“What do you mean?” he asked, pulling at his collar and fanning himself with the first piece of paper he grabbed.
“If someone’s name was on the ship’s manifest, is it possible that they were not on the ship?”
“Unusual but not impossible, especially with this type of voyage that doesn’t have the actual crew. Look, wouldn’t you rather speak with Mr. Kelly about all this when he returns?”
Charlotte narrowed her eyes. “Yes, I would like to speak with him. However, I saw your name mentioned in more than one paper as the representative for this yard, and I felt you had an outstanding command of all the circumstances.”
After all, to her way of thinking, the owner of the shipyard would be interested only in protecting its reputation and glossing over anything out of the ordinary, and Mr. Gilbert would have his own reputation to defend, especially if he had any fault in the matter of the ship’s design. Neither would offer up any nuggets of information that hadn’t already been in the paper.
“By the way, sometimes an overseer goes on a voyage, as I understand it,” Charlotte pointed out, fixing him with a questioning look. “Why didn’t you go on the test sail?”
After a pause, Mr. Walsh hung his head. “I should have. Always felt badly that I hadn’t. Not that I think I could have done something those on board couldn’t. You say there were many apprentices. That may be true, but there were experienced men as well.” He sighed. “By the time the ship was ready, I was to be married the following Wednesday, which cleared me from having to go since the ship was supposed to be out nearly four weeks.”
Charlotte pursed her lips. He seemed genuinely remorseful.
“You shouldn’t feel guilty, sir. I’m sure your wife was relieved at your being spared.”
“Aye.”
“You are familiar with the manifest.”
“Yes, went over every name after the sinking. Needed to say a goodbye.”
“To your knowledge, then, were all the men who were named actually on the ship?”
Walsh wrinkled his forehead again. “I have tried not to think overmuch about who was on or not since then, though there were two on the manifest who weren’t on the ship. Their families were notified immediately or even knew ahead of time that they weren’t on board.”
“Can you tell me why they didn’t set sail?”
“Not for any nefarious reason, ma’am, I’m sure. One, a rigger, came down with a fever that morning, and, well, I guess he was young as you say, 15 years perhaps. His mum was the one who came to the yard and said he couldn’t go. The other man, a ship designer, was removed on the order of Mr. Kelly, I believe.”
“That would be Mr. Berne,” Charlotte said.
“Aye, how did you know?” His eyebrows rose once again.
She smiled and shrugged as if it were inconsequential. “So that change must have happened at the last minute; otherwise his name would have been removed from the manifest, correct?”
“Yes, probably the night before, after the yard secretary had retired. He would have been too busy in the morning to redo the manifest.”
“Do you know why Mr. Berne was removed?” Charlotte paused with her fountain pen over her paper.
“Not a clue, ma’am. Could have been due to a bender the night before. Could have been a hundred reasons. Lucky man, though.”
“Yes, I suppose he is.” She decided to press her own luck. “Mr. Berne still works here, doesn’t he? I would like to have a quick word with him if I may, and with Mr. Gilbert.”
“As to Master Builder Gilbert, he has moved on, and I couldn’t say where he is. However, I can get Mr. Berne to speak with you.”
The overseer lifted his telephone, speaking to someone in another building on the yard. He asked succinctly if Mr. Berne were available, mentioning how there was a journalist there to see him about theGarrard. He waited a few moments. “I see.”
His expression tightened before he gave her what she could only think of as a blank stare.
“Oddly, he left early today, not long ago, in fact.”
“How peculiar, and precisely when I want to speak with him, too.” She stood up. “I appreciate your time.” She nearly left a message for Berne along with her calling card. However, the idea of this stranger — who had escaped death to collect a large sum on an insurance claim and had gone missing from his job — the idea of him showing up at the home she shared with her husband and children stopped her cold. A little caution was in order.
“I will come again to speak with Mr. Berne,” Charlotte promised. “And Mr. Kelly as well.”
***
