The Journey
by Laura Spudzmom
Chapter 04
Isabella leaned over the bucket and expelled the rest of what she'd eaten at the mid-day meal as Gerty bustled into the room with a tray. "Pray, do not bring me food!" Isabella begged miserably while the old servant clucked over her with a cool, wet cloth.
"Hush now child," she soothed as she wiped her brow and mouth. "Tis only a bit of bread and Lady Mary's special tea. 'Twill settle your belly."
Isabella sat back and Gerty pressed the cup into her hands. "Drink now child," she insisted as she set the fouled bucket outside the door for one of the lower servants to empty and clean. "We'll have ya right as rain by the time yer young lord is home for supper."
After a few sips of tea, Bella laid back against the pillows. "Pray, cease speaking of food…"
Gerty tsk'ed. "Ya must eat lass. 'Tis good for the wee one in yer belly. Now sit up and finish yer tea and bread or I'll be havin' to speak with yer young lord about havin' the doctor 'round. He'll bleed ya for sure he will with as sickly as ye look."
Isabella's eyes went wide and she slowly struggled into a sitting position. Beginning to nibble the bread, she scowled at the old servant. "No doctor, do you hear Gerty? I am just fine…"
The old servant "hmph'ed" and hurried from the room as Isabella absently rubbed a hand over her belly with a sigh. Lady Mary—and all the other females in the home, for that matter—had told her that the sickness would cease by now, but it hadn't and she was doing her best to avoid having the doctor in, even going so far as to hide her sickness from her husband. The old midwife was bad enough, but the doctor terrified her, for his answer to every ailment seemed to be blood-letting and she knew—or at least Bella Swan knew the practice to be nothing more than medieval quackery.
Speaking of medieval practices, she'd been married to Carlisle now for six months and he'd gone out hunting each one of those months, only to return safely each time for which she was very grateful. Unfortunately, each safe return was doing nothing to assuage her stress and worry, especially now that he'd turned twenty and three.
She knew, from Bella Swans memories, this was the human age of vampire Carlisle, so it really was just a matter of time as long as he insisted on the hunts.
She'd begged him to cease several times now and every time had been gently rebuffed by him, but the last time she'd tried her father-in-law had been witness and had taken it upon himself to instruct his son in how to deal with a disobedient wife. She'd been mortified when he'd told his son she needed a sound thrashing to which Carlisle had merely nodded. He hadn't done it though and for that, she was ever thankful for she knew it was standard practice for the time. She just thanked Providence Carlisle had much too tender a heart to do such a thing.
Lying back once more after finishing the tea, she relaxed as well as she could while her child rolled and kicked under her hand. The sickness seemed to be unrelenting but the child was active and seemed to be healthy and for that, she was grateful.
As her stomach finally settled, her eyes grew heavy and she began to slip away into sleep, all the while wondering how everything would turn out.
The walk home from the church was a happy one this day for Carlisle Cullen. The sun was actually shining, the people were out in droves and calling out greetings to him as he passed by with a decided spring in his step. Yes, there was just no denying it; he was a happy and blessed man and he couldn't wait to get home to see his beautiful wife whom he loved more with each day that passed.
Stepping inside his home, he shut the door quietly before hanging his hat by the door. "Good even' Gerty," he greeted the old woman with a smile.
"Ah, there ye are young lord," Gerty returned as she bustled into the entryway. "I'll be taking yer cloak and gloves then," she said as she shoo'ed him away. "Ye need to be seein' to yer lady wife. She's been in a sickly way today and ye might have to be having the doctor in."
He looked at her sharply with a frown. "What ails my wife then?"
"She's sickly and takin' to her bed but has yet to take a fever."
Carlisle nodded absently and hurried from the room before the maid was even done speaking. It was good that Isabella didn't have a fever, but he knew with many ills, the fever mightn't be far behind. Just the thought struck terror in his heart and he quickened his pace.
Arriving at his rooms, he spied the bucket outside the door and his heart clenched in dread. He knew she'd been sick in her early days of carrying the babe, but the midwife had said it was normal and she would be past that now, so what could this be?
Opening the door quietly, he slipped inside and went to her side as she slept. Gerty was right; she looked much too pale and he could see where her hair had matted to her brow with sweat. He felt of her forehead and breathed a sigh of relief when he found it cool to the touch.
She moved then and sighed, as if sensing his presence and he smiled and smoothed her hair back despite his worry. "My Lord?" she mumbled as her eyelids fluttered open and she smiled when she saw him sitting there. "You're home," she breathed. "I'm happy to see you."
