Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
“Are you getting this, Jeremy?” Ryder barked at the phone that was still on speaker. He could hear Jeremy’s fingers punching wildly at a keyboard.
“Yeah, I’m getting it, but I need more information, Ry. That’s not enough. Do you know how many trains run through private properties? Hell, we don’t even know what fucking state they’re in! Give me more!”
Eleven minutes. Eleven minutes. What could any of them do in eleven minutes?
“Remington, sweetheart; I have to have more information. Look around, there must be something else…something that will stand out. You’re doing so good, baby. You know you can pull out anytime you want to. Come back to us if it gets to be too much,” Mary said.
Her voice sounded so soothing…so calm. Ryder was amazed that he’d ever thought this woman a charlatan.
“There’s nothing!”
Remi sounded frantic again and Ryder cringed, knowing how badly this was going to hurt him.
“Wait…okay, it looks like there’s a house sitting on a hill about a quarter of a mile away from us,” he said, excitement replacing the frantic tone from seconds ago. “Yes! It’s a house. This isn’t a road; we’re on somebody’s driveway, but there are train tracks right smack-ass on their property. No railroad cross bars,” he muttered. “I thought that was the law.”
“The train tracks are crossing somebody’s driveway?” Jeremy asked through the phone, excitement in his voice, as well. “Got it. How many of those can there be?” A few seconds later, he muttered, “Fuck. There’s a fucking bunch, just in Texas. Does he know if he’s in Texas?”
“Do you know what state you’re in, sweetheart?” Mary asked.
“Not a clue,” Remi muttered in disgust. “Ten fucking minutes. There’s not enough time!”
“Don’t panic, Remi,” Mary said calmly. “You can’t panic on me, but I need you to listen very closely to what I’m going to tell you. I don’t want you to be in that car if the train hits, okay? That isn’t safe for the cord that connects your soul to your body. You must promise me and Ryder that you’ll leave before that happens. Promise?”
Ryder couldn’t help but notice Remi didn’t answer, causing him to look at Mary in terror. “What can happen if he’s in the car when the train hits? I thought he couldn’t die when he was in Astral Projection? That’s what you said earlier!”
“No, what I said was that it was a rarity,” Mary answered. “I don’t want him to take chances, especially when those choices are going to be useless.”
There…it was a done-deal. Mary didn’t think there was anything Remi could do to save the girl named Kris. Ryder felt ill.
“I think the house is blue.” Remi’s voice finally piped up again. “Ten minutes, guys. What am I going to do here? I have to do something. She doesn’t deserve this,” he said. “She knows who the man is. She told him she knew who he was. If we can somehow get her out of this, it could all be over.”
“Blue house on private property with a driveway…with train tracks, no cross bar, intersecting it. A farm. State unknown. Fuck.” Jeremy’s voice echoed in the quietness of the room. “Hey! Does he know her last name? Did the guy say the girl’s last name?”
“What’s Kris’ last name, Remington? Do you know? Did anyone say?” Mary asked quickly.
“Tatum! He called her Kris Tatum!”
“Boom! Kris Tatum; missing for two days from Galveston, Texas.” Jeremy yelled. “Fuck, that still leaves me with eighteen possible addresses and I’m not close to any of them,” he muttered in disgust. “I’m sending something in to dispatch to get as many cars out to all those addresses as soon possible,” he informed Ryder. In a quieter voice, barely heard above his typing fingers, he said, “We aren’t going to make it, Ry. I don’t see us getting to this girl on time.”
“Wait! Where in the fuck do you think you’re going?” Remi suddenly yelled, causing Ryder to nearly jump out of his skin. “Oh, no, no, no. That’s not the way this works, rat girl! You don’t drag me into this shit and then take off when things are about to get ugly. Get your ass right back in this car!”
Remi was furious.
“No, Remi!” Mary yelled. “Follow her! Wait to see what she’s doing, sweetheart. She can’t talk to you, but remember what I said…hints, baby! Watch for the hints!”
Remi started breathing heavy, like he was running, but his body still lay completely flat on the bed, like he was sleeping peacefully. “Wait! Wait up! Jeezus, you’re fast!”
Ryder watched as Remi’s breathing grew heavier and beneath his closed eyelids, his eyes fluttered wildly. The movement was frantic. Ryder squeezed his hand tighter and gasped when Remi squeezed it back. “Remi? Can you feel me?” he asked. He’d never once thought he would be able to communicate with Remi in any way, not like Mary could.