Chapter 36:
Jebb sat in the nursery and looked down at his newborn daughter wrapped in a pink blanket. To him, she looked absolutely perfect. She even had been born with a full head of coppery hair just like her mother. As he held her while sitting in the rocking chair in the nursery, Jebb's thoughts went to Kira. He hadn't seen her yet since she was still getting settled into her room when Doc Appleby had found him and his parents in the chapel. He wanted to know if Kira would be alright but it was clear that even the doctor didn't know the answer to that question.
Jebb continued to rock his daughter alone in the small corner of the nursery that the nurses had led him to so that he'd have some privacy with her. His parents said that they'd wait on word about Kira and let him know when he could go visit his wife. They would also call home and share what news they had with the rest of the family; both the good and the bad.
By the time his mother had returned to the nursery Jebb had fed a bottle to his daughter and she needed her first diaper change. Pauline held out a small bag that she'd retrieved from her car and told Jebb that he may want what she had brought with her. Jebb reached in and pulled out a new outfit for his daughter along with a baby blanket that matched the lavender on the walls of the nursery back at the farmhouse.
"I thought that when Kira wakes up she'd like to see this little girl in something a little less pink." Pauline gave her son a smile to assure him that his wife would wake up.
Jebb nodded. Yes, the hospital issued outfit wouldn't be to Kira's liking at all. He changed the baby and did his best to swaddle her but he could admit that he was out of practice.
"Does she have a name yet?" Pauline wanted to hold her granddaughter but she understood that her son needed to take care of the infant for himself for right now.
"Yes. Kira and I picked one out weeks ago." Jebb cuddled his daughter as she settled back down to sleep now that she had a full stomach. He sat back down in the rocking chair as he spoke.
"You want to share it?" Pauline stepped forward and ran her fingers through the fine hair on the baby.
"Kira wanted to be the one to tell everyone her name. I plan to let her." Jebb closed his eyes said a silent prayer that his wife would indeed get to enjoy her moment of telling the family the name of the latest Duke.
Pauline pulled up a chair and sat down next to her son as she watched him take comfort in his little girl. The entire family had been concerned for the infant's wellbeing from the moment that Kira's pregnancy had first been known. That concern had only heightened after the incident back at Easter. Now after so many months he could see that she was completely healthy. If only the same could be said for her mother.
~01~
The next morning, Daisy and Jesse ate breakfast together in the small house at the edge of the county. Jimmy was asleep so Daisy enjoyed being able to sit at the kitchen table while she watched Jesse fry up some bacon and eggs. He had told her that she could stay in bed but she insisted that she could manage going to her own table for breakfast. After all, the day after Jo gave birth she was out with the rest of the Duke Women preparing for Kim's wedding. Daisy was sure that she could handle walking down the hall. Besides, it was one of the perks of being able to give birth at home. Being able to sleep in her own bed; being surrounded by her own things. Something that she was painfully aware that her cousin hadn't been able to do.
"Is there any word on Kira yet?"
Jesse put a glass of milk on the table as he shook his head. "It's still too early in the morning. I suspect that Jebb probably didn't drift off until sometime this mornin'. John told me that he'd call once the doctor came in to check on her this mornin'."
John had stayed at the hospital with Jebb and had insisted that Pauline should go home to be with their daughters and grandsons. They would swap off in the morning. Jesse wanted to go to the hospital to be with his nephew as well but he was aware that he was needed here with Daisy. She may have had a relatively easy delivery and had been blessed with good health for both herself as well as her son but he didn't want to abandon her when there was really nothing that he could do to help elsewhere.
He was also aware of the fact that while Bo would be just as worried for his sister, he had both Luke and Kim to comfort him. No, Jesse's place was with Daisy.
Daisy took a sip of her milk and glanced around her small kitchen. She had been so determined to stay in the home that she and Darcy had made together until after her son was born. Now that he was here, she felt that she could leave it. The truth was, the house felt too empty without Darcy; she wanted to go home. She wanted to return to the farm where she'd be surrounded by her family and memories of her own childhood.
As Jesse dished out her breakfast, Daisy broached the subject. As she told her uncle of her desire to return to the farm his face lit up in a way that she hadn't seen in a long time. Truth be told, he was lonely in the new farmhouse all alone. All of his kids had married and moved out and he had far too much time on his hands when everyone else returned to their own homes for the day. After hearing Daisy's confession he immediately started making plans to help her return to where he felt she belonged.
"I'll have the girls come help you pack your clothes," Jesse said referring to Jo and Kim. "Then the boys can haul everything home. We have plenty of room to put everything and-"
"Jesse, we don't have to do anything just yet."
