My Neighbor's Wife

Chapter 30

Lucy is in panic. It is only now that the gravity of what she did is sinking to her. She really did not mean to push Mrs. Lovett hard; she has been blinded by rage. Yes, she is angry with her for having been pregnant with Ben's child, but she really did not want to harm the baby. She has no intention of including the babe, who's not even born yet, in the adults' feud.

She hurriedly ascends the stairs that leads to her home, trying her best not to trip on the steps for her legs are shaking. Her attempts on composing herself, lest her husband sees her and suspects about what happened to her, are in vain. She cannot act like nothing has happened; she simply cannot ignore the fact that she left the baker lying on the floor, bleeding.

She is midway in getting to her house when Ben comes out, looking worried. Suddenly, she can feel her stomach dropping, her face running out of color. She can see him start to approach her, his mouth is moving but she cannot hear anything that he is saying. Everything around her starts to mute; the only sound she can hear is the ringing in her ears.

What shall she do? Fear has overcome her senses, and her whole body starts to shake. Any minute now, she thinks that her legs will collapse on her. The only thing that is supporting her is the railing of the stairs. She asks herself again: what shall she do? There are a lot of things running in her mind right now.

First, she is worried about what's currently happening to Mrs. Lovett. She wants to go back and help her, but her anger is preventing her from doing so. She also worries about herself, or more like, what's going to happen to her if anyone finds out. What if the baker has decided to tell the law of what she has done? She will be locked away in bedlam, that's for sure. And then there's Ben. If he finds out about this, he might leave her. She just killed his child.

"Lucy! Lucy! Are you alright?" the voice of her husband brings her back to reality. She takes a big gulp of air, like she just came out of the water. She faces him, trying to smile, but it just looks like she is grimacing.

"Y-yes, I'm fine. I just feel dizzy, maybe it's the heat. Take me upstairs, will you?" she says, trying to sound casual. But, it seems that her husband is not buying her charades. He is still looking at her worriedly.

"I heard yelling from downstairs. What happened? Why are you here so early?" he asks, cupping her face.

She averts her gaze from him; her heart is pounding hard in her chest that she can almost hear it. She chuckles nervously, tapping her husband on the chest. "N-nothing. Maybe i-it was the children playing. And oh, the judge said I could take the day off."

Ben smiles at her, looking relieve. This eases her a bit, so she returns his smile. He takes her by the arms and guides her upstairs, muttering about how she should not stress herself too much. They are about to go up when they hear someone yelling from the bakeshop, asking for help. They both stop in their tracks. Ben looks at her with eyes wide, and she is sure that she also has the same expression as him.

"It's Mrs. Lovett! We have to help her!" says Ben as he looks at her, as if asking for permission if he can go.

"No! I-I mean, maybe it's nothing. Let's ignore her, and just go upstairs." She tugs desperately at Ben's shirt, dragging him up, but he is not budging. She tries to convince him more, but another scream for help breaks out.

"Please, Lucy! Mrs. Lovett is in need of our help." Ben says, before he goes down and walks towards the bakeshop, leaving her no choice but to follow.

When she enters the baker's home once again, she immediately spots her lying on the floor in a curled position. Her skirt is hiked up, and she is clawing at her thighs which are covered in blood, as she cries. She is talking to herself, but the only thing that she is saying is 'help'. Lucy is frozen at her spot, seeing that Mrs. Lovett's condition has gone from bad to worse.