After the evacuation went smoothly, after the women and children in the first and second class were on the lifeboats, Smith opened the iron gate and was already ready, and the women and children in the third class who were waiting in front of the iron gate began to walk up to the deck. Dena, Alice, and Smith followed them up to the deck. By this time, the tilt of the ship was already obvious, and Dena estimated that the ship had tilted more than ten degrees. In fact, if it weren't for the efforts of the crew, the boat would have tilted even more.

One by one, the women and children got into the lifeboat, and Dena and Alice stayed behind, but they let go of the lifeboat quite quickly, and in a few moments, it was Dena and Alice's turn. Dena and Alice sat in the lifeboats, and as for Smith, he was a man, not a sailor who controlled the boat, so he had to wait for the next trip. Even, on the next trip, he can't get into the lifeboat first, because Dena is risking his reputation as a member of the MacDonald family, and as an employee, he can't discredit the Macdonald family by rushing to get on the lifeboat and sabotage Dena's efforts. Therefore, he had to wait until all the adult men in the first class were all on the lifeboat before he could get on the lifeboat.

Dena's lifeboat has been lowered to the surface. The sailor swung his oars and rowed the lifeboat off the cruise ship. Because when the cruise ship sinks into the sea, it will inevitably form a huge whirlpool in the sea, and if it gets too close, the lifeboat will be sucked into the whirlpool, and then sink to the bottom of the sea with the big ship.

"Aimar, has the telegram for help been sent?" Dena asked the sailor who was sitting next to her.

"Ah, Miss Dena. It has been shot out a long time ago. "The sailor had also had some contact with Dena in the previous few days. But at that time, he didn't know that this young lady, who seemed a little naughty and excessive, was actually a member of the MacDonald family, a wealthy family. And today, such a noble lady actually took the initiative to stay, together with the women and children in the third class, this spirit of self-sacrifice shocked Aimar even more. So the tone in which he answered Dena's question at this time was almost like answering Captain Grant's inquiry.

"Is there a reply then?" Dena asked again. It is impossible to cross the vast Atlantic Ocean with lifeboats alone, and even the survival of the people on lifeboats cannot be maintained for a long time. Although each lifeboat carried some fresh water and food, it was not enough to survive on its own. Fortunately, the place where the ship sank was on a relatively busy route, there should be quite a few other ships nearby, and if they received a distress telegram, then they should not be used, and they can be rescued.

"There are four boats around here. They're all heading here. It is estimated that it will be able to arrive in the early hours of tomorrow morning. Aimar replied.

Hearing Aimar's answer, everyone on board felt a lot more relieved. At this time, the last batch of lifeboats also began to be put on the surface of the sea one after another, and when the last lifeboat was put on the surface, Dena looked down at the watch on her wrist, it was already about six o'clock in the afternoon.

"Miss Dena, Miss Dena!" Smith's shouts were heard in the distance, and Dena looked over and saw that Smith was standing in a lifeboat, shouting loudly and looking around. He suddenly saw Dena, waved his hand at Dena with joy, shouted, and then bowed his head and said something to the sailor in the lifeboat, and the sailor rowed the lifeboat closer to the lifeboat where Dena was.

"Miss Dena, I've finally found you." The lifeboat approached, and Smith said happily to Dena. After such an accident, it was fortunate that nothing happened to Miss Dena, otherwise I really wouldn't know how to go back and report it.

"Miss Dena, look! Look at the boat! Alice suddenly shouted.

Dena turned her head and looked in the direction of the cruise ship. She saw that the ship was now fully tilted, its deck almost perpendicular to the sea, and then the behemoth, under everyone's gaze, slowly flipped up, faster and faster, and finally slammed back on the sea. The evening golden-red glow reflected a dark red glow on the orange-red bottom of the boat and the barnacles that dotted the bottom of the boat.

"Oh my God!" Someone whispered.

"There may be a storm tonight." The sailor Aimar suddenly said, "Look at the sunset on the horizon, it is so red, I am afraid that it will be windy at night." ”

"Will the wind and waves be strong, will it be dangerous?" Dena asked.

