by B L Bierley
Bliss never really intended to seek out her sister, but to instead needed to find a quiet corner to ruminate over a new vision that came upon her while she was talking to Lem. The picture was oddly blurry. But most of her visions regarding personal future events were murky at best.
Her visions of the lives of others were now practically as if she was there in person, watching the future event happening with stunning clarity. So it was doubly frustrating when any new scenes wouldn’t fully materialize. And yet that’s how it always was when the visions were personal.
Somehow the scenes of personal life wouldn’t quite come to focus. It was a troubling problem. This vision in particular has something to do with her and a visit to Aunt Penelope and Uncle Ozzie. And on the fringes, Eric came into view.
After an hour of review, Bliss felt only frustration for the efforts she spent trying to get a clearer picture. She decided her best action was to go to her father and mother and request a visit to Lord and Lady Osterburg in Bristol immediately following the ball.
As if the decision determined the outcome, Bliss instantly received a crisp flash of herself walking up to the hospital in Bristol with Pauline, her ladies’ maid. That was all the proof she needed.
With the decision made to request the trip, the visions of her upcoming weeks became sharper and more abundant. Bliss smiled at the thought that she had figured out a way to solve her problem! By choosing the proper path for herself, she was advancing her future the way it was intended to happen!
Chapter Seven
The Osterburg’s, Bristol, March 1811
“Daniel? Daniel? Oh there you are! Have you heard from Maxwell today? Bliss will be here any minute. I was hoping he would heed my warning and be present when she arrived!” Lady Penelope Osterburg said in annoyance.
“My dear, I’ve not heard a word from either of our sons since the St. Patrick’s Day ball. Are you certain you told him specifically which day and time? Perhaps he got held up in London?” Lord Osterburg, Ozzie, said dismissively.
“The date was very specific when I told him I expected him to be at home. Why on earth is he in London at this time of year? The season is afoot! He’s terribly shy about things such as balls and parties! That’s precisely why I told him to come here and visit with Bliss. She’s perfect for him!” Penelope grumbled impatiently.
Ozzie looked at his wife as though she’d suddenly sprouted wings, complete with feathers.
“Don’t look at me like that! You know as well as I do that Maxwell will never marry if we don’t give him the proper opportunities!”
“Why on earth would we want him to marry so young, my love?”
The sound of carriage wheels interrupted her reply. Penelope gave a surprised gasp and hurried to inform the butler that her guest had arrived. Then she made her way quickly to the receiving room to wait.
Penelope was always delighted whenever one of Luxie’s daughters visited. But Bliss was always the most entertaining! The sound of footsteps coming up the stoop signaled to her that her impatience would soon be rewarded. The only dark spot on the moment was that her reserved younger son wasn’t present to begin his clumsy courtship of her desired choice for his wife.
“Lady Bliss Penwood,” the butler intoned nasally as Bliss stepped into the receiving room.
“Bliss, my darling girl! I’m so happy you arrived safely!”
“I had never a moment’s doubt that I would, Aunt Pen. And I’m very glad to see you too!” Bliss replied with her impish grin.
The two women hugged enthusiastically. After they separated, Penelope signaled the housekeeper to fetch a tray for tea immediately.
“I’m so happy to have you visit us so soon after the ball! I wonder at why, though. The season is in full swing! You should be in London with Merryann showing how beautiful the duke’s daughters are and what a catch you would be,” Penelope teased.
“Merryann doesn’t like the crush, and I’m inclined to think she’d be more visible if I made myself scarce. You know how she tends to hide whenever she finds a reason. I’m perfectly content to wait. I’ve got plenty of time,” Bliss said archly. Her tone was playful, so Penelope didn’t take it seriously for a moment.
“You sell your sister too short, Bliss! Any man in Christendom would be lucky to have a bride from the Penwood stock! Such beauty, such dowries! Why, even I wouldn’t mind having either of you for a daughter-in-law!”
“How are your boys? I barely had a word with either of them at Mama’s soiree. No doubt they’re both doing well.” Bliss removed her traveling cloak and settled comfortably into the loveseat.
