"Ruin and Redemption"

Patsy's Gaff Revealed

Rebecca didn’t see anyone on the porch, yet the door was open.

“Lizzie?” Rebecca called.

“I’m in the kitchen, Rebecca. Come in.” Lizzie went to get the pitcher of tea and began pouring a glass.

“Thank you, Lizzie.”

“Can I get you anything else, Rebecca? Would you prefer some hot tea as well?” Lizzie asked helpfully. It was nice to have guests and to be able to wait on them herself. There were no off-limits chores anymore, nothing she had to wait for Patsy to do. In fact, she and Derrick managed surprisingly well without Patsy's service. Sometimes Lizzie had trouble with the ironing, and gathering the eggs could be tricky. But the rest of the chores were not so difficult.

“Actually, do you have anything to help with digestion, Lizzie? My stomach has been upset since I became pregnant,” Rebecca admitted. She and Josiah had been surprised when she had conceived again so late in life.

“Well, I’ve got some of Patsy’s special tea she used to give me when I was younger and got an upset stomach, or just felt nervous about something. I used to get nervous a lot. I keep it in the back here, just in case I need it. Would you like some?”

“That would be excellent, Lizzie…Is that it?” Rebecca asked, worriedly, as Lizzie began to untwist the lid of the mason jar. Rebecca wasn’t 100% certain, but the herbs it contained looked strangely like mugwort and some other known abortificants. She certainly couldn’t have them in her condition. She didn't want to risk losing Josiah's baby; He would be devastated.

“Can you pour a bit out in my hand, or on the counter, Lizzie? I think I recognize these herbs. They don’t look like stomach easing herbs to me,” Rebecca said carefully, not wishing to offend.

“Alright, Rebecca. If you prefer. But Patsy knows what she is doing with herbs. I’m sure she wouldn’t have given me anything unsafe when I was a girl,” Lizzie answered confidently.

Rebecca frowned, as she picket up a leaf of mugwort and examined it as closely as she was able. She was sure of it now. She knew this herb.

“Lizzie, this isn’t a blend for stomach relaxation. These herbs are abortificants. This is mugwort. I can’t take them because I’m pregnant. Are you sure you didn’t get the tea mixed up with something else? Surely you haven’t been keeping it all these years like this?” Rebecca asked skeptically. Lizzie helped with birthing the babies on the plantation, sometimes even delivering them on her own. How could she not know these herbs?

“Well, Patsy showed me how to make it…you know, a few pinches from the red bag, and a few from the blue…that sort of thing…but I used the same herbs in the same proportions to make the recipe. Patsy said they were good for my stomach,” Lizzie felt less sure now.

“Lizzie, these herbs cause abortions. And they can also delay or stop a woman’s period. Women take them when they don’t want to conceive. And I think if they take them often enough…”

Lizzie was looking queasy.

“Lizzie, I’m sure that…” Rebecca began.