At the time Abigail still continued to walk inside the long corridors of the castle: she walked quickly, without stopping.
Some of her tutors had explained to the girl when she was younger, that during the pregnancy the mother should not feel any signs of agitation at all or she would have worsened the well-being of the child.
The duchess could not do anything else, she could not find peace or relaxation.
She felt and knew that a baby was beginning to grow in her womb, that the child was now still the size of a cherry or a walnut.
The fact was that, being in the middle of the second month of pregnancy and almost the beginning of the third, her belly which had always been flat, was now starting to take on some minimal swelling.
She was then scared to death, as her marriage to Juniper would have been in a month.
Then, during the second half of the third month, the baby would continue to grow, to become the size of a plum, and it's little eyes along with the fingers and gender would soon develop.
The problem was that for a very thin and always fit young woman, showing up at the altar if not at the court itself with a rounded belly would not have been prudent.
She could have said that her baby's father was actually Juniper, but it obviously would have reiterated the impossibility of the fact, as the two, before marriage, would never have been allowed to have sex together.
She had to find a solution to all of this so quickly, but she didn't know...
She wouldn't have listened to Gilbert: Abigail would never ever give up their baby, knowing that she would have regret it for life.
So it was then that she decided to talk to her closest relatives: her cousins William and Dickon Dustin.
She would confess everything, she would explain to them that this was all a mistake and that she wanted to keep this baby.
On the other hand, the twins were perfect in cases of strange events or drastic errors, so much so that they often risked expulsion from the army for this.
So Abigail had no doubt, she had to act quickly, and that was how she quickly came to the room of the two counts of Southern Ireland.
She knocked softly on the door, she knew they were there, they had to be, she hoped for it with all her might.
She pushed without hesitation the door to the room and found her cousins there as imagined.
The two Dustins were surprised by the agitated entrance of the young duchess, but they were much more impressed by the appearance of hers.
Her red hair was mostly ruffled and fell over her shoulders, her pale face and the red Turkish wax used to colour her lips was faded to the sides of her mouth.
She was no longer perfect as before, she seemed frightened and neither of the twins understood why.
-William, Dickon, my cousins, I beg you, help me...- begged Abigail quickly composing herself, but letting her green crystalline eyes glimpse an innate anguish.
The two brothers looked into her eyes, confused by her appearance and her words.
-Say, cousin dear, what happened to you?- William finally asked, placing his body more comfortably on the bed.
- Whatever happened, you can simply solve it, right?- Dickon asked receiving a quick nod from his twin.
Abigail puffed cold air from her parted soft lips while placing both hands in her very smooth, fire-colored hair and moving it neatly behind her ears.
-You still don't know what I'm talking about ...- commented the young woman with fear, slowly sliding to sit against the hard wood of the heavy bedroom door -a compromising thing, which can put my life at risk like that of many others-
The twins seemed to understand the seriousness of the event, so much that they no longer risk any joke or any irony.
On the other hand the two brothers and Abigail had grown up together and trusted each other more than any other person in this world.
-I don't want anyone to know about this...it's a sensitive topic-.
Once again William and Dickon exchanged a bewildered look before hearing Abigail's speech more deeply.
-I won't make this speech too long, so I'll go straight to the point- the young woman admitted looking up at the huge and large ceiling -I am pregnant and I need your help-.
The two Dustins were at first very impressed and completely surprised by the confession of the cousin.
-Who is the father of this child Abigail? - William asked.
-Gilbert Stanley...- admitted her briefly returning to her deep thoughts -but I don't want anyone to find out or else I could loose my life-.
-Okay, first of all let's calm down- Dickon admitted getting up from his bed -we have to think about an option that does not endanger other people more...-.
-You talk like an idiot, brother! - William got up from the other bed -you want to save so many people but you don't have at heart the evil that has been done to our family, to our blood ...-.
-Please keep calm- Abigail begged standing up in turn -Dickon is right, if all three of us want to get out of this situation alive we will have to think ...-.
-Do you want your child to grow up as a bastard, as an illegitimate child, Abigail?- William asked in anger.
-I'm just asking for your advice- the young woman retorted, trying in her own anxiety to remedy the unbridgeable anger of her cousin.
-If you want my advice, cousin dear- William said opening one of the drawers of his chest of drawers -if you want some advice it's better to act when the time is still in our side-.
The count pulled out an object: long, sharp, of fine construction, it was a light dagger.
Dickon was the first to notice his twin's actions and he was the first to lose his temper completely.
-You have lost your mind, brother! Stop! What do you think you are doing? -.
William lightly caressed the blade of the dagger.
-I want revenge, for me, for you, for our family...for how much longer do you want that arrogant bastard to continue to bring such humiliations to our family?- William's grim words stopped running, calmed by the light and rational touch of his brother to your shoulder.
-You have the right to be angry with him but you are ignoring the fact that you would kill the future prince consort- admitted the other trying to persuade his twin -by doing this you would be sentenced to death and so would I, having the same appearance as you...-.
William quickly shook his head ignoring any charismatic persuasion of his twin.
-You talk too much, Dickon, but act little- commented the one embittered by the naive character of his brother -it's time to make Gilbert Stanley understand that everything has a price... and he will understand it soon, very soon-.