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hugging and crying near them. The boy they were embracing had tears shimmering
in his eyes, but his posture was stiff. They faced the other set of tracks on
the opposite side of the platform.
    Demi must have seen her eyes on the other
tracks, because he said, “The train turns around here at the capitol. It will
make a circle a few miles out of town and head back to Gara Constanta.”
    She looked up at him, struggling to appear
disinterested. “I see. So, it does that in a short time?”
    He nodded. “Just a few minutes.”
    As he spoke, the train they had departed
from headed down the tracks again.
    Demi shifted the luggage to one arm and put
his hand at her waist. “I left my car in the lot.”
    “Okay.” She tensed as she felt his hand on
her waist, but tried to hide her tension. Anca bit her lip, fretting over her
plan. It had been contingent on her getting lost in a crowd, but there was no
crowd here.
    As they neared the
family with the young man, Anca stepped closer to them. She knocked against his
pile of luggage, sending it sprawling across the platform. She bit back a
twinge of remorse when one of the cases opened and spilled its contents. She
felt bad for the boy and wished she hadn’t had to do that, but what choice did
she have?
    “Oh, I’m so sorry!” Anca exclaimed, clapping
hands to her cheeks, as though hiding a blush. She turned to Demi. “We have to
help.”
    The family was muttering, and the boy’s hot
glare fixed on her. As soon as Demi made apologies in their language, their
angry expressions faded. He set down their cases and knelt to help gather their
items.
    Anca pretended to do the same, until Demi
was kneeling with his back turned. She got up from her semi-crouch and sprinted
across the platform. She could see a sheltering stand of trees in a field
across the parking lot and pumped her legs for added speed. If she could make
it to the trees, she would be able to hide until the train came back through.
    Once on the train, Demi wouldn’t be able to
get her off it. There would be train employees and security to keep her safe.
Surely, she could purchase her ticket on the train, or send one of the
employees to do so for her. Once they realized she was in danger, of course.
    Would Demi follow her? Anca knew he would,
even as she asked herself the question. He appeared to be the loyal type and
had promised her father he would bring her back with him. He wouldn’t let her
escape easily.
    She plunged into the stand of trees as she
heard the soles of his dress shoes skidding across the parking lot. Anca cursed
the twilight sky, wishing for full darkness. She moved deeper into the stand of
junipers and firs. They were old, and there was little room to maneuver between
them. Their proximity hampered her movements, but it made for numerous hiding
places.
    She came to a thick clump of bushes
sheltering a spot between two trees. Anca dropped to her knees and slithered
through the bushes. She attempted to still them behind her, to cover her
tracks.
    She huddled on the wet ground, feeling cool
mud soak into the knees of her pants. Anca struggled to control her ragged
breathing. She held her breath when she heard a twig snap near her location.
    She continued to hold her breath, straining
to hear another telltale sound from Demi. She prayed the next one would be
farther from her hiding place. Her heart raced, and her head was light. When
she couldn’t stand it anymore, Anca let out her breath in a low exhale. As she
drew in another, she heard the rustle of leaves.
    She cried out as Demi’s arm reached into the
bushes and lifted her out effortlessly. She tried to jerk free from his hold on
her arm, and his grip tightened. She bent forward and sank her teeth into the
back of his hand.
    He stiffened, but made no move to let go of
her.
    Anca bit down harder, until the sharp tang
of blood filled her mouth. She heard his breath hiss through his teeth, but it
didn’t sound like he was in pain.
    A curious