Chapter 17 – Anxious Anticipation
Mr. Riafold directed me to a large home near the center of town where Nick had gone to deliver two-dozen horseshoes for the family stables. Some of the people in Port Laurel were just as well off as my grandfather. When I got to the house, I felt right at home. The house, the gardens, the stables, all reminded me of my home in Port Royale. For the first time since I left on the Pearl, I felt a twinge of homesickness.
I walked up to the great white door and tapped the great gold knocker against it. As I waited, I looked around the front porch of the house. A beautiful twin rocker sat along one side. I closed my eyes and imagined Nick and I, back in Port Royale sitting on the porch of our great mansion, Mother and Father inside, having tea with Grandfather and other political figures. I suddenly felt a twinge of anger toward my Grandfather. The governor knew beyond a doubt the he was the one that caused us to have to leave home, but I also knew that he didn't know about Mother's death. Our little group was the only one that knew what had happened. My distraction subsided when I heard the door in front of me unlock from the inside.
A young servant boy, no more than twelve years of age, answered the door. I asked him if Nick was still in the stables.
"Mr. Kingston left just a moment ago, ma'am," he told me. I began to wonder if I would ever find my husband. I wanted to tell him first, so I decided to return home and wait for him.
As I walked, I grew more and more anxious. I absolutely had to tell someone what I was hiding. I went across to my father's apartment before going home. I let myself in with the spare key that he had given me.
As I walked into the front room, I remembered that Father had taken Lyn out the night before. She was lying on the couch, snoring softly. It didn't surprise me that they were still asleep. Father had taken Lyn dancing. She really was very beautiful. The more I got to know her, the less she looked like my mother. There were faint resemblances, but she was a very different person. I found that reassuring. She was not taking the place of my mother. I also knew that if she was too much like Elizabeth Turner, there would be no way that we could have become as good of friends as we had. I peeked in my Father's room and saw him curled in a ball with his face in a pillow. He was smiling in his sleep. I was so happy for him. Of course he missed his wife, and assured me that no one could take her place, but he was happy again. Just to see him smile made me happier than anything.
Laughing to myself, I tiptoed out of the room and shut the door. I left the apartment and began to walk across the street to my own small home. I stopped in the middle of the street, feeling as though I may explode if I didn't tell someone my secret.
Jack, I thought and turned toward the harbor. I couldn't wait to see the expression on my "uncle's" face when he heard the news. Before I knew it, I had broken into a run. If my husband or my father couldn't be the first to know, Jack would do just fine. As I ran, I hiked my skirt up, my long legs doing their job well.
Then, I stopped. I stopped dead in my tracks. Images and sounds played on my senses all at once. It took me a moment to register them all. The harbor stood before me, the Black Pearl docked in its usual spot, Jack aboard, no doubt. It was this thought that froze me in the middle of the road. Splashing water, shouts, white sails, cannons.