DAWSON EVERLASTING
Chapter Five
Back at the Bukater mansion, the
search for young Rose was in full swing. Ruth stared out the window, seething
with anger. Rose was behaving like a child, and it could ruin everything for
the family. She just couldn’t understand why her daughter didn’t want this
opportunity that other young women would kill for.
"Any word?" Ruth turned
around to face her husband and Caledon Hockley.
"Nothing. But we may have
gotten some help." Her husband rubbed his hands together.
"This is my friend, Spicer
Lovejoy." Caledon waved a middle-aged man with silver hair and stern
facial expression into the room. "He’s looking for someone who lives in
those woods of yours. He may be able to find your daughter while he’s at
it."
"Someone living in the
woods? Why, that’s preposterous! If someone was living in those woods, we would
know about it!" Ruth gasped.
"Not with this family, I’m
afraid. They’re a very secretive and dangerous bunch. The elder man’s name is
Angus. Angus Dawson," Spicer explained. "If your daughter ran into
those woods, she’s in very serious trouble, I’m afraid."
"Barron!" Ruth gasped,
horrified. If anything happened to Rose, all their dreams of a better life
would go down the drain.
"Can you help us?"
Barron asked, fear for his daughter’s well-being creeping into his heart.
"As a matter of fact, I
can…for a price."
"Name your price, Lovejoy.
We’ll pay you anything. Just bring our daughter home."
"That’s right," Ruth
agreed, stepping up next to her husband. "Money is no object."
"It’s not money I want. It’s
the woods. Give me the deed to the woods at the edge of your property and I’ll
bring Rose home. Safe and sound."
Barron and Ruth looked at one
another in hesitation. Her voice void of any emotion, Ruth answered. "Deed
to the woods? My good man, there’s no such deed. We nor anyone else owns those
woods."
Cal stepped up to the desperate
parents, his brown eyes dark with menace. "Now, Ruth, we both know that
your family does hold the deed to those woods. Now, if you’re serious about
getting Rose back, you’ll hand it over."
Again Ruth and Barron exchanged
glances, and then looked back at Lovejoy in resignation. "Very well, then.
I’ll call my lawyer, and he’ll be over with the deed. Just you bring my
daughter home in one piece."
Lovejoy just smiled with greed,
his plans beginning to take shape. "Oh, I will. You have my word."
Looking at one another one last
time, the Bukaters hoped that they weren’t making a mistake.
*****
Morning had arrived at the Dawson
cabin. Jack awoke from his dreams in a good mood. His dreams had contained
nothing but the fiery-haired, emerald-eyed beauty that was now asleep
downstairs. Making sure that Miles was still asleep, Jack quickly got dressed
and slipped down to the sitting room, portfolio in hand. Jack found Rose sound
asleep on the couch, reminding him of the angel statuettes he’d seen in several
cemeteries. Beautiful and serene. Except Rose was made of flesh and blood, not
of stone and granite.
"Rose," he whispered.
"Hey, Rose DeWitt Bukater. Wake up."
With a groan and a yawn, green eyes
blinked open to stare into blue. "What is it?" she asked, a bit
surprised to find Jack hovering over her. "What time is it?"
"Come with me." Jack
held his hand out to her, his eyes pleading.
"What? Come with you?
Why?" Rose, of course, was suspicious, but at the same time curious, as
well. These Dawsons were refusing to let her go, and she had no idea what they
were planning to do to her, despite Mae and Jack’s kindness. Yet the young man
before her enchanted her with his laughing blue eyes and mischievous smile.
Looking into those eyes, she felt the stirrings of something that she had never
felt before.
"I want to show you
something. Hurry, or we’ll miss it," Jack urged.
"Okay." Rose sighed.
"But let me get some clothes on first."
"Oh. Of course." Jack
blushed, stepping into the kitchen so Rose could dress in private.
Two minutes later, Rose was
dressed and following Jack out of the cabin, both being as quiet as mice.
*****
Rose looked up at the large stone
cliff that Jack had led her to. She frowned, hoping that this wasn’t what he
had wanted to show her.
"I call this the Eiffel
Tower. It’s not nearly as high as the one in France, but it’s very well near
it."
"You’ve been to
France?" Rose looked at Jack in disbelief, wondering where else he might
have been.
"Yep. And I’ve been to
Germany and Sweden, too. You can say I’m a tumbleweed blowing in the
wind." Jack grinned, gripping the ledges that stood out from the mass.
"Come follow me. You won’t want to miss this."
"Miss what?" Rose
frowned as Jack began climbing. She hoped that he didn’t expect her to climb
that thing. Why, that was improper for a young lady of her station. Her mother
would kill her if she found out.
"Well, are you coming?"
Jack looked back down at Rose, amusement shining in his eyes. "Or are you
chicken?"
Rose’s face turned red with
indignation. He thought she was too afraid to climb after him! Well, she’d just
have to show Mr. Jack Dawson who was scared of what! Determination burning in
her eyes, Rose began to climb.
Soon, they were at the top, and
Rose gasped in awe. Standing beside Jack, she witnessed the sun rising up over
the woods, giving them a heavenly glow.
"It’s beautiful!" she
gasped.
"An artist’s dream. I’m
wanting to sketch it someday." Jack smiled, happy to share this experience
with Rose.
"You’re an artist?"
Rose’s curiosity was piqued. What else will she find out about this handsome
and mysterious young man?
"Yeah. You could say it’s my
passion." Jack smiled, suddenly shy.
"Can I see your
drawings?" Rose asked, afraid that she was being rude, but she simply had
to find out more about Jack. Something was driving her to do so.
"Sure." Jack grinned,
untying the portfolio from around his waist. Tentatively, he handed it to his
new admirer.
Rose gasped in delight and awe.
Jack had a true talent. He had captured his subjects so perfectly, Rose could
almost see into their souls. "Jack, this is exquisite work…oh, my."
She gasped in shock when she came across some nude sketches. "Well, well,
well…were these drawn from life?"
Jack laughed and nodded.
"That’s the great thing about Paris. A lot of girls are willing to take
their clothes off."
Rose simply smiled and giggled
when she came across the same woman for the fifth time. "You liked this
woman. You used her several times. I think you must have had a love affair with
her."
Jack laughed when he saw the
picture Rose was talking about. "No, no, no. Only with her hands. She was
a one-legged prostitute…see?" Jack turned to a full-figured picture of the
same woman.
"Oh…" Rose blushed, and
then laughed along with Jack.
Jack reached over and turned the
pages to a sad-looking woman, who was dressed extravagantly, sitting at a bar.
"We called her Madame Bijoux. She would just sit at this bar, wearing
everything she owned, waiting for her long lost love. See how all her clothes
are moth-eaten?"
Awed by his extraordinary talent,
Rose nodded. "You have a gift, Jack. You do. You see people."
"I see you." He stared
at her intently, entranced by her beauty.
"And?"
"You want freedom. Freedom
to be who you want to be, but they won’t let you have it."
Rose looked at Jack, surprised.
He really did see her. He was simply extraordinary.