"Nonsense. There is no reason to put it off. Not to mention, this project is just the thing we need to keep our minds off what is going on at the hospital." Jesse knew that the best thing in the world for everyone out at the farm for the moment would be to give them something else to focus on. "I'll call home and tell everyone the plan after breakfast."
Daisy returned Jesse's smile. She felt so glad that she could put a smile on his face with all that was going on in the family. With the enthusiasm that she saw in Jesse's eyes she had no doubt that her belongings would all be at the new farmhouse by sundown.
~01~
Jebb stirred as a nurse came in to check on his wife. He still flinched at the sight of the tubes and wires that were keeping her alive. With every blip on the screen that indicated a heartbeat or breath Jebb was reminded that this entire situation was his fault. Almost a year ago he had a mishap on his motorcycle and had been too damn stubborn to go get checked out by one of the doctors in town.
If he hadn't held to his guns, he would have learned that his vasectomy had been reversed by the blow that he'd taken to his groin. A vasectomy that he'd gotten when he'd learned that another pregnancy could very well kill Kira. He'd thought that he was doing the noble thing when he'd asked the doctor about alternative methods to ensure that Kira wouldn't have to worry about pregnancy again. That nobility had gone right out of the window when he neglected to remember that his actions later on could, and have, affected her since.
Across the room Jebb saw that his father was still asleep in a chair that had been brought in so that he could keep watch alongside his son. Having him there both calmed and unnerved him. He knew that his father likely had expected for Jebb to be given bad news overnight and had wanted to be there for him if that had happened. Otherwise he would have gone home with his mother last night.
Jebb sat up a bit more in his own chair and watched as both his wife and father slept. Outside the room he knew that the nurses were doing all that they could to treat the various patients of this ward. All of whom were in critical condition. It may not be very Duke-like but at the moment he didn't give a damn about anyone else in the ward; only his wife. In fact, he had to fight the selfish feeling that had him wondering if the care of his wife was being hampered by the fact that she didn't have the nurses' and doctors' sole attention.
Hours later, Doc Appleby came in to speak with Jebb about both his wife and daughter. Kira had yet to awaken which was troublesome but the young newborn was healthy enough that she could be released to go home later that day.
"Home? Now?" Jebb had been focused on the fact that his wife was hanging onto life by a thread. He hadn't even begun to think past the current situation. How could he be expected to take their daughter home while leaving her behind at the hospital? "But Kira?"
"Kira is stable for now. As for your little girl, I suppose one more day in the nursery wouldn't hurt but I really would suggest taking her home."
"I know that you want to remain here with Kira but you have three children to take care of," John pointed out. "Mikey and Jay have been asking about both of you. At least go home and spend a little time with them today. It would do you good to get out of the hospital for a little while."
"It was supposed to do me good to get out of the room and down to the cafeteria yesterday to get me something to eat. And look at how that turned out," Jebb said with a sour note.
John sighed. He really did understand his son's position. He knew that his son would stand his ground for now. He just hoped that his niece would wake up soon because he doubted that Jebb would be leaving the hospital until she did.
~01~
Pauline cleaned up the dishes after making sure that the boys, as well as her daughters, ate their breakfast. She then asked the girls to help with some of the chores around the farm and sent the boys to play out on the porch with their new toy trucks that she and John had brought them when they came to Hazzard. Once she was finished, Pauline joined the toddlers and sat on the porch swing. Despite the early hour she could tell that the day promised to be just as hot as the day before.
While she sat and fanned herself Jay exchanged a look with his brother before he got up and climbed onto the swing with his grandmother.
"Why Mumma and Dud not home?"
The question took Pauline by surprise. She guessed she expected the boys to remain oblivious to the absence of their parents. As she tried to find something to tell the small blond little boy his twin joined them on the swing. She had two pairs of eyes that reminded her so much of Jebb when he was that age watching her as they waited for her to answer. Pauline decided on a simple truth and hoped that it would be enough.
"Your momma is still at the hospital with your new little sister."
"Where Dud?"
"He's with her," Pauline said simply. She then watched as the twins exchanged a doubtful look before Mikey spoke up next.
"We go 'pital?"
"I'm afraid not."
"Why?"
Pauline wasn't sure which boy asked but both were waiting on an answer. "I'm afraid little boys aren't allowed where your momma is right now."
"Why?"
How much could the boys understand? How much could she tell them about what was going on? How much should she tell them? Pauline put her fan down and bit her lip for a moment.
"You know that your momma has been sick, right? That she has needed to stay in bed a lot?"
