Summer had arrived and Charlotte found it harder every day to deal with the heat and her advanced pregnancy. She felt out of breath even with minimal efforts although she made a point of taking a walk in the neighborhood every day.

William's recovery was going great physically; mentally it was entirely something else. He wasn't allowed be out on the field yet and he was looking for his purpose. General Cornwallis had left for Virginia several weeks ago, as the war was still on. Tavington felt left over, not good anymore. His mood was darkening every day that passed. He sat in the parlor all day long, waiting for time to pass by.

Charlotte came and sat next to him, on the sofa facing the windows. She took his hand in hers and rested her head on his shoulder. She jumped and quickly put his hand on her belly, just in time for him to feel the baby strong kick.

"Did you feel that, my love?"

Tavington's eyes widen as he felt the baby move for the first time. Every night, before she would fall asleep, he would wait for the kick, his hand patiently on her, but never felt it.

"I did!" he said as he put both of his hands on her, covering the biggest surface he could.

"There! Again!"

"I felt it!"

He felt a tingle in his left eye. Could that be a tear? He gained back his control, but it was too late; Charlotte had seen his emotion and locked her eyes in his. Her smile was full of tenderness.

"What?" he said, defensively.

"Nothing. I love you, dear," she said as she kissed him. "Maybe we should start to think about name for the baby? He will be here faster than we will realise."

"He? Now you are the one thinking it's a boy?"

"I don't know why I said that, probably. You go first," she said playfully.

"Hmm. What about Philip?"

Their discussion was interrupted by men yelling on the street, just in front of the house. They both stood up and looked through the window. Men were arguing pretty strongly and one drew a pistol. A shot was fire. Broken glass felt on the wooden floor. Tavington looked over only to see Charlotte falling to the floor. In seconds, he was to her side, flipping her around to assess what just happened to her. Her arm was bleeding. She was lucky in her misfortune, the bullet brushed against the side of her arm.

Florence came in the parlor to find her mistress on the floor then rushed to her side. Tavington mumbled to the maid to stay inside. He went outside, heading straight for those men arguing. One left running and the other one was trying to apologize sincerely since he saw his shot it the window. No word left the colonel's mouth, but his fist hit the man straight in the face.

Soldiers patrolling not far were alerted by the yelling and came closer. They arrested the shooter and one private came inside to make sure the colonel's wife was indeed fine. Charlotte was still on the ground, holding her hand to her stomach, moaning. William ordered the solider to fetch a doctor, as he picked his wife in his arms to transport her into the bedroom. She curled up on her side, holding her belly.

"Tell me what is happening?"

"I don't know, but it hurts. The pain comes and goes, but when it-argh," she could not even finish her sentence as her breath was cut short.

"Florence! Fetch the doctor!" Tavington yelled.

"The soldier who was here just left for the medical center," Florence said as she came in the room.

William sat on the bed next to his wife and took her hand in his, which she squeezed really hard, as the contractions came and went. He kept looking over to the door overlooking the staircase, hoping the doctor would come soon.

His prayers were answered quite soon as the medical expert made his entrance in the room. He assessed Charlotte's conditions and gave her laudanum to ease the pain. Quickly, she felt asleep. The doctor told the colonel his wife will need to lay down, probably until the day she will gave birth. The stress of the aggression she endured had triggered her body to have contractions before time.

..

A week later, Charlotte stayed in bed for most part of her days. The roles were reversed; she had been caring for William's wound for weeks, and now she was the one in need. She had to follow the doctor's order and stay in bed; otherwise, she might lose the baby.

Her bedridden stay was a good thing for William as he took more responsibilities. His energy was back and he started to ride again more and more every day. He was the one taking care of Charlotte now. He was giving order again and this made him felt alive.

Soon, he received a letter from General Cornwallis in Virginia, summoning him to come as decisive battle was around the corner. They made arrangements for a travel to this new colony for his family at the end of the summer. He could not afford to be away from his wife and soon to be child.

..

Now in Virginia, he made his way back to his home on night after a tiring day of training his dragoons. He closed the door when he heard screams that made his blood run cold. He rushed upstairs to find his bedroom door closed. He stopped for a second to try to locate the screams and they were defiantly coming from the bedroom. Florence got out with handful of bloody towels, heading to find clean ones and fresh water. She froze as she came face to face with the colonel.

"Tell me what is going on. Come on, speak!"

"Lady Charlotte is giving birth"

"And no one told me this before I came here?" he said as he grabbed her arm firmly, his jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed.

"No. It's just.. that.. I need to go.."

Tavington released her arm and put his hand on the door handle.

"No, you cannot go. It's no place for a man," Florence said with a very small voice. Just the look he gave her made turn her way and rushed to the kitchen.

He entered the room, but he was not ready for the sight inside. Charlotte was lying in bed in her shift, holding tightly the bed sheets in her hand as she kept screaming. The doctor was in between her legs, telling her to push. When she was out of breath, her head heavily felt back on the pillows. She turned her head to the side and locked her gaze on her husband, still standing in the doorframe. She held out her hand and he came closer, sitting next to her on the bed.

"Colonel, you must not be here. This is no place for a husband."

"I will be where my wife wants me."

She squeezed his hand as she screamed in pain again. He was astonished at her strength, not only how hard she was holding his hand but everything else she had to pull through.

"Will, I cannot do it. It is too much for me. I cannot…"

"Lily, you are the strongest woman I know, you can do it and I will be right by your side."

"My Lady, now is the final push, the baby is almost here. You need to push even harder," the doctor said.

Charlotte took a deep breath and pushed harder she ever did, screaming all along. The doctor was ecstatic, seeing the baby's head. With one last push, Charlotte's scream where replaced by the newborn's. William kissed his wife on the forehead as he stood up to come closer to the doctor.

"Congratulations to you both! It's a boy. A very healthy baby boy," said the doctor as he cleaned the newborn and wrapped him in a blanket. He handed him to Tavington. He never held such a small thing in his hands and was very careful.

His eyes lifted to Charlotte, as he was very proud of holding his son. The son he longed for. His happiness shifted to worries as he saw Charlotte unconscious on the bed. On the bed, he noticed all the blood she had lost during the delivery. The doctor looked at Charlotte at the very same moment. He ordered Tavington to walk back and stay calm. He would do his best to care for her.