Tonight on the Titanic

by Mary Pope Osborne

  “This ship is like a town,” said Jack.

  Near the end of the deck, they peeked through another round window. Inside a little room, a man was wearing earphones.

  Jack heard a clicking noise as the man tapped a lever on a black box.

  “What’s he doing?” whispered Annie.

  Jack shrugged.

  Another man stood nearby. He had a white beard and wore a fancy uniform.

  “Send the international call for help,” he ordered the man with headphones. “Tell all ships close by to come at once. We’re sinking.”

  “Yes, Captain,” said the man.

  “Great, they’re calling for help!” Annie whispered.

  Jack shook his head. “I don’t think help will come,” he said.

  He shined the flashlight on the book and found a picture of the radio operator.

  He read quietly to Annie:

  After the Titanic hit the iceberg at 11:40 P.M., the ship’s radio operator sent out an SOS. An SOS is the international distress signal in Morse code. Unfortunately, the only ship near the Titanic had turned off its radio for the night. All the other ships who received the message were too far away to help. When the Titanic sank around 2:20 A.M., she was all alone.

  “That’s terrible,” said Annie.

  “I wonder what time it is now,” said Jack.

  “I don’t know,” said Annie.

  Jack pulled out his notebook and wrote:

  “He’s leaving,” whispered Annie.

  “Hide!” whispered Jack.

  He and Annie moved quickly into the shadows.

  The captain stepped out onto the deck.

  “Tell the men to start loading the lifeboats now,” the captain ordered a deck hand.

  “Yes, Captain!” the man answered.

  The captain and the deck hand left. Annie turned to Jack.

  “At least that’s good,” she whispered. “Everyone can get into the lifeboats.”

  “I don’t think it’s good enough,” said Jack. He read from the book again:

  On the Titanic, there were 20 lifeboats. To save all the passengers, the ship needed twice as many. But with all the confusion on board, a number of the lifeboats were not even full when they left the ship. Many third-class passengers did not have a chance to get into any of the lifeboats because they were on the lower decks and didn’t know where to go.

  Jack wrote in his notebook:

  “Hey, I know what we can do to help,” said Annie.

  “What?” asked Jack.

  “We can help someone find the lifeboats,” she said.

  “You’re right!” said Jack. “With our book, we can find our way to a lower deck.”

  He turned the page to a map of the ship. He and Annie studied it.

  “We’ll start at the grand stairway,” said Jack. He traced a path with his finger. “Then we’ll go down to the third-class cabins this way.”

  “Good plan!” said Annie.

  Jack looked back through the door. The radio operator was still tapping out his message—over and over and over.

  “SOS,” whispered Jack.

  He took a deep breath.

  “Okay,” he said. “Let’s go.”

  Jack and Annie slipped through a door off the boat deck. Teddy was at their heels.

  “Wow,” breathed Annie.

  “Arf! Arf!” Teddy barked.

  They were at the top of the empty grand stairway. It was beautiful. It was made of dark, glossy wood. A huge dome with lights hung above it.

  At the top of the stairs was a fancy clock.

  The hands of the clock were at 12:20.

  “Oh, man, it’s twenty minutes after midnight!” said Jack. “The ship’s going down in two hours!”

  They hurried down the carpeted steps and into the first-class hallway. Teddy followed along.

  Jack looked at the map in the book.

  “These are the staterooms,” he said. “This hall will take us to the third-class open deck.”

  “Hey, look,” said Annie. “The floor’s slanting down.”

  Jack caught his breath. She was right.

  “That means the front of the ship is already sinking,” he said.

  Just then, a man in a white uniform came down the hall.

  He knocked on the doors.

  “Put on your life belts at once and come up to the boat deck!” he called.

  Men and women stumbled out of their rooms. They wore elegant robes made of shiny cloth and velvet.

  “What’s going on?” a woman asked.

  “There’s been a little accident,” the man in the uniform said cheerfully.

