“And I am Isabelle,” she added.
“So you are Isabelle.” He seemed to appraise her for a moment. “Miss Emilie and Miss Viola have become my chums. Miss Viola is fearful quiet, but Miss Emilie knows many exciting stories of England. She speaks of you and your trip to England, as well.”
“How nice. Please, will you tell me—”
“Did you know I’m to go to England, too? I’ve an education to see to, and there are folks who will care for me because I’m clever smart.” Again he paused, seeming to study her for a moment. “I’m nine, you know. I’ll be ten two weeks thence, and the captain says—”
The captain.
Images of Josiah Carter plummeting from the rigging flitted across her mind. “Where might I find my companions?”
“Oh, I’ll see to them,” he said, “if you’ll see to the captain. I’m dreadful worried about him. He and Mr. Harrigan say I’m never to go above decks without one of them present, but what with all the commotion up there, I’m afraid they’ve all but forgot about me.” He punctuated the statement with another bout of sneezing.
Isabelle collected her handkerchief and offered it to the lad. “William,” she said slowly, “I shall require a visit with my friends first, please.”
“And then you’ll find the captain?”
Before she could nod in agreement, the boy had her hand in his and begun to lead her through the passageway. A few turns and they arrived at what looked like a dead end. “Hold this, please.” He thrust the candle toward her.
She watched him run his little palm over the smooth wood, then sink his finger into a crack between the boards. A moment later, the wood shifted and groaned, and a narrow door swung open.
“How did you do that?” she asked.
With a shrug, young William retrieved the candle. “There are many secrets in this vessel, Isabelle,” he said.
And you are but one of them.
“Isabelle,” Emilie called. “Look, Viola, Isabelle has found us.”
The room where the two women now sat bore little resemblance to the tiny cell in which they’d all been incarcerated at the onset of the voyage. In contrast, it held a table and two chairs, a pair of lamps attached to the windowless wall, and an austere but pristine set of bunks covered in blankets in a decent state of repair and cleanliness. At the moment, Viola huddled beneath one of them, unresponsive. Mama Dell was nowhere to be found.
Emilie rose from her bunk to kneel and envelop William in a hug. “I see you’ve met our friend William,” she said as she straightened an unruly shock of his dark hair. “He’s quite a young man, isn’t he?”
Isabelle nodded, a thousand questions circling, yet none lighting long enough to be asked. Where was Mama Dell? Had Josiah Carter actually taken pity on the ladies and ordered their move to a nicer cabin? That image certainly did not fit. A tug on her cloak distracted her.
“So now that you’ve seen your friends, will you please fetch the captain?”
She met Emilie’s gaze over the boy’s head. Her head told her to deny his request; her heart thumped a furious agreement. “Yes, of course,” she said.
William caught her sleeve, concern etched on his little features. “Promise me you won’t tell him I sent you. He’ll be fierce angry if he finds out I spoke to you.”
Fierce angry. Yes, she’d seen that side of the man.
“But why, William?” she asked. “I don’t understand.”
“We’re not to know he’s about,” Emilie said. “It seems as though his presence is quite unknown aboard this vessel.” She paused and leaned closer. “I’m not certain our presence is remembered, either,” she added in a whisper. “We’ve seen no one but young William since the fire.”
Isabelle opened her mouth, but Emilie’s look silenced her. “Go and see to the captain’s safety for our friend, please,” she said. “We’ll wait here for your word.”
“Of course,” she whispered.
What made her turn and put
“So you are Isabelle.” He seemed to appraise her for a moment. “Miss Emilie and Miss Viola have become my chums. Miss Viola is fearful quiet, but Miss Emilie knows many exciting stories of England. She speaks of you and your trip to England, as well.”
“How nice. Please, will you tell me—”
“Did you know I’m to go to England, too? I’ve an education to see to, and there are folks who will care for me because I’m clever smart.” Again he paused, seeming to study her for a moment. “I’m nine, you know. I’ll be ten two weeks thence, and the captain says—”
The captain.
Images of Josiah Carter plummeting from the rigging flitted across her mind. “Where might I find my companions?”
“Oh, I’ll see to them,” he said, “if you’ll see to the captain. I’m dreadful worried about him. He and Mr. Harrigan say I’m never to go above decks without one of them present, but what with all the commotion up there, I’m afraid they’ve all but forgot about me.” He punctuated the statement with another bout of sneezing.
Isabelle collected her handkerchief and offered it to the lad. “William,” she said slowly, “I shall require a visit with my friends first, please.”
“And then you’ll find the captain?”
Before she could nod in agreement, the boy had her hand in his and begun to lead her through the passageway. A few turns and they arrived at what looked like a dead end. “Hold this, please.” He thrust the candle toward her.
She watched him run his little palm over the smooth wood, then sink his finger into a crack between the boards. A moment later, the wood shifted and groaned, and a narrow door swung open.
“How did you do that?” she asked.
With a shrug, young William retrieved the candle. “There are many secrets in this vessel, Isabelle,” he said.
And you are but one of them.
“Isabelle,” Emilie called. “Look, Viola, Isabelle has found us.”
The room where the two women now sat bore little resemblance to the tiny cell in which they’d all been incarcerated at the onset of the voyage. In contrast, it held a table and two chairs, a pair of lamps attached to the windowless wall, and an austere but pristine set of bunks covered in blankets in a decent state of repair and cleanliness. At the moment, Viola huddled beneath one of them, unresponsive. Mama Dell was nowhere to be found.
Emilie rose from her bunk to kneel and envelop William in a hug. “I see you’ve met our friend William,” she said as she straightened an unruly shock of his dark hair. “He’s quite a young man, isn’t he?”
Isabelle nodded, a thousand questions circling, yet none lighting long enough to be asked. Where was Mama Dell? Had Josiah Carter actually taken pity on the ladies and ordered their move to a nicer cabin? That image certainly did not fit. A tug on her cloak distracted her.
“So now that you’ve seen your friends, will you please fetch the captain?”
She met Emilie’s gaze over the boy’s head. Her head told her to deny his request; her heart thumped a furious agreement. “Yes, of course,” she said.
William caught her sleeve, concern etched on his little features. “Promise me you won’t tell him I sent you. He’ll be fierce angry if he finds out I spoke to you.”
Fierce angry. Yes, she’d seen that side of the man.
“But why, William?” she asked. “I don’t understand.”
“We’re not to know he’s about,” Emilie said. “It seems as though his presence is quite unknown aboard this vessel.” She paused and leaned closer. “I’m not certain our presence is remembered, either,” she added in a whisper. “We’ve seen no one but young William since the fire.”
Isabelle opened her mouth, but Emilie’s look silenced her. “Go and see to the captain’s safety for our friend, please,” she said. “We’ll wait here for your word.”
“Of course,” she whispered.
What made her turn and put
Similar Books
