The Duke and Duchess of Clarence

Chapter Thirty: Hospital Visit

18th of February 2024 - York House

Pressing a hand into her abdomen, Adeline squeezed her blue eyes closed as she tried to ignore the stabbing pain that had appeared again; it had started a couple of days ago and she had no idea what it could be. 

The pain was so much worse than the normal cramps that she got with her period and she wasn't due for at least another week; it baffled her that this was happening and she knew that it wasn't something to be ignored. 

Taking a deep breath, Adeline was relieved that the children were currently enjoying their lunchtime; she didn't want to scare them while she was so clearly in pain. 

She had made an appointment with her doctor but the only appointment available that was close was for the next week; she was hopeful that her doctor would be able to tell her what was going on. 

Once the pain had subsided, Adeline stood up straight and smoothed down her outfit; she truly hoped that it wasn't serious and she knew that this was the least of her problems right now. 

News had come only days earlier that Catherine while undergoing a routine post-op check up for her surgery had been told that they had discovered the early stages of cancer; the news coming as a major blow to all that knew her. 

It was the last thing that anyone had wanted but Catherine was determined to battle in silence, taking more time off once she was healed from her surgery to start her own chemo. 

Charles was doing his own recovery spending time in Highgrove and itching to return to duty, he hated that the cancer had slowed down what was meant to be a busy year for him and Camilla. 

The pain started up again and Adeline stop the tears that formed in her eyes, she couldn't help but feel scared; she had no idea what was going on and she hoped that her doctor would be able to quickly find out what was wrong. 

Resting her head on the kitchen counter, Adeline had asked Simon to come with her rather than face this alone; she was terrified of the answers that she might get and she wanted someone to be there if the worse should happen. 

There was so much that could be wrong and Adeline doubted that her google search of her symptoms had helped; nothing that she had read eased her mind and she wished that she could talk to her mother about it. 

It was exhausting and Adeline wanted nothing more than to curl up into a ball and cry, she felt so weak and exhausted; unable to keep down food, her appetite completely destroyed by whatever was going on.

The food she did manage to stomach seemed to pass right through her, sometimes she wasn't even lucky enough to make it to the bathroom and Simon had to help her clean up. 

It was embarrassing and Adeline didn't know what was wrong with her, even pregnancy had not left her feeling so helpless and she just wanted answers; she could only fear the answers that she might get. 

"Mummy?" Daphne asked approaching her mother, a concerned look on her face seeing her mother doubled over in pain; she held Albert's juice cup in her hand nervously. 

Getting back to her feet, Adeline forced a smile to her face as she turned to face her eldest daughter; she didn't want to worry them anymore than she needed to when she had no answers to give them.

"Is everything okay?" Adeline asked, her eyes peering behind Daphne to see if anyone else had entered the room; the last thing that Adeline wanted was to scare the children. 

This wasn't what Adeline had expected, having to step back slightly instead of picking up the slack that had been dropped with her father and Catherine being ill; now it appeared that she would be joining them.