Northern Lights Trilogy (76 page)

“There are dangers wherever we go,” Elsa interrupted. “I always
wanted Peder to face him. Expose him. Get others to track him down and turn him over to the authorities. He never would.” She lifted her chin. “He will not make me run.”

Kaatje shook her head. “Peder Ramstad was one of the wisest, strongest men I knew. Why would he run? The only reason I can think of is that he feared for you. For Kristian. Don’t you see the wisdom in that?”

“I do not see the wisdom in backing away from a fight,” Elsa said. “Again, I tell you I will choose men I trust. And men who can protect me and our ship. I will choose wisely.”

Kaatje stared at her for a long moment. “Then God go with you, my friend. I can see your mind is already made up. But please. Please search your heart for wisdom in this. I fear for you already on the seas. Add a shark like Dutton to the mix and it terrifies me. He will not treat you well should he get his hands on you again, Elsa. And you have the children to think about now.”

“Do you think I’m not a good mother? That I care not for their safety?”

“Of course not. No one loves your children like you. But I’m not sure you’re thinking through all the ramifications. Yes, there is the incredible opportunity to show your children the world. But they could die as you try to pass the Cape of Good Hope, or be taken prisoner by Mason Dutton. It is a glorious world out there, on the sea. It is also incredibly dangerous.”

“Life is full of risks. Our greatest gifts come when we face those risks and get to the other side. You yourself have said so.”

“But God has given us the wisdom to analyze those risks, and choose when we should take them. Peder opted not to risk Mason Dutton again.”

“I realize that,” Elsa said, her irritation growing. “I know that! Don’t you think I debated before I filed that column on Mason? But look what has happened. Efforts have doubled to catch the rogue.”

“And all have failed. In the process, Mason probably is doubling his own efforts to find you.”

The thought struck Elsa dumb. “You think … you think he would actually dare to come after me?”

“I think, my friend, that a man as ruthless as he is capable of anything. And it is time, should you wish to be captain, that you think as he does. Wise as serpents, harmless as doves.”

Kaatje left Elsa by the fire with that, satisfied she had raised the questions that needed raising. As she walked up the stairs, she wondered how many of her questions were simply queries she had asked herself should she actually go to Alaska. What dangers would lie in
her
path? Was it completely irresponsible to risk her life, as well as her daughters’, to go? For the oceans were no more dangerous than the mountain frontier. For every shark there was a bear. For every shoal there was a river to cross. No, Elsa and she both headed to dangerous places.

But instinctively, Kaatje knew they had no choice but to move forward.

I
t was a cold, drizzly, wintry day that January in San Francisco, but nothing could put a damper on Karl’s mood. He stood beside the proud iron frigate—the
Tempest
—just christened from a fine yard in Boston in which Gerald Kenney had a stake. She had been abandoned by her captain once he made it west. It seemed he had obtained a touch of gold fever while rounding the Horn and was heading north to the Alaska territory. When Gerald had come to Karl with the opportunity to captain her, Karl had leapt at the chance. To be at sea again! And at the helm of a ship on the cutting edge of modern technology! He could not seem to stop praising God for smiling upon him. If it went well, he would build his own ship in the coming year.

Mrs. Kenney clucked around him as his mother used to do, fiddling with his coat collar and his sleeves, fretting that he might not be warm enough. Her daughters, Nina and Mara, still did not treat him as a brother as he wished they would; instead they threw him coquettish glances, staring at him until he met their gazes and then dramatically lowering their lashes. He laughed at their girlish attempts to win his heart, playing the role of an elder brother with whom they could test their feminine wiles without being held responsible for their actions. They were young, and neither was the type of woman
he sought for his bride. At least not yet. Perhaps in a few years, he thought, giving Nina a second glance before shouting an order to Lucas, his first mate.

“She has a first-rate steam engine, and is fully rigged for square sails, should you need them,” Gerald said for the tenth time. Clearly the man yearned to at least set sail with Karl, if not see distant shores again.

“Yes,” Karl said. “It will be a pleasure to have the power of not only sail, but a steamer’s triple-screw propeller at my fingertips.”

They looked up together at the
Tempest
, studying the four masts and huge boiler tubes on what otherwise looked like a normal frigate. “You think she might be a bit unwieldy in heavy seas?” he asked.

“The first mate reported a propensity to heave to port in swells of over fifteen feet,” his friend said gravely. “I’ve been puzzling over that all week. I cannot imagine the reason.”

“I’ll figure it out, Gerald,” Karl said forcefully, wanting him to have no reason to doubt his captaincy. “I’ve designed over twenty steamers and plenty of sailers with Peder. Give me some time on her, and we’ll solve the problem.”

“He’ll do just fine, Gerald,” Mrs. Kenney said, nudging her husband. She faced Karl. “He only pesters you because he wishes he were going with you.”

“You can take the man off the sea—” Karl began.

“But you can’t take the sea out of the man,” enjoined Mrs. Kenney. “I told him he could go. You’ve become like a son to us, Karl. I think he’ll miss you as much as the voyage.”

“Oh, pshaw,” Gerald put in.

“He said he couldn’t leave me and the girls. Thought we might get into some mischief.” Her eyes twinkled with merriment, before she continued, “Do an old sea captain’s wife a favor, will you?”

“Anything.”

“Send word soon on your progress?” The girls were now at their mother’s elbows, hanging on every word.

“Every port.”

