AN UNFORGETTABLE JOURNEY
Chapter Forty
That morning, Nora was the first to awaken.
The sun had just risen, letting sunlight enter through Nora's window. Getting
dressed, she thought of the events to come that day. Her brother was getting
married! She couldn't believe that so much could happen in so little time. She
was truly happy for her brother and Rose. She had gotten fairly close to Rose
in the last few days, helping her with the upcoming wedding and all. Diane was
furious with the newfound friendship between Nora and Rose, but she managed to
keep her feelings to herself, for the most part. However, Nora knew that her
best friend was not happy. That had seemed to change somewhat the night before.
After they had gone back to Nora's room after
Rose had gone back to sleep the night before, Diane had said something that had
shocked Nora. "She really loves him, doesn't she?" It had been a
statement, not a question. Nora had looked at her friend in wonder. That was
something that she had not expected to come out of Diane's mouth.
"Yes, she does. You should have seen the
light in her eyes as she was trying on her wedding dress the other day. She
looked absolutely radiant."
"It hurts like hell, you know. I love
him so much. I've grown up my whole life knowing and eventually loving him. But
at least now I know that she won't intentionally hurt him," Diane had said
quietly. Nora had given her friend a hug before they had gone back to bed
themselves.
Nora was happy that her friend wasn't so
bitter anymore. The Dawsons considered the Bakers family. It would have been a
shame to have the marriage of Jack and Rose drive Diane away. Nora cleared her
mind of these thoughts as she went into the kitchen to make breakfast. She
thought that she would surprise Rose with breakfast. She knew that Rose would
be too busy and excited that morning to worry about food, but she did have to
eat. However, when Nora knocked softly on the door to Jack and Rose's room
before walking in, she got a shock…Rose was gone.
*****
Jack had just sat down for breakfast when
Nora and Diane rushed in through the door; they were both out of breath from
running the few blocks that it had taken them to get to Jack. Jack instantly
knew that something was wrong. "Nora, what is it?" he asked, not sure
if he really wanted to know the answer. Nora didn't say anything. Instead, she
held up a piece of paper in her hands. The paper was Rose's note from the night
before, her final good-bye to the love of her life. Nora knew that the note
would break Jack's heart. She didn't understand how Rose could do this to her
brother. She handed Jack the piece of paper in silence.
Jack looked at the note and immediately
recognized Rose's hand writing. He couldn't believe what he read.
Dear Jack,
I'm sorry to leave you in this way, but I
simply cannot go through with our wedding. I'm sorry, Jack. This isn't how I
thought things would turn out, but I realized too late what I really want. I'm
sorry, but what I want isn't a life with you. I hope you can forgive me.
Sincerely,
Rose
The words that stared up at Jack from the
paper chilled him to the bone. Not because he believed them. He wouldn't
believe those words in a million years. He knew that the love he and Rose
shared was strong and real. She'd never leave him. What chilled him was what
this meant. He knew that she was in trouble.
He looked up into the sympathetic stares of
his sister and friend. "I can't believe this is happening!" he cried
in a panic. He tried to fight back the tears that threatened to spill over at
the thought of Rose in the hands of Cal once again. Would he rape her again…or
worse?
"I'm so sorry, Jack. We all thought that
she loved you. We never expected this…we're sorry," Nora said, mistaking
his tears for heartbreak.
Diane had fire in her eyes. "And to
think that I started to trust that girl! I was right all along. She didn't
deserve you, Jack. You should just put her behind you," Diane said
angrily.
Jack shook his head. "No, you don't
understand. She didn't leave me; she's in trouble. I think that her former
fiancé kidnapped her again." He put his head in his hands. He was
terrified for her. He knew that he had to find her. He would never give up on
her. Not after he'd had a taste of the life they could have together. How could
fate bring them together not only once, but twice, just to tear them apart both
times? He wouldn't lose her again. He refused to let her go.
Nora and Diane looked at him in shock and
disbelief. "What do you mean, Jack?" Diane asked as she sat down at
the table next to him.
He got up and started pacing. "Caledon
Hockley, that--that bastard! Oh, God, please don't let him touch her," he
said in a choked whisper. Nora and Diane looked at him in confusion.
"Caledon Hockley was the man that she
used to be engaged to, right?" Nora asked, trying to get Jack to tell them
what had him so terrified.
He nodded. "After Titanic, he found her
in New York. He kidnapped her, and--and…" He swallowed hard, trying to get
the lump to leave his throat. He didn't have much luck. He wondered where she
was at that moment. Was she safe? He prayed that she was. "She had bruises
all over her arms from him. He did unimaginable things to her, kept her locked
up in a room for three weeks straight." Jack sat down again, feeling
unable to stand any longer.
Nora sat down too, overwhelmed by what they
had just been told. "Oh, Jack, I had no idea. She must be so scared,"
Nora said softly.
But Diane was still skeptical. "Jack,
it's absolutely awful what he did to her, but how do you know that he has
kidnapped her again? Maybe she really left." Diane knew that she sounded
heartless, but she couldn't help but ask. She still held a little hope for a
future with the man she so desperately loved.
Jack looked at her, shaking his head. "I
just know, Diane. Believe me. She would never leave me. She was as excited
about our wedding as I was." He just knew that Cal had her. He could feel
it. He had woken up with a bad feeling in his stomach, a feeling that he didn't
understand until he had seen the note. "Besides that, I--we were going to
tell you after the wedding…but…well...she's going to have a baby."
They looked at him in shock. Nora was the
first to recover from the news. "We have to find her, Jack," she said
with determination.
Diane stood up. "Maybe if we take a look
around your room, we'll find a clue to her whereabouts," Diane suggested.
Jack nodded in agreement. At least it was a
start. He just hoped and prayed that they would come up with something. Their
wedding was only eight hours away. He just hoped that he would be showing up to
go through with the wedding, his beautiful bride standing next to him at the
altar. He didn't want to show up with bad news. They left the Bakers and rushed
back to their house, hoping for a miracle.