Eva looked up at Zoe, meeting her eyes. “Oh, boy,” she said softly when she sat on the stool vacated by the doctor. “Oh, Zoe, I think I can see the head and it’s my favorite color, but it’s going back inside.”
“Our baby’s hair is green?” Zoe rocked back her head.
Eva’s answer died on her lips when the top of the red-gold head appeared. “Oh, my god, oh, my god…” she whispered.
“Stop looking at the head and get the rest of the body!” Zoe yelled out.
“Zoe, now would be a good time to push.” Dr. Pappas looked up and encouraged her patient, who had her eyes shut.
Zoe’s ear splitting scream made Eva jump. She positioned her hands ready to receive the precious bundle. She looked up and met Zoe’s pained gaze for a moment before her eyes anxiously waited for the baby’s head to arrive.
Eva was entranced by the sight of her first child’s head peeking out. Her trembling hands were waiting as Zoe’s pained groan caused the baby’s head to reappear quickly followed by the body. She held the child’s body and suddenly realized that she was holding her daughter. She was oblivious to everything in that room except the screaming child in her hands. She quickly counted fingers and toes and looked into the baby’s face in utter amazement. She had never felt such sheer joy in all her life. She thought she knew what joy meant by being with Zoe, but the child in her hands transcended anything she had ever experienced before.
She had never understood how people could describe pivotal events in their lives as going in slow motion, but now she found herself in such a position. Everything was a blur except the baby she was helping to deliver. Her heart was racing while she held her daughter in her arms. It was a moment she would never forget. She held up their daughter to Zoe, who had an exhausted but exuberant smile on her face.
Eva stood there, unable to move. Her face hurt from smiling so much, and her eyesight was cloudy from the tears that rolled down her cheeks. A redheaded, blue-green-eyed baby girl was yelling for all her worth, and Eva was crying right along with her. She wasn’t sure how she made it to Zoe’s side, but she knelt and offered their daughter to the exhausted mother.
“Our daughter, love,” Eva said through her tears. “Welcome, baby girl Larissa Rosa,” she said as she kissed the baby’s forehead. “Happy birthday, Larissa,” she said to Zoe, and looked up at the clock that read 11:00 p.m. on November 6, 1951.
***
Zoe laughed as the squirming baby let out yet another bellow that echoed throughout the room. A sound so precious. Zoe looked up at Eva, who was still crying. She was tired, but it was well worth everything she had gone through.
“Evy, look, there was a tiny dimple on the child’s chin.” Zoe pointed out and grinned. “Someone upstairs was listening.” She gently traced the slight indentation of the baby’s chin. Her exhaustion left her for a moment and she gazed at Eva, who was still spellbound by the precious little person in Zoe’s embrace.
Zoe gazed into Eva’s eyes, oblivious to the other people in the room. She pulled Eva’s shirt and brought her down for a passionate kiss.
“Eva, do you want to deliver baby number two?”
Eva looked up and nodded. She kissed Zoe and went back to helping to deliver the twin. Alexandra took the little girl from Zoe to clean her up and Zoe went back to pushing and grunting. She pushed for the final time and a loud cry signaled the arrival of her son. Eva stood there grinning, the tears coming down yet again as she held him. The newborn waved his fists in the air and let out a bellow unequal to his size. Eva looked up at Zoe and then down at the baby and then back up before putting the screaming bundle in Zoe’s arms.
Zoe laughed on seeing her son. Thick dark hair covered his head, and although she couldn’t see the color of his eyes, she was pretty sure they were blue. The child resembled Tommy so much that Zoe couldn’t stop laughing.
“He’s a carbon copy of Tommy!”
“Hello, Nicholas Wilhelm.” Eva wiped the happy tears from her eyes and she gently tried to smother the dark hair that stuck up. “He’s our little bodgie, Zo.”
“Just what we need.” Zoe tiredly laughed.
***
Eva spent some time with Zoe and their children before they were taken to be checked and cleaned up. She was in a total daze, wanting to hold her children again but prevented from doing so by the nursing staff, who were trying to do their job. Zoe shooed her out to go and be happy with the rest of the family.
