The plunge was steep. Too steep!Sarah shut her eyes and clamped her hands down on the leather armrests. She felt her stomach and heart lurch. Her blood seemed to stand still as the train dropped at a mind-numbing velocity. Her scream was nearly drowned out by Elly’s explosive shriek beside her. When she wasn’t sure she could stand the fall any longer, the train gradually leveled out. It continued on its onward, normal trek. Sarah sat frozen in her chair. From the corner of her eye, she could see Elly huffing and puffing. “Boys! YOU ARE DEAD MEAT!!!!” Elly hollered. She looked frazzled. Her hair stood on end, and her eye makeup was smeared from hiding her face in her hands. Sarah exhaled loudly. “Oh my gosh. Did that really just happen?” She was speaking more to herself, but Elly answered. “Yeah, it DID!” Elly grumbled. She unfastened her seatbelt and stomped over to the compartment door. She banged her fists against it. “JUST YOU WAIT, guys! I’m going to give you a piece of my MIND once I get ahold of you both!!!!” she yelled. Kurl’s voice sounded again over the speaker. He was laughing so hard he could barely speak. “WE JUST SURVIVED A HIGH-SPEED TRAIN ROLLERCOASTER PLUNGE!” Kurl hollered. He let out a loud animal howl. They could distinctly hear Bent’s uncontrollable laughter in the background. Elly continued to beat her fists against the door. Sarah rested her head against the cushioned headrest. “I doubt they’re going to open the door while you’re banging on it like that,” she said, pointedly. Elly hissed, her ears steaming. She spun back around. Her eyes were slits of rage. “How could they DO that to us? That was SO uncalled for!” She was visibly shaking. Sarah shrugged. “Bent wouldn’t put us in harm’s way. There’s clearly more to this train than meets the eye.” She adjusted her dress. It had gotten tangled up around her legs. She bent to retrieve one of her heels from the floor.As she tried again to relax against the seat, she felt the train beginning to slow. The digital monitor suddenly changed. Instead of the live feed of the track, the girls saw Bent and Kurl’s grinning faces. “Hiya, ladies!” Kurl said. He waved. Elly crossed her arms in her chair, ignoring them. Sarah smiled slightly and gave them a feeble wave. While she wasn’t as angry as Elly, she was still in shock. Kurl ran both of his hands through his blonde hair. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes shone. “Prince and I would like to formally congratulate you both for surviving the Black Diamond plunge!!!!” He turned away from the camera and started to crack up again. Bent stuck his face up close to the camera, and smiled broadly. Sarah caught her breath. His eyes were absolutely ENTRANCING now. She felt as if she was FLOATING on air. With him staring her down like that, she couldn’t move a muscle if she’d tried. “Thank you for riding with us,” Bent whispered into the mic. He made his voice sound tantalizing, with an exaggerated, humored, husky tenderness. “I’m told passengers aboard this train do not have tickets to ride.” He cleared his throat, enjoying himself immensely. “Therefore, us men have determined that alternate forms of payment are acceptable.” He snorted, ducking his head. Reappearing back on the screen, moments later, he continued. “We will gladly accept sexy dances and possibly a strip tease –“Elly had jumped up from her chair and dashed across the floor, towards the monitor. She slammed her hand against the OFF button. “IN YOUR DREAMS, BUSTER!” she giggled, cutting him off. Bent stuck out his lip as the screen faded to black. The boys continued to laugh hysterically over the speakers. As Sarah finally caught her breath, the train rolled to a stop. Sarah and Elly waited for the boys to emerge. Several minutes passed. Irritated, Elly marched over to the compartment door. “The door’s unlocked now,” she said. She fumbled with the switch on the wall, then slid the door open. “NO WAY!” Elly yelled. “They LEFT WITHOUT US!”