Chapter 35 Vanished

They were having a wonderful day. Laura had been introduced to the young ladies from the cabin next to them; they were on their way to France where their parents were awaiting them and were delighted to find a new friend on board. Jack and Lucas were off visiting the bridge and boiler room, and so Elizabeth settled in with a new book Lucas had bought her by Virginia Wolfe. She reclined in a deck chair and was happy to find the sun had warmed her spot.

After their tour of the bridge and boiler room, Jack was anxious to find his mother to tell her all about his experience. They found a note in the room letting them know she was out on the portside deck, so they went in search of her. Lucas found his wife had dozed off over her book. Fortunately, she was wearing a straw hat to keep her face out of the sun. He went to her and picked her hand up and kissed it gently. She didn't open her eyes, but she moaned softly "ooh Valentino…."

"You keep bringing up this Valentino and you are going to deflate my ego entirely," Lucas responded.

"Oh, don't be silly, you know you are the only man for me. And besides, I think it would take quite a bit to deflate said ego."

"Mama, Mama, we went to visit the captain and he let me steer the ship and then we went to see the steam engines."

"That sounds very exciting."

"It was very exciting, wasn't it Papa?"

"Yes, indeed. We steered the ship, and we are still headed for Europe so that is very good. And then we saw where they make a lot of steam to keep the ship going. I think there will be plenty to steam your dresses with," Lucas chuckled.

"Jack, your papa thinks he is very funny." With that Lucas kissed her cheek and replied, "I love you even when you don't laugh at my jokes."

"Well then you love me a lot." Elizabeth laughed.

"Now who is trying to be funny?" Lucas countered. "Are you ready for lunch? They are serving for another hour."

"I am a bit hungry, what about you Jack."

"Sooo hungry… my tummy is starting to growl."

"Well, I expect that we better go feed that tummy right away." Lucas helped Elizabeth out of the deck chair, and they headed off to the dining room.

They found Laura and her two new friends having lunch, so they joined them. Laura smiled brightly and asked Jack about his adventure. He was more than happy to oblige and gave the three young ladies the full recap of the adventure.

"Lucas, Elizabeth, we are going to go to the deck to play a game after lunch and we can take Jack with us and give you some time to yourselves."

"That sounds good, Laura." Said Lucas. Then he leaned over and whispered to Elizabeth, "now you better get ready for me to wipe this Valentino character from your mind."

Elizabeth reacted, "mmmm well I will definitely let you try….," she giggled at her own joke, and he rolled his eyes.

'======================================================'

Jack and his escorts said their goodbyes and headed to the forward deck for their game while Elizabeth and Lucas strolled back to their cabin."

"Well, my sweet. What would you like to do with our alone time?" Lucas asked.

"Well, we could read. This book by Virginia Wolfe is quite good and I think you have a book with you," Elizabeth offered.

"Elizabeth, I found you sleeping over your book," countered Lucas. "Surely you can think of something more stimulating for the next couple of hours."

"Well, there was that matter to settle over Valentino." Elizabeth walked toward him and grabbed his lapels and fluttered her eyelashes at him.

"Now that is a plan I can get behind." He smiled at her and cupped her face with his hands and found her mouth with his while she peeled off his jacket. He scooped her up and all but tossed her on the bed while he finished dispensing with his outerwear and joined her on the bed resuming the kiss.

It was sometime later that he had her snuggled in his arms warm and satisfied. "So, about this Valentino….," whispered Lucas.

"Who's Valentino?", she whispered back.

"That's my girl," Lucas answered as he turned her and looked into her eyes. "I love you, Elizabeth. There is no way to tell you just how much, but I hope you know."

"I do know, your heart speaks to mine," she said as she took his hand and placed it over her heart and then placed hers on his.

He leaned down and kissed her gently, but she deepened the kiss and pulled him into her. "I love you Lucas Bouchard, and I need you."

"I need you too," he said and then they showed each other how much until they fell into an exhausted sleep.

'==================================================='

There was a knock on the door and Lucas woke with a start. He quickly put on his robe while calling out, "just a minute." He handed Elizabeth her robe and gave her a gentle nudge. "Sweetheart, I am sorry to wake you from this lovely nap, but our son has arrived." She jumped to put on her robe and then snuggled down into the blankets again.
"Well, you are just in time young man. We were taking a little nap. Want to join us?

"I am a big boy. I don't need a nap."

