Disclaimer:

It took Stephenie Meyer six years to write four books.

It took Morgan Locklear 27 years to find that song from

Greatest American Hero on CD


Chapter Twenty Nine:

C'est Dommage

Le Havre had been chased down by a storm all day and it finally caught up to the French port. The wind whipped Jacob's hair as he stood on the dock and looked at the emptying ship. He eyed the black clouds rushing as he began walking briskly toward the vessel, Edward and Bella in his wake.

By the time they boarded the ship and located the Captain, it was all but deserted. The emptiness mocked Jacob as he sped down the narrow corridors to the familiar bridge and its command crew.

"Hello, Mr. Black," Captain Caussin greeted him. "Is Bella…? Oh, hello Miss Swan. Is something wrong?" He could see the wild in their eyes and it unsettled him. Sailors with that look were either drunk or scared, and these three did not look drunk.

Edward entered the room last but it was he who spoke to Diamond Beard. "We were expecting my family to return on this ship, Captain."

"Is that so?" the captain responded. He seemed surprised, and possibly a little hurt. "I haven't seen them at all, but it has been a very stormy voyage. I haven't had the time to socialize as much as I'd like. I do hope their trip wasn't unpleasant, we…"

"You don't understand," Edward said calmly, "they are nowhere to be found."

The captain frowned, then turned to one of his officers and asked for a passenger list. The young man produced several dozen pages of names and the captain began scanning the list.

"Here they are!" he exclaimed. "Cabin Fifteen D."

He began walking out of the room and the three of them followed in hopeful silence.

"You say you haven't seen them?" the Captain asked. "Well, that's not uncommon. They may not even know that we've arrived."

They went down two flights of grand stairs that emptied into a main salon, which was as nice as their theatre. After passing through, they followed Diamond Beard down a narrow hall to a door with 15D on it.

The captain knocked twice sharply and walked inside.

"Hello?"

Edward recognized the Cullen baggage at once. Their bags were sitting in the middle of the room on an ornate rug where dark blue and gold blended together, giving the appearance of a grand painting on the floor, framed by the wood it sat on. "What does this mean?" he asked.

"They must be looking for the porter," came the captain's unconvincing response.

Typically, Jacob was silent to the point of invisibility in situations like these. That tended to make it all the more unsettling when he announced himself. He walked quickly over and stood between the captain and the door when the man whirled around to seek out said porter.

Jacob cleared his throat, twice. "They are not on the ship, sir, nor did they leave when she docked." He forced this understanding onto the man with a severe stare before he continued. "Could they have been lost at sea?"

Bella gasped, the thought was crushing to her. Jacob held up his finger sternly to let the captain answer.

Captain Charles "Diamond Beard" Caussin was true to his word. A month earlier, he reported to Bella that he had indeed seen her theatre with his own eyes and that it was as spectacular as it was sturdy. He thoroughly commended the formal entrance to the lobby and wished to know the architect. When she told him it was Jacob he made a note to thank the ever surprising young man the next time they spoke.

That time had come.

Captain Caussin considered the question deeply. When he answered he looked directly into Jacob's eyes. "Absolutely not." he answered with confidence. "Not even in this weather, and certainly not all three of them at once."

Jacob agreed with the captain's assessment that it was unlikely, so he moved on. "What could it be? What does experience tell you happened here, Captain?"

The captain looked at the bags and then walked into the second section of the suite for a brief moment. "They didn't even spend one night on board." He was smiling. "They just missed the launch that's all."

"How can that be?" Edward said. "Clearly they were onboard."

"We load these ships slowly over two days or more," the Captain said patiently, "and we don't start meal services until we are at sea. They must have gone out for a meal and lost track of time. It's not uncommon."

"Would they be on the next ship?" Edward asked.

"That's my guess," the captain said.

"When is it due?"

"The La Bourgogne is a day behind us, and I'm certain that they would have been allowed passage. No doubt they had their tickets with them and explained to an officer what happened. Even if the ship was full they would have been allowed to travel in steerage if they chose."

