Chapter 11: Peace

     As they finally settled down among other passengers, the sign relief crossed their faces. All passengers were directed to their various cabins. The ship was named Virgo, it contains  ten crew members excluding the passenger and cargo. A captain, three sailors,  Stewards, cook, carpenter,sail maker and labourer. 

Jaylyn and Mrs Camila were directed to our cabin, which they shared with two other passengers. One an old woman with her husband and a mother with her daughter who was quite young and nursing her six months old baby. Jaylyn carefully helped Miss Camila settle down on the bunk bed while Grace arranged their small luggage near the small corner. The ship was not grand but big enough to accommodate all the passengers and crew members.The room was quite comfortable. 

Three bunk beds at different sections of the cabin. Mrs Camila and Grace lied down to sleep for a while, Jaylyn watched as the girl nurtured her baby with breast milk, she looked frustrated as her baby kept wailing making it difficult to feed him. It reminded her of Lilian who her aunt had sent to her early grave. 

She had not told anyone what had transpired in the dungeon, she glanced at Miss Camila sleeping peacefully and decided to tell her when she woke up. 

  "Who would have thought I make it out alive, " 

She murmured to herself. 

     Tossing around on the floor where she laid down. Everyone was now asleep, even the baby who had cried for a while before sleeping. Jaylyn's heart seized as she watched them all sleep, she worried about the evil plan her uncle and his wife had prepared for them if they were caught . The words Lilian whispered in her ear before she died, replayed with painful memories of how she struggled with death. 

" I le.ft my oth..er bab.. y in Sto. nefi.. eld with the nanny named Maria, they c.. all her the mir.. acle hand. "

   Still unable to sleep, she left the room quietly to avoid waking the others, especially the baby and walked up to the ship top still wearing her mourning gown and black veiled bonnet. 

      She found the crew members all eating, and suddenly hunger filled her stomach as it rumbled. She sat on a soft bench placed near the ship Mast. The ocean was steady and weather calm everything seemed to be in accordance, someone tapped her shoulder, she turned to find herself staring at her handsome savior who saved her from almost being abused by those local bandits. 

"Miss, here" he offered her a piece of bread. She accepted it

" Thanks", she wondered if he would remember her since she was veiled. 

" Sorry for your loss, " he said with clear sympathy as he watched her. She smiled as she slipped off her veil. 

immediately a recognition register on his face, Jaylyn cheek flowed with a soft blush. 

" It's you, the girl from the stream", he pointed out. 

    Jaylyn was thrilled that he remembered her after their short encounter. 

" Thanks for rescuing me, I didn't have time to thank you that day". 

She said as she slipped back her veil. 

"You welcome ". He replied. 

     They sat silently for a while before he tried to speak again, his captain called him to help carry some goods and barrow into the down cabin. Jaylyn watched from a distance, she noticed he was a labourer. 

Grace came to fetch her as they moved back inside. 

" Who were you talking to, "

Grace asked curiously as she turned back with interest. Jaylyn told her about the man that rescued her from almost being raped at the stream back in the cabin. Grace  cautioned her to be careful and not to trust easily.  

     The ship chef had already prepared meals for everyone as the steward sent some down to each cabin. While they ate Jaylyn told Miss Camila about what happened in the prison, the girl and her babies, the fact that her aunt had hidden the entire affair just to cover up for her son's misconduct. Now no one in the Manor knows anything about the child. 

" A child, "

Miss Camila asked, looking unsure. 

"I never heard of any child entering or leaving the Manor" 

This clarifies that everything was done in secret. 

" That's strange "

Grace said after some moment of thinking as if she was trying to recall lost memory. 

" The day I was hired, I saw a man leaving with a basket. I thought it was odd because it looked as if he had wrapped a baby inside. "

Could it be the child was killed too, Jaylyn said in her mind though she had doubts. 

" let it be, we will talk about this later, just eat" 

Miss Camila said as she added more Ham and bread to their plates. 

   Grace looked as if she wanted to say more but wasn't convinced it was related. Jaylyn told her of her plan to search for the other baby but Miss Camila ruled against it, and advised her to get to Bridgebrock first. 

     At this point, it was clear that any other plan apart from going to Bridgebrock didn't go well with Miss Camila. Jaylyn decided to suppress her desire so it would not look as if she was ungrateful for the great support and help she had given her.

Jaylyn felt it was not a supportive idea besides Lord Bryan arrival landed her in this whole mess going to his home would surely worsen her case. Her dream was just to live in a small carriage, where she could bake her bread and live happily with any man courageous enough to overlook her poor background and marry her regardless of the stain attached to her name with their children.