'Round Midnight

The Diamond Eye: A Sam Stone Story Pt. 3

We set sail aboard the Berengaria out of New York. Five days with the woman you secretly love is a long time to find out about them intimately. Though we didn't share quarters - we did spend a lot of time in each other's presence. We had the whole ship if we needed space from each other and there were times that we did, not because we got on each other's last nerve, that wouldn't come till later, but because there were sensitive subjects that were hit on that gave us pause for reflection.

Life for those five days seemed magical as the time and ocean rushed by, evoking every bit of romance and intrigue we only read about in dime store novels. Everything from the people to the beauty of the sea scape wrapped us in an air of mystery. This was a journey for the books - I even caught her journaling! Now I'd be amiss if I said everything went smoothly. Samantha doesn't quite have the sea legs I have. She was green around the gills for three days until her body became use to the motion.

"How do people do it?"

"Some just have a stronger constitution than you have is all."

"Constitution...that's a piece of paper."

"...and you waver like one on the seas."

"Har har..."

"It'll get better the more you travel."

Not only that but we argued about her ex, Dominick, about which path we'd take once we made it to London and about the secretive nature of my past. I told her that I'd be an open book if she just gave me a little time and she promised. Telling her that I had been an orphan really threw her for a loop. Nothing bad but she figured I had parents that she needed to meet. I just had Father Michael Thompson or Father Tom as I called him. He took me in and gave me his last name and reared me to the best of his ability. We traveled a lot by ferry and ship to other orphanages to bring kids that couldn't and wouldn't be handled at their current destination. He had a huge heart for us "throw-a-ways" and decided to become a father to the fatherless. He thought it was what God wanted of him. Traveling to and from these places got me used to the water and the boats.

About the third day of the cruise we hit choppy waters due to the incoming storm off of the Atlantic. The ship fared well however- Samantha did not. She was a ball of nerves and anxiety. Her stomach was unsettled and for the first time I saw what fear looked like on her. I made sure to stick close even during our spats. A time would come when she'd have to do the same for me later in our journey but at that moment - there was just me taking care of my favorite girl.

"So where were you when I was hurking over the edge of the ship?"

"Close by. I saw you and made sure you were alright. I was just hiding in the shadows keeping an eye on ya."

"Hm..."

"You sound a little pleased at that."

"A little."

The last two days of our trip were met with rain and stormy skies - leaving London in a dense fog. Upon arriving, all I could do was quote my favorite book, Oscar Wilde's - The Picture of Dorian Gray - until she told me to knock it off. The ship had been enough of an annoyance, she didn't need me being another but she would soon come to know my love for book quotes.

We traveled to Countess' not so humble abode in London, with its opulence inside and out, taken in by the sheer beauty of it all. "So this is what museum work gets ya these days huh?" Samantha said beneath her breath as we entered into the foyer of what could only be described as a grand palace. Her staff cared for us as if we were A-1 guests at the Ritz. We rested in front of the bedroom fireplace to warm ourselves and mulled some things over that had arisen on our trip over, things that needed our immediate attention.