Chapter 4

The couple walked Ivan to the train. It was made up of several box cars retrofitted into some kind of living quarters for the workmen and their families. When ever the railroad needed repairs done to the tracks, bridges, tunnels, or such, they would send the work trains. The good part about the work trains, even though the pay was small, the people were given very good and plentiful food rations.

At a converted box car at the rear of the train the key man stopped. There was a woman and a couple of kids smaller than Ivan with her. She even had one in a cradle inside the doorway. The little one was voicing his opinion about the up coming election, you know, just crying his eyes out over the choice of candidates.

“This is where you get aboard,” said the man.

Ivan held out his small and frail hand once more. The man took it, shaking it gently he spoke.

“Goodbye Ivan. Have a long and happy life.” Ivan turned to the woman.

“You know a hand shake just won’t do,” she pulled the lad into her arms and kissed his face several time. “May God go with you, Ivan?”

“Bye, great lady,” Ivan said as the man took him and raised him onto the floor of the box car.

A few seconds later the train whistle blew a long blast, waited a few seconds, and then blew a second long blast. There was clanking and grinding as the engine started down the tracks dragging the twenty, or so cars behind.

Ivan waved to the couple standing there in the rail yard. She was crying and he was holding her close to his chest from behind. Soon they were out of sight. The woman in the box car pulled Ivan inside and closed the door.

“Let’s get one thing straight, kid,” She barked “ya gives me any trouble an’ it’s out ya goes, an’ I doesn’t care where it tis, ya hear me?” Ivan shook his head that he understood. “All right then,” she said “get in that room there an’ stay . . . an’ don’t come out less-in I calls ya.”

“Yaw,” said Ivan. The room was small and cramped even for someone his size. It was filled with boxes of different kinds of things. There was some with clothing for men, and women. Then there was baby clothing, but mostly just boxes sealed up tight. There was a make shift bed on one side. Ivan placed himself on the bed and found it was very hard. He looked under the bedding only to find more boxes, no springs.

He wished there was a window in the room, however there was none. The walls of the room did not reach to the top of the box car, so light entered into the room from outside. He lay back on the bed and listened to the sounds of the train’s steel wheels against the iron rails. He soon fell asleep. An hour later he was awakened by the sound of a man’s loud voice.

“Where’s the boy?” growled the man on the other side of the wall.

“He’s in the storage room,” she said “just like we planned.”

The door opened and a man stepped inside. He was a big man like his father, strong with broad shoulders, big arms, and huge hands.

“You keep quiet and we’ll get along fine, any trouble and we toss you off . . . understand?” he said very loud.

“Yaw,” said Ivan “I trouble no.”

“Well good,” snarled the man. “Just stay in here and keep quiet.”

“Sir,” said Ivan. He placed his hand between his legs.

“Use this,” the man said, and then departed. He closed the door behind him. The man had pointed to a chamber pot with a lid setting near the door.

The hours rolled by and Ivan could only hear the train and the little ones each time they cried. He sometimes could hear the man and woman, but could not make out what they were saying. He soon became curious and climbed up on some crates he had stacked on top of each other. When he reached the top of the wall he slowly peaked over into the next room. The man and woman were seated at a small table drinking from a bottle of whiskey. From his lofty view he was able to hear their conversation.

“. . . then the man will give me $50 for the little bugger,” said the man.

“What if someone comes looking for the little fellow?” asked the wife.

“Like who?” asked the man “his mama and daddy (ha) not likely, their in New York.”

“How are we going to find this Lefty Smith any way?” she asked.

“I told you . . . he’s in Logan Kentucky,” he explained. “It’s about two days down the tracks. Then we sell the little bugger and continue on to the repair job somewhere further south.”

Ivan realized he was being betrayed by this couple. He would have to escape, or else. He retreated down the make sift ladder. When he tried the door he found it was hooked on the other side some how. Try as he might he could not force the door open.

He decided to wait until the time was right to escape. It could only be while the train was stopped, and that would be in a town. That meant a station and another click, click man. He had been told “if any thing goes wrong, anything, go see the key man at the station.”

He was afraid to stay with these people. His only hope was to escape while they were not watching. With the door locked he decided to climb up the pile of boxes and jump off the other side of the wall.

That night and late into the morning he waited. He slept some, but never for very long periods at a time. Finally the train came to a stop and the man left the car. Ivan climbed up the make sift ladder to the top of the wall. He could see into the other room. No one was there. Below him was the table setting against the wall. If he dropped onto the table, maybe it could be done with out making any noise. He slipped over the edge. His hands held onto the top of the wall as he slid down toward the table. When he had reached as far as he could, he felt for the table. He could not feel it, and he could not see it either from this angle. He hung there for a few seconds, but to him it was like hours. When he no longer could hold on, he let go. He only fell a few inches. There was a little bang of the table against the wall.

He quickly got off the table by climbing onto a chair and then down to the floor. He paused at the door to the hall way that ran the length of the box car. Not seeing anyone, he crept toward the entrance where he had entered when first arriving. His suit case was setting near the rear door. When he tried this door, it too was locked. He picked up the suit case and proceeded back down the hall way toward the other end of the box car.

As he past an open door way he could see the woman laid on the bed. She was asleep and snoring gently. The older children were sound asleep beside her on the bed. Just then the baby in the crib peeked over at Ivan as he past. At the far end of the car there was another door which was not locked. Ivan quickly searched in both directions for the man. The rail yard was devoid of anyone for several yards. When he was sure no one was looking, Ivan jumped from the train and ran for a signal tower and a pile of cross ties stacked there. He hid among the ties, breathing very hard. He watched the train for any sign of the man, or woman who might be looking for him.

After several minutes the train whistle was blown and everyone scrambled back aboard. Again the whistle blew and then shortly the train began to depart from the rail yard. Ivan was glad to see it leave. He began to lose some of his fear.

“Ivan go see click, click man,” he said to himself after the train was long gone. He looked in all directions for the station, but he couldn’t see any building that looked like one. “I go this way.” He started to walk along the tracks. After a long while he became aware he might be heading in the wrong direction. He set his suit case down then placed his frail body onto it. As he sat there, he began to slip into despair.

“Hey! What-cha-doin?” yelled a little girl from the back yard of an old run down house.

“Looking for the station,” replied Ivan.

“What fer?” the girl inquired.

“Ivan go west find farm,” he replied.

“Yeah right!” the youth yelled back. “Anyway, it’s that way.”

Ivan had indeed been going in the wrong direction. So, there was nothing else to do, he would just have to back track to the spot where he first started his search, then go further until he found the station.

As he walked along he became very tired. The pile of cross ties he had hid in before had room for him to take a nap, so he once more made use of them.