SHIP OF DREAMS
Chapter Fourteen
"Oh, Anne." The look on
the young woman's face was enough to tell Rose Murdoch’s fate. She rushed to
embrace her stepsister in protective arms. Rose had never seen Anne in such a
state. Anne appeared ready to cry at any moment, but remarkably held her tears
at bay. "I’m so sorry."
"He froze to death,
Rose," Anne whispered, after several moments. "He died in that
water."
"I know, Anne, I know,"
Rose murmured. Her heart ached at the thought. Jack had suffered an identical
fate, and she had almost suffered the same.
Megan watched the pair from a
distance. She felt a sharp pain in her throat and behind her eyes, but she
blinked the tears away and swallowed the lump in her throat. He’s dead. You
knew he’d be too honorable to allow himself to live, but he why didn’t he think
about Anne? She’s such a sweet girl. Megan frowned. It wasn’t right to
think ill thoughts of the deceased. She waited a moment longer, until Anne
slowly began to pull away from Rose, before she approached them.
"Megan." Rose said the
name with no sense of distaste or pompousness; Megan was an equal in her eyes.
She cast a worried look in Anne’s direction.
"He didn’t make it,"
Anne whispered.
Megan nodded gravely. "He
died an honorable death," she said, and the three fell silent.
"I think...I think perhaps
they’ll need help. In the hospitals," Anne finally said. "I
should...go help." With that, she left her two friends in search of one of
the three dining rooms that had been converted into makeshift hospitals.
*****
"Have you seen Mother?"
Rose asked Anne as the three returned to the third class area that evening.
"No. Have you been searching
for her?" Anne asked.
"Are you serious?" Rose
asked. "Of course not. Megan said she’d seen Cal, though." She looked
to Megan for confirmation, and the latter nodded. "Mother survived; I
watched her board the lifeboat. If they’re both still alive...well, I’d rather
avoid them as much as possible. I don’t want to see them again."
"If I see them and they
inquire about your whereabouts, I’ll tell them you did not survive," Anne
replied, slightly uneasy at the prospect of lying. She decided to change the
subject. "What are your plans for America?"
"I have no idea," Rose
admitted. "Jack...Jack wanted to do so many things..." She paused and
sighed heavily. Jack. She had loved him so much...no, she still loved him.
"I will send word to my
parents. Perhaps I will return home." Megan shrugged. "I don’t really
care for ships all of a sudden. What are your plans?"
Anne paused. What were her plans,
anyway? She could always go to the Lewises, but she detested the idea. She also
wanted to speak with a certain friend of the family in New York...she sighed.
"Anne?" Anne’s thoughts
jarred back to reality at Rose’s voice. "Are you all right? Megan asked
about your plans."
"Oh, yes. My plans. I
promised the Lewises that I would work for them," Anne replied.
Both Rose and Megan blankly
stared at Anne. "You can’t be serious," Rose protested. "After
all of this? Will, Jack...they died for us, Anne. Live a little! I should think
that, after living in that finishing school, you’d want to do something a bit
more exciting with your life!"
"I don’t want to be a
governess," Anne finally admitted.
"I don’t blame you,"
Rose replied. "Perhaps we should all rethink our plans for a moment."
"The three of us could find
lodging somewhere, until we decide what to do," Megan boldly suggested.
She was entirely comfortable around Anne, but Rose still seemed to clutch onto
what little bit of first class air she yet possessed.
"That sounds
wonderful." Rose nodded genially.
The three dodged families sprawled
out over every inch of the deck. They made their way to a corner and sat down
there to eat their soup in silence.