Late October, dawn
Charlotte didn't open her eyes, but felt her husband rise out of bed, the mattress shifting at the change of weight. From her bassinette, Grace was whimpering but it faded when Charles picked her up.
"Good morning, dear baby," he rumbled, making soothing noises. "Shhh, it's all right, all right."
Charlotte felt him begin the little ritual of walking to and fro at the foot of the bed and risked a peek, catching sight of Charles in his pajamas, rubbing a soothing hand along Grace's back. The baby, bright-eyed and excited, was kicking a little and starting to drool.
The sweet sight was enough to make Charlotte blink hard. Never had she ever thought she would see Charles Emerson Winchester the third contentedly settling into the role of fatherhood, much less a hands-on father. Yet here he was humming and talking to baby Grace about an upcoming valve repair and completely comfortable with an infant against his shoulder.
Grace gave a little squeal and Charlotte felt her breasts respond. She rolled over and tucked her pillows against the headboard as Charles turned and began towards her. "Yes, yes, breakfast," she told the baby, who was actively wiggling now. Charlotte settled her daughter against her own stomach and helped the baby latch on, feeling a tug of pain/pleasure before settling back against the headboard.
Charles watched her sighing; nursing was the one area they'd disagreed on, initially. Charlotte was determined to breastfeed from the moment she'd learned she was pregnant while Charles had wanted her to bottle feed so she wouldn't have to take on the responsibility all on her own.
"The new formulas are just as nourishing, and you would be free to share the duty," Charles argued. "Something my mother would adore the chance to do, as would I."
But Charlotte had put her foot down. "No," she told him firmly. "It's my sacred duty, orso mio. I would not have been given this . . . abundanza unless the good Lord wanted me to use it, and anyway, I want to."
And so she had. While reluctant at first, Charles admitted that Grace's appetite and thriving birth-weight gave credence to the choice. He settled back onto the bed and watched, reaching out to play with the baby's bare toes.
"She's becoming quite the little cub," Charles mused. "And so very long for a baby."
"Height," Charlotte approved. "Not a shortie like her mother here. Oh, gentle, gentle little girl." This last was to her daughter who was nursing determinedly. "So a valve repair today?"
"Yes, and then checking up on a few post-operative patients. We also need to set up for the pediatric ward to trick or treat in the afternoon," Charles replied absently. "Mina talked me into helping."
"I doubt she had to try very hard," Charlotte smiled. "Maybe Grace and I will stop by to watch."
"That would be wonderful," Charles agreed, "Oh, and I have some good news—Father Mulcahy is going to be in town next week to visit the hospital's audiology department of all things."
Charlotte brightened. "Really? Oh Charles, this means we can ask him—"
"-To christen Grace, yes," Charles agreed, "Although it may have to be a private affair given how quickly it would have to be put together. I hope that's not too disappointing."
Charlotte shot him a merry smile. "Given how instrumental the good Father was in getting us together in the first place, nothing can be disappointing now."
Baby Grace gave a little mewl and let go of the nipple, burping softly and making her parents laugh.
"Round two," Charlotte sighed, shifting her daughter to the other breast while Charles reluctantly rose and headed to the bathroom to shower.
-oo00oo-
Traveling with Grace was a complicated affair since it involved a Moses basket for the front seat and a collapsible baby buggy in the trunk, but Charlotte managed, mostly because Grace was generally cooperative. Still, it took planning and a little help from Mrs. Jackson before Charlotte was able to head out to the hospital. Fortunately the traffic was light, and she was able to find parking within a reasonable walk.
The buggy was English; a baby shower gift from Pamela. It had high brougham wheels that took a little practice to unpack and lock, but Charlotte had worked with it at home and was comfortable in setting it up now. Once Grace was deposited inside, looking bright-eyed and pleased in her pink crocheted ensemble, Charlotte wheeled her towards the hospital, cooing sweetly.
The admittance lobby had only a few people in it, but Charlotte knew it would fill before the night was over. Halloween was an odd holiday, full of mishaps and accidents that were generally the result of stunts and pranks that misfired. Even the 4077th wasn't immune, as Charlotte remembered with a wince. Still, as she made her way into the hospital, the admissions nurse grinned.
"Ohh, and how is our Grace?"