As soon as Eva came out, everyone gathered around. Her first priority was to thank the man who had made the moment possible.
She went to Tommy, embraced him, and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you for the most precious gift.”
Tommy kissed her back and smiled broadly. “Congratulations, Mutti, and thank you.”
“Congratulations, Uncle Theo,” Eva said as she hugged Theo and gave him a kiss.
“Uncle Theo. I like the sound of that! How’s Zoe?”
“Exhausted but happy,” Eva replied, her face hurting from smiling so much. “She was magnificent, Tee. She was amazing.”
“So what did we get? Tommy guessed we have two girls, I was saying two boys, Earl said one of each, and Henry was saying triplets.” Theo laughed.
“Earl wins. It was one of each,” Eva replied. “First one to arrive was Larissa Rosa Lambros, weighing at 6 lbs. 1 oz., and measuring 48 cm. She’s a carbon copy of her mama, red-gold hair and blue-green eyes, but I think those are going to change to emerald, I hope.” she said with a laugh. “Our youngest is Nicholas Wilhelm Lambros, weighing in at 5 lb. 13 oz., measuring 46.5cm. He looks so different to his sister. Dark hair and blue eyes.”
“You named him after my father?” Theo asked happily.
“Yes.” Eva nodded. “Little Nicky has a mop of dark hair that is sticking up in all directions and looks like a bodgie out on a wild night.”
“Yes!” Earl pumped his fist in the air. “A boy! Woohoo!” Everyone joined in the laughter and Eva held up her hand.
“Little Larissa has quite a yell. I’m quite sure we will all be very acquainted with it soon,” she said.
“Congratulations,” Henry said and engulfed her into his arms. Eva laughed and cried as she hugged her best friend.
CHAPTER 57
Six Months Later…
May 15, 1952
Zoe yawned and glanced at the clock in the kitchen. It was two in the morning. She looked down at her son, who was nursing at her breast. She worried at first that she wouldn’t have enough milk to feed them both, but the nurses assured her that she would. The infant’s short black hair stuck out in all directions, making him look like he had stuck his finger in a power socket. He gazed back at her and Zoe’s heart melted as it did every time that happened. She hadn’t thought it possible that she could love a tiny little person as much as this. Nicky’s light blue eyes met her gaze and he smiled.
The twins had captured both her parents’ attention from the moment they were born. It had become a family joke that Larissa and Nicky had Eva so wrapped around their tiny fingers that she would come running at the sound of one of them gurgling.
One of Eva’s fondest wishes was to have one of the babies, or both, resemble Zoe. She had gotten her wish in her daughter, who had red hair and beautiful forest green eyes. Larissa was her mother’s daughter in both appearance and temperament. Nicky had black hair, and to Zoe’s delight, his eyes were the color of a summer sky. Zoe would have sworn, if she didn’t know better, that he looked exactly like Eva. It was also quite funny that he was a quiet baby and his sister was the boisterous one.
Nicky made a gurgling noise and let go of his mother’s breast. “You’ve had enough?” Zoe asked him as she draped him in the towelette, and then brought him to her shoulder. She rocked back and forth in the rocking chair Tommy had bought her as a present, smiling as her thoughts went to her family and friends. Theo was making the children toys. They were a little too young to play with them, but they were being stored away. Tommy loved the child
ren he had fathered but did not take an active role, as he promised he wouldn’t. He was for all intents and purposes their devoted uncle. Theo and Tommy did take turns in giving Eva and Zoe a night off. Isabella helped Zoe during the day, but it was left to Eva and Zoe to take care of the twins at night.
“I wonder what your mutti is up to,” Zoe said quietly to Nicky, who had closed his eyes and was dozing quietly. After getting up from the rocker, Zoe made her way back into the bedroom. Oblivious to Eva, she stood just inside the door, watching her with their daughter.
Lying curled up on her side was Eva. In the crook of her arm she had Larissa, who was wide awake and looking up at her. Larissa’s chubby fingers were wrapped through Eva’s dark hair, and her eyes were gazing up at Eva as she spoke to her. Eva looked up and smiled at Zoe, who blew her a kiss.
