“I’m wet,” Faith whispered, embarrassed. “There’s water trickling down my leg.”
“Dear Lord,” Mary murmured. “It’s the baby.” She grabbed Faith by the arm, urgently guiding her to the kitchen door. “Can you walk?”
* * *
Could she walk? It seemed to Faith she’d been walking for hours. She had kept a steady pace around the
bedroom long before Dr. Kevin arrived with a noticeably pregnant Temperance in tow. Faith had been walking since the agony began. She was tired, so tired. And it hurt so much. She just wanted to lie down and rest, but Sarah wouldn’t hear of it. She and Reese took turns walking Faith around the room.
They were arguing about it. She could hear Kevin insisting that Sarah let Faith lie down. Sarah shook her head, speaking rapidly in Cherokee, refusing to consider the idea.
“What’s she saying?” Kevin asked Reese, who was busy supporting most of Faith’s weight. “I can’t understand her when she gets excited.”
“She says no,” Reese told him. “She says it’s too early to let Faith lie down.” Reese’s face was whiter than Kevin had ever seen it. Faith’s labor was exacting a toll on him, too. “She says Cherokee women walk until the pains get very close.” He repeated his aunt’s words, but privately he agreed with Kevin. He wanted Faith’s ordeal to end. He pleaded silently with Sarah to allow Faith to lie down.
“Faith is not Cherokee, dammit!” Kevin exploded. “Besides, I’m the doctor!”
“The baby is part Cherokee.” Temperance touched his elbow. “Faith said she wanted her child born in the Cherokee tradition.”
“Temperance, the baby, is not doing the walking,” Kevin pointed out. “Our…Faith is.”
Faith panted through another strong contraction. “Walk,” she whispered to Reese when it was over. “Walk.” She took a step, determined to keep walking.
“All right,” Kevin conceded, “She can walk a while longer. But when I think she’s had enough, she’s going to bed. Understand?” Everyone nodded obediently except Sarah, who ignored Kevin’s blustering and continued to prepare for the child’s arrival.
“Enough!” Kevin roared half an hour later, when Faith’s contractions were so close together she could barely move. Reese had been half-carrying, half-dragging, her for the past twenty-five minutes.
Sarah shook her head.
“Don’t shake your head at me, woman!” Kevin warned. “She’s going in the bed!” He nodded at Reese who lifted Faith into his arms.” Still, Sarah shook her head, speaking hurriedly and gesturing with her hands.
“She says the bed’s too soft,” Reese translated. “She says Faith should squat down.”
“Absolutely not!” Kevin thundered. “I’ll not have my first grandchild fall on his head trying to be born!”
“What?” Reese shifted his attention from Faith to Kevin, then turned to Tempy. She nodded in confirmation. “Holy Mary, Mother of God!” Kevin’s favorite oath sprang from Reese’s lips.
“That’s right, lad,” Kevin said. “My grandchild,” he repeated for emphasis. “Faith is our daughter. Mine and Temperance’s.” Kevin spoke clearly, confidently. “Now, my boy, gently place my daughter on that bed so I can bring your child into the world.”
Reese spared a glance in Sarah’s direction, but did as he was told. He was too shocked by Kevin’s pronouncement to do otherwise. Taking a great deal of care not to hurt her, Reese lowered Faith to the bed.
“Now,” Kevin ordered, rolling up his sleeves and washing his hands, “step back out of the way.”
Reese stood firm. The baby might be Kevin’s grandchild, and he still wasn’t totally convinced of that, but, dammit, it was his child! He refused to leave Faith to endure the agony by herself.
A short while later Reese was wishing he’d had the good sense to leave. Every one of Faith’s anguished screams stabbed him right through the heart. He became paler by the minute. Just when Reese feared he would faint and disgrace himself completely, his child was born.
“Temperance, my darling,” Kevin crowed. “We’ve got ourselves a grandchild.” He eased the baby out of the birth canal, laughing and crying at the same time as the infant let out a lusty squall.
Faith heard Kevin’s words, but she was too tired to make sense of them. Later, she promised herself. Later, she would sort everything out. But first she wanted to see her baby. She wanted to see the miracle she and Reese had created. Just once before she closed her eyes.
“What is it?” she asked, pushing herself up, trying to see.
Temperance hurried to her side, the infant tucked securely in her arms. “You have a daughter, Faith,” Temperance told her. “A beautiful, little girl.”
She gently placed the baby in Faith’s arms, then helped Faith sit up against the pillows. Temperance opened the blanket covering the tiny bundle so Faith could get her first look at her baby’s tiny face.
Faith studied the baby. Tempy hadn’t exaggerated. She was beautiful with her crown of ebony hair and tiny features. “She has blue eyes.”