No plain train cars

Some of the passengers smiled pleasantly at Christopher Dent. Dent smiled back as a reaction to their smiles not because of any type of happiness and understanding. He smiled because he failed to understand any of it.

He had awoken from a drowsy stupor sleep with a jolt as he felt the movement of what appeared to be a train car and he seated in the last seat in the middle aisle. When he awoke, there were a bunch of silly faced strangers smiling his way. He tried to peer out the window past the two bulky men seated beside him reading newspapers, but it appeared pitch black outside.

An older woman with round, pink cheeks, soft, brown eyes, and lovely snow-white curls was still smiling at him as he tried to figure out where the hell he was and where was he going?

He peered at the newspapers the men held. The Bullet Gazette was the name of the newspaper which was one of the few clear things. The copy of the newspaper the gentlemen held brandished only three headlines with the top story Alleged murder escapes, a doglegged article from right down from the murder article about Former Starlet disappears without a trace and center story about Railway construction continues.

The old woman had stopped smiling and peering at him and had settled into her seat like it was a comfortable rocking chair. The other passengers besides the old lady and a sleeping woman near the front of the car appeared seated in pairings and with almost all the women in beautiful dresses and hats while almost all the men donned suits and hats. He then realized he was in his best blue suit.

Dent began searching his pockets for any clues of what the hell was going on and where he might be going. To his surprise and uneasiness, the only items in any of his pockets were a 1970 flattened penny, an empty money clip holder with an inscription “CD: I am with you. PS”, and one black pen. No train ticket, no money…nothing that explains any of this. The money clip did not even have a postscript on it just letters PS.

Surely, someone would come around that worked for the train company, or they would announce the upcoming stops. Several of the passengers who were coupled up were chatting just low enough not to be able to make out what anyone of them were saying.

“Ahh”, a startled sound came from the front where the sleeping woman woke up. Dent could only see the back of her head now. She was sitting straight up and obviously had eyes forward. She had beautiful flowing dark hair with most of it askew in the back from the way she had been sleeping. He could sense her beauty and strength even without seeing her.

“You can never be sure of the people you meet on the train,” said the old lady to Dent.

He gave off a chuckle. “You are right,” he replied. Dent thought this could be his chance to find out any information without looking to crazed.

“Where are you headed ma’am,” he asked politely.

“I’m going to visit my family. It has been so long,” she replied sweetly but with sadness as well.

She reached out a hand. “I’m Jophie Night.”

Dent gently grasped her hand and shook it and said, “I’m Christopher Dent.”

“Dent,” she said as if trying to touch the name. To pinpoint where it came from.

“Any kin to Henry Dent? He owned a farmhouse and barn surrounded by woods and blueberry barrens.” She asked but seemed not to expect an answer.

Dent looked down and thought for a second and shook his head trying to clear out the stupor and fogginess.

“Not that I know of,” he answered, unsure himself if it was a truthful answer.

The man to his left had put down the newspaper in his lap and slid his dark black hat over his face and was leaning back to go to sleep.

“Where did you grow up ma’am,” Dent asked, trying to dig clues out of the situation.

“All over but mainly spent time in Maine and in Mississippi,” said Jophie.

Yes, now he was starting to remember he was outside of Meridian, Mississippi yesterday? Or was it last month?

He also realized then that only he, the old lady and the woman in the front did not don a hat on the train ride. Was this important? This was crazy.

“Ma’am did you happen to see where I got on this train at?” asked Dent.

“You were on the train asleep when I arrived,” she said politely.

He pondered how to ask where she got on and where in the hell this train was going so fast.

“I think I will take a nap, so I am well-rested for the arrival,” said Jophie as she turned and reclined in her seat.

“Okay,” stammered Dent.

With the man asleep to his left, Dent slowly reached over and picked up the folded newspaper. He planned on quickly reading it and figuring it would help him understand something about what was going on.

The newspaper dateline was March 31, 1971. Alleged murder escapes screamed across the top headline just below the Bullet Gazette banner.

Christopher Dent,27, charged with the murder of attorney Arthur Sutton escaped from local authorities from the jail cell in the Yoknapatawpha Courthouse yesterday.

Dent, an U.S. army veteran and hay farmer, slipped out a second story bathroom window prior to the grand jury indictment. Dent was formally charged with one count of first-degree murder.

According to sheriff and arrest reports, Dent went to the Sutton's home the night of Sunday, Feb. 28 and shot 30-year-old Sutton three times.

Sutton resided at the home with his wife 26-year-old Pansy and three-month old daughter, Katherine. Pansy was not at the home having been taken the previous night to the hospital for injuries from a severe fall in the home. The daughter Katherine was also not in the home during the time of the shooting since she was temporarily residing with her maternal grandparents.

Sheriff John Owen reported that Dent was arrested without incident outside the county hospital with the gun still in his car. The police had been called when Dent became agitated after a nurse would not allow him to visit Ms. Sutton in her room since visiting hours had ended.

Sheriff Owen noted that Dent had been very respectful and only requested that someone give a train flattened penny in his pocket to Ms. Sutton.

Dent is a military veteran with two purple hearts. Dent is 5 foot 11 inches with black hair and blue eyes last seen in a green and white striped county inmate onesie.

Dent is also sought in the disappearance of Pansy Sutton. Pansy Sutton disappeared from the hospital the same day Dent escaped from the courthouse. For more information on Sutton’s disappearance see article on Former Starlet disappears.

Dent could not believe what he was reading. Was he a killer? Were the police after him? And where was Pansy?

He began reading the article on Pansy.

Pansy Sutton, 26, disappeared from the county hospital yesterday along with all of her belongings.

The Sheriff’s office was notified immediately of Sutton’s disappearance with concerns it was related to her husband’s murder.

