The 15th Star (A Lisa Grace History - Mystery) (11 page)

“Is the little one kicking up a storm again?” Bethany asked as she glanced at Grace while she brought the plate of food over covered with a towel to keep it hot.

“
Mrs. Mary, Caroline, breakfast is served!” Bethany yelled up the stairs.

“
I’ll be right back. I’m just going to take up Mrs. Becca’s breakfast.” Bethany left without waiting for an answer and headed up the stairs.

Grace listened as everyone upstairs hustled and bustled about. Grace thought how nice it must be to sleep late and come down to a warm parlor and kitchen, with fires lit by others and a tasty breakfast being prepared before the sun was even up. She was still of the opinion that Ma
’am had tricked her into signing on as an indentured servant. Grace was getting a good respectable reputation for her sewing. She was learning to read and write so she knew Mrs. Pickersgill wouldn’t sell her to someone else to serve out her time just because she was having a baby. Grace was at peace with her situation. What man meant for bad, God had meant for good. Right now everything in her life was good and she was thankful for it. Thankful for her little piece of happiness.

Bethany came down the stairs, followed by Caroline and her mother, Mrs. Pickersgill. Bethany kept going out the back door with Grandma Becca
’s bedpan from the night before.

When she came back in, she carried the food covered with towels into the dining room where Caroline and her mother would dine.

“Good morning Miss Caroline. Are you excited to see your Aunt and Uncle today?” Mrs. Bethany asked.

Grace got up to put some eggs on Miss Caroline
’s plate and pour her a cup of the freshly brewed coffee.

“
Oh yes,” Caroline answered, “they have the most handsome neighbor named Nathaniel. He promised the next time we visited he would take me along with his sisters to see his horses and we could go for a carriage ride. And Mama said we could too.”

“
Is he the reason you’ve been pecking at your plate like a chicken?” Mrs. Bethany could talk freely with Miss Caroline in the early morning before the formality of the day set in. Grace listened in. Today the conversation was helping to take her mind off how poorly the kicking pain was making her feel.

“
It worked,” Caroline said with her eyes shining, “Mama was able to tie my stays so they are touching. I would have passed out a week ago if she had tried to do it then. “I’m almost fifteen now, and Mama said I could start accepting visitors then.”

“
Look where it leads to when you set your heart to a courting boy, Miss Caroline,” Bethany said as she came back in from the backyard nodding her head in Grace’s direction.

Grace felt her cheeks
’ get hot. Bethany could be a little bawdy at times, just like the jack tars on the docks. Her son was a sailor and sometimes she talked as if she were one too. Bethany tried hard to act proper but was confined mainly to the kitchen and the yard when visitors were around because of her low class ways. It wasn’t her fault. She’d never been in a fine mansion like Grace worked in, in the south. Bethany, being from the north, with a husband and son both being jack tars on the merchant ships, was used to a different way of life. Pretty talk and good manners had to be learned and Bethany was past learning.

“
Well of course I would marry first,” Caroline said, then placed her hand up to her mouth , “Oh, Grace, I didn’t mean…”

“
It’s okay Miss Caroline, When you meet the right young man, I’m sure you’ll be happy.” Grace knew Miss Caroline had spoke without thinking.

Grace went back into the kitchen and sat down to have her tea. Grace looked into her teacup and tried to hold the cup on the saucer and her chin, steady. It was true. In Miss Caroline
’s world she would marry first. In Miss Caroline’s world Grace would have had a chaperone and never been left alone with a man. Miss Caroline would never know her world. Miss Caroline was born with choices and Grace was not.

“
I’m happy now,” Grace whispered to herself.

She heard Bethany in the dining room,
“Eat your food before it gets cold.” Grace tried hard to put a smile back on her face, but gave up as the baby pressed on something that hurt deep inside.

At that moment, Mrs. Pickersgill walked back in the front door from checking on the carriage and took her seat at the table,
“Ladies,” she said holding out her hands waiting for everyone to say grace, “Lord bless this food to sustain us through the day ahead. Take care of us as we travel and bless those who remain in my home. And bless Momma so this bit of tiredness leaves her quickly.”

