It’s almost time for Katie Freeman #3! Only two more weeks. I’ve had so much fun writing this one. This past week has been a busy one for me, so instead of blathering on in this blog post, I thought I’d share a little sneak peek of Free to Live. Here you go…

Enjoy!

Free to Live

It was the end of August and Sarah wasn’t doing much. The heat zapped any energy she had and her feet were so swollen they felt like clubs. Patty constantly fussed over her, refusing to let her get up for anything but to use the bathroom.

Months earlier, Sarah had made Patty find a midwife that would come to the ranch to check up on the baby. She refused to leave the ranch, even to go to the hospital. Unless there was something wrong, she was determined to have Katherine right here at home. She had arranged everything legally so that Patty would have custody, should anything happen to her. Patty also had a power of attorney to make decisions on Sarah’s behalf. Of course, she hadn’t told Patty any of that.

All day, Sarah had been extra achy and tired, but she refused to say anything about it. The other woman had been fretting over Sarah’s flushed cheeks enough as it was. Now, it was the middle of the night and, once again, her bladder was waking her up. If she could just find a comfortable position to lay, she could get a good night’s sleep.

Dragging herself to her feet, Sarah made her way to the bathroom located between her bedroom and Patty’s. They had put in a nightlight a few months ago so that Sarah didn’t have to turn on the lights in the middle of the night when she needs to pee. It still didn’t matter, every time she went into the bathroom, Patty would wake up. She was as excited for the baby’s arrival as Sarah was.

Sarah sat down and relieved herself, but as she pushed herself to her feet, she felt a flood of liquid run down her legs. She immediately knew Katherine was on her way.

Not bothering to yell, knowing full well that Patty was awake, she said, “You might want to call the midwife. My water just broke.”

Patty was up and on the phone before Sarah finished speaking.

It was two in the morning before the midwife arrived, and though they tried to keep quiet, several of the women staying with them came down to see if they could help. They small study that was located beside Sarah’s room had been turned into a nursery, so the women went in and made sure the bed had fresh sheets on it and that everything was ready for the new arrival.

As first baby’s go, it was an easy labor, lasting only four hours, though that’s because the midwife suspected Sarah’s discomfort the day before was actually labor pains. At six in the morning, the midwife handed a squalling little girl into the arms of her mother. Patty sat on the bed beside Sarah looking down into the round, red face.

“What are you going to name her?” the midwife asked.

“Katherine the Great,” both women replied at the same time as the dark haired baby cried on.

“That’s an awfully big name to live up to,” she replied.

The two women looked at each other. They had never considered that when they picked the name.

“Katie,” Patty whispered.

“Perfect,” Sarah replied.