BETWEEN TWO HEARTS
Chapter Two
"Oh…um…hello…Harold, is it?
Please excuse me if it isn’t…I’m quite terrible with names…where’s Uncle
Thomas? He’s supposed to be here now…"
A smile crept across his face as
he greeted her. "Your uncle got caught up with some business elsewhere on
the ship and he asked me to come and get you. He sends his apologies, but he
will meet us at the Grand Staircase in the reception area."
She nodded as she turned and went
back into her room. He pushed open the door as she called out, "I’m almost
ready. You can come in, if you please…just leave the door open."
Sure, he did want to come in and
see a first class stateroom for himself, but he chose to stay out in the hall.
After all, the lady was in her own stateroom, was just about his age, and he
had to keep a certain…distance from the single female passengers.
It only took her a few minutes to
finish getting ready. The next thing that Lowe knew, she was at the door.
"Ready?" she asked with a smile. He returned the smile and held out
his arm. She instantaneously latched onto it and the two slowly made their way
to the Grand Staircase; deep in a conversation about how the other’s voyage was
going on the first day out.
It did not take long for Thomas
to find his niece and the fifth officer, who were both deep in the conversation
that had started back at stateroom C-72. "Ah…" he said with a smile
as he approached the two. "Mr. Lowe, I see that you have found my niece’s
stateroom with ease. The other officers have already begun to arrive. The
captain’s table is right this way…"
He looked over to his relative
and raised an eyebrow. She caught the look that he gave her and responded with
a nod while simultaneously moving her right hand up to rest on his arm. Thomas,
with a slight smile on his face, nodded and stepped off to the side in order to
let the pair through. Lowe nodded his thanks to him and they walked into the
dining hall, followed closely by the master shipbuilder.
"Ah…Mr. Andrews! Miss
Andrews! It’s good of you to join us!"
All the attention at the table
turned to the new arrivals. Siobhan could see that indeed there were seven
officers of the ship present--including Captain Smith--as well as a few men, who
she presumed were of a high station in the affairs of the ship.
She dropped her arm when she felt
Lowe move forward and pull out a chair for her. She smiled at his actions and,
while her uncle took the seat next to her, sat down and smiled back up at Lowe
after she was securely in. "Thank you," she said quietly as he
stepped around Sixth Officer Moody--who was on the other side of her--and took
the last empty chair.
"Well, now that everyone has
arrived, I would like to begin by thanking Thomas Andrews for building the ship
which has given us all the chance to dine here tonight." Captain Smith
started off the dinner with a sort of thank you speech. As he spoke, Siobhan
began to feel the drag of the evening beginning to occur. She scanned the table
and noticed that the vast majority were men--in fact, it was all men, save her.
"Miss Andrews."
The sudden call brought her out
of her lull. She turned and looked in the direction of the man who had
warranted her attention. "Please tell us about yourself. I’m sure we would
all love to learn about the lady who has had to put up with Mr. Andrews over
the past year or so…"
"Mr. Ismay…" her uncle
started, wanting to protest his invocation. Siobhan put a hand to her uncle’s
arm and began where he left off.
"Mr. Ismay, what my uncle
means to say is that there is not much that is to be known about me. I am
Siobhan Andrews, niece to Thomas Andrews, and I am the sense of reason for him
on this voyage. I was born and spent most of my childhood in Queenstown,
Ireland. I lived with my uncle in Belfast from the age of twelve to the
present. I hope to go to America with Uncle Thomas and quite possibly begin a
new life there on my own."
"My dear," the captain
stated. "America is a dreadfully hard place. You’re going to need some help
to survive there. Are you sure that is where you want to end up?"
"We will see what’ll happen,
Captain Smith. I could end up in America while successfully supporting myself.
I could always return to Queenstown and reunite with my family…or I could always
remain in Belfast with Uncle Thomas, Aunt Helen, and their family. We will see
what’ll happen and then I will just make the choice there."
Captain Smith nodded, accepting
her answer while the man whom her uncle had referred to as Mr. Ismay asked her,
"Are you traveling…alone?" He placed an unusual amount of emphasis on
the last word as he looked over at her.
"Actually, Mr. Ismay, I
could not be traveling in the company of a group of finer gentlemen…and, of
course, I am talking not only about my uncle but also about the Titanic’s
officers. They have been nothing but polite to me during the time I have known
them and they also have been welcoming to me when my uncle is needed to be in
other areas of the ship…" She was angry that the git had enough rashness to
ask about her traveling status when her uncle had obviously written her about
the actions of this self-absorbed man. He sat back, obviously shocked at the
answer that he had gotten, and one of the members of Mr. Andrews’ group broke
in about something concerning the ship. He was praising it to no end…much like
many of the conversations that were soon to follow.
