Vanessa and Laura arrived at Madame Maria's complex estate in a flurry, and Vanessa leapt from Jupiter's back as soon as they got to the main steps. She turned and took the bag of herbs from Laura, then motioned that the stablehand take Jupiter around back. No matter what she tried to do, the great black stallion was too recognizable. If anyone knew the horse, they would know she was here. Not that it was really an issue, but it mattered to Aunt Sarah, so the horse was hidden.
Two male guards, Maria called them Bouncers but Vanessa knew that they were in fact eunuchs, led her up the main staircase. The stairs led to an array of hallways and small waiting rooms, each one belonging to one or two different girls, and Vanessa was led down the one that alone belonged to Mary. The hallway opened up into a smaller sitting room, actually it was a larger room but with all the people inside it felt that much smaller. Vanessa looked around and saw several faces she knew, mostly the girls from the house. Near one of the windows Mary's latest lover, and most likely the father of this child, was talking in hushed tones to..."Ranger?" Vanessa's voice cut through the many conversations around her, and the man she addressed turned to her in surprise.
He stepped away from his conversation and came over to her, "Vanessa, what are you doing here?" She nodded to Laura and handed her the bag of herbs, "Go on ahead, I'll be right there. I'm a friend of Mary's, Ranger. She asked for me to come and be with her." Ranger nodded, and a small smile crossed his lips, "Going to work your natural magic, eh?" Vanessa chuckled lightly, and was about to walk away when he grabbed her arm, "Nessa..." it sounded wrong coming from him, now that she and Adam... Shaking her head, she turned back to him, "Yes, Ranger?" She could see it in his eyes.
He knew.
"This Adam Cartwright you once told me about...he's the one that you talked with at the ball, isn't he?" Vanessa nodded, "Yes..." Ranger nodded and dropped his grip on her arm, "I see." He looked into her eyes, "you look the way my wife did when we were first married...You love him don't you?" She couldn't deny it, not after last night. "I do, Ranger. It's like it was before..." Ranger smiled, "Then I suppose you and I..." Vanessa shook her head sadly, "No, we can't Ranger." he was so cute, trying so hard to be the big man, the Vanessa couldn't help herself and put a hand on his cheek, "You're a good man, Ranger Kirkpatrick, but not my man." Ranger drew a deep breath and put his hands on her shoulders, lightly kissing her cheek, "I wish you all the luck in the world, Vanessa Warrick. I hope he's as good as you wish him." Vanessa held in a chuckle, 'oh..you have no idea.'
All conversation stopped as the doctor poked his head out the door, and waved at Vanessa, "Ms. Warrick, she wants to see you." Vanessa put a hand on Ranger's arm and walked into the bedroom. She waited until the door closed behind her, then started about her work. "So, how is she?" Laura was near the small fireplace, brewing the raspberry leaves into a tea. Vanessa went to a side table where her bag of herbs sat and removed a towel that she kept there, and tied it around her waist. The doctor told her everything he knew, and Vanessa nodded appropriately and rolled up her sleeves. "I can't get that baby to turn. I've done everything I can, and yet..." Vanessa smiled, "I'm glad that you called for me." The doctor returned the smile, "I thought it would be wise. Mary's so tired, she's near passed out." Laura called over to her, "Ms Nessa, the tea's almost ready." Vanessa went over to her, and filled a glass with the warm liquid.
Mary's contractions were getting worse, but that darned baby wouldn't move. After drinking the tea, Vanessa had made her gnaw on some Black Haw leaves, telling the doctor that it would help her belly relax enough that they could get a better grip on the baby. That had been almost fifteen minutes ago, and now the doctor could finally feel the child. "No wonder you're in so much pain, Mary. This baby's sideways." Vanessa took a deep breath and smiled at her friend, "Mary, darling. I need you to do something for me." Mary nodded as another contraction hit. Vanessa waved Laura over and had her bring another cup of the tea, "Keep drinking this, Mary. It will help you and your baby." Mary nodded and took the cup from Laura. Vanessa put a hand on Laura's shoulder, "Stay up here with her. Keep her talking." Laura nodded as Vanessa moved away. She met the doctor by Mary's exposed hip, and whispered, "Alright doctor, I say it's time for that baby to meet the world!"