There, she'll start with that. After all, the boys were aware that their mother hadn't been able to play with them or take them to the park or anything else that she used to do before the pregnancy.
After the boys nodded she continued, "Well, she is tired after having your little sister so she is staying in the bed at the hospital for a while and getting some extra rest."
Mikey thought about what his grandmother was saying and asked, "When come home?"
"Soon, Baby. Soon."
Pauline then got an idea for the boys to help them not miss their parents so much. She took them inside and put her plan in action and had the boys throw themselves into the little project. She then called Bo since she knew that he was heading out to the hospital after lunch to sit with his sister for a while. He could take their little present with him when he went.
~01~
Over at Daisy's, Kim and Jo were helping with packing away the new mother's things in boxes and crates while they chatted. It went by surprisingly fast since they were really only concentrating on Daisy's clothes as well as the baby gear for the moment. Once that was moved over, there would be plenty of time to pack up the rest of the house.
"You should have seen Uncle Jesse's face when I told him I wanted to come home," Daisy smiled as she thought back to the morning while she sat on the bed while folding some clothes as she packed. "That alone was enough to let me know that this was the right thing to do."
"I can just imagine," Jo laughed as she thought about the old family patriarch. "And it will be nice to have you back at the farm. And I can already picture all of the kids going back and forth between the farms when they get older. You know, I loved being a military brat but part of me wishes that I'd had what this family had while growing up."
"No one has what this family has," Kim piped in. She'd grown up watching from the outside in as the Duke family lived, laughed and loved throughout the years. She loved her uncle and she knew that she was lucky to have him but there was a closeness with this family that surpassed any that she'd ever saw. "We're just lucky enough to be a part of it all, now."
"Ain't that the truth." Jo turned her head to watch as Faith found a stack of blankets that had been placed on the floor. When they tumbled on top of her, at first she was surprised before she started giggling. Jo joined her daughter in laughing at her antics. Having to refold the blankets would be a small price to pay to watch her having so much fun.
"Stop it, you two. You're goin' to make me cry." Daisy tossed a shirt in the direction of the other women as she too started laughing at the baby girl on the floor. "If I start, we'll never get this finished."
"Are you kidding? We had half of your stuff on the truck when Bo and Luke drove it back over to the farmhouse." Jo got up and walked over to where her daughter was on the floor and decided to lie back on the blankets with her as she tickled the infant. It had been hours since they took a break and she couldn't think of a better time; or a better way to spend her time while she did so. "I say we call it a day. Head back over to the farm, get some supper together and start unpacking what we've already sent over."
"I agree. Besides, you don't need to push yourself so soon after giving birth. Let's get Jimmy together and you can get him settled into his crib in his new room."
Daisy nodded. Both Kim and Jo were right. They'd done a lot today and she was tired.
"I just hope that the fellas have gotten it put back together by now."
"Are you kidding? Between all of the kids that have joined the family in the past few years, they should be well practiced at assembling baby gear."
"Well, at least it hasn't been that long since Luke put together Faith's crib." Kim grinned before adding, "But didn't you tell me it took him three hours?"
"Only because he wouldn't read the directions," Jo then whispered, "And I had four screws hidden and I was waiting for him to figure it out."
The women all burst out laughing at the small prank that Jo had pulled on Luke while she was pregnant.
Jo shrugged. "Hey, you have to make your own fun, sometimes. Come on, let's get ready to go home."
~01~
Bo and Jebb listened to the tape that Pauline had sent to the hospital. She had let the boys record a message for their mother. The boys went on about how they wanted their parents to come home and told them about some new toys that Grandma and Grandpa had given them when they had come to town.
Pauline could be heard in the background as she mentioned things that they could talk about on the tape. After the tape had gone on for about five minutes the twins ended their message with some very simple statements.
"Mumma, wake up."
"Miss you."
"Come home."
By the end of the tape, both men were choked up. They knew that neither little boy knew what was really going on. They just knew that they wanted their parents home. Right now, Jebb wanted nothing more than to have his entire family home under the same roof. Both safe and sound.
Not knowing what else to do for the time being, Bo rewound the tape and pressed play once more. For him, the room didn't seem so oppressive with the sounds of his nephews coming through the speakers. As for Jebb, hearing his boys rattle on caused him to do something that he hadn't in a whole day. He couldn't help but grin.
In the bed, Kira heard her little boys calling to her. Her hand flinched as she listened to them tell her about their new toys. She could hear the message being played over again and she wanted to answer her sons when they asked when she was coming home. She just couldn't open her eyes or answer them.