Chapter 1 : The Pregnancy
Dagmar quickly ran out of the Queen’s chambers, with a huge smile on her face. She was holding Georgiana’s corset and a white tissue – an immaculate one. She was running in the Castle’s corridors, looking for Dame Rosalind.
The severe old woman was in the Kitchens, shouting at maids. Dagmar went up to her and called her, timidly. Dame Rosalind turned to her and barked:
“What?”
The Queen’s maid was startled by Dame Rosalind’s violent answer. Dame Rosalind realised that she had been too vindictive with the poor maid and she said, in a more serene tone:
“What is it, Dagmar?”
“I have to talk to you…” She looked at the other maids, watching them. “In private.”
Dame Rosalind sighed and followed Dagmar out of the kitchen. In the Glass corridor, they were alone. Dame Rosalind, impatient, asked her to expose right now the matter. Dagmar told her, whispering:
“The Queen has not bled for two months and she can’t fit in her usual corset.” (She showed her the corset and the spick-and-span tissue.) “I think she is with child.”
A smile appeared on Dame Rosalind’s face.
“A child? The Queen is pregnant!”
“She is.”
“Are you certain?”
“I’m sure of it!” the maid responded, very confident of her statement.
Dame Rosalind started to be nervous. It had been three months since the monarch and the king consort got married. Now, the Queen was with child and Dame Rosalind would be in charge of it. She knew that, in a few months, she would have to help the queen give birth to the first heir.
“Oh my... Thus, we must tell Lord Rufus. Everyone needs to know that the Queen is bearing the heir to the Throne.”
“I’m going to see him.”
“Alright. Tell him to warn the Parliament. And give me this!” Dame Rosalind told her, grabbing the corset and the tissue from the maid’s hands.
Dagmar then ran in the Castle again, looking for Lord Rufus. She was surprised to find him in the Gardens of Roses, alone, reading on a bench. She went up to him, breathless. He noticed her right away.
“Dagmar?” he asked her. “Are you okay?”
“I must talk with you, Lord…”
“What happened? The Queen is not well?”
“She is, sir… Oh, she is…”
He closed his book and got up.
“What is it, then?” he said, starting to get worried.
“The Queen is pregnant, sir!”
Lord Rufus’ eyes widened. Georgiana was pregnant. He didn’t expect to hear that today.
“She is?”
“Yes, she is! There is no doubt about it! You must warn the Parliament.”
“Yes… yes… I must.” Lord Rufus said, still stunned by the news.
Suddenly they heard the bells. They were all singing the same tune: ‘The Heir is coming. Forsyth is stronger than ever.’
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‘I hate my life. I really abhor it.’
Georgiana was looking at the ceiling of her bedroom. Actually, it was the only thing she could look at, without hurting her back. Her gigantic belly was so heavy she could not get up.
She did not know the pregnancy could be that tough to endure. She was 9-month pregnant, almost ready to give birth. The only thing Georgiana wanted was for this babe to get out of her body. She would give everything to stop this hell.
All of a sudden, the door of the bedroom opened. With her massive stomach blocking her view to the entrance, she could not see who was walking towards the bed she was laid on. But then, she heard someone say:
“Hi, mila.”
She recognised automatically this voice: Rainer.
“What do you want?” she said in a bitter voice.
Rainer sat next to her. He looked happy – too happy for Georgiana. He retorted, with a huge smile:
“Happy to see you too.” He looked at her belly. “How is he?”
“He is fine! It is me who is not well!” she shouted.
“Why, mila?”
Georgiana pulled a face when she heard him say mila. Soon after they got married, Rainer started to give her that stupid nickname – Georgiana hated it. However, he never told her what this word meant.
“I am fed up with this! Why have the baby not come out already?” she answered, angry.
“Dame Rosalind said you’re due for this month. You just have to be patient.”
She was ready to slap him. Patient? He was not the one carrying this baby!
“I cannot stand this anymore. God… I hate that.”
“Don’t say that, mila. It’s your baby. Our baby. It’s the most beautiful thing that can happen to us.”
“Us? Or the country?”
“C’mon… Stop complaining, mila.”
Georgiana only gave him a groan for an answer. Rainer knew she was about to get really mad so he decided to change the subject.
“By the way, Lord Rufus told me he would come by in a few hours to make you sign some papers.”
“Why can’t he come now? Does he also have a baby to give birth to?”
‘Okay, she’s really angry. I need to calm her.’ Rainer thought, thinking of a way to ease her off. He took her hand. She did not object to his touch but she refused to look at him in the eyes.
“This will be over soon, Georgiana. You will be back in your office in a few. Don’t worry.”
“I know it will be over. But I do not like being stuck here is this bloody bed while you walk freely around the castle.”
“Do you want me to be stuck here with you?” he said, smiling.
Georgiana looked at him, with dark angry eyes.
“Very funny.”
“I know I am!” he retorted, as if he did not perceive her sarcasm. “That’s why you love me, right, mila?”
“I hate you.”
He arched an eyebrow.
“Really? How so?”
“Because you are the one who put me in this situation!” she told him, showing him her stomach.
“What can I say? You cannot resist me in bed.”
The Queen looked away, but Rainer discerned her smile.
“You are disgusting.”
“That’s not what you said when we conceive this little one” he said, placing his hand on her belly.
She rolled her eyes. He annoyed her so much. She was about to answer to him but she stopped herself. She felt a sudden pain between her legs. Then, she felt a liquid moistening the bed sheet.
“Are you okay, mila?”
Georgiana slowly turned to him.
“Rainer… I think my water just broke.”