"It shouldn't be too windy," Aimar said, "if we're still in that boat." He pointed to the cruise ship that was buckled upside down on the water and said, "Then the wind and waves tonight will at most make the brothers at the lookout shake a little harder, and the people in the cabin will not even feel much." But now that we are in the lifeboats, it is different. Considerable care must be taken at night. Everyone should be careful with their peers, especially children. Because once you fall into the water in the wind and waves at night, it will be very dangerous. ”

"Aren't we wearing life jackets?" A woman sitting next to her asked.

"Madame, we are now within the confines of the eastern Greenland cold snap." "The water temperature here is only about 3 degrees, and once you fall into the water, depending on your body, it may only take more than ten minutes, and a person will be completely paralyzed, and you may freeze to death in half an hour." And if it is a child who falls, it may only take ten minutes or even a few minutes before it will freeze to death. And at night, if there is no moon tonight, the visibility will be very low, and once it falls into the water, it will be difficult to see and find. Even the sound of a cry for help may be muffled by the sound of the wind and waves. And if there is wind and waves at night, it will be very difficult for a small boat like ours to control it. Sometimes, even if you see a person who has fallen into the water, it is difficult to paddle to the person in time. ”

Aimar's words apparently put more pressure on some of the people in the lifeboats, especially those with children. They all held the child tightly in their hands.

"How long will it take for the ship to sink in its entirety?" Seeing that everyone's affection was low, Dena changed the subject.

"I don't know, I hope it will sink before it gets dark. Otherwise, in the evening, it was pitch black, and we were accidentally blown to the side of the ship that had not yet sunk, and then at this time, the ship suddenly sank, and we would have been miserable. ”

……

As the sun gradually set, just as Aimar had predicted, dark clouds surged up and the wind began to blow. The waves gradually rose, and the small lifeboat rose straight up to the top of the wave like an elevator for a while, and then fell sharply again, and the hearts of those who fell were lifted, and then it rose straight again.

It was pitch black all around, except for the flashlights in the hands of the sailors on the lifeboats flashing from time to time to determine each other's positions and keep them from being blown too apart by the wind and waves. Other than that, the sea was completely dark, so dark that even those sitting facing each other could not see each other's silhouettes. Then suddenly there was a white flash of lightning in the sky, followed by a rumbling thunder. Then big drops of rain fell from the sky.

The wind was getting stronger, and the glow of the flashlight shaking from the lifeboats, and the occasional electric light that lit up the surroundings instantaneously, Dena noticed that the distance between them and the other lifeboats was getting bigger and bigger......

……

After a night of wind and a night of rain, the sky finally dawned, and the people on the lifeboat were all very haggard. Dena looked in all directions, and saw the sea on all sides, and nothing else. Apparently, after a night, this and other lifeboats of theirs were lost.

"Damn it!" Dena couldn't help but say foul words, "We were separated from them. I don't know if the ships that came to us could find us. ”

"You should be able to find it." "It wasn't really windy last night, we wouldn't be much away from them," Aimar said. And I reckon. Most of the lifeboats were also blown away. So, if you find their ship, most of them will search the area, so that they can probably find us too. ”

"Let's hope so." The other woman said with a shiver. After a night of wind and a night of rain, most of the people in the lifeboats froze.

"Over there! There seems to be a boat over there! Alice suddenly shouted. Everyone turned their heads to look in the direction Alice was pointing, and there seemed to be a boat over there.

"Quick, whoever has a mirror, give it to me!" Aimar shouted.

"I, I've got it here!" Another woman hurriedly handed a mirror to Aimar. Aimar took the mirror, looked up at the direction of the sun again, and began to use it to swing towards the boat over there.

"I don't know if the people in that boat can see it." That's what many people think in their hearts. As everyone feared, the ship really didn't seem to notice the reflection in the mirror, and continued to sail ahead, without the slightest hint of turning around.

"Bang!" Alice suddenly pulled out her pistol and fired a shot into the sky. The crisp sound of gunfire gradually spread across the vast sea.

Alice actually had a gun by her side, which was an accident for the people in the lifeboat. Even Aimar's eyes widened.

"It's still not enough, the sound is still too quiet, and the distance is a little farther away." Aimar said as he watched the ship continue its course, still showing no intention of turning around.

"It doesn't matter, there's this!" Alice said as she pulled out an offensive grenade from somewhere in everyone's stunned eyes......