Answer

Charlie
Charlie had learned from business to always trust his gut. He knew when he was being treated fairly and when he was about to be made to look like a fool. Even though he was quite certain that this was not the day that he would meet Mary Margaret Westmoreland, her mother had asked him to return, so he intended to comply even if it turned out to be yet another waste of time.
While he was off paying his visit, Jonathan was trying to find out if there was more to this story. He had a very hard time believing that Mary Margaret was actually sick the day before. If there was information to be found, Jonathan Lane would find it. Of that, Charlie was certain.
Arriving at the Westmoreland residence, Charlie found the household in a bit of an uproar. Servants were scurrying about, and Mrs. Westmoreland was sitting in the parlor, red-faced and wiping her nose with a handkerchief, as if she had been crying. He was shown in and took the same seat he’d been in only the day before.
“Oh, Mr. Ashton, it’s just terrible!” she began as soon as she recognized him. “Someone has absconded with my daughter!”
“What’s that now?” Charlie asked, on the edge of his seat. “Are you saying she’s been taken?”
“Yes! She’s simply vanished.”
Charlie found this story quite difficult to believe. “Are you certain she didn’t just go for a stroll?”
“No, I’m certain. She was taken. You must know, Mr. Ashton, Mary Margaret would never leave without my consent. She is very obedient. There’s evidence that she’s been kidnapped. Why, I’ve even filed a report with the authorities.”
“Evidence? What sort of evidence?” Charlie asked.
Mildred Westmoreland began to sob. “Oh, Mr. Ashton, I can’t possibly discuss it again. I love my daughter with all of my heart. The idea that something might have happened to her is more than I can bear!”
Though something about this situation did not seem quite right to him, Charlie offered his condolences to the grieving mother, standing to put his arm around her as she cried into his jacket. “What can I do to help?” he offered.
Pulling away, she looked up at him. “Well, we are a bit low on funds,” she said through her sniffles. “I am sure I could organize a search party if we had a few thousand pounds.”
Charlie’s gut was certainly telling him this was a ploy, and as much as he wanted to shake the woman and accuse her of being a gold digger, he composed himself. “I haven’t any cash on my person just now, Mrs. Westmoreland,” he replied.
“Perhaps you could send a wire transfer?”
Her tears seemed to have dried up for a moment, and as he appeared to consider her request, she began to wail again. “Perhaps,” he replied. “For now, I will go and speak to the detectives and see if there’s anything I can do to be of service.”
“Oh, they’ve assured me they have Southampton’s finest on the job,” Mildred replied, wiping at her tears. “There’s no reason for you to trouble yourself with that.”
“Very well then,” Charlie said, shaking his head, and stepping back away from her. “I shall return to my room. If you should hear anything, please send notice. I’m staying at the Harbor Hotel.”
“Yes, of course, Charlie,” Mildred said. “You will come back and check in tomorrow, then? Perhaps you shall have some funding you can spare for the search by then?”
“I am scheduled to meet with Mr. Westmoreland tomorrow,” he reminded her. “I shall seek an update from him.”
“Do say a prayer for my Mary Margaret,” Mildred said, tears streaming down her face, as she signaled for a servant to show him to the door.
“I hope she is found safe,” Charlie nodded, following the older woman to the front entrance. Yesterday, when he had left, he couldn’t help but feel as if he was being watched. He felt compelled to have one last look at the home before leaving. Today, he walked out of the Westmoreland residence fully resolved never to look back.
Less than an hour later, he was sitting on his balcony next to Jonathan, staring at the vast ocean, wishing he could instantly be back on the other side, home in New York, away from this nightmare of a town and this nightmare of a family.
“My understanding is that a servant boy is missing as well,” Jonathan explained. “I’m not sure that’s the full story, but I don’t think that Miss Westmoreland was actually taken against her will.”
“You don’t say?” Charlie asked, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “I’m quite certain this is just another of the Westmoreland family’s plots to get more money from me.”
“Perhaps when you meet with Bertram tomorrow, he’ll be more forthcoming.”
