Chapter Seven
Haunted Souls
Nicolás moaned as he became gradually aware of his surroundings. Dismayed at having gaps in his memory he blinked and tried to focus then squinted at the brightness in the room. It was almost noon judging by the light that cascaded in from the porthole above him. Neither Jean and Chantal nor him had much time left before the ship began its journey back across the ocean. As he propped himself up on one elbow, he realized no one was in the room with him. He figured they were out roaming the corridors trying to find the rest of the gold and briefly wondered why Santiago had hidden away the plans in his cabin during the previous journey.
Nicolás knew that Carlos and Santiago somehow knew each other but he didn't know how and he hadn't pushed the old man to tell him. He chastised himself, banishing the dark thoughts that popped up about the captain knowing more than he had let on and gingerly shook his head. No, it simply wasn't possible that the kind and fair captain had anything to do with the hidden gold, he must have kept the blueprints close for some other reason. He hoped it was only as a last resort in case of an emergency evacuation.
Nicolás heaved himself up, using the wall for support, then took a moment to gather his wits. He wasn't feeling all that well to be perfectly honest but he had to do something, he had to warn someone. After several agonizing minutes he made it to the worn steel door only to find it was locked. He grimaced as he searched his pockets for something to pick the lock with and broke into a grin as he found a hairpin.
"Where have you learned to do that?" Eva's voice rang out in the back of his mind.
His smile faltered as he recalled the look on her face as she'd told him he should do the right thing and answer Chantal. He'd desperately wanted her to tell him to forget about his wife but Eva had insisted it wasn't the right thing to do. He would give anything just to hold her in his arms again when this was all over.
The lock disengaged with a soft click, Nicolás wasted no time and slipped through the door. He staggered out into the dimly lit corridor at the bottom level of the ocean liner and felt his blood run cold as he thought the ship was listing, then he realized that it wasn't the ship. It was his balance that was off. He steadied himself against the wall as he quickened his pace and made it to a service ladder that would take him up several decks. He had to stop halfway up to the next deck as a dizzy-spell almost brought him down on his knees. He grabbed the rail desperately so as not to fall backwards down the flights of the cold metal staircase and snapped his eyes shut. His stomach was churning and he felt the bile rise up in his throat but instead of giving in or listening to his body he pushed on. He had to warn someone, he had to tell the captain and he had to see Eva again. However, Eva Villanueva wasn't the only woman on his mind at the moment.
"Did you ever love me, Chantal, or was it just a fling for you?" he asked sadly.
She hesitated as she gently removed a strand of hair from his clammy forehead, his head in her lap. A tear trickled down her cheek at the conflicted emotions in his deep brown eyes. "More than you'd ever know, Nicolás," she said softly in a subdued voice. "I used to dream you'd come to my rescue. I used to envision your face as I closed my eyes at night in that horrible place and tried to recall your voice."
"Then what happened?" he asked dejectedly.
"I was taken ill, Nicolás. I was delirious and due to my deteriorating state, I would not have lasted much longer. The doctors left me to die. I would have if Jean hadn't come to offer to take me away. I have been told they gave me to him willingly as they didn't think I'd last much longer but he took care of me and nursed me back to health – he became my hero," she explained kindly.
"Why didn't you contact me then?" he asked curiously.
She looked away. "Because he told me no one cared about me. He told me you'd moved on with your life, that I was nothing to you anymore," she replied hollowly.
"And instead of making sure that was the truth you took his word for it?" he asked incredulously. "Did you really think I'd leave you there if I had known where you were?"
She shook her head, not sure how to reply to that.
"Is that the impression I gave you while we were married?" he whispered tiredly, his eyes closing again. "I thought I knew you Chantal but obviously I was wrong."
"There he is!" a male voice shouted suddenly.
Nicolás was brought out of his semi-dazed state, pushed himself up and began to make his way upwards again. He felt a headrush and adrenaline coursing through his battered body as the open spiral staircase rattled due to someone running toward him from several decks below.
The first officer gritted his teeth and pushed on but it was to no avail as the other man gained several flights in just a few seconds. Nicolás made it to the next level and reached for the door handle just as Jean grabbed him from behind. He managed to get the door ajar before he was pulled backwards and into the spiraling service staircase once again.
Pierre turned around at the commotion and frowned in confusion at seeing a small piece of a graded uniform sleeve before the door slammed shut. The second officer thrusted the clipboard into the hands of the sailor who'd been standing opposite him and rushed toward the service entrance. "Nicolás?" he shouted.
Pierre opened the door and stared into an empty staircase with a frown.
"Sir?" the sailor called as he made his way over to follow the officer's gaze down the slope of the spiraling staircase.
Pierre shook his head, dumbfounded for a second, before he turned to face the sailor. "I thought I saw someone, obviously I was wrong."
OOOOOO
"Detective Varela," one of the local policemen called as he spotted the man entering the police house.
The head of security onboard the ocean liner curiously turned toward him.
"Sir, I have an autopsy result for you to read. The coroner says it's an interesting read," he explained.
Varela frowned and snatched the paper out of the other man's hand, eager to see what the doctor had found out. "Thank you," he said as he unfolded the paper and began to read.
"Something wrong, sir?" the police officer asked as he saw the other man's features harden.
"I need a car. I need to visit Miss Fábregas," he said cryptically.
