Ten

On the fourth morning out, Sigrid was sitting up at the table, wearing her robe when Adam brought in breakfast for both of them. Adam decided he should start taking his meals with her as she seemed to feel better and he remembered once his father saying that people began to form bonds over meals. Adam also knew that breaking bread with a woman was one way to initiate any intimacy. Adam also believed people ate the way they made love and so it was a way to judge a woman's expression of passion. So far, Sigrid had been too nervous or ill to eat and Adam hoped that soon, all her appetites would return.

"Hope you're hungry," Adam said, placing the tray on the table and setting the food before each of them. The cook had placed pot covers over the plates of food for the journey to the cabin. "This damnable coffee pot and cups have slid about as I tried to balance it all, but I managed. Surprised myself." He grinned at her as he pulled out his chair and sat down. Sigrid looked pale but she smiled in reply and pulled her wrapper tighter. She wore her hair in one long braid but it was loose, hair falling away from the woven strands since she had lain in the berth for so many days.

"I'm not really hungry – still a bit queasy - but I couldn't stand to lie there anymore. But good news - Dr. Beaumont is seeing to it that I receive clean sheets today. Isn't that nice, Adam? And he said we're making good headway and should be in those islands, the Gilbert Islands, in just a little over a week. That'll mean we're almost halfway there."

Adam turned over the coffee cups and poured for them both. "How nice of Dr. Beaumont to promise you clean sheets. He's just full of surprises, isn't he? And what a wonderful bedside manner, he has. I'm surprised he hasn't crawled right in the bunk beside you to take your pulse." Adam had earlier mentioned to Sigrid how good the coffee was and he promised that when Sigrid wanted a change from ginger tea, he would bring her some. "Drink your coffee."

Sigrid sipped but said nothing. "You needn't to be so snide about Dr. Beaumont, Adam. He is a kind man and a good doctor. And he's going to bring me enough fresh water so I can finally wash my hair." Sigrid pulled off the pot cover and looked at a slice of ham and two fried eggs and a biscuit. She swallowed to keep down her revulsion at the smell of food. She replaced the cover. "You can have my food," she said pushing it toward Adam.

"You need to eat." Sigrid's collar bone was prominent and her cheeks were hollowing, she had lost so much weight. "It's been four days now and you're becoming…gaunt. Dr. Beaumont said yesterday that you need to eat, and since you think so highly of him…"

"Just stop, Adam." Sigrid sighed and then lifted her fork and pulled the plate back to her. She stared at it and while Adam carefully watched, and using the side of the fork, she cut off a bit of egg and ate it. Then she waited and reached for the biscuits. "You can eat, Adam. You don't have to watch every mouthful I take." So, he ate but still watched, glancing over at her, and Sigrid struggled with each bite.

"Adam, have you seen Jerome Hightower? He promised me a book and so far, he hasn't come by." Sigrid went back to sipping the coffee. It was good but for some reason, she didn't want to give Adam the satisfaction by telling him.

"I saw him yesterday. I told him you were too ill for visitors. Glad to know he has the decency to stay away." Adam wouldn't meet Sigrid's gaze but continued to eat.

"But I'm not that ill…well, I'll feel more like visitors once I'm washed and dressed. Doctor Beaumont said he'd come by and take me out for a short stroll. He said the fresh air would do me good."

"You know what Captain Ashton said about keeping you away from the sailors."

"I told the doctor all that, but he said that I was his patient and he knew what was best. And it's not as if I'm going to dress up and flaunt myself in front of all those men." Sigrid broke off another part of the biscuit and stuck it in the egg yolk that she had burst. "The problem with eggs," Sigrid said, "is that they cool off so quickly."

Irritation at the situation took away Adam's appetite. With the attentions of Dr. Beaumont and Jerome Hightower looming, he wanted to explode, to rage and slam his fist on the tabletop as his father would! He wanted to roar his anger, to tell Sigrid that she was his wife and she would do as he said. But instead, he tossed the napkin on the table, pushed back the chair and left the cabin to stalk about the decks until his fury subsided or was diffused in another way.

Sigrid sat back and sighed. What was she going to do with the man? She had married him despite her father's wishes to the contrary and with Adam being almost a total stranger. Sigrid had known Adam had been squiring about a widow with three children and had instead, asked her, Sigrid Eklund, to marry him. What about that, her father had said. What about a man who led on a woman and then, quick as you please, asked for another in marriage? That did give Sigrid pause. She knew Adam didn't love her nor did she…Sigrid considered. How did she feel about Adam?

She had to admit that she thrilled to Adam's touch when the lay together, at the warmth of his mouth and his knowledge of all the ways to delight her. But if Adam loved her, he never said it and he seemed far too familiar with a woman's body; Sigrid didn't know if that was good or bad. But Adam was acting the jealous fool when it came to Dr. Beaumont or Jerome Hightower. Why? Because a wife was a man's property, his chattel, and every man guards what's his whether he prizes it or not.

