A Story of Love, Loss and Adventure
Synopsis – This story is set just after Georg and Maria's blissful wedding. It travels through their honeymoon period where they travel to France. Whilst away the state of their home town is worsening without them knowing. They return only to find there is no choice but to move. Not without a tragedy and a struggle - will they find happiness somewhere new?
Chapter 10 – Family is everything
The morning crept in slowly throughout the hospital, the silence grew dim and noise gradually filled the hallways. Max had collected the children from school the day before and escorted them to the hospital to see their mother immediately. They had stayed overnight with no real idea of the current situation as they hadn't been home.
Maria lay silently, she had not yet awoken as Georg and the children had arrived and entered the room. It was still uncertain as to what damage was caused during the fire as she wasn't awake so the doctors could not assess her. The artificial burns were treated and she was covered in head to toe in bandages. Georg looked over to see the once rosy colored cheeks, pale and scarred. It made him extremely sad – gazing over to her sleeping body, and watching the shallow rise and fall of her chest. She seemed to be struggling with every breath as the darkness continued to envelope her.
The children stood in pure shock - uttering no words. Both Gretl and Marta just assumed she was sleeping, whereas Louisa, Liesl and Frederick understood that it did not look good for their mother and it was still a trying time for her, and what possible recovery she may have. Georg was silent – no words were really spoken throughout the visit from the children, just sobs from the little ones as they wanted their mother to awaken and just sing to them about their favorite things. Georg succumbed to their sadness after a short while whilst he was holding Hope in his arms; he witnessed Maria twitching her fingers that grasped his own. He darted forward to see her brow furrowed with sadness. She began shaking her head violently from side to side – voicing no words, just tears pouring from her scrunched eyes. The children began to panic as they noticed their mother was becoming agitated and wanted to know the cause. Georg placed Hope in her crib as she lay sound asleep and ushered Max to take the children for a snack of some sort as he didn't want them to see their mother like this. They sheepishly agreed looking back over to Georg who was caressing Maria's arm.
"My darling you are safe now…we are safe…"
It seemed like an endless and relentless task trying to talk Maria around she lay still for what seemed like hours, days. Georg had been by her side the entire time refusing to take doctor's orders and return to the solace of an empty hotel room to figure out his next move. He couldn't allow the children to return home until Maria was better, the damage he knew of would frighten the children terribly. He was not prepared for that. There was a knock at the door and Georg without acknowledging the said visitor responded to the interruption.
"No visitors please. Just leave us to rest." A plea escaped his lips.
"Please excuse the intrusion baron, Herr Detweiler would like a word if you wouldn't mind he is waiting outside. He seemed pretty persistent."
The nurse furrowed her brow before bowing her head and leaving the door slightly ajar. Georg rose from the seat he had occupied for what seemed a year and kissed Maria's temple softly.
"I will return soon my love, stay with me…" He whispered softly before leaving the room closing the door behind him.
As he closed the door he was gone for some time discussing his next move, and to organize living arrangements for the foreseeable future, the manor would need repairing if they were going to return and if they were planning on moving they needed to do it fast. Whomever lit the house alight knew something was up and wanted Georg out of the picture so they had to think fast. Leaving Max with these thoughts Georg hastily returned to the room Maria lay in.
Upon opening the door his eyes met Maria's eyes, bleak and red. She sat up swallowed by pillows that were supporting her fragile form. Mouthing no words just silently weeping. The captain didn't know if he was dreaming his Maria was alive, not only alive but awake. She seemed as though she was in another world, as Georg approached her slowly once again returning to the same chair. He sat silently just beaming a smile towards his wife. She sat in the same position and just twitched her mouth slightly turning her head to meet Georg's eyes.
"Oh my love…"
Georg reached over and caressed her cheek as a tear slid down Maria's colorless cheek. His thumb catching it and wiping it away, he nodded towards her and leant in for a kiss. Pressing his lips to hers she too retuned the gesture holding him close.
"I will never, ever leave you again? Do you understand?" He leaned back holding her face between both of his hands, and began to caress her cheeks.
Maria smiled towards him but all suddenly changed as she went to speak. Her mouth was dry – the feeling of being back in the house retuned Maria's eyes were once again closed tightly. The pain of her throat returned as she imagined herself begin engulfed by the flames and the black, dark smoke once more - tears fell from her cheeks freely.
"Maria my darling what is it?" Georg asked nervously.
Meeting his gaze once more her eyes let Georg know the pain she was feeling she didn't need to say anything, even if she could. She had lost her voice…
"I…I…It…hurts." She fought to say in a hoarse whisper. Her hand found her throat she clutched it as if someone were going to steal it from her.
"The…th-"she said with an inaudible whisper before falling into a fits of coughs.
"What my darling." He said as he sat next to Maria grasping her hand tightly in his own.
A knock once again consumed the air of the room and a doctor entered. Maria had just settled from her coughing fiasco. Her worried gaze met the doctors as she held a bunch of files in her hand.
"Now Mrs…Von Trapp, it appears throughout your ordeal you inhaled a large amount of smoke and toxins, from what we do not know until an extensive search is done on your premises. As I'm sure you are aware, you throat is severely damaged…"
Georg's eyes dashed to Maria's now merely bleak and unfocussed gaze. Her eyes fell to her hands that sat in her lap now as she loosened the grasp of Georg's hand. She sat twiddling her fingers as though she were a child again - not focusing on the nurses words.
"I'm sorry, damaged?" Georg questioned.
"Yes Baron, it appears your wife's vocal chords were severely damaged by the toxins released in the air of the manor." She handed the examination over to Georg as he looked on with a worried stare.
The flow of tears escaped Maria's once more as her hearing was certainly okay, as she listened to the two discussing her potential future.
"Doc, what is the prognosis on her speaking again?" He worriedly asked looking over to Maria, who picked her head up slowly with obvious apprehension to the nurse's reply.
The doctor looked down nervously.
"That is something we cannot comment on right now, speaking is the first step, massaging the vocal chords with a number of different remedies, then slowly but surely something good should come of it. No running before you can walk, please remember that. These are extremely delicate and are as I sad previously severely damaged, I cannot stress enough please do not push yourself. Both of you, to rush into anything. Time is important here. Over time we will see the progress develop hopefully into speaking." She laid the files on the table at the end of Maria's bed.
She sat still, her face wet with tears. She contemplated her fate silently –
"If I cannot speak my voice - oh how can I ever sing again…"
Her body slumped down onto the sheets, violently shaking as muffled sob escaped her.