UNTIL I FOUND YOU
Chapter Seventeen

Night had fallen, and after a long, silent ride, Jack, Rose, and Cillie had finally made it back to the boarding house. Mrs. Gladys was surprised to see Cillie, but made no objection to her sharing a room with Jack and Rose. After much discussion, the decision was made that the two women would take the bed, and Jack took the floor, where he now lay, his mind still reeling from the cruel comment George had made about his father. Hot tears ran down his face as he remembered all the times his father had taken him for walks by the lake, telling him all the ins and outs of being a real man.

Rose lay awake next to a sleeping Cillie, listening to Jack’s quiet sobs. She knew this was about his father. She’d like to scratch George’s eyes out for hurting Jack like he had. Slipping out of bed, Rose slid down next to Jack and wrapped her arms around him, wanting to comfort him in his grief.

"Shh, Jack. It’s all right. Everything’s all right now," Rose softly cooed, remembering that Jack had once said the same thing to her on that horrible night the Titanic sank.

"My father was a great man, Rose. He was." Jack wrapped his arms around her, accepting her warmth and comfort.

"I know, Jack. I know." Rose kissed his forehead.

"He raised me the best way he could."

"I know, Jack. He raised you to be a good, brave, caring man. He would have been so proud of you, Jack. Especially when the Titanic sank…he would have been beaming with pride."

"You think so?"

Rose hugged him tighter and smiled. "I know."

"You are so wonderful. You know, I think he sent you to me. I do. He saw that I would need you."

"Or that I needed you. I love you, Jack Dawson, and I thank God every day that he sent you to me, even though it almost got you killed."

"I would have died gladly for you, Rose."

"I know. I would do the same for you. Time and again."

Cillie lay in bed, listening to the quiet whispers of the couple, wishing that she had met a man like Jack. Someone kind and chivalrous. Knowing that Rose wouldn’t be back in bed she moved over into the middle of the bed and fell asleep to the sound of soft whispers of endearment between Jack and Rose.

*****

The next morning, Jack went downstairs to find George sitting at the table in front of a glass of orange juice. Not saying a word, Jack went to the stove and fixed himself a cup of coffee.

"Working today?" George looked at his cousin, who barely looked at him. He felt horrible after yesterday. He knew what he had said had hurt his cousin, and now he regretted it deeply. Where Jack had shown him nothing but love and friendship, George had shown him his nasty side.

"Yes," was Jack’s flat answer.

"Cillie here?"

"Maybe." Another cold answer.

"Jack…I’m sorry for what I said yesterday. It was uncalled for and cruel. I was just angry."

"I have to get to work. Later," was Jack’s reply as he left, just as Rose came down the stairs. Rose frowned. Jack never left without waiting to kiss her good-bye. Turning around, she saw the reason why sitting in the kitchen.

"Waiting for Cillie, I assume?" Rose crossed her arms.

"Is she here?" George asked.

"Yes, but she’s asleep, and I don’t know if she wants to see you or not." Rose poured herself a glass of orange juice.

"I guess you’re mad at me, too, for what I did to Cillie."

"And Jack. You hurt him bad, George. He was so upset last night…how could you? How could you hurt him by talking about his father like that?"

"I don’t know. I don’t know what got into me."

"Well, whatever it was, it made Jack cry, and I’ll never forgive you for that!"

George looked at Rose, who was glaring back angrily, and knew that he had really hurt his cousin and there was no way to repair the damage. I’m sorry wasn’t going to cut it.

"What do you want?" Mrs. Gladys glared at George.

"I came to see my wife. Then I will leave," George flatly replied.

"Your uncle would turn in his grave if he saw how you treated that poor woman. Rebecca told me all about it when she got in earlier this morning."

"I don’t have to take this. Just tell Cillie I was here." George got up and stormed out.

"And good riddance to him!" Mrs. Gladys snorted. "How did you sleep last night, dear?" She turned to Rose.

"Oh, Jack and I slept on the floor, but next to Jack, it was the softest floor around." Rose smiled dreamily. Mrs. Gladys laughed, seeing how Rose’s eyes shone with love and happiness at the mere mention of her husband.

"Ah…to be young and newly married. There’s nothing like it."

"Well, I guess I had better head off to the market, or we’ll have no dinner tonight." Rose suddenly remembered that she had told Mrs. Gladys that she’d go to the market.

"You be careful out there, Rose. With that rally in Eau Claire, all kinds of riffraff are drifting into town," Mrs. Gladys warned as Rose skipped out of the house towards town.

*****

Caledon Hockley arrived in Chippewa Falls that morning. His private investigator had told him that his fiancée had been spotted in Eau Claire a couple of days before, and he had been on the next train there. The conductor recognized the picture of Rose, saying she was with a handsome blond man, and when he showed the picture to the general store manager in Eau Claire, his eyes lit up.

