April 10 1912 4:39 pm
Helen sat on the edge of the tub watching the hot water swirl in the tub as it filled. Running water still amazed her. Although she knew she didn't look it, Helen felt all 60 of her years. Part of her wanted to sink into the hot water and soak there until all her memories washed away, like bathing in the leathe. To let her mind float away on the tides of oblivion. She lay back in the water and closed her eyes.
She stayed there until the water grew cold. With a heavy sigh she climbed out of the tub and dried quickly. Helen looked carefully through her evening gowns and pulled out a burgundy silk dress with black lace along the bottom and ruffles on the front in elegant tiers. The capped sleeves came down to just above the elbows. She slipped on matching buckle heels and black lace gloves. She fastened on a silver necklace with a teardrop onyx in the center of ringlets. The final touch.
Thus adorned, she grabbed a small clutch bag and, throwing back her shoulders, headed out to the main dining hall.
The first class Dining room certainly proclaimed style. The room itself was 114 foot long and spanned the full width of the ship. Seating 532 passengers at once, the largest dining room ever seen on a ship. The room was decorated in Jacobean style, painted in peanut white. With rich carvings on the long oak pillars and stained glass windows there was no doubt one could sit there for days and not see everything. The designs were based on Hatton Hall and some very fine houses in Hatfield, England. The furniture was oak and designed to add luxury and comfort at all times.
Helen strode along keeping her eyes forward, ignoring the idle gossip on all sides. It was neither pragmatic nor informative. Margaret Brown waved from a full table on the starboard side with the last of the sunset streaming in behind her. She smiled and nodded back, then headed for a smaller table, hoping to be left mostly alone. The man who had introduced himself as Cameron sat down next to her and waved to a man who resembled a walrus. "Ben! Over here! You don't mind do you sweetheart?" he smiled to Helen and waved his friend over before Helen could answer.
The walrus was trailed by a thin blonde woman with a vacant smile and a mousy couple.
"This is Benjamin Guggenheim and Madame Léontine Aubart." Cameron waved expansively at Walrus Ben and the blonde.
"Hey Benny, if you ever tire of Miss Aubart, you could do worse than this broad. What did you say your name was?" He asked Helen who shrank away.
"Dr. Helen Magnus. And I don't take up with other women's husbands." She replied shortly. Madame Aubart had the decency to blush.
"Doctor Magnus? Your husband sounds very important." Cameron smiled.
"I'm not married. I'm a doctor." Helen smiled thinly.
"An unwed woman traveling alone?" A new arrival asked with a light smile. "How adventurous. Allow me to introduce myself. Jack Thayer. Well John but everyone calls me Jack. And this is Mr. and Mrs. Banks. They got married just this morning.
"This is Dr. Magnus. A single woman traveling alone." Cameron said almost sarcastically.
"Well that is something. Women today have come to terms with their own strength. I think if they want to vote and work or travel on their own, who are we to tell them they can't?" Mr. Banks smiled.
"But tell us about your fiancée " Mrs. Banks smiled innocently at the engagement ring Helen still wore." Is he in New York?"
"Oh. No my fiancée is... Elsewhere." Helen replied evasively. She decided it was prudent not to mention he was wanted for the most horrendous murders of the last century. "He's a scientist. Works mostly with electricity." She took a large sip of wine.
Thankfully the waiter came. Helen ordered Sirloin of Beef, Parmentier Boiled Potatoes and Punch Romaine. She ate in silence, keeping her eyes down wondering why they fed enough for an army to a group of people who ate like birds. Helen concentrated on her meal as the conversation floated through the usual topics of idle gossip. She let the chatter wash over her and excused herself as soon as politely possible. Helen practically fled back to her cabin.
With a sigh, she lay on the bed fully clothed. What was she thinking? John didn't know the first thing about electricity. Why had she said he did? What if someone asked more questions? She didn't now Anyone who knew about electricity aside from...
Helen sat bolt upright "Nikola!" Her heart fluttered softly, like a butterfly trapped in a jar. She swallowed back a lump she didn't dare question and lay back with a soft sigh. Why not? If she used Johns name and James wit and Nikola s cunning. Some attributes from Nigel and perhaps her father...Helen could pretend a fiancée no one would be able to pin down. A small smile crept over her lips as Helens crystal eyes closed lightly.
Notes Cameron and the Banks are made up Helen and The FIVE belong to Sanctuary. Everyone else is a real person on the real Titanic. After painstaking research, we were able to find some of the food items that would have been available for First Class Dinner on April 10 1912.