Chapter Twenty-Eight
We were strangers at sea, until your secret reached me …
‘Good morning, everyone, today’s port of call is ?lesund, which promises a captivating blend of history, nature, and adventure for those going ashore.
’ Simon’s cheery voice rang out throughout the ship as guests rose and prepared for the day.
‘There is a gentle breeze outside and the temperature is minus two but sunny, so do wrap up,’ he advised.
‘Boxing Day festivities will continue onboard for those not disembarking, but I know that many of you are keen to discover this gorgeous little town.’
Joy stood in her bathroom, staring into the mirror as she listened to Simon and scrubbed her teeth.
When he signed off, Simon wished all guests, regardless of their background, identity, or belief, a joyous day, whatever their activity.
She couldn’t help but smile and wondered if a little bird had whispered Lady Eleanor’s inclusivity suggestions to the cruise director.
Sitting down to brush her hair, Joy thought of the previous evening, after the crew show, when those guests who’d not retired to bed, dispersed for late-night drinks, a silent disco or the showing of Christmas movies.
Bill Zhang had made a sudden announcement that there was a chance that the Northern Lights might soon be seen, and within moments, word spread like wildfire as many grabbed warm outer clothing and made their way to the top deck.
Joy lost her show companions after returning to her cabin for her coat and stood alone, her breath clouding the icy air as she looked up at the vast Arctic sky. All around, cameras clicked, and voices whispered excitedly as a faint green streak rippled above.
Like a delicate brushstroke of light, she remembered that it had glowed softly at first before gathering strength to twist and dance boldly across the sky. More streaks appeared, shimmering in pale greens tinged with violet and vibrant slashes of electric blue.
‘It looks like smoke,’ a man murmured, and Joy noted that he was wearing pyjamas beneath a fur-lined parka.
‘Or a twist of silk …’ a woman in a padded ski suit whispered, her breath catching the cold air.
Joy stood, captivated as she stared, and fascinated by the night sky coming alive. So, this is the aurora borealis! But as fast as the lights had appeared, they vanished, melting back into the night.
Now, as she sat in her cabin and readied herself for the day, Joy checked her phone and forwarded a couple of images to Susan.
She doubted that her daughter would be interested in the Northern Lights, and she might be surprised to see her mother wearing a flattering gold coloured dress.
But Susan would be recovering from the excesses of Christmas Day and was likely to be nursing a headache.
She would barely glance at her phone other than to have her cleaner on speed dial, ready to triple the usual hours, the moment Hugh’s family departed.
The phone on the desk rang, and Joy reached out. ‘Hello?’
‘Hello, sweetie, sorry we lost you last night, it was chaotic on deck, wasn’t it?’ Leticia’s voice was like warm, syrupy honey.
‘Yes, but weren’t the lights wonderful?’
‘I’ll say, hope you took lots of photos, Jim is up to his ears editing a zillion of me photobombing and trying to get a look in while the lights took all his attention.
’ Leticia chuckled. ‘But the reason I’m calling is that Jim wants to go to another talk by Bill Zhang, and Henry is going with him.
I wondered if you’d like to have a wander around ?lesund with me instead? ’
‘Yes, please.’
‘Shall we meet up after breakfast by the cruise terminal? It’s only a short walk into town.’
‘I’ll see you there,’ Joy said. ‘?lesund is known for its art nouveau buildings, and I’ve heard that it’s like stepping into a pretty postcard.’
‘Then let’s go and find out,’ Leticia replied.
Joy made a coffee and munched on a cereal bar, and as she dressed, she wondered where Henry had got to last night.
She hoped that he’d managed to see the lights.
Joy hadn’t had a moment alone with him all day, but it hadn’t diminished the pleasure of the company, especially when they let their hair down and did the conga around the ship.
As Joy reached for her thermal vest and fleecy top, she remembered that Lady Eleanor had been a marvellous table guest. To their surprise, she told everyone that she’d decided to leave the ship at the end of the cruise and return to Ireland to throw a party on New Year’s Eve.
‘I want you all to come and won’t take no for an answer.’ Lady Eleanor was forceful, ‘There is plenty of accommodation and you’ll enjoy the Irish craic. I’ll call my son and have it all arranged.’
Joy wondered what Susan would have to say about that.
To counteract Hugh’s stuffy family Christmas, her daughter threw a Boxing Day party at home in Ladbroke Grove to a room full of their neighbours and overgroomed lawyer colleagues, most of whom charged by the millisecond and only ever smiled when they were serving a subpoena.
