Disclaimer-I do not own Tarzan or any of the original characters. However, the storyline and any additional characters are my intellectual property. Please don't take them from me!
Author's Note-This is my first fanfiction so please be kind. I would appreciate any kind of review and constructive criticism.
Amelia's red curls lay flat and limp against the pillows in Greystoke Manor. Her green eyes dim and blurry with exhaustion. She had been fighting this fever for four days now and Lady Alice Clayton, her mother, had not left her bedchamber throughout the entire sickness. Alice brushed the sweat off of her young daughter's brow. Her daughter was a shadow of the bright, playful, energetic young girl who only last week had accidentally pulled down the drapes in the great room in an attempt to swing from the second floor staircase landing down to the first floor landing. That endeavor ended in a furious housekeeper seeking out Lady Alice to berate her on the fact that a young lady of breeding ought not to act like simple hooligan. Lady Alice agreed, but reminded the housekeeper that this young lady of breeding was only four years old and ought to be able to act like it sometimes. That effectively shut her up. It was two days later that Amelia had fallen ill.
The door clicked behind her and a hand fell on her shoulder. Her husband, Lord John Clayton, Earl of Greystoke. She put a hand over his. "I can't go, John. I can't leave her."
John sat down next to his wife. "Alice, I know," he said, "I never asked you to come with me."
Alice turned and glared at him, "Of course I do. I'm your wife. Where you go, I go. I am your helpmate, your supporter when everything in life goes wrong. Of course I have to go to India with you. I just…I don't know how I am supposed to leave her like this."
John pulled his wife into his lap and held her close, placing a small kiss on her neck. "How did I ever get so lucky to find a woman such as you?" He asked the woman in his arms.
Alice smiled and nestled into his arms. "You didn't, my love. I found you and then I refused to let you look at another woman other than me. I was very determined."
John chuckled and then said, "I have contacted your father. He and your mother will be here in the morning. We'll leave on Thursday for India. She will have family near while we are gone. She's strong, Alice. She'll get through this. After all, if you could make me go through an entire Season without spending more than ten minutes with another woman, than surely your daughter can look Death in the eyes and laugh as she skips back to us."
Alice sniffled and sat back up to wipe Amelia's brow with a cold rag. It was chore for the maids and Amelia's nurse, Emmaline, but Alice had insisted that she should be the one to sit with her daughter.
"That's good," Alice said, "She needs family nearby." Alice hesitated a moment before looking at her husband and asking, "Does this make me a bad mother?"
Shocked, John grabbed his wife's hands and set the rag back in the bowl.
"Absolutely not." He said. "You are an amazing mother, Alice. Amelia getting sick is not your fault."
Alice sighed in exasperation and shook off John's hands. She stood up and walked a couple of steps toward the window. Her arms came up around herself and she turned toward her husband, hugging herself.
"No. Not that. I know I couldn't have done anything to prevent Melly's sickness. What I am asking is if leaving her and going with you to India makes me a bad mother." Alice explained.
John sighed and leaned forward, setting his forehead in his hands, elbows on his knees.
"We can wait, Alice. We don't have to leave this week, but even when she gets better, she cannot come with us. It is too dangerous. The country is in an uproar. I wouldn't even risk you if you weren't so damned stubborn." He said, standing up and walking over to stand behind her. He put his arms around her and pulled her close.
"It does not make you a bad mother, Alice. It makes you a better one." He said simply. "We will wait until she is well again and then we will leave to take care of our business in India."
Alice leaned back into him, "Thank you, John, for understanding." She whispered.