  “Oh, how silly,” said the woman.

  “It’s not silly!” said Annie. “Do what he says!”

  “Arf! Arf!” Teddy barked, as if he agreed with Annie.

  “Shhh, Teddy!” said Jack.

  He picked up the little dog. Then he and Annie hurried down the hall. They crossed the third-class open deck, where more people were standing.

  These people were not dressed in fancy clothes. They mostly wore plain, dark coats. They didn’t seem worried either. They were all joking and laughing.

  Jack and Annie slipped through the crowd. They went into a big smoky room.

  Four men were playing cards.

  A woman played the piano. A young couple danced to the music.

  “Put on your life belts and go up to the boat deck!” Annie shouted.

  The people looked at Annie in surprise. The card players smiled at her.

  She opened her mouth to yell again, but Jack pulled her out the door.

  “Come on,” he said. “We have to get down to the third-class cabins before it’s too late.”

  They hurried down another hall. Then they climbed down another stairway. Jack carried Teddy the whole way.

  At the bottom of the stairs, they rounded a corner, and they both gasped.

  The floor was really slanting down here, and water sloshed at the end of a hallway.

  “The Titanic is sinking,” said Jack.

  “But no one understands!” said Annie.

  “I know,” said Jack. It made him feel terribly sad.

  Teddy whined. Jack buried his face in the little dog’s fur.

  “Come on!” said Annie.

  She began banging on the cabin doors.

  The doors swung open. The cabins were all empty.

  “The people from this hallway must be the ones up near the lounge,” said Jack. “Maybe we should go down to a lower deck.”

  He started to walk back to the stairs. But Teddy began barking furiously.

  “What’s wrong with him?” said Jack.

  “I don’t know,” said Annie.

  Suddenly, the dog leaped out of Jack’s arms. He charged down the hall.

  He was running straight toward the water!

  “Watch out!” cried Jack.

  He and Annie ran after Teddy.

  The dog began barking at a closed door.

  The door opened.

  A very small boy peeked out.

  The boy wore a nightshirt. He had red hair and freckles. He looked about four years old.

  He rubbed his eyes sleepily. Then he saw Teddy.

  “Puppy!” he said with a huge smile.

  He threw his arms around the little dog’s neck. Teddy licked his face.

  “Come back to bed, William,” a voice called from inside the room.

  “Come out!” Annie shouted. “It’s an emergency!”

  A moment later, the door opened wider. A girl in a long white nightgown peeked out.

  She had red hair and freckles, too. She was tall and thin. She looked to be about twelve or thirteen years old.

  “Hello,” she said. She put her arm around the little boy. “I’m Lucy O’Malley. This is my brother, William.”

  “I’m Annie,” said Annie. “And this is my brother, Jack.”

  “Get your parents and tell them to come with us,” said Jack.

  Lu
cy looked confused.

  “Our parents aren’t here. They’re in New York,” she said. “We’re on our way to them.”

  “Listen, the Titanic has hit an iceberg,” said Annie. “We’ll take you to a lifeboat.”

  “What do you mean?” said Lucy.

  “The ship’s sinking,” said Annie. “Look.”

  She pointed to the water at the end of the hall.

  “Oh, no!” cried Lucy.

  “Don’t be afraid,” said Jack. “Just get your coats and your life belts. We don’t have much time.”

  Lucy nodded. Then she went back inside the room and came out with their things.

  Lucy pulled on her coat and her life belt. Annie helped William put his on.

  “Let’s go,” said Jack.

  “Wait—can Teddy fit in your knapsack?” said Annie.

  “Try,” said Jack.

  Annie slipped the little dog into the leather knapsack on Jack’s back. Only Teddy’s front paws and head stuck out.

  “Stay there, honey,” said Annie. She kissed Teddy on the nose.

  Jack didn’t feel any extra weight in his knapsack. The little dog felt as light as air.

  “Wait—I forgot something,” said Lucy.

