1Chapter 10
For her safety, Rose remained in the cabin for the rest of the trip back to New York. Even after his encounter with Delia, Cal had not stopped looking for her. Delia had been approached a few times after the incident and was questioned about her "twin"by passengers and crew. She learned that Cal was offering a monetary reward for any information on the whereabouts of his fiancé and was stopping every passenger he crossed to show them a picture, and many of them had reported seeing two girls traveling together who looked much like her. Delia simply explained that it was her eldest sister they had seen her with and most certainly not Rose. Luckily the excuse worked as Cathleen did look very much like her younger sister also but, oddly enough, not nearly as much as Rose did. It was convincing enough to send the curious strangers away satisfied however.
Cal could not keep his eyes off Delia. She looked so much like Rose from afar, yet he could easily distinguish the dissimilarities up close. He found himself sneaking up behind her a few times just to get a closer look, just to confirm once more that it wasn't Rose and was always disappointed. He didn't quite know the exact reason why but he was longing to talk to her and he figured he would give it a shot. At the very least, he owed her an apology for his behavior.
As he approached her, Delia spun around saw him coming for her. Her first instinct was to run but she thought better of it. She was certain he would not harm her now that he knew she wasn't Rose and though she did believe she had finally learned the truth from Rose, she was curious to hear Cal's side of the story.
Cal opened his mouth to talk but before he could utter a word, Delia snapped at him. "The first thing out of your mouth better be an apology and an explanation. Then, you will tell me who on earth you are! My name is Delia."
Cal smiled sheepishly and began to explain. "Yes, a good afternoon miss, Delia. I only approached you to apologize. I'm terribly sorry for the mistake and my behavior. Please, you must understand I was desperate. I was a passenger on the Titanic. My fiancé is missing. I thought you were her. See for yourself." Cal pulled the picture of Rose from his pocket to show to her. Delia softened a bit as he seemed genuinely apologetic and sincere and took the picture from him.
"Good gracious!", she exclaimed, hoping he didn't sense her mock astonishment. "It's like looking in a mirror!"
Cal nodded and smiled. "My name is Caledon Hockley, that is Rose Dewitt Bukater, my fiancé. We were separated on the ship. No one has seen her since we began boarding the lifeboats. We quarreled the last time we saw each other, I just thought maybe if she were still alive, well, maybe she wouldn't want to return to me. I don't know. I guess I was just hoping that was the situation. I'd rather believe that she were still alive and angry with me than...dead." For the first time since the sinking, Cal began to cry.
Delia was not prepared for this. She fought back the urge to tell him that Rose was alive and well and hiding out in her cabin, but she had witnessed first-hand the other side of Cal. She believed that he loved Rose very much, but also that it didn't matter to him whether or not she returned his affections. He had expected her to return to him, no ifs ands or buts about it. She knew if he were to find out Rose was alive, he would try to drag her back to her old life. If she refused, Delia didn't even want to think of what might become of her.
"Mr, Hockley, I can't imagine what you and your family are going through. I realize your grief and confusion has played a role in your actions and therefore I forgive you and whatever happens, you and your family will be in my prayers. Good day, Mr. Hockley."
"Thank you miss," Cal replied, choking back tears. "Good day." As he watched Delia walk away, Cal broke down. He had been hanging on by a thread with the belief that maybe she had been hiding from him, but every lead turned to Delia. Still, he could not bring himself to accept that she was dead. She had been with Jack Dawson all night and Dawson was alive. Could it be that she was in fact on the rescue ship too and they had managed to conceal the truth from him? One thing was for certain, he would find out if she was and then she would be brought back home where she belonged. If she wasn't and she was still alive, she would seek out Dawson and Cal would be waiting for her.