“Don’t move.” Zoe indicated and quietly laid her sleeping son in his cot. She left the room and went into Eva’s darkroom. She picked up Eva’s new camera and went back into the bedroom.
“You’re taking a photo of me in my underwear?”
“It’s not the first time I’ve taken a photo of you nearly naked.”
“Miss Bossy Boots is nearly naked as well,” Eva loudly whispered. She picked up Larissa and sat her up with her arm used as a back brace.
Zoe looked over the top of the camera at the scene before her. Larissa was drooling and had her fingers in her mouth. Zoe looked down at the viewfinder and at that very moment Larissa put her drool covered fingers over Eva’s chin as Eva leaned down. Eva laughed when the baby’s hand found her mouth, and Zoe snapped the photo. The baby gurgled happily in Eva’s arms. Eva gave her a kiss before she handed her to Zoe to put back into the cot.
“What time is it?”
“Three in the morning,” Zoe replied and then yawned. “Nicky was hungry.”
“Lari was a bit agitated.”
Zoe chuckled. “She stirred in her sleep and you thought she was agitated?”
Eva looked down and grinned. “Yes, I’m anticipating her next move.”
Zoe patted Eva on the belly and laughed. “This is too good to be true, isn’t it?” She looked up at the strong profile.
Eva sighed. “We’ve had too many bad things in our lives, and I think this is God’s way of giving us something that is truly precious. I’m just going to accept it and hope that life is going to continue to be just as good.”
A twinkling noise made Zoe look around at Eva, who was also looking quite puzzled. Moments later, Theresa materialized. She was holding two small boxes in her hand.
“Ah, my beautiful mamas!” Theresa whispered and made her way to the cots. “There are my precious little cuties!”
Zoe watched as Larissa grabbed hold of Theresa’s hair. Theresa stared down at the baby girl and then closed her eyes and gently placed her hand on Larissa’s head.
“You are a blessing, little Larissa Rosa,” she quietly announced. Zoe watched intently as Theresa leaned down and whispered to Larissa. She couldn’t hear what she was saying. Theresa straightened, turned to Nicky, and gazed down at him. “Oh, dear, you are going to break a few hearts, and look at that face.
Eva had gotten out of bed and put her arm around Zoe. Theresa turned to them and nodded.
“I’m going to be gone for some time, Red. You have given birth to two very precious souls, and God loves you so very much,” she said. She put her arms around Zoe. “You are pure of heart, Zoe Lambros.”
“Are you sure you are going to behave?” Zoe teased. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
Theresa laughed. “I’m really going to miss you. I’m going to answer your question about Sister Abigail.”
“What question?”
“Why I used the name Abigail? The name means Father’s joy, and I delight in doing the will of my Father, although sometimes I do test His patience,” Theresa said, making Zoe smile.
She turned to Eva. She gently cupped Eva’s face and gazed into her eyes. “For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly.” She kissed Eva on the cheek. “You are worthy of the gifts, Eva Theresa.”
Theresa smiled and faded away, leaving them alone. Eva put her arms around Zoe and held her for a very long moment. Zoe took Eva’s hand and led her to the babies. They watched them for some time before they yawned and decided to go to bed.
Zoe took off her robe and draped it over a nearby chair, and then she joined Eva in bed. She curled around Eva’s body and nestled against her chest. She pursed her lips in thought as her hand rested against Eva’s bare stomach. Life was indeed good for both of them, and if this was God’s way of making their previous hardships a little easier to bear, then who was she to disagree with Him even if she didn’t trust Him?
EPILOGUE
Two Years Later
November 10, 1953
Zoe was sitting outside on the orange sofa on the back porch. A gentle sea breeze blew across the yard bringing the warm air towards her. She wiped her brow with the back of her hand and smiled.
Eva and their twins, now aged two, were in the pool. Eva was standing towards the middle end where the water was up to her chest. Nicky was sitting on her shoulders, and Larissa was bopping in the water in front of Eva holding her hand. Zoe smiled when she heard the twins squeal when Eva gently splashed some water around her. It had been Eva’s idea to teach them how to swim as soon as possible, and they took to the water as if they were born to it. Zoe smiled on seeing Nicky being a bit more cautious than his rambunctious twin sister.
