It was three weeks into the journey when Eileen could finally go
aloft. She had not been on a ship since she was twelve, four years prior,
and her body was not accustomed to the motion of the ship. She spent the
first three weeks below deck, hardly seeing more than a beam of sunlight in
a day. However, being below deck was not much better in the way of keeping
one's lunch down. If she was above deck she got sick because of the motion
of the ship and if she was below deck she frequently got sick because of
the smell. After three weeks, to the day, she was relieved when her
venture topside was successful.
It was a lonely journey. The first three weeks were basically in solitude, with only her mother, Jacqueline, for company, she hardly had too much good conversation. And with all the other passengers in perfect health, she was often left alone.
Jacqueline would not dare go above; save for a few minutes at a time for fresh air, she was too contained and fearful. And seeing as she was the only other female on board, Eileen had to keep to Patrick if she didn't want to be hassled by the crew. Though Patrick was hardly her idea of good company. Patrick had married her mother just three months before, and though he was a kind and respectable gentleman, he was almost too ridged for Eileen to enjoy spending time with him. Patrick was an extremely rich English gentleman who had fallen in love with Jacqueline and married her. He then very quickly decided to move the three of them from Padua, Spain to the most profitable English settlement in the Americas, Port Royal.
The whole thing had come about fairly quickly. The marriage had been only five months after she had met Patrick Delcairn, and only three years after her father died. The move had been decided six months after the marriage and they took only one month to pack.
Eileen gazed at the horizon, resting her head on the rail, and wondered how so much change had happened so fast. She had been young and naïve, and taken everything for granted. She never thought her father might leave her, she adored him above anyone else, he was the love of her life and although of course he was in love with Jacqueline, Eileen was his too. She still thought about him everyday, thought it had been almost four years. His death was not something she talked about. Her mother and her had moved to Spain to live with Eileen's aunt, Jacqueline's only living relative. It was in Padua, Spain that Jacqueline met Patrick.
It wasn't that she didn't like Patrick, he was very polite and nice, just that polite and nice were not what Eileen generally cared about. She was drawn to a more playful lifestyle.
She stood by the edge of the boat and watched Patrick talking with a crew member, "He is so proper." She thought. Though, he did continuously kept and eye on her, it was thoughtful and she was glad he cared about her.
"Eileen, I would like to introduce you to someone." Patrick said the next day strolling over to where she was settled at the railing. A striking young gentleman accompanied him. "This is Christopher Wiggins. He is about your age I think." Christopher nodded. "Christopher's family lives in Port Royal, he has been in England for a year on business and is now making the trip home."
"It is nice to meet you."
"Same to you." He took her hand and kissed it politely. A rather awkward and dry conversation ensued. Eileen excused herself an hour later and went below. She was annoyed at the dull conversations she had just endured but something about Christopher intrigued her. He had deep-set eyes that told a story without words. They were wise beyond his years. Eileen wanted to know more about him.
"My father was a pirate." He said to her one day almost two months later, as they sat on deck. He bit into an apple, "Bloody good one, as far as I've heard."
"I pirate? Really?"
"His ship was sunk when I was around eight years old. He was never around when I was younger, I suspect that he got my mum pregnant and took off. She told the town that he had died back before I was born, but he sent us stuff my whole growing up. We found out that he really died, when I was eight. Mum thinks that he was attacked by other pirates."
"That's terrible."
"S'not that bad. I was used to not having him around."
Throughout the two months since their first meeting, Eileen and Christopher grew fairly close, being the only two people their age, and stuck on a ship for three months. He was a good console. He was charming and very handsome. His dark eyes and square jaw, were beautiful and Eileen couldn't help thinking about him in the dark as she lay in bed. She had a gut feeling whenever she saw him. It was so hard for her to remain proper.
"Mother? What was it like when you fell in love with Da'?" Eileen asked one evening as they lay on their pallets. There were no beds, save for the captain's quarters but the captain had ordered straw pallets aboard for Eileen and her mother to sleep on.
"Why do you want to know?" She teased a bit. Eileen was physically, almost identical to her mother, with their silky dark brown hair that draped to the small of their backs and their beautiful olive colored skin. They both had very tiny frames, yet their bodies were surprisingly resilient. The only think markedly different was Eileen's eyes; hers were a deep, clear blue, while her mother's were a chestnut brown.
"What did it feel like? Inside."
"I still am not sure what you are asking?" Though emotionally and mentally, Eileen was not at all like her mother. Her mother was raised that women are meant to get married and have a home. They marry someone rich and then support their husbands and raise their children. She was passive and very neglectful if left to herself for too long.
"Well, how about when did you first realize that you loved him?" Eileen asked a question her mother could understand. Emotions weren't Jacqueline's strong suit.
"That?" Her mother got a very far off and longing look in her eye. "That would be the first time he ever called my his 'Spanish Princess'."
"That's what he called me." Eileen said.
