Chapter 4
Emmeline and Leon whizzed past benches, wires, and the ventilators on deck.
She led him around a funnel, so they cut line of sight, and spotted the perfect hiding place: a raised platform with a white-painted, solid wooden fence.
They raced up the steps, and she pulled him down to conceal them.
The small space was empty, save for a golden, tubular apparatus in the middle, housing a compass.
“Would you mind explaining why we’re on the run?” Leon’s tone carried a mild amusement.
Emmeline took a few breaths to calm down. “My father.”
“In that case, wouldn’t it be better if we—” He started to rise.
“No!” She tugged on his arm.
“We were only playing shuffleboard. What could possibly land you in trouble?”
“My existence,” she murmured. “Wait a bit, won’t you?”
He didn’t say anything else, but he didn’t move, either.
After a few minutes, Emmeline peeked over the fence and scanned the deck. No Father in sight.
“It’s safe.” She rose, but thoughts of leaving dissipated with the breathtaking view.
The platform was high enough to overcome the clutter on deck and reveal only the ocean.
The foaming of the waves against the vivid blue looked like a reflection of the sky above, where small white clouds chased across the heavens.
Leon rose to his feet and leaned on the fence next to her.
“I wish I could stay here forever,” she said, gazing at the ocean.
“The platform?”
“The ship. Because then I don’t have to worry about what’s behind, nor ahead.”
A little wrinkle appeared between his eyebrows. “You don’t want to go home?”
Did she tell him she was going home? Well, it was easy enough to infer. “Not particularly. My parents are very cross with me. The reason we’re already going home—why we’re on this ship—is my misbehavior.”
“What did you do?”
“I tried to sneak out for a dance.”
A brief smile crossed his lips, but he didn’t comment.
“What about you?” she asked. “What will you do in the States? Or are you returning there?”
“I … I’m not sure.”
“Whether you’re returning or not?”
He chuckled. “No. Just of my goals.”
“Looks like we’re in the same boat, then.”
He shook his head, but the mirth in his eyes indicated her joke had landed.
Too bad the ship, too, had to land eventually.
“Lucky you,” she said. “You can do whatever you wish.”
His gaze turned pensive, anchored to a faraway point on the horizon. “Yes. I suppose I can, now.”
Wasn’t he free before?
“Excuse me? Sir, miss?” A crewman on the deck waved to get their attention. “You’re not allowed to be up there.”
“Oh, here we go again,” she muttered, and they descended the steps. Once the crewman left, Emmeline turned to Leon. “Now, what do we do?”
“Have you been to the bow yet?”
“No. Are we permitted to go?”
“That’s what third class gets you.” He raised an eyebrow and a corner of his lips. “The promenade is right there.”
“Perfect!”
He offered his arm, and they headed down the deck. With her arm wrapped around his elbow, Emmeline felt like a proper lady, and she lifted her chin in an exaggerated motion.
“Don’t let anyone comment on your misbehavior now,” he said.
“You only need a cane, and we’d be straight out of a promotional catalog,” she mused.
He tipped an imaginary hat, and laughing, they rounded the corner.
Up ahead, Mother was marching straight toward her, two other ladies sandwiching her like personal guards.
Emmeline panicked and, perhaps not too gently, pushed Leon behind the corner.
“Emmeline! There you are.” Mother spread her hands in greeting as she approached.
“Uh, yes, hello.” Emmeline straightened her spine and glanced to the side, where Leon stood, plastered against the wall.
Mother narrowed her eyes. “Is everything all right?”
“Absolutely.”
“Well, then, our Turkish baths appointment awaits. Come.”
“Now?”
“Yes, now.” Mother gestured for her to get moving.
Emmeline threw another quick look at Leon and mouthed, “Tomorrow.”
He nodded.
“Emmeline?” Mother followed her gaze.
“Let’s go,” Emmeline pasted a smile on her face. “Like you said, appointment awaits!”
That seemed to have convinced her. Emmeline didn’t dare look back as they walked away from Leon. Maybe they could visit the bow tomorrow.
First, electric bath torture awaited.
Emmeline did indeed find Leon the next day.
After breakfast, Father took Brendon and Tristan on a tour of the wireless telegraph room; Emmeline only hoped Father’s connections in the industry wouldn’t come back to bite him if Tristan pulled one of his antics on the delicate machinery.
As for herself, she had to take a walk along the promenade with Mother, and that was when she spotted Leon on the deck below.