"That’s the girl who came in with the Dawson boy. Right pretty she was." The man grinned.

"Where were they heading?"

"Why, to Chippewa Falls. The boy’s hometown. The people are friendly as can be."

So, now Cal was wandering Chippewa Falls in search of information on his missing fiancée. He was entering the market when he spotted the familiar red curls and green eyes. Rose certainly didn’t dress like the first class debutante she truly was, but her grace and stance told him otherwise. He immediately strolled up and grabbed her arm roughly.

"There you are, Rose. You mother thinks you’re dead, and for a while, so did I. Well, you’ve had your fun. It’s time to come home. Now!"

"Think again. I’m not going anywhere with you." Rose struggled in his grasp, but Cal was too strong. She couldn’t get away.

"Of course you are! You’re my fiancée!"

"No, I’m not, and I’ll never be again! Rose DeWitt Bukater died on the Titanic! You’re talking to Rose Dawson now! Officially!" Rose glared at Cal, finally shaking her arm loose and showing him the wedding ring Jack had given her. "See?"

Cal looked at the ring, strangely calm. So, this was the way it was going to be? His fiancée had picked up and married another man? Well, fine. Let Rose live in poverty if she wanted, but she was going to learn that no one crossed Caledon Hockley and got away with it. Just in time for George to see, he backhanded Rose, sending her to the floor.

"I was right the first time. You are a little slut, and so you will be treated." Caledon moved towards her again, just to run into George’s fist. Caledon fell to the ground and glared up at the strangely familiar blond man. Surely this couldn’t be Jack. The man was of heftier build than the gutter rat he had encountered on the Titanic.

"Touch my cousin’s wife again and you will be getting more than a broken nose," the newcomer growled, helping Rose up off the ground.

"Thank you." Rose dusted off her dress and winced as George touched her already reddening cheek.

"That’s going to leave a bruise," George commented, feeling disgusted not only with Cal, but by himself, as well, because this was how he had treated Cillie the day before.

"I suggest you stay out of this, sir. This is between myself and my ex-fiancée here." Cal picked himself up off the ground.

"No, this is between you and me now. You mess with one Dawson, you mess with us all." George stood in front of Rose. "Now, I suggest that you leave Chippewa Falls and never return."

"Not without what’s mine!" Cal glared at Rose.

"She’s no longer your fiancée, I do believe." George crossed his arms.

"Not her, you idiot! You can keep the little whore, for all I care! I want my necklace! You know the one I’m talking about, Rose! Where is it?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The Heart of the Ocean! Where is it? I put it in my coat, which I put on you!"

"Oh, that ratty thing? I threw it in the ocean the minute I stepped on the Carpathia!" Rose lied. "I decided the coat belonged at the bottom of the ocean, along with everything else that belonged to my old life."

"Why, you little…do you even know how much that necklace was worth?"

"Quite a lot, I do believe."

"Why, you…" Cal took a step towards Rose, but stopped when George took a step towards him.

"It serves you right, Cal! Trying to buy your way off the ship, caring more about diamonds and money than human life! It’s too bad that all those children down in third class couldn’t buy their way into a boat. But, as I remember, neither could you. The last time you were seen, you were standing in a boat, battling all those poor people back into the freezing waters."

"Oh, really, my dear Rose? Do tell how you and your husband survived, huh? What seats did the two of you take from a woman and child?" Cal glared at Rose.

Rose smiled sardonically. "None. We were rescued from the freezing waters. We were separated when the ship went down. I found a board to lay on, and Jack held onto a chair until help came. He almost died! If it weren’t for Molly Brown, he would have! So, you see, our rescue was honorable, not cowardly like yours."

Cal smirked. "Well, enjoy your new life, Rose. I hope you find yourself happy, because you can never return to high society now. You wanted to be dead. Well, then, you shall remain so. Come back to Philadelphia and I will tell all and ruin your reputation. Is this in any way unclear to you? Your old life is over."

"It’s perfectly clear, Cal, and I say good riddance to both that life and you."

"Very well, then. So long, Rose." Cal brushed past George and disappeared into the crowd.

"So, that was the great Caledon Hockley. I must say he doesn’t live up to all the hype." George looked after the departing man.

"George…I want to thank you for coming to my defense the way you did. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t." Rose looked at her husband’s cousin, noticing for the first time how much he resembled Jack.

"Well, it was the least I could do, with all the damage I’ve done already. Besides, us Dawsons stick together. Like I said, pick on one of us, and you pick on all of us. Do you want me to walk you back to the boarding house or something?"