The baby allowed herself to be smiled at and cooed over; Charlotte was amused at how her daughter took the attention in stride for such a little thing. After some small talk, Charlotte managed to wheel the carriage down towards the Obstetrics wing, amused at the little paper bats and black cats that lined the hallways. She guided the buggy carefully, making sure to leave room for people passing by, and finally reached Mina's office, which had a spiderweb of gauze around it.
"Welcome to my lair," Mina teased as Charlotte rolled the buggy in. "And how is the princess of Acorn Street?"
"Thriving," Charlotte was pleased to report. "A regular piglet at meals, very regular in her bowel movements and not prone to colic. I think she's put on at least half a pound since her last checkup."
"I'm not surprised," Mina nodded, picking Grace up and holding her expertly. "Don't you look pretty in pink."
They chatted a while and finally a nurse came bustling in, looking a little perplexed. "Doctor Mayfair, do you have a key to Doctor Colman's office? He agreed to let us use it but he doesn't seem to be around."
"Passive aggressive," Mina murmured as she handed Grace to Charlotte. "As usual. I don't have a key but the head custodian does. Let me page him . . ."
By the time the custodian had arrived and unlocked the office door, the first of the trick or treaters were making their way down the hall, most accompanied by nurses or aides. Charlotte moved the buggy out of the way and held Grace while she helped hand out some of the candy. Most of the patients were decked out in homemade costumes and were carrying pillowcases for their treats. One girl in a wheelchair was utterly delighted with Grace and asked to hold her a little, which Charlotte agreed to.
Gradually she spotted Charles helping a young teen on a gurney down the hall and watched him chat quietly with the boy, who was wrapped as a mummy. When they reached Mina's door, Charlotte gave her husband a smile. "Tutankhamen I presume? "
The boy gave a weak chuckle. "Wanted to be Zorro. Maybe next year. Trick or treat?"
She handed him the chocolate bar. "Who's to say you're not Don Diego after a very rough battle?"
The boy brightened. "I didn't think of that!"
Charles laughed. "It's the part of the story they don't mention, Albert; heroes need to heal too."
"Yeah," the boy agreed, sighing. "All of them but Superman. Thank you."
Charles gave both Grace and Charlotte little kisses and rolled his patient down the hall, reaching the last nurse at Colman's door as she watched, feeling a surge of tenderness for him and the boy. "Your father is a good man," she assured Grace, who merely blinked and waved a fist.
After forty minutes the last of the trick or treaters began to thin out, and Charlotte knew by the heaviness of her breasts that it was nearly time to feed Grace. The only empty office was Colman's and reluctantly she rolled the buggy there. She settled in at the desk, trying to get Grace to latch on when her knee bumped the middle drawer.
It popped open.
Charlotte stared at the glossy photographs and felt as if she'd been punched. After a few seconds of shock, she felt Grace squirm, and protectively pulled her closer even as she reached for the intercom.
"M-Mina?" Charlotte quavered. "I . . . could you come here please?"
"Of course," came Mina's blithe tone.
That changed the minute she came around the desk.
-oo00oo-
The charges against Aubrey Colman included pornography; violation of physician ethics; violation of obscenity statutes and molestation of patients. Charlotte was called to testify as was Mina, three of the Gynecology nurses and the chief of security in closed hearings before both the board of the hospital and the Boston prosecutor's office.
A search warrant revealed other, older collections of pelvic exam photos and a lurid correspondence with a network of fetishists across the country that spanned ten years. Charlotte tried to keep calm but it was difficult when she saw the names of women who had been called to identify themselves. Through it all Mina and Charles worked tirelessly to help prosecute Colman.
She prayed, and meeting up again with Father Mulcahy helped. Greyer, and with a hearing aid now, he seemed as serene as ever. He held Grace as she slept, and comforted Charlotte as best he could.
"You were in the right place at the right time," he assured her. "I know it's difficult to feel anything positive at the moment, but it took courage and honesty to bring him down, Charlotte."
"But those poor women," she sighed. "All those prior victims!"
"Yes," Father Mulcahy agreed gently, "I will be praying for them as well. We may never know all of them, but the Lord does and will give them his peace in his time."
Charlotte held his gaze. "You truly believe that?"
He smiled softly. "I do. And somewhere in you and Charles you do as well. It just takes time to acknowledge. In the meantime, we have this little one to bring into the flock."