42

PENELOPE

"Have you seen anything yet?" Penelope asked of her mother who squinted as she tried to see through the storm.

"Nothing yet, everywhere is clear." Her mother responded, rather tersely

Penelope sat alone in her bed, the silence heavy around her. Her hands were folded neatly in her lap as she stared at the wall, lost in thought. The only movement came from her mother, who sat by the window staring into the distance, lost in her own thoughts.

Penelope knew what was coming. Her father had hired a midwife, a woman who specialized in terminating pregnancies. Her father had decided that the only way to avoid scandal was to get rid of the problem before it grew any bigger.

Penelope shuddered at the thought of going under the midwife's knife. She thought to herself, "I'd rather be chased by a pack of wild wolves than have a woman fiddle with my insides."

As she sat there, lost in her own thoughts, Penelope heard a noise outside. She looked up to see her mother straighten up and walk