Emma stood and delivered her father’s letter to him, then returned to the sofa and ran the pad of her finger across her name, written elegantly in black ink. She turned the envelope over, and with great care not to rip the paper, she broke the seal.
November 12, 1946
Dear Emma,
Thank you for sending news about your father’s accident and—thankfully and mercifully—his recovery, though I am very sorry to hear about the loss of his leg. How difficult that must have been for you both to manage the shock of that diagnosis. Allow me to convey my deepest sympathies.
I must have read your letter at least five times until I finally decided I must reply and send gifts for Christmas. I have no idea if the package will arrive in time, but if not, please consider it a gift for the new year instead.
In your letter, you asked about the situation regarding my employer following the wreck of theBelvedere. An investigation is still ongoing, but each member of the crew has provided information about the storm and the events that led to our misfortune on the sandbar. My solicitor made good use of the letter your father sent (I am greatlyindebted to him), and a respected weather expert from London has insisted that no ship could have remained on course under the force of such high winds and the enormity of the swells.
So, as it stands today, I am still gainfully employed, and the shipping company is rather pleased to be collecting funds from an insurance policy. I set sail for another transatlantic crossing in the new year, on a recently refurbished steamer, this time heading to North Virginia. Wish me luck and no monster storms like the last one.
But enough about the weather. I am disappointed to hear that your studies had to be postponed, but I hope you can take that leap again next fall when your father has had a chance, God willing, to become accustomed to his new circumstances. I’m sure that, over the coming year, he will have no shortage of help and support from the community at Sable, which I will remember forever with great fondness and affection. Such a generous and charitable group of individuals you all were. Especially you, Emma.
I’m not sure if you realize it, but you helped me through a difficult time. Your father is a lucky man to have you at his side during these enormous physical and emotional trials. One of the things I admired most about you was your ability to see a glass as half full, not half empty. It is clear to me that you are displaying that quality yet again in the way you’ve accepted the postponement of your studies. Your positive outlook will take you far in life, and I have no doubt that you will be a tremendous success, whatever path you choose.
So that is that. I hope you and your father enjoy the gifts, and more importantly, I hope you know how deeplyI will always treasure the memory of our conversations, not to mention the appearance of the wild horses.
Sincerely,
Oliver Harris
Emma lowered the letter to her lap and realized there were tears streaming down her face. She supposed she shouldn’t be surprised by the overflowing of her emotions. Since the captain left her on the beach that terrible final day, she’d been burying her feelings in an attempt to mend her broken heart. But suddenly, those feelings of loss and longing were exploding out of her soul with a vengeance, and she felt crushed all over again.
Emma sucked in a breath and fought to compose herself. She wiped the tears away and glanced across at her father.
“Bad news?” he asked with a frown.
“Not at all.” She laughed ridiculously through her tears. “Goodness. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“I think I know,” her father said with a note of concern.
Emma shook her head. “No, Papa, you can’t possibly know. And please don’t try to guess. I’m fine.”
“I may have lost a leg,” he said, “but I’m not blind. I saw how you looked at the captain when he was here, especially that last night when he ignored you, which I’m glad he did because it was obvious that you were infatuated. At least to me. And ever since he left the island, you’ve been broken down and miserable. You’ve tried to maintain a stiff upper lip for my benefit—which I appreciate—but I know you too well, and I can’t bear to see you broken.”
“I’m not broken,” Emma argued, clinging to her dignity and wishing she could convince herself of her recovery as much as her father. “I’m fine.”
He sat back and relented, to some extent. “I’ll trust that you’re telling me the truth. As long as you can promise me ...”
She waited impatiently for him to finish the thought. “Promise what?”
“That you’ve accepted there’s no future in that dream,” he said. “Captain Harris isn’t the one for you. I hope you know that.”
The words struck her like a door slamming shut in her face. “Of course I know it.” Her voice trembled as she wiped another tear from under her eye. She wanted to catch it before it reached her cheek. “Why do you think I’m crying?”
At the sight of her tears, he lowered his gaze and softened his tone. “We’ve all been through hard times lately, but we’re looking at a new year. Let’s try to move forward and put the past, and futile dreams, behind us. Can we both do that?”
Emma understood that he was referring to the loss of his leg and his own impossible wish that he could be the man he once was, physically. But what happened in the hospital could never be reversed, and time would march on. His only choice was to accept his disability and learn how to live with it. Emma understood this.
“Yes,” she said. “I want to move on.” She wanted to be happy and satisfied, free of her painful yearnings.
“You’ll go to university next fall,” he declared, having come to accept that choice as well. “Focus on that goal, and my advice is to not write back to the captain. Nothing good can come of it. It’ll only ignite your feelings again. I’ll send him a thank-you letter for the gifts myself, from both of us, and that will be the end of it. Agreed? It’s not likely you’ll ever see him again anyway.”
Emma nodded morosely and slid the letter back into the envelope. She placed it in the bottom of the box and covered it up with the crumpled white tissue paper.
Chapter 12
