A VOYAGE TO REMEMBER
Chapter Twenty-Four
"Tell me of your
friend," Rose ordered Edith.
"I believe you have to tell
us a bit about your situation first," she replied coolly.
"A question for a
question?" Elizabeth evened out the rivals.
"Fine!" they retorted
in unison.
"What is your secret,
Rose?" Edith cut in, then looked at Mrs. Penn. "Please start
measuring her for the light cream and red fabric."
"Only if you promise not to
tell," she whispered. "Send out the maids."
Edith nodded and waved the
servants out.
"I-I can’t stand Mr.
Hockley!" she cried out. "Or my own mother! This sounds terrible…but
it’s my only way out…" she continued. "I plan on committing
suicide."
Erica covered Emily’s ears.
Elizabeth and Edith gasped as Elaine sat there knowingly. Isolde’s eyes widened.
"You can’t, Rose!"
Edith pleaded loudly.
"I will," she said with
a nod, "and if you stop me, I’ll report your little friend."
"Nothing will come of
that," the oldest sister informed her.
"Well, then," the
redhead started with a deep breath, "if you are all really my friends,
help me out of that only reasonable option."
The girls looked at each other,
silently trying to come up with ideas. Isolde suddenly cut in.
"She can switch places with
me."
Everyone turned their eyes
towards her. Rose looked downcast still.
"How?" Elizabeth asked.
"Give her my cabin,"
she said with a shrug. "If her mother believes her to be so disgusted at
third class, she’ll find it hard to believe she joined them."
"Cal will have the entire
ship searched," Rose fretted.
"Then we come up with an
alibi," Edith responded, "using your first plan."
"I’ll report to Cal in
hysterics that you jumped overboard!" Erica cut in. "I saw you and
was too far away to stop you!"
"This might work,"
Elaine whispered to herself.
Rose looked her in the eye.
"We’ll make it."
*****
Dinner had just let out. Isolde
had a half hour window to take Rose to her new steerage quarters and explain it
all to Aine before meeting Harold.
Isolde took the shortcut through
Scotland Road. They were at the door of the room and rushed inside. Aine sat
there in shock at the dressed up Isolde.
"Aine," Isolde began
quickly, "this is Rose. She’ll be staying here for the rest of the trip. I
know this is a lot to ask, but can you help her around? She has her belongings
and such," she continued while pulling Rose’s hidden suitcases from under
her bed.
"What of you?" Aine
inquired. "Why are you dressed up? What are you taking your suitcase
for?"
"I’m switching places with
Rose because of a situation." The Irishwoman’s eyes widened in fear.
"It won’t affect you. I promise. But Rose is supposed to be a third class
woman. Please help her; I’ll come down to visit soon."
Isolde looked at the clock on the
wall nervously. She sent an apologetic smile and rushed through the door with
suitcase in hand.
*****
Erica rushed across the decks
with her dress lifted up so she wouldn’t trip. Fake tears ran down her face as
she sniffled. She suddenly entered the warmth of the first class dining area.
She knocked into a man accidentally, causing him to spill his drink. She burst
into the men’s smoking room. Coughing at the fumes and stumbling, she reached
Cal. He looked at her with a drunken smirk.
"Mr. Hockley…" Erica
struggled to catch her breath. "It’s Rose…"
He suddenly frowned. "What
about her?"
"She--she’s gone!"
"How can she be gone from a
ship?"
"She jumped, sir!" she
cried hysterically. "I saw her go over the side!"
Cal stepped back with shock.
Erica fell to the ground in a heap.
"It was terrible! Like a
nightmare! I couldn’t stop her! She was too far away!"
Erica’s own fiancé lifted her
from the floor and placed a comforting arm around her shoulders. He whispered
to her as they left the room. Cal rushed off, his servant following him. Cal
was out of hearing range and began laughing madly.
"What is so funny?"
"She’s gone," he began
breathlessly. "My fiancée is gone. I just spent unimaginable amounts of
money on her for nothing."
"You won’t have debt
attached to you," Lovejoy said with a shrug. "There are many willing
women to wed."
Cal laughed again. "Very
many, with much more potential," he said, more to himself than Lovejoy,
thinking of the mysterious girl he’d seen in the dining hall during dinner that
night.
*****
"I knew those acting classes
would come in handy!" Erica exclaimed, lounging on the sofa.
The girls laughed, all smiles.
Their plan had been successful. Isolde rushed in and dropped her suitcase with
a thud. They stopped to look at her. From their giggling, the Welshwoman knew
they had succeeded. She let out the breath she had been holding. Suddenly, she
realized she had to be off and left with a wave towards her next
destination--Harold.