"Yeah." I replied. He caught me staring at the initials he had carved into the wood.

"My wife." He said, tracing the letters with his finger. "Molly was on nightshift at the hospital when... They attacked. The first thing I did was run over there... I saw the whole thing blow up. If it had not been for my best friend, I don't think I would've gotten back up and ran to the train." He muttered.

It seemed to be quite easy for people to open up to me or maybe they all just needed to talk to someone... Anyone.

"I'm really sorry." I said, lost for words.

After a while of silently sitting there I crawled to my family and laid down. I pulled my blanket over me, even though it didn't do much of a difference. The floor was too hard for me to find a comfortable position so I just laid there starring at the ceiling. The only sound I heard was the rumbling of the train, which didn't make it any easier to fall asleep.

I must have laid there for at least an hour before I decided to get something to eat. I pushed my self up and quietly searched for some bread in the back pack. My hand grabbed around the loaf of bread and I broke a piece off. Even the wood carving grocery man (that's what I called him) had drifted off to sleep. I sighed, maybe a bit too loudly because mom turned around to see where the noise had come from.

"Sienna is that you?" She whispered, still half asleep.

"Yeah, I can't sleep." I muttered.

My mom sat up and yawned. "Not very comfortable" she quietly laughed.

She fished around in the back pack and broke off a piece of bread for herself.

"What do you think Rivergate will be like?"

Mom leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

"I know a bit what it is like." She smiled, still keeping her eyes closed.

My jaw dropped open.

"You've been to Rivergate?" I exclaimed.

Hardly anyone ever left their town, not to move and not to even visit. It was very seldom to meet someone who had. Firstly you weren't aloud to just move or visit another town and secondly if you did you had to have a very good reason. People anyways didn't really want to leave their town.

"Shhh!" Mom whispered, harshly. "Not so loud, you'll wake somebody."

I waited for her to say something more.

"But no, I have not been to Rivergate but, your great grandmother was from there."

I was actually really surprised to hear that. I always thought my whole family had been from Westfield.

"When she was twelve years old, Rivergate was attacked; not the whole town but, a part. It wasn't as bad as to what has happened to Westfield. But there were five planes and people died in that attack as well. Your great grandmother; Rosie and her family which lived in that part of town and the other families there had a choice to go and stay in Westfield. They were in such a shock that the government thought they would feel better in another town, just for a while of course, as they rebuild that part of town. Some people went back after a few years but, the Gates decided to stay until that part of Rivergate was completely rebuild. Rosie married a Westfielder when she was eighteen, a few months before they were to be sent home. When the day came Rosie got permission to stay in Westfield for the rest of her life. Her parents decided they wanted to go back home though. Anyways this story passed down to your grandmother, which passed down to me and now to you."

I sat there motionless, not able to believe what I had just heard. Mom saw my blank stare and decided to fill the silence.

"Planes are hardly ever used, even more seldom than trains, so when I saw them I knew we were most likely under attack. Your grandmother had always said to get away as fast as I could if I saw planes, just to be sure."

"How have I not heard from this until now?" I asked. "Not from you or school, I had no idea this had ever happened."

"One day I would have told you, it's just that no one ever talks about it. They aren't even aloud to teach it in schools." My mom sighed before continuing. "I used to worry about it a lot and a long time ago your dad told me if something like this ever happened, we would grab what we need and get to the train right outside our town."

"Well this is a lot of news." I said, very unsure of what to say next.

"I know, just don't talk about this with anyone. I don't think many people around your age know about this."

I nodded in agreement.

"Who were the attackers?" I asked, as my mom laid back down.

"They never figured out."

After a few minutes I heard her snoring and I laid down as well. I didn't sleep for the next few hours but instead I thought about what my mom had just said. Maybe the people that attacked years before were the same that had attacked Westfield? What did they want though? Again I had question which no one could answer.

I fell asleep for a hour before I woke up. The train was still moving but, I stood up and stretched...then I froze; my eyes fixated on what I saw outside. I gasped, I couldn't believe what I was seeing... we were finally in Rivergate but, it wasn't what I had expected at all. I ran to the door, to get a better look and all I could think was.. What the hell.