Cora Flash and the Diamond of Madagascar (A Cora Flash Children's Mystery, Book 1) (2 page)

"
That
'
s funny,
"
I
said.
"
I can see you!
"
I could not help but laugh as
she
looked from
side
-
to
-
side, squinting to catch a glimpse of
me
through the train windows.

"
Oh,
"
Mom
said in exhaust
ion
.
"
I can
'
t see you at all. How are you? Did you get a seat? Did you talk to the attendant?
"

"
Yes,
"
I
replied.
"
I
'
m fine. I got a seat, and Willy
—
that
'
s the attendant
—
is a very nice guy. He said he would help me with whatever I need.
"

"
Oh
,
good
.
I was going to jump on the train myself, but I was scared it would leave with me on it! And with Ethan at Mrs. Trumble
'
s house, I didn
'
t want to take the chance.
"

Ethan,
my
four-year-old
brother, was not allowed to come on the trip as
Mom
didn
'
t think it would be right for him to travel so far without her. He was staying with
his frequent babysitter, our
next-door neighbour
,
Mrs. Trumble, while
my
mother saw
me
off.

Just as the train whistle
d loudly
and the engine began to rev up, a funny little man clutching a silver briefcase to his chest push
ed
through the crowd.

"
Oh!
"
he cried.
"
Excuse me! Excuse me, please! I must get on that train!
"

He
shoved
his way to the steps of the train just as it was starting to pull away from the station.

"
You made it,
"
said Willy as the man climbed on board.
"
Just
in
time.
"

"
Yes,
"
he
snipped in a sarcastic tone
.
"
I can see that.
"

The man, still clutching his briefcase, made his way down the aisle. He was quite short, maybe even only one foot taller than
me
, and
was wearing a long grey wool coat with a red scarf. He had a strange round hat on, a kind
I
had never seen before. His tiny, thin moustache was barely visible; it appeared as though it might slip right off his face.

"
Excuse me,
"
he said to Willy.
"
I have a private compartment. Where are those?
"

"
Right you are, Mr. Sloane,
"
said Willy, checking Mr. Sloane
'
s ticket.
"
They
’
re in the next car. Just keep walking through that door and you
'
ll see the compartments. They
'
re all numbered, just check your ticket.
"

"
Thank you,
"
Mr. Sloane called as he whisked through the door to the other car.

"
Cora? Cora, are you still there?
"

With the commotion caused by Mr. Sloane,
I
had almost forgotten
I
was still on the phone with
my
mother.
"
Oh, Mom! I
'
m sorry. I forgot you were there!
"

I
turned to
gaze
out the window, barely able to see her as the train sped out of the station.

"
I
'
m going to leave
;
I have to pick up Ethan
, b
ut listen,
"
she
continued
,
"
b
e
careful! You know how much I worry about you. Keep your phone with you at all times and stay close to the attendant. Call as soon as you get to
Topaz Mountain
.
"

"
I will, don
'
t worry,
"
I
responded
,
knowing full well
that she would worry
no matter what I said
.

"
Okay, Cora, have a safe trip. I love you.
"

"
I love you
,
too, Mom. Bye!
"

I
hung up and placed
the phone
in
the carrying case
I
had been given for the trip.
I
hung the case around
my
neck and
leaned
back in
my seat
, looking out the window as the train moved faster and faster.

"
You know
,
my little dog seems quite taken with you,
"
said a woman.

"
Pardon me?
"
I asked, slightly startled
.

"
My dog
,
Calvin. He seems to like you.
"

The voice came from an older lady, sitting across the aisle. She had a kind face, like the
women
I
would see at the bake sale after church. In her lap was a tiny dog.

"
Oh, I didn
'
t see him.
"

The lady laughed.
"
Yes, he
'
s quite discreet, isn
'
t he? He has been looking at you for a while. You must be a dog person.
"

"
Well, I suppose so. We don
'
t have one
yet, but I
'
m trying to convince my
m
om
to let us
.
"

"
Calvin is almost six years old, he
'
s been with me since he was just a puppy. I don
'
t go anywhere with
out
him, even the train. What
'
s your name?
"

"
Cora. Cora Flash.
"

"
I
'
m very pleased to meet you
,
Cora
.
I
'
m Josephine Bronwyn.
"

"
Very nice to meet you, Mrs. Bronwyn. What kind of dog is Calvin?
"

"
He
'
s a Norfolk Terrier,
"
answered Mrs. Bronwyn.

"
Well Calvin is very handsome
.
Do you live in
Topaz Mountain
?
"

"
No, I
'
m visiting my sister, Margaret. She moved out to the mountains nearly forty years ago when she met her husband. He has passed on, but she loves it so much there that she decided to stay. We take turns visiting each other, and now it
'
s my turn. And you? Are you visiting family?
"

"
Yes,
"
I
said.
"
My
Uncle
André lives there. He and my mother grew up there, but she moved away a long time ago. I
'
m going to visit him for a week.
"

"
Are you by your
self?
"

"
Yes, I am. It
'
s my first time traveling
alone.
"

"
Well,
"
said Mrs. Bronwyn
,
"
I
'
m sure you
'
ll be fine. I
'
m sitting right here, so don
'
t hesitate to ask
,
should you need anything.
"