The sun had started to set on the fifteenth day out at sea. Nora was staring at the waves crashing against the ship. The wind had gotten stronger in the latest hour and dark clouds were quickly making their way towards the Gisela. What had during the day been a beautiful day was now turning into a storm. Nora had never experienced a storm out at sea before. On main deck the crew were running around, securing all the ropes, making sure that the sails would hold if the storm picked up. James was at the rodder, screaming out orders while steering the ship the best he could. Soon the waves were so big that they came crashing down over the deck. Cold water hit Nora where she stood and she screamed because of the chock. Her dress was soaked and her hair stuck to her face, making her shiver as the cold wind blew around her. She could hear James yelling something, but the wind stole his words. Soon however, Belmore grabbed a hold of her waist and started dragging her down below deck.
"Come on, puppet! There's no place for a lady on a ship when there's a storm." Nora wanted to protest, but another crashing wave silenced her. Perhaps it would be good to stay in the cabin. Well down below deck the roaring wind wasn't as loud, but the waves could still be heard. Belmore guided her to James's cabin and opened the door.
"I'm gonna lock the door and slide the key under. You hold on tight to that key and don't let anyone else in but the captain, alright puppet?" Belmore's dark voice boomed and Nora nodded. With a nod, Belmore turned around closed the door. Soon the lock turned and the key shot out from under the door. Nora quickly grabbed it and held it hard in her hand.
"And don't light any candles!" Nora wanted to ask why, but Belmore was already gone since no answer came. Sighing, she sat down on the bed, soaking wet and cold. The cabin was dark without any lit candles, the storm clouds outside had swallowed the last bit of sun. To get warm, Nora got out of her dress and dried her self off before putting on her night gown and crawling under the warm covers of the bed. There she sat for what felt like forever while the storm got worse. Soon the ship was moving so much she thought it would fall over. Waves came from what seemed like every direction, threatening to break the small windows. Nora was terrified. Now and then the ship tilted so much that the things on James's desk moved and fell on the floor. After they fell down for the third time, Nora didn't bother to pick them up. Instead she just sat in bed with her arms wrapped around her legs, the covers surrounding her like a safe barrier, her eyes closed. It was clear that she did not enjoy storms at all. The ocean that she had been so fond of all her life was now treacherous and she desperately wanted to be on land again.
"Guinevere! Open up!" Somebody banged at the door and Nora froze solid. It was hard to hear who it was through the deafening sound of the waves outside. Wrapping the covers around her, she tiptoed to the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's James, now open up, I'm fucking freezing." Nora drew a sigh of relief and pushed the key under the door. Soon the lock turned and in came a soaking wet James. His white shirt was plastered on him like a second skin, the fabric see through because of all the water. His hair was slicked backwards and his face full of droplets. Nora backed away since she didn't want to get wet.
"Is it bad up there?" Nora said, studying James as he started to take off his wet shirt.
"Nah, love. It's just a storm. We took down the sails and now we just have to wait for it to pass. Nothing to worry about." Just as he said that, a big wave caused the ship to tilt more than usual. Nora who wasn't prepared got thrown across the room, landing on her knees next to the wall. James, who was used to storms and whatnots, steadied himself with the door, looking as calm as ever, whilst Nora was on the verge of panic.
"You do not call that bad?" She yelled, fighting tears as she glanced at the small windows, seeing the terrifying waves coming towards the ship, never ending.
"Been through worse, and the Gisela is strong, nothing can break this beauty." James patted the wall beside him before continuing to get out of his wet clothes. Nora looked away, blushing as she had caught a glimpse of his almost naked figure. One thing was for sure, James was not a shy man.
"Aren't you the least bit afraid?", Nora asked when James was back in clothes again, this time dry ones. James gave her one of his dashing smiles and shook his head.
"Nah, the sea and I have an understanding." Nora raised an eyebrow at him. She wanted to answer, but another big wave came down over the ship, making Nora let out a scream as more things in the cabin came flying. James stopped smiling and gave her a concerned look.
"There's really nothing to be afraid of", he said and walked over to Nora, who was still crawled up on the floor where she had fallen. Her knees and hands were scraped and a few drops of blood made their way down her leg from one of her knees. James crouched down beside her reached out his hand.