  “We don’t have time—” started Jack.

  But Lucy rushed back into the room.

  “Hurry!” shouted Annie.

  When Lucy came out, Jack saw her slip something into her coat pocket. Then she grabbed William’s hand.

  “Ready?” said Jack.

  Suddenly, he felt freezing water brush against his shoes.

  He looked down. The green sea water was slowly moving down the hall.

  “Arf! Arf!” barked Teddy from Jack’s pack.

  “Run!” cried Annie.

  Annie led everyone down the hall to the stairs, away from the cold sea water.

  As she and Lucy helped William up the stairs, Jack and Teddy followed.

  Halfway up the staircase, Teddy let out a yelp.

  Jack looked back.

  The water was creeping up the stairs, step by step.

  “Come on, Jack!” Annie shouted.

  Jack ran up the rest of the stairs.

  He and Annie led William and Lucy through the smoky room. The men were still playing cards.

  “To the lifeboats!” Annie yelled at the card players. “Right now! Hurry!”

  The men smiled at her again.

  “Little girl,” one said with a laugh, “even if this ship does sink, it will take all night. There’s plenty of time for everyone on board to be rescued.”

  “Indeed. Many ships are on their way right now,” another man said in a soothing voice. “There’s nothing to worry about.”

  “Not true!” said Annie.

  Lucy turned to Jack.

  “This doesn’t sound so bad, after all,” she said.

  “It is bad. Please trust me,” said Jack. “We have to keep going.”

  They went outside. The crowd on the third-class deck had grown.

  Many wore life belts. But no one here seemed very worried yet.

  Jack and Annie pulled Lucy and William along. They hurried through the crowd and down the first-class hall. They came to the end and trooped up the grand staircase.

  On the top deck, the Titanic was as bright as a Christmas tree.

  A band played lively music.

  With a hiss and rush of light, a rocket streaked into the sky. It made a loud boom! Then it burst into many colored balls.

  Shivering in the cold, William laughed and clapped.

  “Fireworks!” he said.

  Lucy smiled at Jack and Annie.

  “This is a trick, isn’t it?” she said. “You’ve brought us to a party.”

  “No, it isn’t,” said Jack. “Don’t you remember the water downstairs?”

  Lucy’s smile faded.

  “Women and children first!” someone shouted.

  “That’s you!” said Annie. “Come on!”

  She pulled Lucy and William toward a lifeboat.

  The lifeboat was waiting to go down. It looked tiny as it swung on cables at the side of the big ship. The water below looked black.

  “Get in! Get in!” a uniformed man shouted.

  “No, no,” said William. He hid his face against Lucy’s coat.

  Lucy was shaking her head.

  “I’d rather stay here,” she said to Jack and Annie.

  Jack understood. The brightly lit Titanic seemed so solid and safe compared to the little lifeboat.

  “You can’t stay here,” said Annie. “The Titanic is going to sink soon.”

  “Very soon,” said Jack.

  Lucy kept shaking her head. Jack saw tears in her eyes.

  “Lucy, we’re telling the truth,” said Jack. “You and William are in great danger.”

  “You have to be brave now,” said Annie. “For your brother’s sake.”

  Lucy straightened up and tried to smile.

  “All right,” she said. “I will.”

  “This way!” a man called. “Women and children! This way, you four!”

  He pointed at them.

  “Get in,” said Jack. He gently pushed Lucy and William forward.

  “Good-bye, Lucy,” said Annie. “Good-bye, William.”

  Lucy looked surprised.

  “You’re not coming?” she asked.

  “No, we’re going home another way,” said Annie.

  “Oh, dear,” said Lucy. “I hope you’ll be safe.”

  “We will. Don’t worry!” said Jack.

  “Wait,” said Lucy.

  She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a silver watch on a chain.

  “This is a gift for both of you,” she said. “It’s our father’s watch. We carried it on the voyage for good luck. I have a feeling that the two of you were our good luck tonight.”

