Chapter 50

Edmund had sent word via Marie that he wanted a wet-nurse to feed our child. Several local village women had given birth, would they not be more than adequate?

I had insisted we keep up with modern fashion and I would be allowed to feed them myself. Thankfully Doctor Mathers was a proponent of this new belief. It was beginning to appear unseemly to not feed one's own baby.

While Edmund thought this a bow to vanity on my part, and declared it loudly to the room, I had my own reasons. I need my milk to be flowing for I must be able to feed the baby wherever I am fleeing to with Fitz.

Edmund is rarely in my presence. I may see him once a day as he peers around the door of my room. His cane announces his presence and I ensure I smile in a saintly fashion. He seems to think that my impending motherhood has made me forget all about his horrific behaviour.

He is absent, not because he is being kind to me but because he is starting to decline. By the time we left London he was barely able to