Three hours had passed since Vanessa had gone into the bedroom, and every hour Madame Maria came into the sitting room to see if anything had happened. On her fourth visit, Maria was about to leave when the door to Mary bedroom opened, and Vanessa emerged, her hands and front covered with blood. Maria turned back and hurried to her young friend, "Vanessa...how?" Vanessa looked up at her and grinned widely, nudging the door open with her foot. Maria looked past her into the newly lit room to Mary's bed. "She's named him Nicholas." Vanessa whispered, and the entire waiting room heard the soft wail of a newborn babe. Maria smiled and hurried into the bedroom, closing the door behind her.
Vanessa took a deep relaxing breath, and wiped her hands on the towel around her waist. Three long hard hours, she was physically and emotionally exhausted. She hadn't had a good night's sleep since she'd learned of Adam's arrival to New Orleans, then she'd added to it the emotional strain of the ball, dancing with him...making love to him...and now she'd spent three hard hours birthing her friend's child. She collapsed into one of the plush chairs around the room, closed her eyes and nearly went to sleep. "Ms Nessa?" she frowned, "Yes, Laura?" Laura was kneeling next to her chair, looking at her worriedly, "It's Ms Maria. She says that you're to take a bath and relax a bit before going home." Vanessa smirked, "Laura, if I take a rest, I'm liable to sleep well into next week!" she opened her eyes and groaned, "Although, a warm bath does sound like a good idea."
Ben turned to Sarah with a glare in his eyes, "She's gone where?" Sarah cringed, she didn't want to make her niece look like the harlot she wasn't. She took a breath and glanced at Adam, who was now standing next to his father, "It was when she first arrived. Vanessa only knew that she had a relative here, she'd never met me before. When she got off the train to get here, the first person she met was Maria Raymond. Maria helped her find me, and they have been good friends ever since. Nessa's taken care of her girls whenever she can." Adam swallowed, "Vanessa's quite the healer, but I would like to know where this Maria's house is." Elizabeth joined in, "That's where you're not going to be happy, Mr. Cartwright. You see, Maria's house is on one of the meaner boardwalks in the southern half of town." Ben glanced at his son to gauge his reaction. Adam set his jaw and pinched the bridge of his nose. Vanessa was headstrong and stubborn, and he knew that she was more than capable of taking care of herself, but he did not like her going into this dangerous part of town. "How do I get there?" he growled, staring Nessa's aunt down.
Vanessa leaned back in the porcelain tub in Maria's rooms and sighed contentedly. "Ah, Maria. You spoil me." Maria was reclining on the grand bed in the room, her hair undone and spread across the pillow, and she giggled like the young girl she used to be. "You deserve it Vanessa. After what you did for Mary today, I don't think anyone else could have helped her." Vanessa closed her eyes and let Maria's personal eunuch pour more hot water into the tub, "I didn't do anything that doctor couldn't." Maria snorted, "Yeah, if he knew about it." Vanessa chuckled to herself and rolled her head forward, stretching the muscles in her back. Maria saw the movement and went to kneel next to her friend, "Here, let me help." As Maria began to massage Vanessa's neck, she noticed something. "Vanessa, dear. Would you mind explaining to me what this is?" Vanessa opened her eyes, her back muscles tensing beneath Maria's hands. Maria smiled knowingly, "This...here." she ran her fingers along the spot, and Vanessa stopped breathing. What Maria had just touched so gently was an old scar...one that she'd already had to explain to Adam. "It's an old wound..." she tried to evade the question, but Maria was having none of it. "It's a pretty bad gash, Nessa. Where did you get it, back home?" Vanessa nodded, and swallowed the memory.
The girl and her horse were almost as one as they moved, Hades would leap from the ground and Vanessa would absorb the return as though it never happened. But no matter how long the two worked together or how in tune they could possibly be with the other, there was always the chance that sometime, somewhere, something would go wrong.
