Rose
I had given up trying to plant things in the garden. There was no more bending over, no more squatting, I couldn’t even kneel down in the grass, or else I wasn’t able to get myself back up on my feet without Heather having to haul me up. Instead I walked… or waddled… down the paths, with either Matthias, or Heather as my escort. I would wander through the gardens and up to the stables. Charlie horse was always waiting for me eagerly at the paddock, his bottom lip bouncing, snuffling around me with his whiskery muzzle until I produced the carrot or the apples that I hid in my pockets. Then we would wander back to the Fortress for a late breakfast. I had started feeling some cramping low in my stomach this morning, but I wasn’t sure if it was really labor. I sent Matthias away a
