AN UNFORGETTABLE JOURNEY
Chapter Thirty-One
Jack entered the house just a little before
lunchtime. The shoe factory had let him off early that day. When he walked in,
the first person he saw was Katherine.
"What are you doing home so early,
Jack?" she asked.
Jack shrugged. "They let me go early. I
guess they had too many workers in today, so they let the newest people off
early," he explained. He turned to head for his room.
"Oh, Jack! There’s a young woman resting
in your room right now. I guess her parents were friends of your mother and
father. The poor girl. She just lost her parents on the Titanic. She looked
exhausted."
At the mention of Titanic, Jack felt like a
knife stabbed into his heart. He knew how the girl felt. Rose was constantly on
his mind. "Okay. I won’t disturb her. I just need to grab my sketchbook
from my dresser." He left a moment later to go into his room.
When he opened the door, he saw a bundle
lying on his bed. A small amount of her red hair peeked out from under his
blankets. The color of the girl’s hair reminded him of Rose’s hair. But
everything seemed to remind him of Rose. He crept over to his dresser quietly.
He could hear the sound of her breathing; it sounded as if she were in a deep
sleep. He retrieved his sketchbook, then quietly left the room.
He left the house after telling Katherine
that he would be out back drawing. The sun was high up in the sky and there was
a slight breeze in the late spring air. Jack sat down and started to draw.
Rose’s face stared back at him from the paper. He couldn’t take it anymore; he
fell down into the grass and sobbed. His life felt empty without her in it.
Everywhere he turned he saw a reminder of her. And the only subject that he
could draw anymore was her. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get her
out of his system. He longed to feel the warmth of her skin again.
The memory of the time they had shared
together in the Renault came flooding back to him. He remembered her eyes, so
full of love and passion for him. How could fate be so cruel? He wanted to die.
He really did. But her memory kept him alive. He had made her promise that she
would survive, no matter what. Didn’t he owe her that same promise? But she
didn’t live. She promised, but she didn’t live. The worst part for him was
not knowing how or why she had died. She had been on that board, out of the icy
water. A boat had rescued him. Why hadn't she been there for the boat to rescue
her, too? He continued to cry, his thoughts swirling around in his mind like a
tornado.
*****
"Hello, Katherine. Is my sister
around?" Jesse asked.
Katherine shook her head. "No. She and
Nora left a little while ago. They said something about getting together with
Sandra. Hey, weren’t you suppose to work in the store today?" she asked as
she rocked Elizabeth.
He nodded. "Yeah, but my parents only needed
me until lunch. When does Jack get back today? Do you know?" he asked as
he sat down on the couch.
"Actually, he’s already back. They let
him go early today. He’s out back. I think he’s drawing."
Jesse got up from the couch. "I think
I’m going to go talk to him. Thanks, Katherine. I’m glad that you’re feeling
better."
She watched as he left the house. Elizabeth
had fallen asleep in her arms. After she put Elizabeth in her crib, she made a
sandwich for Rose. The poor girl. She looked so frail this morning, she
thought as she opened the door to Jack’s room. Rose had just awakened; she was
sitting up in bed, yawning.
"I’m glad that you’re up. I fixed you a
sandwich," Katherine said as she entered the room.
Rose smiled at her. "That was very kind
of you, but you didn’t have to do that. You have been kind enough for letting
me get some rest here."
But Katherine shook her head. "It’s no
trouble. Really." She studied Rose closely. Her face was pale and her blue
eyes were saddened. Katherine knew that Rose had a story to tell. She could
feel it.
Katherine set the sandwich down on the bed
before leaving the room. When she entered the sitting room again, Nora and
Diane greeted her. They were sitting on the couch talking. When Diane heard her
enter, she looked up.
"Is that girl still here?" she
asked, her face revealing that she didn’t care much for their visitor.
Katherine nodded. "She just woke up. I
made her lunch."
Nora looked at her. "I think that we
should tell her to leave, Katherine. I don’t trust her. I’ve never heard my
parents talk about any special friends. The only friends they had lived here in
Chippewa Falls."
Katherine couldn’t believe what she was
hearing! It was obvious to her that Diane didn’t like Rose for some reason, and
now she had talked Nora into distrusting her?
At that moment, Rose walked in. It was
obvious from the look on her face that she had overheard their conversation.
"I’m sorry. I did not mean to upset
anyone. The truth is that my parents never knew your parents, but I do have a
connection to your family, but it’s not one that I can explain right now."
Diane smiled smugly. Nora and Katherine
looked at Rose curiously.
"I don’t understand, Rose. Why are you
here, then?" Katherine asked.
Rose looked down at her hands. How could she
begin to explain? The love that she and Jack had shared had been so special to
her. And now she might be carrying his child. His brother and sister could have
a niece or nephew on the way. "I fell in love with..." She stopped,
unable to say his name out loud.
Their eyes widened at her words. "Does
this have something to do with my brother Jack?" Nora asked. Rose looked
her straight in the eye and nodded. She wondered if they knew of his death.
Would she have to be the one to tell them if they didn’t?
Diane gave her the dirtiest look possible. Is
this woman the reason for his sadness? she wondered.
Rose took a deep breath. She had to get into
the subject of Titanic. There was no way around it, and his family had a right
to know what had happened to him. Rose sat down in a chair, then faced them.
"We met on the Titanic. He saved my life, actually. He was so kind and
caring, I couldn’t help but fall in love with him. It is because of him that I
am alive today."
The three women stared at her in shock. Why
hadn't Jack said anything about Titanic? Rose was about to continue her story
when the front door opened. Rose looked up to see the man from the store enter.
He looked at her in shock. Someone was behind him, but Rose couldn’t see the
person. She stood up, preparing to leave. She wanted to run as fast as she
could away from this house. It brought her too much pain to be here.
"Rose, what are you doing here?"
Jesse asked.
Before she could answer, the person behind
him came into view. Rose gasped when she saw him.