"Mama's expecting again," Belinda whispered in Anne's ear. "See how she's getting round?"
"Great, another Jack."
"You like Jack now, don't you?"
"Yeah, but I don't like having to clean up after him all the time."
"He's bigger now."
"Which means he'll be running around the house like a bull."
"I think of him more as a horse."
"A palomino."
"What?"
"A palomino. One of those wild horses they got out west."
"I guess that works."
Anne buttoned up her dress. "I don't wanna go to school. It's no fun ever since Eliza Mary had to quit."
"Why'd she quit?"
"I told you, her family needed her to work." Anne wiped her eyes. "It's not fair. We used to have so much fun. I don't know if I'll ever see her again."
"You might."
"I feel it in my bones that I won't. If I feel something in my bones, then I know it's gonna happen for sure. So there." Anne tied the blue ribbons in her mahogany braids.
"Anne! Belinda! Hurry or you'll be late for school!" Matilda, caressing her stomach as if she were stroking an infant's head, held out the dinner pail. "Girls!"
"Coming, coming." Anne scurried out of their bedroom to grab their dinner. "Why must we go to school?"
"I want you to be educated and better yourselves in life. I'm hoping one of you might be a teacher someday. I remember every one of my students, you know."
"Were they like your children?"
"Not quite, but I liked them very much." Their mother sighed nostalgically. "They've been scattered to the winds. Half of them were pulled out to go to work. Like Eliza Mary. It's a sad thing."
"Yeah." Before she got weepy, Anne scampered out. Belinda followed, smoothing her fawn colored skirt. Matilda made sure to kiss her good-bye before escorting her out the door. Directly after the big girls left Margaret emerged from the children's bedroom.
"Mama, I want to visit Nora today."
"Is Nora free?"
"Yeah, I think so. Can I?"
"If her mother gives her permission. But stay in sight of the building, okay?"
"Okay." The seven year old flew outside, neglecting to shut the door to the hall. This left only the three youngest in the nest. Mary, already a little lady, poured imaginary tea into Betty's tin cup. The girls' rag dolls lined the wall, drinking out of thimbles or eating cookies made of buttons. Thoroughly uninterested in playing dolls, Jack let out a pitiful wail.
"Ma, he's crying again!"
"I need to be going to Pulitzer's, I'll take him with." Matilda hoisted the baby out of his crib while balancing a laundry basket on her hip. "You girls come with me. I can't leave you at home alone."
"No." Betty's favorite word.
"Betty."
"No. Don't wanna."
"Elizabeth Hannah Kelly, mind your mother."
"No." In response Matilda set the basket down and grabbed her daughter by the hand. Betty kicked, screaming like a demon, until her mother pulled her to her feet. "I won't go! I won't go!"
"Betty, you need to obey your parents. If I leave you here alone, someone might come in and do bad things."
"What bad things?"
"Things I can't tell you. When you're older."
"You say you can't tell because you don't know! You don't know anything!" Betty launched a sharp kick at Matilda's ankle. Matilda yelped, her grip loosened, and Betty took off. For a four year old, she could run pretty fast.
"Betty! Come back!" Matilda rested Jack on the floor before running after her young daughter. The hallway door swung open. Matilda cursed herself for not closing it after Margaret's quick departure. "Betty!"
Hiking her skirts up in a most unladylike manner, Matilda galloped down the hall. No sign of her. She stumbled down stairwell after stairwell, pausing only to question a passerby if they saw a little girl. One old man answered that he noticed a small child running outside in tears just moments ago.
"Thank you!" she cried before barreling out the door to the street. Why did God make you so stubborn, Betty? Why now, of all times?
Fortunately Matilda spotted her on the street, sitting by Margaret and Nora Roberts, a shy girl with green eyes. Betty sat beside her sister, fussing under an annoyed Margaret's watch.
"Can you take her?" Margaret snapped, shoving Betty in their mother's arms.
"Don't be saucy to your elders," Matilda chided, hugging the girl close. "Oh Betty, you scared me like crazy. Don't ever do that again, okay?"
"No, no, no." Betty continued weeping even as the sisters trudged back upstairs where Mary and Jack waited. Matilda, unwilling to risk another disastrous tantrum, left Margaret in charge of the house. The clever seven year old agreed on two conditions: that Nora be allowed to visit and Jack go to the Pulitzers'. Weary from the ordeal, Matilda gave in.
"Come on baby," Mattie whispered into her baby's ear. "Let's go to a rich family. Maybe you can see their baby girl." Jack stared blankly, not understanding.
"You don't understand anything that's happened, have you? Lucky baby."
000
"You're late." Mrs. Pulitzer's lady's maid, Mrs. Pille, coldly greeted her at the servants' entrance. "I don't care for dilly dallying."
