I rattle my door latch, but it is locked. There is no light through the keyhole. I peer into it and see the key was left in the other side of the door. I fetch the wrought-iron fire poker, slip the map of memories beneath the doorframe, and gently push the poker’s pointed tip through the keyhole. Slowly, slowly, till the key drops on the map. I hope it didn’t make a loud clank. I pull the map toward me and seize the key. The door unlocks easily.
I dress, tuck the map back into my bodice, and creep down the staircase. When I reach the ground floor, unfamiliar vibrations startle me.
I whip around. A large clock strikes five o’clock. Will the chimes wake the household?
The door to Dr. Minot’s office is ajar. I run to the window but see no one.
The piles of papers on the doctor’s desk have been tidied up. Paper, ink, and pounce sit beside the journal. I start reading where I left off:
Miss Top’s true name is Nora.
I carefully tear a page from the back of the journal. I pick up the quill pen and dip it in the inkwell. I often stumble when switching from signing to written English. This time, my words come as quickly as a rushing brook.
As soon as I stop writing, I feel a door open and slam shut in the house. My heart pounds. The door to Dr. Minot’s office slowly opens.
I look for a place to hide. Dr. Minot appears. He studies me with his sharp hawk eyes. In a panic, I drop the papers and run from the room, but I don’t know where to go. I freeze in the front hall. I think Dr. Minot shouts after me. If I run up the stairs, I will be trapped.
My head feels light, and I feel myself fall.
When I open my eyes, I am lying on the table in Dr. Minot’s examination room, with a blanket over me. I feel hot and dizzy. I stir and moan. Nora rises from a nearby chair.
I quickly pat my body to make sure I am still dressed. That makes Nora laugh, in a friendly way. She stands up and hands me two written pages. My letter. I’m too nervous to meet her gaze.
Has Andrew returned to the house? Has Dr. Minot shown him what I wrote? What revenge will Andrew seek for the things I said about him?
I turn helplessly to Nora. She points to her eyes and then to the papers. It’s Vineyard sign language for “read.”
I see that the papers in my hands are not written in my scrawl.
I feel stunned. Dr. Minot believes me? And Nora does too?
Hastily, I get my coat. Nora hands me some food to travel with. We stand by the front window and keep watch for the man in the Monmouth cap. I don’t know who is more anxious.
Nora raises her eyebrows and quickly points to a passing sailor. I shake my head. I pace back and forth. Nora wants to practice signing with me. I am agitated, but I indulge her.
She is learning as quickly as a child. She points to the window, the sky, the trees and birds. I make the signs and try to string them together in sentences with the signs she’s already learned. It distracts me until Nora grips my arm. “There! There!” she signs, pointing her index finger.
A man is coming down the street. The snow obscures my view. Please let it be the man with the Monmouth cap.
In horror, I see that it is Andrew.
I run to the front door with Nora on my heels. She unlocks it quickly, and I dash out, without so much as a “thank you.” I run in the opposite direction from Andrew. Panicked, I pray that the man in the Monmouth cap is not far, and that I can find him or another sailor before I am recaptured.
The brick cobblestone streets are icy. I slip a few times in my fancy shoes. A strong wind gusts off the harbor and down the streets. It twirls me around and almost knocks me down. I drop Nora’s food package. My teeth chatter from cold and fear.
I sprint as best I can, panting like a workhorse. When I dare to look back, I catch sight of Andrew coming around a corner. His tall, thin frame is unmistakable. I feel the blood drain from my face. How did he find me? Did he threaten Nora?
I try to remember my way back to the wharf with landmarks, but I’m sure I’m off course. I run through throngs of Bostonians. There is enough bustling activity to shield me. No one seems to notice I’m being hunted.
I stop momentarily to catch my breath. That’s when I feel a strong hand grab the back of my coat. I spin around, fearing I will collapse on the spot. But it isn’t Andrew. It is the man with the Monmouth cap!
He is burly with blond curls. He looks me up and down and nods. I ask him his name. He shakes his head. He doesn’t know sign language. Did he deceive Dr. Minot? Is he working with Andrew?
He grabs hold of my arm and rushes me along. I wrestle with him, and he looks surprised by my resistance. I try to bite his gloved hand, but he does not release me from his grip.
Behind me, I catch sight of Andrew again. His blue eyes seem to burn in their sockets, and his jaw is set. He can’t be more than twenty feet from me.
I look up at the man with the Monmouth cap. He looks at me and follows my terrified stare. The man picks me up, and when I scream, he covers my mouth with his hand. He runs away from Andrew and deposits me