OOOOOO
Verónica sighed as the phone started ringing, she tried to ignore it the best she could but when no one seemed to be interested in taking the call she gave up and headed over.
"The Fábregas Residence," she said.
"Yes, hello ma'am. My name is Doctor Salgado. I was hoping to talk to Miss de García."
Verónica felt her heart skip a beat as the man presented himself. She steeled herself for what was about to come, thinking the worst had happened. "I am Verónica de García," she said.
"Miss de García I am calling to inform you of the good news," he said kindly.
She felt her legs grow weak and steadied herself on the counter.
"Your mother has finally awakened and appears to be fine. She has some trouble with her motoric functions and memory at the moment but we do not believe that it's going to be permanent. I don't want to give you more information over the phone."
"I'll be there in half an hour," she promised and slammed the phone down in its holder.
Verónica didn't know why but she found herself at the entrance door to Dimas's cottage only a few clicks from the main house within a few minutes. He looked surprised at her sudden appearance and he was even more confused when she gave him a quick hug.
"Mother has awakened," she said cryptically.
He beamed at her, happy for both their sakes. "I am coming with you," he said and reached for his jacket.
OOOOOO
Eva sat down behind her type writer and spread her fingers across the letters. She took a deep breath and began on the first sentence of what was to become her next book. She let her fingers fly across the board and produced a paragraph before she sighed, ran a hand through her brown hair and then grabbed the paper with her other hand, reduced into a thin paper ball and tossed it in the bin. She gazed at the wastebasket for a moment, unable to take her eyes off of it even though she didn't really see it. After a minute or so she broke out of her stupor and dejectedly reached into her desk drawer to retrieve a beautiful charcoal black notebook.
"Sometimes it's best to start back page," he suggested in a soft subdued voice.
"Damn you," she whispered as she felt a sudden anger and disappointment take hold of her, then she sighed and shook her head. It wasn't Nicolás's fault Chantal had miraculously appeared out of nowhere. It was just that he'd stolen a piece of her heart from the first moment she'd laid eyes upon him, not that she'd ever admit such a thing, but still, he had.
Eva pursed her lips and frowned as she ran a hand over the notebook to feel its texture as her thoughts wandered again. There was something strange about the whole thing. Nicolás had told her he had been looking everywhere for Chantal and that, in the end, he had to give up hope of ever finding her yet she found him out at sea by sending a simple telegram. Eva found that odd and suspicious. She hadn't given it further thought earlier, just accepted that she had to take a step back, but now – she could have kicked herself for it. What if Nicolás was in danger? She chuckled without mirth at how ridiculous that thought was. He was a grown man, an officer on a large ocean liner, surely, he could take care of himself.
There was a faint knock on the door to her study and Carolina popped her head in. "Eva," she said softly with a smile. "I don't want to disturb you while you're creating but I need help to plan our father's funeral. I don't think I am strong enough to do it on my own and Francisca can't help me."
Eva's smile was bittersweet as she rose from the chair. "I am torn and conflicted when it comes to papá," she confessed. "But we should not lower ourselves to his level. Let's make it cheap but beautiful if not for his sake but for our mother."
"She must have turned in her grave when he committed those horrible crimes," Carolina whispered.
"Let's be strong and leave all the bad things behind us," Eva reasoned as she gently squeezed her sister's hand.
"Do you think we can get it over with tomorrow?" Carolina added.
"Carol," Eva stated in surprise at her sister's words.
"I just,-" she began and then stopped to raise her hands in a gesture of surrender. "I just want to put all this behind me. The sooner the better and papá didn't have a lot of friends overseas that I know of."
Eva let out a deep breath and then nodded faintly. "Okay, I'll give the undertaker a call and set everything up. You don't have to deal with it at all."
Carolina leaned forward and gave her little sister a quick hug in appreciation before she left the room.
Eva stared after her for a moment and then plopped down on the chair next to the typewriter again. She hoped that arranging the funeral on such a short notice would be enough to take her mind off of a certain charming first officer.
OOOOOO
Detective Varela frowned in surprise as Natalia opened the door. "Hello Miss Fábregas, just the woman I wanted to talk to," he said.
Her eyes hardened as she saw him, her grip tightening around the doorknob.
"Aren't you going to let me in?" he asked.
With a resigned look she retreated into the house, waiting for him to follow. "When will you leave me alone, Varela?" she asked bitterly.
He made a face as he glanced around the posh living room. "I won't be long. I can assure you that. Are you the only one here?"
"I think they're preparing the funeral arrangements of Carlos Villanueva," she explained.
"Another charmer," he drawled sarcastically. "Anyway, I've just been handed over an autopsy report from the coroner concerning your late husband."
Natalia stiffened.
"I can understand why you wanted to hide the body," he said seriously.
She gently took the paper from his offered hand and unfolded it slowly and blanched.
"Did he find out about the arsenic you'd spiced his drink with?" Varela asked curiously. "I guess it pissed him off."
Her hand quivered slightly as she handed the paper back to him. "You will never be able to prove anything," she whispered.
"No," he replied solemnly. "I hope you're happy now, Miss Fábregas."
Her bottom lip quivered.
"May your actions forever haunt you," Varela drawled as he tipped his hat at her and turned to leave. "Goodbye."
Natalia closed the door, leaned back against the wall and collapsed on the floor as her legs failed to hold her upright. She began to sob, her body wracking with tremors.
OOOOOO
To be continued