"My daughter ran away," Matilda replied curtly, pushing the laundry into her hands. "I don't suppose you would understand, having only Mrs. Pulitzer to tend to."
"Yes, she is a good employer. One would think twice about chasing runaway babies while making more as opposed to disciplining them."
"How observant of you, Mrs. Pille," the washerwoman grumbled.
"In case you've forgotten, I don't do common laundry," the maid spat, dropping the basket on the floor. Freshly pressed white sheets spilled out.
"I just finished those!" Matilda bent down only to bolt back up, pain shooting up her back. "Oh, it's because of the baby."
"Which one?" Pille taunted, her stony eyes fixed on Matilda's belly.
"Has the laundry finally come?" Mrs. Higgins, the housekeeper, swept into the servants' hall. "Good heavens, what's happened?"
"This woman's expecting. Because her tardiness as well as her babies, she's dropped the freshly finished laundry," Pille said, not even bothering to hide her glee. "This is the third late delivery, isn't it Mrs. Kelly?"
"No, I'll do better, it's just because of what you said earlier."
"Mrs. Kelly, my dear," Higgins sighed, "you're doing too much. You have other clients, I'm aware, and six children, excluding the one you are going to have. I'm afraid we can't afford late washerwomen anymore. I highly respect you, but I fear we must let you go."
"Let me go?" Matilda's jaw dropped. "Mrs. Higgins, please, I need this job, I-"
"Mrs. Pille tells me you struggle with your work. I won't burden a woman with a job she can't handle. To my deepest regrets, I dismiss you from our service, Matilda Kelly. Have a good day." Ignoring Matilda's distress Mrs. Higgins strutted away. Matilda leaned against the wall, her head spinning.
"You've been dismissed. Be on your way now." Pille gloated. Every fiber of Mrs. Kelly's being ached to punch her smug face.
"If that's the case, then I better be off," she decided, her vigor returning. "I entrust the laundry to you, Mrs. Pille. Have a good day." She dumped the remainder of the linens on the floor at the maid's feet. "I doubt we'll meet again. I don't hope we ever will." Curtsying slightly she strode out the door, swinging a light basket in one hand and bouncing a cheerful Jack in the other.
"We don't have to work for that mean lady anymore, do we?" she cooed.
"Look sharp!" A servant dressed in navy blue pushing a pram halted a foot away.
"My apologies." The former washerwoman scooted to the side. "You are the nanny?'
"Yes. I'm taking Miss Katherine out for a stroll. Would your child like to meet her?"
"Oh, why of course." Matilda didn't expect such kindness from Pulitzer's nanny. She tilted Jack toward the pram. "Look Jack. That's Miss Katherine. Say hello."
Under a couple layers of lacy blankets (perhaps linens Matilda had washed), a pair of gray eyes peeked out. Tufts of chestnut hair stood on end, curling at the ends. The baby made no sound, but her eyes suggested an intelligent mind.
"She's lovely," Matilda exclaimed. "Look Jack, look."
Jack took one glance before gagging. Just like the incident with Belinda, foul smelling slop disgorged from his tiny mouth. Only this time it stained the snowy blankets of Miss Katherine Pulitzer.
"Jack!" Matilda shrieked in horror. "What have you done?"
"My God!" Nanny yanked the pram away, disgusted. "Leave at once!"
"I'm so sorry, I'll wash it for free!"
"Get out! And stay away!" Nanny hurried to the house, pushing the now wailing baby in her ruined pram. Matilda sprinted home with a messy baby, an empty blanket, and a broken pride.
000
"That's hilarious." Gerald didn't share Matilda's embarrassment at dinner.
"Gerald, it was humiliating. I'll never get work anywhere that nice."
"You didn't like doing their laundry. Took ages to get it right. And that woman, Mrs. Pille. She lives up to her name." Her husband snickered as he sipped cider. "None of that was your fault. I wonder what Nanny said when she came in with that baby covered in Jack's mess."
"It's not funny!" Belinda politely held her tongue, but Anne chuckled heartily.
"That's great Mama!"
"Anne! Mind your manners." Matilda wagged a finger at Jack, who now gurgled without remorse. "Remind me not to take you anywhere ever again."
"What's the date?" Belinda inquired, changing the subject.
"March 23," Gerald announced. "Speaking of Jack, we have something for him."
"Oh yes." Anne rushed to the cabinet, from which she pulled a diminutive cake. "Happy birthday Jack! Your first one!"
"Not so much of a baby anymore, huh?" Gerald ruffled his son's hair. "Atta boy, puking on Mama's boss's daughter."
"Gerald."
"Very well, Mattie girl." He winked. "But I'll never let him live this one down."
"Why?"
"For his safety. From now on he better be mighty scared of Katherine Pulitzer."
"Very funny, Gerald."