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I made a mental note to tell her about Ion’s book, knowing she would find it amusing.
    As Ion was about to elaborate on his work in progress, the train pulled into a station. It was almost deserted, just a man in his sixties with an enormous, boxy suitcase.
    Alina, to my surprise, jumped up and slipped through the door, helping the man onto the train, carrying his case into the carriage. The old man, who looked strong and fit enough to be able to han dle th e suitcase himself, thanked her in his own language then headed off to a seat at the other end of the carriage.

    The four of us chatted for the next hour. Ion wanted to know all about the app I’d developed and we talked about that for a while, while Laura and Alina, who had come out of her cocoon after helping the older man, chatted about travel. Flattered by how interested and impressed Ion seemed—I was used to my friends’ eyes glazing over when I said anything at all about the app—I temporarily forgot all about my confidentiality agreement.
    Towards the end of this conversation Hungarian border guards, wearing blue jackets and yellow high-visibility vests, got on the train and checked our passports. They studied Alina’s passport for a long time before finally passing on to the next passenger. Like the police at the station, they had guns on their hips.
    After they’d gone and I’d put our passports and tickets back in my backpack, Laura whispered in my ear, ‘That guy was staring at me again.’
    ‘What?’
    ‘He’s looking at my reflection in the window.’
    ‘Are you sure you’re not being paranoid?’
    ‘Maybe. I don’t know.’ She flexed her shoulders and arched her neck. ‘I’m so tired.’
    ‘I know. Me too.’ I yawned.
    ‘But this seat is too uncomfortable.’
    Ion, who had just returned from the toilet, overheard. ‘Hey, there’s an empty sleeper compartment just down the corridor. Why don’t you go and have a nap in there?’ His voice was hushed, conspiratorial. ‘It will be a couple of hours before the Romanian guards come through and we can keep an eye out for you, come and wake you just after we cross the border.’
    ‘I don’t know,’ Laura said.
    ‘It will be fine,’ Ion said.
    ‘I think it’s a good idea,’ I said to Laura.
    She pulled a face, torn between her desire for sleep and her dislike of breaking rules.
    ‘Go on, Laura,’ Alina said. ‘I promise we’ll wake you.’
    ‘I don’t know.’
    ‘Come on,’ I said. ‘I’ll set an alarm on my phone too. What time are we due to cross the border?’
    Ion checked his watch. ‘We left Budapest forty minutes late, so it will be about three-ten. You’ve got just under two hours.’
    ‘Oh, all right,’ Laura said. ‘Thank you.’
    She glanced across the carriage and I saw what had made her mind up. The man was staring at her again, the tip of his tongue resting between his lips, one leg jiggling up and down. Slowly, he looked away, a smirk on his face.

Chapter Three
    T he sleeper compartment was tiny, containing two narrow bunks with a gap of around three feet between them. Outside the window: blackness. We were deep in the Hungarian countryside now. I could hardly even imagine what the landscape would look like outside the window. Forests? Plains? I pressed my face against the window. I couldn’t even see any stars. If it wasn’t for the occasional flicker from an isolated building, the train could be hurtling through space. We could be anywhere. We could be at the end of the world.
    Laura kicked off her boots and flopped down on one of the bunks. I sat opposite her and took my phone out of the front pocket of my backpack. The battery was almost dead—the bloody thing was always almost dead—but I set the alarm anyway, hopeful that it would last.
    ‘So what do you think of our two new friends?’ I asked.
    ‘I’m not sure. He is a little in love with himself. Can’t wait to read his book.’ She raised her eyes to the ceiling.