A beer garden was typical of most popular pubs. This one was uncovered, windy and packed cheek by jowl with wooden tables and sturdy chairs weathered to an ashen gray. About twenty people were seated along two long tables with plates of assorted cheeses and baskets of crackers. Another table had been set up with an array of food chafers offering meats, vegetables, and fried rice.
A harried server kept busy fetching drink orders from the celebrants, some of whom had been there for some time, as the empty glasses outnumbered the guests. Edward stepped in front of the server, made sure that he had her attention, and ordered drinks for Savannah and his parents.
Glenda waved to an older couple seated near the edge of the outdoor tiled patio. The woman waved back. “Hi, Glenny. I’m pleased you could make it. Sit over here with us. The din is a bit lower.”
“Hi, Sissy. You look positively radiant. An empty nest suits you.” Glenda and Ron sat down with the couple. “This is Edward’s friend, Savannah Webb. She owns a stained-glass shop next door to his pub in America. Savannah, this is my brother Howard and his wife Kate. They’re Ian’s parents.”
Savannah bristled at being introduced as merely a friend, but smiled anyway. “It is so nice to meet you.” She shook hands with them both.
Edward whispered in her ear, “Don’t take that the wrong way, Savannah. Mum is making sure you aren’t pegged as my partner. She doesn’t want you to be subjected to all our friends’ curiosity. She’s protecting you—something she’s never done for any of my other girlfriends.”
Savannah felt her heart lift. Wait. Other girlfriends?
Edward scanned the crowd. “Uncle Howard, where’s Ian?”
“He should be here any second. He has the dramatic timing of Churchill. I don’t know how he does it, but he instinctively knows exactly when to make an entrance.”
“What’s this? Is this a party?” Ian bounded from the back door of the pub and positioned himself between his parents. He pulled them both up to stand beside him. “Thanks!”
Howard took a small oblong package wrapped in brown paper and string from the inside pocket of his jacket. “You’re just in time for us to give you our graduation present.”
Kate smiled over at her husband and glanced over the crowd until it quieted. She raised her head and spoke in a clear voice. “I am pleased to welcome you to our son Ian’s graduation celebration. As most of you know, there have been times in his young life when we despaired at his wayward route.”
She paused during the laughter. “But it appears that after his melancholy was diagnosed and treated, his path has come around to grab success by the ears.”
Howard reached for his glass of red wine and gestured for everyone to follow suit. “Let’s raise our glasses to our graduate, and may his unusual path continue to surprise and inspire us all.”
The crowd drank and chanted, “Hear! Hear!”
When the noise died down, Howard continued. “As most of you know, we’re gifting Ian the modern version of the Grand Tour by sending him on a Mediterranean cruise. Along with that I have a bit of legacy to offer to our son and heir.”
Ian turned to his father. Howard smiled. “Son, I know we haven’t always seen eye to eye.” The crowd laughed, and Ian pulled a crooked smile. “But tonight’s celebration represents a milestone in your young life and this gift acknowledges your entrance into adulthood.” Howard handed the package to Ian. “Your mum and I are extremely proud of you.”
Ian flushed from his throat to his ears, then carefully put down his beer before slowly extending both hands to take the package. “I think I know what this is.” He pulled on the string to release it and slipped off the brown paper to reveal an oblong, highly polished wooden box. He grinned, scrunched up the wrapping, and threw it at Edward, who caught it. “Yes! It’s the pen.” He opened the box and pulled out a black fountain pen decorated with gold filigree and held it up over his head. “It’s my great-grandfather’s pen!”
The crowd burst into applause and Ian hugged his surprised father and then gave his mother a giant kiss as well. “Thanks, Mum. I know you talked him into this, but I am so chuffed I can hardly speak.” He retrieved his beer and held it high. He pointed his drink to his mother. “Cheers to family.” Then he pointed it to his father. “Cheers to tradition.”
