Free SOS Lusitania by Kevin Kiely

witch or what?’ I asked, a bit shaken. ‘What did she mean?’
    ‘Finbar, I don’t know, but she has you scared, I can see that. Lily Lee saw that I was in naval uniform – that doesn’t make her so gifted with second sight!’
    ‘But, Dad,’ I blurted out – somehow I got the courage to tell him – ‘Dad, there’s going to be a shipwreck. I saw it in a powerful dream.’
    He said nothing at first, then he turned to me with glaring eyes. ‘Let’s get to bed, son. It’s been a long day and sleep must be our next port of call.’
    Next morning over breakfast he mentioned the dream and what I’d said. ‘The problem is, Finbar, talk is dangerous. In New York, if you talk about a shipwreck that is going to happen you’ll sound like a spy. There’s evil in the air. You are picking up the signals in your dreams.’ He paused, and looked at me seriously. ‘On our return journey I’ll fix you up with a job as a messenger on board ship, but you can also act as a spy for me, and, like a spy, you must tell no one what you discover, except Captain Turner and myself.’ Dad tapped me on the shoulder and smiled.
    ‘But I ran away from home b-b-because I wanted to protect you from danger.’
    ‘I understand, son,’ Dad said. ‘And now you can help protect us all from danger on our home journey.’
    My mood changed to one of steely courage. ‘Dad, I’ll do my best. But I can’t wait till we’re home in Queenstown.’

CHAPTER 16
T HE G REAT W ARNING
    T he following morning was Sunday, the day of our departure, and my father had to shake me awake because I was so tired after a late Saturday night in the Mayflower restaurant with the rest of the
Lusitania
crew. I proudly put on my new uniform and cap. My schoolbag was under the bed, but school was so far away across the world, it seemed as if it had all ended and Mr Dempsey had vanished. With a wide grin, I stuffed my schoolbag and school cap into my new knapsack. How could I leave them behind? Dad paid our bill and Josephine Weir gave us a big, cheery goodbye.
    ‘Will you get a newspaper,’ Dad said and handed me a coin on our way past a big Port Authority sign. I rushed along the sidewalk, pushed the coin into the slot that opened thenewspaper rack from which I took a copy. I could have taken two copies or more, but in New York they trusted you to take only what you’d paid for. The
New York Times
was folded in two. The date below the title was 1 May 1915. My reading skills, thanks to Mr Dempsey, were fairly good, still I went through the paper looking only at the pictures of the war in Europe – at aeroplanes, artillery, buildings destroyed by bombing and soldiers in trenches with their rifles and bayonets wearing gasmasks, making them look scary. Then I noticed an advertisement for the
Lusitania
: ‘Sail to Europe on the World’s Fastest and Safest Transatlantic Liner;
Four Sailings per Month’
. There were times and dates for sailings, and prices for first, second and third class tickets. Then I saw another advertisement in a thick, black border. I read it slowly and had to stand still, it scared me so much:
    NOTICE
    Attention travellers on the Atlantic Ocean, bound for Great Britain and Ireland. You travellers will enter the war zone when you approach the West and South Coast of Ireland. All vessels in these waters flying the flag of our enemies are liable to destruction. Know ye that we will fire upon such liners in the waters of the war zone.
    I nearly dropped the newspaper, hardly hearing the noise inthe street anymore. I saw Dad coming along with officers John Lewis and Albert Bestic. Both smiled when they recognised me.
    ‘So, our stowaway has got his shipping papers this time,’ Bestic teased.
    ‘Dad–’
    ‘Come on, Finbar, we’re late.’ Dad rushed ahead.
    Soon we were in a horse-drawn taxi with leather seats, a door on each side, and windows. I could see the driver through a small oval window up front, holding a whip. I said nothing on