An Unsinkable Love(30)
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102
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
Chapter 13
Eldon blinked. Had he imagined a rescue ship? No, it really was there. As shivers racked his body his mind started to function again and he began to determine the best course of action. The crewmen in his lifeboat rowed frantically toward the ship and Eldon saw other boats converging on the leviathan. The rescue ship glowed with hundreds of lights and figures ran to and fro tossing ladders and nets over railings and out hull doors.
He watched as the first Titanic lifeboat drew up at the base of the new ship. Passengers jockeyed for position and climbed the rope ladders clattering against the side. He surveyed the other heavily laden lifeboats then the scant dozen occupants of his own. All eyes were on the rescue. It wouldn't do to be associated with the boat full of cowardly crewmen, and the even more cowardly man who disguised himself as a woman to escape the sinking ship. Before he talked himself out of it, he took a deep breath and slipped over the side.
Eldon never knew cold could hurt so badly. His throat seemed to close up as the glacial water lapped under his chin.
Before he lost all feeling, he swam a few strokes to a nearby lifeboat and lunged up, grabbing the rope looped along the gunwale. He managed to croak, "Help me!" loud enough to get a passenger's attention and was quickly pulled aboard. He sat on the plank floor of the boat, his head barely above the sides, and looked across. The men in the lifeboat he'd abandoned were oblivious to his desertion.
103
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
Someone laid a coat over his shoulders and he clutched at it with blue, stiff hands. He'd taken a calculated risk, but then, that was the kind he excelled at. Eldon started to smile, but his frostbitten face refused to move.
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104
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
Chapter 14
Bree huddled in the boat and watched the writhing mail sack slowly rise and swing over the railing high above. A young woman on the next seat let out a loud sigh of relief.
Her two-year-old daughter had been bundled into the bag and lifted on board the rescue ship using the freight gantry. As Bree regarded the seemingly endless wall of metal next to them, she almost wished she could be hoisted aboard instead of facing the ordeal of climbing the rope net stretched down from an open door in the side of the ship. Only the vision of a seam parting and sending her back into the abyss prevented her from asking.
Two crewmen from the Carpathia climbed down and helped survivors get their footing. It was slow going in the frozen darkness. The women's heavy skirts tangled in the ropes and were apt to catch underfoot. A stocky, dark-skinned woman stood and began to wave her arms and jabber in an unfamiliar language. She repeatedly pointed at her feet then her waist. Her efforts were met with blank stares. She shook her head, shouldered the crewman aside, then bent over and grabbed the back hem of her skirt, pulling it through her legs and tucking it into her waistband. The remaining women watched dumbfounded as, unfettered, she clambered up the ropes like a monkey. Understanding dawned and the rest of the survivors quickly followed suit.
The exodus proceeded at a much faster pace.
105
An Unsinkable Love
by Terri Benson
It was Bree's turn. She stepped aside and nodded at Elizabeth as she said to one of the rescuers, "Mrs. DuMont's hurt. I'm not sure she can climb. Isn't there some other way?"
Elizabeth tried to protest, but a look from Bree silenced her.
"Sorry, luv. This is it. Tell you what, though. I'll follow right close behind in case she needs a wee bit of help."
Bree inspected him carefully, as if he were a horse she considered buying. He was big, over six feet. Bulging biceps and shoulders stretched his coat tight. He had a fresh, kind face and his fair cheeks showed the light strawberry blonde fur of an unshaven youth. Bree smiled and nodded. Elizabeth would be in good hands.
Only Bree, the two Titanic crewmen and the other man from the rescue ship remained in the lifeboat. She nodded at the man slumped and unmoving at the oars. "What about him?"
The Carpathia crewman nudged her toward the now-empty ladder. "It's too late for him, miss. Now get your skirt fixed and let's be gettin' on the ship. It's awful cold down here and there's warm blankets and coffee up there."
She nodded her thanks and turned, giving a last look at the remaining Titanic crewman. He studiously avoided her gaze. How would he fare once his actions were known? Even after what had happened, she found herself pitying the man.