AFTER TITANIC
Chapter Twenty-Four
Two Months Later
It was the night of the Harvest dance, a
Chippewa Falls tradition. Every October, everyone in town gathered at the
Anderson's barn for the harvest dance. It being his first time home in five
years, Jack was really excited. He couldn't wait to show Rose how to square
dance and how to bob for apples.
"I hope we get there in no time."
Rose uncomfortably shifted her position in the small carriage they were riding
in.
"We'll be there in plenty of time,"
Jack reassured her. "Trust me, Rose. You're going to have a blast."
"I do trust you, Jack." Rose smiled
over at him. "I wonder if Eliza will be there."
"Of course she will. She may be late if
she's coming with her mother, but she'll be here. As far as I can remember,
none of the Hathaways ever miss the annual barnyard bash at the
Andersons."
"Oh, Jack, we're here." Rose became
more alert as they approached a huge farm. The house itself was dark, but the
barn was lit up and full of laughter and music.
"Sounds like there's a big
turnout." Jack nodded. "Come on. I'll help you down." Jack
jumped out of the carriage and helped his now seven months pregnant wife out
once the vehicle came to a stop. "Ready to have the time of your life,
Rose?"
Rose smiled nervously and nodded. She hoped
she didn't embarrass herself and Jack too much. She was never much of a dancer,
even if her luck was good at that steerage party seven months ago. That was just
luck. But her luck might not hold out this second time around.
The barn was full of people standing around,
laughing, talking, and dancing. Rose's breath was taken away by the scene. She
had never seen anything like it.
"Hey, Jack Dawson!" a male voice
called over to them. Rose turned and recognized Josh Hamilton, one of Jack's
best friends. "It's about time you got here. We've been waiting for
you."
"Nice to see you, Josh. You remember my
wife, Rose, don't you?" Jack asked, motioning towards Rose.
"How can I forget?" Josh smiled,
turning to Rose and taking her hand. "She's the only girl around who has
enough class in her little finger to make up for her husband."
"Hey! What's that supposed to
mean?" Jack laughed good-naturedly.
"So, Rose, are you going to the square
dance?" Josh asked, ignoring Jack's comment.
"I don't think so." Rose smiled,
trying to pretend not to see the mischievous sparkle in Jack's eyes. "I'm
not planning on it. I'm not much of a dancer."
"That's not what Jack here says. He said
you could really cut a rug. I look forward to experiencing that for
myself."
"Jack exaggerates." Rose glanced
sharply at her husband, who was still grinning from ear to ear.
"Come on, Rose." Jack took her hand
and pulled her towards him. "Let's find a place to sit."
Jack led her to an empty table in the corner
of the barn, away from everyone else. "Are you hungry, Rose? I can get you
something to eat if you like."
"I'm fine." Rose smiled, staring at
the laughing crowd, looking for another familiar face. "Oh, Jack! There's
Maxwell over there. We should call him over to join us."
Maxwell spotted them and waved as he headed
towards them. "Hey, you two. Have either of you seen Eliza?"
"No. We just got here ourselves,"
Jack replied. "I think she may be with Lee, though."
"I'm sure she'll be here soon."
Rose smiled encouragingly. She had to give him some encouragement with Eliza.
Rose just knew that they belonged together...just like her and Jack.
"How's the baby doing, Rose? You haven't
had any problems I should know about, have you?" Maxwell asked, suddenly
going into doctor mode.
"The baby's fine. He or she let's me
know it's still alive with its kicks." Rose smiled, rubbing her stomach
that was now even more swollen than ever before. "But I feel like a cow
like this. I can't wait until the baby gets here, so I can be light on my feet
again."
"Don't worry, Rose. The time will get
here soon enough." Maxwell smiled. "But if you don't mind, I have to
get going. I promised Mrs. Smith I'd dance with her. See you two later."
"Rose...I wish you wouldn't encourage
him where Eliza's concerned." Jack sighed.
"Why? Jack, they like each other a lot.
Plus, Eliza deserves to be with a man who'll treat her right."
"It's just that Lee Conway is nothing
like Caledon Hockley. Well, I'll take that back. He is like Caledon Hockley,
but...he's more apt to blame other people for his problems. I just don't want
him to blame us if Eliza does leave him for Maxwell."
"Jack...okay. I understand. I won't
encourage Maxwell to get with Eliza anymore. I promise." Rose squeezed her
husband's hand.
Rose had the most fun at that party that she
could ever remember having in her whole life, without having to worry about
what everyone would think. She weakly protested as Jack pulled her on the dance
floor. Then, she completely lost all her nervousness and inhibitions as the
dance went on. After a while, she had no care of how she was dancing and who
she was dancing with. Then she laughed as she and Jack kept bumping heads as
they bobbed for apples.
Finally, it was time for the ghost stories
under the harvest moon. Where everyone moved outside and sat around a campfire
and listened to some good ghost stories. Exhausted from all the dancing, Rose
sat back in Jack's arms and listened to the stories.
"Amanda, it's your turn. What story do
you have for us this year?" Eliza asked, trying to avoid Lee's heated
glare as she pulled her hand out of his.
"Well...in honor of Jack's return to
Chippewa Falls, I've decided to talk about my haunted experience at the old Dawson
place." Amanda smiled over at Jack and Rose.
"Amanda...I don't think that's a good
idea," Josh warned.
"Oh, come on, Josh. It's just a story.
Jack knows that, and he probably doesn't. Do you, Jack?"
