Labored, painful steps slowly carried him across the rain-soaked, slanted deck as he struggled to reach the door that would take him back down to his quarters. Jean de La Fontaine was fully exposed to the fury of the elements as they tossed the Adventure Fortune around like some toy in a shower; and his long, rain-drenched hair was plastered to his face as he tried to shield his eyes from the wind.
A ray of early morning light broke though the dark clouds just long enough to reveal an overturned lifeboat, and Jean prayed it was not the one that carried his letters back to Des. Deep inside he knew the chance of any lifeboat reaching shore was remote.
?Ces bords d?sormais ne seront plus profanes; ce triste tombeau, honor? par chants, consacr? par tes m?nes, est pour nous un temple nouveau." (Trans: Those banks will never henceforth be profane; this sad tomb, honored in chants, and consecrated by your shades, will be for us a new temple.")
In the brief light he now saw that the bow was submerged and the stern would soon follow. He had to get inside quickly. He turned to the door and nearly collapsed in pain as the rib that punctured his lung drew away in a gasp what little breath he had. The smashed collarbone left his left side useless, but he was determined. He had to get there.
By the time he reached his quarters, the ship was listing significantly. Now down on his hands and knees he struggled to the closet and pulled out a shirt that Des had often worn.
The bed.
It was only a few feet away but it took all the strength he had left in his body to reach it. He held Des' shirt with his mouth as his right hand pulled back the covers.
A wave hit the submerging ship and threw him onto the tilting bed with such force he thought his life was forfeited in that instant. For several moments blackness came over him and all sound faded. He recovered consciousness moments later and realized that he was now breathing with but one lung and only the most shallow of breaths could be taken with the other, for that one was also feeling the point of a broken rib.
Blood dripped from his mouth onto the shirt as his rolled onto his back and looked to the ceiling. He held the shirt against his face and closed his eyes.
?I?m here, Des. I?m with you. Don?t you worry.?
Sounds of cracking timber were heard over the sounds of the storm. The ship was breaking apart.
?You?ll be alight, Des. It?s just a little storm. Just lay with me here and close your eyes, and in the morning I?ll make you breakfast.?
Another loud crack pierced the darkness and the stern was now out of the water and rising higher.
?We?ll have such a beautiful life, Des.? He smiled, ?I hope our girls look like you.?
The stern was now sinking quickly, the weight of the ship pulling it down into the ocean. The bed was now nearly tilted vertically and the waves were beginning to lap over the windows.
?You?ve made me so happy, Des. Remember our wedding at the Duet? You looked so beautiful.?
The stern submerged and the water covered the windows. It would only be moments before they cracked with the pressure of the sea.
Jean remembered the words of his last letter to Des, the one he put in the leather sachel just before handing it to Charles.
My Darling Wife,
It has been said that if what God gives us wasn?t so very good, it wouldn?t hurt so much when the time comes for it to be taken away.
He has given me the best in you, Des. It hurts me to write this, but I?ll not see you again in this mortal life. I have been severely hurt when a yardarm fell upon me and even if the storm would subside this instant, I know my passing would still be quick.
You have made me so happy, Des, and I would not trade my life for that of any other man in all the universe.
I am sorry that I cannot keep my promise to return in two weeks. Please forgive me for that.
Promise me that you?ll not grieve long and will go on with your life and be happy. I had asked that Gavilean watch over you. I would not have you lonely, Des. If you grow to love him, I give my blessings on you both.
I have always said, ?Cesser d'aimer et d'?tre aimable c'est une mort insupportable; Cesser de vivre, ce n'est rien.?" (Trans: ?To cease to love and be lovable is a death unbearable; to cease to live is nothing.") I have known your love, Des, and therefore the death I face is nothing to me. Know that I shall die happy, with thoughts of you on my mind, and your name on my lips.
Time is short, I must end this now.
Forever?.and always?and two days,
Jean
The ice cold water came crashing through the windows of the ship as it sunk into the ocean. The rush of water quickly covered the bed and lifted Jean to a wall that had now become his ceiling. The sudden rush of cold water took his breath away.
He rose to where the remaining pocket of air was and he was amused that he would struggle so hard to take such a painful breath when he knew it only be his last.
There was a sudden peacefulness as the sounds became only those muffled, strange underwater sensations of bubbles and the strained timbers of the ship. Jean floated in the midst of his cabin, with the full realization that the little air in but one lung would do little to extend his time in this world.
