“And look, little beds on top of each other too.”
William rolled his eyes. “Bunk beds,” he said.
Laurence poked his tongue out at his older brother.
“Mama, I want to sleep on one of the top ones, but John and William won’t let me.”
“You must all take it in turns, my darling. That is what Papa and I will do.”
“Mama, you do not have bunk beds in your room.”
“Well then, you must let me take it in turns to share the top one with you!” Elizabeth replied, her eyes twinkling.
Just then Jane and Beth appeared, and both Elizabeth and Mrs Bennet were taken to admire the girls’ cabin.
They were joined at length by Darcy, who made it clear in his polite but determined fashion that Mrs Bennet should join Sir William and Lady Lucas, who were now being shown back to the top deck by Sophie in order to disembark from the ship.
Fond farewells were exchanged, although Elizabeth could not help feeling guiltily relieved that Mrs Bennet would soon be on her way back to Meryton.
As Elizabeth began to accompany her mother up to the top deck, Beth appeared from the girls’ cabin.
“Mama,” she said in agitation, “do please come quickly. Jane says she is feeling sick.”
After the way Jane had been eating sweetmeats, which had thoughtfully been provided for her by her grandmama, Elizabeth was not surprised. She looked at her mother accusingly for a moment, but Mrs Bennet returned her gaze innocently and said, “It is the motion of the ship, no doubt, all this bobbing about on the water. Be off with you, Lizzy; pray do not worry about me. I am sure I can find my own way to shore.”
Elizabeth embraced her mother and wished her a fond farewell, then followed Beth to find Jane lying on one of the bunks and looking very green. The motion of the ship was not helping matters, nor was the rather stale air below.
Being a great believer in fresh air herself, Elizabeth first admonished her daughter for eating too many sweetmeats and then, holding out her hand, led Jane up onto the deck.
A fresh breeze was blowing, and in a few minutes Jane was starting to look a little better. The activity all about them was good for her, too, as it took her mind off her ills. Sir William and Lady Lucas were hurrying down the gangplank, while the sailors waited impatiently for them to reach the dock so that they could cast off. The boys were leaning eagerly over the ship’s rail, watching all the activity.
The last of the guests having departed, the sailors loosed the thick rope that secured the ship then sprang lightly aboard, pulling up the gangplank as the ship rolled on the waves and began to pull away from land. On the dock, the Lucases turned to wave to Sophie, and Colonel Fitzwilliam saluted the passengers, giving a special smile to John.
From his specially chosen vantage point on board, Paul Inkworthy made rapid sketches of the sailors, the port, the passengers, the ship, and the seascape, while Edward enquired after Sophie’s comfort, wondering if he could bring her a shawl or anything else she might require. Sophie, still looking wan but with some animation, said that she would appreciate her shawl, and Edward hurried off to get it.
“Well, we are off,” said Darcy, coming up behind Elizabeth and offering her his arm.
She took it gladly, her eyes bright. “We are indeed. Let us hope the rest of our journey goes so smoothly.”
“Is there anything wrong with Jane?” asked Darcy, as he noticed that his daughter was quieter than usual.
“No, only a stomachache. Mama has been feeding her sweetmeats.”
“That is one danger we will no longer have to worry about!” said Darcy with a laugh.
“No. Much as I love my family, I…”
Her voice trailed away and a look of horror spread over her face.
Darcy looked at her curiously. “Is anything wrong?” he asked.
“Tell me I am dreaming. Tell me it is a trick of the light or a hallucination,” said Elizabeth faintly.
He followed her gaze and saw… Mrs Bennet, coming up from below!
“Oh dear,” said Mrs Bennet blithely. “What a catastrophe! I must have taken a wrong turn down below. And I was so sure I knew my way onto the deck. But I found myself in a storeroom with a lot of barrels, and then I found myself in another room with boxes and trunks, and somehow I could not find my way back to the gangplank,” she said with an unconvincing sigh. “And now the ship has sailed. It seems I must come to Egypt with you after all.”
“No!” said Elizabeth, horrified. “That is, I am sure there is still time for you to disembark.”
But the captain looked at her regretfully and said, “I am afraid that all who are aboard must stay aboard, Mrs Darcy. The tide waits for no one, ma’am.”
Chapter 5
The first few weeks at sea were a new experience for the whole party. To begin with, they all suffered from the perils of the ocean to a greater or lesser degree. William, Laurence, Jane, and Margaret were laid low, and even John looked decidedly pale, while Sophie could walk nowhere without falling over. Elizabeth spent most of her time at the front of the ship, where no one could see how green she was looking, and Darcy spent a great deal of time with the captain, trying to take his mind off his ills by learning about their voyage. Edward remained in his cabin, from where groans emerged periodically, and Paul found himself a few choice spots from which to observe, sketch, and paint. Since neither he nor Beth suffered any great ill effects from the motion of the ship, they were often together, with Paul taking a kindly interest in her talented drawings and Beth regarding him with adoration.
By and by they all adjusted to the motion of the ship. Even Mrs Bennet, whose early elation at being one of the party had disappeared when she had felt the first wave of nausea, began to like the voyage.
And indeed, there was much to enjoy: the sound of the sails flapping in the breeze; the creaking of the ropes; the variety of the blues and greens of the ocean; the ever changing waves; the clean tang of salt; the sightings of unusual sea birds; the joy of seeing great schools of fish; the exciting and colourful ports at which they called to pick up fresh supplies; and the pleasure of finding letters from friends and relatives waiting for them in every port.
For Darcy there was also the joy of seeing his family adjusting so well to shipboard life. He felt a swell of pride as he walked onto deck one morning and saw John swarming up the rigging, finally climbing into the crow’s nest; for while the rest of the party had been content to continue their normal pursuits on board, John had availed himself of every opportunity for activity and new experiences. Whenever his studies had allowed—and the children were often occupied with their tutors—he learned how to set sails, tie knots, and even take the wheel. Darcy stood for a moment, delighted to see his eager and energetic son enjoying himself.
“That is quite a boy you have there,” said the captain, as John helped to unfurl a sail which had become caught in the rigging. “He tells me he intends to go into the army, but it is a loss for the navy. I would have been glad of him on my naval ship before I left to pursue civilian life, and any captain would feel the same. The boy is bold and adventurous, but he does not take any unnecessary risks, and he tempers his adventurous spirit with intelligence.”
Darcy’s heart swelled even further with paternal pride at this. But then, all of a sudden, the realisation hit him that John was growing up. He had always known it, but he had envisaged John merely a year or two in the future. Now he saw that soon John would become a man—a fine man, but one who would no longer need him. He was suddenly aware of a feeling of emptiness and loss and he understood how Elizabeth felt when she did not want her youngest son to be sent away to school. He had a wish to seize the moment and hold on to it, to stretch it out so that it would never end. It was captured in all its detail, with the sound of the gulls and the crack of the sails and the concentration on his son’s face. And then John swarmed down the rigging and ran up to show him a new knot he had just learned to tie, and Darcy saw him as a ten-year-old boy once more and let the moment move on.