"I have to finish shopping." Rose picked up her basket.

"Well, how about I help you, and then we head back to the boarding house. That way, if that Hockley shows back up, I’ll be there."

Rose smiled. "Thank you."

"That’s what family is for."

*****

Cillie was sitting in the kitchen when Rose and George arrived. Cillie got to her feet when she saw George.

"What are you doing here?" she asked coldly.

"Walking Rose home," George replied. "Cillie…I have to apologize to you. What I did was inexcusable. Jack’s right. You’re my wife, not my slave. I should respect your decisions and opinions, just like you respect mine. I’m sorry I hit you. I really am."

"Rose?" Cillie looked at her cousin-in-law, confused at what had brought this change on in George.

"He’s telling the truth, Cillie. He sees the error of his ways." Rose nodded.

"My God, Rose! What happened to you?" Cillie noticed the purple bruise on Rose’s cheek. "George, did you do this?" She went up to her cousin to examine her face.

"No. You think I want Jack to kill me?" George shook his head.

"It was my ex-fiancé, Cal. He backhanded me when he saw that I wasn’t going to go back to him," Rose explained. "George here saved me."

Cillie looked at her husband in shock. "You? You came to her defense?"

"Well, my pa always said that if someone’s picking on a member of your family, you give them a right beating. No matter what." George shrugged. "I guess that was one good thing he taught me, anyway."

"If you don’t mind, I think I’ll go upstairs and lay down for a bit. I’m exhausted from the morning activities." Rose sighed, heading upstairs. "If Jack comes home, tell him I’m upstairs."

"Sure, Rose." Cillie nodded before turning back to her husband. "And you…this may be the one thing that can make it right with Jack, you know. Defending his wife like you did."

"Even if it doesn’t, I wouldn’t blame him. I hurt Jack bad, saying what I did. I’ll be lucky if he even looks at me again."

Just then, Jack walked in, having gotten off early because of a machinery breakdown. He stopped in his tracks when he saw George. "What are you doing here? Here to beat on Cillie again?"

"I deserve that." George sighed. "I was just walking Rose back from the market, that’s all."

Jack frowned. Why would George walk Rose home from the market? "Jack? You’re home early." Rose appeared in the doorway.

Jack’s eyes widened when he saw the bruise on Rose’s cheek. He grabbed George by his coat and pushed him against the wall. "What did you do? What did you do to my wife?"

"Jack, no! Stop!" Rose rushed to her husband and pulled on his shoulders. "He did nothing! It was Cal! It was Cal!"

"What?" Jack looked at Rose.

"It was Cal. He showed up at the market. I guess he hired a private detective to find me. He backhanded me when he saw that I wasn’t going to return to Philadelphia with him. George here saved me. He ran up and punched Cal to the ground. After a few brief words, Cal left for good."

Jack looked at Rose and then at his cousin. He let him go. "I guess I owe you a thank you."

"That’s what family is for, Jack. Mess with one Dawson, you mess with us all." George sighed. "But after what I said last night, I deserve every bit of your anger. I truly am sorry for that, Jack. I really am."

"I guess you can remain in the house. After all, it’s the least I can do, since you came to my wife’s defense against Caledon Hockley." Jack shrugged.

"You don’t owe me anything, Jack…"

"No. I do. Caledon Hockley can be downright deadly at times, and you stood up to him. He could have taken Rose and I wouldn’t have seen her again, but you stopped that. So, I owe you a lot."

"Are we friends again?" George tentatively asked.

"Just watch what you say about my parents."

George grinned. "I will. I’m sorry, Jack, for hurting you the way I did. I’m sorry."

"All’s forgiven. Let’s put it behind us." Jack hugged his cousin, much to Rose’s relief. It was good to see the cousins back together.

"And George…I’m coming home. I do believe you’ve learned your lesson, but hit me again and I’m out of there." Cillie placed a hand on her husband’s shoulder.

"Understood." George nodded with a smile. "Understood."

*****

That night, Rose took out the Heart of the Ocean necklace and examined it in the dim light of the moon. Jack walked in and sat beside her.

"He wanted this back so badly, Jack. I told him that I threw it into the ocean. I just couldn’t part with it."

"Why?" Jack asked.

"Because it reminds me of you. Of that night you drew me wearing this…the night we first made love. Giving Cal this necklace would be like giving up those memories. And I can’t, Jack. I can’t give up what we had."

"Then don’t, Rose. Never let go of our memories, of our love."

"I won’t, Jack. I’ll never let go, Jack. I’ll never let go." Rose kissed him tenderly, then returned to gazing at the sparkling diamond, the memories dancing in the moonlight.

Chapter Eighteen
Stories