A Broken Captain

Author's Notes: This is my POV of what might have happened, had Captain Edward J. Smith survived the Titanic, although some of it is surely artistic license, as to whether his wife would have left him, I surely do not know. Again, this part is purely artistic license, so please bear with me. Constructive criticism, is as usual, welcome, but please no flames.
I do get hurt easily :)

1:30 A.M. - On the Sloping Decks of the R.M.S. Titanic

Captain Edward J. Smith, stood, in despair, and looked around, at his sinking command. He ran a hand through his hair, and mumbled to himself, ' Oh, dear God!'. In all of his years at sea, he couldn't believe that his final command had come down to this.

In just a matter of an hour or so, all of this, this grand luxury, would be rotting away for all eternity, in the inky, dark North Atlantic waters, in a freezing cold grave. And, he thought bitterly, so would about two thirds of the ship's complement, both crew and passengers.

Well, at any rate, he thought sorely, he was prepared to do his duty as Captain, and to go down with his ship. He thought briefly, of his beloved wife, Sarah Eleanor, at home, waiting for him, with their lovely daughter, Helen. His heart ached, at the thought that he would never see them again.

1:45 A.M.

On further up the decks, stood a young first class woman, Miss Violet Marie Duncan, staring dumbfounded at the chaos that was unfolding around her.

She backed up against the wall, and then she turned and as she did, she saw the Captain of this fine ship, as he stood outside the bridge, and looking forlorn and, she thought, completely broken. What a terrible thing to happen, she thought. And wished that she could say something, that might help the man, but he would probably die very soon. Well, so would she, she thought, if she didn't shake a leg here and get moving.

2:00 A.M.

It was too late, for Miss Duncan, and she started to sob, as she realized that the last boat had just left. Oh, she didn't want to die, not this way anyway. Then she thought about her poor, widowed mother, in England. What would she think? This would probably break her heart.

As another wave broke up over the decks, Captain Smith turned and took a final glance around, and when he did, he saw the lovely young woman, still standing there, looking terribly frightened. Good Lord, what was she still doing on board? Why hadn't she gotten on a boat? How could his officers have missed her?

He moved slowly across the decks, and over to where the young woman stood and said, " My Lord, what are you still doing here, Miss..?"

She said, weeping, " Duncan.. Miss Duncan. I.. I.. don't know how I missed the boats. Oh, Lord, I don't want to die like this."

He knew that there should still be one more boat, about to be launched on the port side, and so he took her by the arm and said, " Come with me, Miss Duncan. There should be one more boat, on the port side. Hurry, and I'll see you on to the boat, personally."

As they walked hurriedly across the slanting decks, Violet said tearfully, " What will happen to you, Captain?"

He sighed and said, " Well I guess I'm going to meet the same fate as most of the others on board, tonight. I'll go down with the ship."

She cried and said, " Oh, no. That isn't fair."

He turned to look at her and said wearily, " Look around you, Miss Duncan. Do you think that this is fair, to my passengers in whom I had the utmost responsibility? No. This isn't fair."

Then he turned the corner, bringing her along with him, and as he came up to the boat, he handed her to the officer and said, " Help this young woman in, now, sir."

Officer Lightoller nodded and took the young woman's hand, then handed her over into the boat, where she then promptly took a seat.

As the boat was lowered, she looked back up and saw the sad, forlorn face of the very attractive captain, and wondered why it was that he had to die. And she decided then, that if it were at all possible, she would try to save him once he went into the water.

2:20 A.M.

The final creak of the ship, and the stern, which had risen high into the water, began to plummet into the black depths of the Atlantic, never to be seen again. And all that there was left of the Titanic, were a few measly lifeboats, and that was it.

At that moment, Violet, who had been watching for the captain, spotted him as he was in the water, and she said to the seaman, " Your captain is right over there. You must save him, sir. It isn't fair that he should have to die, either."

The man didn't have to think twice, he began to row immediately and when they came to where Captain Smith was, he seemed to be unconscious, already, but they pulled him into the boat and Violet took off her jacket and covered him with it, and sat next to him and watched him carefully, for signs of life, which did begin to return, slowly.

8:30 A.M. - Monday April 15, 1912 On Board the R.M.S. Carpathia

Once all the survivors had been safely evacuated from their tiny lifeboats, to the warmth and stability of the big ship, Violet went with the Captain, who was still out cold. At least, she thought, he didn't know yet, that she had saved him. And she was wondering now, if she should have, but then she thought, if she hadn't of, then she would have had to live with that ugly knowledge, for the rest of her life, and she just couldn't do that. She just couldn't go against her Christian upbringing.