He waved in greeting, and she waved back, only slightly raising her hand so Mother couldn’t see.
More gestures followed as they tried to figure out how and where to meet until Mother interrupted her with a, “Is anything the matter?”
“Actually …” Emmeline did a light cough. “I’m not feeling so well. May I retire to my room?”
“Of course.” Mother wrinkled her eyebrows in worry. “Should I call for a physician?”
“No! I think it was just the bath yesterday didn’t agree with me.” To be fair, she didn’t think water and mild electricity should mix. “I’m sure it’ll pass. All I need is a few hours of rest. I’ll read a book and be right as rain.”
Mother let her go, and once she was out of sight, Emmeline found Leon and gestured for him to come up.
“We’ll have to go somewhere inside.” She led him toward the nearest door. “My mother’s on deck.”
They entered a small hallway, and she opened the first door. “Empty. Perfect.”
“It’s empty because we’re outside the opening hours.” Leon pointed to the notice on the door.
“Even better.” She herded him in and closed the door.
Leon paused, taking in the long room with large windows on one side and a world map attached to the opposite wall. The rest was a forest of machinery. “You’ve brought me into a torture chamber.”
“What? No.” She snorted. “It’s a gymnasium.
See, bicycles …” She pointed to the pair of stationary bikes—essentially a seat with pedals.
“And, uh … this thing!” She stepped to a contraption consisting of two poles with a wheel attached to each; one had a lever, and the other what looked like the backrest of a wooden chair. “It rubs your belly.”
“It does what now?”
She nearly doubled over in laughter from Leon’s shocked, wide-eyed look. “Have you never been to a gymnasium?”
“Not really.”
“You’d better get used to it, going to the States.
They’re all the rage in New York. Brendon begged Father to go to one, but Father said he was still too young.
I caught him in front of the mirror one day, flexing his would-be-biceps.
” She imitated her brother by lifting her arm and emulating a powerful pose.
“I fail to see how this would help.” Leon pointed to the stomach-rubbing machine.
“Well, not this one, but maybe the rowing? Or, we could do a bicycle race.”
They did that, and raced and laughed, until the attendant came and shooed them out, murmuring something about it “being dangerous, here unattended.” Luckily, he didn’t pursue the matter further.
For the rest of the morning, they finally visited the third class promenade on the bow, where a little girl started sighing over Emmeline’s hairstyle, and Emmeline spent the next half hour twisting the girl’s hair into a perfect Psyche knot, while Leon folded a flower from a ribbon the girl had, to finish off her brand new hairstyle.
Emmeline snuck into her room as Mother checked on her before lunch, and afterward, it was back to the deck and finding Leon.
Afternoon passed in them watching a game in the Squash Court, deep inside the ship, and walking the two terriers of a lady who’d gotten a sudden bout of seasickness.
Then came dinnertime.
“The band has a concert in the reception after dinner,” Emmeline said to Leon as they stood before the first class entrance on the deck, about to say goodbye. “Would you like to go see it?”
“What about your parents?”
“They never stay in the reception afterward. They see my brothers to their beds, then retire to their cabin. I promise it’ll be safe.”
“All right, then.”
“Perfect! Meet me here at eight.” She didn’t know why she suddenly had a fluttering feeling in her stomach, but it was pleasant and exciting, and she wanted to hold on to it forever. “I’ll see you,” she said and, after Leon gave her a smile goodbye, left to get ready.
Emmeline spent twice as much time as usual that evening picking out the right dress.
She finally decided on a cream-colored silk gown with short sleeves and a skirt draped to one side.
It had a navy blue velvet sash wrapping around like a bodice and forming a bow on the back, its ends extending down, almost like a train.
She wrangled her curls into a voluminous bun and wrapped a string of pearls around it, the white perfectly contrasting her black hair.
Mother was impressed, at least, and praised her fashionable choice, but throughout dinner, Emmeline’s thoughts were already on the events to come.
Giddy with anticipation, she couldn’t wait for the meal to be over and her family to leave.
She accompanied them back to their deck, waited until they were all settled in their cabins, and slipped out.
Leon was already waiting outside the promenade door. He opened his mouth but only continued to stare for a few moments, finally blinking. “You’re beautiful.”
“Thank you.” She did a little curtsy. “So are you—I mean, uh, you look great.”
He dusted the sleeve of his finely tailored, stark black jacket, then brought out the hand he’d been hiding behind his back. “This is for you.” He offered her a pale pink rose. “It’s not real, it’s silk, but I couldn’t—”