Take Back the Light

Chapter 14

Present Time

"Hold down the fort for another minute until Twist and I reach the front car," Eli told Alana. "We'll signal you when the coast is clear and you can head up to us before we disconnect the passenger and kitchen cars."

"Sounds good," Alana said, grabbing a pan of breadsticks from the countertop next to her failed drink. "See you in a few."

She took the tray and walked out into the passenger train car while Eli and Twist hurriedly unpacked duffel bags next to the bar and rapidly changed into Blakk Industries uniforms.

Alana painted a smile on her face, holding the tray in one hand and keeping the other behind her back as she walked around, offering snacks to the snooty passengers of the train. She kept the act up as she walked the entire length of the car, until the last row of seats.

It was a group of three. An older couple sat with their backs to Alana. A mother, a father.

And their daughter.

Alana almost fell flat on her face when she locked eyes with Sam Gray.

She sat with her legs crossed, boredly scrolling through a holotablet. Her curly brown hair was pulled back into a tight, neat bun, and she wore a purple dress shirt and black skirt. Sam could have passed for the most professional businesswoman in the caverns if not for the look of disdain on her face.

The wig Alana wore was still the same caramel color as her real hair, just minus the streaks of cyan. It also hid her bangs and was more wavy, framing her face much differently. But Sam looked into her bright blue eyes and fumbled with the holotablet she held, almost sending it clattering to the floor.

"Breadsticks for any of you?" Alana asked sweetly, avoiding Sam's gaze. Mr. and Mrs. Gray both shook their heads, not looking up from their holotablets. Before Sam could respond in any way, Alana nodded and turned away, hurrying back down the train car.

She almost jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder, but relaxed when she spun around and found herself not looking down the barrel of a blaster, but at Sam Gray's dark eyes.

"Could you point me in the direction of the restroom?" Sam asked, her voice dripping with sweetness.

"Of course. Right this way, ma'am," Alana said as she lowered the tray into both hands, hoping the passengers around her didn't notice how her hand tightened around the edges of the tray until her knuckles turned white.

Alana led Sam into the kitchenette car, and the moment the door swung shut, Sam grabbed Alana's shoulders and turned her so they were facing each other.

"What are you doing here?" Sam hissed. "This is a civilian passenger train!"

"It won't be for long. We're-"

"No, wait, stop," Sam said, cutting Alana off and shaking her head as she lowered her arms. "Don't tell me. Plausible deniability."

Alana frowned. "What? Has Blakk talked to you?"

"Yeah," Sam said, and as she wrung her hands, Alana peered at her. She could see faint bags under Sam's dark eyes, barely poking through a layer of makeup. She looked tired and stressed, pushed to her limits.

"Is everything okay?" Alana asked.

"Not really," Sam admitted with a nervous laugh. "It's hard to balance out business school, working finances, secret med school, and trying to throw Blakk off my trail."

"Alana?" Eli cut in through Alana's earpiece. "We've secured the engine, get to the front of the train and we'll lose the passenger and kitchen cars."