(Kezia's Point of View)
I rubbed the piece of cloth between my fingers, kissing it lightly before putting it away. Once finished with the library, I went to the kitchen to fix a small meal.
"Kezia?"
I looked up from slicing bread to see Gen. O'Hara standing in the entryway to the kitchen.
"I uh-"
"Don't take me for a fool, General; I was an easy choice to pick up the mess," I snapped, cutting him off.
"I shouldn't have asked you to do it," he said quietly.
"What's done is done. That is all there is to it. Now if you will be so kind as to excuse me, I would like to get to my meal."
"Kezia," O'Hara gripped my arm, "Please…"
"Shouldn't your lady be expecting you sometime soon?"
The general's face grew stern, his azure eyes fixing me with a piercing stare.
"That was not called for; I care for Mary, and want her to be safe and secure!"
"But loved? What of that? You cannot just call her to your bed and expect anything more. And what if she becomes pregnant? What will you do then?"
O'Hara released a sigh, removing his hold on me.
"That is something I do not know; but I hope love will grow to be. As for the other aforementioned subject, we've been lucky."
I snorted.
"Lucky...Oh General, don't count on it. She's young and ripe. Goodness, keep going like you do and she'll have her bellyful before you can lift the coverlets."
The general winced and recovered with a stern warning.
"You speak too boldly, Miss."
I arched a brow but said nothing; with a simple gesture, the general dismissed me.
(Mary's point of view)
I was in one of the officer's quarters preparing a bath; the steam from the rocks used for heating the water stuck to my face. I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand and tested the water. When I found it satisfyingly warm, I removed the rocks and left the room.
As I walked down the corridor, I passed Kezia, who wore a look of discontent upon her face.
"Kezia, is everything all right?"
"It's fine. You're safe. Though I do not like cleaning up after certain messes."
My cheeks flushed.
"You didn't-"
"Yes! Your general asked me to clean up after your little romp in the library!"
"Kezia, please, don't be angry with me. I would not have asked you to do it if I had known."
"It was humiliating, Mary. Walking in there while the colonel stood by leering in all of his awful glory..."
I sighed, trying to keep myself collected.
"I don't know what happened between the two of you-"
"You haven't the slightest idea," Kezia snapped. "You think just sleeping it off will solve everything!"
I pursed my lips into a thin line.
"That is not so!"
"The colonel thinks you're his! And you think you can just string him on like a useless plaything, using the general as a shield!"
"Stay your tongue, Miss Welsh!" I replied in a raised voice.
A minute of silence passed between the two of us as we glared at each other, unspoken words hanging like suspended blades in the air.
"I've got to be going," Kezia looked away.
I answered her with a cool look.
"Very well, be on your way then..."