Estelle by Linda Stewart Henley

Author:Linda Stewart Henley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: She Writes Press
Published: 2020-03-14T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

December 1872

Estelle knew she had to follow the doctor’s orders to stay in bed. She did not want to hurt the baby, and though it would mean taking a back seat to her sisters, Mathilde and Désirée, she decided to absent herself from family obligations for the next few weeks, until the baby was born. It was a difficult decision. Since their mother’s death the previous year, she had taken over domestic matters for the household, now comprising seven adults and six children. Although the youngest of the three sisters, she was the one who had most willingly taken on responsibilities after their mother had died.

Mathilde came to her bedside the day after her fall.

“Estelle, I was so sorry to learn of your accident, but I hear all will be well if you take the doctor’s advice to get some rest. What can I do to help?”

“Don’t concern yourself, Tilda. You have more than enough to do with your three children. I’ll be up in no time. Désirée has offered assistance, and she has more flexibility. Thank you for asking, dear one. Please talk to Edgar for me and make sure he has some way to fill his time productively.”

After Mathilde left, Estelle again affirmed the necessity of taking care of the unborn baby and herself, though it was against her nature to ignore the others. But perhaps it was just as well: she suspected the more she knew about René and America, the more they would cause her anxiety. Why hadn’t he come in to talk to her yet? He slept in an adjoining room, and it would be easy for him to stop by. Anyway, try as she might, she could not do a good job of running the house from her bed. She lay back helplessly and stared at the ceiling until she fell asleep.

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