A Scent of a Woman
by Shaolin Kitten
Part 16
Kwai Chang Caine had been feeling edgy all morning. He tried several times to meditate but it was all he could do to keep from letting his rage get the best of him. He should not have been feeling this way. His usual calm was being disturbed but he could not seem to pinpoint the cause of it. Suddenly, he heard the sound of something shattering on the floor in the next room followed by Laura swearing up a blue streak unlike anything Caine had never heard from his gentle wife. He rushed to her side and stopped, stunned, as he saw her pick up a dish and throw it down on the floor before bursting into tears. It was then that he understood that it was not his rage that he was feeling, it was hers. Laura was in her seventh month of pregnancy and her emotions were riding high. The Doctor had said that this would happen, that it was a normal reaction to the elevated hormones in her body.
"My love, what is troubling you?"
"I just can't do it."
"Do what?" Kwai Chang asked innocently.
"Bend over!" she screamed at him.
Kwai Chang tried to keep from laughing, love showing deep in his eyes. Her tears started to fall once again.
"Why are you staying with me? You don't need a wife who's as big as a house. Now I've made a mess and I can't even clean it up."
Kwai Chang encircled Laura in his arms and felt the disturbance in both her chi and the child's. This could not go on. It had only been a month since that frightening night when he had almost lost them both. She needed to remain calm. She still had two months to go and if she kept this up, the child could be born sooner than it was ready. Kwai Chang led his wife back to the other room and coaxed her to sit.
"I will have Ping Hai make you a cup of tea."
"Kwai, why can't we go home?"
"You know that the house is being repaired. The damage from the storm was quite extensive. You were lucky to get out. I have tried to salvage what I could of your things to help you feel at home here at the temple. Master Kwahn has provided us with these adjoining rooms so we may be together."
"I know, it's just that I feel so alone here. I feel like a prisoner."
Laura's words cut Kwai Chang like a knife. He turned away to try to keep her from seeing the pain that they caused. Though he tried to hide his face, his voice betrayed what he was feeling. "You know you may go to the town whenever you wish. No one is holding you here." Kwai Chang's shoulders sagged under the strength of the emotions that he felt. "I will clean up the mess."
Laura reached to call him back as he left, but stayed her hand. 'Way to go, Laura,' she thought. 'You just insulted him in his own home.' This was the third time in as many weeks that she had said words she did not mean. First, she had insulted his parentage, then she'd insulted his manhood. And now she had just insulted the only home he had ever known for a great deal of his life. She had to bring herself under control. Kwai Chang was right that these emotions could bring on a premature birth. It was not good for the baby to be feeling this much rage from within herself. Maybe one of Ping Hai's teas would help to calm her spirits. Maybe she would go and see him rather then send Kwai. It might do them both some good to put a little bit of distance between them right now.
Laura slowly walked down the hall, looking into each of the rooms. She had been amazed at how the temple felt full of life rather than the dark gloomy place she had remembered it to be. Sure, there were places where the sunlight did not penetrate so easily, but it was also filled with light from hundreds of candles. Without those candles, the place would have felt cold and dark.
As she walked, she thought about what Kwai Chang had said. She found that he was right. No one was holding her here. Only her fears and her imagination were preventing her from continuing to do the things she would normally do. There was no reason in the world why she could not go to town and do some personal shopping. If only she still had her car, but that had been damaged along with the house. No one had expected the torrential rains that they had received. It had saturated the ground so much that it had weakened the roots of many trees. Along with high winds, it had been enough to topple several of them, including two in their yard. She had been lucky to get out alive when the large oak tree had come crashing through the roof. Kwai Chang had been called away to assist others who had gotten caught out in the storm. and so she had been trapped underneath the branches of the tree for almost two hours. Kwai Chang had finally arrived home, frantic, and found her unconscious. He had carried her to the temple. Laura had been lucky that the tree's branches had surrounded her instead of landing directly on her. Part of the trunk had been supported by the frame of the house preventing further disaster. Kwai Chang had still feared that she might loose the baby, but the little life force was a survivor and had continued to thrive.
