Cal23: 36 - The Rabbit Died

Sullivan knocked on Delaware’s door and waited for her. A couple minutes later, she opened the door and looked at him.
“Yeah?”
“You’re late, Ms. Tate.”
“Huh?”
“Are you alright?” he asked.
Delaware looked like she had had a fight and lost.
“I had a horrid nightmare last night and couldn’t go to sleep. Plus, whenever I get up, I get nauseous…”
“Do I need to send for Dr. Sexton?”
“No… I don’t get sick like other people.”
“Do you want me to tell the duke you won’t be in today?”
“Uh…” Delaware thought for a moment. “Actually, yes. I don’t feel up to working today.”
Sullivan blinked at her as she closed the door and he walked back to the house.

Tavit was reading the paper as July cracked an egg on her egg holder. Trinidad was still eating the last bit of his morning meal (plate number three) when Sullivan came in. Tavit moved the paper and looked at him.
“Oh, I thought you were Delaware.”
“Um… well… Ms. Tate says… she says that she’s not well and won’t be here today.”
Everyone stopped at the same time and looked at Sullivan, who looked uncomfortable.
“Run that by me again?”
“Delaware was late so I went to check on her. She said she wasn’t well and wasn’t coming to work today.”
Everyone blinked at him as Trinidad got up. They watched him leave and Tavit sighed.
“I’ll go check on her as well.”

Trinidad banged on Delaware’s door and waited for her. She finally opened the door and looked up.
“Oh, Little One…”
Sick? he asked, looking concerned.
“I’m just not feeling well. In all the days I’ve been alive I’ve never taken a day off but… today I think I will.”
Trinidad was very concerned as Tavit walked up.
“Ms. Tate, Sullivan tells us that you’re not feeling well?”
“It’s just a bit of nausea, nothing too bad but when I move quickly it gets worse. I just didn’t know if I would be able to perform my duties to the best of my abilities.”
Trinidad made a face in concern as Tavit did too.
“I think we need to call Arnold.”
“I’m fine. I don’t need him right now. I’ll call him if things don’t get better soon, alright?”
“I guess so…”
She touched each other their cheeks in comfort.
“Don’t worry a boys, I’m fine.”
They left and Delaware put her hand over her stomach as she walked back to bed so as to not vomit everywhere. She hoped she didn’t have food poisoning. She’d had it before it was one of her less dignified ways to die. She laid back in the bed and went to sleep.

