Chapter 237 - Two Hundred And Thirty Seven
Dr Abernathy’s words, "Her Grace is with child," echoed in the quiet bedchamber, weaving through the lingering haze of Suzy’s returning consciousness. She blinked twice, her mind reeling, trying to align this astonishing pronouncement with the terrifying ordeal she had just endured, with the encounter she’d experienced.
With child?
A fragile smile, almost disbelieving, touched her lips. "Did I hear him right?" she thought, her internal voice a whisper of wonder. "I’m going to be a mother." And then, like pieces of a puzzle clicking into place, it made a strange kind of sense. The persistent fatigue she’d been experiencing for weeks, the occasional dizzy spells, the slight nausea she had dismissed as stress or a delicate constitution... "So that’s why I’ve been feeling that way for a while." A soft groan, a mixture of returning awareness of her aches and the sheer emotional weight of the revelation, escaped her.
The sound, however faint, instantly drew the attention of the two men by her bedside. Ryan, who had been gazing at her with an expression of intense, prayerful hope, let out a small sigh— small sigh of gratitude. Dr. Abernathy turned towards her with a gentle smile.
Suzy’s eyes met Ryan’s, and she saw it – an uncontainable, radiant joy that seemed to illuminate his weary, blood-streaked face, chasing away the shadows of the past terrifying hours. It was a look of pure, unadulterated happiness, so profound it brought tears to her own eyes.
"Welcome back, Your Grace," Dr. Abernathy said softly. He proceeded with a gentle examination, checking her pulse, her eyes, asking her a few simple questions about how she felt, his touch reassuring. "You’ve had a most dreadful ordeal, but you are remarkably resilient."
He then nodded towards the small vials and a jar of ointment on the bedside table. "I’ve left some strengthening tonic for you – and for the little one, of course – and a soothing ointment for these bruises. They will need gentle application."
Ryan, his gaze never leaving Suzy’s face, his hand still clutching hers as if she might vanish, called out, "Irene! Could you come in, please?"
The handmaiden appeared almost instantly, her eyes red from weeping but now wide with relief seeing her mistress awake. Ryan instructed her to take careful note of the doctor’s instructions for the medicines.