“Mr. Wood?” Benji asked.
“Yes? Who are you?” he asked.
“I’m Benji. I’m here to see Rachel!” he said, smiling.
“Rachel?” her dad questioned. “Your timing is not good young man. I’m afraid you will have to come back another time.”
“But I came all the way to see her,” Benji said. “I can’t leave until I do.”
“I said, you can’t see her now!” he yelled.
“Sir, I have to see her. I love your daughter and I need to tell her that face to face,” Benji said.
“Who are you anyway? And how do you know my daughter?” he asked.
“I met her in Bedford. Don’t you remember?” Benji said.
He watched as the expression changed on her father’s face and then he turned and scowled at him.
“BENJI? The BENJI?” he shrieked.
“Um..I’m not sure exactly what you mean by that, but yes, I am Benji. I don’t know if I am the Benji.”
“Shut up! I don’t want to hear another peep out of you. This is all your fault!” he said.
“My fault?” Benji questioned. “What are you talking about?”
“Everything that has happened to my little girl is because of you!” he said.
“I’m sorry, maybe you’re thinking of a different person,” Benji retorted.
“No! I am not thinking of anyone else but you!” he said.
“Does the man have anything to do with the crime, Mr. Wood?” a police officer asked.
Benji looked at the policeman, who was reaching back towards his handcuffs, waiting for him to respond. He looked back at Mr. Wood who was turning red with anger.
“No,” he said. “He does not have anything to do with this crime.”
Benji took a deep breath and knew that even though he was saved, there was a big problem going on here.
“What happened?” Benji asked the police officer.
“It’s none of your business!” Mr. Wood said.
“Does it have to do with Rachel?” Benji asked.
“Maybe he can help us find her?” the police officer said. “We can use him.”
“NO! We will NOT be using this buffoon to locate my daughter,” Mr. Wood said angrily.
“I can help! Please let me!” Benji said.
“We are looking for Rachel. She just committed the most heinous crime this town has ever seen. Two people are dead because of her,” the policeman said.
“WHAT?” Benji said. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He knew there must be a reason for this and if he tuned into her and channeled her energy he’d be able to find out what really happened.
“No! I don’t want him to help. Please leave now. You are not welcome on my property any longer,” Mr. Wood said, turning his back to Benji.
“Ok, if you insist,” Benji said. “I’ll be off now!”
Benji didn’t linger around any longer. He knew what had happened and he knew where he could find Rachel. He was so deeply connected to her that he knew where she was headed and that he didn’t have much time to catch her before she boarded the train to DC. He knew he had to get to the station fast if he had any chance of catching her and making her run away with him.
Benji quickly ran out of sight of everyone and then took off into the air. He only had a few minutes until her train would pull out of the station and she would be gone again.
As he arrived at the station he ran up and down the different platforms looking for her.
Then, he heard the announcement.
Final call for train 192 headed towards Washington DC leaving the station now.
He looked across the platform and saw a train sitting there, about to take off. He quickly ran up the steps and down the other set of steps that led him to the correct platform.
He searched the windows of the train as it began to pull away, and then, for a second, he caught a glimpse of Rachel, a hood pulled over her head, looking down into her lap. He was too late.
“Rachel!” he screamed.
She looked up, as if maybe she had heard him, and for a moment, her eyes met his. She stared at him through the glass with a puzzled look, as if trying to remember a distant stranger. Her eyes were filled with sadness and confusion. She looked so helpless, so lost. It looked as if she were trying to remember him. But try as she did, she did not. Her face never transformed into recognition.
As he watched the train pull away, as he watched Rachel disappear from view, he felt as if his whole world were being taken out from beneath him. The train gained speed, faster and faster, entering the tunnel too fast for him to reach it in time. As it disappeared into the tunnel he felt it had taken his heart with him.
“RACHEL!” he screamed again.
But his screams merely echoed in the reverberating silence, as her train disappeared into blackness.