the difference

Chapter Thirty-one

Evelyn smiled to herself when William gave her his journal to look through. He had drawn a few landscapes along with around a dozen entries "Oh muffin, you went to Camden?"

"Hmm, very boring indeed" he mumbled and rested his head on her stomach "a month and a half...I can't wait to meet them"

"oh you visited Pembroke?"

"Don't read it!" William quickly took his journal away from her before shaking his head "please...I don't want to remind myself of what I did..."

Evelyn snatched the journal back before reading through the page.

What have I done? I ordered innocents into a church only to burn it to the ground with them still inside...

"please tell me that its not true...my friends were from there" Evelyn teared up and looked him up and down.

"Darling-"

"you burnt the church with them inside didn't you..."

"You must understand-"

"William! My only friend lived there! Anne Howard, she was practically my sister!"

"my love-"

"don't say that! I lost the man I love the moment you went away!"

"you're right, I have changed, I've gone back to my old self, are you satisfied now?"

"why should I stay married to someone who has lied this much, you've committed such a massacre!" She got out of bed and edged away from him.

William let out a frightening chuckle before walking up to her "You have no idea what it's like, I fight to return to you! I do whatever it takes to march on!" He growled before smirking "Of course I'm the butcher-"

"I thought you were kind!" Evelyn backed away before cornering herself at a wall "Where is that man I know?"

"he's dead, replaced by a cold hearted killer it seems" William snapped before resting his hands on the wall, just around her face "Do you still want me? Hmm, A killer?"

"so all those children that lived in Pembroke...you killed them, what if that was our son"

"he isn't yours! He never will be yours!" William shouted causing Evelyn to tear up, he noticed and instantly softened his expression.

"your right, he isn't mine, he never will be" She sadly smiled and picked up her cardigan "I'm staying in my old room, don't expect me to come to you tonight"

"Angel..."

"That boy is as much as mine as he is yours" she sobbed and looked down at her stomach "And unfortunately you are this one's father, goodbye William" she turned on her heel only for his to take ahold of her hand, only to be slapped around the face with the other "Stay away from me! I hate you!" then she left...he was alone again

William looked down at the journal in his hands before throwing it against a wall, why did have to write it down...

Evelyn cried to herself in her fathers study, silently wishing that she wasn't married to a man who was a butcher of children. He was the one who had fathered this child that was growing in her womb, the only problem was that he'd lied again. He's broken her trust so many times...

"miss!" A servant spoke to catch her attention "It's Theodore, he can't breathe!"

Evelyn quickly rushed to the nursery and picked up her baby "Come on theo...I know you can do it" she gently patted his back as he coughed up thick green mucus "There there, that's my brave boy"

"he just started a minute ago, I didn't know what to do..." The maid mumbled and looked down at her shoes.

"It's alright deary, go get a break" Evelyn smiled before kissing Theodore's cheek "come on you, you need a visit with the physician"

~~~

"Just the influenza? Are you sure? He couldn't-"

The physician, mister brown, silenced her with a raised hand "Don't you dare question my judgement woman"

William was sat in the corner playing with the silken embroidery in his pocket "and if he gets worse?" he asked before lifting his son from the doctors arms "as you know, babies tend to worsen over time" he glanced at his wife for a split second before looking down at Theodore "And I won't have you talking to my wife as such, respect her or you'll be hanging from the nearest tree"

Evelyn shook her head before walking from the room.

"pardon me for asking, is something wrong between you both?"

"No" William grunted before hitching his son up "thank you for your service, you may leave" he smiled down at his son before walking out of the room "How's my brave boy? Come on, let's get you to mama" Evelyn was stood outside the room with tears running down her face "whatever is wrong darling?"

"I have a feeling in my bones that it's more than the influenza..."

"in your bones? Do you know how daft that sounds?"

"a little like your confessions of love and affection but here we are" She scowled and looked down at her pale baby "can I at least hold him?"

"Yes, of course" he deposited the babe in her arms "He's yours"

"Is he though? You said it yourself, he'll never be mine, only yours" Evelyn gently patted Theodore's back as he began to cough again "Now if you don't mind, I'm taking my boy to bed before he gets any worse!" Then she stormed off down to the nursery to put him to bed.

William sighed to himself before looking down at his wedding ring "I'm not giving up...not yet my love"