Five Sisters (32 page)

As she came to each sailor, she wished them a simple goodbye, not bearing the strength to say more. But can you really blame her for it? When she was filled with worry and misery at the thought of a good friend dying?

The men didn't blame her for it. They knew where her thoughts lied. And as she came before them, they kissed her hands and said goodbye and told her that they wished the best for poor Nathaniel West.

Next in line was Mary, the only merry girl of the bunch. Of course she was sorry to leave the ship, but how could she be sad when she had so much to look forward to? Her dear Ethan and a brand new house and a wedding and the life she'd always dreamed of.

As she kissed the cheek of each sailor in turn, her lips burned their soft skin. They'd feel the imprint of her departed mouth and watch her with the miserable frowns of men who knew that they'd never be kissed by a more beautiful woman.

And as she reached Noah McAdams a small, rather embarrassed smile crossed the face of that young beauty. For no matter how much she may love Ethan now, she would never forget the mistake she'd made with the man before her.

Quickly though, she shook her head, wiping away all memories of the terrible occurrence, and kissed Noah's cheek as she had done all the other sailors'. But before pulling away, her mouth lingered a moment beside Noah's ear.

"Thank you, Mr. McAdams," she whispered.

He raised an eyebrow, "For what, may I ask?"

"For helping me realize how much I love Ethan Lindsey."

And with that, she joined her two youngest sisters at the bottom of the ramp.

Nora stepped forward after that. Walking down the line, she slowly bid farewell to each of the sailors, waiting to see the faces of two in particular.

Ben's arrived near the center of the line, in all its perfectly handsome glory. His blond curls fell dreamily down into sparkling eyes and a bright smile spread across his face. But for once, Nora's heart didn't melt at the sight of him. In fact, it seemed to swell with disgust.

"Goodbye, Benjamin," she said, with as civil a voice as she could muster. And she knew then that although it was terribly difficult to say goodbye to all the other sailors, this was one man she truly couldn't wait to be parted with.

Down the line Nora went, bidding several different men farewell, until she came to Sawyer, whose cheeks grew rather red at the sight of her. Taking a step forward, she placed a hand upon his neck and touched her lips ever so softly to his cheek.

"Oh I wish this day had never come," Nora whispered, "I hate goodbyes. But we'll see each other again sometime, right?"

Sawyer nodded, "Of course."

"Well, er . . . goodbye then."

"Goodbye."

Nora was just about to step away and join her sisters at the end of the line when she heard Sawyer say her name. She turned around and was greeted by his arms, wrapping her in a quick hug.

"So long, Leonora St. James," he whispered modestly, embarrassed that any of the other sailors should hear him, "I'll miss you."

Nora smiled, hugging him back, "I'll miss you too, Sawyer. Goodbye."

"Goodbye."

And last of all the sisters, the brim of her hat dipping down into tear-filled brown eyes, was Sara.
As she bid goodbye to each of the sailors, their faces blurred into nothingness.
She spoke words she could not hear and when they would respond, words filled with sentiment and feeling, their voices sounded as soft as the hum
of a bumblebees
. A line of nameless men to her, for none seemed to matter but the last.

Even before she had reached him she felt the breath being sucked out of her lungs. His letter, tucked into the pocket of her long linen jacket, was the constant dwelling place of her fingers. She'd press her fingertips against the parchment and fold the creases until they grew so weak they could rip at any moment, breaking his words apart.

Before she knew what had happened, all sixteen sailors had passed her by. And there he was.
Standing before her in silent humility.

His rumpled hair fell down into sleepy green eyes and he wouldn't dare look her in the eye for more than an instant. His hands were buried in his pockets and he wore the same navy sweater that he'd worn the night before.
The same navy sweater that she'd sewn a patch onto weeks before, covering the hole in the sleeve.
Oh why should he choose to wear that particular sweater? Why, when he surely must know what thoughts and memories it caused Sara to think of?

Never had she felt more saddened or more embarrassed or
more unsure
of her actions. How were they supposed to say goodbye? How could she be expected to speak to him without bursting into tears?

Before she could decide, Charlie stuck out his hand and said simply, "Goodbye, Sara."

A handshake!
A handshake?
He wanted to say goodbye to her, after all they'd been through, with a cold, distant handshake? Sara's eyes widened, but she stuck out her hand nevertheless. Her small, smooth one was enveloped in his older, wrinkled one for only a moment before he quickly pulled away again, as though the touch of her skin upon his own was likely to burn off all his fingers.

Sara returned, her voice shaking, "Goodbye, Charlie."

Charlie let his eyes drop to the floor, lingering on his scuffed brown shoes, "I, er . . . I hope you enjoy yourself in Brighton."

"I'm sure I will. Thank you."