"My horse and I were going for a ride...when I was about sixteen. I had been cooped up in the house all day, and I just wanted some free time." She swallowed hard as Maria continued to massage her. Maria's touch lightened, "So....what happened?" Vanessa chuckled a little, "You ever tangled with a mountain lion?" Maria snorted, "Vanessa, you know full well I haven't." Vanessa turned her head slightly to look at her, "Pray you never will. I barely escaped, and that scar's the only momento I have." Maria pulled back from Vanessa and sighed, "That's not everything is it?" Vanessa leaned back and looked up at her friend, "No, it isn't." Maria stared at hard, then grinned, "Who is he?" Vanessa flushed a light pink, "Adam Cartwright. Is it that obvious?" Maria laughed and patted Vanessa's shoulder as she stood, "Vanessa Warrick, you are in love! And unless I miss my guess, you've given in to him already." Vanessa's face went bright red, and Maria really let out a laugh. "You're half right." Vanessa admitted, and Maria's eye's bulged, "You're kidding." Vanessa shook her head, "I..." she swallowed, it was bad that Maria knew this much. Maria raised her eyebrows knowingly, "When did it happen?" That was harder for her to say, and she focused on washing her hair. Maria chuckled good naturedly, "Alright, I can guess." She tapped a finger on her chin, "Let's see, Adam Cartwright, eh? You came to see me when he sent you that book of sonnets four days ago," She watched Vanessa for a reaction, "And your aunt held that ball last night," Vanessa's shoulders hunched more, "LAST NIGHT? Vanessa, you made love to the man you love for the first time last night and then rode bareback to my place all the way from your aunts? You really must be hurting." The girl in the tub giggled, "Maria, I was raised on a ranch, I can handle being a little sore..." she yawned widely, and dropped her head back to rinse her hair, "When was the last time you slept?" Vanessa smirked, "Any or at all?" Maria raised a demanding eyebrow and Vanessa confessed, "I haven't slept well since I learned he was in New Orleans, but I haven't gotten any sleep at all since night 'fore last."
Maria glowered at her friend, "That much huh?" Vanessa ran her hands through her hair, making sure all the soap was gone, "Maria, please. I'm not in the mood." the older woman stood and grabbed a towel hanging on the rack near the fireplace, holding it up as Vanessa pulled herself from the water. Vanessa took over, and stepped out of the tub as graceful as a dancer. Maria was staring at the bathwater, and gave a low whistle, "I'm willing to bet that a lot of that isn't Mary's." she whispered, making Vanessa turn back to look at it.
It was pink with blood.
Vanessa felt her knees go weak, and latched onto Maria for support, "I wasn't expecting that." she whispered back, and let the older woman lead her to the oversized bed. "Here," she pushed a silver brush into her hand and started giving her commands, "You are staying here, to relax for a while. I've sent a note to your aunt saying that you're having supper with me. And for now, you are going to get some rest." Vanessa opened her mouth to protest, but Maria overrode her, "I'm not taking no for an answer, young lady. I remember my first time and my gut's telling me that your feeling the same way I did. Tired, sore, but oh so happy." Vanessa looked up at her, and smiled, "Happy...that's an understatement." Maria let out a soft laugh, and patted her hand. "Just do as your told, Vanessa. I'll come and get you in a few hours for supper."
Maria was walking down the main staircase when her front door opened and there stood a man, tall as a church steeple and built like one of her bouncers. His shoulders were broad and from them hung a pair of arms that looked like they were used to hard labor; he wore a deep red shirt with blue jeans. Even at forty years old, Maria had to catch her breath at his appearance, "I'm sorry, but we're not accepting callers today." the man removed his hat, and she saw he had a full thick head of black hair, and accusing hazel eyes, "My name's Adam Cartwright, and I was told that Vanessa Warrick is here." Maria raised an eyebrow at him. 'Vanessa sweetie, you sure know how to pick 'em.' she thought to herself, "She's here alright, but I've just set her down for a nap." he took a step forward as though he meant to climb the stairs, "Now hold your horses young man, that girl needs some rest after what you put her through last night." Adam froze, "Did she tell you that?" Maria shook her head, "No, but I am beginning to think I've been in this business a little too long." He walked up the stairs, stopping on the step where she was, "I'll see her. Now."
Vanessa set down the brush on the vanity and shook out her hair to help it dry. Glancing herself over in the gilded mirror Maria had, Vanessa took a deep breath and opened the towel she'd tied around herself. The blood in the bathwater wasn't from her flow, Maria had been wrong about it not being from Mary. Her skirts and petticoats were soaked clean through from Nicholas' birth, Aunt Sarah would chew her hide for ruining her new dress like that, but it couldn't be helped. She drew a deep breath and laid down on the bed, drawing the coverlet over herself and closed her eyes. 'Oh, goodness this is wonderful.'
