UNEXPECTED THINGS
Chapter Three
Prudence knelt beside Rose as she
cried out again, her pretty face becoming distorted with pain. She didn’t know
what to do, or what to say. How could she even talk to Rose? This silly woman,
who’d run away from everything sensible. Beside her, Cora wailed, frightened
and confused.
"It’s all right, Cora,"
Rose managed to gasp, leaning over and grabbing her child’s hand. "It’s
all right. Mommy’s going to be all right. You be a brave girl for Mommy."
Cora nodded her head solemnly, but tears still continued to flow down her face.
Rose started to sit up, much to Prudence’s horror.
"Sit down!" she said,
trying to adopt a soothing voice. "You need your rest."
"I do not--argh!" Rose
fell back, defeated, as an even stronger contraction hit her. She felt like an
idiot, lying there in dirt with everyone staring at her. "Jack!" she
gasped. "Jack! I want Jack!" She tried to push herself up again, but
this time she was so overcome with dizziness that she gave up. What was going
on? It had never been this bad with Cora. She was suddenly very frightened, and
something was horribly wrong, very wrong.
Prudence watched in horror as
Rose’s condition got worse by the minute. She began to moan for Jack. She
wondered were the young woman’s husband was. Typical of this sort of people to
leave their loves ones when they needed them most, or so she thought. Suddenly,
Cal came towards her, with, much to her amazement, Rupert, their personal
doctor.
"Is she all right,
doctor?" asked Prudence, still kneeling beside Rose. "She seems
awfully bad."
Rupert frowned. "We need to
get her out of here," he said gruffly. "The driver’s bringing the car
around. He should be here any minute." As if on cue, the doctor’s stylish
car arrived, followed by Cal’s own.
"Here. Help me get her into
the car." Rupert helped a now almost-unconscious Rose to her feet.
Prudence rushed in to help. Cal merely stood and watched.
"Mommy! Mommy!" Cora
began to wail loudly as she was left behind.
"Cal, help her!"
Prudence managed to shout as she helped Rose into the back seat of the doctor’s
car.
Cal stepped reluctantly towards
the frightened child, but before he could take her, she ran away, frightened
and confused. "Damn!" he swore bitterly, but the girl was nowhere to
be seen, and he really didn’t care. He turned around to get in the car with his
wife--but she was gone--with Rose.
"Is she all right?"
Prudence half-sat, half-knelt near Rose, who was laying in the backseat of the
car, moaning. It had been rather a tight fit for her, Rose, and the doctor to
all fit in the back seat, but after seeing Cal scare away Rose’s daughter,
Prudence didn’t want to be alone with him.
The doctor frowned.
"Something’s wrong," he said. "We need to treat her as quickly
as possible."
Prudence frowned. "But the
hospital is miles away!" She thought for a few moments. "Take her to
our manor," she said quickly, thinking of the small mansion they stayed in
when on business trips in the area. "She should be all right there."
Suddenly, Rose screamed. Prudence put a hand on her forehead. "She’s
burning up!" she exclaimed.
Rose pulled away from her touch,
moaning. "Jack!" she gasped. "Jack! I want Jack!" The
doctor raised his eyebrows.
"Her husband," said
Prudence quickly. "I don’t know where he is..."
Suddenly, Rose flung her arm out,
hand open, waiting for someone to grab it. "Cora!" she cried.
"Where’s Cora? Cora, honey?" Her hand opened and closed, waiting for
her child to grab it.
"It’s all right, Rose,
dear," said Prudence quickly. "She’s all right. Don’t worry..."
Rose continued to moan for her
child and husband.
They pulled into the manor’s
driveway and parked next to the large, expensive house. A maid opened the door
and came rushing out, her face draining of color when she saw Rose.
"Help us, Wendy!"
Prudence snapped.
The maid rushed inside, quickly
preparing a bed and other things for the young lady. Carefully, Rose was helped
into the bed as the doctor hurried back to the car to get his medical
equipment. Prudence tried to calm her down, but she pulled away from her touch
and continued to sob for her husband and child.
"There, there, Rose. Calm
down. Everything will be all right. Just calm down."
Rose pulled away as best as she
could from Prudence. She was in so much pain, and so confused. Where was Jack?
And where was Cora? She felt frightened and alone. All she wanted was Jack--to
be safe in his loving arms--but where was he? She tried to pull herself
together, to calm herself down, but she couldn’t. Here she was, in one of Cal’s
houses, with his wife, and about to give birth. The situation couldn’t have
possibly gotten any worse, or could it? The look on the doctor’s face said it
had.