The Attainment of Evangeline

Chapter 11

Evangeline walked on the cobblestone street, passing vendors at the market, children chasing a dog, two lovers holding hands. She held the letter that was addressed to the Black Pearl, as she made her way to the postman. She still had Jack's story bouncing around in her mind; it was too beautiful and tragic a story even for Austen herself, more suited for Shakespeare perhaps.

The one thing about Jack's story that had caught her off guard was the fact that Jack had once been in love, even if it was for a short period of time. She knew from stories that pirates guarded their hearts from such things because they had to, yet, at the time, Jack was merely a young sailor. He was only human, of course he had fallen in love.

She opened the door to the postman's shop, and saw a stout, stubby woman behind the counter with an equally stubby nose. Her husband, the postman, was conversing with another customer.

"How can I help you, miss?" The stumpy woman asked, smiling brightly.

"Could you put this letter with the ones being sent to sailors?" she asked, pushing Jack's note onto the counter.

"Certainly. What is the name of the ship this is to be sent to?"

"The Black Pearl," she said.

The postman's wife looked up at her, questioningly, but nodded her head, writing a little note on the envelope and setting it aside. Evangeline handed the woman a coin, thanking her.

Evangeline walked out of the shop, and made her way into the market crowd once again. She loved the market, the different smells, and people, and produce. It was lovely to be able to take a minute for herself; the weather was just beginning to warm, bringing people outdoors. She stopped at a stall that was selling fresh fruit, the smell was intoxicating and she couldn't help herself.

The young girl running the stand smiled wide and handed Evangeline an apple, she took a bite and smiled back, handing the young girl a coin. Evangeline moved on, looking at different stalls, apple in hand. She stopped at a stall that sold ribbons and cloth. She examined a pink colored ribbon as someone came and stood next to her.

"Good afternoon, Miss McKenna."

Evangeline turned and saw Doctor Frazier standing next to her, Joshua nowhere in sight.

"Doctor Frazier! How are you?" she asked, setting the ribbon down.

"Very well, and you? What are you doing about the market?"

Evangeline and Nathaniel Frazier stepped away from the stall and made their way into the bustling crowd.

"I just dropped off a letter for Ja-" she stopped, not wanting to sound too familiar with the pirate, "for Mr. Thomas."

"Ah, and how is he?"

"He is doing quite well, I think."

"Your father?" he asked, stopping her in the middle of the street, his hand placed on her arm

"He...he won't listen to me. We are quite cross with each other at the moment. We had a row about his health. I can't get him to quit his drinking."

Nathaniel nodded his head, his ponytail swaying a bit as they began to walk again.

"I suppose it will take a while; if it isn't an inconvenience, I would like to stop by and check up on your father and Mr. Thomas sometime soon."

"It wouldn't be an inconvenience at all, doctor," she replied, taking another bite of her apple.

They walked until they came to the crossroads where Evangeline needed to turn to make her way home. She turned to say goodbye to the doctor.

"Would you...erm... Would you mind if I walked you home, Miss McKenna?" he asked, his hand on the back of his neck.

"Not at all," she replied.

It was quiet for a little while as they walked the stone street that lead to Evangeline's home, but the doctor broke the silence and began to tell her about a widow in town who frequently called on Joshua and him for medical attention.

"She is wholly convinced that she is dying, although Joshua and I cannot find a single thing wrong with her. She is in pristine health! One moment she believes she has Malaria, next it is the Measles. She will complain of severe headaches, various pains; she even had us over once because she was in a panic due to the thought that she had the Plague even though I told her that the plague had not been seen in a patient for more than fifty years!"

Evangeline laughed heartily; something she had not done for a long time.

"She always pays us heavily, every time, despite the fact that we have never healed her of anything!" he said, laughing as well.

They arrived at her door in laughter. It died down after a moment, and Evangeline thanked him for walking her home. He smiled at her, their eyes locking for a second before she moved her green ones away.

"I will stop by soon to see to your father as well as Mr. Thomas," he said, shielding his eyes from the setting sun. "Good day, miss McKenna."

"Doctor Frazier," she replied, with a curt nod of her head.

She walked into her bedroom to find Jack asleep, her book open and lying across his chest: he had fallen asleep while reading it. She smiled and closed the door behind her; she remembered she had left Jack's things outside.

As she passed her father's study, she didn't stop. She was still cross with him and, however much it pained her, she would not be the one to apologize for their fight because she had done nothing wrong. She would have to wait for her father to come to her, if he ever would. With the sun nearly down, its rays made everything a golden orange. She wished she could go to the docks or the beach to see the water under the influence of the golden perfection. She sighed as she took Jack's sash off the line and gathered his jacket and his trinkets. She stopped to look at the lace from the opera singer's dress. Poor Jack, she thought. From what she understood, falling in love was quite a rare thing. Falling truly and madly and deeply for someone, well that sort of thing did not happen every day. And for it all to be taken away...

She clutched the lace in her hand and watched the sun go slowly down before heading back inside.