“I confess my eldest is quite the bachelor these days. I hardly ever know what he’s about. But Maxwell, I believe, is destined for a bride very soon! He’s rather lonely if my instincts are accurate. What do you think? Is there a bright spot on his horizon?” Penelope tried to word her request innocently, but Bliss didn’t give any indication that she had news to share.
“You needn’t worry. I’m sure he’ll be happy no matter what comes his way. He’s in no immediate danger of suffering any uncomfortable fate that I’m aware of,” Bliss replied complacently. Penelope did her best to hide her frustration.
“How are you feeling these days, Aunt Pen? I’m sensing you’ve been suffering a bout of indigestion?” Bliss led into a new direction, catching her honorary aunt completely off guard.
“What? Oh, it’s nothing really. I blame all the rich food your mother always plies me with whenever I visit her! She’s got the best cook in England, you know! But don’t tell my Hebert I said that or he’ll serve gruel for a month!”
The laughter they shared at the thought of this was genuine. The tea cart arrived, interrupting their discourse for a few moments. Penelope jumped to a new topic as soon as they were alone once more.
“What would you like to do during your stay here? Daniel was telling me the local museum has a planned exhibition due out next week. Perhaps Maxwell can be persuaded to escort you around Bristol during your stay,” Penelope offered innocently. Bliss only shrugged.
“Actually, I planned to visit a few friends while I was in town. I hope that won’t make you feel slighted? I rarely get to Bristol anymore without a handful of family activities to circumvent my visitation. I really look forward to being able to put my cards out at a few homes while I’ve got the opportunity.”
“Of course, I know how well you value your friends! I wouldn’t dream of standing in your way! Do let me know if I can introduce you to anyone you wish to have a new connection with as well! I’m a valuable asset in the art of connections!”
Penelope offered a tray of biscuits to her young charge and waited to see if anything tempted her to mention Maxwell. Unfortunately, Bliss didn’t accept the bait. A wide yawn, barely concealed by a delicate hand alerted Penelope to Bliss’s fatigue.
“My dear! I’m so terribly rude. I had no idea you would be so tired after your journey! Don’t let me delay you from getting your necessary rest before dinner. This tea will not be wasted. I drink entirely too much these days! I’m ever so thirsty all the time!” Penelope scolded herself on both accounts. Bliss merely smiled eagerly at her aunt.
“I believe I know more to the cause than you will believe. But that can wait. I really am quite tired. If you’ll excuse me, I’d love a chance to rest up before dinner is served. I’ve got so much to tell you, and I’d like to have a clear head when we talk over the evening meal!”
Bliss rose from her seat without haste and smiled in the most peculiar way that it gave Penelope a shiver.
“Go right ahead, dear. Marla will show you to the room I’ve had made up for your arrival. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ring. I’ll have Marla give your ladies’ maid a little rest as well. I look forward to dining with you later,” Penelope said as she rose from her chair unsteadily and motioned for the door. Her head felt light, and it worried her more than she liked to admit.
Chapter Eight
Bliss, age twen
ty-one, Bristol, March 1811
Her need for rest was a lie. What she truly needed was a way to break the news she had for Aunt Pen and Uncle Ozzie so that they wouldn’t discount her.
Uncle Ozzie harbored a healthy level of skepticism when it came to his honorary niece. Bliss was aware of this. The idea that Aunt Pen would be the most receptive, while still not believing, gave her only a little hope.
Penelope was not a cynic or a skeptic, per se, nor was Ozzie. She loved her husband with a passionate zeal, and a more humorous pair you’d hardly meet. Despite their cat and mouse nature with one another, Penelope respected Ozzie’s belief that Bliss’s alleged abilities were merely coincidental.
It was really unusual that Ozzie, a real jokester, would be so staunch in his doubt. He approved of irreverence on principle. For example, only his wife could call him Daniel and get away with it. Lord Osterburg had been Ozzie since an old Pangbourne nickname was given to him for his constant companionship with Ollie.
