Readers have been asking about the ending of Night Train. In particular, what happened next? Ellie and Louis did not have the makings of a permanent relationship. There will not be a sequel.

Ellie is modeled after my mother, and it was out of the frying pan and into the fire for her. She once again went to work teaching and restoring the old three story home. The big change was that she had realized by then that her brothers’ friends were not candidates for love and marriage. At that time, gay men were often excluded from any type of family life. They were certainly consigned to staying with their birth families instead of forging their own family groupings.  Ellie had that figured out. Then she fell for another gay man, a tall attractive “art professor.”

Kate’s (my) frustration and resentment continued to grow. By the age of 13 she was living on her own as an emancipated minor, while Ellie and little Jack continued to party with the new boyfriend, “James.” Kate did not see the potential for a happy ending in any of this. When her friends went boy crazy, she wouldn’t even talk to boys. In fact, she wouldn’t even look at a boy in the eye. She kept her head down, and worked on her studies and a range of student leadership projects. She also continued to take notes.

One good things about being an emancipated minor. You don’t have to clean your room.