"Gerty has informed me you're ill. I believe 'tis time to fetch the doctor."
Her eyes widened and she clutched his hand. "No, my lord! 'Tis only the babe giving me a sick belly. I'll be fine!"
He frowned. "You know I indulge you as best I can, but the midwife said that should all be past. Now, no arguing, 'tis time the doctor see you. Let him be the judge. He is more learned in these matters than we."
Tears filled her eyes and spilled over. "I pray thee my lord, do not fetch the doctor. He will bleed me and I will be weaker for it."
His brow creased and he caressed her pale cheek. "You do not look well. You're much too pale. 'Tis true, I am heartened you do not yet have a fever, yet and still…"
"Please my lord…" she begged and her heart sank when he shook his head.
"Forgive me Isabella, but I do this for your good."
He rose from the bed and left the room and she turned her face to sob into the pillow.
~o0o~
Carlisle Cullen frowned and rubbed his forehead with the fingers of his left hand while he steered the car with his right. He'd been doing that a lot lately—frowning, that is—but his thoughts at the moment were particularly grim.
He and his family had just packed up and left their home in Forks, WA within a three day span all on the insistence of his first childe, Edward and his need to get far away from the human girl he'd been dating for the past few months. He felt they were a danger to the girl, and perhaps he was right…
He sighed and felt the hand of his companion and dear friend on his knee. He glanced over and she smiled sadly. "We'll get through this Carlisle. We'll be fine—Edward will be fine."
His finely arched brows drew together as he stared up the tree-lined winding road. "I don't know Esme. This feels so different from all our previous moves, no matter how rushed they were, they weren't like this… This one just feels…wrong."
Her brows inched up and she smiled. "Taking over Alice's job now are you Doctor?"
He chuckled, but his heart wasn't in it as he nodded. "Perhaps so Es…perhaps so…"
The vibrations of Esme's phone grabbed their attention and she answered it. "Yes Alice, what can I do for you?
"Esme, tell Carlisle we need to turn around and go back now please."
Esme glanced at Carlisle, both of them now looking very perplexed, particularly since Alice was Edward's main advocate in this move.
"Why would that be Alice?" Carlisle asked, knowing she could hear him easily. "You, along with Edward, were very insistent we leave after what happened at Bella's birthday. Now, out of the blue, we need to go back? Is there something you forgot, and if so, why does it take all of us to retrieve it?"
They both heard a weary sigh come from the tiny speaker before she answered. "I know I said this move was for the best—necessary even—but trust me when I say the necessary part has been fulfilled and now we must go back."
Carlisle was a patient being, he really was and he always did his best to see to the happiness of those in his family, but he could honestly say, his patience was wearing dangerously thin with this whole mess and it showed in his tone now. "Go back for what Alice and for how long exactly? I'm getting the distinct feeling this isn't just a trip back to get something we've missed."
Another sigh came through and Carlisle slowed and pulled over as they waited for Alice to answer. "It isn't Carlisle. We'll be going back for a while. The exact length of time I can't say, but it will be a couple of months at least."
"What about Edward?" Esme questioned. "Won't he be upset with all of us for this? He was vehement about this move Alice…"
"Yes, I'm aware Esme, but it's imperative we go back! Please…" Another sigh and her tone gentled. "Please, just trust me?"
Carlisle looked over at Esme and finally nodded. "All right Alice, we'll trust you. I'm turning around now and we'll see you all back at the house."
"Thank you Carlisle and Jasper has already called Em and Rose, so they know, not that Rose is very happy with me about it…" she grumbled just as Emmett's jeep passed them with a honk as they drove back to Forks.
"Oh! And before I forget, I already called the hospital and got everything straightened out with them. You're due to be back on duty this very night Carlisle, so get a move on!"
She hung up and Esme patted him on the knee as he made a u-turn and got back on the road. "Patience honey…have patience," she said with a smirk and a shake of her head.
~o0o~
"Welcome back Dr. Cullen," the young nurse greeted him with a smirk as he passed by. It seemed there was an overabundance of sarcasm to be had in the ER of Forks General this evening as she'd been the eighth member of staff to 'welcome' him back when he'd been 'gone' less than twenty-four hours.
"Thank you so much Karen," he smirked back. "Missed the place." Her laughter drifted back to him and he smiled as he approached the curtained off area of his next patient. When he got closer, he caught a familiar scent and sighed. It seemed this girl was forever being hurt, one way or another.
Pulling the file before announcing his presence, he was alarmed to see she'd been brought in by ambulance after being found unconscious in the woods. Not wanting to delay any longer, he knocked on the wall and drew back the curtain.