A sigh escaped her as she toyed with her food, pushing it about on the plate, and Sigrid wished Jerome Hightower would come by; she could use his cheerful, handsome company. But she didn't want him to see her until she was washed and dressed, so maybe it was best that for the time being, he stay away. There would be enough time for books.

The sun was becoming hot but the crisp breeze made it surprisingly comfortable. But off in the horizon, Adam saw dark clouds rolling in and he wondered about the weather. If it would be only rain, it wouldn't be much of an issue, but rough seas would only compound Sigrid's seasickness and might even touch him if the ship was tossed about too much. Adam now truly understood when his father compared the desert with the ocean - a man felt insignificant on either vast expanse as nature was a destructive force that took no recognition of human existence. And an angry ocean, that was a frightening sight to see and experience.

He heard heavy cursing and rounded the turn to see Captain Ashton standing by a piece of machinery, two large metal-spoked wheels connected to pistons, swearing that it could go to the devil and take along the sweating, grease-smeared man who stood beside it holding a small wrench. As he came closer, Adam could see it was part of a bilge pump and that it obviously was in need of repair as a few pieces of it lay about.

"I told you, Cap'n, when you asked" the man with black grease on his face and hands was saying, "that I can handle simple machinery but this – this cursed thing is full of the devilment. The more I try to repair it, the worse it becomes as if it has a mind to spite me!"

"If you don't fix it, how'll we manage in a great storm like the one that threatens now, with only one pump working?" the Captain asked. "You know how? I'll tell you? You'll be out here with a bucket scooping the stormwater over the sides!"

Adam considered before he interrupted. "Captain Ashton, I couldn't help but hear that the windlass – that is a windlass, correct?"

"Aye. You know about windlasses?" The Captain's ears picked up at Adam's knowledge.

"It doesn't take much knowledge to see it needs repairing. Perhaps I can help. I used to repair machinery back on the Ponderosa – my family's ranch. When a boy, I helped a blacksmith and know how to use a soldering iron, how to make joints and such. Mind if I take a look?"

The Captain looked at the other man who only shrugged. "You know anything about chain pumps, Cartwright? Elm pumps?"

"Not too much but from what I understand, there are tubes bored out of elm trunks in the bilge. This windlass is turned with this crank," he picked it up off the deck, "causing the pistons to move and that action lifts up the water. It's not that complicated a mechanism."

"That's right," the machinist said. "The problem seems to be here. See. I attach the handle – right here – to rotate the windlass but it jams. I think it must be the camshaft but, well, I'll be damned if I can figure out how to repair it. If you can help, we'll all be grateful – as well as afloat. As you can see, there's a storm coming our way." The machinist looked at the far horizon again. Adam did as well and saw the distant lightning.

"I'll give it a try." Adam kneeled beside the apparatus; the design was relatively simple and Adam had an intuitive knowledge as to how it would work – but it had to be repaired, and quickly. He knew that all ships took on water, that was a fact, but with a storm, more water than normal would fill the lower parts of the ship.

"Go right ahead, Mr. Cartwright." Captain Ashton sat on a nearby wooden crate and nervously smoked his pipe, gazing at the approaching storm, while Adam and the machinist talked and worked on the pump. "It'll take two men to tend to the pump in this storm," Ashton mumbled to himself.

Adam and the machinist worked efficiently, and at one time, Adam went below to check out the lower section. After about 40 minutes of hard work, the pump was repaired and the windlass cranks could be efficiently turned. But when Adam stood up, the sky was almost dark as night and the wind had picked up causing the sails to clap against themselves. The deckhands were trying to manage all the sails, adjusting them for the winds that were rapidly rising and others were hurrying about making certain everything was battened down. Barrels were tied on the sides of the ship to catch valuable rainwater for washing.

"I thank you. Mr. Cartwright," Captain Ashton said, holding on to his hat that threatened to blow off across the water. The ship was having trouble staying on an even keel and all three men were swaying to maintain their balance. "But before I go take the wheel, let me say, if you find Australia not to your liking, you can work both your own and your wife's passage back to the States on my ship. I could well use a man with your talents. I return every three months." The captain pointed at Adam with his pipe. "Now, you keep that in mind."

Adam laughed as he wiped his greasy hands with his handkerchief. "I hope that won't be the case, but I'll keep it in mind." And there was suddenly a sound like pebbles hitting the deck and one stung Adam's cheek. They were fat rain drops coming down with great force, propelled by the wind. Adam started to hurry back to the cabin but within a few steps, the sky seemed to open and the rain fell in sheets, soaking him to the bone. It felt cool and cleansing and he closed his eyes letting the rain wash away all his suppressed anger and tensions. Lightning fell and thunder clapped and he hurried below deck to the cabin and his thoughts went to Sigrid and he wondered if she was frightened by the storm or was she being comforted by the good doctor?

