Having planned this scenario out hundreds if not thousands of times in her head, Elizabeth still felt inclined to plan it all out again adding in the name of the surrogate, along with the proper dates of her first missed menstrual cycle and when she was expecting because her mother would drill her for every little detail so she must have it down pat. Eleanor was a singular blessing taking the role of her mother to give her time to polish her lines, reminding her of a time when she wanted to be an actor after going to see a play as a child, which made this all the more daring and exciting. They would have plenty of time aboard ship to practice this pretend pregnancy while Sophie was getting bigger with her soon-to-be baby in her respite many miles from the plantation, taken in by a nice family of low and humble status who were not only happy to help, but provided this service for a fee and were known to be reliable to keep everything confidential, and with the web of mediaries they would find it nearly impossible to link anything to her or Jackson. Everything was packed and ready to go tomorrow morning when they would board the ship and head back to England, and she felt as giddy as that young schoolgirl who had watched a play all those years ago.

Eleanor was brushing her hair out with her gilded ivory dresser set, a gift from Jackson when they were married and she had used it every day since - not for sentimental reasons, but because the boar's hair bristles were easy on her scalp and gave her hair a beautiful sheen that others couldn’t touch. She wasn’t a vain person, but she knew that her raven black hair and pale skin gave her an exotic look and her height of five feet and seven inches, together with a decidedly feminine figure made her stand out and she turned heads, and when she and Jackson were together people stopped to watch them and Elizabeth couldn’t help feeling like a princess going to the ball with her Prince Charming. Once she had even felt that way about her husband, that is until she had gotten to know him better after their marriage and realized he was a womanizer and treated all of them the same way, even though it was exciting at first to be called “Darling” or “Sweetheart” until she found out he did that to avoid confusion when talking to all the different women he was with, even to this day. That was when she confronted him and insisted that he call her by her given name and save the sweet nothings for his affairs, and when she stopped having intimate relations with him, until that night several weeks ago.

Now that her hair was done, she rose and gave her robe to Eleanor, who hung it up for her on one of many upholstered hooks that lined the wall by the bathroom, another little feature that she had designed and had installed. As she lay down and Eleanor pulled her covers up, she thanked her for the day's service and loyalty as always, and as usual was rewarded with a lovely smile and the words “You are most welcome, My Lady, have a good night” to which she smiled in return. Her mother had taught her to always do this and she wouldn’t have to worry about loose tongues wagging at the wrong time to the wrong person, and given that her household was as tight as a new corset she took it to heart and made it a point of personally speaking to every one of her household servants each day to let them know she appreciated their service. She drifted off into a fitful sleep that included dreams portraying varying aspects of her plans, twisting reality into weird versions of the coming months, some of them sweet and others fearfully and fatally wrong making her turn about in her covers and wake up in a sweaty mess in the wee hours of the morning, so she finally just got up. Elizabeth poured what little water was left in the gold-trimmed translucent white porcelain pitcher into the matching bowl that sat on an ornately carved black wood and marble stand washed off the best she could, looking into the mirror on the wall and seeing a woman who hadn’t slept, she went to her dressing table, lit a lamp and started applying makeup until she resembled herself somewhat, although there was only so much she could do. Which started her thinking about how to make better quality products that didn’t cause her to break out into wicked sores at times and leave her face feeling like a mask, and she wondered about putting natural pigments into the lanolin they made from the sheep fat here on the plantation and she noted mentally to herself and in her journal to inquire into that when she returned.