Ignoring Charlie Swan for the moment, he listened as the nurse and physician's assistant briefed him on her condition: slightly hypothermic, some minor abrasions on her right cheek and both hands but no other injuries. All attempts to wake her had failed. "Order a full CT scan and let me know as soon as the results come in. Until then, continue to monitor her vitals just in case complications arise," he instructed while making notes in her chart. When he finished that, he nodded to Charlie and left.
After seeing to other minor injuries for a couple of hours, a nurse approached with a report in her hands which she handed to him as he stood at the nurses station making notes in a chart. "Dr. Cullen, the CT scan report for the Swan girl."
He glanced up and smiled as he took it. "Thank you Lisa." He read it over quickly and made his way to her bed.
Poking his head behind the curtain, he gestured to Charlie and nodded toward the waiting room. "Charlie, join me for a moment and I'll tell you what I know so far."
Charlie followed him and they sat down facing each other. "How is she doc? What's wrong with her?"
"Well, there's good news and there's bad news. The good news is we can't find anything wrong with her, aside from a couple of small scrapes and a slightly lower than normal temperature when she got here. She's back to normal now, the CT scan was normal and everything looks very good. The bad news is she still isn't waking up no matter the stimuli. Now her state of consciousness can't really be classified as a coma at this point but we'll just have to watch and wait at this point. She may wake up quickly on her own or she may continue on the way she is in which case we'll do more extensive tests in a few days." He paused to let all of that sink in with the Chief before continuing. "Do you have any questions for me Charlie?"
Charlie looked up with barely concealed anger. "She went for a walk with your boy. I wanna know what the hell happened and why the hell he left her out there on her own. Why didn't he see her home safely?"
Taking a deep breath, Carlisle nodded and met the Chief's gaze. "I understand your concerns and I'll talk to Edward. I'll have him contact you so that he may answer your questions directly."
Charlie nodded sharply. "Good…that's good," he muttered.
Carlisle stood and placed a hand on Charlie's shoulder. "You have my card Chief. Call me with any questions or concerns. I'll do my best for Bella, we'll figure this out."
Charlie nodded. "Thanks Carlisle. I know you will."
Isabella leaned over the bucket and expelled the rest of what she'd eaten at the mid-day meal as Gerty bustled into the room with a tray. "Pray, do not bring me food!" Isabella begged miserably while the old servant clucked over her with a cool, wet cloth.
"Hush now child," she soothed as she wiped her brow and mouth. "Tis only a bit of bread and Lady Mary's special tea. 'Twill settle your belly."
Isabella sat back and Gerty pressed the cup into her hands. "Drink now child," she insisted as she set the fouled bucket outside the door for one of the lower servants to empty and clean. "We'll have ya right as rain by the time yer young lord is home for supper."
After a few sips of tea, Bella laid back against the pillows. "Pray, cease speaking of food…"
Gerty tsk'ed. "Ya must eat lass. 'Tis good for the wee one in yer belly. Now sit up and finish yer tea and bread or I'll be havin' to speak with yer young lord about havin' the doctor 'round. He'll bleed ya for sure he will with as sickly as ye look."
Isabella's eyes went wide and she slowly struggled into a sitting position. Beginning to nibble the bread, she scowled at the old servant. "No doctor, do you hear Gerty? I am just fine…"
The old servant "hmph'ed" and hurried from the room as Isabella absently rubbed a hand over her belly with a sigh. Lady Mary—and all the other females in the home, for that matter—had told her that the sickness would cease by now, but it hadn't and she was doing her best to avoid having the doctor in, even going so far as to hide her sickness from her husband. The old midwife was bad enough, but the doctor terrified her, for his answer to every ailment seemed to be blood-letting and she knew—or at least Bella Swan knew the practice to be nothing more than medieval quackery.
Speaking of medieval practices, she'd been married to Carlisle now for six months and he'd gone out hunting each one of those months, only to return safely each time for which she was very grateful. Unfortunately, each safe return was doing nothing to assuage her stress and worry, especially now that he'd turned twenty and three.
She knew, from Bella Swans memories, this was the human age of vampire Carlisle, so it really was just a matter of time as long as he insisted on the hunts.
She'd begged him to cease several times now and every time had been gently rebuffed by him, but the last time she'd tried her father-in-law had been witness and had taken it upon himself to instruct his son in how to deal with a disobedient wife. She'd been mortified when he'd told his son she needed a sound thrashing to which Carlisle had merely nodded. He hadn't done it though and for that, she was ever thankful for she knew it was standard practice for the time. She just thanked Providence Carlisle had much too tender a heart to do such a thing.
