Page 63 - Titanic: Forbidden Stories Hollywood Forgot

Titanic! 49

rich gentlemen standing serenely on the decks, waving
to their wives, lying in their teeth, assuring them they’d
follow in the next lifeboats. In my red ballgown, I rode on
Molly’s arm with my moustache buried in her fur collar.
I spied among the elegant men, searching for Edward.
On A Deck, Madeleine Astor’s dog, Kitty, ran bark-
ing back and forth. From C Deck, the immigrant crowds
in steerage raced up the stairs to first class, only to be
trapped below stairs by the locked iron gates. Titanic was
sink ing fast into the water. The decks tilted sharply. The
electric lights burned brightly. The band played. Flares
hissed, flared, and burst overhead. Crystal goblets and
flutes and bowls slid from the tables. The tables slid
across the floors. Heavy machinery below was booming,
breaking loose, sliding backwards toward the bow, pulling
us down faster under its weight.
I noticed Molly carried an extra dress and coat and
hat. “Do you intend to change?” I asked, overcome with
the sarcasm of gallows humor. “Into something smart
for a sink ing?”
“It’s for Edward.”
“We must find him.” My heart raced. My head spun.
My humor changed. Everyone at that moment was leav-
ing someone. Women, men, children. Separated. The seri-
ousness of the situation made us all quiet for a moment,
internal, listening to the cries of fate.
“We’ll find him,” Molly said.
Suddenly, the wild crowd pushed and shoved around
us pressing us clos er to portside Lifeboat 6 which was
al ready descending over the side. In an instant, strong
arms lifted me up into the air. It was Brice. “Come on,
lady, here you go!”

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