Carlson raced back up the Second Class Stairs, feeling the floor tilting more and more. This time when he arrived at C-Deck, Jack and Shailagh Hacker were sitting on the bench across from the stairs. Shaliagh ran up to Carlson in a panic.
"Mrs. Conkling..." Shaliagh sputtered "...she's...stolen my baby! I was to meet Mr. Conkling but she showed up instead, demanding the letter! I let her hold the baby so I could get my hands free. I let her and she took him! She told the steward that it was hers! He wouldn't let me follow her to First Class! She's leaving with my baby!"
Carlson could not believe what he was hearing. Furthermore, he could not that Mrs. Conkling would do something like that.
Shailagh held out the letter. "Take the letter. Find her. See if she'll trade the baby for it. Please, you're our only hope."
"Get that baby from Mrs. Conkling. Trade the letter." Jack chimed in.
Carlson proceeded back up the Second Class Stairs. On the next level the crewman greeted him.
"I didn't think I'd see you again!' the crewman exclaimed. "Now get up on the boat deck."
Carlson raced back up to the boat deck. Exiting the Second Class Stairs and onto the Boat Deck, he immediately saw Mrs. Conkling holding the baby. He walked up to her through more hordes of passengers.
"What do you want?" asked Mrs. Conkling.
"That baby's not yours!" Carlson yelled.
"He's mine now!" Mrs. Conkling replied. "No one will know. He'll have a good life with me instead of that penniless girl! Leave! I'm getting on that boat."
"I have the letter and I will publish it!" Carlson threatened.
"The letter?" Mrs. Conkling answered. "You have it? It can ruin us! Ruin me! I'll trade you: the letter for the child. Hurry! The letter for the child!"
Carlson handed over the letter and Mrs. Conkling handed him the baby. "What a fool!" she laughed, "You don't have a seat in the boat!"
No matter, thought Carlson, there were still many boats left. Andrew Conkling, who had been nearby, ran up to Carlson, visibly distraught.
"The boats are full! There's no more room! No more!" Conkling yelled. "When these boats go, that's it! We're trapped! We'll drown! I'm getting on, you understand? They'll throw out somebody else." He held out a rather large wad of cash. "I've got money. I'll give them thousands. I've got to get on a boat.
Mr. Conkling then tried to force his way through the crowd. Officer Morrow was trying to maintain order. "Stand away from the boats!" Morrow yelled above the din. "It's women and children..." He pulled out his standard issue revolver. A shot rang out. Carlson saw Mr. Conkling clutch his chest. Conkling doubled over, then fell onto the deck. "Women and children first" Morrow commanded.
Carlson could hardly believe it! Morrow had actually killed Mr. Conkling!
"He's dead! He's dead!" Mrs. Conkling cried, running to Mr. Conkling's body.
Carlson went back to the Second Class Stairs and again raced down them. Fortunately for him, the baby was fast asleep. He waved to the crewman on B-Deck as he passed. As he expected, the Hackers were waiting on C-Deck.
"You got him back!" Shailagh cried as Carlson walked toward them. "Oh, thank you!"
Carlson handed the baby over to her.
"Thank you" Jack chimed in. "You did the right proper thing, you did. You got me thanks! Go on!" he commanded. "Get up top with my sister and the baby. Save them!"
"No, Jack, no!" Shailagh exclaimed. "Not without you!"
"Hush now, hush" Jack reassured her. "There'll be no luck for men like me up top. I'll try me luck back here, in the stern. Get movin!"
"It's best I be goin' now" Shailagh told Jack. "Take me to the boats" she said to Carlson.
"Thank you, I'll not forget this" Jack said as they both went up stairs. Carlson felt that he'd never see Jack again. He had only known him for a couple of hours.
Carlson and Shailagh made their way to the group of boats near the Wireless Room.
"Is it First Class I'm in?" asked Shailagh.
"Yes" Carlson replied.
"I'll never forget what you done" Shailagh answered. "God protect you!"
Carlson walked away. Now he had to figure out how to get the painting back. Suddenly, he remembered the tarot card he had had on his desk thirty years later. He had gotten it from playing Blackjack with the Frenchman Buick Riviera, and had used it to get off the ship the first time around. He thought he could give Zeitel the card in return for the painting.
Carlson made his way to the Smoking Room, the floor's tilt growing seemingly by the minute. He found Riviera in the Smoking Room by the entrance.
"Bon soir, mon ami!" Riviera said as they shook hands. "Sit if you like. Talk to me. Have you come to play?"
"Yes. What are your stakes?" asked Carlson.
"The stakes?" Riviera answered. "Why, mon ami, we play for souls." Riviera chuckled. "At least a substitute thereof. We must play for something real. Something a man would die for." Riviera pulled the tarot card out of his pocket and showed it to Carlson. "A pass to the lifeboats" he said. "With this, you have life. If you win, it is yours. What do you wish to put down in return?"
Carlson knew just the thing. "This real diamond necklace" he answered as he took it out of his bag and showed it to Riviera.
"Yes" Riviera pondered, studying the necklace. "Such diamonds. Quite valuable. Almost as beautiful as the Lady Georgia. Bien. If you win, you will receive the boat pass. If I win, I get the necklace. Let's begin."
Riviera dealt two cards to both him and Carlson. The goal of the game was to get as close to a total hand value of 21 without going over. Carlson had a 3 and a 10, which equaled 13.
"Hit" Carlson said, indicating to Riviera that he wanted another card dealt to him. He got a 7, which made his hand a total of 20. This time Carlson stayed. Riviera dealt himself a few cards. They both showed their hands. Riviera had become to overzealous and had gone over 21.