“
Amen,” everyone said in unison, even Grace who was back in the kitchen.

Mrs. Pickersgill waited as Bethany placed the hash and eggs on her plate. She nodded as Bethany poured her a cup of coffee. She then served her a small plate of bread and butter. Bethany went back to the sideboard and sliced Mrs. Pickersgill a piece of pie. She then quietly excused herself to the kitchen.

Grace pushed herself back out of her chair to take the warm bucket of water off the fire and set it by the tub area. She sat back down next to the fire and waited patiently while Bethany fixed her own breakfast. Bethany gave Grace the last spoonful of hash and the last of the eggs. Bethany then quickly scrambled up an extra egg for Grace since Bethany wanted her to eat for two to keep the baby healthy. At the beginning of her pregnancy she’d always been hungry and had been glad for the extra helpings. Now towards the end, Grace found she filled up quickly and then got an awful case of the burps. She knew she had to eat it all or she would hurt Bethany’s feelings. She also knew in about an hour she would regret eating so much.

Mrs. Mary and Caroline left in the carriage after breakfast eager to begin their holiday trip.
“Take care of Momma,” Missus. Pickersgill said out the window, “And Grace take good care of yourself and that baby. We will be back in ten days, in plenty of time for the baby’s coming.” Mrs. Pickersgill waved Grace over next to the window of the carriage so she could speak to her privately. “Now I’ve paid Mrs. Tommie Lynn already. She’s the best one at birthing babies in these parts. If you get scared from pains remember sometimes those come a week or two before the baby. If your water breaks or you start bleeding or the pains keep coming and don’t stop, you go to her house or have Bethany take you. Mrs. Tommie Lynn will know what to do, all right? I prayed for you so you should be fine. I did not want you worrying because I wasn’t here. You are a brave girl Grace, and God will see you through. Now take care.”

Grace kept nodding during Mrs. Pickersgill
’s speech. She had already told Grace all these things before so Mrs. Pickersgill must be saying them to remind herself that she had indeed prepared Grace for the birthing. Grace knew she was the one that would have to push the baby out. That woman, Tommie Lynn, couldn’t do anything more than catch it and cut the cord. Grace had helped and seen many babies born to the women on the plantation. She knew exactly how babies came into this world. The slave women only had each other to help at birthing time so every woman always pitched in to help. You never knew when you’d be sold. If you were unlucky and it was to a small place, you might be the only one to help. Every girl learned how to birth a baby so when your time came, you wouldn’t be scared and you’d know what to do. But she couldn’t tell Mrs. Pickersgill that. So she agreed to go to Mrs. Tommie Lynn’s. Maybe she would be glad to have the company when the time came. She hoped she wouldn’t scream. Grace planned on looking into herself and waiting for the pain to pass. Many times when bad things happened that is what she would do. Grace vowed she wouldn’t holler but maybe it was one of those things you didn’t know you were going to do until the time came.

***

The pains, the sharp ones, kept coming all morning long. Grace would sit and sew and then they would hit. She tried to distract herself and went walking in the yard with the chickens and Socks the cat. Socks knew to leave the chickens alone. He was a good mouser and laid one or two on the back porch everyday, proving his worth. This morning he circled around Grace’s legs, begging for her to rub his tummy. She could feel him against her legs, meowing and pressing for attention. But bending down far enough to make Socks happy, was not going to happen again until after the baby was born. She came back into the kitchen as another pain hit. Bethany must be upstairs with Miss Rebecca, because she wasn’t in the backyard and the kitchen was empty. She poured herself another cup of tea. Grace’s back was hurting. A dull ache, but enough where she couldn’t stand up straight. If this was how the last few weeks would be, she didn’t know if she could make it. All of a sudden, Grace felt warmth and wet. She looked down at her feet and saw water splashing, making a spilling sound like she was peeing on the floor. Grace panicked. She called out, “Bethany! Come help!” Then when she heard Bethany call down from upstairs, “I’m busy helping Mrs. Becca!”

