AN UNEXPECTED TURN
Chapter Eleven

About fifteen minutes later the door opened and Molly walked in.

"Gwen darling, get a coat and a life jacket on. I don't know why but they want us up on the deck," Molly said.

Gwen stood up with a confused look on her face.

"What?" she asked.

"I don't know what it is, but I was sipping on my drink and then a steward came in to each table and started to tell us to get our coats and life jackets on. I just thought of coming back here to get you," Molly answered.

Gwen was still confused but then she turned and Melanie went to the closet and pulled out two life jackets. She handed one to Gwen and then one to Molly. She helped the two women put the jackets on and then Gwen put on her warmest coat.

"Melanie I don't know what it is but your coming with us," Molly said.

"Well miss I'm sure it's nothing," Melanie replied.

"No, your coming with us," Molly stated, plain and simple.

Gwen then helped Melanie put a life jacket on and then a coat and the three women left the room. They walked to the grand staircase where there was at least twenty people, just standing there. Talking, but acting as if nothing was wrong. Gwen stood close to Molly for the fear of being spotted by Bruce.

Molly stopped a steward who was about to go up the stairs.

"What's doing, sonny? You've got us all trussed up and now we're cooling our heels!" Molly said.

The Steward backed up a bit.

"Sorry, mum. Let me go and find out," he replied as he turned around and ran up the stairs.

Molly turned back to them.

"I don't think anyone knows what the hell is going on around here," she said.

"Well maybe we should go up onto the deck. If we find Will he should be able to tell us," Gwen suggested.

"Good plan," Molly said.

The two women walked up the stairs and then went up to the deck in search of Will. They looked around and saw officers running around, uncovering the life boats and hooking them up to the davits. Gwen looked in search of Will and after about five minutes of looking she found him, helping to hook the boats to the davits.

"Will!" Gwen cried.

The man turned to face her and had a worried look on his face.

"Gwen!" he shouted over the loud noise.

She ran up to him and he pulled her into a quick embrace.

"Will whats wrong? Whats going on?" she said when they had pulled apart.

He looked at her, afraid to tell her the truth.

"The ship is sinking," he said in a lower voice than before.

"What?!" Molly and Gwen both asked.

"Don't tell many right now, were going to start loading the boats but we don't need a panic. That was the Captains' and Mr. Andrews' orders," Will answered.

Gwen slowly moved her hand to her mouth, she had been thinking about it just two days ago. With the amount of people on board times the amount of life boats, there weren't enough boats on board. Half of the people on the boat would die tonight.

"The first boat that gets sent down will have you on it," Will said to the three women.

"What? No, not unless your on the boat," Gwen replied.

"I would be lucky if I got on the first boat, but I don't care. You are getting on the first boat that gets sent down," he said.

"Will-"

"No arguments!" he said.

"Will I'll get her on a boat," Molly said softly.

Gwen looked at Molly and then back to Will.

"Thank you Molly," he said.

Gwen threw her arms around him and he hugged her back.

"It'll be fine, I promise. I'll get on a boat," he said.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too. Now go. Get on a boat and I'll see you in a little while," he said back.

He pulled away and after giving her a quick kiss on the cheek he turned back to his men who were just finishing up with the boat with being readied to lower into the cold black water.

Gwen, Molly, and Melanie walked over to a boat that Lightoller was now saying that it would be women and children only right now. Gwen looked around, and then it hit her.

"Molly, I left Judy! I can't believe I was so stupid! I need to go back and get her!" Gwen said.

Just as Molly was hearing this news she was being put in a boat.

"Gwen...I made a promise to Will," she said.

"Molly, Judy is engaged to be married! Her fiancé will be waiting for her in New York!" Gwen snapped.

Molly was silent for a moment.

"Go! But hurry back and you two get on a boat!" Molly yelled.

Gwen nodded and then she began to ran, she was just reaching the clock when she saw a familiar head.

'Judy!' she thought.

"Judy!" she called over the crowd.

The young maid turned to face Gwen.

"Oh Miss. Wilde! I was looking for you, Mr. Andrews came knocking on the door and told me to get up onto the deck. But I knew I had to find you!" she said.

Gwen looked and saw one of her coats in Judy's arms.

"Judy put the coat on. We need to get you up to the deck into a boat," Gwen said.

Judy put the coat on and kept her hands close to the pocket which held something that Judy decided to stick in the pocket to keep it safe for Gwen.

"Whats the matter miss?" Judy asked as she walked up to meet her.

"I can't say it here, I'll tell you up on deck. Right now though we need to go!" Gwen ordered.

"GWEN!!!" a voice yelled through the room.

Gwen turned to find Bruce running towards her.

