From Young Man to Viscount: An Anthony Bridgerton Story

9

-In The Garden of Memories-

I continued to sob until I heard the crunching of the fallen leaves and looked to see Charlie walking up to me. I wiped the tears and leaned forward to see if I could see Isa behind him, she wasn't. Before I could ask, Charlie beat me to it.

"Isa went to the Bridgerton estate, I assume to give Anthony an earful considering she saw the letter," Charlie says before he took a seat beside me as I sighed. Of course, Isa had to go seek what was going on, she knew something was up the minute I passed.

"I don't deserve happiness. God, I don't know why I even gave him a chance when I should not have," I muttered as I bring my knees closer to me and put my head in them.

"Because Anthony's a foul git who only saw an opportunity to make you the bearer of his children strictly to assure that the family name remains in place," Charlie says as I look at him in shock he said git, "What? It's true, also Isa and I feel bad we even agreed to the courtship so he betrayed our trust too."

"I'm not mad at you two, I'm just mad at my feelings and emotions for allowing me to be blind to his true intentions," I respond as I look towards the azaleas and whispered, "If you were here, you would've stopped it right from the get-go." as Charlie followed where my eyes were staring.

"Do you think Azalea would've known?" Charlie asked as I nodded softly and pulled him in for an embrace.

"Yes, I think she would. Even though I was young when her passing occurred, I feel she was the type of person to know everything that goes on in this ton," I said as I reflect on the memories I spent with her, my best friend, my eldest sister.

Azalea was a mere 14 years when I was born, my parents were marriageable age when she made her appearance into our world and she left when she was 25, an age I have now passed at 27. I've told Isa and Charlie stories about her, but it still hurt me that I've outlived her when she deserved to still be here. The memories of that night still haunt my dreams and scare me to the core about what she went through to achieve a dream of hers. It even made me scared to become Isa's sister at 16 and Charlie's at 21 as well makes me nervous for the time when I am to enter the phase of motherhood. I looked over to the patch of irises I planted next to the azaleas as I reminisce that night when we lost them both to something that couldn't have been predicted.

-1797, sixteen years ago- (Warning: Mentions of death)

"Mama, is everything okay?" I asked as I'm watching maids going in and out as I hear Azalea's screams of agonizing pain below throughout the estate.

"Yes dear, everything's okay, Azalea's baby is just taking a bit longer to make its arrival. Wait here, I have to wait for your father and another physician to come," Mama says as she leaves to wait by the front entrance.

After a few more minutes, I notice one of the maids, a new one whose name I haven't learned yet, walking up to me and whispering, "She's requesting your presence, come on, it's okay." as she took my hand and lead me to the room where my sister is. I walk in to see her in bed, sweat littering her forehead as a maid is patting a damp cloth to wipe them off.

"Hey sister," Azalea whispered as she called me over to stand by the bed as I look at her wide-eyed at what was happening.

"Why did you request my presence? Shouldn't you have gotten Mama or Papa, I don-" I started to say as I walk up until I'm interrupted with, "I needed you here to make the decision if needed to be decided."

Oh my god, is she? Is she asking me to decide to whether her or her child should live? No, no, she couldn't possibly be asking me of that.