Jacob smoothly stepped aside. "May we be allowed to sleep aboard your vessel while we wait for tomorrow's arrival?" he asked.

"Certainly," the captain replied. "You can have my officers' quarters."

"No, thank you," Edward countered. "We would prefer an inner cabin. Even steerage would be sufficient."

"Nonsense," the captain said. "We can do better than that."

Bella stepped forward and took the captain gently by the hand. "We have already been too much trouble," she said, keeping his eyes focused on hers. "We prefer to take our family's belongings to a less refined part of the ship and sleep. We have been up for days and wish to remain undisturbed." She smiled at him sheepishly. She felt mildly guilty for the glazed look in his eyes, but the smile only made it easer for him to bob his head up and down like a puppy watching a flutterby. "If you are still insistent on showing us your hospitality, maybe you could offer us a small cargo area below decks?"

"I have my personal belongings bay," he responded. "It's quite big and even has electricity. But there are no windows or beds."

"How big is quite big?" Jacob asked.

"Big enough to hold my carriage and several cabinets I purchase in New York whenever I get the chance," he answered as he gazed at Bella's enchanting face. "I will have it cleared out within the hour."

"Thank you so very much Captain…uh….Diamond Beard." Bella realized that she only knew him by his nickname and the conversation quickly became more personal than she could have anticipated.

"Please," he offered, charmed by her nervous laugh. "Call me Charles."

"Charles," Bella chewed on the name like it was licorice. "That's my father's name. May I call you Charlie?"

He laughed. "I'd like that."


They were invited to remain in the Cullen's cabin while theirs was emptied. The captain, who lived nearby, confirmed his orders and took his carriage the eleven miles home for the evening.

Edward opened his father's bags while they waited. He found an undelivered birthday card for Bella sitting right on top of the worn clothes. It was signed by them all and the words "HAPPY 29TH BIRTHDAY" were written inside.

Bella had, in fact, turned 380 the previous month and the Cullens knew this. Esme's joke was accompanied by a cryptic hint about her back stage dressing rooms and how her birthday present awaited her there.

It was possibly the last thing she ever wrote and this knowledge was twisting Edward from his belly to his brain.

Edward could tell that Jacob's worry had him teetering on the edge. Jacob had begun to seriously fear about transforming into a wolf involuntarily for the first time in a very, very long time. He could also hear Bella worrying about how they were both feeling.

Edward's optimistic side seized on the captain's theory of a missed departure and he was happy to focus on that scenario. He knew there was nothing else he could do. He had considered one other action but Bella had cut him off with a thought.

You are NOT going to go running out onto that ocean with your speedy little pitter patter feet and wind up missing the ship and getting lost out there… I will consider flying, of course, but let's get downstairs and discuss it first.

Edward reread the card and saw that both Carlisle and Esme also included clues to birthday gifts that, sadly, were all the way back in New York. They very well knew that she would have to wait another six months to receive them and that even another Christmas would go by before she went to America. But they were a bit wicked that way. Edward confirmed it with a chuckle. "They did something for your dress rack and your books as well," he said, handing her the card. "They'll probably get you something for a wedding present that will compliment it, but we still won't know what it means until after we get there."

"Did they do this kind of thing to you as children?" Bella laughed, grateful for the distraction for them all.

"Oh, it was worse," he recalled. "They would put us in the buggy and drive for days never telling us where we were going. They took us to Rome one summer that way. It took us half the summer to get there though so we stayed a week and went home."

Bella laughed heartily and Edward thanked her with a smile. He could hear that Jacob was calming down, the light conversation allowing him to put things into perspective.

The Cullens were safe, just not on this ship.

Together, the three friends went through all the bags and found just what they expected to - clothes and personal possessions. They went through the large monogrammed Cullen trunk and found both leather cases as well as worn building plans with numerous equations scratched on them. Jacob took the plans, grateful for the distraction of deciphering the things written on it.

The trunk also held nearly two thousand American dollars and some property deeds for lots that sat along the west side of a colossal park built at one end of the city.

Edward examined the documents carefully. "It looks like my father owns some property across from Central Park."