Sheriff Owen noted that Ms. Sutton was not a suspect in the murder and feared that she had been kidnapped by Christopher Dent who is charged and is the main suspect in the murder case.

“We believe Mr. Dent had an unhealthy obsession with Ms. Sutton that may have led to the murder and kidnapping,” said Sheriff Owen.

Pansy Sutton, formerly Pansy Halpert, had started singing at local music festivals and contests when she was six. Her musical talent landed her two minor spots in Elvis Presley movies and was the pinnacle of her career. After a car accident involving alcohol, she returned home from Hollywood.

With her local fame, she was the star of area festivals and the community theatre. Arthur Sutton, son of Judge Thomas Sutton, proposed to her and they were married within a year and most of the citizens were witness to the biggest wedding in the county’s history.

Arthur and his wife Pansy lived on a large estate and Christopher Dent, who owned a small farm nearby, was hired to cut hay and other farming duties on the property.

Dent and Pansy Sutton both grew up on Mount Hebron Road near the west train tracks.

Pansy’s parents, Sylvia and Eli Halpert, noted they were praying for her safe return and believe Chris could never hold any ill feelings toward Pansy or mean her any harm.

Pansy Sutton is 26 years of age. She is five foot two with brown eyes and dark hair. She had a hospital gown and a yellow maxi dress available to her at her disappearance.

Please call the sheriff’s office with any information on Pansy Sutton.

Dent’s first thought springs forth: They did not give Pansy’s true description any justice. A look from her could melt your heart, warm your soul and make you feel such depth of happiness and sadness. Her voice brought harmony to all the sounds and to any silence. She was the budding flower with her blooms chasing away all the world’s woes. She was worth dying for. Anyone harming such beauty deserved death.

Dent heard the woman up front awake with a startle again. It was his Pansy. She was here. Everything was going to be okay.

Dent jumped from his seat ready to break down the aisle to her as she went back to sleep.

“Mr. Dent, you should take your seat,” said Jophie.

“That’s Pansy,” he said loudly enough to startle the two sleeping men in the seats near him. Realizing he was wanted for murder and kidnapping, and Pansy was also being sought. He retook his seat but his eyes could not leave the back of Pansy’s head and hair.

It was all confusing. His mind flooded back with memories of him and Pansy as children playing by the tracks and whenever they could find a penny placing it on the tracks to get it flattened out. They had done that same thing last year as adults. This time as a wish that they could return to being kids; that they could return to each other.

It had been Sylvia who called him to tell him Pansy was in the hospital again and that he should go by and see her. Yet, that is not what he did first. How could anyone damage such a perfect beauty? How could anyone not see how the harm they caused the whole world when they struck such a wondrous soul.

“No fully human man is all good and a man full of good can do bad,” said Jophie as she looked kindly at Dent.

“I need to get off the train with her,” as he nodded toward Pansy, said Dent.

“I am afraid you are on the train for the rest of the line and as long as she holds tight to you, she is stuck on it as well,” said Jophie with a sad tone.

“What is tying her to me,” he asked hoping for some answer that would clear out all confusion and frame the world clearly before him.

“She is tied to you with a tightening string of love,” said Jophie. “Her love for you keeps her seated there. Her love for Katherine pulls her into a fitful sleep,” said Jophie.

“Katherine,” Dent thought. We were driving down some old dirt roads to get Katherine. We were going to get away. We were going to be together. We crossed the train tracks and the car slid in the gravel down the embankment into the creek.

The train whistle sounded. “There is a crossing soon?” He asked himself. Yet, Jophie answered, “Yes, she needs to leave the train before the crossing. She has to loosen the string to you and pull tight on the one to Katherine or take a seat beside you.”

Dent hopped from his seat and ran to the front. His eyes light up upon seeing Pansy’s sleeping face. He touched her and felt that moment of joy when love is within reach. When the sensation of a touch hits all the emotions and senses.

Pansy awoke dreamy eyed and without a startle this time.

“Oh, Chris, I had a terrible dream. We were racing through the world and crashed. An ambulance was racing me away from you and you let them. You were gone,” said Pansy with tears starting to trail down her face.

“I love you and we are always tied together but you have to get off this train,” he said as he grabbed her hand and jerked her up from the seat.

“But I am so tired. Can’t we just sit together and talk,” she asked. Then she began to realize she never remembered getting on a train. Where was it going? How had they gotten on here?

“There is no time. Katherine is waiting for you,” said Dent as he pulled her to the door between the train cars.

Dent grabbed the handle and jerked them with no success.

“I think I have what is needed to open the door,” said Jophie. “I will trade you this scythe shaped knife for two coins.”

Dent remembered the flattened coin in his pocket and pulled it out. Pansy said that is ours from last year. She then reached in her pocket and pulled out the one from 21 years ago. They handed Jophie the two flattened pennies and she handed Dent the knife.

Dent slipped the knife in and opens the door with ease.

They both stepped out on the steps of the train car. Dent could see a light coming from the opposite direction on what appeared to be tracks laid almost next to the one this train was traveling on.

“Jump for that train when it passes by,” he said.

“No, I think we should go together,” she said.

“I am stuck on this train and the way to Katherine is on that train. You have to jump,” he said.

“I love you and I am the one who messed it all up by marrying that pyscho,” she said.

“No, we all make mistakes. I should not have signed up and left. I love you and I am here now to get you going in the right direction,” said Dent.

He pulled her close and gave her a kiss and with a twist and a push. She disappeared into the darkness toward the other train.

Dent stepped back into the train compartment and Jophie handed him a hat and he took his seat setting the brim of the hat over his eyes as he prepared for rest.

He understands now and is ready to reach the end of the line for the train.

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