Coeur de la Mer

Chapter Two

No One Would Listen

Cold, salty sea air brushed over Mimi Marquez as she dashed for the stern of the ship, her beaded evening gown scraping the deck as she ran with all her might. She held the dress up as best as she could so as not to trip, only to save herself for that back rail, she did not want it any other way right now and Mimi always got what she wanted. Little did she know that she was running right past Roger Davis as he lay on a bench, smoking a cigarette, gazing at the stars. He looked up at her, recognized her from having seen her around during the daytime. This evening would prove interesting indeed.

She reached the stern and stopped only because she had no more room to run. She grabbed onto the rail and stared down at the freezing April ocean waters. With a hard gulp and climbed over the rail and slid down, facing the ship, then very slowly turned so her back was to it, standing just above the words 'RMS TITANIC, Liverpool'. She took a deep steady breath, hands loosening on the rail slowly, but she quickly latched back on when a male voice came from behind her.

"Don't do it. . ."

She turned her head to look at him, frightened brown eyes studying him, she had no idea who he was and he was well aware of that. "Stand back. I'll do it." She looked back down at the water. "I'll let go. . ."

"No you won't."

"What? Don't presume to tell me what I will or will not do! You don't know me!"

"Well, you woulda done it already."

"You're distracting me, go away!"

He shrugged and removed his leather jacket, then his shoes and socks. "All right, but then you leave me no choice but to jump in after you."

"Are you crazy?" She looked frantically at him, then the water. "The fall alone would kill you."

"It would hurt, not saying it wouldn't." He said, finishing with the last of his shoelaces. "Tell you the truth I'm more concerned about that water being so cold." He knew what nerves to play on. She figured a fall of the back of the ship and a hit to the water would end her misery, but the stern wasn't high enough up from the water and the moment she fell in, she'd slowly freeze to death.

She turned her head from looking down at the water ever so slightly, struck by that little statement. "H-how cold?"

"Freezing," he looked to her, earnest. "Maybe a couple of degrees over. That's why I'm not looking forward to jumping in there after you but like I said," he tugged his jacket off and let it hit the deck. "I don't have a choice." She didn't want to do it anymore, he extended his hand. "Just give me your hand and I'll pull you back over."

She slowly raised her arm and reached back to take his hand, turned to face him, he let out a sound of relief and she laughed. "I'm Roger Davis."

"Mimi Juliana-Marquez."

He laughed. "I'm gonna have to get you to write that one down." He took her arms. "Now step up. . ." She raised a foot onto one of the bars of the railing but her train got caught under her shoe and she slipped off and let out a deafening shriek, he tugged her back to her feet only to have her slip again so only he was holding her onto the ship.

"HELP ME! PLEASE HELP ME!"

Officer Tom Collins and several other gentlemen ran in the direction of the screaming woman, and found her, laying on the deck, her dress hoisted up with a young white male standing over her, less his jacket and shoes. "Stay where you are and don't move an inch!" Collins yelled and told one man. "Get the Master-At-Arms!"

The man ran off and Angel ran from a deck up, clutching her dress, looking wildly around. "Tom? Is everything. . Oh my God, are you okay honey?" She ran to Mimi and helped her up and as far away from Roger as possible.

"I'm fine." She murmured, too shocked to say anything else, so shaken up. Angel removed her wrap and slid it around Mimi's shoulders. "I'm fine, thank you, thank you." The young girl looked up at Angel with wide eyes, her heart still pounding viciously in her chest. But the sweet faced Hispanic soon helped ease her nerves.

"I'm Angel." She said softly, rubbing the girl's shoulders, gazing up at Roger, studying him. She expected to see your average lowlife that would attempt to rape a poor young girl but instead, she only saw a man just as frightened and concerned. She looked to Tom. "I think there's some kind of misunderstanding here."

"What's to misunderstand?" Collins growled.

"My name. . ." Mimi murmured, drawing Angel's attention back to her. "Is Mimi Juliana-Marquez."

"Oh dear." Angel said softly, knowing the name just as well as any steerage from the ship with the exception of Roger and Mark.

The Master-At-Arms appeared with the young crewman and Collins looked at him. "I need you to fetch Mr. Coffin and see if he'd been missing his fiancée." It was only a few moments before Benny and some of his Brandy-mates appeared and he yanked off his jacket and put it around her. He moved to Roger.

"This is completely unacceptable! What made you think you could put your hands on my fiancée!?" Roger looked over to Mimi and Benny got further into his face. "Look at ME, you white trash!"

"Benny," Mimi finally managed to call out loud enough for him to hear. "Benny it was an accident!" She said, hurrying up and over to him to touch his arm ever so slightly.

"An accident?"

"Yes, stupid really. I was leaning far over to look at the uh, the um. The uh, uh, uh. . ." She twirled her fingers.

"Propellers?"

"The propellers! And I slipped, and I would have gone overboard if Mr. Davis here hadn't saved me."

"Well the boys a hero then!"

The Master-At-Arms looked at Roger with disapproving eyes. "Was that the way of it?"

"Pretty much." The handcuffs that had just been slapped onto his wrists were removed. Benny began to escort Mimi in and his friend suggested that Benny 'give the boy a little something'. Benny turned to his assistant. "A twenty should be fine."

Mimi chuckled lightly. "Is that the going rate for saving the woman you love?"

"Mimi is displeased." He pouted slightly. "What to do? Oh I know." He approached Roger, attempting a friendly smile and being the dashing young man that he was, he pulled it off fairly well. "Perhaps you'd like to join us for dinner tomorrow night? Regale the group on your heroic tale?"

"Sure."

"Good then, it's settled."

Mimi sat at her dressing table that night, a music box her father had given her played beside her as she brushed her long dark wavy hair, and she looked up into the mirror when there was a knock at her bedroom door. She set her brush aside and watched the door open, and watched as Benny walked in wearing his dressing robe, carrying a large box. She lowered her eyes slightly when he came up behind her.

"I know you've been upset," He began gently, sitting. "I don't pretend to know why." He sighed and moved the box up and stood next to her. "I intended to save this for the engagement party next week but I suppose now will have to do." He said, opening the box and revealing what would become her shackle, but what was now a glittering blue stone on a diamond lined chain.

"Good gracious." She whispered, resting her palm on the stone briefly. "Is it a. . ."

"Diamond? Yes." He replied, removing it from the box and wrapping it around her neck. He fastened it and looked at her reflection. "52 carats to be exact. It was worn by Louis XVI, it was made for royalty." A pause. "We are royalty, Mimi." She watched herself in the mirror and simply listened to him. "You know there's nothing I couldn't give you, or anything I would deny you." She turned to look at him. "If you would not deny me. Open your heart to me, Mimi."

She looked back at her face, fingers caressing the diamond. Mimi Marquez had only ever lived where all the finest things were handed to her. Why should anything become any different? Why would she ever jeopardize this opportunity for not only stability but for simplicity and familiarity? Now, she knew not. But soon, she would indeed find out.