Jacob strode over and plucked the examiner's report from Edward's generous hand. "I don't know why it's called Central Park," he puzzled. "It's all the way north of the city."

"I'm surprised the map even goes up that far," Edward agreed.

"Our theatre is halfway between Battery and Central Park isn't it?" Bella asked, walking over to Jacob.

"Roughly speaking," he said.

"Good," she sighed, "I want to be down where the action is."

"Maybe this is where they plan to live," Jacob speculated, squinting at the grids on the surveyor's map he held. "It looks like mostly houses along both sides of the park."

"Who would want to live way up there?" Edward laughed.

They only had to wait thirty minutes before they were taken down to a spacious and completely walled in compartment that already held Jacob's carriage. It had been driven in through a drawbridge door that made up the wall facing outward. They were informed that the horses were being stabled near the docks at a place recommended by the crew.

The three of them were pleased to find that several dozen blankets were provided and Jacob suggested that they shove most of them into the space between the benches in the carriage. He assured them that it would make a very comfortable bed.

Jacob would be wandering the ship or Le Havre itself in a futile attempt to make another day pass swiftly.


Morning arrived with a warm wind that pushed Jacob's hair straight back from his forehead while he stood on the port side of the ship looking west, toward America.

He knew he was a patient man but could not help but believe that this waiting was going to bear no fruit. The storm had passed, but he could see its sister on the horizon. And it was her big sister.

Bella had indeed offered to fly out over the Atlantic the night before in search of the La Bourgogne but Jacob had talked her out of the idea. He reasoned that they could do little with whatever information they received. He explained to her that if the Cullens were not aboard they would take the next ship to New York and that they were already sleeping on it. He also did not want her flying when there was a chance of lightning.

Jacob strolled along the boardwalk to the stable where his horses were kept. It was a fine establishment and the captain had already paid for two nights of food and lodging for the animals. The black Friesians whinnied when they saw him and fought over his rough hand on their noses. Jacob stayed for a while letting the beasts calm his nerves and lighten his heart. Then he found something to eat.

They liked sausage in Le Havre. To be honest, Jacob thought the whole country of France was a bit sausage happy but in Le Havre they had links hanging from nearly every vendor's stall.

He ate some creamed chipped beef and sopped it up with two loaves of sourdough bread as the noon hour slipped by as slow as an oak tree's cycle.

Jacob spotted Captain Caussin just as he was asking for a second glass of milk and invited him over. "Thank you again for your hospitality," he said. "And I must say that your thoughtfulness as to the care of my horses was top drawer, sir. Top drawer."

"You are welcome my good man. How did you sleep?" he asked with a mild tone of concern.

"As well as ever," Jacob replied smoothly. "Edward and Bella are still out."

"I do wish you would let me move you to one of the finer suites."

Jacob shook his head. "Now, now my dear sir, Bella wouldn't allow it. She likes to travel as commonly as possible but she does require her privacy so the use of your personal compartment is perfect for us."

"Well, I'm glad I could help." With that he stood up and walked away, offering Jacob a friendly wave and an invitation for all three of them to join him for tea at three on the bridge.

Jacob watched the captain's slightly bowlegged gate as he made his way to his ship and thought about how he would have to cover for Edward and Bella. The bridge had little porthole windows that would stab the room with shafts of deadly sunlight from any direction.

He finished his meal and then pitched in with the unloading of the La Touraine. He spoke with sailors and shorehands for a few hours, learning much about America by the exports but even more by the things they demanded. It seemed that America could make its own furniture and grow beautiful fruits and vegetables, but could not make a decent truffle to save its life.

He was also offered a quick inside tour by a red headed man with a slight build and a filthy coal streaked cap perched on his head. He led Jacob down into a stifling engine room where a long propeller shaft disappeared into the port wall of the vessel. The other end was embedded in an engine that was as big as a horse carriage and, since the room was silent, he was allowed to climb under the railing and touch the sleeping beast.

The little fellow, Hugo, then led Jacob to the boiler room. It looked more like a cave than a ship with stalactite chains hanging from the ceiling and so much soot on the walls that he could not see the rivets.

