Over the next several weeks, Obadiah and Jane spent many hours slowly becoming better acquainted. He visited her at her aunt's home nearly every day, though he was occasionally unable to get away because of his duties or inability to slip away unnoticed.

Though they spent some time visiting with Jane's aunt and sharing meals with her, the newlywed couple spent most of their time together alone; taking walks, sitting out in the garden, and many times lying together on Jane's bed, talking as Obadiah held his young wife in his arms. It took all the self-control he could muster not to claim his husbandly rights at those times and consummate their relationship. On the days he spent time cuddling with her in bed, the young sergeant always had to stop in town on his way back to camp to have one of the tavern doxies scratch his itch and give him some relief from his desire for Jane.

The several weeks after their wedding, leading up to the baby's birth, turned out to be the happiest that Obadiah had ever known in his life.

Jane spent most of her time away from Obadiah making baby clothes with the help of her aunt. They also made bed linens, knitted scarves and gloves, and made a few pillows and blankets. Her sisters made occasional visits, mostly to share the town gossip, though they also sometimes helped with the sewing. Her father came once a week to share Sunday dinner, with Obadiah nearly always in attendance as well.

A midwife had been engaged and the woman came to check on Jane a few times, advising her to rest more as the time drew nearer for the baby's birth.

At camp, Obadiah continued with his usual duties and activities, with no one being any the wiser about his recent marriage. He, too, was busy gathering things to set up a household with Jane after the baby's birth, and had looked at some billets near the camp for them to move into together. To facilitate this, he devoted more time to stealing and black market activities, trying to make as much money as possible before the baby was born.

As for Richard Sharpe, his life remained much as it had since he'd arrived back in England. He'd completely forgotten about the cobbler's daughter whom he'd deflowered and was entirely oblivious to the upheaval he'd left in his wake and of how he'd permanently changed her life. The young corporal continued with the easy warehouse duty, spending his off-duty time drinking, gambling, and whoring, as usual.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Early one morning, about two weeks before the baby was due, Jane rose early, having been unable to sleep for most of the previous night. Her back had been bothering her and she'd not been able to find a comfortable enough position that would have allowed her to get some rest, despite much tossing and turning. Finally, as she saw the first tendrils of dawn lightening the darkness, she gave up trying to sleep.

Throwing her dressing gown on over her shift, then stuffing her feet into her bedroom slippers, she gingerly made her way downstairs to the kitchen. She found Sally already up and building the fire in the hearth as she shuffled into the room.

"You're up awfully early, Mrs Hakeswill," the servant said as Jane entered the kitchen. "I've not even got breakfast started yet."

"That's all right," Jane replied, easing her heavily pregnant bulk into a chair. "I'm not particularly hungry, but I'd dearly love a cup of tea, if it isn't too much trouble."

"I'll get you a cup right away, 'fore I do anything else," Sally told her. "Now that the hearth is warming up, it shouldn't take long to boil some water."

After Jane had finished two cups of tea and some leftover biscuits Sally had found, she was still feeling vaguely out of sorts, and decided to go back to bed to see if she could get at least a few hours of rest, after telling Sally to let her aunt know she'd not be down for breakfast.

She was awakened from a fitful slumber a few hours later by a hesitant tapping at her door.

"Jane, are you awake?" a soft voice called. "It's Sarah and I've come to have lunch with you."

There was an extended pause while Jane's sleep fogged mind interpreted the sound that had awakened her.

"Come in," Jane finally croaked, easing herself to a sitting position.

"Are you all right?" Sarah asked as she came into the room. "I've been here for quite awhile, but I let you sleep as long as I could."

Frowning briefly, Jane replied, "I don't feel quite right, but I can't say that I feel exactly unwell. I can't quite explain it."

"Eating lunch will make you feel better, I'm sure," Sarah pointed out.

"Perhaps." Jane wasn't so sure of that. She'd been having intermittent stomach cramps and did not believe food would cure the problem. Turning to her sister, she asked, "Is Obadiah here?"

"I haven't seen him," her sister replied. "Maybe he'll come by soon."

"I hope so." She rose clumsily from the bed to dress, choosing an old, but comfortable gown.

Some time later, after the two sisters and their aunt finished lunch, Jane still did not feel better. In fact, she felt worse, with her stomach pains increasing. Her sister and aunt, however, remained oblivious to her level of distress until she nearly doubled over when the pains hit her again at the dinner table.

Sarah jumped up, startled, but Aunt Caroline calmly said, "How long have those pains been going on, Jane?"

"Since last night." Exhaling heavily, she added, "I didn't want to worry anyone I thought the pains would pass."

"I'll send Sally to fetch the midwife right away," Aunt Caroline said, her tone of voice inviting no dissension. "She will be able to tell you if it's your time."

"What about Obadiah?" Jane asked. "Shouldn't he be notified as well?"

"Let us see what the midwife says first," her aunt said. "You're not due for nearly two weeks, so it's a good idea to make sure the baby is really coming before we send for him. And, in any instance, first babies usually take quite awhile to make their appearance."

Sally left for the midwife's cottage a short time later, leaving Jane and her two female relatives in the front room to wait.

Jane began pacing as she waited for Sally to return with the midwife, moving from the door to the window and back again, worried that it was too early for the baby to come.

"Sit down, Jane," her aunt said. "You're going to wear a hole in the rug."

"I'm sorry, but I can't help but fret about it." Before she could return to her seat, she suddenly stopped her pacing, her eyes wide in shock.

"What is it, dear?" the older woman said, seeing her distress.

"I-I'm all wet!" she wailed, stepping aside quickly to show that the back of her gown had been soaked as well as the rug below her.

