Meanwhile, she, the once high-and-mighty Ms. James, had married an ordinary man. Her own family had to foot the bill for the wedding; otherwise, she wouldn''t have even had a decent ceremony and would have be theughingstock of her social circle.
Yvonne, however, had no intention of mocking Caroline. When Caroline and Jadon came to their table for a toast, Yvonne smiled and offered some pleasant well- wishes. She didn''t drink because of her pregnancy, but she was still gracious and respectful.
The wedding was crowded, and the groom''s friends were getting rowdy, already nning their post-wedding pranks. The noise gave Yvonne a headache, so she and Bet left early.
The day after Caroline''s wedding happened to be the day of Yvonne''s prenatal check-up.
Bet had been away on a mission for herst appointment, but since he was in Istra this time, he was determined to go with her.
Yvonne was now twelve weeks pregnant. Her belly was just beginning to show a slight curve, and in her clothes, you could hardly tell she was pregnant.
Although Yvonne and Bet were married and had announced it publicly, she was still a public figure, so she needed to be discreet about her check-ups.
Yvonne wore a mask, a hat, and a long coat, bundling herself uppletely as Bet protectively escorted her into the hospital.
They had a pre-scheduled appointment with the OB-GYN department, so there was no need to wait.
Dr. Powell followed the standard procedure, performing an ultrasound and monitoring the fetal heartbeat.
It was the first time Bet heard the baby''s heartbeat, which sounded like the soft drumming of a horse''s hooves.
The ultrasound was also normal. The ultrasound showed a healthy, developing baby, no bigger than a small fruit but already showing a steady, strong presence. As Bet looked at the clear outline of the fetus on the ultrasound image, his vision blurred as a sudden surge of emotion nearly overwhelmed him.
After the examination, Dr. Powellpiled all the reports, handed them to Yvonne and Bet, and marked the date for their next appointment.
As they left Dr. Powell''s office, Bet continued to stare at the reports, lost in thought.
"What''s wrong? Didn''t Dr. Powell say the baby and I are both perfectly fine?" Yvonne asked, looking at him with concern.
"It''s nothing." Bet wrapped an arm around her, his voice low. "I was just suddenly reminded of my cousin Flora. Next week is the anniversary of her death."
The fact that Yvonne''s current body also had a rare blood type, and now she was pregnant, made Bet uncontrobly think of Flora Moore and the tragic state she was in after her death.
A wave of inexplicable unease washed over him.
The mention of Flora cast a heavy, somber mood over them. Yvonne looked up at Bet''s strong profile. "On the anniversary, I''ll go with you to pay respects to her."
"You''re pregnant. I don''t think you should be going to a cemetery right now. The emotional strain isn''t good for the baby," Bet said sternly.
"You actually believe in that sort of thing?" Yvonne shrugged, unconcerned.
Bet certainly hadn''t believed in such things before. But what had happened with Yvonne couldn''t be exined by science. Perhaps spirits of the dead really did exist in this world.
Bet forbade Yvonne from going to the cemetery, and she didn''t insist.
They left the hospital, talking as they went.
As Bet''s car slowly pulled away from the hospital, he didn''t notice the Walker family''s car parked in a corner of the lot.
The Walker family''s car was a ck Audi A8. A chauffeur respectfully opened the door, and Mrs. Walker and her daughter, Ynda Walker, stepped out.
Ynda had just finished her recovery period after the
miscarriage but her body had yet to fully recover. Mes Walker, womed about her, had brought her to the hospital for a check-up, only to run into Bet and Yvonne.
"They must be here for a prenatal check-up," Ynda said in a low voice, her face
suddenly twisting into a hideous snarl.