Valeria’s Cross by Kathi Macias & Susan Wales Page A

returned.
    The next day Valeria appealed to Alara, the young monk, during their studies. “Why are our faithful prayers for the return of the men we love unanswered?”
    Alara was sympathetic, but he assured the young women that while they may not understand God’s reasons, they could trust His plan for their lives.
    Valeria shrugged. “I suppose we have no choice. We will wait on the Lord.”
    Valeria was up later than usual that evening, reading a letter from Mauritius, until she finally drifted off to sleep, clutching the missive in her hand. Barely an hour later, Eugenia came into her room, softly calling to her.
    “What is it?” Valeria asked, pulling herself from a deep sleep and alarmed that Eugenia was the bearer of bad news.
    “Nanu sent a servant to tell you she is having her baby.”
    Remembering her promise, Valeria rubbed her eyes and jumped out of bed. “But it is the middle of the night,” she complained
    “A baby waits for no one, not even the emperor’s daughter. Come, you must get dressed. Hurry!”
    Eugenia and the servants helped Valeria dress. In less than an hour the women were at Nanu’s side, watching her writhe in pain. Valeria tried to comfort her hysterical friend, but tono avail. Exhausted and concerned, she whispered to Eugenia, “Is Nanu going to die?”
    Eugenia laughed. “She will be fine. This is typical of what happens when a woman has a baby.”
    Valeria turned up her nose with distaste, thinking that perhaps she never wanted to have a child of her own.
    Several hours later the baby boy arrived, but Valeria was not there to welcome him. Moments after her arrival, she fainted and had to be carried to a nearby room, where she now slept soundly. Eugenia sat beside her and patted her back.
    “Wake up, beautiful dreamer. There is someone you must meet.”
    Valeria pushed herself up with her elbows. “What happened?”
    “You fainted.”
    Valeria’s hand flew to her forehead. “I broke my promise to Nanu! Is she angry with me?”
    “I doubt if Nanu is aware you were not there.”
    Disappointed that she had missed the big event, Valeria scampered into the other room with Eugenia close behind. She gasped when she saw Nanu propped up on pillows, cradling her child at her breast. It was such a beautiful sight that Valeria burst into tears, as her previous concerns about not wanting a baby herself evaporated. Not only did she want one baby, but many—and she and Mauritius would surely have them!
    Valeria soon learned that having a baby meant little time for the mother to do anything other than care for the helpless little one. Nanu was either feeding, bathing, or playing with her son, Babafemi, whose name meant “loved by his father.” Valeria struggled with her feelings of jealousy for Babafemi. Although she thought a baby was the grandest thing, she quickly became bored with watching the tiny creature. Nanu,however, never seemed to tire of it. She refused to leave Babafemi. Every breath he took was a miracle so far as Nanu was concerned, and she was not about to miss a single moment of her son’s life.
    “You will understand when you have a baby,” Eugenia reassured Valeria. “You will feel different when it is your own child.”
    Valeria shook her head with doubt that she would ever allow herself to be a prisoner of a baby like her friend had become since Babafemi’s arrival. Without Nanu as her constant companion, Valeria complained that the time crept by far more slowly and her longing for Mauritius to return had increased tenfold. Despite attempts by her mother and Eugenia to keep her occupied in lessons and her studies with the monks, plus endless social activities, Valeria moped around the palace so much the older women became worried about her.
    As Babafemi grew older, Nanu came around more often, bringing her baby and her nurse with her, but not often enough as far as the emperor’s daughter was concerned. Valeria sulked until Babafemi began to walk and talk, and