"You have won" Riviera sighed. "Well played." Riviera took out the tarot card. "Here. Deliverance, of a kind. Adieu."
Carlson stowed the card away in his pocket and made his way to the boat deck. He knew that Zeitel would be on the Boat Deck, trying to get off the ship. Once at the Boat Deck, the walked toward the Second Class Stairs. Sure enough, standing by the entrance to the Second Class Stairs, was Zeitel.
"You have the irritating habit of appearing most unexpectedly" Zeitel snapped as Carlson approached him.
"You'll never leave this ship alive" Carlson threatened.
"Argh" Zeitel replied. "Such disapproving looks, and you are wrong. I will leave this ship alive. Get me off this ship and the painting and it's plans are yours. "
"No" Carlson said. He wouldn't let Zeitel get off the ship. He wanted him dead.
"I am a patriot" Zeitel answered. "But I prefer to be a living, not a dead, patriot. I thick Mr. Riviera has given you something, yes? Do we make a deal? The pass for the painting."
"I'll trade" Carlson remarked, astonished that Zeitel knew he had a boat pass.
"A deal" Zeitel replied. "But first, the pass."
Carlson handed over the tarot card, and Zeitel handed him the painting. Zeitel walked to the other side of the boat deck. Carlson stowed the painting away in his bag. Turning around, he saw Daisy Cashmore.
"Did you see the Astors, Benji Guggenhiem?" Daisy asked him.
"No, I haven't seen the Astors" Carlson replied honestly.
"Dear, how could you have missed them, they were in the gymnasium!" Daisy replied.
"Goodbye Mrs. Cashmore" Carlson said, looking to leave.
"If you see the Astors, do tell them that Daisy wants to go in their boat. It'll be such fun! Ta!" Daisy requested as Carlson walked to the other side of the Boat Deck.
Carlson knew there was no hope of Daisy surviving the sinking if she was in that mindset. He looked at his pocket watch. It was already 2:00 AM! He had to hurry to get on a boat. Carlson walked to the group of boats located by the Wireless Room. Sure enough, Zeitel was there waiting with the other passengers for the boats to be swung out. Shailagh was still there as well. Once more, Morrow was trying to maintain order.
"Stand away from the boats!" Morrow barked.
Carlson saw Zeitel walk up to the front of the crowd and show the tarot card to Officer Morrow.
"I'm sorry, but those won't work any more" Morrow told Zeitel. "It's women and children only now!
"You will let me on that boat..." Zeitel threatened, pulling out his revolver. "or you will die. Your choice, Officer."
Zeitel encroached on Morrow pointing his revolver at him.
"Stand away from the boats!" Morrow shouted once more. "It's women and children! Women and children only!" Zeitel continued to walk slowly toward Morrow. Carlson believed that Zeitel had lost his mind.
Morrow pulled out his revolver. "I'll shoot!" he yelled at Zeitel, pointing his gun at him. "Come closer and I'll..." A shot rang out. For a second Carlson thought Zeitel had shot Morrow. But when he looked, Zeitel was clutching his chest. Zeitel stumbled toward the railing and fell over the railing and into the sea below. Some women in the crowd screamed, others just stood there, stunned. Morrow shouted "Women and children first!"
Carlson could not believe that Morrow had actually killed Zeitel. Still, he felt Zeitel deserved it.
In a few minutes, the lifeboats were ready. Women and children began to pile into the boat. Shailagh and got in with them. Carlson worried that he might not be able to get off the ship. Suddenly Officer Morrow walked up to him.
"Carlson, you've done your best to help" Morrow said. "Quick! We've space for one more! Get in! Damn it! Now!"
"Yes, I'll go" Carlson replied. He contemplated how he had survived the same disaster twice. He could scarcely believe it.
"There's no more time, get in, you can go!" Morrow instructed. "Get in, damn you, it's an order!"
Carlson stepped of the ship and into the lifeboat. As he sat down in the empty spot, he thought about all those people still on the ship, Jack Hacker in particular. He couldn't imagine what Jack was going through. He thought about Max, Trask, Claris, Smethells, and Officer Morrow. He was saddened by the thought he would never see them again. Soon, the lifeboat began to be lowered down the side of the ship.
"Tell them we did our best!" Morrow yelled down to those in the life boat. "Tell them!"
Then came the scene that had played over and over again in his dreams. The lifeboat hit the water and rowed away from the sinking ship. No one on the lifeboat spoke a word. They were too stunned by what they were seeing. As the Titanic sank ever deeper into the sea, Carlson thought he heard the ship's band playing a hymn tune. Soon, the lifeboat got far enough away from the ship so that he could see the entire scene. It looked almost like a skyscraper, all lit up, plunging into the sea. Suddenly the ship's lights went out, and ship snapped in two, like a twig. While the bow section went under, the stern section settled back down on the water. It remained that way for a couple of minutes. Finally the stern section reared up and pointed almost vertically at the night sky. Then the ship plunged down and into the icy sea. For a moment there was nothing but quiet. Then the moans of the remaining survivors came up from the water. It was an unbearable sound. Still, the lifeboat kept rowing away from the site. Carlson thought he saw ship's lights on the horizon. His and all the other lifeboats rowed toward it.
They bobbed in the open sea for what seemed like an eternity. Just as the suns rays began to light the eastern sky, a ship came into view: The Carpathia! All the lifeboats rowed to the side of the Carpathia and all the survivors in turn boarded by way of rope ladders.
Carlson climbed the rope ladder and arrived on the deck. As he stood on the deck of the Carpathia, he was shocked that he had survived the sinking of the Titanic.
Again.
COMING NEXT: Reunion Of Friends