Thank you all for taking the time to read and review :). This chapter is a bit on the shorter side, but I felt this needed to be a bit of a standalone chapter. The other chapters shouldn't be this short. Thank you again! AlexisRose

Chapter 3

Mrs. Hughes carefully buttoned up the back of Anna's dress, not missing Anna's face as she buttoned the top buttons which tightened too tightly over her chest. Her breasts were sore and hard as rocks, since her milk had arrived that morning.

Despite Dr. Clarkson's attempts of having Anna stay and rest for more days, Anna had insisted she needed to see Mr. Bates. And Mrs. Hughes agreed with her. It wasn't right to keep the two apart after such tragedy. Perhaps, seeing John would allow Anna to truly grieve. The girl had just been quiet and sullen, but she hadn't really cried. When they tried to ask her questions, Anna remained closed lipped. She wouldn't speak about the baby.

Lady Mary had insisted they would do a burial for the child. Asking Anna the name of the little lad only came with a shake of her head. In the end, they decided the stone would say Baby Boy Bates. It seemed Anna had not named the baby, or if she had, she refused to share it with them.

"Now sit down, dear, so I can comb your hair."

Mechanically, Anna did as Mrs. Hughes asked of her. Mrs. Hughes didn't miss the pain on her features as she sat or the way her eyes refused to meet her own in the mirror. Instead, she kept her eyes on her hands in her lap. Anna had hardly spoken over the past couple of days. The only thing she would speak about was seeing Mr. Bates. And in those moments, she had been full of life and determination. It was then that Mrs. Hughes saw Anna. Otherwise, she was just a shell of herself.

"There," Mrs. Hughes said a moment later. Anna then did glanced up to inspect her hair. Her hands came up to touch beside the bun and she nodded her approval.

"Thank you, Mrs. Hughes."

"You're welcome, dear. I'll go and see if the car is ready."

The one stipulation that Dr. Clarkson had for Anna going to visit Mr. Bates was that she could not go alone. So Mrs. Hughes offered to be the one to take her to the prison. She would wait outside while the two met and be there in case Anna felt ill or fainted. She was still quite weak. The poor dear had lost a lot of blood in the delivery. Mrs. Hughes could still remember the moment of fear when they thought they may lose her too. But she was still here, and Mrs. Hughes had to remind herself of that. It would take time for Anna to heal, but they still had her with them.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

The moment Anna entered the private room, John stood. He wanted to reach out for her and pull her close to his chest. He hated the rule that kept them apart. He hated that he couldn't just hold her and allow the two of them to cry together for all they had lost.

His eyes locked in on hers. He could see the pain radiating in them and it only made his arms ache for her more. She was dressed nicely, but it didn't distract from the paleness in her cheeks and the wavering on her feet.

"Anna," he finally whispered.

"I…I missed you," Anna responded.

"Let's sit," he suggested. She looked as though she might just tip over and he didn't want that. Anna did as he asked and sat down across from him. He then did the same. He looked up to find the guard standing with his back to them, so John reached out and wrapped his hand around Anna's. It was the first time he had really touched her in so long. Anna gave him a small smile.

"How do you feel?" He asked her.

"Fine," Anna quickly answered, twisting her lips uneasily. Her hand did tighten around his too and John was grateful for this moment. He figured maybe the guard was showing them some sympathy, since it was known throughout the jail what he and Anna had lost.

"I…I know you're grieving, Anna. I am too. Can…can you tell me about him?"

Anna knitted her brows in thought. He felt as her fingers tightened more around his, almost as though she needed his support. He wanted to get out of his chair and walk over toward her, but he doubted the guard would be that generous. And he did not want this meeting to be shortened.

"We need to focus on bringing you home," Anna said instead of answering his question.

"There is time for that, Anna. Right now, we should talk about our son," John stated more strongly. Anna took in a slow breath, not quite able to meet his eyes. Then her head shook.

"We will, but I want to bring you home." There was a tinge of desperation within her voice and it broke his heart. She then met his eyes and told him, "His lordship means to work with Mr. Murray."

John inhaled sharply. Anna was going to avoid this. He didn't understand why. Why couldn't they speak of their son?

"There may be some way that I can help them to overturn the conviction. I don't know what I can do, but there may be something." There was determination in his wife's eyes that let him know she meant it and that she would work hard to free him. However, there were also unshed tears, tears she was holding back from him and herself. His other free hand reached out to touch her cheek. But she didn't turn into his touch there. Instead, she pulled back slightly, almost as though she was afraid to let the tears fall.

"But you must take care of yourself," he added, now taking her other hand in his. She did allow this. He now held both of her hands and was so grateful for that touch.

"Because we will overturn it," Anna assured him, ignoring his words about caring for herself. "I won't rest until we have you out."

"Anna," he calmly and realistically said. "That could take years, if you ever manage it."

"I don't care," Anna stubbornly replied. Her jaw was set. He ran his thumb over her knuckles and sighed.

"I want to come home to you. But you have to take care of yourself," he repeated. "You and I have to grieve for what we have lost."

"We must focus on bringing you home," Anna said once more. Again, he sighed.

"Anna, did he have a name?" He decided to ignore what she was saying in an attempt to get her to open up to him. Anna looked down at the table. "Please, tell me his name."

"I will bring you home," Anna countered, finally looking back up at him. And again, he had to sigh.

"There is one thing I must ask of you." Her eyes met his and he could tell that she was unsure. "I know we both need to grieve, but as you start to feel better, promise me you'll make friends…have fun, live life. I could never leave here, Anna, and I need to know that you will be happy. I do know happiness is not something either of us feels right now, but one day…." His words faded, as his own eyes betrayed him and filled with tears. He thought about how they should have a living son right now, but he was stolen from them.

"You will come home," Anna just answered in response to his words. "You will."

To be continued...