"The fiercest and most exacting labor to which mortal can be set," Hugo said glumly. "This is my room."

Jacob did not want to insult the man but taking one look at the heavy shovel made him doubt if Hugo could lift it empty, let alone brimming with coal.

"I'm the supervisor," he stated, as though he sensed Jacob's thoughts.

Jacob nodded and pointed at the rails on the floor. "What are those for?"

"We have carts that move the coal from port to starboard. They are being replaced today so we removed the old ones this morning."

"How hot does it get in here?"

Hugo shrugged his shoulders. "Really hot."

"How much coal does it burn?"

"About two hundred and fifty tons."

"A trip?" Jacob was impressed.

"A day," Hugo answered with a smile.

Jacob was astonished. "Where are the stores?"

Hugo showed him. There were several gigantic rooms being loaded with coal from doors that were hinged at the bottom and dropped right onto the docks where the heavy fuel could be loaded by a flurry of boys and girls making a franc a day. They pushed what looked like miniature wooden mine cars and had smudges all over their hands and faces.

Jacob made his way to the bridge on time with a firm handshake and a respectful few words to Hugo before he left the man's company. Captain Caussin was already on the bridge, a severe look on his face.

"The La Bourgogne is early, a hundred miles out in fact. I received the Morse report from my operator and sent a request to have them search their passenger list for the Cullens."

He walked over and put his hand on Jacob's shoulder. He remembered very well the young Rosalie Cullen from their brief introduction on the bridge of the La Bretange. He also remembered how lovesick both she and Jacob looked even then.

"They aren't aboard. I don't know what to say, lad."

Jacob's head lowered briefly. He felt a lifetime of sorrow in those few seconds. When he looked up again, his face was a mask of determination. "When do you leave for New York?"

"Tomorrow evening."

"May we travel there in your baggage hold? We'll pay, of course."

"It's yours," the captain declared, "as is an invitation to dine with me each and every night. And don't even think about paying young man. Just promise to give me a tour of the inside of your magnificent building." Captain Caussin was pleased to offer a diversion and good cheer during what would be a very long journey for the distraught young man and his friends.

"Thank you, I will." Jacob agreed. "We will go to Paris tonight and return tomorrow by this time, if that is alright?"

"We are scheduled to depart at five thirty so that should be fine," the captain confirmed, habitually looking at his pocket watch.

Jacob took both the captain's small cold hands into his enormous and fevered mitts. "Thank you for this, Charles."

"Call me Charlie."

Jacob walked down to where Edward and Bella were stationed and heard that they were awake before he reached their door. The compartment they were in was really just a big iron box and the echoes, even with the carriage in the room, were stadium sized. The two songbirds had decided to tweet in their cage and when Jacob entered the space, he saw that Edward's eyes were wide with wonder. He no doubt was being treated to barrage of blue sound waves that crisscrossed into fog.

Jacob stepped into the room and closed the door.

"Oh no." Edward said, his delighted look instantly traded for terse disappointment. "They aren't on board the other ship," he explained to Bella.

Jacob approached them and put both hands on Edward's shoulders. "I'm sorry, Edward. I didn't know how I was going to break it to you."

Edward chuckled thickly. He had been counting on this to end well and could feel the emotion threaten to make his eyes blink and his heart clench. He turned his thoughts inward and quickly swooped through his mental barnyard, scooping up every so called worry chicken he could find and threw them all into the barn, locking the door.

He immediately felt better.

For he now felt nothing.

"Now what?" Bella asked.

"We leave for New York tomorrow," Jacob said. "Get in." He gestured towards the carriage. "We have one day to pack."

Edward and Bella entered the carriage and Jacob unbolted then lowered the drawbridge door and pushed the carriage out by hand onto the dock. He then took the short walk to the stables where his horses were kept and was hitching them to the coach in mere moments.

Edward gave Bella a worried look that, even in the dark, told her he was concerned about Jacob's well being.

"There's no hurry," Bella said softly, soothingly. "You said yourself that we have a whole day."

