A FATHER'S RESCUE
Chapter Nineteen
She was back at the bow. It was as if she'd
never left.
"Jack?"
"I'm right here." He whispered the
words into her hair. When Rose turned to face him, he was smiling.
"You handled him very well, Rose. You
should be proud of yourself."
"You knew he was coming, didn't
you?"
"I tried to warn you, but I didn't have
much time."
"You did warn me," Rose remembered.
"You told me my father and I should leave town, go to California."
She paused, then said sadly, "He'd find me there, too. He'd track me to
the ends of the earth if he had to."
"There is one way to get rid of Cal once
and for all."
Rose met his eyes, and slowly it dawned on
her what she had to do.
"Are you sure you're ready for
this?" Jack asked her. "It was never Cal you were really afraid of.
Your father's scared of her, too. That's why he left."
"You're right," she responded,
turning back to face the open sea. A heavy fog had descended over the water,
obscuring the view. To her shock and delight, Jack wrapped his arms around her
waist from behind and rested his head upon her shoulder.
"You can do it, Rose," he told her.
"You trust me?"
Rose's eyes threatened to spill over, but she
choked back the sob in her throat. "I trust you."
"Good. I'm very proud of you, Rose. Just
keep doing the best you can." Just as suddenly as he had appeared, Jack
was gone. Shortly after that Rose awoke, to find herself looking into her
father's face.
"Oh, Daddy. Was I calling out in my
sleep again?"
"No, I just came to look in on you. I
hope you don't mind. You've been asleep for two hours."
"That long? I'm sorry. I didn't mean
to."
"Don't apologize. You were worn out.
It's nearly dinnertime now. Would you like some?"
"No, I don't think so. I'm just not hungry.
You go ahead, though. I'll be all right here."
Michael didn't seem sure, but went as Rose
wanted. He returned to her room after dinner, hoping that they could talk about
the traveling he had suggested lately.
"May I sit?" he asked, and she
laughed as he awkwardly took a seat at the foot of her bed.
"I'm truly sorry about these lodgings,
Daddy," Rose apologized, lowering her eyes in embarrassment. "It was
the best I could do under the circumstances."
"Oh, I understand, darling."
Michael leaned over and patted her hand. "I ended up here, too, remember?
But now, with our combined resources, we can move on. The more I think about
California the better it sounds. We can purchase a small home on the
oceanfront, enjoy the sunshine, and--who knows--perhaps it would do wonders for
our health."
"But what about Mother?"
"Ruth?" He didn't understand the
question. "She wouldn't be interested in leaving the comforts of
Philadelphia."
"No, I mean...we should go to her.
Confront her."