Mail Ordered Deception

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

June 30th, 1903 (Present Day)

Monica’s Point of View

“One ticket to Abington, Virginia please,” Monica shouted over the whistle of the incoming train. People pushed past her, as if she did not even exist. Still, she did not turn away from the man behind the ticket booth. He also seemed to ignore her as he did not even glance in her direction. She almost spoke again, in case he had not heard her the first time, but he cleared his throat and finally looked her way.

“Round trip or one way?” He seemed bored and barely spoke loud enough for her ears to catch. Normally, Monica would have put this man in his place for being so rude, but she did not have the time. She told him one way and the ticket was practically thrust into her waiting hand. “Sixty-seven dollars." She gasped at him. Never had she paid so much for anything, including the new dress she was currently wearing. However, she didn’t want to dwell on how much that cost either.

“That is more expensive than traveling across the whole of the country!” He shrugged his shoulders as if to say that was of no concern to him. He stared at her expectantly as she dug through her clutch to find the cash that was allotted to her for travel. Thankfully, there was just enough for the ticket and a dollar more. “Here,” she said defeatedly as she gave him the money. The train whistle blew again, and she looked at the clock overhead. Oh no! She thought as she hitched up her skirt with one hand and her suitcase with the other. She only had moments before her train pulled away and she could not afford to miss it. The concrete clicked loudly below her shoes as she pushed her way through the crowd. After what seemed like an eternity, Monica spotted the platform that matched her ticket. With one bound, she leapt onto the train car just as she heard the conductor shout, “All, aboard!."

After catching her breath, Monica looked up and was swept away by the grandeur of the riding car around her. She had been instructed to ride first-class and had never seen anything like it before. The floors were carpeted in a soft red and the windows had curtains to match. The seats were upholstered with what looked like the softest cushions she had ever seen. Carefully, as if she was afraid to break something, Monica walked over to the seat closest to her and sat down. Suddenly, the weight of not having slept in three days hit her like a tidal wave and as she had the whole car to herself, felt no harm in taking a nap.

A sharp tapping sound woke Monica with a start, and she bolted into a sitting position. After rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she looked to her left and saw a woman preparing a breakfast plate of fried eggs, an assortment of fruit, crispy fried bacon, and what appeared to be shredded potatoes. The smell was enough to make her mouth water and her empty stomach growl in anticipation. She started to say that she couldn’t afford a meal like this but was given the plate before a word could come out. The woman, who did not so much as give out a name, curtsied and took the meal cart out into the next first-class car. Not knowing whether eating would come back to haunt her, made Monica almost set the plate aside. But then she took another look at that bacon, and the hunger overwhelmed her. So, she took up the fork and grabbed a bite of potatoes, eggs, and bacon in one stab. When the hot food hit her tongue, a moan escaped her mouth and tears welled up in her eyes. As she continued to eat, savoring each bite, Monica thought of the events that led her to this moment.