A DEEP OCEAN OF SECRETS
Chapter Eleven
Shortly after Rose had gone off
with Jack, Elisabeth excused herself for some fresh air. She wandered up the
Grand Staircase and onto the deck. The only warmth she had was from the white
gloves that came to her elbows—her dress was short-sleeved. Nobody was out on
deck. The silence was deathly. As the ship glided across the water, Elisabeth
leaned against the railing and stared down at the deep, magical water lapping
against the ship.
Elisabeth’s mind was running. She
couldn’t tell her thoughts apart; they were so jumbled. Like an ocean of
memories. She longed to be wild and free like Jack Dawson was, with little
money in her pockets and not knowing what would happen. Her thoughts were interrupted
when a voice from behind her said, "I thought you’d be here."
Elisabeth whipped around.
"William!" she cried, smiling. He looked very handsome in the
moonlight, and flashed Elisabeth a charming smile. "How did you know I’d
be here?"
"It’s where we walked. I
know you swoon over me." His last statement was meant to be a joke.
Elisabeth mocked surprise.
"Do I? How can you tell?"
William moved closer and gazed
down at Elisabeth, watching her eyes dart as she watched his. A half-smile
played upon his lips. "Maybe because I swoon over you." Elisabeth
smiled.
"William, you are
engaged!" she said, leaning her back against the cold railing.
"To a woman I have no
interest in marrying," he replied, leaning next to her. His voice was
dull.
"Then why did you propose?"
"It was an arranged
marriage. Our parents are very good friends, and in a time of need, we even
boarded with them once. I’ve known Annabelle Marie Johansson since we were
babies. We were supposed to get married three years ago, but Anna felt she was
too young, so we waited until I turned twenty and she turned eighteen."
"She felt too young?"
William nodded. "When I was
seventeen, she was fifteen, and felt as if she wasn’t ready to become a wife.
She threw a big fit and begged our parents to wait. We didn’t even want to get
married, but it was arranged, so what could we do? When our parents agreed for
us to get married when we were older, we had to promise ourselves to each other
at that age. She gave me a simple gold band and I gave her a diamond ring with
her name engraved on it. And she doesn’t even wear it anymore, saying ‘Why
wear it when I can wear a wedding band soon?’ Well, there’s money gone!
I’ve asked her over and over—since I think it’s rather pretty—but she claims it
is too small and she’ll have a better one soon. How can I marry such a
woman?"
"You make her sound very
immature, but when I met her, I thought she was almost too mature."
"She likes to make good
impression." Elisabeth snorted in disagreement--she didn’t make a good
impression.
"Why do you not love
her?"
It took Will a moment to answer.
"She isn’t fun," he concluded, "or spontaneous. She doesn’t
laugh at my comments or jokes, rarely has a smile—I haven’t heard her laugh in
so long. She’s obsessed with being proper, elegant…impressions matter to her,
let’s just say. She never jokes around, and watches me like a hawk. She wants
to know everywhere I go and what I do."
"Wow…" Elisabeth said,
and looked into the water. "Can’t you just back out of the marriage?"
"No," Will replied.
"I cannot. I’ve wanted to, but I cannot. I’ve promised myself to her, and
I would be disowned if I even tried to. And since my father is famous, he would
have it all over the papers by the next morning."
Elisabeth, with as much wit as
she had, decided to use it. "If you are engaged, then why are you spending
your time with me?"
William smiled. "Because
right now, I enjoy your company more than Annabelle’s." They shared a
laugh, their voices echoing over the deck.
"Won’t she want to know
where you’ve been?"
William smiled.
"Probably." They laughed again.
"I don’t think Annabelle
liked me very much. I could tell by the way she looked at me."
William shrugged. "She likes
you," he said—but knew she really didn’t.
"I bet she thought I was
some silly little girl with some stupid little crush," Elisabeth replied,
and chuckled to herself. "I’m not a stupid little girl. Well…not little,
at least."
Will leaned against the railing,
looking at his friend. "How old are you, anyway?"
"Fifteen. I’ll be sixteen in
a couple of weeks."
"Happy birthday in advance,
in case I never see you after we dock."
"Well, thank you, Mr.
Thackery," Elisabeth replied, her voice lowering for some reason. Her gut
was churning and she felt if something bad was eventually going to happen. Her
face scrunched in confusion and she looked down into the water lapping against
the ship.
"Elisabeth, what’s the
matter?" Will asked, curiosity in his voice.
Elisabeth looked up. "Do you
ever get those feelings when you think something bad is going to happen? Where
suddenly you start to feel uneasy and nervous?"
William shook his head slowly.
"No…"
"Well, I’m having one of
those feelings right now. I just feel like something is going to happen and I
fear the worst," Elisabeth replied. She looked up at Will.
"Don’t fret. This ship will
reach New York safely. That I guarantee. Nothing can sink this ship."
"You cannot guarantee that.
This ship can sink, but I sure hope it doesn’t."
"Why are you so worried all
of a sudden?" Will questioned.
Elisabeth started to stare off
into space. "Just one of those feelings…" she replied.