“You are a true gentleman, Karl Martensen,” Mrs. Kenney said smugly, as if she were indeed his mother. “We’ll look forward to your return.”

“As will I. But now I should see to the ship. Mrs. Kenney, Nina, Mara.” Mrs. Kenney nodded her head, beaming with pleasure, as the girls dissolved into giggles and blushes.

“I’ll walk aboard with you,” Gerald said, gesturing toward the gangplank. And Karl wondered momentarily if he would end up setting sail with them after all.

“Very well. Good day, ladies.”

“Go with God, Karl.”

Once aboard ship, Gerald turned to him. “Son, I wish to give you a small gift.”

“Gerald, you’ve done so much for me already—”

“Nonsense.” He reached into his pocket and pulled from it a gold watch, an anchor on its face. “I saw that you were in need of one.”

Karl smiled. “Mine broke some time ago.” He shook his head. “A fine captain I am, eh? What sort of man sets sail without a way of recording the time?”

“I’m sure you would have managed. The anchor,” Gerald said, placing the fine timepiece in Karl’s hand, “is to remind you of what is important. So you never stray from our Savior again.”

“I’ll think of it on every occasion I check for the time.”

“Very well,” Gerald said, lifting his chin and clapping Karl on the shoulder. “Blessings on your voyage, Karl. Treat her well.”

“I will, sir. Thank you for entrusting her to me.”

“It has been a long time,” he said, staring Karl in the eye, “since I met a man I would ever trust more. We’ll see you in a few months.”

“Very well.” He paused and cast a glance over his shoulder. “Last chance, Gerald,” he said, raising a brow. “You’re sure you won’t come along for the ride?”

“No. My place is here with my family. Perhaps on another trip.”

“I’ll look forward to it,” Karl said, shaking his hand. “Now I had better see to the ship or we’ll never get under way.”

Trent stood before Elsa’s house, wondering what he might say to the sister of the woman he loved. He had read Elsa’s columns, and consequently felt as if he knew her in part. What would she say when he told her who he was? How would she react? He paced outside the wrought-iron gate, searching for the right words. Would she think him mad? What kind of man came to a woman’s door and asked about her sister, a sister who had seemingly disappeared from the city within days of arriving?

Shaking his head, Trent forced himself on. There was nothing to say but the truth. Flat out. Removing his hat as he reached the door, he knocked twice and waited. A middle-aged woman answered his knock, and after eyeing him suspiciously, led him to the drawing room before seeking her mistress.

Moments later, Elsa appeared. Upon first inspection she seemed very different from Tora, as fair as her younger sister was dark. But when his gaze alighted on her eyes, he found it difficult to breathe. For in them he saw the same shade of turbulent blue that Tora’s were. It was a color he had not seen before meeting an Anders woman, and had not seen since.

“Mr. Storm?” Elsa said in concern when he did not speak. “You look ill. Please. Sit down,” she said, gesturing toward a settee nearby. “May I get you a glass of water?”

“No, no,” he said, shaking his head in embarrassment. “Forgive me. I am Trent Storm. You are Elsa Anders Ramstad?”

“I am.” She sat down and gestured again to the settee. “You have come about Tora,” she stated.

“I have. You see, I had a detective trace her path to Seattle. Apparently, she has been living here for some time.”

“Yes,” Elsa said, looking sorrowful. “I have looked for her as well.
She has come close, as near as my window,” she said, nodding to her left. “But when I saw her, called to her, she ran.” She studied Trent with intent eyes. “She is not well, Mr. Storm.”

“I am aware of her condition.”

“You are aware she appears to be without a home? In rags?”

“Yes.”

They sat in silence for a moment. “I am in love with your sister, Mrs. Ramstad.”

She sighed. “Elsa. Call me Elsa. Do you know how many men have fallen in love with my sister, Mr. Storm?”

Trent nodded. “I imagine quite a few. But I believe we had something remarkable together. Something I should never have let go, but found I could make no other choice.”

“She wronged you,” Elsa stated flatly.

“In some ways.” He studied Elsa’s expression. Clearly, she was someone who knew Tora—and her patterns—well. But did she know how Tora had changed? What had begun, as evidenced in her letter to him? After all, it had been years since the sisters had seen each other or spoken. “You should see this,” he said, taking out Tora’s well-worn letter from his pocket. “It might explain why I’ve come after her.”

Elsa took the letter from him and leaned back against her seat to read it. She was silent for a long moment afterward. “You think she was discovering what was right, what was true? After all this time?”

“It is my hope.”

She rose and paced before him, clearly split between excitement and skepticism. “You don’t know my sister. You don’t know what she’s capable of.”

“On the contrary. I know her very well. I’ve seen all she’s capable of. More important, I see all she’s capable of becoming.”

Elsa paused and sat at the edge of her seat. “She wronged you. That is why you parted ways.”

“She did,” he admitted. “Consequently she lost everything. I wanted her to learn that she could not always take advantage of
others and win. I forced her to lose her business, her home. I walked away from her.” He looked at Elsa, his eyes beseeching her to understand. “I had no choice, you see. I loved her desperately. But things were desperately wrong between us.”

Elsa surprised him by reaching out a slender hand and squeezing his briefly. “I understand. I know what it is to love Tora. You did what you had to.” Her look betrayed the anguish that she herself had felt over Tora.

Trent shook his head. “But she’s gone now. Disappeared. What if I’m too late in returning to her side? What if she’s dead now?”