She took a deep breath. “All right,” she whispered. What choice, really, did she have?
Nathan released her hand, and she turned to face the boards.
“I’ll be right behind you,” he murmured.
She thought she was going to be sick. The way across the boards seemed so long, so treacherous; the door seemed to be a league away. The footmen and Clara were standing in the doorway, watching anxiously, and she had to look away so as not to see the fear on their faces.
Look at the planks. Keep your eyes ahead of you. Don’t look down at the hole.
But it was very hard not to look down at the hole when she had to look at where she was putting her feet.
At last, she took a step forward and released the windowsill.
Beneath her, the boards trembled, and she had to fight down the scream.
A hand came to her waist, and she realized that Nathan was holding onto her from behind.
“You’ve got this,” he murmured. “I’m right behind you.”
Once the boards had steadied, she took another step. Then another. She was now fully away from the wall. There was nothing to cling to, should she fall.
But Nathan’s hand was still on her waist, so she took another step.
The boards rattled again, and she hesitated.
Then Nathan spoke. “Do you remember that scene inThe Pirate Captain’s Wifewhen Lizzy ‘Nobeard’ Seacliff has to walk across a rope from the main mast to the mizzen?”
Rosalie blinked. She was so surprised by Nathan’s words that for a moment, she forgot to be afraid.
“Y-yes, I do remember that scene.”
“She has to balance while walking across the rope with nothing to hold onto, and the whole time, she’s trying not to think about the ship’s deck below her.”
“And she looks down at one point and almost falls, but she keeps going,” Rosalie said. Without thinking, she took another step forward. “Yes, I remember.”
“I always loved that scene,” Nathan observed, his hand still on her waist. “She gets across and is able to fix the mizzen sail, allowing Captain Blackthorn to navigate them away from the Whirlpool of Andores which would have sunk their ship with all crew still onboard.”
“And then afterward, she and the Captain share their first kiss,” Rosalie remembered. She took another step then another across the boards. For a moment, she allowed herself to imagine how Lizzy had felt in that moment: the fear but also the rush of excitement, of confidence in herself and her abilities. Lizzy felt fear, but she was brave and competent, and she always overcame it.
I can be like that,Rosalie thought.I can be brave, too.
She took another step forward. She was now more than halfway across. Underneath her, the beams trembled again, but this time, she kept her eyes focused ahead of her and thought of Lizzy. She could almost feel the sea spray on the back of her neck… could almost hear the seagulls crying in the distance and the sound of the wind whipping through the sails…
She was Lizzy on the pirate ship, crossing the rope and then about to fix the sail to save the day before going downstairs to share her first kiss with her one true love.
And then she was across.
It happened so suddenly that she almost didn’t realize it when it happened. Her feet were touching the solid ground of the doorway, and then she was stumbling forward, falling into Clara’s arms, letting out a sob of relief.
The footmen were cheering. She couldn’t believe it was over. Clara was hugging her tight.
And then Nathan was across as well.
He lifted her out of her lady’s maid’s arms and folded her into his, and she buried her head in his shoulder. At last, she let herself go completely; sob after sob racked her, and she didn’t even care if the servants could see it. She was safe; he was safe; it was over.
“It’s okay,” he murmured. “You can let it all out. You’re safe now. Cry if you need to.”
She clutched him more tightly and sobbed uncontrollably against him while he continued to murmur sweet words in her ear.
