Chapter 258: Oliver Gets Lost

One morning, Sir Topham Hatt came to see Oliver with an important job.

"The China Clay Pits has an important order to fill, so I'm sending you to help."

"Yes sir, but what about my work here?"

"Duck and the twins should manage. Don't worry, it'll just be for the day."

Oliver was satisfied, and set off for Edward's branchline. When he arrived at the quarry, he found trucks as far as the eye could see. BoCo was pleased to see him.

"Boy, are we glad to see you! With you here, we may just finish before nightfall."

"Then why are we still talking? Let's get cracking!"

And so, Oliver spent the day marshalling trucks to and from the docks. He made quick friends with BoCo, and even Bill and Ben couldn't help but admire his work ethic. By sunset, the order was complete, and the manager came out to see him off.

"Good work today, Oliver, we managed to get the order out just in time. I'll be sure to let Sir Topham Hatt know."

"Thank you, sir. I for one look forward to a good night's rest."

"I bet, but do you think you can do one last job before you go? We have a train bound for Arlesburgh due out tomorrow, but since you're here..."

"Of course."

BoCo eyed the darkening sky worriedly.

"There's supposed to be thick fog tonight. Mind how you go, Oliver."

"Don't worry, BoCo. I know the line like the back of my hand."

But Oliver underestimated just how thick the fog was. Before long, he could barely see the line ahead, and the twisted trees dotting the lineside only made it worse.

"Blimey, its thick as pea soup! Where's that junction..."

Soon, he came to a fork in the road. One line went West, while the other went East. Oliver knew he needed to take one of the tracks, but with the fog as thick as it was he couldn't tell which one. While he was trying to decide, a gentleman he hadn't seen before approached him.

"Hello there, in a bit of a jam are you?"

"Sure seems like it. Can you tell me which track will take me to The Little Western?"

"Certainly, just take the West track. Here, I'll set the points."

"Cheers, mate!"

"Don't mention it!"

The man waved until Oliver was out of sight. The moment he was, he chuckled darkly to himself.

"There really is a fool born every minute."

As Oliver continued down the line, he couldn't help but feel like there was a mistake. Even with all the fog, he didn't recognize his surroundings at all.

"That's odd, I should have reached Tidmouth by now. I'll stop by the next signalbox..."

But he never got a chance, as he soon reached a large yard. For a minute he was relieved, but that was until the fog lifted. Twisted scrap surrounded him, cold remains of engines of ages long ago. In the distance was a large shed, an eerie red light emitting from within. Oliver gulped, he realized his settings at once.

"Oh no, I'm in a scrapyard!"

"Alright buddy, get out of the engine!"

Oliver felt the cold steel of a gun at the back of his head. Complying, he raised his hands in surrender and slowly stepped down off the footplate. Coming face to face with his assailants, he found two burly men in trenchcoats, one of them stepping into the cab while his partner kept the gun pointed squarely at Oliver's chest.

"Ha, we hit the jackpot here, Geoff! This will fetch a pretty penny on the black market!"

"Get out of there! That's property of Sir Topham Hatt!"

"Bah, that old fool is too set in his ways. This will teach him to fire us!"

"Drive her into the shed, Scott, I'll take care of this beanpole!"

Oliver gulped and solemly closed his eyes. Alf was just about to shoot him when...

"Freeze! Hands in the air!"

Before any of them knew it, they were surrounded by police. Geoff and Scott tried to make a break for it, but were caught before they could escape. While the police led them away, Sir Topham Hatt approached Oliver.

"Are you alright, Oliver?"

"A little shaken up, but I'll manage. What's going on?"

"Those two were former employees of mine I had to fire when I found out they were stealing from the railway. I guess that wasn't enough for them, so they took to running a chop shop, and your engine almost became their latest victim. Luckily, the signalman spotted you on this line and phoned for the police."

Oliver breathed a sigh of relief, glad the nightmare was over.

"Well, I know one thing's for sure: There's no place like home!"

"And that's exactly where you're headed."

Oliver just smiled happily.