After two more days Delaware said she wasn’t going to work and so Tavit got worried and called Arnold. He met him at the front of the house and Arnold made a face.
“Well, this must be pretty serious.”
“Dad, what the hell?”
Tavit looked over at Radley, who was coming out of the car. Arnold turned to him.
“Oh, sorry.”
Radley rolled his eyes and adjusted his glasses. He held out his hand.
“I know we came for pictures and the party but we never formally met, I don’t think. I’m Radley Sexton, I was also the boys’ commanding officer in the army.”
“Nice to formally meet you. Thank you for taking care of my family during that horrible war. Hope we never have to go through that again.”
“Never say never, Lord Blackwood. When I heard that the lovely Ms. Tate wasn’t feeling well, I just had to come.”
“He thinks he’ll be a doctor.” Arnold said with a frown.
Radley rolled his eyes again as Tavit smiled.
“Come then, the both of you. She lives in the garden house behind the house.”
“She doesn’t live in the servant’s quarters?”
“The servant’s quarters were taken up at the time but we’ve never moved her out of it. It’s kind of a secret gift to her… Actually, Trinidad wanted it off limits because that was ‘her spot’.”
“How is Trinidad related to you, Lord Blackwood?”
“Uh…” He looked at Arnold and he made a face. “Well… it’s a bit of a complicated issue.”
“I’m sure there’s an explanation to it.”
“You know that Delaware is immortal, right?”
“Yes.”
“So is Trinidad… Trinidad is my older brother.”
“I see… That makes a little more sense now. I was wondering why Huntley would call him Uncle. I thought it was an endearment but… it was the truth then?”
“Yeah.”
They walked to the garden house and Tavit knocked on the door. They waited a couple of minutes until the door finally opened and Arnold made a face at Delaware.
“Dear God, woman, what has happened to you?”
“Hmm, Arnold…” she said, leaning on the door with a tired smile.
“I brought him here because you have been uncharacteristically sick.”
“Sure…” She opened the door wider and waved to the side. “Don’t mind the smell, I was going to dump it when I had the strength…”
The men looked over and found a bucket that Tavit assumed was vomit. Arnold elbowed his son in the ribs.
“Empty that for her.”
He did and Delaware sat on the bed as Arnold began to examine her.
“Tell me what’s going on. You’ve never been sick before.”
“I’m nauseous as can be and almost threw up twice to the door. My breasts are sore and hurt. I’m dizzy and have headaches a lot.”
Arnold had been checking her vitals while she spoke and then gave her a look.
“How long have all those symptoms been going on?”
“I’ve had the sore breasts for a bit but that wasn’t causing a problem until now. The nausea started getting worse some days ago. The first starts of it was a couple weeks ago.”
“Uh huh, lay back onto your back please.”
Delaware did as told and Arnold put his stethoscope to her stomach and then began to feel her stomach for a moment.
“What are you doing?”
“Delaware?”
“What?”
“Are you an idiot?”
“No. What are you getting at Old Man?” she growled.
“You didn’t need me to tell you that your symptoms indicate only one thing: you’re pregnant.”
Delaware and Tavit looked at him in shock with their mouths open.
“I-I’m what?”
“Pregnant.”
“That can’t be!” Delaware screamed. Arnold made a face at her. “I thought my menstrual cycles ended a long time ago! I- I shouldn’t be able to be pregnant at all!”
“Delaware, when was your last menstrual cycle?”
“I don’t remember! It’s been so long!”
“It looks like it didn’t stop as you thought it did. It just slowed down to a crawl.”
“So- so…”
“Congratulations.” He said sarcastically.
“Then who’s the father?” Tavit asked.
Arnold looked at her and she made a face.
“Delaware?”
“I have a thought but I’m not sure…”
“Well?”
She sat up and made a sign to Tavit. His eyes widened and he shook her shoulders.
“Tell me that’s not true.”
“It can only be…”
“HOW THE HELL DID THAT HAPPEN?!” he yelled.
“Hey, want to put us in on it?”
“I think it’s… I think it’s Trinidad’s.”
Everyone just stared at her as she looked away. Tavit was fuming.
“How, Delaware?! How!”
“I got drunk off of absinthe someone gave me. I woke up the next morning in his bed, naked. I wasn’t sure if anything happened.”
“You woke up in a man’s bed naked, what did you think?” Arnold growled.
“Sometimes if you’re drunk you fall asleep trying to get your clothes off. I’ve done it plenty of times. And it’s not like I was a virgin anyway. I’ve been married before when I was younger but the act of watching my husband crumble away hurt after about the first two. So… it’s not like I’ve never had sex but… I wasn’t sure I actually did anything.”
“Well you have and now what?”
“Why are you so angry?” Delaware asked.
“Because you’re an unmarried maid under my responsibility and Trinidad has never had to have that responsibility before. You rejected him and turned him down and now you’re pregnant with his child?”
“Well it wasn’t like I planned it all out, Tavit! I didn’t mean to break anyone’s heart but I’ve never had someone who could potentially be with me forever be someone I’ve known since literal childhood. It was a shock for me. Besides, knowing that Trinidad had grown past his boyhood fascination into a manly concept of love towards me was confusing to me. I never meant to hurt him in anyway. Obviously the little Green Fairy thought she could help us out.”
“So… who’s going to tell Trinidad?” Radley asked.
“Isn’t that the question of the century?”
“I’ll tell him.” Tavit said. “It’s a little unconventional but I think it would be best heard from me.”
“I think he’s right.” Arnold said, writing on a pad. “Considering the circumstances and his love that you unknowingly rejected.”
Delaware made a face. “Will he be mad?”
“I have no idea. He was happy when I told him about Huntley but… I don’t know. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
“I’ve written a prescription for you for vitamins. Radley will bring them back here due to… suspicious behavior in your servant staff. And she must be on bed rest. When the time is right, you must tell the household that she is expecting.”
“Yes, I will. Thank you for coming, Dr. Sexton.”
“Aye, no problem. Come on, Radley.”
Radley followed his son out of the garden house and Tavit turned to Delaware, who had fallen back on the bed and was staring at the ceiling.
“I’ll move out if I have to.” She said, turning to look at him. “This has never happened to me but I don’t want to bring reproach on the house… I’ll leave if that is your will.”
Tavit got on his knees next to the bed and grabbed her hand.
“Ms. Tate… I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to do that, kick you out, but…”
“I know. If you let me stay then you can’t make an example… Look, I will leave tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes. I have a house tucked back that’s in my name. Make an excuse for me.”
“And you don’t think Trinidad will have a cow? He just got you back and then he loses you again?”
“It’s for the best.” She said, closing her eyes. “Don’t tell Trinidad anything about the baby. Tell him…” she snapped her fingers. “Tell him that I was called back by the infirmary for the war victims. Tell him they needed me and I will be back later on in the year.”
“Do you think he’s that dumb?”
“No. But it will bide me time.”
“He won’t be happy you didn’t say goodbye. He will be suspicious.”
“Let him be. I will write letters to him so that we won’t be out of touch like before.”
“Delaware, why are you scared?”
“Trinidad is so different and I just… I don’t know. Being the way he is and finding out he’s turning into a monster and is immortal and everything is too much already. Now he will have to worry about having sex with me, a baby that could or could not be immortal… that stress alone is not something he needs right now. Losing his family in the future is one thing but losing a child if it’s not immortal?”
“And you can handle that?”
“I’ve lost more families than anyone else in the world. Am I used to it, no. I’m never used to it. Can I handle it, yes.”
Tavit stood up, pacing.
“I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“Well, how about this then: keep it secret for as long as you can. I mean that in try for a long, long time. When you can’t keep it secret anymore, tell him and call me.”
“I guess that can work… I’m sorry, Ms. Tate.”
“No, I’m sorry. Who would have ever known I was still capable of this sort of thing?”
“I’ll visit you to check on you.”
Delaware nodded as they discussed a little more details with this plan.