The Strength of England

~5~

 She could see the outline of his body, sprawled out on her vast bed. All she could do was smile at him. At the vulnerable state that he was in, wrapped tightly in her sheets, his bare back open to her.

She couldn't help but drag her nimble fingers down the curve of his spine, feeling each bone beneath his pale skin. He shuddered under her touch as she made the way to the base of his back.

"Your Highness, you are to be resting, not tormenting me." he said as she made him shudder again.

"I know; however, I am awake as my country is."

"Your country was woken to fingers dragging down his back. Now, Bessy, let's get more rest before the courts come up here pressing war manners into our hands along with the proposal of marriage."

She sat up, leaning her own naked frame over his, "I am but married to one and that one is the kingdom of England himself."

The sudden banging of the door, bolted Juliet out of her dreamy state of many with her green-eyed man. The banging grew louder and more urgent as she made her way to the racket.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." she mumbled aloud, "Better be for some good reason at midnight."

The small cries of a child caught her as she got closer to the door, "Juliet it's me, please help."

"Jesus." she ran for the door, hearing Alfred outside it.

Swinging open the door, she found a disheveled Alfred, bouncing Liberty as he walked in. He seemed even more lost than the first day she met him. His glasses missing from him as his eyes were wide with worry, it looked like he barely slept a wink as the baby girl fussed in his arms.

"Juliet please help me, I don't know what else to do or where to go." he asked, "I've done everything I can think of to help her. Please."

"Alright Alfred, just calm down and tell me what's going on?"

A set of harsh coughs erupted out of Liberty following a congested sneeze, her crying hoarse and rough after the fix.

"Please Juliet, you're my only hope. I don't want to go to a hospital. He finds out I took her to one... just please." he begged.

Her nursing studies and own maternal instinct kicked in as she darted into her bathroom, grabbing towels and blasting on the shower as hot as it could go.

"Alfred, while I get some more steam going, I want you to sit in the bathroom with her to open her up a bit, get some of it flowing out. It's going to sound bad but it's leaving her system alright. I'll gather everything else."

He went in without a word as she moved around her apartment finding everything she needed from the oil burner to the creams. She balanced the peppermint and eucalyptus oils in the pot, lighting the candle and making her way back in the steaming bathroom.

"I'm here." she said, hearing Liberty cry. "Oh no, baby girl. I know, this sucks. Daddy and Miss Juliet are doing the best we can."

Turning off the shower, she filled the tube with lukewarm water, laying down towels and dotting the water with the vapor bath, "Alright Alfred, take her out of her jammies and diaper and lay her on the towels, we'll try and warm her and break the fever a little this way."

"It's alright, Libby." she heard him talk to her as he laid her in the water.

She gave a small grunt of upset but calmed down as Juliet let the water pour over her skin, letting the vapor get to her lungs. She was mentally calculating how long she could do this, how long to let her sit with the vapor from the kettle and how much infant Tylenol, Vicks and clothing she would need.