The meal passed with many similar
conversations. Siobhan obviously grew bored of the dinner, not to mention the
fatigue that was setting in upon her, and decided to distance herself from the
conversations, into which she would have normally gladly thrown in her two
cents.
By the time the last course had
come around, she had not said much of anything, or at least not since Ismay had
asked the questions that set her off into the slight tangent. Both Moody and
Lowe had noticed this.
"Can you get her attention
and ask her if she’s feeling all right?" Moody nodded and reached over,
fingers brushing against her arm.
"Are you feeling all right?
You have hardly said a word since we began dinner."
Siobhan looked over to the two
officers who were watching her. "Yeah…" she said quietly. "I’m
just quite tired. I haven’t slept really well over the past few days. I will
probably go back to my room and retire after this, seeing as how I am going to
need the sleep."
"The dinner is almost
over," Lowe said to her. "After Captain Smith releases us all, I’ll
take you back to your room and make sure you get there safely."
"Now, Harry…you got to get
her from the room. I do believe it is my turn to escort her back to the
suite."
"Sorry, Jimmy…but you also
have to get up to the bridge for watch. You’re lucky that Captain Smith let you
have a delay, but he said you had to get there right after dinner ended."
The closeness of the two junior
officers was apparent as they bickered over the right to escort her back to the
room. "Mr. Moody," she said as she put a hand on his shoulder.
"I’m sure there will be plenty of time during this voyage that I will need
an escort. Your duties come first." He nodded in defeat as the last course
arrived, and they all knew that afterwards they would be dispersed to pick up
their normal duties.
The dinner party did not last for
much longer and Siobhan arrived back at her room soon afterwards. "I thank
you for accompanying me back to my room, Mr. Lowe. I know my uncle would thank
you, too, if he were here."
"It is not a problem, Miss
Andrews." He took her hand and kissed it, looking back up at her in the
process.
"Please, Harold…call me
Siobhan. Miss Andrews is too formal for my tastes. Siobhan."
"Okay…Siobhan. Well, good
night…"
"Good night…" Before
she turned and unlocked her door, however, she quickly gave her companion a
kiss on the cheek. She smiled and entered her room as fast as she could after
she realized what she had done.
After the door was closed, she
did not hear any form of protest from Officer Lowe. She bit her lip as the
faintest form of a grin came across her face. What on earth came over her in
order to initiate that sort of action? Was it a mere sort of infatuation? Or
was it more? She pushed herself off of the door and got herself ready to
retire. After all, she wanted to be up when the Titanic arrived at Queenstown…
*****
The fog was just beginning to
roll off of the harbor when the first tender arrived from the docks with the
first group of Titanic’s new passengers. The cool breeze gently swept around
the passengers out on the decks before breakfast, but the vast majority of them
were either already enjoying the morning meal or still asleep in their beds.
Siobhan quietly walked out onto
the boat deck, taking in all of the vast scenery in front of her. She pulled
her jacket around her, bringing back memories of the early morning walks from
her childhood. She would often wander the cobblestone streets of her area of
town in the early morning, down to the shore as well as around the city.
She never wanted to return home
when the city became alive.
Siobhan moved over to the set of
steps that led up to the roof of the First Class lounge. She positioned herself
just at the top of the stairs, leaning up against the pole, as she reflected on
the events that had brought her this far…
She and her Uncle Thomas had
always seemed to be two of a kind. Both of them had an undisputable love for
the sea. Siobhan’s mother was more than happy to let the two spend time
together when they would either take the kids up to Northern Ireland or Thomas
would come down to Queenstown.
Siobhan could faintly hear the
sound of a piper coming from the docks. He was playing the tune of a song that
her mother would sing to her when things got bad…
How can the small flowers
grow,
If the wild winds blow,
And the cold snow is all around?
Where will the frail birds fly,
If their homes on high,
Have been torn down to the ground?
Things were bad from the
beginning for the family. Siobhan was the middle child, with an older
brother--Liam--as well as a younger brother--Cerdic. It was hard to retain a
sense of femininity when you grew up with two brothers. Her mother, Moira, was
the ideal family woman. She was wonderful with the kids and would always make
it a point to volunteer with some organizations that either she saw as
worthwhile or her friends became involved in.
Lift the wings,
That carry me away from here and,
Fill the sail,
That breaks the line to home.
But when I'm miles and miles apart from you,
I'm beside you, when I think of you,
A Stóirín, a Grá.
The father, the head of the
household himself, Camden Andrews, was known as the black sheep of the three
Andrews brothers--Thomas and John being the other two. Her father would go out
and drink after he finished his low-paying job at the factory for the day and
he would make it a bad habit to come home late at night and demand his dinner
to be on the table. When it wasn’t, Moira would have to face a slap or two and,
disheartened, she would meekly prepare something for him. Her mother did not
deserve this and would leave him if she could, but she did not in order to keep
the family together for the children…
How can a tree stand tall,
If the rain won't fall,
To wash its branches down?
