THE CONSTRUCT: In The End

PART TWO

'Oh!' he says once he has gathered himself. 'Please sit, it would be nice to have some company.'

She does sit. A waiter wastes little time in approaching her. She knows what she wants so she places her order. Waiter is gracious and two apparent strangers are left at a table set for two. He has his food already though hasn't touched much of it with being so lost by distraction, which has taken nim once more. He is fascinated by the scenery that is whisking by.

'Company, huh? A carriage full of people and you seem to have alone down to a fine art ...'

'Huh?' he responds as if he is only discovering that he has company. 'Oh, forgive me ... I do apologise. Away with the faeries in my own little world here, so I am.'

'So it would seem' she says with a smile which oddly, in a way, suggests that she knows something that he is unaware of. 'What has you here, travelling on a luxury train when you could just as easily daydream at home?'

'Em, it's eh ...' he thinks for a second or two, and it is a struggle at that. 'I don't ... actually ... I ...'

'...Can't quite remember ...?'

'Exactly that, yeah. In fact, I'm finding it quite the struggle to remember anything at all.'

'Got a bit of amnesia, have we?'

'Don't know about you, but in my case, it seems as if I do. It's like it is all right there on the tip of my tongue but I can't quite get it out. Most odd.'

'I wouldn't worry about it, it'll all come back to you, I'm sure.'

Nigel didn't worry. A calmness existed here in this moment in the company of a young lady with whom he knew next to nothing about. That's the thing though, does he know next to nothing about her, or is there a possibility he does know her but just can't remember? Conversation would surely be different if she knew him. At that, however, a certain air of familiarity is there. Perhaps the reason for such a feeling may also reveal itself over time.

It's the following morning when Nigel exits his compartment that he somewhat bears witness to a disturbance a couple cabin doors down. A stranger exits, not before Nigel has passed by, a man who oddly appears out of place here, as if he belongs to a time far off from this one, not a time past but possibly yet to come.

This fellow, upon his exit, moves away down the other end of the corridor, surely taking notice of Nigel's presence but not acting upon it, and Nigel can't help but go investigate. Behaviour of this fellow was such as if he were hiding something, placing an item into some sort of carrier baggage he has. The compartment that stranger vacated is left open, barely ajar, was a mess. Was it purposely left be so that Nigel could go and see?

It is a mess, a horrid scene, and there on the floor was a bloody mess of a person, dead, clear as day, before a pulse could be taken, not that there is or was one in this moment. The person ...? This person is none other than the lady Nigel had dined with the evening prior. This is disastrous and most unexpected.

And what now, does Nigel report this? And to who? In doing this would he unintentionally incriminate himself? He'll be the only one of note ... besides the stranger he has seen, and this other person is only a given on his own word.

Nigel just can't leave it be, this must be reported. Sure, someone will find this lady, especially if the door to her cabin is unlocked, or damaged as it so happens to be, ... but there is a murderer on this train and in this moment, Nigel is the only other person aware of that fact.

So, off he goes, in search of an official of some capacity or other and it is a conductor that he finds. He tells of all he witnessed and the conductor asks Nigel to show him, and of course, he intends to do just that. And a first contradiction is soon reached. The cabin door had been damaged in the waylay that first grabbed Nigel's attention. Of this, he is sure. Though now when Nigel has returned with a conductor, the door is locked and apparently undamaged.

The conductor looks at Nigel for a second or two with a questioning look suggesting that some sort of inappropriate joke is being played here. But this is no joke, and a saving grace is that Nigel does look convincingly confused leading an alternate question to be asked by the conductor.

'Are you sure you have the right compartment sir?'

'I am, my cabin is a couple doors down, so I am fully aware that this is where I witnessed ...'

Even though he had already reported a death, Nigel is finding it difficult to repeat such a thing in this moment. Seeing a most odd struggle Nigel apparently is having with himself, the conductor knocks upon the door he stands before just to see what may come of it and as it would happen, this knock is answered.

A lady with a towel answers the door, attending to her hair which is clearly wet. And wouldn't you know it, she is the very same lady Nigel had dined with the evening prior, the very same lady he had witnessed lying dead on the floor just beyond the now opened door.

'Is everything alright miss?' the conductor asks.

'It is, for what reason might it not be?' she responds as if she were blissfully unaware of any wrongdoing having occurred.

Nigel is mystified at a complete and utter loss for all of what is happening. Is he going crazy? Memory issues may be a little deeper than having lost himself or having emersed himself in the whole experience of which is being offered by the train journey. There is nothing more for the conductor to do here so he offers a second look Nigel's way, this look suggesting that Nigel might need to seek professional help for his own wellbeing. Then it's back to business for that conductor ... leaving Nigel standing, stuck in his own confusion.

This is not the end of this oddity of a situation as the lady from this particular cabin doesn't retreat back into it. Instead, she continues to towel dry her hair, leaving silence to continue only until the conductor is far away enough so she can speak without being overheard, not that what she will say in this moment will be anything worthy of being secretive.

'We need to talk' she simply says, directing her words at he who is becoming ever increasingly confused.

'Alright ...' he says, scratching his head with two fingers from his right hand.

'Meet me in the dining cart in twenty minutes.'

And she shuts her cabin door before anything else can be said, leaving Nigel standing there pondering all that he experienced since exiting his own cabin.