Jacob heard her, of course, but did not say anything. His movements slowed down a little and when he climbed onto the bench he tapped his lead horse lightly, gently and told them both that he would take it easy on them this trip.


By the time they arrived in Paris, it was after sunset and Bella was riding up front with Jacob. They went to the Cullen house because it was where Jasper, Alice and Emmett were planning to meet them.

Edward delivered the news in the garden where they found the trio. He was concise and when the brief explanation was over, Jacob stood up. "We are going to New York to look for them. We leave tomorrow."

"We're coming with you," Alice said and gave both Emmett and Jasper a look that communicated effectively, 'defy me and die.'

"That's very generous of you Alice but…" Edward knew this would happen.

"We are going and that's all there is to it."

"How will we all feed?" came Bella's small voice.

Jasper sighed. "That's what I was just pondering. The newborns can last a week with one bottle of vampire blood but even they will be ravenous and unpredictable by the time we get there." He looked at Bella. "You and I will become unthinking monsters if we go six days without proper blood."

"How much can you get from the hospital?" Jacob asked.

Jasper looked up, calculating math in his head. "I'd say I can get us half way there. We will have to find nourishment along the way."

"We can't do that to innocent people," Edward stated but without as much conviction as usual. It was as if he knew he should say it, but was not sure why.

Bella walked over to him. "Edward," she said softly, soothingly, "We have been very fortunate to have been sin free for the past year, but this is the time for action and we may have to do things we don't want to. Think of your family, they obviously need you." She had an idea just then. "If you find me those with villainous hearts, I can talk them into coming downstairs with me. Their deaths will be swift."

Edward agreed by nodding his head. "That sounds acceptable. I hear so much filth every day that I'd bet I can find someone every night if that's what we need."

"No crew members," Jasper warned. "No one traveling with companions either. We want people who won't be missed."

For a split second Bella wondered if the Cullens were beset upon by vampires and Edward heard her musings.

She watched him react to her thought, consider it himself and then bring it up to the group with a nod to her. In the end, it was the fact that their bags were still all sitting together completely unpacked that suggested they weren't fed upon while out to sea.

They simply missed the boat.

And then the next.

The group spent the night moving out of Notre Dame completely. Every last bizarre invention and jar of Jasper's went to the theatre and was stored in the room at the back of the stage. His bottles of precious dark liquid were quickly stored in wooden wine crates he had pinched from bistros over the last century. He knew the day would come and wound up with six cases too many.

It took four trips to move the blood alone. Each load had fourteen cases holding twelve bottles each and, on the last run, Jasper carried a single bottle in his arms. His thumb was over the cork.

Alice had two loads herself but, even though everyone possessed super human speed and the work proceeded fast, it was driving stuffed coach over the Seine a dozen times that devoured the ticking clock. Alice's belongings were taken to the second floor, where she draped her fabrics over the dozen box rails that lined the first tier of the auditorium. By the time her task was complete, she had used every balcony up to and including the fourth floor. It looked like the theatre had been taken over by gypsies.

Emmett enjoyed the work. He was very organized and able to pack things into the carriage so efficiently that he appeared to be performing a miracle. He was also very tender with delicate items and arranged everything so perfectly that Bella suggested he consider opening a moving company.

"Good idea," Alice said, honestly. "All you need to start is a box."

"I could only work at night," Emmett pondered, working out the snares in a fun sounding vocation.

"That's alright," Jacob replied. "You could call it the Wake Up Moving Company, where they're so fast, you'll wake up already there."

The unexpected joke received a good laugh. The group was on its last load, which included some of Emmett's medical souvenirs and texts as well as three large books on the game of chess, a bicycle he refused to give up and the rest of his clothes.

"Or you could hire Bella and call it the Fly By Night Moving Company," Edward added. The group groaned.

Emmett even prayed about it later that evening just before they left Notre Dame for good.

There was still an hour until sunrise when they all walked into the theatre as roommates.

"Remember," Jacob said to Emmett, Jasper and Alice. "You can go anywhere in the theatre during the day, except for my room and the lobby."

"I have to go to the hospital and stock up," Jasper said. "And resign."

