Davida awoke to her belly cramping. It had been so long since she’d experienced anything like this, and she was bewildered by the sensation. Had she eaten something that disagreed with her? Or was she merely reacting to the sexual activity that had been denied her for so long?
As soon as she sat up, she knew what was wrong. She was menstruating. The thought of it brought tears to her eyes. It would be days before she’d be able to be with Gwain. Being that the times were not modern, she would more than likely spend her days confined to this room.
A rap at the door prompted her to dry the tears that cascaded down her cheeks. To her relief it was Briana that entered the room. “Oh, Briana, I’m so glad it’s you,” she said before the tears again began to fall. “I’m afraid...”
“Oh dear, is it that you are bleeding?”
Davida nodded.
“I will be right back. Emma, the midwife, must be called. She will care for you. To be truthful, it is not a time for tears. I am always thrilled when it is my time and I do not have to be bothered with unwanted attentions from my husband.”
Davida knew her sister-in-law meant well. Fred was so awkward at lovemaking that the few days her period lasted was a relief. With Gwain, it was an imposition. She would miss him terribly until he could again share her bed.
“Don’t cry,” Briana pleaded. “I know you thought that your lovemaking would plant a child. As a virgin, you had no way of knowing that sometimes it takes many cycles for a woman to carry a man’s child.”
Davida pretended to be ignorant of the workings of a woman’s body. The first years of her marriage to Fred had been fraught with many months of infertility. Every period had become a time of grieving for the children that had not been conceived. She of all people knew there were only a few days of the month when a woman could get pregnant.
“I-I had hoped... I-I didn’t think that my time for the cycle was so near.”
“What you are feeling is natural. With the wedding, the days of travel, and the realization that Gwain would be the man in your bed, it is no wonder your time came when you least expected it. For the next few days, either Emma or one of the other women will be with you.”
Davida lay back against the fluffy goose down pillows. Before menopause, her period was an inconvenience, but the world didn’t stop because of it. She’d read about how in ancient cultures when a woman menstruated, she was treated with respect and care. How different it was in her time. In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, life demanded that at that time of the month, a woman shoved a tampon up her box and went on as though the cramps, bad moods, and mess made those few days no different from any of the others in the month.
* * * *
Gwain was just finishing his morning meal when he saw Briana hurry toward the front door. He made no move to stop her, thinking that perhaps Davida had asked Briana to arrange for her to go riding when she finished eating.
“Where is Briana off to in such a hurry?” Charles asked, when he came to sit with Gwain.
“She didn’t say.”
Before Charles could comment, Briana returned with Emma, the midwife. When Emma climbed the stairs to the upper sleeping quarters, Briana joined them at the table.
“You were to be with Davida,” Charles accused. “Why is it that the midwife goes toward her bedchamber while you sit here with us?”
“Davida awoke to her woman’s flow. It is Emma’s duty to comfort her during these days.”
“Her woman’s flow!” Charles shouted. “What have you been doing, Gwain? Why have you not gotten her with child?”
Charles pulled Gwain to his feet without allowing him to say a word. Once Gwain was upright, Charles landed a punch that sent him sprawling to the stone floor of the great room.
“You know nothing of women, Charles,” Gwain said, as he got to his feet in order to defend himself. “It is too bad you were not fostered to our mother’s brother along with me. If you had been, you would know that planting a child does not happen so close to a woman’s flow.”
“Do you expect me to believe such swill?” Charles retorted. “Have you been holding back your seed so that you can prolong your time with her? How can a virgin have such control over you?”
“Stop it, Charles!” Briana demanded. “Gwain is right. All you ever think of is fighting and war. If you took the time to listen to the women of this clan, you would know that a woman doesn’t get with child every time a man shoves his cock into her. With everything this poor girl has endured, it may be months before a child can be planted.”
Gwain smiled at the thought of several months of sexual bliss in Davida’s room. Even when she did carry his child, his uncle had told him that no harm would come to the babe if he continued to enjoy Davida’s pleasures.
“What do you know of the things Davida has endured?” Charles shouted, breaking Gwain’s train of thought.