"Well even when you are big as your papa, you sometimes can enjoy a nap." Lucas avoided Laura's eyes while he delivered his pronouncement as surely, she might have some inkling about how they had spent the last couple of hours.

Laura interjected, "are you sure you want to take him. He was anxious to see you or I would have just gone to our room."

"It's fine. If he doesn't sleep for a bit, we will be happy to hear his rendition of how your game went."

"All right, I am going to relax for a while and maybe read until it is time to dress for dinner and the ball."

'===================================================='

After dinner they made their way to the ballroom. Lucas made sure that Laura and Jack were seated and then immediately swung Elizabeth into the Viennese Waltz. The two made a dashing pair and soon all eyes were upon them. They were very much a newly married couple, very much in love. Jack turned to Laura and whispered quite loudly, "Mama and Papa look like the Queen and the King." Several of the guests chuckled at the boy's proclamation but heads nodded, and one older woman told him "You are quite right young man. They make a handsome couple your mama and papa."

Jack sat up proudly and smiled at the kind woman. "He was going to be a heartbreaker when he grows up," Laura thought to herself.

The waltz ended and the captain asked Lucas if he would mind if he danced with Elizabeth. Lucas looked at Elizabeth who nodded it was okay with her, so he agreed. Before they headed to the floor, she said to him "would you mind asking Laura to dance? I see Mrs. Trembly, who we met yesterday at dinner; she will be sure to keep an eye on Jack if you ask her. I think if you dance with Laura there will be other gentlemen who will notice and ask her as well."

"He bowed and kissed her hand and then placed it on the captain's arm. Enjoy your dance," he said as he made his way to where Laura and Jack were seated. On the way he found Mrs. Trembly who was more than delighted to invite Jack over to sit with her. She was the kind woman that had responded to Jack about his parents.

"Laura, may I have this dance?"

"Yes, you may and thank you for asking."

"My pleasure," and they took to the dance floor to a lively tune.

Laura felt exhilarated as they danced. Lucas was so tall and distinguished and naturally commanded attention. She was lucky to have him to lean on as she did her best to keep up. She was flushed and felt pretty in her pale blue gown. When the dance was over, he bowed to her and escorted her back to where Jack was seated.

"You danced very good with Papa," Jack said.

"Well, he is a very good dancer your Papa. I could hardly keep up."

"You did fine, and if I am not mistaken, there are a few young men who took notice. I expect your dance card is about to fill up."

She blushed, as two young men approached her and added their names to her dance card. "If you gentlemen wouldn't mind bringing my ward and son a glass of punch first, I am sure Miss Laura will be more than happy to join the dancing again." With that the two young men rushed off to locate the punch while Lucas gave Laura a wink. He was sure this was one of the best moments of the young woman's life.

The captain returned Elizabeth to his side and thanked her and her husband for the pleasure of her company in their dance. "I must make the rounds and mingle with the guests. You young man, be sure to come visit me again before our voyage is over."

"Yes, Captain!" Jack saluted him.

They sat out the next two dances so they could watch Laura. Elizabeth was so pleased with how well she was doing, and she even seemed to contribute to some conversation with her partners. "Well, my love, I think our little wren is learning to spread her wings and fly."

"She is, and by the way … I introduced her as my ward to the gentlemen; I didn't want you to be surprised if it came up. I just wanted them to know that she is not an unmarried woman alone."

"That was very considerate of you Lucas. I know it is in keeping with your protective streak."

"And I explicitly promised her father to take care of her as if she were my own daughter. And I meant it."

"And that is what makes you the wonderful man and father that you are."

"Well, my buddy is starting to droop. Shall we enjoy one more dance before I take him to bed? One of us should stay with Laura."

"I would love one more dance, but perhaps you should be the one to keep Laura from any wolves…?"

"Well, I will carry Jack to his room with you and tuck him in and then I can return to make sure the wolves know I am watching them." He chuckled at that. "Good practice in case we ever have a daughter of our own."

"Poor girl, she won't be able to move without your watch."

"Well... I do know a thing or two about men, I am one after all and know many."

"You my sweet were never a wolf."

"No, but I have seen the results that one can have on an unsuspecting innocent." And with that he twirled her, and they joined the other dancers in the next dance.

'-]

The next day at breakfast, Laura was more talkative than usual. She recounted her evening with Elizabeth as Lucas chatted with Jack about the size of the anchor on the ship and other manly topics.

"So, how many dances in all?" Elizabeth asked Laura.