"Are you sure about that?" Edward asked. "You were going to stay there until after Christmas."

"Right," Jasper said, "when we were going to move to New York."

"We're coming back," Bella stated firmly.

"I don't think so," Jasper told her. "Something tells me this is it."

"I don't want to worry about bringing wagons of goods with us," Edward spoke. "We need to just get there and get to my family."

"I understand," Jasper was sympathetic. "And Lord knows I can't take six hundred bottles of blood with me, but I think that when we come back it will be just to gather up our things and bring them to our new home."

"When the time comes, I'll come back and do it," Emmett said eagerly to his maker. "You can be the first customers of my new company."

"Wait!" Jacob said suddenly. "We have to be on the ship before sunset which means you all need to be in the carriage before dawn! There is no other way to get you in without going outside!"

"But I have to go to Val de Grace," Jasper protested.

"We don't have the time," Jacob said with determination.

"We need that blood," Jasper argued, "or you will arrive in America on a ship of corpses."

Jacob was frustrated but also knew he was right. "We go right now. The rest of you pack what you need. We will be back before the sun comes out."

Jasper left a letter explaining his sudden departure on his desk and took over ten liters of blood in just over twenty minutes. He had brought several water skins to fill but had to resort to, of all things, frosting bags he found upstairs with a baker's belongings.

Jacob sped into the stables accompanied by the morning birds that heralded the dawn.

Four vampires rushed out and joined their friend in the carriage. There were three on one bench and two on the other, it was not going to be a very crowded ride since they could all hear Jacob attaching a little farm cart he used from time to time onto the back of the coach.

He placed all their bags into it except for the frosting bags, which he handed over to the traveling companions. He was on the bench and facing the sun as it splashed his face in yellow warmth. "Tell them what you told me," Jacob said as he handed a bag to Jasper.

Jasper informed his friends that if they spent the whole day indulging their thirst and drank their fill and then some, it would provide them with an easier first two days. He told them all that if they oversaturated themselves, they may even be able to skip a whole day. He assured them that it was not dangerous and toasted the rising sun.

Jasper was reverent and contemplative all day, overcome by the sight of such a foreign constant in his life. Emmett had not yet begun to miss daylight and was less impressed. Alice, however, was riveted to the right side window, kneeling in front of it with her feet in the aisle. No one minded as Edward checked the lock on the door a hundred times before they arrived in the port town.

The daylit road to Le Havre was a feast for the eyes of old vampires. Bella and Jasper looked up at the skylight mostly, staring right at the fiery orb tinted by the thick grey windows. The younger vampires watched the houses and trees shuffle by as Jacob pressed northwest.

They reached the ship well before its departure and Jacob accepted no help as he lowered the large door to the compartment he counted rivets to get to. He saw that the captain had placed three beds along the wall, as well as a table with four upholstered chairs.

He unhitched and pushed the small farm cart into one corner and then released the horses. He tied their leads to a dock post as he pushed the carriage inside and raised the door. When it slammed shut he instructed one of the occupants in the coach to bolt and secure it in place. He was rewarded with the satisfying sound of metal sliding on metal and told his friends to sit tight while he thanked the captain for the accommodations, inquired about his horses' requirements along the way and informed him that they were now a party of six.

Bella exited the carriage and looked around at the beds and table. "Isn't he sweet?" she whispered. "We are safe anywhere on this level and the two below us but stay towards the middle of the ship if you go any higher than this during the day."

Jacob returned a few moments later and informed them that the captain himself would be along shortly to meet everyone.

"Was he upset that you brought extra people?" Alice asked.

"On the contrary," Jacob answered. "He seemed especially pleased that he would be having a larger group at his table. We are invited to dinner at eight in the main dining salon."

Captain Caussin confirmed the statement a short time later. Charlie came down and extended the invitation to everyone personally along with his hand. "Jacob tells me that you are going to help them find your missing friends."

"Yes, sir," Jasper said.

"I commend you all and I will make it my purpose to comfort your travels. I will contact every ship we pass in order to exhaust the possibility that you could miss them along the way."

