Twenty Two Stops to Provincetown

There were twenty two stops along the railroad line from Gray Gables to Provincetown! The enigmatic figure in black's destiny was at the end of the line - but something in his fractured head, forced him to get off at each stop where misadventure waited at every turn. Especially at the secret Arboreal Arch leading to the graveyard of the Nobscusset Tribe and beautiful Princess Scargo.
.

"Cape Cod's 'Figure in Black", by Bill Russo

Here's part of Chapter One: 

A mysterious looking man, dressed entirely in black with a wide brimmed hat on his head, sat at the counter of a diner near the tiny Gray Gables railroad station at the entrance to Cape Cod.  Rays of light from the morning sun pushed their way past the greasy windows as he nibbled on his spare meal, consisting merely of bread and coffee. Awaiting the early morning train from Boston, he was the only customer.

He drained the last of his unsweetened coffee and his cup was quickly refilled by a fidgety young waitress who appeared to be nervous and troubled.  Observing redness around her yes, he politely asked “Are you all right?  You can tell me.  I’m a friend.”

The young woman knew of no earthly reason why she should unburden herself to a total stranger and yet there was something familiar about the man – perhaps it was that he reminded her of a kindly uncle, who helped her when she was a young girl, and had fallen and bruised her knee.  More likely, he provoked a memory of someone who recently had been very close to her heart.

For whatever reason, she unleashed a torrent of tears and spilled her whole sad tale to the bearded figure in black. His attire could equally have been worn by a sailor, a minister, or an undertaker.

He listened wordlessly, only nodding now and then in the proper places.  When she had finished, he said simply…. “Everything will be all right.  All you have to do is get on the train with me when it arrives here at Gray Gables.”

A few minutes later when the Cape Cod Railroad’s Engine Number Two steamed into the station, pulling a passenger coach, a mail car, and two freight cars; she decided to do it.  Pulling off her white apron, she tossed it on a hook. With only a brief word to the cook in the kitchen, she followed the man of mystery to the boarding platform.  

From the mail car, the postal attendant pushed out bundles of the early morning broadsheets from Boston and New Bedford.  Dated July 4, 1910, the headlines screamed - “First African American Boxing Champ!  Jack Johnson Wins Heavyweight Title.”

“I have no idea why I’m doing this,” she said as they walked gingerly around the piles of newspapers.” 

Moving quickly up the three steps, she walked into the coach and sat in the first empty cluster of seats.

The figure in black sat beside her and said…. “Yes you do.  You’re desperate and there is nothing but trouble for you in Gray Gables.  No family, no husband, nothing in your future but the prospect of the growing shame as you trudge to work day after day in that dingy restaurant.”

“How do you know this?”

“We have things in common” he answered.  “People who have similar problems know such things without being told.”

“You cannot have any problem like mine,” she insisted.

“Misfortune and ill fate know no gender. But never mind that. I have good news for you. The solution to your seemingly impossible situation is no further away than the very next stop – Monument Beach.”