Questions
It seemed Jonathan didn’t like the lack of conversation either. Eventually, he asked, “What are your plans once you reach America, Miss Meg?”
“Oh, I’m not sure yet,” she admitted. They had made their way to the stairwell, and she was ever so cautious to watch her footing above the sleeping babe’s head as she made her descent. Jonathan seemed ready, lest she slip or fall, but she made it safely down, heading toward the corridor.
Once she reached level ground, he asked, “What was your trade in England?”
“Actually,” she dodged, “America is all about fresh starts. I think I may try my hand at something entirely different than what I am used to.” She could see their room just at the end of the hall, and though she didn’t mind Jonathan’s questions, they were becoming more personal and more pointed.
“That sounds like an exciting venture,” he replied. “And what does Mr. O’Connell do?”
“He’s a carpenter,” Meg replied quickly, without stopping to wonder if doing so could be problematic.
“I see. And Mrs. O’Connell—your sister?”
Meg smiled. “Clearly, you can see we are not actually sisters.”
“No, of course not,” he replied. “Just friends then?”
“Precisely,” she nodded. “Life-long friends. We may as well be sisters.” She couldn’t help but wonder if she had just been given a test of some sort, as if Jonathan was trying to ascertain if she would lie to him about her obvious lack of true family ties to the O’Connells. She was hopeful that, if such was the case, she had passed. “This is our cabin,” she said, stopping outside of the door. “Thank you so much for walking with us.”
“Certainly,” he replied. “Hope to see you soon, Miss… what is your surname?”
As if on cue, Lizzy began to fuss. “Oh, dear. I’m so sorry. Thanks again,” Meg said, bouncing the baby and disappearing into the cabin as quickly as possible. Once the door was shut, she leaned back against it, breathing a sigh of relief. Hopefully, her avoidance of the question didn’t come across as rude, and Mr. Lane would only assume she was in a hurry to get the baby back to sleep. As if she had only whimpered in order to assist her aunt, Baby Lizzy fell back into a deep slumber, and even when Meg went to lay her on the bed, she did not stir. “Thank you, little angel,” Meg whispered, smoothing her baby hair and kissing her gently on the top of the head before pulling the blankets around her.
However, as he made his way back up the stairs, Jonathan’s suspicions continued to grow. Who was this woman that she would so blatantly avoid any question pertaining to her name? Why did she own such an expensive robe? Her hands were soft and smooth, as if she had never worked a day in her life, and the fact that she was unwilling to discuss any sort of labor, prior or future, seemed odd as well. While it didn’t necessarily matter if Meg was hiding something if Charlie’s only intent was to spend some time with her on the boat, he knew his friend a bit better than that. Therefore, it seemed important to know as much information about Aunty Meg as possible before Charlie became even more intrigued by her.
Ruth was certain she had seen a dawfin at last, though no one else in her party could vouch for the accuracy of her eyesight. Nevertheless, if she was happy, they were happy. Once the spotting was complete, she bounded from Charlie’s arms and began to play with her mother’s scarf again, throwing it up in the air and catching it as the adults leaned against the railing and chatted.
“What sort of work do you do, Daniel?” Charlie asked, leaning on one elbow.
“Carpentry, mostly,” Daniel replied in his thick Irish accent. “Basically, anythin’ I can do with my hands, though.”
“Do you have anything lined up once you get to New York?”
“Not yet,” Daniel admitted. “We had been plannin’ to relocate for a while, but not so soon…”
Kelly interrupted before her husband said too much. “We jumped at the chance to book passage on the Titanic.”
If Charlie thought Kelly’s quick response was odd, he didn’t let on. “I understand that,” he replied. “Well, my father is always looking for able-bodied men. I’m sure we can find you something at the factory, if you’re interested.”
Daniel looked at Kelly, smiles spreading across both of their faces. “That would be wonderful!” Daniel exclaimed. “Thank you so much!” He stuck out his hand, which Charlie took. “I can’t tell you how much it means to my family, just to know I’d have work lined up.”
“Certainly,” Charlie replied, dismissively. “There’s family housing near the factory as well. My father believes in taking good care of his workers. Unless, of course, you already have arrangements.”
“No,” Kelly admitted. “I mean, I have a cousin who lives somewhere in the Bronx, and he said we could stay there for a spell if we need to, but my goodness, Mr. Ashton, to have a job for Daniel and a place to stay when we arrive… Well, God bless you, sir.” Kelly wrapped her arms around him, tears beginning to stream down her face.
“It’s really no trouble,” Charlie assured her as she stepped back “And while Daniel will earn a decent enough wage that you can stay home with the girls, should you ever find yourself wanting to work outside of the home, I’m sure we can find you something, too. We employ lots of women as well.”
“I don’t even know what to say,” Kelly replied wiping at tears. “Maybe Meg…” she began without thinking, but then stopped. Of course, Meg wouldn’t want to work for Charlie Ashton. “Oh, but, I think… I’ll speak to her.”
Charlie looked at her rather oddly, unsure as to why she stopped so abruptly, but before he could question her further, he realized Ruth was gone. “Where did Ruth go?” he asked, looking around for her. She had been standing in front of them only a moment before. Now, she was nowhere to be seen.
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