Page 6 of Sweet Mead for Lady Martine

Chapter 2

Martine held one of Sage’s hands while Josefina held the other. David’s sisters entered the room and closed the door. Martine had never been present at the birth of a child. She wasn’t quite sure that she was ready for such an experience. But while she’d told her sister to leave the room, she wasn’t going to leave Sage. Sage was a good friend and she needed Martine’s support. Not only was she a friend but she was family now. Martine would never abandon family.

“Don’t push yet, my lady. Please wait,” said Greta, the mother of the proprietor she’d met named David. “I will need those clean pieces of cloth soon. And get my shears ready,” the woman told her daughters.

The girls were both very helpful in assisting the woman. They did as told and not once did they flinch. They were strong and as sturdy as rocks. Martine wished she could say the same about herself. All three of these commoners were uncannily calm during this, even with all the crying and screaming in pain from Sage. Martine’s nerves shook. She wasn’t ready for this and felt dizzy and lightheaded.

“You’re doing fine,” Martine whispered to Sage, trying to encourage the girl.

“Yes, you are strong, Sage,” said Josefina. Sage and Josefina were both originally from below the salt. They were given their titles of being ladies when they married nobles of Martine’s family.

“Ooooooh,” wailed Sage in pain. “I am a healer and I know something is wrong. I can tell.” She gritted her teeth, sweating, and crying from the immense pain. “Tell me what it is. I need to know. Tell me the truth!”

Martine looked over to Greta in question. Greta in turn looked up at her eldest and pregnant daughter.

“Tell her, mother,” said Cecelia. “I will be having a baby soon, and I wouldn’t want anyone keeping the truth from me.”

“The truth? Is something wrong?” Martine had no idea this was the case since none of the women had led her to believe this was anything but a normal birth.

“Mayhap we should have sent someone to town to try to find the midwife after all,” said Greta. “I’m sorry, Lady Sage, but I’m pretty sure your baby is breech.”

“Breech?” asked Josefina with a gasp.

“Doesn’t that mean feet first?” asked Martine.

“Well, I’m not exactly sure if it’s the baby’s feet or rump, but it sure feels backwards,” said Greta, feeling Sage’s belly and checking out the situation.

“Can it be born this way?” asked the younger of the daughters.

“It can but it is risky to both the baby as well as the mother, Matilda,” Greta told her daughter, shaking her head. “And I might need to cut her open if the baby gets stuck.”

That made Sage scream even louder.

“Nay! Don’t do that.” Martine thought her hand would break since Sage was gripping it so hard. “There must be another way.”

“The baby needs to be turned around,” Greta informed her, still feeling Sage’s stomach. “It might not be too late to do it, but the baby will need to be guided.”

“Well, can you do it?” asked Martine. “Please say yes.”

“I will try, but I will need help,” said Greta. “It won’t be easy. I’ve never done this before so I’m not even sure if it will be successful.”

“Mother, I’m scared,” said Matilda, her gaze jutting over to Sage who was squirming in pain. “I don’t want to help do this after all.”

“Go then,” said the girl’s mother. “It’s all right. You leave too, Cecelia.”

“But Mother, you cannot do this alone.” Cecelia’s voice held extreme concern.

“I don’t want you two to be held responsible,” said Greta in a soft voice. Fear painted her face.

“What does that mean?” asked Martine.

“She means, if the baby or the baby’s mother dies, we will be blamed and executed,” explained Cecelia. “This is a noblewoman, not one of the townsfolk. Remember, we are naught but commoners.”

“Well, we should send for the midwife then,” said Josefina.

“Nay. It’s too late,” said Greta. “The baby will not wait and Lady Sage is in too much pain. There is not enough time. We need to do something right now. Besides, there is a storm out there and the midwife might not even be able to make it here because of the weather. We cannot take that chance by waiting.”

“Surely, there must be someone who can help you,” said Martine.