10:00 A.M.

Captain Rostron of the Carpathia, had already been informed of the Titanic's Captain, having survived and had been brought aboard. He thought it strange, as he knew Captain Edward J. Smith, and he knew that the man would have went down with his ship, so someone must have saved him from the waters. Well, whoever it was, he knew that Smith wasn't going to be very happy about this. But he decided to take a walk down to the infirmary himself, and talk to the captain, there.

Violet sat next to the bed where the captain lay, still unconscious, but the doctor had reassured her, that he would come to, eventually, and that he was indeed, showing signs of regaining consciousness.

And he had been right, for not more than fifteen minutes later, as Violet sat there, her eyes closed in prayer, she felt a hand grasp her arm and tighten its grip on her, and her eyes flew open, she turned her head and felt the captain's eyes on hers.

Edward Smith sat up, and stared around himself, wondering if he had died last night, or was this some sort of hospital. He couldn't surely have survived, not when so many had died.

Then he turned and saw the beautiful young lady, that he had helped onto that last lifeboat, just hours ago, it seemed. And he knew then, that it was she, who had saved his life, and that he was not dead, but very much still alive. He didn't know whether to thank her or to be angry with her. Well, the poor dear, he thought, couldn't have been easy, so instead, he said, ".. Well, Miss Duncan, it looks as if we're to meet again. You've saved my life, so it seems."

A smile lit up her face and she said, " Oh, yes indeed, sir. I just couldn't do nothing. I hope that you're not too angry about it. I was told that you probably would be, as it is a ship captain's duty to go down with his ship. But it is my duty, as a Christian and God fearing woman, to not let someone die, when I know that they can be saved."

He stared at her, and could see that she was most sincere in her beliefs and he couldn't say anything at all, so he said, " Well, I thank you then Miss Duncan. For now my wife and daughter, will be most appreciative, I'm sure."

She laughed softly and said, " Oh think nothing of it, Captain, sir."

Then as he was sitting there and trying to find out more about his rescuer, he could see the captain, Arthur Rostron of this ship, coming towards him.

Arthur came forward and said somberly, " Well, Edward, we meet again. I dare say, it's awfully good to see you, although I didn't think that you would make it through that awful experience. But I see you've a rescuer here." And with that, he turned to the beautiful young woman, sitting next to Edward and said, " Many thanks are indebted to you, Miss. For such a heroic act, saving the captain of that ship."

She smiled softly and said nothing.

Then she said, " I'll come back later and check on you, Captain. For I can see that you two have things to discuss." Then she rose, and left, and he watched after her, as she moved gracefully, across the room, her skirts, swirling around her feet. She was very beautiful too, he thought, with her long, flaming red curls, and those violet colored eyes. My, he had never seen eyes such a color before. Anyway best rid of these thoughts, he thought to himself.

12:00 P.M. - Thursday April 18, 1912

Violet sighed, for soon they would be in America. In fact, within a matter of just a few hours, they would be disembarking. She had only been coming to America to visit some friends, then she would have returned to England. Now, she found that she didn't want to stay here, but she wanted to return, as quickly as possible, back to England, and to stay with her mother, who was up in years and not in good health.

She sat down on one of the benches, and stared out at the ocean, as they were nearing the end of their journey.

Her reverie was broken, when she heard footsteps approaching, and she turned and saw the Captain, as he made his way over there and then took a seat next to her.

He smiled warmly and said, " Well.. you must be terribly relieved to be nearing land, once more."

She was surprised to find herself near tears, and she quickly brushed the tears away and tried to hide that fact, from the man, but he noticed and said, " Oh, no dear please don't cry. Look at what we've made it through. My Lord, but you're a strong woman. I admire your courage and pluckiness. It must've taken a lot of strength, to come back for someone such as myself."

She thought that he sounded as if he didn't have the right to live, and she thought that that was probably just what he was thinking. Well, it was nonsense, as far as she was concerned.

Then she said tearfully, " I'm sorry, Captain. It's just that it's been such a horrible ordeal. And I.. I was only supposed to come over and visit with some friends and stay for a few weeks, then return, but now.. I just want to return to England, to go home. I live with my mother, and she is up in years and not in very good health. I don't want to think about how she's reacted to this." And thinking about that brought about more tears.

Edward had never liked to see a woman cry, from his own mother, to his wife and his daughter now. And he certainly didn't like seeing this pretty young woman cry. And she was very beautiful, he thought, once more. Then he said, " Please, don't cry, Miss Duncan. Really, it will be all right. If we made it through this, then we'll make it back home. Are you going to be returning right away?"