Maria gripped the handle to the room where she'd left Vanessa to sleep, and looked pointedly at Adam, "This girl needs her rest, Mr Cartwright. If I let you in there, what are you going to do?" Adam didn't answer, he didn't really know himself. All he knew was that he wanted to see Vanessa, hold her against him again...maybe kiss her again. Maria nodded, "I see. Well then, I'll let my cooks know that we'll be having two guests for supper." she gently pushed the door open, and left Adam to himself. As she walked back down the hall, Maria had time to think. Should she really have left them alone like that..in this house? She shook her head to clear it and kept on walking. Yes, they were in her house, a house of beautiful women and strong drink. It was no secret that Maria took good care of all of her girls, and that included any woman that set foot beneath her roof. 'Adam Cartwright better damn well know what he's doing.' she thought as she bustled through her kitchen, directing meals to the different girls' rooms, 'If he hurts Vanessa...'
Adam closed the door behind him, and stared at the woman on the bed. Her hair was spread across the pillows, framing her face in a dark halo. She had one arm up on her hair, the hand buried beneath the pillow, her other arm was across her belly, just below her bust. He could tell she wasn't wearing anything, or if she was, it certainly didn't cover her shoulders. The words from one of his favorite poems came to the forefront of his mind, She Walks in Beauty by Lord Byron
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies; ...
... Where thoughts serenely sweet express
How pure, how dear their dwelling place.
And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!
Innocent. Yes, Vanessa was a strong woman, able to ride a horse like a man, he'd seen her wear jeans and a hat like a man, he'd watched her play poker like a man, do everything that her ranch needed as good as the men around her, but she was innocent to the ways of the world. Well, innocent to a degree... he sat on the bed next to her, and brushed back a stray wisp of hair from her cheek. Innocent...and he planned on keeping her that way, as soon as she married him. He'd got the whole thing planned out on his way to the house; as soon as she really said yes, he'd take her before the local priest and they'd seal the deal. She took a shuddering breath in her sleep and rolled onto her side, pulling the blanket with her. She'd exposed her back...and that nasty scar she'd gotten all those years ago. She'd told him that she'd gotten it from a mountain lion attack, but it was a single scar, not the trio he'd expect a claw mark to look like. No, this looked too much like a knife wound and it seared his gut to think of someone stabbing his girl. 'His girl?' Where had that come from? She wasn't his yet...'but she had been.' he thought, bringing a hand to rest on her creamy shoulder, 'If you'd only married her right then and there, and not let her get away. You wouldn't be having this time with her here, you'd be at that Ponderosa.' She made a soft whimper and rolled back to face him, an angry wrinkle marring her face. He smiled and gently rubbed at it, what could she possibly be worrying about?
He took a deep breath and shook his head. He knew full well what a woman of Vanessa's caliber would be worried about. 'Pregnancy.' the word echoed through his mind, and his hand trailed down her body to her covered belly. 'Her child,' he thought warmly, then corrected himself, 'our child.' it made his heart beat a little faster. He could see a little girl running around the front yard of the Ponderosa, chasing the fresh litter of piglets. The image changed to the main room of the house, and Vanessa was there, holding the little girl on her lap, reading her a story before the blazing fire.
"Adam?" she grumbled, and leaned herself up on her elbow, "Adam, what are you...?" he put a finger over her mouth, "Easy girl. I've come to fetch you home." She knit her brows together, "The Ponderosa?" He smiled brightly, "Yes...the Ponderosa. Right after you marry me." She chuckled thickly, still trying to wake up, "Adam...now is most unquestionably not the best time to be discussing marriage." His smile changed to his cocky grin, and he slid a hand down her chest to where the blanket was held, "On the contrary, I'd think this is the perfect time." She pushed his hand away playfully, and laid back to stare at the ceiling, "I told you before Adam. I made my decision, what about you?" He hung his head, "Nessa, that's no answer." she smiled, and then scooted away from him, taking one of the blankets with her. She wrapped it around herself as she stood, and went to the small desk that Maria kept in one corner. "Very well then, Adam. This is your answer." She picked up a pencil, and wrote two words on the paper. She folded it in half, then walked it over to him, holding it out in front of her. She stopped only a few steps away from him, and he took the sheet. Opening it carefully, he read the words on it and looked up at her, "You're serious then." She moved closer and put her free hand on her hip, "As serious as the first time you asked me two years ago."
He stood and took her in his arms, "Alright. Where can we find a priest at this time of day?" Vanessa smiled warmly, "First let's find me some clothes." He grinned wickedly, and took two good handfuls of the blanket in his fists, "No...I've got a better idea of what to do first." He led her back to the bed, and as they lay back on it, the sheet of paper slipped to the floor, now completely ignored.