Savannah tapped Edward on the shoulder. “What did Ian’s dad mean by an unusual path?”
“Oh, uh, there were some problems when we were living in London. Typical trouble. Growing up rough.”
The celebration settled into the comfortable mood of a late, late, late-night celebration. The kind when many participants’ exits would be timed and noted in future gatherings with jibes such as “left a bit early,” “couldn’t quite keep up,” and “stayed to the bitter end.” The young people at the party would outgrow this stage soon enough. This was the time in their lives where all-night parties could be celebrated without too much suffering the following day.
Ian and Edward were only a few years apart. Ian had taken a long time to identify his goals, and his parents supported his late entry into college with joy. Whereas Edward had known from the start that he would never be at university. He was a natural-born chef and loved running his pub.
Edward nodded to his parents and he took Savannah by the hand. They all made their way to Ian’s parents to congratulate them and thank them for the party. Edward clapped Ian on the back and spoke into his ear. “I know you’ll be celebrating until they throw you out, but don’t forget that Pa is giving us a ride. Our train from St. Albans to London St. Pancreas leaves at 5:00 in the morning. It’s a direct train and we arrive at 5:35. Then we take the Tube from there to Heathrow Underground.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know.” Ian smacked his beer mug on the surface of the wooden table. The beer sloshed over and dripped onto Ian’s trousers. “Bloody hell!” He swiped at the spots and then picked up his mug again.
“We can’t miss the train.” Edward enunciated each word. “You must be back at my house in time to leave at 4:45 sharp or we’ll leave without you.”
“I’ll be there.” Ian smiled his thousand-watt grin and returned to his friends.
Chapter 4
Early Sunday morning, St. Albans, England
Savannah and Edward were standing in front of his parents’ thatched cottage with their roll-aboard suitcases along with their backpacks. Edward was alternating tapping his foot with leaning over to look down the lane for Ian’s oncoming car.
“You’re driving me crazy. Aren’t you Brits supposed to be calm? It says so on about a billion mugs.”
“I’m not calm when it comes to Ian. We’ll give him two more minutes and then we’ll have to leave him to find his own way to Heathrow.”
Savannah drew a hand through her curly black hair. “He’s got plenty of time to make the flight. It departs at, what, 9:30?”
“Not the point. He said he would be here. You actually have to be at the gate at least thirty minutes before the flight takes off, and we still have to go through the international security check-in procedures.”
Savannah felt like a marionette in a Shakespearean dream. Maybe the effects of all the British accents—or the jet lag—or plain over-excitement. Anyway, she didn’t fall asleep until just before the alarm sounded.
Edward looked at his watch one last time, shook his head, and cursed under his breath. He opened the cottage door. “Pa, it looks like we’re going to go without Ian. We have to go now so that Savannah can get to her orientation meeting at the port in Barcelona.”
Ron backed the car out of their one-car garage and they quickly loaded the luggage and piled into the well used but pristine Rover. They had buckled their seat belts when the small bright red MINI screeched to a stop behind them. Ian rolled out of the front seat and then pulled out a duffel, packed tight as a tick, from the backseat.
“I told you I would be here.” He grinned wide like a playful monkey. “Can you pop the boot, Uncle Ron? I can leave the MINI parked here, ca
n’t I? It will save me the fee for the car park.”
“If you must,” Ron said. “Give me the keys in case we have to move it.”
Ian pressed the lock button, waited for the chirp of the lock, then tossed the keys to his uncle.
The trunk of his uncle’s car popped open and Ian struggled to squeeze the duffel inside, then slammed the lid shut. He slipped into the backseat beside Savannah. He brought with him the distinct aroma of an all-night drinking binge followed by a greasy fried breakfast.
“Oomph!” said Savannah, and wrinkled her nose. “You’re smelling a bit ripe.”
“Sorry. No time to go home and shower. You said you wanted to leave on time, right? Well, I made it.”