  Jack looked at the watch as Lucy put it around Annie’s neck.

  The time on the watch was 1:50.

  There were only thirty minutes left!

  “Hurry, hurry!” he said.

  Jack and Annie watched as a big man picked Lucy up and swung her into the little boat. Then he picked William up and put him in Lucy’s lap.

  “Bye!” cried Annie. She stepped forward to blow a kiss.

  Just then, the man picked Annie up.

  “No!” shouted Annie.

  “Into the lifeboat, my dear!” the man said. And he tossed Annie into the lifeboat.

  “No! No!” cried Jack.

  Then the man reached for him, too. Jack jumped away just in time.

  “Annie!” he yelled. “Get out!”

  Annie tried to climb out of the lifeboat.

  “Let me out!” she cried.

  “Arf! Arf!” Teddy barked from over Jack’s shoulder.

  The lifeboat jerked. It started creaking down toward the dark, cold sea.

  “Come back!” Jack called.

  But there was nothing he could do as Annie disappeared from sight.

  “Annie!” cried Jack.

  “Let me out!” he heard Annie shout.

  But the lifeboat kept going down.

  “Wait for me!” came a loud voice. “Wait for me!”

  A woman in a fur coat appeared at the railing. She nearly threw herself over the side of the ship.

  “Stop!” the uniformed man called. “Bring the boat back up for Lady Blackwell!”

  Slowly, the lifeboat was brought back up.

  Jack pushed his way forward. The lifeboat came even with the ship. Jack reached out to Annie.

  She grabbed his hands. He pulled her back onto the sinking ship.

  “Room for one more!” Annie shouted to Lady Blackwell.

  Then she and Jack took off before anyone could catch them.

  They ran up the slanting deck. Annie stopped and peered over the railing.

  Jack looked, too.

  They saw Lucy and William’s little lifeboat creaking down toward the Atlantic Ocean. It reached the glassy black
water. Then it floated off into the darkness.

  Annie waved.

  “Bye, William! Bye, Lucy!” she shouted. “Thank you for your gift!”

  She held up the watch that hung from her neck. Then she and Jack looked at it.

  The time was 2:05.

  “Only fifteen minutes left!” said Annie.

  “We have to get back to the tree house now!” said Jack. “Let’s climb the stairs to the smokestacks!”

  Suddenly, the front of the ship dipped down into the sea. Deck chairs started to slide past Jack and Annie.

  The band played a slow, calm song. It sounded like a church hymn.

  But the crowd started to panic. People pushed and shouted, trying to get to a safer part of the ship.

  “It’s every man for himself!” the captain shouted to all of his crew.

  The men all stopped what they were doing and ran up the deck.

  Jack and Annie ran, too.

  They dodged sliding tables and chairs.

  They reached the stairs that led to the smokestacks.

  They grabbed the railing and pulled themselves up the steps.

  The ship tilted further.

  “Get to those smokestacks!” cried Jack.

  They slipped and crawled down the deck.

  But when they got to the smokestacks, Jack and Annie looked around wildly.

  The magic tree house was gone!

  “Where is it?” shouted Annie.

  The front of the Titanic sank deeper into the sea. Jack and Annie fell forward.

  They grabbed the railing and held on for their lives.

  “Maybe the tree house fell into the ocean!” shouted Jack.

  A great roar started coming from the ship.

  Jack imagined everything crashing forward—all the furniture, dishes, bicycles, the grand clock on the staircase.

  He looked down. A giant wave of water rolled over a lower deck.

  Jack imagined water flooding the third-class corridor, the card room, and the grand staircase.

  He closed his eyes, waiting to be washed away.

  “Arf! Arf!”

  The barking came from a distance.

  “Teddy!” cried Annie.

  Jack had forgotten all about the little dog.

  Holding on to the railing, he used one hand to pull off his knapsack.

  Teddy wasn’t there!