At first I wasn't sure if I had heard my brother correctly. But as I looked at his face, I knew there was no mistaking his words.
"How bad is it?"
"I'm not sure; you mentioned to me on our way over here that the captain had said that her temperature had gone down from what it had been two days earlier. But she still seems pretty warm."
"Could this complicate things in the future?"
Thomas sighed and replied, "Yes. There is a possibility of miscarriage if she is under any more stress during this time, or the possibility of the babies being stillborn."
"Babies; so it's official then? She's carrying twins?"
"Yes, it's official. Aside from her own, there were two other heartbeats. Edward had thought about checking earlier, but decided not to."
"Are they strong?"
"That's the relieving part. They sound very strong and uncompromised. But for how long I cannot say. We just need to get her fever down to normal, and her breathing uncompromised; then we'll see what happens from there. In the meantime, I suggest you stay home for a while, and not even do outside chores at that. Mary really needs you right now. Either Edward or myself will take care of the chores, including Belial. And, if need be, Braden and Brielle can stay with Charlotte and I for a while."
"Thomas.."
"You're family Will, not a burden, so save the refusal for someone who needs to hear it."
I gave my brother a wan smile.
"Thank you brother. Is there anything I can do for you in return?"
"Just be there for Mary; we'll take care of the rest."
"God I don't know what I would do without you."
"You won't need to know; you're my younger brother, and it's my duty to look after you, now matter how old you are." Said Thomas embracing me. "Now go see your wife, and I'll take Braden and Brielle with me for the rest of the week."
"Very well, I'll see you in six days."