“Fine,” said Edward. “Let’s go, Pa. We’re not in the clear yet. There’s no margin left if Savannah hopes to make her orientation meeting on time.”
“Wait! Wait!” Edward’s mum came out of the house at a quick trot with a small package held up high. “Edward, you almost forgot your”—she paused—“special tea.”
“Tea?” said Savannah. She could hear the exasperation in her voice, because now there was a real chance they were going to be late. Not that they would fire her if she missed her practice session, but glass teams depended on each other’s support in the production of their art. Unreliability was always punished by exclusion. It could get awkward.
“Oh, my God, thanks, Mum.” Edward slipped out of the car and grabbed the little package out of Savannah’s view, then stuffed it in his trouser pocket. He kissed his mum on the cheek and whispered, “You saved me. Thanks.” He turned to Savannah, “I need this mixture to combat mal de mer. It’s not very bad, but as long as I have this tea—no issues at all.”
“Take care and have a good trip.” Glenda waved as they finally drove off.
They arrived at the St. Albans train station in time, but only due to Sunday’s light traffic. They picked up their tickets, sprinted to the platform, and arrived at the top of the stairs to see their train approaching the station.
“Just barely in time.” As they boarded, Edward glared at Ian with a tightly clenched jaw. They stowed their luggage in the racks at the end of the carriage, then joined Savannah who had found a table in the middle of the carriage with seating for four.
“What luck!” said Ian. “It’s the quiet carriage. That’s good luck isn’t it?”
Edward stowed his backpack in the overhead rack next to Savannah’s. Savannah slipped into the window seat and Edward plopped into the aisle seat. Ian sat across from Savannah facing the back of the train. “How can you sit backward?” she asked. “I would get dizzy.”
“No worries at all,” said Ian. “I’m going to sleep. Since you’re here, I don’t have to worry about missing my stop.” He took off his jacket, folded it into a lumpy pillow, stuffed it on his shoulder, smiled at them both, then promptly went to sleep.
“He’s not a very good travel companion.” She pinched her nose and waved her hand under it.
“More like baggage, actually.” Edward lifted his eyebrows. “Not a great welcome to my family, luv. Sorry.”
Savannah pulled Edward’s arm around her shoulders. “Nothing can dull the thrill of my first train ride—not even a stinky cousin.” She gazed out the window at small, stone-fenced pastures interrupted by small villages that provided a bird’s eye view into their back gardens.
The stations began to fly by. They stopped for a few minutes at some of them and bypassed others. “I’m surprised at how much countryside there is for such a small country.”
Edward slipped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in closer. They watched the countryside swoosh by until the scratchy PA system announced their stop for London St. Pancreas.
“Hey, Ian. This is where we transfer to the Underground.” Edward shook Ian with a fair bit of enthusiasm. They gathered their personal luggage and made their way out to the platform.
After they had stowed their luggage again and settled in, Savannah felt more comfortable with the train system. Ian had needed continuous monitoring as he slept everywhere—even leaning against the station wall on the platform.
On the hour ride to Heathrow, Savannah was shocked to realize that she, too, had slept on the bouncy carriage.
The two-hour flight was mercifully routine and they all slept until the captain announced their clearance to land. In Barcelona, they gathered their luggage and hailed a taxi to the cruise port.
The ship was enormous and resembled a docked fifteen-story hotel.
The intense activity level signaled the total opposite of relaxation. The organized frenzy reminded Savannah of riding the bumper cars at the Florida State Fair—lots of scurrying and crossed paths to move in a circle.
Edward and Ian handed in their cabin-tagged luggage to the porters and kept their backpacks. They approached the terminal building.
Ian stopped abruptly, causing Edward to stumble into him. “Hey, what’s wrong? Have you forgotten something? Is it your medications? Don’t tell me that because I don’t think we can get our folks to drop them off before the ship leaves. You are still taking the antidepressants, right?”
“I’m still taking them. But, no, it’s not that. I have a good supply; I thought I recognized someone from our dockland days leaning out over the railing there.” Ian pointed to a large balcony at the bow of the ship.