He and Penelope usually had an ongoing war with pranks that sometimes rivaled Shakespeare’s artifice and foolery. Aunt Penelope was rumored to have once put glue in the chair in his study. When Ozzie sat upon it to begin his daily accounts, he was practically one with the furniture. He’d had to remove both his trousers and coat in order to free himself and sneak back upstairs before being seen by one of the maids in his altogether.
Ozzie had quickly retaliated by mixing salt into Penelope’s sugar bowl just before she was expecting guests of the Ladies Flower Society for tea. He’d also put boot blacking on the handles of her shears so that when she let go of them to wipe her brow, she appeared to have a dark, uniform eyebrow across her forehead.
Therefore it was surprising that Ozzie didn’t feel comfortable believing something that was outside the usual norm. Something in their past made Aunt Pen and Uncle Ozzie both a little unwilling to discuss things that weren’t logically proven. It was a mystery to everyone who knew them as to why that was.
Bliss’s maid Pauline insisted that she be allowed to assist her mistress in getting prepared for the evening. She eagerly shared gossip with Bliss about the lady of the house’s plans to see her settled with her younger son.
Bliss laughed heartily at this and told Pauline not to fear. Maxwell’s fate was already firmly sealed. In less than four years, he would have a lovely English bride to make his mother joyful.
There would be no time to worry over Maxwell on this trip, though. Bliss told Pauline that Maxwell wouldn’t even arrive until a day before the post Easter ball. This news settled Pauline’s nerves considerably.
At the hour of dinner, Bliss went down to find Aunt Pen. Having rehearsed the news a thousand times in her mind, she still wasn’t completely sure what she would actually say when the time arrived.
Dinner proved less than conversational as Ozzie had invited a few businessmen and their wives to dine with them that evening. Bliss chatted easily with each of the women and even helped a few of them with irritations in their lives with her usual sage advice that somehow always came along to fill the void in her visions. The women adored Penelope’s young niece.
Lady Westford was especially delighted in her company and invited her over for brunch later in her visit. Bliss, having expected this, accepted graciously.
Everything went so well at dinner, allowing Bliss not to worry as she asked Aunt Pen to sit with her a few moments before they retired that evening.
“Well, this was a truly lovely evening. Pity the boys weren’t here,” Penelope said with a small yawn.
“Forgive me for being blunt, Aunt Pen, but is there anything amiss with you?” Bliss managed to keep her face placid and void of all eagerness.
“I’ve been a bit over-tired lately. I’m forty four, you know! Ladies of a certain age have all sorts of issues to deal with in their daily lives, my dear. Don’t let that worry you, though. I’m perfectly fine.”
“I know that you are, Aunt Pen. But you should prepare yourself. You and Uncle Ozzie are to be very happy soon.”
Penelope cocked her head to the side and looked curious.
“What do you mean? We’re very happy now. Is something good happening? I know my son is always absent, but I’ve heard no word about anything that might give me greater happiness. In fact I thought they would both be here for your visit.”
“Oh this isn’t about a daughter-in-law, Aunt Pen. You and Uncle are going to have your hands full very soon. And it will happen in less time than you could ever guess!” Bliss no longer attempted to hide her triumph.
“What are you ladies discussing?” Uncle Ozzie asked as he stepped into the room.
“Your new baby,” Bliss said as if the subject had been opened. Penelope looked at her in disbelief.
“Is there something you wish to tell us, dear?” Penelope began to speculate the reason for Bliss’s declaration.
“Yes, I’ve been trying to for the past few minutes. You are going to have a baby, Aunt Pen. Congratulations!” Penelope and Ozzie looked at one another in wordless digestion of the news.
“That’s not possible, Bliss. I’m too old to have a baby. I’m … not even having my courses anymore,” Penelope said in a blush.
“Of course not,” Bliss said as if this news wasn’t surprising or unusual. Ozzie scoffed and began to chuckle.
“What’s so funny?” Penelope asked, feeling hotly embarrassed by his reaction to her aging. Ozzie cleared his throat and instantly became contrite.
“I mean no disrespect to you, my dear! You are truly the most beautiful woman, no matter what age, that I’ve ever met,” he said.