"Come on, love. The floor won't be kind to you." Nora looked at his hand, doubting what he would do. But looking down at her knee, she sighed and grabbed his offered hand. As the ship was tossed over the never ending waves, James led her to the edge of the bed, where he motioned for her to sit down. Nora gave him a look, but James didn't see as he had already turned around. From the wash basin he took a washcloth and dipped it in the little water that was left before heading over to Nora again. Slowly he lifted her nightgown, placing the hem of it on her thigh so that he'd have access to her scraped knees. As Nora looked down at him, she found it hard to breathe. His calloused hands on her legs were surprisingly soft, and even though the scrapes stung as he washed them, Nora didn't want him to stop. His long fingers worked fast, rinsing the cuts and dabbing away the blood. It wasn't a bad scrape at all, but James still treated it with care, causing Nora's heart to beat quicker.
"There you go, love. Good as new." Nora nodded slightly, looking down at her bare legs. One of James's hands were still on her calf, warm against her cold skin, despite the fact that she had been the one under the covers, and he the one being up on deck.
"Thank you", Nora said, meeting James's gaze. He gave her a puzzled look, seeming distracted for a few seconds, before removing his hand and standing up.
"Right", he said, letting out a big sigh, running his hands through his hair. As James had taken care of her cuts, Nora had almost forgotten about the storm. But now that the distraction was gone, she remembered the terrifying waves and the fear came creeping back in. James wasn't bothered at all, walking around the cabin, picking up papers and books that had fallen down. How he managed to see anything in the dark cabin amazes Nora. But unfortunately that wasn't good enough of a distraction to stop her from thinking about her prominent death.
It took James quite a while to realise that Nora was crying. She didn't want to admit it and kept stubbornly wiping them away. But her sniffles were hard to ignore. Slowly James walked over to the bed and put the cover around her shoulders before crouching down in front of her so that he could see her face.
"Hey", he said softly, placing a hand just below her knee. "No need to cry, love. I promise that you're safe. The storm will end." Nora refused to look at him, ashamed of her tears. But James didn't budge. He just looked at her whilst slowly stroking her leg with his thumb.
"Tell me something about you." Nora frowned and met his gaze.
"Like what?"
"Anything. What's your favourite thing in the whole world?"
"Books." James gave her a confused look.
"Books? That's your favourite thing in the whole wide world?" Nora nodded. The frown now gone.
"Yes. I love books. When I was a little girl, I used to pretend that I could escape through the book I was reading. Become someone else and just run away. Live true adventures instead of the life I had. Forever stuck in that town." It was now James's turn to frown.
"But you're that Governors daughter. What could a lady like you possibly like to change about her life?" James seemed confused and Nora sighed heavily. For a second she had forgotten who she was supposed to be.
"Don't get me wrong", Nora said, trying to save her lie. "I've had a great life. But sometimes I wish I was somebody else. Somebody who doesn't have any responsibility towards anyone. Somebody who can just leave and live out adventures everywhere in the world. Never having to worry about anything but where to go next. But that life wasn't made for me I guess." Nora sighed again, feeling the pain of truth in her words. She might not be the Governors daughter and have the responsibilities that comes with that role. But she had had a lot of other responsibilities and people to take care of that had stopped her from just leaving. She might not have any family to take care of, as both her parents were dead and she had no siblings, but the staff at the Governors had become her family, and she could never just leave them. They needed her too much and she needed them as well. This, she could of course not say to James. But the scenario played out well both for Nora and for Guinevere.
Meeting James's eyes, she feared that he had caught her lie, as he looked puzzled and deep in thought.
"What is it?" Nora asked, hoping that she hadn't let anything slip enough that he would doubt that Guinevere would ever say these things.
"Nothing. It's just that you are not who I thought you were. There's so much more to you under the surface. Something more than just the young brat that everyone has told me that you were. I haven't seen that brat at all. And that just puzzles me. You puzzle me." Nora's breath got caught in her throat and she didn't dare to speak. Perhaps he still believed that she was Guinevere, but she was in deep waters, and she couldn't skip up anymore. Even though James looked so calm and good, sitting in front of her, gently stroking her leg absentmindedly as he spoke, Nora could never forget who he was and what he would do if he found out that she was not Guinevere Monroe.