Author's Note: Didn't take me so long to update this time! Thank you to all of my reviewers!! Inky, Raider, Corky, Vix, Blinks-Tiger, and Rae.
Rae: No more throwing objects at me, let alone sporks….:-P
Singah and Inky went into the apartment building and just as they thought there was a door marking where the landlord lived. Singah went up and knocked on the door, they heard footsteps coming. An old man with a long beard opened the door squinting at them. "Yes?" He asked them.
"Hello." Singah said politely. "We were looking for the room where Melissa Brooks lives. Could you tell us what number she lives at?"
"Melissa… Melissa…" The man pondered tugging gently at his white beard. He cleared his throat, "Eh-hmm, I think they live in… room thirty-two. Third floor, second to the right I suppose." The man mumbled.
"Thank you." Inky said giving an uncertain smile as the man turned around still mumbling and closed the door.
"Right then." Singah said heading towards the stairs.
~*~*~*~
Mush had led them to a pair of empty seats in one of the last train cars. They sank down in the comfortable seats and Blink gave a sigh, closing his eyes. "How long do ya think it'll take us ta get ta Philly?" He asked, about to fall asleep in his chair.
"I dunno?" Mush replied. "Faster than walkin dat's for sure!!" He grinned. "Aww c'mon Blink!! Ya can't pass out on me already, I'm not gonna stay awake all by myself the whole time." He said poking Blink.
"Go away." Blink replied, trying to turn around in his chair, and nearly falling out in the process. He opened his eyes and crawled back into his chair to see Mush trying not to laugh. "Laugh away, but I don think you'll be laughin after I cream ya at cards!" He challenged.
"Well if I didn know any bettah, I'd say that was a sorta a threat."
"Well if I didn know any bettah, I'd say that yous was getting smatah." Blink said pulling a deck of cards out of his bag.
~*~*~*~
Lashes was still on the floor when she heard a pair of steps coming up the stairs. At first she thought they were coming towards her room and held her breath, but she released it when she realized that the steps kept going. She could hear muffled voices through the door, so she stood up and walked quietly over towards the door putting her ear up against the wood.
"He said room thirty-two! It's over here, c'mon!" Said one of the voices
"Are you sure? I don't know if that man was quite right in the uh… memory." Countered the other.
"Well you never know until you try!" Came the reply of the first voice, sounding quite irritated. Lashes mouth dropped. She rushed to unlock the door and remembered that the door was not only locked from the inside, but from the outside also. "Dang it!" She breathed as she banged the door lightly, but it was loud enough for the voices outside to hear, because they paused in the middle of what one of them was saying. Noticing this, Lashes hit the door again. "Inky? Singah?? Is that you two?" She said through the door. The voices outside the door shuffled over to Lashes door.
"Lashes? Is that you?" One of the voices asked, which she recognized as Singah's voice.
Lashes gave a sigh of relief. "You can't believe how glad I am to hear you guys!"
"C'mon, open the door! We're here to break you out!" Said Inky's excited voice from the other side of the door.
Lashes grimaced. "That's not exactly gonna be so easy."
"Why not?" Their voices asked in unison.
"Can you see a keyhole on the outside?"
"Yea, why?"
"Well there isn't a way to unlock it on the inside. Believe me! I have tried, you need to have the key, and I'm betting that the only one there is my father has, because I have searched everywhere already!"
"You know what the stupidest mistake everyone makes?" Singah asked Lashes while Inky giggled. "They all put their spares in the same place."
"Huh? Whaddaya mean?" She questioned as she heard a small click and the door swung open, her mouth dropping. "Where in the world did you get that?!"
"There is always a spare." Singah said triumphantly. "And most people are stupid enough to put them all in the exact same place." She rolled her eyes.
"Yea! Under the door mat!" Inky said, still giggling.
"Stop gaping, it don't become you." Singah said with a grin.
Lashes closed her mouth. "Let's get out of here!" She steered them out the door, closing and locking the door behind her, imagining the look on her fathers face when he would realize that she wasn't there, she couldn't help but laugh.
~*~*~*~
"Can we start the score over?" Mush asked frowning.
Blink just smiled. "What's the mattah? Can't take da heat?"
"I can take da heat! But geez, today must not be my day!" They had been playing cards the whole time, taking breaks only to eat drink, and for an occasional rest.
"Royal flush." Blink said laying out his cards. Mush's mouth dropped. "But how?" Just then as if in cue on ending their game, a train worker in uniform walked into the car Mush and Blink were in. "Next stop Philadelphia, if that is your stop then please start gathering your belongings." The man exited. Blink's face went pale. With his good luck he had almost forgotten his reason for coming, but now that he was reminded again, he was beginning not to feel so well.
"Ya hear that Blink? Philly! We're so close, you remember were da Lodgin House here is?"
"Yea, yea. I remember." Blink said distractedly gathering his things. His mind was on one thing right now: his sister.