"Oh, dear," her aunt said fretfully. "I'm afraid that means the baby is coming now." Turning to Sarah, who was nervously twisting her handkerchief, she said, "You'd best go for Sergeant Hakeswill right away, after we help get Jane settled in bed."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

A short time later, Sarah was hurrying through the woods, taking a shortcut to get to the army camp. She did not go home to tell Abby and her father, as her aunt had told her that she would send Sally out again once she returned from getting the midwife.

By the time Sarah reached the camp, she was sweaty and somewhat disheveled. Pausing for a moment to lean against a tree to catch her breath, she approached the sentry on guard, who regarded her with bored curiosity.

"I need to see Sergeant Hakeswill," she explained to the sentry a moment later. "I have a message for him."

Raising an eyebrow at the girl, wondering what her connection was to the irascible sergeant, he called out to a passing private and said, "Saunders, go get Sergeant Hakeswill from the warehouse and tell him there's someone here to see him."

It didn't take long for Obadiah to appear after the private had gone to find him. After getting the message, he'd dropped what he'd been doing and made all haste to get to the gate, knowing that no one from Jane's family would come looking for him at the camp unless it was of the utmost urgency.

After taking her aside, far away enough so that the sentry could not hear their conversation, he demanded, "What's wrong, missy? Is Jane all right?"

Keeping her voice low, she replied, "It's the baby - it's coming!"

"She ain't supposed to have that baby for another two weeks yet!" he said, twitching nervously.

"Nevertheless, it's coming now," Sarah said. "Aunt Caroline sent for the midwife."

"You wait here," he told her. "I needs to let Lt. Morris know I might be away from camp for a couple of days, see?" Hakeswill had previously told Morris that his black market dealings might need to occasionally take him away from camp for a few days, so that he could be with Jane when the baby was born without attracting unwanted attention from his superiors.

He reappeared moments later, with his haversack slung across his shoulder. "Let's go, missy."

Sarah had trouble keeping up with Obadiah's loping stride, but the two arrived together at the cottage with little conversation having passed between them.

Aunt Caroline was waiting for them as they came through the door. "The midwife is up there with her now, checking her progress," she reported. "She should be finished soon, then you can go in to see her." After a pause, she added, "I sent Sally back out for Jane's father and Abby."

Moments later, the midwife came down the stairs to give her report. "It's going to be quite awhile. The baby hasn't turned into the right position for birth yet, so we'll have to wait for that to happen." She did not mention that Jane was small and narrow, which would mean a difficult childbirth in any instance.

As the midwife continued to talk with the women, Obadiah climbed the stairs to see his wife, finding her propped up in bed as he came through the door.

"Obadiah. You're here." She gave him a wan smile, as she patted the side of the bed for him to sit by her.

"Wouldn't be anywhere else right now, missy," he said, twitching, as he sat and took her hand. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm frightened," she admitted. "The baby shouldn't be coming this early."

"Babies sometimes come a bit early," he told her. "I've done seen it happen with some of the army wives. There shouldn't be no problem with it being early."

"I hope you're right." She wasn't convinced, however.

"Can't wait 'til the baby is here and we can move in together," he said changing the subject. "I think I done found us a good billet. By the time you're ready to move, the place should be ready for us."

Before she could reply, a tight grimace contorted Jane's face as she nearly doubled over in pain, as she hissed in agony.

Obadiah didn't know what to say, so he leaned over and rubbed her back, hoping that would help some.

"That was a bad one," she said after the pain had passed. "They weren't so bad or so frequent when they first began last night, but it's been getting worse as time goes by."

"Probably means the little 'un will be here soon, it does," he told her, twitching briefly.

But he was wrong. Obadiah spent hour after hour by his wife's side, with her coming no nearer to giving birth than she'd been when he'd first arrived. They spent the time talking between labour pains and midwife examinations, mostly about their plans for the future. He did the best he could to distract Jane from her travail, but it became clear to him as the time passed that she was being worn down by her ordeal. He fell asleep several times in the chair by her bed, but was always awakened when a pain would hit, when she'd moan and rock the bed back and forth.

In the pre-dawn hours, after she'd been in labour for a day and a half, she moaned, "Oh, Obadiah! I don't think I'm going to live through this. I know I can't go on much longer."

"Don't say that, Jane," Obadiah said, desperately clutching her sweaty hand. "We got us a life to live together ahead of us."

"I need to clear my conscience, just in case the worst happens," she told him a few minutes later. "There's something I need to tell you."

"You mean you wants to tell me who took advantage of you and gave you a bellyful?" He leaned closer, not wanting to miss a word.

"You have to promise me you won't do anything that could get you in trouble."

"I been looking out for myself since I was a lad of twelve," he reminded her. "I knows how to take care of myself, don't you worry none 'bout that."

"You have to keep my father from doing something he'd later regret, too," she insisted.

"He won't; I'll make sure of that," he assured her. "I'll be the one who takes care of what needs doing, even if it takes me years to do it.".

Gulping noticeably, she raked a hand through her now nearly matted hair. Turning her face away from Obadiah, she whispered, "Sharpe. It was Richard Sharpe who did this to me."

"Sharpie!" Obadiah rasped out harshly, his voice low and ominous.

"You know him?" Jane asked timidly, Noting the expression on her husband's face, she was suddenly very glad not to be Richard Sharpe.

"I'm the one what recruited that bastard into the army," he told her, twitching in anger. "And he works for me now in the warehouse."

At that moment, the midwife, who'd been taking a nap, entered the room to check on Jane's progress, ending any further discussion of Richard Sharpe.

"