Had Joy not set sail on the cruise, Susan would have expected Joy to be there, as usual, to assist with the catering.
Susan’s code for Joy to wait on them all, hand and foot.
As she styled her hair, Joy remembered that throughout the Christmas Day meal, Margaret had kept them entertained with tales of her travels and horsey escapades, delivered with the assurance of someone who’d once corrected the Queen on her bridle technique.
‘In Helsinki,’ Margaret announced over lunch, ‘I was freezing my tits off in a paddock, when my stirrup leather snapped and I flew over my mare’s neck like a champagne cork. Landed in a snowdrift beside a Finnish colonel, who thought I was an avalanche.’
Joy wondered how Margaret and Irish craic would blend at the New Year’s Eve party and decided that it was a party she wouldn’t miss. Being on the cruise, Joy was relieved not to be at Susan’s Boxing Day party, her daughter could serve her own canapés and would be pouring her own drinks this year.
Fastening her coat and hitching her cross-body bag, Joy picked up her cabin card and made her way out of the ship.
In the Mermaid Theatre, Henry and Jim were waiting for Bill Zhang’s talk to begin.
It was a more intimate gathering than before, with only a scattering of guests dotted amongst the rows.
Henry thought that many might be sleeping off the excesses of Christmas Day or heading out to ?lesund, something he fancied himself a little later.
As the lights dimmed and a screen flickered into life, Bill Zhang stepped onto the stage and launched into another fascinating lecture on the mystical wonder of the Northern Lights.
To Henry’s delight, Bill included Norse mythology, explaining that it was believed the lights were reflections of Valkyries’ armour, before discussing Sámi beliefs and how those communities saw the lights as the souls of the dead.
‘In Inuit folklore,’ Jim commented later as they sat having coffee in the Bookmark Café, ‘many indigenous people think sightings of the lights are tied to good fortune.’
‘That’s interesting,’ Henry mused and bit into a shortbread.
‘So, how are you enjoying the cruise?’ Jim asked.
‘It’s been great, more enjoyable than I thought, to be perfectly honest. The onboard entertainment is excellent and has exceeded my expectations, and the excursions have been memorable.’
‘You seem to be getting along well with Joy.’
Henry hesitated. Was now the time to talk about his feelings?
Jim sensed Henry’s pause. ‘Look,’ he said, ‘Leticia is the most perceptive woman I have ever met, and she’s very impressed with Joy.’
‘Yes,’ Henry agreed, ‘me too.’
‘And she can tell that Joy likes you, even I can see that.’ Jim finished his coffee and leaned in.
‘Henry, if you feel something, don’t overthink it, my friend.
I know that my days are very limited, and if I could snatch more than the moments I might have left with Leticia, I would move heaven and earth to do so.
I can promise you that life is too short,’ Jim touched Henry’s arm lightly, ‘and so is this cruise.’
Henry looked at Jim and, for a moment, was filled with shame. The man who sat before him was living with a terminal illness yet spoke without bitterness and with such courage.
There was a pause between them, broken only by the hum of conversation from a book club meeting nearby.
‘Is there someone else?’ Jim asked, ‘You often mention a woman named Audrey.’
‘Audrey?’ Henry appeared puzzled.
‘Yes,’ Jim folded his arms. ‘You talk about sending her photos and remembering to tell her about the places and things that you’ve seen.’
Henry grinned and shook his head. ‘Good heavens, I must have given the wrong impression.’ He leaned back, still smiling. ‘My dear fellow, Audrey is my neighbour, an eighty-three-year-old lesbian, with a wit sharp enough to cut glass and a heart of pure gold.’
Jim burst out laughing, throwing back his head with such force that several members of the book club turned to scowl.
‘In fact,’ Henry continued, undeterred, ‘Audrey’s constantly nagging me to find myself a good woman. But I’d rather accepted that all that sort of thing had passed me by.’
‘Until recently.’ Jim raised an eyebrow.
‘Until recently.’ Henry nodded.
‘Good man.’ Jim lifted his cup in a mock toast. ‘Come out of your comfort zone, before it’s too late.’
Henry smiled faintly and for a second, he thought Audrey was speaking through Jim.
‘Why not ask Joy to have dinner with you tonight, away from our usual table, just the two of you?’ Jim suggested. ‘You’ve nothing to lose after all.’
‘That is an excellent idea.’ Henry nodded as though approving the suggestion. ‘But there is another matter,’ Henry pressed on, ‘and it’s a little delicate. I would appreciate your expertise and help.’
‘You have my full attention,’ Jim replied. ‘I’m listening.’