Wishing: Chapter Six

I blinked a few times, rubbing my eyes. Glancing out the window, I saw a brightly lit train station. At first I was confused, and then I realized where we were.

Megan was sitting across from me, her head on the window and her eyes closed.

I kicked Megan’s shin to wake her up. “Hey,” I mumbled, reaching over and lightly shaking her arm. “We’re here.”

Megan sat up, looking around. The train was pretty quiet, but some people were already awake and moving around, trying to find their bags. I knew within the next few minutes a voice would come over the speaker to tell everyone that we had arrived in Sylvania, Ohio.

“What…what time is it?” Megan asked, yawning.

I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket. 23 missed calls. No surprise there. I felt grateful that I had silenced my cell before getting on the train. “It’s about 9:30.”

Megan yawned again. “When are we getting off this stupid train? I’m slightly claustrophobic.”

“In a few minutes. Just be patient.”

And sure enough, the conductor came over the intercom and announced that we had arrived. The passengers all stood up and started heading for the doors of the train. Not that there were very many passengers at all. Most of them looked to be in their early forties, all either business people or shady-looking men.

As I stood up and headed towards the door, I started running through the things that I had learned about Megan. Normally she’s in a good mood, and a pretty bubbly person. But when she’s scared or tired… she can be serious.

Once we were in the open, I yawned and stretched my arms. Other than the people that had just gotten off the train, the station was deserted.

“Hey, why is this place so empty?” Megan asked, coming to a stop right next to me.

I shrugged. “I’m guessing because Sylvania isn’t really a place a lot of people visit. It’s actually a very small town. Like a suburb. Most people would go to Toledo, which isn’t very far from here.”

Megan snorted. “And how do you know so much about Ohio?”

I shot her a glare before walking ahead again. “Because,” I called over my shoulder. And then I realized I didn’t really have a real reason for why I knew so much. I didn’t even know how I knew so much! “I just do.”
By the time I got outside, the reality of this situation finally hit me. I had absolutely no clue where we were. Well, I knew we were in Sylvania, Ohio. But I had never been here before and I hadn’t the slightest idea as to where we were supposed to be going.

“Hey!” Megan exclaimed, causing me to look at her.

“Hmm?”

“C said to meet him at the motel on Tuesday morning. It’s Sunday! Storm, we only have nine days before we have to get back home. What are we going to do here for two whole days?”

“Okay, first of all, how do you know C is a ‘him’?”

Megan bit her lip. “I don’t, but I have instincts.”

I decided to shrug that off for now. It didn’t matter, we’d find out who C is eventually. “Okay, I agree with you that having to stay here for two days would be a problem. So I think our first order of business would be going to find the SunnySide motel, getting a room, and waiting there in case we have the chance to see C before Tuesday morning.”

“But…how will we know who C is when we see him?”

“Instinct.”

* * *

We didn't wait around at the motel for long. We checked in (using my father's credit card) and got a room on the second (AKA the top) floor.

After wandering around the relatively small motel for half an hour, we realized it was pretty hopeless. There were barely any people outside of their rooms, and all of them looked... a little bit on the poor side. Well, we were in a slightly run-down motel, after all.

Megan suggested that we check out the mall. C seemed to be a pretty...classy person. No way would he/she hang around this sort of motel all day. And Sylvania wasn't a very big place to begin with.

So there we were, at two o'clock in the afternoon, taking yet another lap around the inside of the mall that we been wandering around for hours.

Every time Megan saw a store she wanted to go in to, she had looked at me with pleading eyes. Normally I wouldn't give in to that kind of thing. But after she started whining, I had allowed her to shop around just to shut her up.

"Stoooooorm," Megan whined yet again, dragging out my name in an annoying manner. I glanced at her.

"What?"

"I'm hungry, let's check out the food court!"

I wanted to hit my head against a wall.

"No," I said finally, and continued walking.

"Why nooooot?"

I sighed.

"Storm, come on!"

"Shut. Up."

"We need to eeeeat!"

I whirled around to face her. Suddenly her bright eyes looked slightly afraid.

"We're not here to eat, and we're not here to shop!" I yelled. She leaned backwards, causing me to look a lot taller than her. "Why did I ever agree to bring you!"

We were attracting attention now. I didn't care.

"S-storm, I'm sorry-"

"I don't care if you're sorry! This is actually important! This is serious! Have you ever taken anything serious before, Megan?"

"I-I-"

I sighed, stomping off without waiting for an answer.

* * *

I don't know how, but I ended up in the food court (which was only a few steps away from where I had yelled at Megan). As soon as I turned the corner, I felt hands grip my arms.

I almost yelled out in alarm, but I held it back, looking up at who had stopped me.

It was a red-haired boy who towered over me in height, so I figured he was probably a few years older. Yet, he had a young-looking face, almost... innocent. His brown eyes stared at me with curiosity.

"Let go of me," I hissed under my breath, though I knew he was no threat.

"Are you alright?" His voice...was mesmerizing. After hearing it once, I wanted to hear it again.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Another cold hiss.

"I sort of saw that fight with your friend back there, and-"

"She's not my friend!"

He paused. "Do you..um...wanna talk about it?"

I almost told him to mind his own business and leave me alone. But something about him...I automatically trusted. "Let's sit down," I said, nodding to a nearby table.

"I'm Gordon," the red-head said as we were both sitting down.

"Storm," I muttered.

"That's...different."

"Problem?"

He grinned. "I like different."

I rolled my eyes. "If you start flirting with me, I swear..." I let the threat hang in the air.

"So, what happened back there?"

"Unfortunately, I'm stuck with a traveling companion who's not...the most mature person in the world." I glanced over my shoulder, as if Megan might be standing there.

"What do you mean, 'traveling companion?'"

I eyed Gordon suspiciously. Like I said, there was something about him that I trusted. But how far could that trust go? Could I really tell him our reasons for being here in Sylvania? "...Can you keep a secret?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

I didn't hesitate to jump right into the story. I started from my father's murder, explaining how I had just met Megan, the mysterious letter (and its method of delivery), ditching the visitation, up to mine and Megan's fight. Gordon just nodded through the whole thing, never interrupting.

When I was finished, he cleared his throat. "So basically... you're going after a killer who's working for an Italian government company, who's against some American government company that your father may or may not have been part of?"

I blinked in surprise. "Who said it was a government company?"

"Who said it wasn't?"

I considered that. "Well, maybe. But other than that, yeah, pretty much. We're staying at the motel right now, and we'll be there until Tuesday, when we meet C."

"Are you two girls seriously planning to do this whole...mission alone? No protection? Do you even have a weapon or anything?"

I laughed. "Yeah, I brought a Swiss Army knife on the train with me."

He rolled his eyes. "If you're really serious about this... I'm coming with you."

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Prologue -----> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1730006-Wishing-Prologue
Chapter One ------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1730060-Wishing-Chapter-One
Chapter Two -------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1739667-Wishing-Chapter-Two
Chapter Three -------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1751451-Wishing-Chapter-Three
Chapter Four -------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1753332-Wishing-Chapter-Four
Chapter Five -------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1760789-Wishing-Chapter-Five
Chapter Six -------> You're here.