Rachel's Story

Chapter 26, Epilogue

For the last time (for a long time), Hello to my lovely readers! Finally we reach the end of Rachel's Story. I'll save the speech for the last, OK?

CHAPTER 26: EPILOGUE

“…and that was how your dear Papa proposed to your Mama, beloved Bells of mine,” Rachel said tenderly to two wide-eyed girls as she ended their favourite bedtime story. Isabel Juliana and Annabel Rose were at the significant age of eight and four years respectively, when Isabel deemed herself to be too mature for bedtime stories and Annabel steadfastly followed her sister in everything she did – and yet they demanded one each night without fail because, in Isabel’s own words, “Alex can’t ask for a goodnight story himself, you see, so we do it for him.”

Alexander Paul Fairfax indeed could not ask for a story by himself, since he lacked certain essentials for the function of asking – like teeth, and familiarity with the English language. His solemn elder sisters claimed that he would feel scared if he had to listen to ‘thrilling’ tales by himself, and proffered their company daily for the ritual of story hour. They never missed listening to Mama’s enthralling account of ‘How Papa met and married Mama’ despite all professions of maturity, and Annabel had confided in her Papa a week ago that they loved it because it was not only romantic and exciting but, most importantly, it included people they both knew.

“And Mama, tell Alex ‘bout how Papa an’ you got married in the little church here at Langton which was full of flowers ‘cos it was springtime, and how Uncle Neil lost the ring and the cerem’ny was d’layed, and then Papa found the ring stuck in the bookwet and eb’rything went on again, and how he was such a brave…warrier that the King hisself asked for my papa to fight for him, but then he missed us and gave up his shiny uniform to live with us for ever and ever…” Annabel rattled on serenely the moment Mama paused in her story.

Isabel turned to her little brother and solemnly informed him in a whisper, “Remember not to learn to speak from Anna, OK? It is wrong to say ‘hisself’, and ‘bookwet’ is…pronounced…as bouquet,” she wagged her finger in Alex’s serious face. He was more interested in following the trajectory of that finger than listening to what his sister was saying, but he was a broadminded young man and so long as he had a moving finger to watch, he was ready to let his sister prattle on about correct enunciation to a six-month old baby.

Rachel looked at her children fondly, before turning towards her voluble younger daughter and putting on a mock-frown for her benefit. “Yes, yes, my little songbird, I was about to tell him all that slowly and with all the details, before someone decided that they can tell the story better and in a single sentence!” Saying this, she lunged at Annabel and tickled her mercilessly. Isabel clapped from the sidelines and loudly cheered her mother on, and Alex bounced delightedly in his crib at the sight of his mother systematically attacking his giggling sister.

Indeed, the years had been very benevolent to Andrew and Rachel, though life had not been peaches and roses at all times. Their marriage took place within a year of their engagement on the night of Miranda’s ball, giving Rachel ample time to prepare her students for losing her and letting Andrew arrange his affairs to provide for a new wife. The period of estrangement might have been difficult to endure, but it prepared Rachel for what was expected of a soldier’s wife.

The marriage was an exclusive affair and took place in the same church where Andrew had been baptized as a child, with both of their loving families in attendance. As Annabel had indicated in her convoluted narrative, everything went off smoothly after the bride’s wedding ring had been rescued from the wedding bouquet; how it found its way there remained an inexplicable mystery till date.