How can a heart survive,
Can it stay alive,
If its love's denied for long?
Moira did not have to suffer for
long in the care of her husband. Unfortunately, she did not have the chance to
leave him. One night, in the midst of a strong drunken stupor, Camden would not
stop beating his wife and she died from what seemed like internal bleeding.
The funeral was an emotional one,
but Siobhan noticed that there were signs that Liam was becoming like his
father in more ways than one. He began to go out with his father and drink. She
knew to stay out of the way of the two when they came home and the older began
to shout for his dinner. She would start to stay out until the early morning
hours and come home after they had passed out--all at the age of ten. Her
younger brother couldn’t take the madness anymore and, thanks to the help of
his friend’s family, ran away to a location that even she didn’t know about.
Lift the wings,
That carry me away from here and,
Fill the sail,
That breaks the line to home.
But when I'm miles and miles apart from you,
I'm beside you, when I think of you,
A Stóirín,
And I'm with you as I dream of you,
A Stóirín,
And a song will bring you near to me,
A Stóirín, a Grá.
Siobhan was lucky that the
neighbors had kept a watch on her after her mother was killed, and several
times they had to interfere with her father’s intentions to begin smacking her
around. She wrote to her Uncle Thomas, using a neighbor’s address as the return
address. When her neighbor, Tom O’Reilly, gave her the return letter with the
go ahead to journey to Belfast to join him, she immediately got together all
she could carry and left while her father and brother were at the local pub. It
was a perilous journey for an eleven-year-old, but as if it was a miracle from
God, she found someone to accompany her on the journey to the town of Kildare.
Mr. O’Reilly had written to his
cousins, who were going to be journeying to Belfast, and asked if they would
hold off their journey until the girl had gotten to the town. Thankfully, they
wrote back and said they would wait until she got there. He bought her a train
ticket to the town and after two days of journeying she met up with them. The
three of them made their way to Belfast and she successfully arrived in her
uncle’s arms soon afterwards, relieved that she would no longer have to worry
about her old life and would be able to start anew.
The memory of Mr. O’Reilly
brought Harold to mind, as their actions had mimicked the others. Since
boarding the Titanic about twenty-four hours ago, she had felt totally at ease
around the fifth officer. She was thankful that her uncle had gotten her this
ticket, because she would otherwise be in Third Class…that, in some aspects,
was where she wanted to be even more. He had given her the chance to meet Lowe,
however, and for that she was ever thankful.
As for the night before, well,
she did not know what to think. She could feel her mind hinting at her to
pursue him, but she held back…not wanting to get hurt again…
*****
"Hey, isn’t that
Siobhan?"
"Since when are you on a
first name basis with…oh, it is her!"
Both Lowe and Moody were walking
along the boat deck, heading back to the stairwell that would take them to the
crew’s mess hall. Indeed, both were looking up at the platform that held the
woman who had captured their minds…though it seemed for one that his attempts
were in vain. She was dressed rather simply, in a brown skirt, brown jacket,
white blouse, and boots--much like she was more comfortable in the Third Class
area.
"Miss Andrews!"
Her head turned and a smile broke
across her face when she saw Lowe and Moody approach her. "Hello,"
she said while not moving from her spot.
"Your uncle has been looking
for you, Miss Andrews," Moody began. "Any particular reason
why?"
"He probably wants to ask my
opinion of something, Mr. Moody. That’s why I’m hiding here…but I guess you can
say that the real reason for my being here right now is I wanted to see it
again…" She motioned her head towards the city on the horizon, one tender
coming from it and one tender going towards it.
"Queenstown," Lowe
said. "That’s where you are from; am I recalling correctly?"
"Aye," she said.
"And that’s where my da and brother Liam are…probably as we speak. But I
do think its best if we leave those stones unturned right now…"
The two officers exchanged looks
after she said that, drifting off into an uncomfortable lull. Lowe urged his
friend to ask her something--by nudging him--and he nodded, turning back to
her. "Miss Andrews," Moody said. "Have you had lunch yet?"
"No," she said with a
sigh, "and it’s going on 3:30 in the afternoon…"
"Well," Lowe spoke in.
"We are just heading down to the crew’s hall to get something to eat. If
you don’t mind the plain atmosphere of it…because it certainly is not First
Class, you are more than welcome to join us." She stood quietly for a
minute, musing over the choice to join the two men.
"Okay," she said
quietly. She straightened herself up and went down the steps, joining the two
officers as the three of them went down to the mess hall.