No Way To Escape | Novel

CHAPTER 34: THE UNCANNY TRIP

'You need a doc?', asked Bob as I narrated him what had happened that morning. It had been a week since then. No nightmares or unexpected dazing since then. My mind had been spinning over the woods thing. Am I becoming the victim of whatever happened with Larry? – I used to ask myself. But then the answer would come – Maybe... Maybe not. I had been bewildered but not senseless. Something convulsive had been going on in my mind and what was needed was a bit of patience and grit to get over it... and probably somewhere within me I knew I could fight it. But yeah, I also knew it very well that complacence in such kind of matters can sometime get you by the spine.

'Hmm?', Fred asked again while I was lost in my thoughts.

'Um... I guess am still not sure about it', I said. 'This mind thing. They are nothing but nightmares, right? They are not real. I can cope with it. But speaking about dazing and fainting suddenly... I suppose I should pay a visit to some doc as soon as possible'

'I completely agree with that. By the way when are you planning to do that?'

'See, nothing such has happened for a week now. I guess I can wait. I hope I have got out of it. What do you say?'

Bob nodded and then said, 'As you like... Upto you'

'You know my car's at the garage. The dent. I had been neglecting it till now. Yesterday evening I got it to the Dickory Steph, shit the name. It's the closest one I could find. Now I have to take a taxi to office. Would you like to join?'

'Taxi? Wait... The route's closed for two days now because of work. I am afraid you have to take a longer cut up to office', Bob said.

'Gosh! Are we fucked up now?!'

'I think you can catch the train to Greywell – will get you to your location in... um... half an hour or so'

'Oh really? Wow... I hadn't ever tried it. Thanks'

'We have the same destination, right?... Am also joining'

With this we strolled up to Lane 23, Jagbaton Station, a mile away, and there we boarded the train to Greywell.

'I have been here twice or thrice maybe... A good ride it is', said Bob as we got seated on our respective adjacent seats. Beside me was an old man reading newspaper while the one sitting in front of me was a teen listening to music over the pod. There were some other people too. Among them was a kid - probably nine or ten - with his mother who had some carriages to look after. The kid was reading a book.

I shifted my glance out through the glass as the train started moving out of the subway. The sky was dark with thick cloud cover and a downpour was certainly on its way. I looked at Bob for a while. He was already immersed in his mobile phone. I looked back again outside and started having a view of the distant horizon through the plains.

After a while my eyes started flickering as I was starting to doze off. In no time my eyes closed and I peacefully slipped into a slumber.

When I opened my eyes, it was dark. The train was still moving with its usual speed. We were back in the subway and the lights of the train had been switched off.

Sick! That's sick!

But then a light passed from the subway, lighting the compartment for a while. At that moment my eyes captured all other passengers sleeping. I was astonished. I looked back at my watch. The destination must still be fifteen minutes away.

It was when the train entered a platform, but it didn't seem to stop. As the train got into the platform, the whole compartment was filled with its faint yellow light. But then - the train neither seemed to slow down nor the platform seemed to end. As the train was moving fast forward, the platform was going on extending itself. I rose up in apprehension and tried to wake up Bob by juddering him. But as I touched him, his body turned to ash and blew away. I was shocked and afraid. As I looked at the other passengers, they also turned into ash and blew away in exactly the same manner. Now it was only me and the train... and not to forget... the infinite platform.