"Well, after I danced with the two young men you met, I had another invite me as well as the captain. Then Lucas again and one of the two asked me and we had two more dances together."

"Well, that sounds lovely. There will be another ball on our last night aboard ship. You should wear the lavender dress we purchased in Union City. It is a perfect color for you."

"It was a magical night and now I have had a number of those…. the ballet, the reception, this ball…. So many memories to treasure."

Elizabeth reached over and squeezed her hand and smiled.

"Well, what do we have in mind for today everyone?" Elizabeth asked.

"If you don't mind, I met a gentleman last evening, with whom I should like to discuss some business. Apparently, he owns several restaurants in San Francisco and Seattle and is interested in opening one in Vancouver. He may need some help with logistics in moving across the border to Canada and who knows, in the future we might be able to provide our beverages to his establishments."

"Well, that sounds like "fun". And you Laura?"

"Well, I will watch over Jack if you have plans. I am invited to lunch with Marie and Joanna if it works out."

"Why don't you do that. I would like to work on my book outline a bit as my creative juices have me dreaming up various angles. Jack and I can take some toys on the portside deck and enjoy the lovely sunshine."

"Okay, then I will come find you after my lunch and see if he is interested in a nap or some quiet time in our room at least."

They finished their breakfast, and all took a walk around the deck together before splitting up and going on their separate activities. Elizabeth went to their room to retrieve her writing materials and placed some of Jacks' favorite cars in her bag. The two headed to the deck with sun hats on and a hop to their step.

'

It was a couple of hours later when Laura found them. "Hi Elizabeth, I have come to take Jack. Where is he?"

"Right here next to me on the deck playing with his cars." She motioned to the spot where he had just been minutes ago. "Jack," she called. "Where are you?" to which there was no reply. She shot up out of her deck chair and the two women called his name and frantically searched the surrounding area. "JACK…" Elizabeth was now desperate. "Laura, please go find Lucas. He will either be in our room or in the observation lounge with his new acquaintance. Tell him it is an emergency. Hurry."

Laura ran as fast as she could. Some of the passengers out on the deck had overheard and word was spreading as they joined the search. Elizabeth was now white as a sheet and two women were trying to get her to sit down as she looked like she might faint. "I can't sit … my baby….".
"You won't do him any good if you faint. Please describe him to us and we will spread the word to look for him. One of us will stay right here the whole time so word can come back to us when he is located."

Elizabeth did her best to give them an exact description as the tears now began to fall.

"Elizabeth", she heard Lucas yelling as he ran to her. She rushed into his arms now sobbing. He held her but immediately said," I know you are upset but you must calm down now so you can help me."

She immediately felt calmer in his presence and nodded. He gave her his handkerchief …"tell me exactly what happened. Laura, will you please go and alert the captain and first mate. Please give them our current location and tell them we need to organize a search party."
Laura ran off toward the bridge while Elizabeth told him where they were seated and how long he had been out of her vision before Laura showed up. Laura had thought to request the time from one of the passengers just after she was aware that Jack was missing.

"Lucas, I am so sorry… how could I have lost track of our son. It was no more than a minute or two. What if he went to the railing and….."

"You are not to even consider that. Between the warnings from the crew's safety training and my very graphic explanation he knew that he must have an adult with him before approaching anywhere near the railing. I have confidence that he would not disobey me on this point."

"but…. "

"No buts, he did not go overboard. And every minute counts until we find him. Fortunately, we still have plenty of daylight. The captain will be here shortly, and we will organize a search. I need to focus on Jack now so please Elizabeth, do everything you can to stay calm, so I don't worry about you. Laura, would you stay with her? And perhaps Marie and Joanna could join you both. Elizabeth could use some tea and perhaps some biscuits as she hasn't had any lunch yet. And while it is warm out, I think she should have a blanket as she shows some signs of shock. Here, my love, sit here on the deck chair and we will get you a blanket, your teeth are chattering."

"Hello, my name is Nancy Adams, and I would be happy to go and retrieve blankets from my room which is close. My friends Vivian and Suzanna will go and get the tea and biscuits. I have the room next to Marie and Joanna so I will see if they are there when I return."

"Thank you so much. We are very grateful for your help. Here comes the captain now. Elizabeth, I need to leave you now, but Laura and her friends will stay with you. You need to stay right here in case he returns to this spot. You understand?" She nodded and took what warmth she could from his hug before he kissed her on the forehead. "We will find him, I promise." He turned to meet the captain while Laura took his place next to her. The blankets soon arrived along with her new friends as they began the wait for word of Jack.