"Gwen! I've been looking all over for you! We need to get you into a boat right now!" he said.

Gwen sighed, her running days were over.

"Yes I know Bruce. I came to find Judy," she replied.

He grabbed Gwen by the hand in a rough manner.

Judy rushed up to them and Gwen grabbed her by the hand.

"Bruce we know how to walk! We were just going to head up to the deck. Could you let go of my hand?" she asked.

Bruce actually lightened his grip on her and the three walked up to the deck.

When they reached the deck it had begun to go crazy.

"Do you know how long we have?" Gwen yelled to Bruce.

"At least an hour!" he yelled back.

Gwen's mind raced, she wasn't going to get on a boat. Not with Bruce. As she looked around she saw Will come into view.

"We need more women and children!!!" his voice yelled.

As people were rushing Gwen took this moment and seized it. She held on tight to Judy's hand and pulled away from Bruce. She wanted to loose him but make her way back to Will. The two women ran up to a boat that was nearly full. Gwen saw her chance to stick Judy onto the safety of a lifeboat and shoved her through the crowd. Judy had no idea how she had lost Gwen but the next thing she knew Mr. Lightoller was sticking her onto a boat.

"Be safe!" Gwen screamed to Judy.

"Gwen?!" another voice called.

Gwen turned to see her father.

"Hello father," she said.

"Why didn't you get on that boat?!" he asked as he pointed to the boat that was now being lowered.

Before Gwen could answer she heard gun shots. She looked out and saw that fifth officer Harold Lowe had shot his gun into the air.

"Daddy, I know what boat I'm getting on. That wasn't it. Right then my concern was making sure that Judy made it to New York so that she could be married to John," Gwen replied.

"Come on, I saw Bruce up this way with Will. We need to get you on a boat," he said.

Henry grabbed his daughters hand firmly and began to pull her up towards where Will was. Just as they were reaching him he was ordering the lowering of a boat. Gwen looked over and saw Bruce was sitting there, in silence as he was lowered.

'Typical,' she thought.

"Will we need to get my daughter on the next boat! I don't care right now about what happened the other day! Just her safety!" Henry yelled to Will.

Will looked and saw the flustered Gwen.

"Yes sir!" he yelled back.

Gwen made her way to Will who was ordering some men to get one of the collapsible boats down.

"Gwen I thought I told you to get on a boat!" he yelled over the screams.

"Well you did...but I forgot to get Judy. Shes engaged to be married! I could just leave her," she said.

Will was silent and nodded.

About fifteen or twenty minutes later Will was helping to lower the boat. Gwen decided to do anything to stay on with Will as long as possible and was helping to get the boat down. Henry had gone to do something while the next boat (the one after Bruce) was being lowered. Gwen had made up some excuse and scored some extra time to be with Will on the boat.

"Hold it! Hold it!...Hold it!" Will yelled to the men who were trying to slide the boat down so that it could be hooked up to the davits.

The weight of the boat snapped the oars it was supposed to come down on and it fell, causing a bench in the boat to break. By the time they were fighting to get it hooked to the davits Will was loosing control of the crowd who were now fighting to get onto the boat. By this time Gwen's feet had only skimmed the water. Her father had since returned and was trying to fight the crowd off. Gwen was standing near her father as she tried to help. Gwen heard gunshots and turned to see Will.

"I'll shoot any man who tries to get past me!" he yelled as he pointed the gun at the crowd.

She turned back to the crowd and tried to keep them off.

"Give us a chance to live, you limey bastards!" a Irish voice yelled.

"Get back!" Will yelled.

Gwen was still fighting the crowd and trying to calm them a bit. Just then she heard two more gun shots. She didn't bother to look at Will this time. Just assuming that he was shooting them into the air again. But then she heard her fathers voice.

"No Will!!" he yelled.

Gwen turned to see two dead bodies on the ground and Will raising the gun to his temple.

"WILL!" she screamed.

Then the gun went off, she stood frozen as she saw the man she loved fall back into the water.

"WILL!" she screamed again.

Her father stepped back from the crowd and took the spot where Will had been guarding where they were finishing up hooking the boat to the davits. Although it was almost useless since the part of the ship they were on had nearly been submerged into the water. By this time Gwen stood there, not believing she had just witnessed what Will had done. She was still quiet, not fighting as somebody pulled her onto a life boat.

"Gwen I will try to get on a boat!" a voice, that sounded like her father called.

She just stared as the spot she had seen Will. As a officer climbed into the boat and began to row away she heard screams and she looked at what the women were screaming at. Will's body, by now she was fighting back tears. Still not believing it. Will, her Will. William McMaster Murdoch, had killed himself. And in doing so, he might as well of killed Gwen.

Chapter Twelve
Stories