He closed his eyes and saw Des before him, her cowboy hat upon her head and her hands upon her hips; that special smile upon her lips.
He opened his mouth to the water and said but one word.
?Des.?
A ray of early morning light broke though the dark clouds just long enough to reveal an overturned lifeboat, and Jean prayed it was not the one that carried his letters back to Des. Deep inside he knew the chance of any lifeboat reaching shore was remote.
?Ces bords d?sormais ne seront plus profanes; ce triste tombeau, honor? par chants, consacr? par tes m?nes, est pour nous un temple nouveau." (Trans: Those banks will never henceforth be profane; this sad tomb, honored in chants, and consecrated by your shades, will be for us a new temple.")
In the brief light he now saw that the bow was submerged and the stern would soon follow. He had to get inside quickly. He turned to the door and nearly collapsed in pain as the rib that punctured his lung drew away in a gasp what little breath he had. The smashed collarbone left his left side useless, but he was determined. He had to get there.
By the time he reached his quarters, the ship was listing significantly. Now down on his hands and knees he struggled to the closet and pulled out a shirt that Des had often worn.
The bed.
It was only a few feet away but it took all the strength he had left in his body to reach it. He held Des' shirt with his mouth as his right hand pulled back the covers.
A wave hit the submerging ship and threw him onto the tilting bed with such force he thought his life was forfeited in that instant. For several moments blackness came over him and all sound faded. He recovered consciousness moments later and realized that he was now breathing with but one lung and only the most shallow of breaths could be taken with the other, for that one was also feeling the point of a broken rib.
Blood dripped from his mouth onto the shirt as his rolled onto his back and looked to the ceiling. He held the shirt against his face and closed his eyes.
?I?m here, Des. I?m with you. Don?t you worry.?
Sounds of cracking timber were heard over the sounds of the storm. The ship was breaking apart.
?You?ll be alight, Des. It?s just a little storm. Just lay with me here and close your eyes, and in the morning I?ll make you breakfast.?
Another loud crack pierced the darkness and the stern was now out of the water and rising higher.
?We?ll have such a beautiful life, Des.? He smiled, ?I hope our girls look like you.?
The stern was now sinking quickly, the weight of the ship pulling it down into the ocean. The bed was now nearly tilted vertically and the waves were beginning to lap over the windows.
?You?ve made me so happy, Des. Remember our wedding at the Duet? You looked so beautiful.?
The stern submerged and the water covered the windows. It would only be moments before they cracked with the pressure of the sea.
Jean remembered the words of his last letter to Des, the one he put in the leather sachel just before handing it to Charles.
My Darling Wife,
It has been said that if what God gives us wasn?t so very good, it wouldn?t hurt so much when the time comes for it to be taken away.
He has given me the best in you, Des. It hurts me to write this, but I?ll not see you again in this mortal life. I have been severely hurt when a yardarm fell upon me and even if the storm would subside this instant, I know my passing would still be quick.
You have made me so happy, Des, and I would not trade my life for that of any other man in all the universe.
I am sorry that I cannot keep my promise to return in two weeks. Please forgive me for that.
Promise me that you?ll not grieve long and will go on with your life and be happy. I had asked that Gavilean watch over you. I would not have you lonely, Des. If you grow to love him, I give my blessings on you both.
I have always said, ?Cesser d'aimer et d'?tre aimable c'est une mort insupportable; Cesser de vivre, ce n'est rien.?" (Trans: ?To cease to love and be lovable is a death unbearable; to cease to live is nothing.") I have known your love, Des, and therefore the death I face is nothing to me. Know that I shall die happy, with thoughts of you on my mind, and your name on my lips.
Time is short, I must end this now.
Forever?.and always?and two days,
Jean
The ice cold water came crashing through the windows of the ship as it sunk into the ocean. The rush of water quickly covered the bed and lifted Jean to a wall that had now become his ceiling. The sudden rush of cold water took his breath away.
He rose to where the remaining pocket of air was and he was amused that he would struggle so hard to take such a painful breath when he knew it only be his last.
There was a sudden peacefulness as the sounds became only those muffled, strange underwater sensations of bubbles and the strained timbers of the ship. Jean floated in the midst of his cabin, with the full realization that the little air in but one lung would do little to extend his time in this world.
He closed his eyes and saw Des before him, her cowboy hat upon her head and her hands upon her hips; that special smile upon her lips.
He opened his mouth to the water and said but one word.
?Des.?