"That is very kind or you, Charlie," Bella spoke. "You have become a dear friend in a short time."

He waved the statement off but his cheeks warmed. "I will have three more beds brought in as well as two more chairs," he stated. Bella found the glassy look in his eyes very becoming for a man with such deep laugh lines in his face.

"Thank you," she replied.

"Could we please get something to keep the carriage from moving?" Jacob asked.

"Of course," the captain responded. Fifteen minutes later, they even had a tray of fresh fruit, a second smaller table, a deck of playing cards and a few small but cheery plants. He also assigned them a personal porter, Vernon, and Jacob learned that Hugo would be passing by frequently. He also offered his assistance whenever possible.

They settled in while the engines stirred to life and they felt the world spin beneath their feet. The large ship slinked between countless vessels moored in the V shaped bay and pointed its nose due west before the activity in the boiler room encouraged the engine to spin the propellers even faster. It took over an hour to reach full speed and, by that time, the sun was a memory in the sky ahead of them.

France was a memory behind.

The group ventured out onto the decks and milled about with over nine hundred other passengers that were along for the ride. The ocean was a chorus of a thousand small sounds that washed together for almost everyone. To Edward, who could differentiate the sets of hands applauding at the last show, it sounded like a million murmurs and tiny splashes.

Dinner was a very formal affair. The captain had even changed his clothes for the occasion.

He told them that he had taken the liberty of speaking to some of his peers and had discovered several instances where parties had checked into a ship's cabin and had been detained by one of the numerous extravagances in New York. "And it's such a loud city," he told them. "You can't hear yourself think, let alone hear the harbor calls."

He was also pleased to inform them that the French Line had begun encouraging patrons separated from their baggage to delay their departure until their bags were returned to them. The mere possibility that their loved ones might actually be waiting for them when they arrived in New York made Jacob shiver with joy.

"Makes sense to me," Alice said. "Who wants to go on a boat ride with nothing to wear?"

Captain Caussin, who was easily charmed by beautiful women, was thrilled with the company of both Bella and Alice despite their obvious attachments. He was only interested in their social engagements, after all, and noticed that the innocence often provided him with a more unguarded conversation. The captain, a keen observer and a gifted orator, would often spend hours drinking stories out of people and telling tales of his own. Tales so big they needed their own life rafts.

Edward's wit and intellect impressed him greatly, as did Emmett's natural ability to make everyone feel included, but it was Jacob with whom the captain spent most of his time talking to. Both men shared a love of invention and they led a lively discussion with Jasper and Emmett about the future of radio communication.

Bella and Alice joined in as well but had already heard this particular discussion a dozen times before. Eventually, they busied themselves with a stroll through the gorgeous salon and out on deck under the stars.

"It means so much that you came with us, Alice," Bella spoke with sincerity.

"We had to," Alice responded. "You have always been there for me."

There were many people out in the ocean breeze. Everyone's eyes squinted just a bit. The two women stood on the starboard side of the ship and gazed North. They hugged each other pretending that they needed to keep warm and listened to the purr of the ocean as they skipped on top of it like a wind blown leaf.

They returned in time for the captain's traditional Bon Voyage toast and sipped champagne as they all took turns asking questions about the ship. This was standard conversation for the first night on a voyage and Charlie answered each question as if he had not been asked it a thousand times before.

He asked questions of his own, getting to know the group. Eventually, he bid them farewell as he always volunteered for a watch on the first night of a journey. He liked to watch the sun come up over his ship before he retired on the first full day at sea.

Once downstairs, they turned on the electric lights and passed around an assortment of books that Bella had the foresight to bring.

If there was one thing a vampire knew how to do, it was pass the time.


Notes:

Jennifer and I interviewed one another for the Peas and Carrots blog this week and we had a lot of fun doing it. I have included the link on my author's page.

Thanks to TwittahMon for setting the whole thing up. We have already agreed to a Part 2 interview sometime in November when I will be deep into the development of the sister book to our little Bella Voce.

Thank you all very much for reading. I'm excited to finish my first novel next week.

See you then,

MOG