Siren | Cutler Beckett

One

"I believe you are with child, miss-"

"Lady Beckett" Lord Beckett broke in from  over by the window. The doctor nodded shortly while he cast a glance at the man, who only a few hours ago had sent upon him. Surly, the doctor of the port was aware that Lord Beckett hadn't wed. Rumors travelled quick in the harbor town, if an wedding had occurred, the doctor would have heard of it. Especially if one of the noblemen of Port Royal was the one who had found himself a bride.

The Lord himself, however, didn't face neither the elderly man nor the woman who currently was lying on the bed. Both of them realized they wouldn't receive any further answer from Lord Beckett, who studied the view from his window with his grey eyes in silence, Jade slowly sat up in the bed, while the doctor held out his hand, silently telling her she ought to be careful.

"Thank you, sir" she told the doctor in her heavy accent while she nodded at him.

The doctor rose from the chair by the bed. He collected his tools and nodded one last time at Jade then he cast a glare at Lord Beckett, who still hadn't changed his position, before he left them.

The door closed and Jade tried to stand up, but when she raised her head a wave of nausea washed over her again. She gripped the bedside, her eyes shut while she let the air fill her lungs. It felt exactly as earlier this morning. Jade had been making her way to the balcony, where Miss Goodwright served them their breakfast, when she had suddenly felt so ill that she was forced to sit down. The housemaid, with the breakfast tray in hands, had found her and insisted they should send for a doctor.

"It would not be wise to breed a child at this particular time, after the losses of the company" Jade heard his silky voice from the other side of the room. Still she did not open her eyes just yet. "And, of course, a wedding would have to be arranged, considering our circumstances" What the Lord truly meant with 'circumstances' was her pregnancy. Jade tried to open her eyes to see if the nausea had vanished. She all too well recognized the hostile tone in which he had spoken.

"Oh, wouldn't that be shameful?" the words had left her lips before Jade had time to stop them. She could see how Beckett clenched his teeth, but still he refused to face her. "The fancy Lord has taken a pirate to bed without even marrying her first"

"I'm not a believer, I do not care whether or not The Lord punishes us for our deeds," he took a pause, as he let his pale eyes wander over the bright blue ocean outside. "One thing I do believe in, however, is honour" he cast a quick glance at her. "And I believe you can understand, Miss Lockhart, that if I was to wed you, it would not be tremendous for my prospects."

Jade still wore her white nightgown, and her dark hair had not yet been set up. She remained in the bed, while her gaze was glued to the floor. "So you're going to throw me out?" she asked, while she tried to swallow the lump in her throat which only seemed to grow. "Leave me with a few pounds so I don't tell anyone the child is yours"

"Of course not" Beckett told her, yet he made no attempt to comfort her where she sat. Both the Lord and the pirate turned their heads when the door to the bed chamber once more opened. From the hallway came a homely woman with a red face and a wide smile. Miss Goodwright seemed to sense the tension the moment she opened the door.

"Is everything quite alright?" she asked yet she didn't wait for an answer. "I was just going to ask The Lord what he wishes to have served for dinner-" the housemaid didn't get any further before Beckett interrupted her.

"Not now, Miss Goodwright" he spoke. A puzzled expression found the maid's face as she ran her large eyes from Jade to her employer, before she nodded and slowly returned to the door.