No Greater Love by Danielle Steel Read Free Book Online Page A

give this particular iceberg’s location. Phillips went on sending his messages to Cape Race, and Kate and Bertram drifted off to sleep, while the children dreamed in their rooms nearby and Edwina and Charles nestled together on the couch in the parlor and talked about their hopes and dreams as the hour approached midnight.
    They were still talking when there was a faint shudder of the ship, a kind of jarring, as though they’d hit something, but there was no major jolt, and nothing dramatic occurred. So they both knew that whatever it was, it couldn’t have been very important. They continued talking for a few minutes after that, and then suddenly Edwina realized that a certain hum was gone, and with it a familiar impression of vibration. The ship had stopped, and for the first time Charles looked concerned.
    “Do you think something’s wrong?” Edwina looked worried, as he glanced out the window on the starboard side, but he could see nothing.
    “I don’t think so. You heard what your father told you today. This ship’s unsinkable. They’re probably just resting the engines, or changing course, or readjusting something. I’m sure it’s nothing.” But he picked up his coat anyway, and kissed her gently on the lips. “I’ll go take a look and let you know what it is in a minute.”
    “I’ll come too.”
    “It’s too cold outside, Edwina. You stay here.”
    “Don’t be silly. It’s colder than this at my uncle Rupert’s house, inside, over breakfast.” He smiled, and helped her into her mother’s fur coat. He was sure that nothing was wrong. And whatever it was, he was sure they were readjusting it, and they’d be on their way again before long.
    In the halls, they encountered other curious passengers, like themselves, people in nightgowns and far coats, still in white tie and ballgowns, or bathrobes and bare legs. It seemed that a number of people, including John Jacob Astor, sensed something amiss and wanted to know what had happened. But a tour around the deck told them nothing more except what they already knew, that the ship was stopped, and three of the four great funnels were blowing steam into the night sky. But there appeared to be no visible sign of danger. There were no great mysteries to be solved, nothing major seemed to be amiss, and a steward finally explained that they had “struck a little ice,” but there was nothing to worry about. Mr. Astor went back to his wife, and Charles and Edwina went back inside to get out of the cold, and were told that they had nothing to fear. In fact, if they wanted to see it, a little bit of the ice could still be seen in the third-class recreation area, and there were people on deck, facing the stern, watching the steerage passengers far below throw snowballs and chunks of ice as they laughed.
    But the thrill of that did not appeal to Charles or Edwina and having determined that nothing was seriously amiss, they decided to go back to their staterooms. It was five minutes before midnight by then, and when they got back to their private parlor, they found Bertram waiting for them with a worried frown.
    “Is something wrong with the ship?” He was whispering because his wife was still asleep, but he’d been worried since the engines stopped.
    “Doesn’t appear to be,” Charles answered right away, dropping his heavy coat on a chair, as Edwina peeled off her mother’s fur coat. “Apparently, we’ve hit some ice, but no one seems particularly concerned. The crew seem to be taking it in stride, and there’s nothing to see on deck.” Charles looked relaxed, and Bertram seemedrelieved. He felt a little foolish for being worried about it now, but he was a man with a family, and he had wanted to be sure that all was well. He said good night to them then, told Edwina not to stay up too late, and went back to bed, at exactly 12:03, just as far below the decks the stokers fought furiously to put out the huge ship’s fires in her boilers, and water