She nodded and he said, " Well I don't suppose I will be, as I have heard already, right here on board, that there is going to be a United States Senate investigation into the sinking of my ship. You can bet I'm going to be called in for questioning, and the same, when I return to England, when they start their own investigation. It won't be pretty, you see, Miss Duncan. Because I was the ship's captain, I shouldn't have survived."

There was a pause, and some silence before she said, " Well.. I'm not sorry that I saved your life, Captain Smith. I can't undo it, and I wouldn't, not for anything, for as I've stated earlier, I would have had to live with those consequences, for the remainder of my life, and I wouldn't want to do that."

He smiled, then reached over and patted her hand and said, " Yes, I know, I've heard. You surely must come to Southampton then, and meet my wife and daughter. I know that Eleanor, my wife, and Helen, our daughter, would love to meet the woman who saved my life."

She laughed softly and said, " No, surely you don't mean that."

He looked at her intensely and said, after a moment of silence, and seriously, " Oh, but I do, Miss Duncan. I truly and honestly do. I'm not an insincere person and I mean what I say."

She was touched by his candor and she said, thoughtfully, " Well, then I would like that very much."

Then he stood and said, " Well come along, Miss Duncan, and let's go and watch this ship, as she comes into harbor. For we are there, now. And soon, we should be able to disembark." And he took her by the arm and led her off, towards the bridge.

5:00 P.M. Saturday April 20, 1912 - Southampton, England, Winn Road

Eleanor Smith sat, still shocked and stunned, to learn that her husband, had survived the sinking of the Titanic. First, she was still shocked, that the so called unsinkable ship could have even sunk, on its maiden voyage, no less.

Then, when she heard, from reliable sources, that her husband, Captain Edward J. Smith, the commander of that beautiful ship, that.. he had survived? Oh, it just couldn't be, she thought. She loved Ted, very much, with all of her heart, but how could he have survived, when so many innocent people had died? Oh she couldn't live with that kind of shame.

She hurried upstairs, to their bedroom and put some clothes into a suitcase, then ran down the hallway, to Helen's room and opened the door.

Helen, glanced up at her mother, surprised to see her standing there, suitcase in hand, and tears in her eyes. She knew about the Titanic, too, and said tearfully, " Did daddy die, mommy?"

Eleanor came into the room, set the suitcase down, then sat down on the edge of the bed and said, " No, sweetie, he didn't. That's what I have to tell you. Honey, he did survive, I don't know how, but he did. And now.. well I hate to tell you this, but now there will be nothing but shame on our heads, for what he has done. And despite the fact that I love him dearly, and always will, we can no longer live with him. We are leaving here, this very day, and I'm filing for divorce."

Helen started to cry, she loved her daddy and mommy so, and she didn't want to live anywhere but here. And especially, when her beloved daddy came home. Oh, she always loved to run and jump into his arms, and he would hold her close, and she would lay her head down on his broad shoulders, and snuggle up close. Tears spurted into her eyes, and she said, with lips trembling, and eyes watering up, " But, mommy, I love daddy and don't want to live anywhere else. How can you, if you love him like you say?"

Eleanor knew that the little girl couldn't understand and so she said, with a finality to her voice, " Pack your bags, Helen. We mustn't delay. I know that your father will be in the United States, for there is a Senate investigation, but when he returns to England, there will also be some sort of formal investigation, and you know that your father is going to be in loads of trouble, because it was his ship. I understand, that he had the ship going to fast, knew of the ice dangers, but wouldn't slow down, and that he wasn't on the bridge at the time of the collision. And then on top of that, he had to survive? Oh dear Ted, she thought, if only he had died. Then she could have lived with the memory, and without shame. He would have died a hero, going down as a true captain should. But Eleanor hadn't a clue that her husband's very survival was due to another young woman, who had been courageous and plucky enough, to save him from those cold, dark waters.

As Helen packed, Eleanor sat there, thinking back to the night before her dear Ted had left, for this fateful voyage. After Helen had gone to bed, she and Ted had gone to their room, and as usual, he had been romantic, loving and gentle with her, and my goodness, but even after twenty five years of marriage, their lovemaking was still something out of this world. She knew that she was going to miss being married to him, and didn't know how she was going to make it on her own, but she would find a way. After all, she had been self sufficient, before she became Mrs. Edward J. Smith, so she would just have to find a way to become that once more.

After the child had packed, being sure to bring a beautiful white fluffy stuffed rabbit, that her father had brought home for her, on one of his many trips, Eleanor wrote out a quick note, telling Edward where she was going, and for him to not bother coming after her, for she wasn't coming back. There would be papers from her attorney, that he would need to sign, to finalize the divorce.