Eleanor came in and opened the heavy white and gold brocade curtains that went from floor to ceiling over the windows and now let sunshine flood the room in light, which was why Elizabeth had chosen this side of the great house for the bedrooms, day rooms, and the front entrance. She finished dressing in her traveling clothes with her assistant's help and situated everything she was taking with her in a manner so nothing could be forgotten, leaving Eleanor to supervise loading her trunks and suitcases onto the top of the carriage and arranging her personal totes inside in the storage area under the seats. She went to the kitchen and gave Maggie a hug, and whispered “thank you for everything”, then out loud told her to keep the household running in her absence and getting reassurance that nothing would keep her competent kitchen manager from performing that duty, so long as she drew breath. Maggie then passed her an aromatic package with delectable finger foods to eat on the way to board the ship, telling her to be sure and take a peek when she was inside her carriage and on the way because there was something special on top just for her. Then she was on her way, going out through the front entrance as Joseph opened and held the big doors, where she went down the steps to the elegant waiting carriage, her private driver in black livery holding the door where Eleanor was waiting, and four matched black stallions anxious to get going. Jackson waved good-bye from his window, and she waved back with a smile she put on by thinking about the new baby coming and got inside and settled in, holding her bundle tight until they were safely on the road to town.

Eleanor greeted her and offered to take the parcel for her, but instead Elizabeth opened it and unwrapped the embroidered linen napkin and found a bunch of herbs tied with some twine around a preserved bunny’s foot, a talisman for good luck, and she tucked it into her right skirt pocket where it lay in the folds unbeknownst to anyone else. She then opened another fold and took out a freshly baked biscuit with small slices of ham and cheese layered on it, and started to eat it since the smell of it had heightened her appetite and she found herself eating nearly all the food Maggie had prepared. It was a good thing she didn’t get seasick like other poor souls she had witnessed on the passage over here, and soon enough she passed what was left over to Eleanor for safe keeping until they were aboard and situated in their cabins, when she would come and put Elizabeth’s things away for the trip.

Not wanting to be in the company of other high society people she had booked passage on a merchants vessel, one that was reputable and she and her husband dealt with regularly, and had rented the captain’s and first mate’s rooms at a large sum, which also ensured they were left alone except for the evening meal, which they would share with the Captain at a small table away from the crew. It wasn’t long before they were ushered up the gangplank and into the belly of the ship to their cabins below deck, and not long after that they were on their way, out of the smoother waters of the bay and into the choppier seas that would encompass the majority of their journey, and for the first time she could remember Elizabeth felt sick and vomited up the delicious food she had eaten not that long ago into a trash bin. Eleanor helped her clean up, took the bucket and dumped it out, coming back to be greeted by the sounds and smells of retching as she began another round of sicking up everything in her belly and then some. Rolling her eyes, she felt this was going to be a long voyage at this rate as she held her gut in pain, laying down on the covers with her head towards the bin, just in case there was something left inside wanting out.

Elizabeth woke a few hours later, feeling much better and more like herself so she and Eleanor went up to take in some fresh sea air and enjoy the view, such as it was, being water all around as far as the eye could see. They stayed at the rail for some time watching the waves and were rewarded with a lovely sunset that seemed to last for days, then was gone in an instant, leaving them in relative darkness for a moment until one of the crew came and led them down to the galley where the Captain was waiting for them. The Captain stood and waited for the younger man to seat them, then resumed his seat and asked after their health and well being and seemed genuinely sorry to hear about Elizabeth’s bout of sickness this morning, and wished her well for the remainder of the trip, for which she gladly thanked him and asked about their whereabouts and what weather they could expect during the night. He told her they were just over fifty miles out from the harbor whence they left this morning, and he forecast calm seas for sleeping tonight with a small bit of wind towards the morning hours. She found the Captain to be quite charming and a good host, and was pleasantly surprised at the manner of food they were served, with an entree of braised beef brisket with a raspberry sauce, served with several side dishes ranging from fruits and vegetables to a delicious pasta with cheese sauce that she implored the Captain get a recipe for. He laughed with some gusto, but promised he would try his best to wrangle it from the cook, Harley. He said his goodbyes, admitting he should be at his duty and thanked them for a delightful evening and wishing them a pleasant night before he disappeared from the room, which all of a sudden seemed much louder than before and they followed suit and let their ‘waiter’ know they were ready to return to their rooms for the night, where Elizbeth practically fell into bed after getting her hair brushed.