Chapter 2 - I Know Who You Are
"Come on Dad, there's something more to this than meets the eye, isn't there?"
"Yes son, there certainly is. The number on the card is the number that Susan gave me after she left. She didn't think leaving a forwarding number with Jesse was the sensible thing, so she gave it to me, and should there ever be anything that needed to be brought to her attention, them I had the facility to contact her."
"Are you thinking then, that the body falling into here was deliberate?" Steve asked, his face grim.
"You know, I think I am." Amanda gasped.
"The next question," Steve continued, "is that of who's going to tell Jesse."
All three exchanged glances, knowing that he would not appreciate even the mention of Susan's name intruding in his life once more. When she had left him for a chiropractor (that would be Daniel), he had harboured so much hostility towards Susan, the others even doubted whether Jesse would want anything to do with the case, despite his usual enthusiasm to join in with their investigation, which would doubtless ensue.
"I'll do it." Mark volunteered. "Besides, I think I have a bit of explaining to do." The others looked at him, puzzled. "He doesn't know that I have contact details for Susan, she asked me not to tell him."
Again they all exchanged glances, and Mark left the carriage to try to explain and appease the frustrations of the young doctor.
* * * * *
On the way to the dining car Jesse caught sight of a flustered looking train guard who was evidently searching for the reason the stop cord had been pulled, a search that had been until that point, entirely fruitless - whom he approached in order to report the incident.
"You two carry on to the dining car and I'll catch you up in a minute." Jesse urged CJ and Dion, then he turned to face the guard.
The guard was about six foot - a good head taller than Jesse. He looked as if he was at the far end of his fifties, however, on closer inspection he was ten years and more younger than he appeared. He was dressed in the standard uniform of the train crew: bottle green trousers, vest and bow tie, which all co-ordinated beautifully with the plush upholstery of the train's seating.
"Oh, excuse me Sir," the young doctor said as he approached the guard, "you wouldn't be looking for the reason the emergency cord was pulled would you?"
"Why Sir? You wouldn't happen to know anything about it, would you?" He asked accusingly, using his age to put emphasis and seniority into his query, making Jesse feel unnecessarily guilty.
"Well I would." The guard glared at him - if looks could kill, thought Jesse, I think I might have found the prime suspect! "The train came to a stop and then a body fell into our compartment thing. My friends are in there with him. One's a Doctor, one's a pathologist and one's a cop - a homicide detective actually." Jesse added, trying to excerpt some force to his words, there was no way he was going to be intimidated by an over-sized green penguin, especially not one with an attitude problem!"
"And where would your compartment be Sir?"
"Right down there," Jesse said, pointing in the direction from which he had just come. "It's in the name of Sloan, Mark Sloan."
The guard grumbled his thanks to Jesse and headed off in the direction in which he had been pointed. Jesse watched him march, march being the operative, thought Jesse, and saw him barge past someone who was coming in the opposite direction, it was Mark. Jesse waited for him.
"Hey Mark, managed to find anything out?" Jesse asked eagerly.
"Well there was something," Mark said as they carried on towards the dining car, "that I need to talk to you about."
"That sounds ominous!" Grinned Jesse.
You're not wrong Jesse, thought Mark, you are most certainly not wrong.
"Come on Dad, there's something more to this than meets the eye, isn't there?"
"Yes son, there certainly is. The number on the card is the number that Susan gave me after she left. She didn't think leaving a forwarding number with Jesse was the sensible thing, so she gave it to me, and should there ever be anything that needed to be brought to her attention, them I had the facility to contact her."
"Are you thinking then, that the body falling into here was deliberate?" Steve asked, his face grim.
"You know, I think I am." Amanda gasped.
"The next question," Steve continued, "is that of who's going to tell Jesse."
All three exchanged glances, knowing that he would not appreciate even the mention of Susan's name intruding in his life once more. When she had left him for a chiropractor (that would be Daniel), he had harboured so much hostility towards Susan, the others even doubted whether Jesse would want anything to do with the case, despite his usual enthusiasm to join in with their investigation, which would doubtless ensue.
"I'll do it." Mark volunteered. "Besides, I think I have a bit of explaining to do." The others looked at him, puzzled. "He doesn't know that I have contact details for Susan, she asked me not to tell him."
Again they all exchanged glances, and Mark left the carriage to try to explain and appease the frustrations of the young doctor.
* * * * *
On the way to the dining car Jesse caught sight of a flustered looking train guard who was evidently searching for the reason the stop cord had been pulled, a search that had been until that point, entirely fruitless - whom he approached in order to report the incident.
"You two carry on to the dining car and I'll catch you up in a minute." Jesse urged CJ and Dion, then he turned to face the guard.
The guard was about six foot - a good head taller than Jesse. He looked as if he was at the far end of his fifties, however, on closer inspection he was ten years and more younger than he appeared. He was dressed in the standard uniform of the train crew: bottle green trousers, vest and bow tie, which all co-ordinated beautifully with the plush upholstery of the train's seating.
"Oh, excuse me Sir," the young doctor said as he approached the guard, "you wouldn't be looking for the reason the emergency cord was pulled would you?"
"Why Sir? You wouldn't happen to know anything about it, would you?" He asked accusingly, using his age to put emphasis and seniority into his query, making Jesse feel unnecessarily guilty.
"Well I would." The guard glared at him - if looks could kill, thought Jesse, I think I might have found the prime suspect! "The train came to a stop and then a body fell into our compartment thing. My friends are in there with him. One's a Doctor, one's a pathologist and one's a cop - a homicide detective actually." Jesse added, trying to excerpt some force to his words, there was no way he was going to be intimidated by an over-sized green penguin, especially not one with an attitude problem!"
"And where would your compartment be Sir?"
"Right down there," Jesse said, pointing in the direction from which he had just come. "It's in the name of Sloan, Mark Sloan."
The guard grumbled his thanks to Jesse and headed off in the direction in which he had been pointed. Jesse watched him march, march being the operative, thought Jesse, and saw him barge past someone who was coming in the opposite direction, it was Mark. Jesse waited for him.
"Hey Mark, managed to find anything out?" Jesse asked eagerly.
"Well there was something," Mark said as they carried on towards the dining car, "that I need to talk to you about."
"That sounds ominous!" Grinned Jesse.
You're not wrong Jesse, thought Mark, you are most certainly not wrong.