The first week after the storm, Kwai Chang had been over protective of her. He would not let her do anything for herself. She had finally been forced to lay down the law and remind him that she needed her space and her life back to normal. Or as normal as she could get living in a temple where there was chanting, kung fu lessons, and the smell of sweat and candles all around her. At first it had been interesting, even rather exciting. She was getting to see just what kind of life a Shaolin priest lived. But soon enough, the novelty had worn off and she began finding it rather dull and now quite stifling. She could not understand how Kwai Chang could stand to live in a place like this for so long. In truth, Kwai Chang himself did not feel comfortable in the temple. Not all priests were suited to the monastic life and Kwai Chang had taken up where his father and grandfather had left off. He was a wanderer. He did his best work and help outside of the temple, only coming to the temple on special occasions. Being here, in Braniff and at the temple, was the longest he had stayed in one place in a long time. He would bare it for now, until the house was repaired or the child was born, but then he would again find himself outside among those who needed him. When that happened, Laura feared she would not see Kwai Chang again.
"My dear, what troubles you?"
Laura nearly jumped out of her skin. She had not heard the old priest approach. She turned to see him, deep concern in his eyes. He looked upon her as a loving daughter.
"Oh Ping Hai. I'm so confused. I know I hurt Kwai Chang's feelings but I can't help but feel that once this baby is born, he won't stay around."
"How long have you felt this way?"
"The last couple of weeks. I can see it in his eyes. He's not happy at the temple. Every waking moment, he tries to find some excuse to leave and . . ."
". . .And you are afraid he will leave you as well." Ping Hai said with compassion. "Do not fear. Kwai Chang is only here because you are here. I have seen it in his eyes when he talks about you. He loves you with all of his being. He will not leave you. It is true that he would not stay at the temple if he were alone. He has come before on several occasions but has never stayed. Master Kwahn has spoken to him during those times about becoming a teacher but Kwai Chang has refused. He feels he could not live within these walls. He must be out among the people and nature."
"But I am afraid he'll leave me and the baby . . ."
"Laura have you not looked into his heart? This child is a part of him. I have spoken with Kwai Chang often since that night. He, too, has voiced his fears. Please, talk to him. Let him know how you feel. Only he can help you to see that your fears are unfounded. Kwai Chang loves this child that is growing within you. When he speaks of him, his eyes shine with deep pride and love. Come, let me make you a cup of tea. It is time you begin to decide on what to name this child. He cannot go without one."
"He? How do you know it will be a boy? No one knows that." Laura was puzzled by Ping Hai's words.
"The child's chi tells me this. He is very strong. Much like his father. Kwai Chang will be so pleased."
"Ping Hai, please don't tell Kwai. I want him to be surprised."
"We shall keep it our secret," Ping Hai smiled to himself. He could not help thinking that Kwai Chang already knew. He, too, had felt the child's chi but did not want Laura to know that he knew. He too wanted to surprise her. As the old priest and Laura walked down the hall back toward her quarters, Ping Hai recalled what Kwai Chang had said to him. He could feel the child reaching out to him, bonding with his own chi as if to say, "I am here father, teach me." At the same time, the child's chi was slowly separating itself from Laura, shying away as if to separate itself from something that was harmful, but Kwai Chang could not fathom the reason for it. Laura seemed strong, and yet, something in her chi did feel rather odd. He only wished that he could pinpoint what it might be. Kwai Chang had shaken his head, and had wished his skills were stronger.
Shaking himself back to the present, Ping Hai could not help but think on what he had learned from Laura's chi. He had debated with himself about whether or not he should tell Kwai Chang, but he had decided that he would have to reveal what he knew to Laura first. At one time, he had tried to broach the subject with her but she had dismissed him and would not hear any more on it. So Ping Hai kept his silence. His only wish was that all would remain well when the child would enter this world and Kwai Chang would not face raising a child alone too soon.
End of Part 16
