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“What has caused her condition?” Lavinia asked.
“I’m not sure. It would help to know how she seemed before the onset of her illness.”
Lavinia looked at Artie before answering the doctor. “She hasn’t been herself lately at all,” she said. “Delia is usually so happy, so engaging. But the past few days, she has seemed a bit. . .off. Irritable. And Delia is never irritable. Quite the contrary.”
“Not like herself at all,” Artie added. “I was beginning to wonder if I could say a word to her without it being the wrong one.”
“Hmm,” Dr. Ellis mused. “Obviously something is amiss for her to be in this unresponsive state.” He thought for a moment, watching Delia closely. “With your permission, I would like to examine the patient more thoroughly.I would ask you to remain with me, Lady Thurlby, for propriety’s sake.”
“Of course, Dr. Ellis,” Lucas’s mother said.
Dr. Ellis nodded.
The others exited the room, and Dr. Ellis quietly shut the door behind them. Lucas led Lavinia to the chair he’d been sitting in earlier and sat in the one next to it, taking her hand in his. It felt cold to the touch.
Artie, not unpredictably, began pacing again. Hannah, to Lucas’s surprise, placed her ear next to the door. “I can’t hear nothing—no rustling of bedclothes, nothing to indicate what that doctor fellow might be doing,” she reported to the others before giving up.
“Oh, Lucas, I can hardly bear it,” Lavinia whispered. “What if we lose her? What will poor Artie do without her? They’ve been friends for decades.”
“We will pray that doesn’t happen, my dear, but if it does, we will honor her life as best we can and we will be there for Artie and share his grief.”
Several minutes passed, and finally, Dr. Ellis again opened the door, and he and Lucas’s mother joined them in the corridor. His mother had her handkerchief pressed to her mouth, and she turned away from the group, which seemed rather alarming to Lucas. He hoped it wasn’t an indication of worse news to come.
“After having thoroughly examined Miss Weston and consulted with Lady Thurlby, I’m afraid I have nothing more to say to you regarding Miss Weston’s medical situation at this time,” Dr. Ellis said. “My suggestion is to be patient and wait. The rest is up to Miss Weston.”
“There’s nothing more you can tell us? Nothing at all?” Lavinia asked, rising to her feet. Lucas rose as well and stood behind her, resting his hands on her shoulders.
“Perhaps a day or two more will provide answers,” Dr. Ellis said. “In the meantime, there is nothing else I can do. You have leave to call upon me at any time, should her condition change.” He nodded to Lucas’s mother. “I can find my way out, Lady Thurlby.”
“Thank you, Dr. Ellis. We are grateful to you for your time,” she said and seemed much more composed now than when she’d exited the room. “But I will accompany you, nonetheless. There are a few questions regarding Miss Weston’s care I wish to discuss with you.”
He nodded to her in acknowledgment, and the two of them proceeded down the corridor to the front of the house.
“I’ll sit with Delia,” Hannah volunteered. “I’ll just go get my sewing basket first.”
“Iintend to sit with her,” Artie declared. “I don’t plan to leave her side for a single moment.”
“We shallalltake shifts so that someone is with her at all times,” Lavinia stated decisively. “I will not have you wearing yourself out with your vigilance, Arthur Drake. I couldn’t bear it if you were to get ill too.”
“You’ll need food and sleep if you intend to stay strong for Delia’s sake,” Lucas said in the calm, firm tone he’d frequently had to use with Anthony on the worst days. Lucas could see the same type of agitation now in Artie, poor fellow.
“You can stay with her first, then, Artie. I’ll come back later,” Hannah said.
Without further ado, Artie rushed into Delia’s room.
For the rest of the day, someone remained at Delia’s side—mainly Artie, which was no great surprise, although he did allow himself short periods of time away from her, with Hannah or Lavinia keeping vigil in his place. Even his mother sat with Delia a few times during the day and evening, as did Lucas’s sisters when they arrived home.
The meeting Lavinia and Lucas were to have had with his parents didn’t happen, the concern for Delia’s welfare taking precedence.
“I shall sit with her later this evening,” Clara said at supper after she and Isaac and the children had returned to Alderwood. Lavinia was sitting with Delia, and Hannah had asked to take supper in her room so she could eat quickly and keep Lavinia company. “I feel so dreadfully sorry we were not here to help earlier.”
“You must save your strength for your children and the babe you are carrying, Clara. I will go up after supper so Lavinia can rest, and I shall read aloud to Delia this time,” Susan declared. “Perhaps she will hear the words in her sleep, and it will help her awaken.”
“Take care you select something with lively prose, then, not one of James’s stuffy legal texts,” Simon said with a grin.
“A little more tact, if you please, Simon,” Lucas said. He glanced at Artie, but the poor man was lost in his thoughts and hadn’t heard the flippant remark.
“No slight was intended,” Simon said. “My apologies.” He lifted his goblet and drained it, then signaled the footman for more.
