15 April 1912

Cal had lost track of the time. All he knew was that he was in a lifeboat in the middle of the Atlantic because the unsinkable Titanic had done the unthinkable.

She had collided with an iceberg and sank to the bottom of the Atlantic!

If only his father could see him now…

Cal tried to keep warm in the frigid air. He had no idea when or if they would be rescued. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the third class girl he'd claimed as his own in order to get on the lifeboat and found that he was envious of her. She was sound asleep in a woman's arms, sleeping the sleep of the innocent. Sleep was one thing Cal knew he wouldn't be getting for a while yet.

He looked at the man sitting directly opposite and gratefully accepted the hip flask he extended. Cal took a swig of the contents, not really giving a lot of thought as to who had drunk out of it before him, before passing the flask to the man on his right. The alcohol removed a little of the chill they were experiencing. He would've been wearing his coat, but he'd given it to Rose to wear before she got on a lifeboat then quickly alighted from it, wanting to be with Jack. He'd given it to her more out of modesty than anything, as it covered her more than the blanket she had around her shoulders did, not remembering until later that not only had he stuffed a lot of money into its pockets, he'd put the Heart of the Ocean in one of them too.

But for now, that was the least of his concerns. All Cal wanted at that point of time was to curl up somewhere and go to sleep then worry about how he'd tell his father that not only had he lost the Heart of the Ocean, he had also lost Rose. Yet, he had to wait until they were hopefully rescued before he could do anything.

This was when he realised that being one of the richest men in the United States wouldn't be in his favour. He had to suffer just like everyone else. No amount of money could bribe God to excuse his suffering.

With that thought in mind, Cal pulled the halves of the tuxedo jacket together, wanting to close out the cold. He wanted nothing more than to shut out the world, until they were rescued.

15 April 1912 – continued

Once he was on board the Carpathia, Cal accepted the mug of hot soup that was offered, content to simply hold onto it for the warmth the contents provided. He was directed to the area where the first class survivors were, slowly sipping at the soup, seemingly lost in his own world.

It took Cal a while to realise that Ruth and Molly Brown weren't too far away. Ruth looked dishevelled – a look that she normally would never sport – yet she also looked upset. Perhaps she was remembering the last few words she had exchanged with Rose, not wanting them to be the way she remembered her daughter. Molly glanced at Cal and smiled a little, which he acknowledged. Maybe it was for the best that Molly, not himself, was with Ruth at that time.

Closing his eyes as he took another sip of the soup, Cal had a picture of Rose in his head. The Rose that had been so enchanting, making him want to know her a little more. He knew even then that she could be feisty when she wanted to be, which wasn't an endearing trait in someone who could be the future Mrs. Caledon Hockley. In some ways, it was good to see the world through Rose's eyes because it allowed him to see things in a unique way. In others, it wasn't because the age difference between them could come into play.

But Cal was aware of the expectation Ruth had – she expected him to reign Rose in. Bring her to heel, as it were.

Finishing the last of the soup, Cal looked around for someone to take the mug away before deciding to place it at his feet, suddenly aware of just how weary he truly was. He'd been awake for at least 24 hours. He needed sleep. Once he'd had a sleep, he'd see about getting a message to his father somehow.

"She knows."

"I hope you're proud of yourself."

"I think a $20 should do it."

"There's nothing I couldn't give you. There's nothing I'd deny you. If you would not deny me."

"Open your heart to me, Rose."

"I had hoped you would come to me last night."

"To him? To be a whore to a gutter rat?"

When Rose spat in his face, Cal woke up with a start, belatedly realising that it had only been a dream and noticing that someone had put a blanket over him at some point. He rubbed his forehead a little before looking around his surroundings, noticing that Ruth was now sleeping, with Molly Brown still close by. He knew that the amount of sleep he'd had was nowhere near enough, but he'd gotten some and that was important.

For his own peace of mind, and Ruth's for that matter, Cal knew that he needed to at least try and find Rose, to see if she had survived or not. He got up, placing the blanket on the chair, before approaching Molly.

"I'm going to see if I can find Rose. Please, can you…?"

Molly nodded, seemingly knowing that Cal was asking her to keep an eye on Ruth. He owed her that, at least.

As Cal made his way down the stairs to where the majority of the third class passengers were, he was approached by a Carpathia officer, who told that he wouldn't find any of his people there. Cal nodded, knowing that the man's words were likely to be true, but he needed to look amongst the filth, as he'd called the steerage passengers. It was in the back of his mind that this would be the one place that Rose would be, most likely with Jack.

It hadn't hit him until he'd seen Jack and Rose embracing close to the Grand Staircase on A Deck that he'd lost Rose's affection – what little of it she'd shown him at least. That was when Lovejoy attempted to drag him away from the scene but not before Cal had surprised his valet by getting his hands on his gun and taking aim at Jack and Rose, chasing them into the depths of the slowly sinking ship. Shock and anger could make people do things they normally wouldn't and that would be the reason he'd offer the two of them.

But first, he had to find them.

Things weren't looking good for Cal and he grew more despondent, until he thought he'd found her! Rushing up to her, he reached out, calling out "Rose!" but as she turned around, his heart sank. It wasn't her. He gave the girl a weak smile as he left her alone, still wanting – hoping – to find Rose. He wouldn't rest until he knew for sure if she'd survived or not.