Earning the Love of a Princess-Chapter 235: Our Own Kin

19 April, 1362. Magdaline Castle, Islia

William pushed the creaking door open and slowly stepped into Tession’s chamber, the scent of a dozen medicinal herbs immediately hitting him. It wasn’t an unpleasant scent, though, instead taking him back to his boyhood. He’d spent many times in Tession’s cluttered rooms when he’d sought refuge from his father or when he’d had a hard day with his tutors or knightly training.

Now though, William had arrived for a different reason, one that had left him sleeping fitfully the night before. He was here to meet the midwives that Tession had made contact with and who would be attending to Camilla when her time came.

He felt queasy.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Tession to find suitable women. Quite the opposite. William knew Tession would take a thorough approach when talking to the local women about their experience in delivering children. Both because he was such a skilled healer himself but also because he had a great fondness for Camilla.

What was making William feel rigid with fear was the knowledge that it was only a matter of weeks before Camilla would give birth again. And it could potentially kill her.

He could feel his back growing damp from sweat as he looked around the room with wild eyes. When Tession had suggested he should meet the women he’d deemed the most suitable, William had originally agreed. It seemed like a sound idea.

Now, however, all he wanted to do was bolt from the room and pretend none of this was even happening. He swallowed hard and balled his hands up into fists, his nails digging into his palms.

There were three women in the room. One was was a plump, grey haired woman of around fifty summers. The other two women were younger. All three were dressed in the plain, homespun tunics typical of the Islian peasantry.

William turned to Tession, who was looking back at him as if he expected William to run from the room and never return. His bushy grey eyebrows knitted together and his expression grew a little stern.

"My young lord." The old man’s voice was kind but firm, the same tone he’d used all his life when trying to give guidance to an erratic boy. William knew he was being silently told to pull himself together and act like a man with responsibilities, not like a panicked boy. The lives of his wife and second child depended on it.

So, with effort, he straightened his shoulders and made himself listen as Tession gestured to the older woman and began introductions.

"This lady here is Mistress Guelders. She has helped deliver dozens of babies in the local village of Dair, as well as in several of the surrounding hamlets. She’s well known for her skill and she also has seven daughters of her own."

William swung his eyes towards Mistress Guelders again. She had the broad frame and red, calloused hands of a peasant woman, someone who clearly had faced a lifetime of hard work. Her eyes were warm however, and there was something about her merry, motherly smile that reminded William of Queen Celia.

A woman with seven children probably also knew a thing or two about childbearing, William told himself.

"A pleasure to meet you." He managed to force himself to say the words through his aching jaw.

Mistress Guelders bowed and introduced the younger women at her side as two of her daughters, Darla and Bridget. Both younger women had grown up aiding their mother and were now quite adept themselves at delivering babies.

The three women stood before William with their eyes respectfully downcast, waiting for him to lead the conversation.

But he wasn’t sure what to say. Far from leading the discussion in an assertive manner like he’d planned, his tongue remained frozen in his mouth. What should he even say? What questions did one ask of a midwife to find out if she was good at the role?

What if he asked the wrong questions and fucked this up for his wife and child? William began to shake slightly. But he couldn’t just stand there like a mute. He had to speak up.

"Tession has chosen you because you’ve all safely delivered children before. If he’s satisfied, then I will trust his judgment. What I need is for you to look after my wife and treat her with kindness. She had a hard birth with our first child and she’s a bit fearful going through the experience again. So am I, honestly." William blurted out in a rush. "I will fill your pockets with gold if you see her through this safely."

The three women bobbed their heads in quiet agreement. The grey haired midwife then spoke.

"When is the child expected, Your Grace?"

"The middle or end of June, I believe." William answered shortly. "I’ll let Tession know when the time comes and he’ll get word to you. But if you think it necessary for you to see my wife before then, let us know."

"And what age is your lady wife, my lord?"

"She’s twenty."

Mistress Guelders looked relieved at his reply.

William blinked at her in surprise, tilting his head to one side. "Does her age make a difference?"

Mistress Guelders explained gently. "It often can. It’s a far easier thing to help a fully grown woman give birth than try to pull a child out from the body of a mother who’s still a child herself."

Like my own poor mother, William thought grimly. Father wouldn’t have asked or even cared whether a girl only fourteen summers old would’ve been capable of birthing a baby. He needed an heir. She would’ve simply been a means to that end. Bastard.

William chased that thought away quickly. He was not his father. Camilla was not his mother. Their situation, here and now, was different.

Mistress Guelders continued her questioning in a calm, efficient manner. "Has she been eating well, resting well?"

"Yes."

"She hasn’t been feeling any pains? Or had any bleeding?"

William blanched. It was possible to start bleeding before a baby was due? He had no idea what that would mean but he knew it couldn’t be anything good. "No, nothing like that."

The grey haired matron opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something more, before pressing her lips together and remaining quiet.

"She’s foreign." William said finally. "Moraigthian. Does that make a difference to you?"

Mistress Guelders stared as if she didn’t understand the question. "No and I’m not sure why that would make any difference, Your Grace? A mother is a mother, is she not? Every woman in childbed appreciates kindness and encouragement, doesn’t she?"

William nodded. He leaned back against the wall, pressing his palms against the rough stone surface so the women wouldn’t see how his hands were trembling. The midwife seemed to have asked all her questions and he was fairly sure there wasn’t anything he’d forgotten to tell her, so he nodded his goodbyes to them.

As he turned to leave the chamber, Mistress Guelders finally spoke again.

"What if we’re pushed to make a choice, Your Grace?" she asked.

William stopped to face her again. "What are you talking about? What kind of choice?"

"Between the mother and the babe? I pray it doesn’t come to that, of course, but it’s not unknown to happen. If that should be the case-"

"Save her. My wife." William interjected without hesitating. "I hope such a choice doesn’t have to be made but if it does...there can be other children in the future. But there can be no other wife for me. I need her and my son needs his mother. Is that quite clear?"

The women all nodded and Mistress Guelders gave William what looked like the tiniest of smiles. She seemed to approve of his response, which in turn made William feel a little better. "Of course. We’ll care for your lady wife as if she were our own kin, Your Grace."

"Thank you." William nodded stiffly, feeling his pulse beating rapidly in his ears. The entire conversation was making him feel sick with anxiety. "You’ll all be well rewarded for your efforts."

He turned and walked out of Tession’s quarters, praying he was making the right decision.

- - -

William walked back to their shared apartments, feeling like he could breathe slightly easier, though he still felt like there was a boulder on his chest.

"Pull yourself the fuck together, man." he told himself under his breath. "Anyone would think it was your body having to push a new life out."

When he entered the bedchamber, he found his wife sitting against some pillows on the bed. Malcolm was next to her, his cheek pressed up against her rounded belly as if listening carefully. William could hear his son’s giggles.

"Baby." the little boy said excitedly, raising his head as he saw William walk in. "Baby, papa, baby."

William tried to smile back as he perched on the edge of the bed. "Yes."

Camilla took one look at his face and immediately knew something was troubling him. She smiled down at Malcolm and asked softly, "What do you think the baby will be, my little love? A brother or a sister?"

"Lion!" Malcolm yelped with enthusiasm.

Even William had to laugh at that.

"I’m definitely not growing a lion cub, I can promise you that." Camilla snorted. "I hope you’re not too disappointed with the end result."

Malcolm tapped his mother’s belly, before laying his head down against it again.