“I know that you arrived at her uncle’s manor on her wedding day and killed the man she was to wed. After that you forced her to ride across the countryside in an open wagon with only Ian for company. I’ve known the man all my life and would sooner ride with a rabid dog than that man.”
“How do you know of this?”
Gwain watched as a bewitching smile crossed his sister’s lips. She was enjoying tormenting Charles with any knowledge she had about the way he had treated Davida on the trip from her uncle’s home to McGowen Manor.
“My husband rode with you. Do you think he only fucks me at night? We do talk to each other, and the story of you killing the man she loved is too good to be kept secret. Every woman who has a husband who rode with you knows of it. Most of the men of the clan know that if they do not tell their wives what they want to know, their marital rights will be withheld.
Gwain watched as Charles clenched and unclenched his fists. Gwain had only been in Charles’ company for a minimum of the time he’d been reunited with the clan, but he was well aware of his brother’s temper. It was evident that Charles wanted to strike their sister.
In an attempt to save Briana from the brunt of Charles’ anger, Gwain reached out to stop the blow that was certain to come.
“Do not stop him, Gwain,” Briana said, her tone one of defiance. “He has no right to strike me. Word of such an action would endanger his standing with the clan. None but my own husband has the right to strike me, and he knows better than to test my anger.”
Rather than admit to being bested by a mere woman, Charles stormed from the room, lashing out at any and all who got in his way.
* * * *
Davida wished she had a tampon to stop the flow that kept her confined to bed. She knew that in this time period men feared a bleeding woman. The only blood they tolerated was that of a virgin.
Before she could come to any concrete solutions about her situation, there was a knock at her door. Without waiting for anyone to bid her entry, an older woman came into the room.
“I am Emma, the midwife. Briana tells me you require my skills. When did you begin to bleed?”
“It must have been during the night.”
“Of course, you know it is natural. In this household, it is my duty to make the time of your cycle more pleasant. Was it so in your uncle’s home?”
Davida knew she had to think fast. The only experience she had with having her period came many centuries into the future. She couldn’t say that she shoved a piece of tightly packed cotton up her cunt and went about her business as though it was any other day. She took a deep breath and allowed a believable lie to pass her lips. “My nurse cared for me. We left in such a rush I never thought to request that she accompany me.”
Emma clucked her tongue as she dipped warm water from the container that stood in the corner of her hearth. “You are one of us now, child. My daughters and I care for all the women of this clan during their confinements, be it their woman’s cycle or the birth of their children and the time thereafter. It is a skill that I learned from my mother, as she did from her mother. It has been so for many generations and will be continued by my daughters long after I am gone.”
Davida relaxed and allowed Emma to cleanse her body, apply fresh padding between her legs, and put fresh linens on the bed. She had to admit the treatment she was receiving from Emma far exceeded the way she’d handled her period in the twentieth century before menopause took that mess away forever.
“This certainly came at an inopportune time,” Davida commented. As soon as she spoke, she realized how modern her words sounded.
“I’m afraid I don’t understand the meaning of your words, lass.”
“I’m sorry. We had many visitors to my uncle’s home and from them I picked up many words that are different. I have always been fascinated by listening to their conversations with my uncle.”
Emma rolled her eyes. “Listening to the conversation of men is not something that is tolerated here. You should be more interested in the running of the household and your sewing. Of course, I do not believe for one minute you are dwelling on your former life. I think you long for the time you will miss with your new husband. It takes a special lass to appreciate the lustiness of these McGowen men.”
Davida smiled weakly, all the time wondering if Emma knew which McGowen brother graced her bed. It seemed as though Emma contemplated the very thing Davida was thinking about.
For a moment she thought about the woman who was to take care of her during the days of her period. Although she looked like an old crone, Davida knew Emma was, in all likelihood, no more than thirty-five, or forty years old. It was strange that she looked and acted much older than the twenty-first century Denise.
When Emma returned to the bedside, she brought Davida a cup of herbal tea. How different this is from what I remember. It is possible that this tea will make these terrible cramps go away. It’s a shame I didn’t know about this when Fred and I were first married. It certainly would have stopped a lot of the fights we had.