Lying back once more after finishing the tea, she relaxed as well as she could while her child rolled and kicked under her hand. The sickness seemed to be unrelenting but the child was active and seemed to be healthy and for that, she was grateful.
As her stomach finally settled, her eyes grew heavy and she began to slip away into sleep, all the while wondering how everything would turn out.
The walk home from the church was a happy one this day for Carlisle Cullen. The sun was actually shining, the people were out in droves and calling out greetings to him as he passed by with a decided spring in his step. Yes, there was just no denying it; he was a happy and blessed man and he couldn't wait to get home to see his beautiful wife whom he loved more with each day that passed.
Stepping inside his home, he shut the door quietly before hanging his hat by the door. "Good even' Gerty," he greeted the old woman with a smile.
"Ah, there ye are young lord," Gerty returned as she bustled into the entryway. "I'll be taking yer cloak and gloves then," she said as she shoo'ed him away. "Ye need to be seein' to yer lady wife. She's been in a sickly way today and ye might have to be having the doctor in."
He looked at her sharply with a frown. "What ails my wife then?"
"She's sickly and takin' to her bed but has yet to take a fever."
Carlisle nodded absently and hurried from the room before the maid was even done speaking. It was good that Isabella didn't have a fever, but he knew with many ills, the fever mightn't be far behind. Just the thought struck terror in his heart and he quickened his pace.
Arriving at his rooms, he spied the bucket outside the door and his heart clenched in dread. He knew she'd been sick in her early days of carrying the babe, but the midwife had said it was normal and she would be past that now, so what could this be?
Opening the door quietly, he slipped inside and went to her side as she slept. Gerty was right; she looked much too pale and he could see where her hair had matted to her brow with sweat. He felt of her forehead and breathed a sigh of relief when he found it cool to the touch.
She moved then and sighed, as if sensing his presence and he smiled and smoothed her hair back despite his worry. "My Lord?" she mumbled as her eyelids fluttered open and she smiled when she saw him sitting there. "You're home," she breathed. "I'm happy to see you."
"Gerty has informed me you're ill. I believe 'tis time to fetch the doctor."
Her eyes widened and she clutched his hand. "No, my lord! 'Tis only the babe giving me a sick belly. I'll be fine!"
He frowned. "You know I indulge you as best I can, but the midwife said that should all be past. Now, no arguing, 'tis time the doctor see you. Let him be the judge. He is more learned in these matters than we."
Tears filled her eyes and spilled over. "I pray thee my lord, do not fetch the doctor. He will bleed me and I will be weaker for it."
His brow creased and he caressed her pale cheek. "You do not look well. You're much too pale. 'Tis true, I am heartened you do not yet have a fever, yet and still…"
"Please my lord…" she begged and her heart sank when he shook his head.
"Forgive me Isabella, but I do this for your good."
He rose from the bed and left the room and she turned her face to sob into the pillow.
~o0o~
Carlisle Cullen frowned and rubbed his forehead with the fingers of his left hand while he steered the car with his right. He'd been doing that a lot lately—frowning, that is—but his thoughts at the moment were particularly grim.
He and his family had just packed up and left their home in Forks, WA within a three day span all on the insistence of his first childe, Edward and his need to get far away from the human girl he'd been dating for the past few months. He felt they were a danger to the girl, and perhaps he was right…
He sighed and felt the hand of his companion and dear friend on his knee. He glanced over and she smiled sadly. "We'll get through this Carlisle. We'll be fine—Edward will be fine."
His finely arched brows drew together as he stared up the tree-lined winding road. "I don't know Esme. This feels so different from all our previous moves, no matter how rushed they were, they weren't like this… This one just feels…wrong."
Her brows inched up and she smiled. "Taking over Alice's job now are you Doctor?"
He chuckled, but his heart wasn't in it as he nodded. "Perhaps so Es…perhaps so…"
The vibrations of Esme's phone grabbed their attention and she answered it. "Yes Alice, what can I do for you?
"Esme, tell Carlisle we need to turn around and go back now please."
Esme glanced at Carlisle, both of them now looking very perplexed, particularly since Alice was Edward's main advocate in this move.
"Why would that be Alice?" Carlisle asked, knowing she could hear him easily. "You, along with Edward, were very insistent we leave after what happened at Bella's birthday. Now, out of the blue, we need to go back? Is there something you forgot, and if so, why does it take all of us to retrieve it?"
