On deck the chaos continued.
The first officer drew his pistol on the seething crowd: "Women! Children! Women and children first! Men—back! Get back!"
Sen Getsusa's trio stepped into this scene.
Crewmen herded women toward the boats; life after lifeboat was lowered, while the crowd swarmed like ants, shrieking and wailing.
"Go!"
Jack shoved Sen Getsusa and Ruth. "Get in a lifeboat! See you on land!"
Sen Getsusa listened for a second, then yanked Jack and Ruth. "To the other side! Ruth, you two—go!"
She filtered useful signals from the uproar.
The masses pressed this rail, but lifeboats hung on both sides; the far side offered Jack a real chance.
"Together—we stay together!"
Bang!
A gunshot rang out amid the turmoil; casualties were impossible to tell.
Sen Getsusa spotted Cal nearby, pressing money into a sailor's hand.
A handful of tuxedoed musicians stood by the rail, well clear of the boats.
"No one's listening anyway," one sighed.
They laughed. "At least we'll stay warm—let's have Orpheus!"
Brisk strings danced through the air; Sen Getsusa turned, fascinated by the determined players.
Only a scattering of passengers occupied the opposite deck; the contrast made this side look even worse.
Sen Getsusa ushered Jack and Ruth to the rail; then, without warning, she seized their collars.
"I've practiced this—it never fails." She smiled at the lifeboat already descending. "In theory, it can take two more."
She sighted the descending boat, gauged the gap past the falls, chose her moment: "Happy flight—brief but safe!"
With a sudden heave she hurled them over.
"Sen Getsusa!"
Jack yelled, catching Ruth's hand mid-air; together they traced a short arc—
—and landed squarely in the boat, bowling over several matrons.
Splash!
Seconds later the boat hit the sea.
Sen Getsusa leaned on the rail, wind whipping her hair across her eyes, waving at the pair shouting below.
"Live well, Mr. Hanhan and Lady Rose!"
She turned away amid stares of disbelief.
Behind her the boat carried Jack and Ruth from the hull; they watched her leave with anguished eyes.
"Well done, girl."
Sen Getsusa looked up.
A middle-aged gentleman with salt-and-pepper hair, silk hat, and a glass of dark liquor nodded.
"Guggenheim," he winked. "You should flee—you've life ahead of you."
Sen Getsusa smiled; a childish voice answered, "He's the famous pipeline tycoon."
"Hey! I looked for you!" she cried, ruffling Howard's hair—his cabin had been next to hers and she'd searched before leaving.
"Father and I went to the banquet—damn it. I told him 'unsinkable' is like a man saying 'I won't touch you'…"
Behind the Boy a man bowed slightly to Guggenheim, then tugged Howard toward the last boat.
"Hey! Sen Getsusa, come with us!"
The Boy pulled his father's sleeve.
The man paused, glancing between Howard and Sen Getsusa: "Miss… will you join?"
Sen Getsusa shook her head.
"See you on land."
At this final hour even stopping was a risk; the man gave her a grateful nod, then hurried Howard to the boat.
"You promised! See you on land! Otherwise, I'll mess up your traveling coat!"
The little Boy's voice faded into the distance; he still remembered the bet he'd made with Sen Getsusa.
Pulling her gaze back, Sen Getsusa sat down on the bench.
Beside her, the gentleman's valet kept pleading with his Master: "I've already spoken with the crew, sir—you do have a place!"
Guggenheim lifted his glass toward Sen Getsusa, never glancing at the servant at his side.
"I intend to die with dignity, like a gentleman," his deep voice rasped. "You've served me for many years, Kestrel. Go, take my seat."
"No! Sir, we can go together!"
"And the women?" Guggenheim swept a finger in a wide arc. "The children?"
At that moment, lifeboats were still for women and children first; though these tycoons could persuade the sailors to free up one or two spots,
none of them wished to snatch the last hope of survival from women and kids.
"I'll stay right here. If the women and children finish boarding and there's room, I'll go. If not, then I'll remain—like a gentleman—till the end."
Guggenheim's servant clenched his teeth, raked a hand over his head, tugged his coat, and sat down with a defeated scowl—
sat at his Master's side.
"Fine—you're about to die, and so am I. So now I'll sit beside you like a Master. No pouring tea, no dressing you, no holding the decanter waiting for your word. From now on, I decide!"
"Don't even think of ordering me around again!"
The servant vented a torrent of words, yet sounded only more endearing.
Guggenheim didn't know whether to laugh or cry; he handed his glass to the servant.
"Drink—like a Master. This once, I serve you."
Sen Getsusa rested her hands on her knees, watching the full spectrum of humanity.
An elderly couple was turned away by the crew—the wife could have boarded, but the husband could not.
So the silver-haired old woman pushed aside the officer's baton in fury, lifted her skirts, and stepped back into the sinking liner as nimbly as a girl.
"My husband is on this ship that's about to sink—where else would I go? Of course I'll stay with him!"
Like a narrator, Guggenheim rattled off their identities for Sen Getsusa.
"That's the Strauses—founders of Macy's. You've heard of them, no doubt. Much richer than me."
"Actually, among the wealthiest people in the World."
The Strauses held each other, whispered words of comfort, then hand in hand started back toward their stateroom.
"If our lives end here, I want it to be beside my wife," the tycoon said, round spectacles glinting before he and the old woman vanished through the doorway.
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