AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Julie felt Robert’s hand slide away from hers, his heat leave her side as he moved to the door, and she wanted to cry at the loss. But her throat was constricted, and she felt paralyzed. Her world blurred in front of her. The voices sounded far away; the clock ticked loudly in her head.
What seemed like an eternity later, Robert came back to her side. He sat beside her and gently guided her head to his shoulder, and encircled her in the heat of his arms. He kissed the top of her head and moved his hands comfortingly up and down her back. Julie heard herself sob, and only then did she realize the tears were running down her face. She was sobbing frantically, loudly, gasping for air, clinging to Robert’s body.
Mary was dying. She waited too long to get her back. And now she was dying. She wanted to go to her. To sit with her and talk until her throat was hoarse. But Mary shouldn’t see her looking like a mess. Mary couldn’t know. Julie clenched Robert’s lapels in her hands as she burrowed farther into his shirt, soaking it with her tears. Robert kept stroking her back in small soothing circles and murmuring nonsense in her ear.
“Shh,” he crooned. “It’s going to be all right.” But it wasn’t. And it wouldn’t. Not after Mary was gone.
After a while, Julie finally peeled herself from Robert’s side and wiped at her tears.
“I don’t believe it’s true,” she said, her voice gravelly from crying.
“We’ll get a second opinion. And third. Or however many we need. Doctors are wrong about this all the time.”
Julie nodded to herself. Now that she was done crying, she could think clearer—the veil of grief lifting from her foggy mind. Doctors were wrong. In fact, they had predicted Mary to not live through her first years. When she was slow in walking, they’d predicted she’d spend the rest of her life without being able to walk or talk. Mary was resilient. She would survive anything.
“We need to—” Julie sniffed and wiped at her wet face.
Robert extended her a handkerchief. She blew into it and wiped her face dry.
“We need to tell the dowager what the doctor said. Whether it’s true or not, she needs to know the truth—and about the abuse—” Julie stopped as her voice cracked.
“She already knows.” Robert grimaced and stood from the settee as if uncomfortable.
“Pardon?” Julie followed her restless husband’s form with her gaze.
“She knows. When Mary just arrived at the estate,” he took a deep breath, “there were fresh bruises on her. Bruises, rope burns, cuts.”
Julie’s eyes widened exponentially. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t want to worry you more than you already were. Mary wasn’t talking to you; you felt guilty as it was. What would it have changed?”
“I would’ve—” Julie stumbled for words. “I could’ve, Maybe I would insist on seeing a doctor sooner and—”
“And what? Spent more time crying? I doubt that would have changed the matter.”
Julie swallowed. “Perhaps you’re right.” She nodded. “No, you are right. It wouldn’t have changed things, but she’s my sister! I deserve to know everything there is to do with her. I wish you wouldn’t make decisions about her without me.”
Julie had a bitter taste in her mouth from all the things Robert was keeping from her. She’d lived that life under her father’s roof: being ordered around, not being listened to, never being consulted about anything, even her own life. She couldn’t do it again.
“And not just about her,” she finished her thought out loud.
“I beg your pardon?” Robert threw her a confused look.
Julie shook her head. Right now wasn’t the time to get into any of this. Mary needed her.
“We need to go to Mary,” she said, and resolutely stood from the settee.
Robert nodded and led her out of the room.
* * *
By the time they reached Mary’s room, she was sitting up in bed and chatting amicably with her maid. Robert could see relief flooding his wife’s features at the sight. Mary was better. He didn’t know whether what the doctor said was true, or if his predictions were correct, but he could see clearly that Mary felt better than even this morning.
They’d spent most of the day at home. Mary didn’t want to stay abed, and they allowed her to roam about the house a little. The consensus was that she’d just got too tired from the trip, but Robert kept it in the back of his head to schedule the visits to more doctors throughout the upcoming months.
It was also decided that Mary would spend dinners with them from then on. Julie didn’t want to spend any time apart from her sister, and to be honest, neither did he and even the dowager.
Robert was glad for Mary’s presence during the supper for other reasons too. For instance, he would have felt like sitting on needles throughout supper. If it weren’t for Mary, he couldn’t think of how he would dodge the questions regarding where he spent the few previous nights. Every time conversation came upon his activities in London, an awkward silence fell around the table.