“Really?” Edward’s voice raised several octaves.
“It would be just too bizarre. I mean, that was back when we were young and in a massive amount of trouble. The images from back then are a mixed-up jumble in my memory. It was a terrible time and we were lucky to slip away so easily. It was ugly.” He shook his head. “No, I must be mistaken. I thought it was that big guy that we only saw occasionally. He was such a bully. He always scared the devil out of us. Whew! What dark days they were.” He started toward the terminal.
It was a chaotic mix of elderly travelers, young adventurers, and large families with rambunctious and squealing children. There was a feeling of anticipation and excitement that made Savannah feel excited in turn.
“This is where we part,” she said. “You two are passengers and I’m an employee.” She pointed to the door labeled STAFF ENTRANCE. “They told me to use this door.”
Edward grabbed her hand and held it. “Hang on a tic.” He turned to Ian. “Go on ahead. I’ll catch up to you inside.” He turned back to Savannah. “When will I see you?”
She gulped and kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll text you as soon as I find out. Because I’m actually an employee of the Crystal Glass Company and not of the Luminary Cruise Line, I understand I can have meals at any of the public restaurants. I’ll find out more in the orientation briefing. Now, go before I embarrass your formal British self with an outrageous public display of affection.”
Edward released her hand. He hurried through the door to the cruise terminal. She watched him meet up with Ian inside the building. It was clear that Ian had no idea where he was and what he was supposed to do next.
Savannah hitched her backpack to a more comfortable position, grabbed the handle of her wheeled suitcase, and headed for the staff entrance.
She opened the door and was greeted by a young man wearing a white uniform who asked for her papers. He checked to ensure that she had all the right documents. “You need to wait in area four.” He pointed her to another door that led to a plain room with four sections of metal chairs with a 4 taped to the back wall. The waiting people sat in silence with their luggage in front of them. Most were taking advantage of the time to check social media on their phones.
Her group was the smallest at three people, and all of them appeared to be entertainers. The other groups were divided into maintenance personnel and service staff, and she couldn’t figure out what the third group was but they were better dressed and were accompanied with very expensive luggage. She noted that everyone had followed the explicit instructions for how much baggage could be brought aboard: not much.
Her
instructions had been to pack very few casual clothes for the week but to include at least one formal outfit should it be required. Her demonstration uniform shirts would be supplied by Crystal Glass Works, and she had been given an allowance to purchase two pair of shorts, one pair of trousers, and incidentals.
The door opposite the one she entered opened and a small man, elegantly outfitted in an all-white uniform, came into the room and scanned it from end to end. He cradled a bulging portfolio with one hand and his other hand held on to the doorknob. “Savannah Webb?” he called as he continued to scan the room with a squinted concentration.
Savannah stood and raised her hand. “Here, sir.”
He waved his hand. “Come, come. The sooner we get your orientation completed, the sooner I can get back on schedule.”
Grabbing the handle of her suitcase and the strap of her backpack, Savannah strode quickly to the doorway and went through.
“I’m Sheridan Nathanial, but everyone here calls me Danny. Welcome to the entertainment staff of the cruise ship Obscura.” He closed the door to the waiting room and led the way down a plain beige hallway in need of a paint and polish.
Ah, this is the behind-the-scenes look. Industrial beige and gray eau de factory.
Danny stopped at one of the doors off the hallway and opened it. They entered a small interview room and he motioned for Savannah to sit in a metal chair. He sat behind a plain folding table on another metal chair. “Hand over your paperwork, and we’ll get this done and over with as quickly as possible.”
Savannah pulled her paperwork from the outside pocket of her backpack, placed it on the slightly grimy surface of the table, and pushed it in front of Danny. She felt an urge to chatter, but suppressed it. Sometimes, that urge meant that she was uncomfortable and her nervous words could cause trouble.
Shattered at Sea Page 4