Charlie shrugged. He’d been made a fool of so many times in the last few days—by the same woman—he could hardly stand it anymore. “I don’t think I will be meeting with Mr. Westmoreland tomorrow, Jonathan. I think I shall return home, explain things to my father, regroup, and see what he would like to do next. In all honesty, I think this might be the end of my courtship with Miss Westmoreland.”
Jonathan nodded. “I think that’s fair. I can’t blame you for being upset—and put off. I’m sure your father will understand.”
“I should hope so,” Charlie agreed, though he wasn’t absolutely positive. He knew his father hated to break a promise just as much as Charlie die. Still, he continued, “He’s a stubborn man, but he won’t like seeing our name dragged through the mud any more than I do.”
“Very well, then,” Jonathan replied. “Shall I go book us a trip home for tomorrow then?”
“Yes,” Charlie said. “The faster the better. I’m ready to be back in New York City away from the madness of the Westmorelands. Honestly, I hope I never see any of them again.”
April 10, 1912
Meg
The excited crowd waiting to board the ship seemed to vibrate around them as Meg waited with the O’Connell family for it to be their turn to pass through inspection and gain passage aboard the steamship that would take her to America.
Traveling Third Class was quite different than the First Class treatment she was used to, but she didn’t mind. She would no longer be the high society debutante she was before. In New York, she would start over, become someone else, and leave this place far behind her.
She was wearing a dress she’d borrowed from Kelly, and while the fit was unusual, it was quite comfortable. Without the corsets and undergarments she was used to, she felt free. And freedom was always a good thing.
While the entire day before she’d been nervous that her mother or uncle would find them, or that she would be recognized by someone on the streets, as they crowded aboard the deck to wave goodbye to the people standing near the pier, she began to believe this was really happening, that she had actually escaped. No longer would she live in fear. No longer would she carry the burden of belonging to someone else. Once she was in New York, she would be her own person at last.
Ruth was bubbling over with excitement as her father held her up to wave at the crowd. She was shouting, “Goodbye! I love you!” over and over, even though she didn’t know a single soul in the throng below them. Meg could see the relief on Kelly’s face as well as she stood next to her holding baby Lizzie. She’d been carrying the burden of Meg’s predicament for almost as long as she’d carried it herself. Meg was thankful to be giving her best friend some liberty, too.
Once the ship began to pull away from the harbor, Meg breathed in the fresh salt air and exhaled all of her cares and worries into the wind. At last, she felt perfectly safe and happy. Nothing could harm her aboard the RMS Titanic.

Charlie
Standing on the First Class balcony, Charlie looked out at the vast ocean and was thankful that he was aboard one of the fastest ship that had ever been built. He couldn’t wait to get back home to New York City and leave the ghosts of Southampton behind him.
Still stunned by Mary Margaret’s actions, Charlie had hardly slept the night before. While he would certainly discuss how to proceed with his father, he knew in his heart he could never forgive her for the way she had treated him, particularly if what Jonathan had found out about the servant boy was true, and chances were that it was; Jonathan’s information was rarely wrong.
He was resolved to leave off courting and engagements for a good long while, and yet, as he peered over the side, a young lady on one of the decks below him caught his eye. She had beautiful blonde hair that hung around her shoulders in waves. When she turned and he could see her profile, he noticed how her complexion looked flawless, almost like porcelain. Her eyes were a stunning blue. She was possibly the loveliest creature he’d ever seen, and he couldn’t help but hope somewhere between Southampton and New York City he would have the opportunity to meet her, to see if her personality was as sparkling as those eyes.
Jonathan pulled his attention away, insisting that they move to get a better look at another ship that was about to collide with the Titanic, and within a few moments, Charlie had lost sight of her. But he wouldn’t forget those eyes. Even though he had sworn off women, he couldn’t help but hope that fate would intervene and he would bump into that woman again before they reached New York. Despite his destiny being chosen for him so long ago, Charlie had always believed in fate, and now he began to consider, perhaps he was meant to be aboard the maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic.