"No," Michael says, his voice frustrated. "He must've moved to a different car." Though, honestly, Michael isn't really sure if this is true. He didn't get a very good look at the guy, so he doesn't even know if he saw him or not.
Michael slides the door open and the two of them step into the next car. They are so busy searching for the thief that they don't notice the conductor at the other end, checking tickets.
They walk down the aisle, Michael examining people even harder this time, trying to remember what the guy looked like. Michael is so busy staring at passengers that he walks right into the conductor's chest and Ellen is so busy staring at the luggage racks that she walks into Michael's back.
"Hey there," the conductor says as they bounce off each other. "You two need to watch where you're going. And I need to see your tickets."
Michael reaches into his pocket and grabs his ticket, but stops. The ticket is for a completely different train. A train he's missed by now. It wouldn't do any good to show him that.
Michael thinks about lying, but then decides to just be honest. "We don't have them. Sorry, it's just someone stole her suitcase from the platform," he turns and nods at Ellen, "and got on this train, so we came looking for him. Then the train pulled away."
The conductor listens to their story, but Michael knows he's already made up his mind. "That's certainly a creative story," the conductor says. "But I can't let you ride without a ticket."
"But we have tickets," Ellen says, holding hers up. "They're just for a different train. The train we were supposed to take."
The brakes hiss as the train pulls into the next station. "I can't let you ride without a ticket," the conductor repeats. "You two need to get off the train."
To be continued.......
