The Lost Sister by Kathleen McGurl (i can read book club .TXT) 📕

‘Absolutely!’ Harriet grinned, and they went in search of the nearest bar.

‘Champagne is called for, I’d say,’ said Sheila, ordering them a glass each. ‘To our first cruise!’

‘First of many!’ Harriet said, clinking her glass against Sheila’s.

They stayed on deck sipping their drinks, at the stern so they could cross from the port to the starboard side to see the views in both directions, pointing out landmarks to each other as the ship made its way along Southampton Water. ‘There’s the mouth of the Itchen river,’ Harriet said. ‘Northam, where my grandmother lived, is just up there. She’d have been within walking distance of the liner terminal.’

‘Perfect job! Look, that’s Hythe, with its marina and pier,’ Sheila said, pointing the other way. ‘I have a cousin who lives there. Cute place.’

‘We’ll pass Netley in a moment on the left,’ Harriet said. ‘Might be able to get a glimpse of the Abbey ruins. I’ve never been there, have you?’

‘Yes, and I also visited the Royal Victoria country park where the huge Netley military hospital used to be. Always felt it was a shame they tore that building down. These days I would think it would be converted into apartments or something.’

They watched as Netley passed by on the port side, followed by the mouth of the river Hamble, with the huge oil refinery at Fawley on the other side, looking like a dystopian city skyline. And then the ship emerged from Southampton Water into the Solent, passing Portsmouth harbour and rounding the eastern tip of the Isle of Wight and eventually out into the wider English Channel where they soon lost sight of land.

‘Well, next stop Rotterdam,’ Sheila remarked, and as the wind was picking up they decided to go and explore the interior of the ship.

There was no doubt about it – the ship was vast. They’d wanted to explore all of it that first day, but Harriet’s feet were soon hurting, necessitating a visit to their cabin to change shoes. Once there she collapsed onto the bed. ‘Whew! It’s enormous. I mean, I knew it was, but it’s even bigger than I’d thought it would be.’

Sheila was tapping something into her phone. ‘It’s about three times the size of the Titanic. And they thought that was a big ship!’

‘Biggest for its time,’ Harriet said. ‘I suppose it’s all relative. Well, look, I’ve put my trainers on. I don’t care if they don’t go with my outfit. Let’s continue with our exploration!’

‘You’re on. And maybe we’ll stop somewhere for a cup of tea.’

Restaurants, gyms, swimming pools, theatres, cafés, lounges and of course plenty of boutiques – there were endless facilities on board. The afternoon passed quickly and they still hadn’t seen it all. ‘But it’s time we changed for dinner,’ Sheila said. ‘And then there’s the cabaret. I want the full cruise ship experience!’

‘Shall we call a stewardess to help us dress for dinner? I need help fastening my pearls, you know!’ Harriet giggled. ‘I can’t help thinking of Granny and how hard she had to work. Of course, the Olympic was mostly used to shuttle back and forth between Southampton and New York, so many passengers were on board as a way to cross the Atlantic rather than as a holiday in its own right. What a way to travel, eh?’

‘Certainly beats flying,’ Sheila agreed, as they re-entered their cabin and began deciding on an evening outfit.

It was an amazing evening, Harriet thought, as she settled down much later that night to read a few pages of her book before sleep. They’d had a sumptuous meal where white-jacketed waiters provided unobtrusive but perfectly timed service. They’d taken the rest of their wine into a lounge where they’d leaned back against plush upholstery, listening to a jazz trio. And then they’d gone to the second performance in the main theatre, where they’d been entertained by singers and dancers. It was the kind of night out you’d pay a fortune for in London, she thought, and here it was all part of the package.

‘Enjoying it so far?’ Sheila asked sleepily.

‘Oh God, yes!’ was the only reply Harriet could make, before settling down to sleep. They’d be docked at Rotterdam when they woke, and there was a day trip to Amsterdam booked.

Harriet and Sheila were up early the next morning, not wanting to miss a minute of their experience.

‘We’ll be docking in a short while,’ Sheila said. ‘Shall we grab a coffee and a pastry and go up on deck to watch? There’ll be time for a proper breakfast afterwards, before the excursion to Amsterdam begins.’

‘Great idea,’ Harriet said, and donning a warm fleece she followed Sheila through the ship and out to an open deck.

They watched through early morning mist as the ship entered the harbour. ‘Hard to see much with all this mist,’ Harriet commented. ‘I just hope the captain can see more than we can.’

‘I’m not entirely sure he can,’ Sheila said. ‘Is it just me or are we a bit close to that other ship?’

Harriet gasped as she looked where Sheila was pointing. Looming out of the mist was a container ship, tied up at the dock. The QM2 was veering dangerously close to it. There was the sound of the ship’s engines and churning water below, as though the captain was doing all he could to make the liner turn away from the other ship. It seemed so close – Harriet felt as though she could almost touch the containers if she reached out.

‘Are we going to hit that other ship?’ she said, turning to Sheila who was watching intently.

‘I don’t know. It’s bloody close. Actually I think we should move away from the railings, just in case. Maybe go back inside.’

‘I agree, come on, it’ll be safer if anything happens.’

They went back inside but continued watching, along with many other passengers, through windows on that side of the ship. People were muttering excitedly about how close they were, and would the ships touch, and