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Andrew was much relieved to see that her sisters had calmed his wife considerably. It was expected that she would be sad for some time, but he felt somewhat better now that she seemed to have stopped blaming herself for what happened.

“I have a suggestion,” Lord Reginal Fitzwilliam said after he made sure that his daughter was as well as could be expected.

When he had the attention of all he continued.

“Gardiner told me of an accoucheur, Sir Fredrick Gillingham, that has a sterling reputation who had seen his wife for her confinements. If you are worried that the fall has precluded your ability to have children, it could be worth your while to hie to Town once Marie is able to travel so that she may be examined by him.”

“What do you think, Marie?” her husband asked. He had seated himself on the bed on her other side so he could hold her free hand.

“I like Father Reggie’s suggestion, Andrew,” she said softly. “If nothing else it will give me peace of mind.”

“Then I will write to Sir Frederick and request an appointment, my love,” he said as he placed an affectionate kiss on her wrist.

Marie indicated that she was weary, so the family wished her a good rest and withdrew from her chambers after requesting that her maid, who would sit with her mistress, inform the master as soon as his wife woke.

The Duke and Duchess of Bedford arrived while Marie was sleeping.

They were filled in on the facts and commiserated with their brother-in-law while at the same time they were most grateful that Marie did not seem to have any permanent physical injury.

When dinner was announced there was no formality observed, and the conversation was subdued as Marie’s empty chair reminded them that she was not able to join them.

There was no separation of the sexes, and not long after dinner a footman notified them that the mistress was awake, and that Doctor Granger had arrived to check on the patient.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Lady Sarah was beside herself with worry.

They had set off north within two hours of receiving the note from her son-in-law.

The note was not too explicit, but he did let them know that Marie had an accident and it had caused a miscarriage.

She had suspected that her daughter was with child before they had departed Hilldale to return to Longbourn, but Lady Sarah knew that Marie would share her news when she felt that the time was right.

Mary and Kitty were left at Longbourn with their companions and guards.

In addition, Charlotte Pierce was there if need be and she had promised to look in on the girls a few times a day.

Lord Thomas and Lady Rose had been much worried when they first read the note from Andrew, but were somewhat mollified that if it had been worse, the note from Andrew would have indicted thus.

Lady Rose still had her dreams where she spoke to her beloved Sed, but she had come to accept that they were dreams and not her talking to her dead husband’s ghost. She thought about her Sed all the time, and the pain from his passing was still palpable and most probably would be until God took her home to join her husband in His kingdom.

As much as she hated the reason, Lady Rose could not repine seeing her nephews and nieces again.

How she loved all of her children, and she drew strength from that love as she grieved her Sed.

The following morning, Lord Andrew Fitzwilliam received the express from Hertfordshire and calculated that his in-laws would arrive late that evening or the next day in the early morning.

Knowing how her parents would want to be assured that his wife was well, he expected that they would arrive that night rather than spend another night in an inn.

Luckily the moon would be full to aid them in their travels.

He shared the news with the rest of the family, none of whom were surprised that Marie’s parents would arrive as soon as they were able.

It was just before ten that night, a mere four days since the accident, when the Bennet carriages pulled up in front of Hilldale.

After greeting everyone and being assured that their daughter was safe, the Bennet parents and Lady Rose went directly to Marie’s chambers before their own chambers to change and wash from the road.

As soon as she saw her mother, father, and Aunt Rose, Marie burst into tears all over again. After kissing his daughter, Lord Thomas retreated to allow his wife and sister to talk to her and went to his chambers to change.

“My darling girl,” Lady Sarah said with tears in her eyes, “I am so sorry that this happened to you. How are you feeling?”

“There is pain from the miscarriage, Mama,” Marie said as she looked to both her beloved Aunt and her mother. “According to our physician, no more than to be expected after losing…” Marie could not complete the sentence.

“We know, my dear niece,” Aunt Rose said as she looked lovingly at her surrogate daughter. “How is your head, Marie?”

“It is far better than the first day,” Marie informed her two mothers.

“James is so sorry that he could not come. He had some issues that urgently needed his attention at Netherfield,” Lady Sarah informed her second daughter. “He said to send him an express if he is needed.”

“I miss James, Mama, but with all of the family here there is no need for him to come as well,” Marie said with a wan smile.

When her mother asked if the local doctor could tell if the fall had affected her ability to become with child again, Marie told them what Father Reggie had suggested and that Andrew send a letter to the accoucheur and was waiting for his reply.

Lady Sarah told her daughter that they would remain at Hilldale until the answer was received and Marie felt well enough to travel and would then accompany them back to London.

It made Marie feel much better that she and Andrew would not be alone when they travelled to Town.

Later, after Lord Thomas had agreed to the plan, Sarah had told Elaine what they planned to do and after a short conference with her husband, Elaine informed her friend that they too would be travelling to London with Andrew and Marie.