To prove his sincerity, Ozzie leaned down and kissed Penelope very ardently. Bliss giggled and looked away, giving them a moment to master their behavior before clearing her own throat.
“My point is made! You two have no idea what you’ve got in store for you! I’ll just turn in now and leave you two lovebirds alone to accept the news. I’ll be going out in the morning for some important visits. Don’t bother to wake early to see me off. I’m only going to be out for the morning!” Bliss hugged each of them in turn and ambled away.
Neither of them believed her, of course. But it really didn’t matter whether they ever did. Time and a bit of childbirth would soon prove that she was right. She would make certain that Eric knew about it, though. That would be easily accomplished on her visit tomorrow.
The next morning, Uncle Ozzie was up and about when she ate her breakfast. He teased her a little about her “news” and said that she must have misinterpreted the information she received.
“I’ve always known you got your information from somewhere. Maids gossip a bit more than they should, naturally. It’s perfectly fine that you’re too young to realize the meaning of what they say. No one expects you to know everything,” Ozzie said with a sympathetic smile.
“Bolder critics have discounted what I’ve told them and been wrong too, Uncle Ozzie. I believe I’ll just wait out the event and smile when I say I told you so,” Bliss countered with a rueful smile.
Ozzie merely shrugged and shook his head dismissing her completely. Bliss smiled to herself at how utterly blind people in love could truly be.
An hour later, Bliss and her maid left Whisper Chase Manor and set out for a brisk walk toward the local surgeon’s district. On a high street overlooking the river, the hospital and many offices stretched out in a convenient line. The cobbled street was less busy than the main thoroughfare, but there were enough hackney’s around to make her mindful of where she stepped.
Bliss didn’t know the exact number of the door she was looking for, but the name was easily painted on the window glass of the fourth office past the hospital. She told Pauline that she had a matter to attend to and that nothing was medically wrong. Pauline, knowing her young mistress’s unusual gift, said nothing as they entered the lobby and shed their outer shawls to a waiting rack.
Bliss strolled casually up to the desk and requested an appointment with the surgeon
. The nurse, looking up from her message book seemed unaware of her for a moment. Then she gave in to a horrible fit of sneezing into a lace handkerchief.
“Bless you, dear,” Bliss said sympathetically.
“Do you hab an appointbent with Dr. Benchley?” the woman asked nasally, then proceeded to blow her nose very loudly into her much abused cloth.
“No, I’m afraid I don’t. But I know he’ll be able to work me in. My name is Deanne Porter. The doctor and I are old friends, you see,” Bliss said patiently.
“Well, he isn’t bery busy today. I suppose I could put you in for a few binutes this borning. Please hab a seat and I’ll get you back in a bit,” the nurse smiled beneath her reddened nose as she wrote the name on the patient list then stood to leave.
Bliss told Pauline it wouldn’t be necessary for her to accompany her back to the examination room, since it wasn’t really a medical visit. Pauline agreed, and her obvious lack of concern over the propriety of the scene didn’t go unnoticed.
A few minutes later, the nurse came back and motioned for Bliss to follow her. They walked past the desk and into a room to the right. Inside there was a counter stretching out from the left of the door that held a few medical instruments of varying oddities. On a slightly raised dais sat a plain chaise covered in roughly tanned leather with pin-tucks interspersed along the cushion.
The smell of ether was faint in the room, but Bliss didn’t let that distract her. In the far corner of the room there was a dressing screen and a coat rack.
“If you’ll just go behind there and strip down to your chebise and stockings, we’ll be back in a bit to check you ober,” the nurse said kindly.
Bliss nodded and walked behind the screen. At that moment, when the door closed behind the nurse and the room was still, Bliss could hear her heart pounding in her ribs. This was the part she was nervous about.
Seeing Eric while she was dressed in less-than-appropriate clothing would be practically scandalous. But Bliss wasn’t backing away. There was an important event on the horizon and it was worth every ounce of her nerves not to run or panic. Eric Benchley was about to give Bliss her very first kiss.