An Unsinkable Love(25)
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
smaller husband patted her arm and urged her to keep moving.
Another strident voice carried over the din. He recognized the speaker as Mrs. Brown, a newly rich matron from Colorado. Her coarse language and commanding personality irritated Eldon to the point of madness, but Malcolm found her quite entertaining whenever they had met at dinners or other gatherings aboard the ship. She herded several reluctant passengers ahead of her, keeping up a running diatribe. "Now don't slow down, we've still got a ways to go. I don't care if it is a drill, I ain't takin' any chances. If there's nothin' to it, we'll all be snug in our beds shortly, so quit your caterwaulin'
and let's get a move on." She winked at Malcolm as they passed, and he couldn't help but smile.
His smile faded as he grasped the doorknob to his mother's cabin. It was unlocked. He flung open the door.
They were gone. His mother's armoire stood wide and he saw most of her clothes and coats were missing. Eldon's closet, likewise ajar, showed empty space on the floor. Malcolm sighed with relief. They must have already been warned. He fought his way one more door down the hall and entered his cabin where he donned a heavy cashmere coat with fur collar, matching scarf and a pair of thick gloves. At the last moment, he sat on a bench and changed his light leather shoes for a pair of heavier boots. He strode to the door before he remembered his life vest. Another vest nestled with it, and he caught it up as well.
Back out in the corridor, the crowd grew more alarmed as rumors circulated that water covered the lower decks and 86
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
there weren't enough boats for everyone. Any hope that Mr.
Chisholm had been wrong was squelched by the sight of so many terrified passengers. Malcolm watched as a young man was shoved and fell. He struggled through the throng and, with savage use of his elbows and a sharp kick or two, forced the mass to move away enough so he could help the frightened boy to his feet. Wild-eyed and pale, his nose bleeding profusely, the young man clutched a bloodied hand to his chest as he looked up at Malcolm.
Malcolm realized the boy wasn't wearing a life vest and helped him into the extra one. Anxious to find his mother and Bree, he said, "Grab on to my coat and hang tight. I'm sure we'll find your family out on the deck." Keeping near the wall, they worked their way down the crowded corridor. His mind roiled with concern for his mother and the seamstress. If only he'd stayed in the cabin, he could have made sure they were safe. Instead, he'd foolishly wasted time hunting for Eldon.
His musings came to an abrupt halt when he stepped out onto the deck. What he beheld took his breath away.
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87
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
Chapter 9
It was bitterly cold. The lifeboat undulated over gently rolling swells a short distance from the foundering ocean liner. Bree shivered.
The crewman in the middle of the boat put the long wooden oars into the oarlocks and rowed away from the ship, each sweep accompanied by a loud creak. The senior crewman sat at the tiller and steered, his hooded eyes fixed on some unknown point on the black horizon.
As they drew farther way, more and more passengers leapt or fell into the water. Cries of distress echoed over the strangely smooth ebon water. Bree could almost smell the fear and despair surrounding her.
"Why aren't we helping? Don't you see that man over there? He's waving. Please turn back!" Bree called to the man at the stern who clutched the long wooden rudder under his arm. His eyes swiveled slowly toward her and glared, then turned away. She begged the crewman on the oars, "Please make him turn. There are people out there! Can't you hear them?"
"We ain't goin' near 'em. They'll swamp us like as not, and I ain't aimin' for a swim. Orders are to get away from the ship so she don't take us down when she goes," the older man rasped.
"But there are people out there and we have plenty of room!" Several other women echoed Bree's cry.
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An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
The man at the rudder spoke loudly. "We ain't goin' back for anyone. My orders are to stand off and wait for rescue.
There are other boats. Let them go back if they want."
Bree pleaded with the other passengers. "We must help them! What if it's your husband or son out there?"