Jack shrugged, his face blank of emotion. No
one, even Rose, could tell how Jack felt about the mention of his now dead
parents.
"Okay, then. I'll start now. It's been
almost six years now since the Dawson place caught on fire and killed Emma and
James Dawson. They're definitely missed here in Chippewa Falls, but in reality,
they've never really left. I know this, because I've seen them myself. It was a
year after Jack took off for the horizon. I was taking a walk when I thought I
saw someone standing on the porch. Curious, I went over to see who it was, but
there was no one there. The house appeared to be empty. I was about to leave
when I heard footsteps up above me. At that time I was upstairs in Jack's room.
So I couldn't put together where the footsteps were coming from until I
remembered the attic that Jack used as his studio. So, taking a deep breath, I
went up there. That, too, seemed to be empty, until I saw her, standing at the
window, looking out over the fields. It was Emma Dawson herself. At first I
thought it was my imagination, until she turned those eyes on me. That's when I
felt the surging heat from the fire. At that moment I knew how she must have
felt the moment she died. I screamed and screamed, begging for mercy. That's
when she just smiled and disappeared along with the burning heat. That's when I
ran out of the house, and never returned since. I never mentioned what
happened...not even to Eliza. This is the first time I ever told this to
anyone."
"Good story, Amanda!" George
applauded.
"It's not a story. It really
happened." Amanda glared at George. "It's all true."
"Oh, come on, Amanda. You don't expect
us to believe that, do you? If that place was truly haunted, don't you think
Jack and Rose would have seen something by now?" Eliza asked.
"Maybe they did and they're not talking
about it. Or maybe Emma Dawson is at peace now that her son has returned. I
don't know."
"It's getting late." Jack suddenly
stood and helped Rose to her feet. "I better be getting Rose home."
"Oh, come on, Jack. Stay. There are more
stories to go around. I bet you have a few of your own after all the traveling
you've been doing," George protested.
"Yeah, Jack. Stay," Eliza agreed.
"Sorry, guys, but we really do have to
go. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Jack waved good-bye, leading Rose to a
waiting carriage. "Wissota Drive, please," he directed the driver.
Jack was silent all the way home, not
mentioning a word about Amanda's story or his parents.
"Wissota Drive," the driver
announced as he pulled up to the dark, empty house.
Rose looked up at the attic window and
gasped. Was that a face she saw staring out at her? No, Rose. Don't be
ridiculous. You're just letting that story get to you.
"What, Rose?" Jack's voice was
alert. "Are you okay? Is it the baby?"
"No. I just thought...oh...it was
nothing. My imagination is just getting carried away again. Mother always said
I let it run away with me."
Jack just nodded, accepting the explanation.
Unlocking the door, he led Rose inside. She shivered as she entered and felt
for the light switch. She jumped and screamed when she felt a warm hand on her
shoulder.
"Rose, it's just me," Jack said,
wrapping his arms around her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare
you."
"Oh, Jack, it's okay. I guess that story
got me a little on edge." Rose tried to laugh but failed. The simple truth
was that she no longer felt safe in the house.
"I'll find a light switch. Stay
here," Jack said, leaving her side. She was about to protest being left
alone, but thought better of it. She didn't want to give Jack another reason to
call Dr. Alman again.
Relax, Rose. You've been in this house for
seven months now. The only people here are you, Jack, and the baby. That's all.
Rose tried to calm her nerves, but
that was when she felt the cold hand clutch her shoulder. "Jack?"
There was no answer, only silence and the
cold hand on her shoulder. Why wasn't he answering? Suddenly, the room was
illuminated in light. Rose turned around, to see no one there.
"Jack!" Rose screamed in terror,
running straight ahead into Jack's arms.
"Rose? What's wrong?" Jack held his
trembling wife tightly. He pulled away from her and looked into her pale face
and frightened eyes. Something had frightened her terribly. He immediately
pulled her into another hug. "Oh, Rose, you're so pale. What's wrong?
What's gotten you so spooked?"
Rose didn't answer. She just clung to her
husband, letting the safety of his arms envelop her.
"Come on. I'll take you up to bed,"
Jack said, leading her to the stairs. Rose couldn't resist, even though she
didn't want to go upstairs. She wanted to run out of the house and never
return, but she allowed him to lead her upstairs and into their room anyway.
"You feel like talking about it?"
Jack asked, as he set her on the bed and knelt down next to her.
She looked into his beautiful blue eyes,
those intense blue eyes that could gaze into her very being. He'd know if she
were lying. She knew that. She had to trust him to believe her. To not think
she was going crazy.
"When you left me...I felt a cold hand
on my shoulder...I thought it was you. But when the light came on, no one was
standing there. I was alone." Rose sniffed.
"Oh, Rose," Jack reached up to
stroke her hair. "It's that story. It bothered you more than you thought,
didn't it?"
"I guess it did." Rose shrugged,
staring down at her hands. She never thought she was that susceptible to ghost
stories, but she guessed she was. Her imagination was running on overdrive.
"What you need is a good night's sleep.
You'll feel better in the morning." Jack kissed her forehead.
"Jack...do you have to go to work tomorrow
morning? Can't you just call in or something?"
"Rose, you know I can't do that. With
production down, all of us workers are required to be there." Jack
undressed and slipped into his pajamas.
"You’re right. I'm sorry I'm being so
silly." Rose forced a smile as she slipped into her nightgown and got
under the covers with her husband, who enveloped her in his arms. "Good
night, Jack."
"Night, Rose."