5:00 P.M. - Saturday, May 4, 1912, Southampton, Winn Road

After a long, and grueling investigation, and then the return to England, Edward was very well worn out. He had brought Miss Duncan, along, hoping for her to meet Eleanor, and Helen. And he knew that she lived not too far away, and hoped to get home to her own mother, as soon as possible.

He sighed, and said, " Well, Miss Duncan, here we are. Home at last. It's been a long time since last I've seen this place, or at least it surely seems this way."

He unlocked the door, surprised to find that the shades were still drawn, the lawn looking rather untidy, and not like Eleanor to leave things like this, but then again, it had probably been a big shock to her, as well.

He moved around, opened the curtains, and took in the neat surroundings, and the familiarity of his home, sighed and said,
" Well, then, Miss Duncan, why don't you just have a seat? I'll fetch Eleanor, and Helen." Then he turned and left.

Moments later, he returned, and Violet saw a very angry look about him, and sad at the same time, she thought, and he slumped down on the couch and put his head in his hands and stared at the floor. Unable to comprehend what had just happened, she touched his arm gently and said softly, " What is it, Captain?"

He looked up at her, tears in his eyes and said, " Don't call me Captain, please. I'm not one anymore. You can call me Edward, if you like."

She was startled by that and then said, " Very well then, Edward. But please, you must call me Violet, then."

He handed the piece of paper to her, and she sat there and read it, horrified, even shocked. She didn't know that a woman would have the audacity to leave her husband. Why, it sounded to her, as if Eleanor had wanted her husband to die.

She let the paper flutter to the floor and she said tearfully, " Oh, I'm so sorry Edward."

Edward stood to his feet and said, " Well.. I guess I don't have a wife anymore, Violet. What do you suppose, I'm to do, now?"

She didn't know how to answer that and so she remained quiet, wishing fervently to get home to her mother.

He noticed her anxiety and said, " Come along, Violet. I'll see you home to your mother. I know that you've said you don't live far from here. I've nothing to do right now, and no one here, to care about either."

She thought suddenly, for the first time, that perhaps, she should have left him to die, in those cold, waters. And the thought surprised her and brought tears to her eyes. She would've never thought that she would have had such a thought, in all of her life. And she was sorry for that thought, for Edward was such a caring, gentle man. She had gotten to know him somewhat better, over the past three weeks, and she couldn't imagine leaving such a fine gentleman, to perish in that sort of manner. No, she would never ever be sorry for having saved him from those icy, cold waters.

Slowly she stood to her feet, but suddenly all the emotions of the past several weeks that had been overwhelming, came flooding back, and she sat back down, and putting her head down, as Edward had done moments earlier, she let the tears fall. All this pain, she thought, and now.. this.."

Edward sat down again, and watched her silently, knowing that she had to be going through her own living hell, and he said quietly, " Violet, love, don't cry. It's going to be all right. Hell, we made it through that nightmare. This isn't as bad as that, although it sure as hell is a shock to my system. I've been married to Eleanor for nearly twenty-five years, and I just never thought she'd up and leave me. And she took my child from me, and that hurts just as much, if not worse."

Violet started to cry once more, the thought of him being hurt that way, by someone who was supposed to have loved him?

He moved over closer and put an arm around her shoulder and said quietly, " Shhh.. Violet. Don't cry love. You're back home now, on English soil. Your mother's waiting for you, love. You don't want to go home to her, crying like this, now do you?"

She sniffled some and then he turned her around towards him and said, " Now, there.. dry your eyes, Violet. You've the prettiest eyes I've ever seen, love. Such a pretty violet color. Is that where your name came from? Your eyes?"

She nodded and said quietly, " Yes, it is. My mother said that I had the prettiest, but most unusual violet colored eyes, ever on a baby, and so they named me Violet Marie Duncan."

He tipped her head up, to gaze into her eyes and said, " Why, yes they are." Then he reached over, and gently brushed the tears away, startling Violet.

Then he said, " Well, we'd best get you on home now, love. We don't want to worry her one bit more, now do we?"

Violet nodded and so he took her by the arm and led her out of the house, locking the door behind him. He figured now, he would probably have to sell this house, and look for something a bit smaller, now that it was just to be himself again, as it had been in his early youth. Why, he hadn't even married Eleanor, until he had been 37, and had just been made Captain, commander of his first ship. Now, here he was, 62, and his career, all but over with.

He led her down the hill, and into town, and hailed a taxi. It was only a ten minute drive from his home, to where her mother lived.