Grace grabbed the towel they used to hold the pots and tried to wipe the water off from the insides of her legs. She then put it on the floor so she could walk across it back to the bottom of the stairs, without getting the whole floor wet.

“Mrs. Bethany, my water broke! I’m leaving to go to Mrs. Tommie Lynn’s.”

Bethany came down the stairs as fast as a bolt of lighting,
“Oh honey, your baby’s coming early. I can’t leave Miss Becca right now. Do you think you can walk the block by yourself? I’ll follow as soon as I get her to bed. I’m just finishing cleaning her up right now. I’ll follow in a few.”

From upstairs a weak voice called,
“Bethany!”

“
I’m fine. I can walk a block just fine by myself. If you could bring some of the baby’s things I’d be grateful.”

“
Oh honey,” Bethany reached out and gave her a quick hug. “You get over there before the pains start.”

“
I’ll be right behind,” Bethany said as she climbed back up the stairs.

First, Grace took an old set of rags out of the linen closet off the kitchen and set it on the water on the floor. She couldn
’t bend over to pick them up, but she thought Mrs. Bethany would understand. She put on her overcoat, stepped out the door, and went down the steps for the short walk of two blocks to Tommie Lynn’s house. Socks the cat trotted after her to catch up.

***

The weather was still a little brisk even though the sun was shining. Grace was glad she’d thought to put on her thin coat before heading over to Tommie Lynn’s. Grace walked slightly hunched over from the pain in her lower back. Every ten steps or so, there would be a sharp pain down below where she knew the baby would come out. It felt like the baby was stretching out to bump its head down there to say, “Let me out.”

She wasn
’t feeling any other pain yet, certainly nothing to scream about. She passed a couple of neighbors and nodded cordially their way, as they did the same. Socks caught up, meowing for her to stroke his fur. He started pushing against her leg as she tried to avoid stepping on him. “Oh Socks, not today! I’s can’t bend over! You be a good Socks an go on home now.” Instead he kept brushing up against her legs the whole way to Mrs. Tommie Lynn’s house.

When she reached Mrs. Tommie Lynn
’s another sharp pain down below hit as she rapped the knocker. Grace had always liked Mrs. Tommie Lynn's door knocker. It was shiny brass and shaped like a cross. It gave her comfort. Most of the folks around here had little ship bells, since most everyone around here did something for the merchant ships.

Tommie Lynn opened the door,
“Why Grace, come on in. Come in and sit down.”

Mrs. Tommie Lynn, motioned for Grace to follow her into the kitchen.

“Mrs. Tommie Lynn my water broke,” Grace said.

“
It’s fine, dearie. You can still sit and have a cup of tea. You have time. Firsts don’t come that quick.”

She sat Grace down and got her a cup of tea.

“This here is a special tea. It’s made from flowers. Poppy, rosehips, chamomile, and hemp. Herbs and flowers to help relax you and take the edge off the pain. “Now the next time you get a sharp pain, you tell me. That will let us know how soon before we need to get you lying down.”

Grace felt better knowing she was with someone so calm. She sat and sipped her tea, silently enduring her lower back pain which was now a constant dull ache.

“Where is Bethany? I thought for sure she would she would walk you over. Did she step out for something?”

“
No Mrs. Rebecca stayed behind as she’s not feeling well and Bethany stayed to tend her. She’ll be coming round with my things—and the baby’s, soon.”

The tea was relaxing her. It made her feel like she was floating, even when the pains hit.

“What do you think you’re having Grace? A boy or a girl? Do you have any feeling one way or the other? This is your last chance to dream.”

Grace thought
what a funny thing to say
. Maybe it was the tea.

“
I think, I feel…, I hope… Part of me wants a girl, but not if what happened to me could happen to her. The other part of me wants a boy, so he can fight for himself and build a life the way he wants it. I guess it is all in God’s hands.”