An Eternity of Change

Chapter 5

April 4, 1811

            Jaylyn flinched again as another loud shriek rang through the house, her father however sat calmly in his chair. She hated the loud screams but her father had reassured her that Alice was fine, in her opinion her stepmother didn’t sound fine.

            “She’s been screaming for the past hour, why won’t she stop?” She asked as her father continued to stare off at the wall.

            His eyes flickered to her for a moment before going back. “You will see. I do not wish to explain this…”

            Jaylyn wanted to ask more questions, like when Alice would stop screaming like a murder victim, but decided it would be best to stay silent. Her father was tense and seemed to be deep in thought; she didn’t want to disrupt him anymore than she had to. Finally after another hour the screams faded out to nothing, but what was odd to Jaylyn was her father standing up and leaving without saying a word, that’s when she actually started to worry. The doctor however walked out a few seconds later with a smile on his face.

            “You can go see her now, they’re both fine.” He looked around the room. “Where’s your father?”

            Jaylyn glanced at the door. “He just left… I don’t know where he went.”

            “I’ll find him, don’t need him drowning himself in alcohol.” The doctor replied with a sigh before muttering under his breath. “Probably with the group though… planning another act of blasphemy.”

            She didn’t know what he was talking about and didn’t ask either; it wasn’t her place to go into her father’s private business. Instead Jaylyn left Dr. Treen to go looking for her father and went into the room where Alice was lying in a bed, looking tired, but at the same time had a bright smile on her face as she looked down at the child in her arms.

            Alice noticed Jaylyn standing there and motioned her closer. “Look, it’s your new sister… adorable, isn’t she?”

            Jaylyn wasn’t sure how to respond, the child looked like any other she’d seen women with, except this one was a bit smaller considering it was just born. Other than that she didn’t see anything special about it; to make Alice happy however she readily agreed. “Of course she is…”

            “Where’s Daniel? I’m sure he’d love to hold her.” Alice tried to glance out at the other room.

            “He ran out. Dr. Treen is getting him.”

            “Oh, I hope he’s back soon…” Alice looked down at the baby then up at Jaylyn. “Would you like to hold her?”

            Jaylyn looked at her and could just imagine how startled she actually looked, if it was anything like how she felt. “I-you, want me to… hold her?”

            “Of course, it’s fine, just be careful not to drop her.” Alice held the infant out to her and Jaylyn hesitantly accepted.

            She looked down at the bundled up form in her arms nervously as it squirmed before looking back over at Alice. “Are you sure I won’t… drop her?”

            “You’re doing fine.” Her stepmother assured her. “Just relax.”

            Jaylyn complied and sat down in a chair nearby as she slowly rocked the baby, as the minutes went by she became more at ease with holding the child and actually took to observing the sleeping baby’s face. Nothing much could be seen about it as, like all newborns, it was mostly just fat, but what she could make out was the peaceful expression it seemed to have. That was when everything truly hit her, she was a big sister now, that meant it would be her duty to help Alice teach the child how to act, at least until she was old enough to live on her own. She wondered if this was how Jane felt when she had first seen Jaylyn as an infant.

            “What are you going to name her?” Jaylyn asked softly as she looked back up at Alice.

            Alice let out a loud sigh. “I was hoping Daniel would be back by now to help with that… Considering he isn’t I guess I’ll be naming her myself.”

            “Can I help?” Jaylyn asked, surprising herself.

            Alice’s gaze lit up in surprise but she agreed swiftly. “Of course you can! Come here, let’s put our heads together.”

            Jaylyn walked over and handed the baby back to Alice. “So what do you think? She doesn’t really look like an anything yet.”

            “Of course she does… She looks like a bit like a Susan, what do you say?” Alice inquired.

            She looked at the baby and frown in thought. “No… she doesn’t look like any Susan I’ve met. What about… hmm… Madison?”

            “I like it.” Alice replied. “But I think Maddie would be an excellent name, I would probably call her that anyway.”

            Jaylyn nodded in understanding, besides, it was close enough to her suggestion. “Sounds good… Maddie it is… Just wait until my father comes home, I’m sure he’ll be happy, right?”

            “Yes, I’m sure Daniel will be.” Alice assured her. “I just hope he comes back soon…”

            Jaylyn agreed quietly and left the room to go look out the window that faced the street, perhaps she would be able to see him coming back home. What she did find, or rather hear, confused and disturbed her. She walked closer to the muffled voices, though she knew it wasn’t polite to eavesdrop, and stood behind the door with her ear pressed against it.

            “… Treen, now stay out of my business.” Her father was speaking angrily.

            “It is my business to know if you’re stirring up trouble Carver.” Dr. Treen replied. “If I find you are, there will be consequences that you may not like.”

            “Stay away from my family.” Daniel commanded. “What I choose doesn’t have anything to do with you or your family.”

            “But won’t it? Actions create a ripple effect, careful what you do… we wouldn’t want anyone you care about getting hurt now would we?” Jaylyn heard his voice fade as Dr. Treen walked away. “Now if you don’t mind, Samuel is expecting me back home. I can’t disappoint my son now can I? He’s my family, I care about my family… what about you?”

            “Stay away from my family.” She saw the handle turn as her father started to open the door and quickly ran off into the hallway before he could catch her snooping. She wasn’t sure exactly what her father and the doctor were arguing about but at the moment she could guess it would be in her best interests not to mention it to anyone else.