"Before you came along I was his 'Spanish Princess'." No scorn or resentment came with that statement, just a sigh filled with yearning. "We had been courting for nearly three months and he showed up at my house one day to take me on a picnic, when I walked out of the house he took my arm and whispered in my ear, 'You are my Spanish Princess.'" Eileen lay on her straw mat and thought of Christopher as she fell asleep.
It was a lonely journey. The first three weeks were basically in solitude, with only her mother, Jacqueline, for company, she hardly had too much good conversation. And with all the other passengers in perfect health, she was often left alone.
Jacqueline would not dare go above; save for a few minutes at a time for fresh air, she was too contained and fearful. And seeing as she was the only other female on board, Eileen had to keep to Patrick if she didn't want to be hassled by the crew. Though Patrick was hardly her idea of good company. Patrick had married her mother just three months before, and though he was a kind and respectable gentleman, he was almost too ridged for Eileen to enjoy spending time with him. Patrick was an extremely rich English gentleman who had fallen in love with Jacqueline and married her. He then very quickly decided to move the three of them from Padua, Spain to the most profitable English settlement in the Americas, Port Royal.
The whole thing had come about fairly quickly. The marriage had been only five months after she had met Patrick Delcairn, and only three years after her father died. The move had been decided six months after the marriage and they took only one month to pack.
Eileen gazed at the horizon, resting her head on the rail, and wondered how so much change had happened so fast. She had been young and naïve, and taken everything for granted. She never thought her father might leave her, she adored him above anyone else, he was the love of her life and although of course he was in love with Jacqueline, Eileen was his too. She still thought about him everyday, thought it had been almost four years. His death was not something she talked about. Her mother and her had moved to Spain to live with Eileen's aunt, Jacqueline's only living relative. It was in Padua, Spain that Jacqueline met Patrick.
It wasn't that she didn't like Patrick, he was very polite and nice, just that polite and nice were not what Eileen generally cared about. She was drawn to a more playful lifestyle.
She stood by the edge of the boat and watched Patrick talking with a crew member, "He is so proper." She thought. Though, he did continuously kept and eye on her, it was thoughtful and she was glad he cared about her.
"Eileen, I would like to introduce you to someone." Patrick said the next day strolling over to where she was settled at the railing. A striking young gentleman accompanied him. "This is Christopher Wiggins. He is about your age I think." Christopher nodded. "Christopher's family lives in Port Royal, he has been in England for a year on business and is now making the trip home."
"It is nice to meet you."
"Same to you." He took her hand and kissed it politely. A rather awkward and dry conversation ensued. Eileen excused herself an hour later and went below. She was annoyed at the dull conversations she had just endured but something about Christopher intrigued her. He had deep-set eyes that told a story without words. They were wise beyond his years. Eileen wanted to know more about him.
"My father was a pirate." He said to her one day almost two months later, as they sat on deck. He bit into an apple, "Bloody good one, as far as I've heard."
"I pirate? Really?"
"His ship was sunk when I was around eight years old. He was never around when I was younger, I suspect that he got my mum pregnant and took off. She told the town that he had died back before I was born, but he sent us stuff my whole growing up. We found out that he really died, when I was eight. Mum thinks that he was attacked by other pirates."
"That's terrible."
"S'not that bad. I was used to not having him around."
Throughout the two months since their first meeting, Eileen and Christopher grew fairly close, being the only two people their age, and stuck on a ship for three months. He was a good console. He was charming and very handsome. His dark eyes and square jaw, were beautiful and Eileen couldn't help thinking about him in the dark as she lay in bed. She had a gut feeling whenever she saw him. It was so hard for her to remain proper.
"Mother? What was it like when you fell in love with Da'?" Eileen asked one evening as they lay on their pallets. There were no beds, save for the captain's quarters but the captain had ordered straw pallets aboard for Eileen and her mother to sleep on.
"Why do you want to know?" She teased a bit. Eileen was physically, almost identical to her mother, with their silky dark brown hair that draped to the small of their backs and their beautiful olive colored skin. They both had very tiny frames, yet their bodies were surprisingly resilient. The only think markedly different was Eileen's eyes; hers were a deep, clear blue, while her mother's were a chestnut brown.
"What did it feel like? Inside."
"I still am not sure what you are asking?" Though emotionally and mentally, Eileen was not at all like her mother. Her mother was raised that women are meant to get married and have a home. They marry someone rich and then support their husbands and raise their children. She was passive and very neglectful if left to herself for too long.
"Well, how about when did you first realize that you loved him?" Eileen asked a question her mother could understand. Emotions weren't Jacqueline's strong suit.
"That?" Her mother got a very far off and longing look in her eye. "That would be the first time he ever called my his 'Spanish Princess'."
"That's what he called me." Eileen said.
"Before you came along I was his 'Spanish Princess'." No scorn or resentment came with that statement, just a sigh filled with yearning. "We had been courting for nearly three months and he showed up at my house one day to take me on a picnic, when I walked out of the house he took my arm and whispered in my ear, 'You are my Spanish Princess.'" Eileen lay on her straw mat and thought of Christopher as she fell asleep.