The Royal Secret

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Scarlet looked down at the list she was making. The baby was going to be born any day and there were still things that they needed. She set the pen down and rubbed one hand over her big belly.

James was at his parents fir the day. His father had things that he wanted to talk to James about. Jerry and Henry were staying there. It had been a little over two months since they had come. At first, Henry had wanted to have James arrested on a charge of abducting Amerna. Jerry had talked him out of it.

She picked up the pen and wrote some instructions for carpenter about the crib. She folded the paper and stood slowly. She kept one hand on her stomach the whole time.

“Merg?” she called as she walked to the doorway.

Merg, who had been dusting in the next room, appeared. “Yes, Scarlet?” Merg asked.

“Can you take this to the carpenters for me?” she asked.

“Of course I can,” Merg said. “And you need to get into bed. You need to rest up for the labor that is going to come.”

“Alright,” she said. “Is John still here?”

“Yes,” Merg said.

“Hurry on now,” she said.

“I'll be right back,” Merg said and left.

Scarlet decided to go downstairs and talk with John. Maybe they could have some of Mergs' blueberry cake. She smiled at that thought.

“John?” she called, reaching the bottom stair. “John?”

John appeared from the study. He held a book in his hand. He had been reading. She smiled.

“Yes, Miss Scarlet?” he asked.

“I was wondering if you would like to have some of Mergs' blueberry cake with me,” she said.

“Of course I would,” he said. “Go on in to the study. I'll go get it.”

“Thank you,” she said.

He went to the kitchen as she went into the study. She sat down in James' chair behind the desk. She looked around the study. She noticed a painting of a baby and smiled as she realized that it was James.

“Here you go,” John said.

“Thank you, John,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” he said.

John sat down on the other side of the desk facing her. She smiled.

“Do you want something to drink?” he asked.

“No, John” she said. “Just sit here with me for a while and eat this cake. Merg makes the best cake.”

“Merg is pregnant,” he said.

“What?” She asked

“When we married twenty years ago,” he said. “We tried to have a baby. We have come to realize over the years that we simply couldn’t have a child of our own and we were happy. Merg is only thirty eight. I’m forty-six.”

“So you two are going to have a baby after years of trying,” she said I’m happy for the two of you.”

“I think that the baby is some other mans,” he said

“No, there is no way,” she said. “She loves you.”

“I know that she does,” he said “But there is still a chance that she is having some other man’s baby.”

She set the plate on the desk and then looked at him. He stared back at her.

“What?” he asked.

“If Merg is having some other man’s baby,” she said, “Then I am not having this baby right now.”

He stood, asking, “What?

“My water broke,” she said.

“What?” he asked again. “Now?”

“It would seem so,” she said.

“I'll go get Mr. James,” he said.

“No,” she said. “You have to stay here. James' doesn't want me to be left alone.”

“Well, what am I supposed to do?” he asked.

She looked around the study. Her eyes found the desk.

“Clear off the desk,” she said.

“What?” he asked.

“You heard me,” she said.

He started to clear off the desk. He said, “You sure you don't want James?”

“Yes,” she said. “Just clear off the desk.”

It only took John a few seconds to clear off the desk.

“Now?” he asked.

“Go and get a few cushions off the settee,” she said, “As well as my red nightdress. Oh, and the sheet the doctor gave me. I wouldn't want to mess up the desk.”

“I'll be right back,” he said.

She watched him go. When he was gone she stood and unbuttoned her dress. She slipped it off her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. She then sat down to wait.

She heard footsteps a few minutes later, but didn't care who it was because she was suddenly in the most awful pain of her life. She screamed.

“I'm back,” John said rather unnecessarily as he enter.

“Put the sheet down,” she gasped as she took deep breathes. “Then the cushions. Put the nightgown on the chair.”

John did as she said and then turned to face her, asking “Would you like help?”

She nodded and he helped her up on to the desk. She settled back against the cushions.

“What now?” he asked.

“You’ll have to help me, John,” she said. “I’m sorry, in advance, if I yell at you.”

“I promise to not get mad,” he said with a smile.

“Good,” she said, taking a deep breath.

“Now what?” he asked.

Having helped Bellie have Kate, Scarlet knew what to do. She explained what he would need to do and watched his face lose its color.

“Okay,” he said. “Are you sure I shouldn’t get James?”

“Yes,” she said, taking another deep breath. “He isn’t here and I can’t be alone.”

“All right then,” he said. “Let’s do this.”

James had been at his parents’ house most of the day. His mother had had him stay for lunch. Afterward, his father had wanted to talk about having Hunter come over.

“Are you sure he’ll come if I tell him I’ve gotten married and am about to have a child?” James had asked.

“No,” Smith admitted. “But the least we could do is try. Have Scarlet send the note. That that may help.”