'====================================================='

The captain, and a handful of crewmen, had stopped some 20 feet away and were spreading out a blueprint over one of the tables fastened to the deck that was used to serve tea in the afternoons. "This is this level of the ship. We will start our search on this level but will add searches on the next level up and down as we gather more crew. They are most familiar with the ship so will be of the utmost importance. We will add some men from amongst the passengers, but they will be under the command of a crewman at all times. Our best chance to accomplish our task is to be strategic in our search, so I will be outlining the direction each group is to take. I will be stationed here for now, so that we have a central point of contact. Mr. Bouchard will be with me for the time being so I can gather as much information about the young man as I can. Clear?"

"Yes sir," the crewmen answered as did Lucas."

"Now, we are asking for volunteers, anyone who is fit, able and willing should match up with a crewman. Two passengers per crewman. Let's set out the first teams and the rest can wait for the additional crewmen to join us here."

The first mate began sending the teams out while the captain brought Lucas to the side. "Now sir, I am going to need to ask you some questions. Please, they are intended to help us find your son and I will not spare your feelings or those of your wife in this effort. Understood?"

"Yes, and please call me Lucas."

"I have asked this gentleman to assist me." A man was motioned over. Lucas looked at him knowing he had seen him before.
"You were at the Statue of Liberty," Lucas realized. "I didn't pay much attention but did see you observing us at one point. I assumed you were another tourist."

"My name is Sam Aldrich. I won't give you too much about my background at the moment, but needless to say I am aware of yours Mr. Bouchard."

"Let us begin to cover what might have happened to your son as it could influence our search," said the captain. "The first obvious thought is that he played too close to the railing and was swept overboard."

"No, absolutely not!" exclaimed Lucas. Between the safety instructions and my very vivid description of what could happen, he would not have disobeyed. He would have asked his mother to take him to the railing. Besides he was seen just 1-2 minutes before he was noticed missing, he would not have had the time to make the climb."

"Okay, but before we can dispense with that thought, are you sure your wife has given us the correct timeline. I am sure she is very distressed and might not remember correctly."

"I am confident in her timeline. She wasn't in distress when Laura first inquired about Jack."

"Okay then not only would he not have time to climb the railing, which is quite high for his height, but he wouldn't have gone too far alone. So, we have focused our search on that assumption, for the moment anyway," said the captain.

"What are you saying, you think he might not be alone?"

"That is where I come into the picture," said the man who had called himself Sam. "I am going to tell you something and we need you to stay calm; are you with me?"

"I specialize in calm, now out with it," demanded Lucas.

"Have a seat," he motioned to some deck chairs next to them. Amos Dixon has escaped from prison. The Canadian Mounted Police were notified a few days ago as his cellmate squealed on his plan to find you and "make you pay" as he put it." He was spotted on a train bound for Montreal. He must have learned of your travel. I have been tailing you since you arrived in New York."

"Why was I not informed immediately? My family was at risk and now my son is missing."

"The CMP thought they had him at the station in Montreal and would have him secured before you were in any danger. It was a calculated risk. The fewer people that knew the more likely we were to catch him."

"Well, it is pointless now to argue; we have to assume that he may have my son and that he is in grave danger. Amos Dixon wishes me nothing but ill will, as he has been imprisoned twice with my help."

"Amos is greedy as well, so it is possible that he will only seek ransom from you."

"I hope that is the case. But he can be very cruel and violent as well."

"He may not have boarded the ship at all. I have been on the lookout as have some of the crew who were brought in on this. It is possible that he is in disguise, but he is also vain enough that it isn't likely," said Sam.

"Any other thoughts on possibilities captain?" asked Lucas.

"Well, the most likely scenario and the one to hope for is that while playing with his cars he made a turn into one of the aisleways and inadvertently got lost. The ship can be a maze if you aren't familiar with it. What do you think, does that sound possible to you?"

"Yes, he is a good boy, but he is four years old and if he did wander a bit and got lost, he might be frightened and confused."

"Okay, so we will have two searches… one that we have already started, it is based on the idea that he is simply lost. That will focus near the location where he was last spotted and spread out from there. If he is in the hands of Amos or one of his partners, then we will have to assume that a broader search is needed. Anyone in that search will be potentially in danger and will need special instructions. Sam, we will count on you to lead the charge there."

"I have to tell Elizabeth; she and Laura could be in danger too."

'-'

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