Meanwhile, Jem sat next to the bed, holding Faith's hand as she drifted off the sleep courtesy of the sedative Dr. Blythe had given her. Although Faith looked peaceful now, losing this baby was going to be a terrible blow to her – to both of them. Since Faith had told him about the baby a week ago, he had been deliriously happy. Yet Jem knew that as saddened as he was by Faith's miscarriage, her disappointment was going to be ten times worse. She had been secretly planning for this baby for nearly two months. Even though she hadn't told anyone but Jem, many people had noticed her radiant exuberance in recent weeks. And now the baby she had wanted so much had been taken from her.

As much as he hated to leave Faith's side, Jem knew that their families were waiting for him. No doubt they were aghast by the news, but once he told them the entire story he was sure everything would be fine. Regardless of the circumstances, he believed the rest of the Blythes and the Merediths would be supportive and share their grief. Nevertheless, he dreaded the thought of walking into the parlor and facing everyone. Dealing with his grief and anticipating the magnitude of Faith's was all he could handle right now. But knowing he had no choice, he went up to his bedroom to retrieve his copy of his marriage license before heading for the parlor.

When Jem walked into the parlor, everyone was silent. Seeing Jem's haggard, worried, and grief-stricken face immediately softened Rev. Meredith's and Jerry's anger, for it reminded them both of how much Jem loved Faith. Whatever Jem had done, they knew he would never intentionally hurt or humiliate Faith.

"I can only imagine how shocked you all must be," began Jem, "and I apologize for that. Before you say anything, I want to tell you something that Faith and I were planning to tell you tonight, although we should have told you a long time ago." He handed Rev. Meredith the marriage license before he continued. "Faith and I were married two years ago in London. We talked about sending a telegram or writing at the time, but we felt strongly news like that should be delivered in person, so we decided to wait until we were both home and could make the announcement together. Only on the evening we planned to tell you – the day after Faith returned from London and the day before I left for Kingsport – we changed our minds. It was the evening you had the conversation about Mrs. Drew's daughter and young couples rushing into wartime marriages. When you said you were glad none of your children had acted so irresponsibly, we just couldn't tell you."

"Oh Jem, I'm the one who said such marriages were irresponsible," his mother said apologetically. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea. But I would have never felt that way about you and Faith. Even if your wedding was a little hasty, your marriage wasn't. You two had planned to be married before the war broke out. That's a completely different situation from the ones we were talking about that night."

"Anne is right," agreed Rev. Meredith, remembering he had been the one to say how lucky they were none of their children had rushed into marriage. "Yours and Faith's is a completely different situation. I wish you had told us. I feel terrible knowing we made you doubt your decision."

"You didn't," Jem said. "Faith and I talked about it later that night, and we wouldn't do anything differently even if we could."

"If you talked about it and agreed your decision to marry was the right one, why didn't you tell us the next morning before you left for Kingsport?" asked Gil.

"Based on your comments that night, we were afraid telling you would cause you to worry unnecessarily. And after all you've been through the last five years, we just couldn't do that to you."

Tears welled up in Anne Blythe's eyes. "After all we've been through!" she exclaimed. "You young people have suffered and sacrificed more than we have. You boys off fighting in Europe, and the girls waiting and wondering if you'd ever return. All of you put your lives on hold. Then you and Faith coming home, eager to announce your marriage but deciding not to in order to spare your family anxiety. And now Faith's miscarriage. It must be a terrible blow to both of you."

"Yes, it is," Jem said sadly. "But it's worse for Faith than for me. She told me about her pregnancy only last week. She's been planning for this baby for several weeks."

"That's what she's been so happy about," said Jerry, finally aware of the source of his sister's bliss.

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Supper was completely forgotten, and the evening ended shortly thereafter. Sensing that their parents wished to speak about the situation in private, Jerry and Nan excused themselves and took Bruce back to the manse shortly after Jem returned to Faith's bedside. Once the senior Blythes and Merediths were alone, they discussed how much they would have welcomed a grandchild and how painful it was going to be to watch their children grieve over their loss, knowing there was nothing they could do to lessen the pain. John and Rosemary had wanted to take Faith home, but Gilbert insisted it was best for Faith to remain where she was for at least a few days. Besides, he pointed out, she really needed to be with her husband now. Unable to disagree, the Merediths left after promising to return early the next morning to check on their daughter. Anne and Gilbert went to bed, sadly remembering the daughter they had lost twenty-seven years earlier.

In the meantime, Jem sat by Faith's side all night, thinking about how much he loved her, questioning how a child who had been conceived in as much love as they shared could by taken from them, and wondering if he would really be able to leave Faith and return to medical school in ten short days. They were going to need each other now.

When Faith awoke just before sunrise, she was groggy and confused. At first, she couldn't remember where she was or what had happened. But upon seeing the somber look on her exhausted husband's face, she recalled feeling uncomfortable and sick, going outside, and doubling over as sharp pains shot through her body. As Jem moved over to sit on the edge of her bed and take her hand, she looked into his eyes and saw his broken heart.

"I lost the baby, didn't I?" she asked, her voice trembling with emotion.

"Yes," he said hoarsely, "but you're going to be fine. That's all that matters."

For the next hour, Jem held his wife as she wept uncontrollably, not understanding how a child she already loved so much could be taken from her without warning.

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"How is she?" Gilbert asked Jem quietly as he entered the room and saw that his patient was asleep.

Not wanting to wake Faith or risk her overhearing how worried he was about her, Jem silently motioned for his father to follow him into the kitchen.

"She's devastated," Jem told his father. "She woke and cried so hard for an hour that she wore herself out."

"There's no question this is going to be hard on Faith emotionally," Gilbert said, "But there's no permanent physical damage. She'll be able to have other children."

"I know," said Jem. "But I don't think that matters to her right now. All she can think about is the baby she lost."

Gilbert nodded, wishing he could offer some words of comfort. "What about you? Did you get any sleep at all?"

"I'm not tired," Jem said.

"Jem, you're not going to be able to help Faith if you collapse from exhaustion. Why don't you go upstairs and try to get a couple of hours of sleep?"

"No. I don't want Faith to be alone when she wakes up again."

"She won't be," Gilbert promised. "I'll see to it someone is with her every minute. Now go get some sleep."

Reluctantly, Jem did as he was told.