Eva turned and waved to Zoe, quickly followed by both children. Zoe waved back and laughed.
Zoe brought the cool drink to her lips and took a sip before she went back to the letter she was writing to Father Haralambos.
Dear Father,
I hope this letter finds you well. We received your letter and I can safely say that we found the idea of God bemoaning his firstborns’ stubbornness with much hilarity. Maybe Larissa’s first name should have been Eva, after all—it would have matched her temperament and her name with God’s second human creation.
When I last wrote you, Nicky and Lari were starting to find their legs. Nicky is a quiet, sensitive, and kind child. If I didn’t know better, I would say he had Eva’s temperament. He looks like Tommy, but he mimics Eva so well he has us laughing so much. He’s developed a novel way of not getting disciplined. Nicky has worked out that Eva is the easiest to get around. Those children are smart. He starts to kiss her hand and her arm until he reaches her cheek. It’s hilarious to watch and Eva always breaks down and laughs. How do you discipline a child that makes you laugh at his antics? When he isn’t making us laugh, he is content to stay in one spot and listen to the wireless or play with his crayons. He loves to draw and he is quite good for his age. Unfortunately, his sister is anything but quiet. Larissa is a beautiful child, Father. That cute face hides a very mischievous old soul that has given us a lot of laughs and some anxious moments. I wish you could spend some time with them, although I suspect spending time with Larissa would age you considerably! I know how much you love to hear what the twins have been up to, but before I fill you in on all the details, I want to tell you how Eva and I are faring.
Eva is really well. It’s been a difficult two years emotionally for her, and thank goodness for Dr. Hannah, Aunty Jana, Stella, and Tessa. Physically she is stronger and that has helped her emotionally as well. Jana and Tessa have helped Eva through the gifted minefield; she is getting stronger in those other areas, and I now understand why Mama Daphne wanted to do what she did. I think her memory loss was a blessing in disguise—she is better able to deal with her memories now with people she loves and trusts. Horrendous doesn’t come close to describing her memories, but she has battled through. She has taken up swimming in the mornings, w
hich has helped strengthen her back and she runs around the estate. We have set up a course that she uses. Sometimes I will ride my bicycle to accompany Eva while she runs.
As for myself, I am doing well now. I was in a spot of bother when I contracted pneumonia, but I am on the mend. Our babies are the second best thing to happen to me. They have brought so much joy in my life that I can’t begin to express. Last month I had my fourth art exhibition and I was rendered speechless (yes, that is possible) when the well-respected curator from the prestigious Sydney Art Gallery dropped by. Alice Beckenworth bought two of my pieces and also wrote about my artwork in the SydArt Magazine. Eva went out and bought so many copies of the magazine, we have enough to wallpaper the house if we ever need to!
Theo was the talk of the town a few months ago when he was caught cheating on Eva. That scoundrel! Ha ha. He took it all in his stride and weathered the good-natured ribbing he got from the boys. Eva has been mentioned a few times in the society pages, much to her annoyance, and we thought we would use that as a way to let people believe the shocking, horrible adultery. It’s a good way to be granted a divorce in Australia.
I know what you are going to say that marriage is not something to be taken lightly but look at what my marriage to Tommy has given us. Two very beautiful children and I think God will not mind in the slightest. Not that I care what He thinks but you care so I think God won’t mind. Yes, it’s a messy process, but it worked for Tommy and me. My divorce from Tommy was finalized last week. Our divorce wasn’t as big news as Eva and Theo’s. There was a brief mention in the newspaper and a minor scandal.
Back to Theo. Remember I told you about Emily in my last letter? She is a lovely girl and Theo is in love. He bypassed heavy like and went straight to love. Eva and I are ecstatic he has found Emily. She is a beautiful woman with a very kind heart. Emily is even learning how to speak Greek. As soon as the divorce is final, we will be having a grand wedding. Theo is talking about coming to Larissa with Emily so you will have a chance to meet her and you can also chastise him in person for his indiscretions. Please, be gentle on him; he is a man in love.
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