James had looked at his father and said, “Scarlet said something similar. Maybe you are both right. I’ll have her do it after the baby comes.”

“Not too soon after,” Smith said. “You’ll both need time to adjust to having a baby in the house. When Hunter was born- My it’s been thirty-two years since he was born. Anyway, when Hunter was born, your mother would not let him out of her sight or leave the house. Funny thing is, she never did that with you. Only Hunter and Bellie.”

It was nearly dark when James was finally able to leave his parents. He was only able to leave after promising to send for them if Scarlet looked like she was going into labor.

Now, as he neared the house, he saw that the only light shown from his study. The rest of the house was dark. He knew something was wrong.

“Stop here, Henry,” he said. “It’ll be quicker for me to walk.”

“Right, sir,” Henry said, reigning the horses in.

James hurried out of the carriage and to the house. He opened the door to see Merg hovering by the door to the study.

“Is there anything I can do?” she was asking.

“:Go… boil some water,” John said.

“Good idea,” Merg said. “Tea will help.” She turned and hurried to the kitchen.

Suddenly, there was a small squeal and then Scarlet laughed.

“What is it?” Scarlet asked.

“Why don’t you look?” John asked.

James inched closer to the door.

“We should send Merg for James,” she said. “Or the doctor.”

“As soon as she boils the water I will,” John said.

“Right,” she said. “Then I can-“

She stopped as James entered the room. James stared at the scene in front of him.

“Scarlet,” he whispered.

She smiled at him. “James, I am glad you are home,” she said. “I would like for you to meet our son.”

“When… how…?” he managed to ask.

“Shortly after you left, I sent Merg to the carpenters,” she said. “I then come down here.”

“Everything happened quickly after that,” John said. “And since Mr. James is now home, I will go get the doctor.”

As John left, James looked at her and their child. He then realized she had given birth to their son on his desk.

“This is not where I would have liked you to have had the baby,” he said.

“The bed is upstairs,” she said, “And the pains were coming. I could not go back up.”

“Mr. James!” Merg said as she entered the room with a bucket of water.

“How long have you been home, Merg?” he asked.

“A few hours, I think,” Merg said, “Why?”

“No reason,” he said. He took his hat off and sat it on a chair. “Why don’t I take the baby while you get cleaned up? Then we can take care of our son together.”

“Sure,” she said. She gave the baby to him. “Merg, will you help me?”

“Of course,” Merg said.

James looked down at the tiny human in his arms. His son needed to be cleaned off before he could say whether he was cute or not.

“James,” Scarlet said.

He looked up at her. She had changed into a red nightgown.

“You are so beautiful,” he said. “I love you.”

She smiled as she dipped the rag in the water. She ran the rag over the baby. He cried softly.

“He is going to be a good baby,” she said.

“How can you tell?” Merg asked. “He was just born.”

“Well, he never gave me any trouble,” she explained. “As I carried him he never kicked hard enough to cause pain. Some women say that they feel as if they were being ripped apart. I never felt that way.”

“You never had any problems?” Merg asked.

“What was that?” Merg asked.

“James,” she said. She washed off the baby’s’ arms as she talked. “He was my one problem. ‘Married’ to Amerna and nothing I could do. I wanted to tell him, but I was afraid to.”

“What if you two had been married?” Merg asked. “Would you have told him?”

“Of course,” she said. She looked at Merg as she finished cleaning the baby. “I mean, unless he thought the baby wasn’t his.”

“What?” James asked.

“Merg, it would help if you talked about it,” she said.

“He thinks I’ve been cheating on him?” Merg asked.

“Yes,” she said, setting the rag down. “He told me earlier that you are going to have a child and that it couldn’t be his.”

“What goes on when I’m not home?” he asked.

“It is his!” Merg said. “I can’t believe he would say something like that!”

“Maybe you should tell him so,” she said.

“Maybe I will,” Merg said.

James stood there holding his son. He wanted to know what both women were talking about.

The doctor showed up then and after examining Scarlet he took James aside to talk to him. So, James walked him out.

“What is it?” James asked the doctor once they reached the door.

“Try to keep her in bed for a week,” the doctor said. “There’s a small tear. Make sure she doesn’t lift anything heavy during that time. Don’t want any more bleeding.”

“Is there anything else?” James asked.

“No,” the doctor said. “Just make sure she takes it easy. After four weeks, she’ll be good to resume all activities.”

After the doctor left, James returned back upstairs to Scarlet and their son. She lay in bed with the baby in her arms looking at him.

“He needs a name,” James said, sitting on the bed next to them.

“Yes, he does,” she said. “A handsome name at that.”

“Handsome?” he asked

“Of course,” she said. “He’ll take after his papa.”

“I love you, Scarlet,” he said.

“I love you too, James,” she said, “I think we should call him Donald, Donny for short.”

James smiled as he said, “Of course.”