AN UNFORGETTABLE JOURNEY
Chapter Fifteen
Cal looked down at the couple, who were
embracing as if they would never let go. He looked at Jack and Rose, and felt
something inside of him snap. I can give her anything! All she has to do is
ask, and I can give her anything, take her anywhere. Why would she choose to
live her life with that gutter rat? Cal felt like crying. What will the
press say when they find out? He couldn’t believe that this was happening. This
shouldn’t be happening to me! I am Caledon Hockley. No one tells me no! At
that moment, something flashed in his mind. A shiny pistol, nestled safely in
the pocket of his manservant. If she won't live with me, then she won’t live
at all! He turned around, and grabbed the gun out of Mr. Lovejoy’s pocket.
He had lost his mind and a part of him knew it, but all of his attention was
focused on the two who still remained in an embrace below him. They stood at the
bottom of the grand staircase. As he pointed the pistol at them Jack looked up.
Realization dawned in his eyes. Cal was going to kill them!
"Run!"
He dragged Rose down the staircase. They just
missed the shot. Rose looked behind her in shock as Cal chased them down the
stairs. He shot at them over and over again, barely missing them. Soon they
were running through the dining room. The water was up to their waists.
"I hope the two of you enjoy your time
together!" Rose could hear Cal yell angrily.
She suspected that he had stopped chasing
them, but they weren't taking any chances. Soon they were standing at the
bottom of a stairwell, trying to catch their breaths. They listened intently,
but didn’t hear any feet stomping after them. Even so, they weren't about to go
back up, just in case he was still lurking around.
They turned into a corridor, and soon heard
the cries of a child. A little boy was standing against the wall, alone and
scared.
"We can’t leave him," Rose said.
Jack knew that she was right. They ran over
to the boy. A door down the corridor was about to burst open behind the weight
of the water. Jack grabbed the boy and they started in the opposite direction.
But they stopped when they saw that the water was about to rush at them from
that way, too. Rose was terrified. They ran into a man who grabbed the boy from
Jack. Jack assumed it was his son. The man said something angrily in another
language before running toward the door that was about to burst at any moment.
"No! Come back! You’re going the wrong
way!"
But the man didn’t hear their pleas. He was
soon submerged in a wave of icy cold water. They looked in horror before
running as fast as they could to escape the wave that was catching up to them.
Soon they were being propelled forward; it was like being caught in a strong
river.
Rose cried out as she was slammed against a
gate. The water was getting higher as every second passed. Jack grabbed the
pipe above them and slowly worked his way to a staircase. He grasped Rose’s
hand tightly, pulling her along. When they reached the top of the stairs, there
was another gate. They had nowhere to go. They were trapped.
"Help! Please! Somebody help us!"
Rose cried.
The water was up to their waists, and rising
fast. Miraculously, a steward showed up. He was about to head up the stairs
that were on the other side of the gate; his face revealed the terror that he
felt.
They begged him to help them. He almost
ignored them, his hands on both of the rails that would lead him away from the
water. But he turned back at the last minute, unable to leave them trapped.
Getting out his keys with shaky hands, he tried to unlock the door, but he
couldn’t find the right key. He looked at them sadly.
"I dropped the keys." He left them
there in a panic. God help them, the steward prayed silently as he left
their sight.
"Oh, no. Jack, hurry!" Rose cried
as the water climbed up to her neck.
Jack was under the water, frantically looking
for the keys. He came up, taking a deep breath. He had the keys in his hands.
"Which key was it, Rose?" he cried.
"The short one. Try the short one!"
He put the key in the lock, but couldn’t get
it to open.
"Oh, Jack. Hurry!"
The water was now up to her nose. She could
barely breath.
"I got it! Go! Go, Rose!"
They swam in the water, finding the stairs
that led them out of their deathtrap.