They both heard a weary sigh come from the tiny speaker before she answered. "I know I said this move was for the best—necessary even—but trust me when I say the necessary part has been fulfilled and now we must go back."
Carlisle was a patient being, he really was and he always did his best to see to the happiness of those in his family, but he could honestly say, his patience was wearing dangerously thin with this whole mess and it showed in his tone now. "Go back for what Alice and for how long exactly? I'm getting the distinct feeling this isn't just a trip back to get something we've missed."
Another sigh came through and Carlisle slowed and pulled over as they waited for Alice to answer. "It isn't Carlisle. We'll be going back for a while. The exact length of time I can't say, but it will be a couple of months at least."
"What about Edward?" Esme questioned. "Won't he be upset with all of us for this? He was vehement about this move Alice…"
"Yes, I'm aware Esme, but it's imperative we go back! Please…" Another sigh and her tone gentled. "Please, just trust me?"
Carlisle looked over at Esme and finally nodded. "All right Alice, we'll trust you. I'm turning around now and we'll see you all back at the house."
"Thank you Carlisle and Jasper has already called Em and Rose, so they know, not that Rose is very happy with me about it…" she grumbled just as Emmett's jeep passed them with a honk as they drove back to Forks.
"Oh! And before I forget, I already called the hospital and got everything straightened out with them. You're due to be back on duty this very night Carlisle, so get a move on!"
She hung up and Esme patted him on the knee as he made a u-turn and got back on the road. "Patience honey…have patience," she said with a smirk and a shake of her head.
~o0o~
"Welcome back Dr. Cullen," the young nurse greeted him with a smirk as he passed by. It seemed there was an overabundance of sarcasm to be had in the ER of Forks General this evening as she'd been the eighth member of staff to 'welcome' him back when he'd been 'gone' less than twenty-four hours.
"Thank you so much Karen," he smirked back. "Missed the place." Her laughter drifted back to him and he smiled as he approached the curtained off area of his next patient. When he got closer, he caught a familiar scent and sighed. It seemed this girl was forever being hurt, one way or another.
Pulling the file before announcing his presence, he was alarmed to see she'd been brought in by ambulance after being found unconscious in the woods. Not wanting to delay any longer, he knocked on the wall and drew back the curtain.
Ignoring Charlie Swan for the moment, he listened as the nurse and physician's assistant briefed him on her condition: slightly hypothermic, some minor abrasions on her right cheek and both hands but no other injuries. All attempts to wake her had failed. "Order a full CT scan and let me know as soon as the results come in. Until then, continue to monitor her vitals just in case complications arise," he instructed while making notes in her chart. When he finished that, he nodded to Charlie and left.
After seeing to other minor injuries for a couple of hours, a nurse approached with a report in her hands which she handed to him as he stood at the nurses station making notes in a chart. "Dr. Cullen, the CT scan report for the Swan girl."
He glanced up and smiled as he took it. "Thank you Lisa." He read it over quickly and made his way to her bed.
Poking his head behind the curtain, he gestured to Charlie and nodded toward the waiting room. "Charlie, join me for a moment and I'll tell you what I know so far."
Charlie followed him and they sat down facing each other. "How is she doc? What's wrong with her?"
"Well, there's good news and there's bad news. The good news is we can't find anything wrong with her, aside from a couple of small scrapes and a slightly lower than normal temperature when she got here. She's back to normal now, the CT scan was normal and everything looks very good. The bad news is she still isn't waking up no matter the stimuli. Now her state of consciousness can't really be classified as a coma at this point but we'll just have to watch and wait at this point. She may wake up quickly on her own or she may continue on the way she is in which case we'll do more extensive tests in a few days." He paused to let all of that sink in with the Chief before continuing. "Do you have any questions for me Charlie?"
Charlie looked up with barely concealed anger. "She went for a walk with your boy. I wanna know what the hell happened and why the hell he left her out there on her own. Why didn't he see her home safely?"
Taking a deep breath, Carlisle nodded and met the Chief's gaze. "I understand your concerns and I'll talk to Edward. I'll have him contact you so that he may answer your questions directly."
Charlie nodded sharply. "Good…that's good," he muttered.
Carlisle stood and placed a hand on Charlie's shoulder. "You have my card Chief. Call me with any questions or concerns. I'll do my best for Bella, we'll figure this out."
Charlie nodded. "Thanks Carlisle. I know you will."
DISCLAIMER: Twilight and its inclusive material is copyright to Stephenie Meyer. Original creation, including but not limited to plot and characters, is copyright to the respective authors of each story. No copyright infringement is intended.