Charlie gulped, letting his eyes
raise
to Sara again, "Take care of yourself.
And, er . . . And your sisters too."

Sara bit her lip. And then, without hesitation, she leaned forward suddenly and gave Charlie a chaste kiss upon the cheek, "So long."

*****

In only moments the Lindsey's carriage arrived and out jumped Ethan, beaming from ear to ear. His short auburn hair was combed tidily and he wore a clean gray suit and black fedora. As soon as he stepped out, he rushed forward and his eyes darted around the crowd of sailors. Before he'd even spotted her, Mary rushed into his arms, kissing his face over and over again and telling him how much she'd missed him. He returned the sentiments and once the happy couple had finished their reunion, he stepped forward, Mary still at his side, and welcomed her sisters as well.

Several of the sailors stepped out from the back and took hold of the girls' luggage, lifting it onto the back of Ethan's carriage, while Ethan said his hellos.

Mary insisted that he meet all of the sailors, for they'd heard so much about him on the journey, and each man met the doctor with a handshake and warm hello. Each sailor agreed, though he didn't care to admit it, that Ethan did seem to be an awfully kind and accomplished man and perhaps he did truly deserve beautiful Mary. Especially when she seemed so inclined to him, hanging on his every word and keeping her arm locked in his the entire time.

Once he had thanked Charlie for allowing the girls to sail with him and thanked the sailors for taking such good care of his Mary, Ethan held open the door of his carriage while each of the sisters stepped inside, waving their last farewells to Violet and her crew.

The door was shut, the horses began to canter, and away they went, rolling off down the road and out of the busy marina, leaving behind an empty ship and seventeen disappointed sailors who weren't quite ready to see them go.

"How was the voyage?" asked Ethan, looking to all the girls with bright and eager eyes, "I do hope you enjoyed yourselves despite the ship's small size.
I still wish you would have let me pay for your trip though. I could have found you a cruise liner fit for queens!
Anything for my Mary and her sisters.
And then it wouldn't have taken quite so long for to arrive. I had plenty to keep me busy, my schooling and the work on the house and everything, but my thoughts never lingered from you for a moment. How could I not worry when I knew you were out there in the middle of the ocean? I had horrid nightmares about it. I dreamed that you'd all been thrown overboard during a sea storm or that pirates had arrived and taken you away from me. What a relief it was to receive that letter of arrival this morning from, er, what is his name? Wilkes?"

Sara quickly looked out the window.

"No, darling," Mary corrected, "Wilkie.
Charlie Wilkie."

"Seemed a kind fellow.
Did he treat you well?
And the others sailors too.
I should hope they kept you well occupied, what with there being sixteen and all."

"Oh yes, they were all very nice," said Nora, "And we made quite a few good friends, I think. It made it hard to say goodbye."

"I could tell. You all seemed awfully reluctant to leave the ship. But perhaps you'll meet again sometime."

Nora nodded, "I hope so."

"Did it get very boring? Trapped aboard that tiny boat with barely anything to do?"

Mary shrugged, "We made do with what we had. Jess had a fiddle that he'd play sometimes at night and they all had loads of stories to tell. Nora and Gail were always playing cards or checkers with the boys. Emy and I were usually cleaning or sewing or cooking, I swear I must have knitted at least a dozen pairs of socks."

"And what about Sara?" asked Ethan, "How did you spend the voyage?"

"Er . . . I read mostly."

Ethan chuckled, "I'm not surprised. But where did you get so many books? You couldn't have fit very many into that trunk."

"Well, Charlie reads a lot too. He had plenty for me to read."

"Glad to hear it. You'll love father's library, Sara. I'll have to show you it when we arrive."

"I look forward to it."

The carriage bumped and jostled as it headed through the town, past quaint little shops and fish markets and white cottages. The pier and the marina were soon left behind, fading further and further into the distance, as they rolled onward towards the Lindsey's home. The houses grew
more sparse
and the noise of the shopkeepers and the fishermen gradually withered away. The carriage headed into the hills, where the wind blew the leaves of tall beech trees and where homely little farmers led their sheep across pastures of silky green grass. Every so often they'd pass a large, charming house and the sisters would all wonder if this was where they'd come to live. But Ethan would simply shake his head and say, "We've a little ways to go, girls."

Ethan, Mary, and Emy sat on one side of the carriage upon plush seats covered in crimson velvet. Every so often, Ethan would take Mary's hand and squeeze it, as if assuring himself of her long awaited presence. Opposite the happy couple, Sara and Nora sat gazing out the windows with Gail squeezed between them.

Remembering what a loud and spirited girl she had been when he'd left Laraford, Ethan commented, with an air of sadness apparent in his voice, "You've been awfully quiet this afternoon, Gail. Is something the matter?"

"No, nothing.
I'm just worried, is all."