~ 0 ~

"Adam, will we sink?"

"No, we won't sink, that is not unless you see the Ghostly Sailor." Adam lay on the lower berth, his back against the wall, holding Sigrid, her back curled against him.

"The Ghostly Sailor? Oh, Adam you're making that up."

"No, no, I'm not. It's an old sea legend; my father who was a merchant seaman, told me all about it once. He swore it was true."

When Adam had made it to the cabin, he saw that Sigrid had stowed away the breakables and anything loose – the breakfast dishes, his books. Sigrid said that Dr. Beaumont had come by and told her a storm was rising and that she should prepare. He would bring extra water another time but for now, he would empty the basin and the large metallic pitcher that held their water for the day. Then he told her to make sure she wouldn't be tossed about herself and to lie in the berth, holding on to the sides if the waters became too rough. But the outside edge of the berths had wood carved lower in the middle than on the ends in the shape of a smile, just for the purposes of keeping the inhabitant in the bunk and not dumped out onto the floor.

"Like a cradle in a way," Sigrid told Adam.

As soon as he had come to the cabin, Sigrid's face showed her relief but she was surprised he was so wet. He told her about helping repair the windlass of the bilge pump and how it made him feel useful for the first time since they came on board. And the whole time he talked, he stripped off his shirt and stepped out of his trousers, standing in his long johns and using a towel to dry his hair. Sigrid averted her eyes as he peeled off his wet long-johns and crawled into the berth over her, his face to Sigrid's back so she wouldn't see worry in his face. But he did jerk slightly at a crack of thunder that seemed to occur almost in his head while Sigrid cried out in fear. And they lay together as the rain pelted the windows and hit the deck above their heads.

"You see," Adam said, his mouth close to Sigrid's ear, "long ago, there was a seafaring man, a hard-working, handsome sailor. He had only one eye, the other having been earlier lost to a giant seagull which swooped down and pecked it out, but he could see more with the one eye had left than other sailors could see with two.

"Now this sailor was much respected and admired by all the other sailors, even the captain, as he could do the work of ten men in less time and knew more than all the other seamen combined about the ways of the sea and its omens – both good and bad.

So, one night there was a ring about the moon and our sailor knew it was a sign of an impending storm – not just a normal, maritime storm that every sailor faces in his time, but a horrible storm – the last storm a sailor faces in his time Our sailor warned the captain who told him that a ring around the moon was just that - a ring, and no more but our sailor knew better and sat awake all night, waiting…waiting. He knew that the next morning may be the last he saw. Well, that next day, early in the morning, our sailor was working hard as he usually did, no matter what, when s storm blew in, the one he had predicted, and rain and thunder and lightning made the sailors cower – all except for the one-eyed sailor. He stood on the deck, handling the wheel better than the pilot or the captain himself could, fighting the waves, and the sea-faring gods took it as a challenge. In response to what they saw as our sailor's hubris, lightning came shooting down like a mighty sword swung on high and struck the mast. It burst into flame and the deck soon caught.

"Even among all the rain that fell, the fire burned, so what use was it to toss buckets of water on the burning deck, the other sailors asked? None, was the answer they gave each other. So, the men, in their terror, began to leap into the sea. 'Fools', the one-eyed sailor cried. 'You are only giving the sea what it wants. Stay on board the ship like me and we will smother the flames together. But they didn't listen and so they all drowned in the angry ocean.

"But our sailor, he stayed on board the ship, fighting the flames but being alone, he was soon burned along with the ship, all the ashes swallowed by the sea. You see, Sigrid, what the sea wants, the sea gets. And so, before any ship founders at sea, the Ghostly Sailor walks about the deck and tells everyone to stay aboard and help him keep the ship aright. And if they do, there's a chance the ship will make it to port. But if they don't, when he does come about, when the Ghostly Sailor wanders the deck, then you know that the ship is going to sink and you are doomed."

"Adam," Sigrid said, turning her head, "that's an awful story! And it's not true! Did your father really tell you that?"

Adam laughed deeply and Sigrid realized that she hadn't thought about the storm while he had been relating the story.

"No," Adam said, nuzzling her neck. "I just made it up hoping to scare you so you'd push p gainst me more."

Sigrid moved about on the bed until she faced her husband. "Adam, I don't believe in any Ghostly Sailor or anything else like that but I have been praying we wouldn't drown. Adam, it would be a shame if we did drown and we…I know I look awful, Adam, and haven't bathed in a few days and such but, oh, Adam…we haven't been together like this…"

"I was thinking the same thing…" Adam pressed his mouth against Sigrid's, his hands loosening her robe and then slipping across her warm flesh. If they were going to sink, Adam couldn't think of a more pleasurable way to drown than lying between Sigrid's thighs.