Thanks again for all the wonderful reviews, especially those of you who've stuck with this story and the previous one! Hope you all like the new chapter! We've had enough fluff I think so it's time for some DRAMA!
Autumn gave way to Winter as the weeks passed at Downton. The leaves fell from the trees and were swept away by the winter wind. The days grew shorter as the air turned colder. It was now early December. Preparations were starting to take place at Downton to get ready for Christmas. A huge tree had been brought in, much as it had every year that Bates had worked there during the festive time. It had been decorated in the usual opulent manner and the end result had been beautiful, as always.
As the Crawleys set about their decorating Anna and Bates had also been making preparations at their home, but not just for Christmas. They had started getting the second bedroom ready as a nursery. Anna was now nearing the end of her fourth month of pregnancy and she had been granted leave at half-pay by Lady Mary, even though Anna had protested that she was more than capable of doing her job. Lady Mary refused, saying she would never forgive herself if something happened to Anna or the baby as a result of overwork. Anna could see that Lady Mary would have her way and so acquiesced. Now she spent her days getting things ready for the nursery and for the expected occupant. She still rose early in the mornings with Bates as he got ready for work at Downton. After she made the both of them breakfast and kissed her husband goodbye for the day she often went back to bed for a short nap. When she got up again she would usually set about cleaning the home, though there wasn't much to be done since she and John were both quite tidy people. Mostly she just read a book or went out for a short walk while she waited until it was time to cook dinner. John usually came home directly from Downton for dinner. Some days visitors came from Downton, usually Mrs. Hughes or Daisy. Mrs. Isobel Clarkson had come by a few weeks ago and had brought Anna a lot of baby things that had once belonged to Matthew. Lady Mary still hadn't become pregnant so Isobel figured Anna needed the things more than they did. Today Anna was going to visit the doctor to make sure her pregnancy was progressing as it should. And John would be accompanying her. Of course he wouldn't be allowed to be in the office with her, but he had put his foot down and insisted that he drive her instead if her walking all the way. He had asked Lord Grantham if he could borrow one of the older traps in order to take Anna into town on his half-day. His Lordship had of course said yes and so sometime after noon John had arrived at their little cottage with the horse and trap. Anna bundled herself up well. The ride to the village wouldn't take more than a half-hour but the air was very cold and the trap was an open carriage and the wind would certainly chill her. John stepped down from the driver's seat gingerly and came over to help Anna up into the carriage. She managed to get up into the cart, but not without some difficulty. Her growing belly had started to prove a bit cumbersome. John made sure that she was situated and then hauled himself back up to the driver's seat, gave the big brown horse a light encouragement with the reigns and off they went. Anna put her arm around John's as he drove the horse and sat as close to him as she could.
As they rode along to the doctor's office John reflected on the past six weeks. Anna had gotten over the worst of her bouts of morning sickness and now seemed to positively glow from within. He often just stared at her, wonder filling his eyes as his wife transformed into a mother. At times Anna caught John as he watched her while she cleaned or while she read a book by the fire in their family room. Sometimes he fixed her with such a look of heat and longing that she'd blush furiously. He loved the changes taking place to her body. She had never looked so beautiful as she did now while carrying their child. She had put on weight but John found that it suited her, especially after how thin she'd become during their painful time apart two years ago. Her face had become a bit rounder and of course her belly had grown but he hadn't expected that her breasts would also become a bit larger. He remarked upon this one night as they lay in bed together and Anna had laughed so hard that he'd had to get up and fetch her a glass of water. He also couldn't seem to keep his hands off her. He'd often caress her growing belly and speak to the babe within while they sat on the settee in the evenings before getting ready for bed. Sometimes he'd simply come up behind her as she prepared dinner and hold her in his arms.
A flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye brought John out of his reverie. A stray dog from somewhere in the village ran out of the woods toward the cart and started barking and snapping at the horse. The horse whinnied loudly as he spooked and broke into a run. Bates could feel the reigns tighten in his hands as the frightened horse bolted madly. He pulled with all of his strength to try and halt the beast but the horse would not obey. Anna grabbed onto Bates in fear as they sped along. The road had now become rough and rocky and before Bates knew it they'd hit a huge stone. He heard one of the wheels break as it hit the hard object and felt the world crumble around him as the cart tipped and crashed, throwing him and Anna forcefully to the ground. He tried to reach out for Anna s they tumbled but she eluded his grasp. He heard Anna cry out as she was thrown down. As Bates hit the hard-packed winter earth the air was knocked out of him. He blacked out slightly as he fought to catch his breath but before too long he was able to regulate his breathing. The world slowly came back together and stopped spinning. Something warm and wet was running down his face. Bates took his glove off and felt the wetness on his face then looked down at his hand. The palm of his hand came back stained red with blood. He must have hit his head when he landed on the ground. He looked around for his Anna and saw he a few feet away lying on her back. He scrambled up as quickly as he could and made his way over to her. He could have sworn he felt his heart stop for a moment when he saw her lying there unconscious. Blood streaked her golden hair and formed a small pool under her head. She seemed so terribly small and still. Fear seized every fiber of Bates being.
"Oh God oh God oh God," Bates muttered over and over again. He worked quickly to make sure she was still breathing, some of his army training returning to him almost by instinct. After he made sure she was still alive he checked the wound at the back of the head. She had a bad gash and it was bleeding quite heavily. He prayed fervently that she wasn't irreparably harmed. His thoughts then turned to the child she was carrying. He had to get her to the doctor. He had to make sure she and the baby were OK. If she had a miscarriage he'd be heartbroken. The horse was long gone and he couldn't hear if someone was coming up the path. It was at least another mile or so to the village. Bates had no choice. He would have to try to carry her to the village.
"Dear God, if you're listening, please give me the strength to help her. Don't you take her from me, not now."
With that quick prayer sent up to heaven Bates pushed himself up to his feet. He then bent down and gently got Anna up into a position so that he could lift her. He then readied himself and with a mighty heave lifted his wife into his arms. In his younger years lifting a woman Anna's size was no problem for Bates. But he was fifty now and had a bad leg. It would be a miracle if he made it to the village but he had to try. As he lifted her pain seared through his leg and he gave out a cry but he did not dare drop her. He stood in place for a moment and took a few breaths. He then started to walk. Each step sent fresh pain through his leg as he walked up the path. The blood flowing down his face was starting to get into his eyes but he couldn't stop to wipe it away. He feared if he stopped walking he wouldn't be able to start again. Tears streamed down his face as he trudged on in complete agony. By the time he reached the outskirts of the village Anna still hadn't woken and he could feel the blood from her head wound starting to seep through his clothing. His leg burned white hot in pain, he'd never felt anything like it since he'd first been injured. He felt a bit nauseous now, both from the pain in his leg and from the worry building in him. But still he walked on. As he walked he spoke pleadingly to the limp body in his arms.
"Please Anna, please don't leave me. Not now. Please don't leave me and take our baby with you."
As Bates walked deeper into the village some farmer's saw him. He knew his face and coat must be positively drenched in blood.
"My Lord man! What's happened?"
"A dog spooked the horse drawing our cart and he bolted. One of the wheels broke and we crashed. My wife hit her head when she landed, please I have to get her to the doctor. She's….she's with child."
"Good God! What can we do to help?"
Bates replied breathlessly, "If you could just run ahead to Doctor Clarkson and tell him we need his help as soon as we arrive that would be most helpful."
The farmers did as Bates asked. One of them offered to take over carrying Anna, seeing that Bates himself was bleeding pretty badly but Bates wouldn't let him. No matter how much his leg hurt or how faint he felt she was his wife and the burden was on him to get her to safety. It had been his idea to take that blasted horse and cart to the village and it was the least he could do to carry his injured wife to the hospital. As Bates neared the doctor's office he could see Doctor Clarkson outside waiting with a nurse. Mrs. Clarkson was there too, her face full of fear and concern as they walked toward them. Bates felt relief flooding through his body as he reached the village hospital and handed Anna over to Clarkson who took her in his arms and whisked her away inside the building. As soon as he handed the woman over Bates finally let everything go. He fell to his good knee in exhaustion and then collapsed onto the floor of the waiting room. Mrs. Clarkson rushed over to him and loosened his shirt collar. She had a cool cloth in her hand which she was using to wipe the blood and tears off his face. As she barked orders to the nurses for a stretcher to be brought in he grabbed her hand and said to her softly, "Please make sure Anna and our baby are alright. If anything happens to her or the baby I couldn't go on…" And with that he could fight no longer and he let the darkness wash over him.