“Lady Styles also writes that she has something to tell me … Let me see.” Julia scanned the letter. “‘Information to impart about my inquiry,’ she says.”
“Yourinquiry?”
Julia smiled. “A small matter the inspector may have overlooked.”
CHAPTER 11
Mrs. Locock and her baby arrived promptly at ten on Wednesday morning. Lady Styles waited in Julia’s outer room with the child’s nursemaid.
Mary Locock laid the boy on Julia’s examining table, peeled back two layers of blankets, and untied the strings of an outer hat, revealing a knitted cap underneath. A five-month-old with blond curls, blue eyes, and a runny nose emerged from his wrappings.
“This dreadful weather, but I bundled baby Henry up.”
“A case of the sniffles, I see,” Julia said.
“My husband thinks I fuss. He’s a great believer in mustard plasters for colds, but I wasn’t sure. What do you think, Doctor?”
“I wouldn’t apply one to a baby’s delicate skin. It does nothing but cause blisters. Let’s have a look.”
Julia performed an ear, nose, and throat examination. She listened to the baby’s lungs and heart, inspected his skin, and checked for a rash under his nappy. Then she weighed him.
Julia asked, “Is he eating well?”
“Yes. My father-in-law arranged for a wet nurse. Sally, poorsoul, lost her husband and only child last year. She is waiting outside with Susan.”
“Henry’s weight is normal for his age, so all seems well.”
The mother bit her lip and looked down at the baby. “One hears so many things about wet nurses.”
“Such as?”
“A relative who visited over Christmas told me … She said … Well, my cousin painted a very dark picture.”
Heaven, defend us from well-meaning relations.Julia asked, “Tell me, does Sally live with you?”
“Yes, and she is a tidy and most respectable person. And so fond of my little boy.”
“Then let me ease your mind. Sally is well-nourished and lives in a warm, comfortable home. You have nothing to worry about.”
“Thank goodness. And little Henry … What is your opinion, Doctor?”
“Children catch colds, and you’re right to be concerned. But I listened to his chest, and his lungs are clear. So is the discharge from his nose, a sign there’s no underlying infection.”
“He is so precious to us. A gift from God after I thought I’d never …” Mrs. Locock sighed. “I had little choice about hiring a wet nurse. Henry is adopted.”
“I see.”
“As a girl, I never began my monthly flow. The doctor’s examination found that my womb hadn’t developed properly.”
“It’s a rare condition. I’m sorry, Mrs. Locock.”
“Frederick said it didn’t matter, but I hesitated when he asked me to marry him. Then his father heard about a baby. My father-in-law said the mother was unmarried but from a good family.”
Julia nodded. “I know of other such arrangements.”
“Frederick and I wed last summer in some haste, in time to receive the child.”
“So, marriage and motherhood all at once.”
