Iny Lorentz - The Marie Series 02 Read Online Free PDF

longed for a person to whom she could pour out her heart.
    Marga’s return jolted Marie out of her anxious thoughts.
    “Your horse is ready.”
    The housekeeper bowed without looking her mistress in the eye. She never did, because the rumors she’d heard about the castellan and his wife had instilled in her an insurmountable dislike for the couple. Marie Adler was no lady of rank—and worse, she wasn’t even an honorable woman. Rumor had it that when she was young, she’d been convicted of loose morals and beaten with the rod. Indeed, Marga had seen the telltale scars of a whipping on her mistress’s back. Nor was the castellan of noble birth, either. As a result, Marga had spent the last ten years bemoaning the fate that had lifted two such unworthy people far above their stations and showered them with wealth. She despised them from the bottom of her heart, but she forced herself to swallow her anger and bow her head, because otherwise she would have lost her position that ranked her far above the regular servants and even above most Rheinsobern citizens.
    Not noticing Marga’s grim expression, Marie left the room with a sigh of relief. Desperate to escape the castle walls, where every stone and every piece of furniture reminded her of Michel, she needed someone to talk to and decided to visit the only person who understood her, her old friend Hiltrud. Marie could also have gone to see her cousin Hedwig who lived in town with her husband, the cooper Wilmar Häftli. But that couple thought Marie was akin to a saint, not understanding that she was simply human, with her own fears and needs. Unlike Hedwig, Hiltrud would not only listen to Marie, but she’d also empathize and do everything she could to take her friend’s worries away.
    Using a bench so she wouldn’t have to ask a servant for help, Marie climbed onto Bunny and left the castle. As she rode along the city’s main road, people bowed and greeted her respectfully. Marie returned the greetings with more cheer than she actually felt and even stopped Bunny twice to accept proffered petitions, but she was glad to finally leave the city behind.
    Just out of town, she reined Bunny in and started down the road leading from the Rhine to the east, where a distant cloud of dust marked Michel’s procession. She briefly considered riding after him to clasp him in her arms one more time, but realized that would make him the laughingstock of the other knights and, with a heavy heart, decided against a reunion. Bunny, who instinctively knew the way to Hiltrud’s house after countless visits, made the decision easier by simply trotting along without any guidance from Marie.
    The goat farm was one of the largest in the Rheinsobern district, comprising several half-timbered buildings made of clay and woven willow branches and, except for the barn, foundations of fieldstones. The stable and barn were roofed with wooden shingles, whereas the imposing main building was topped with bright red tiles. A dozen cows were grazing on the meadow next to the yard, and nearby a young maid was minding a large herd of goats. Thomas, Hiltrud’s husband, was working in his fields, and Hiltrud was standing on a small veranda, churning butter. She didn’t stop when Marie dismounted, using the fence enclosing the farm’s vegetable garden as support.
    Marie tied Bunny to an apple tree and rushed toward Hiltrud.
    “Mmm! Fresh butter! I’ve come at just the right time.”
    Hiltrud looked her friend over, noting once again that Marie had hardly changed in the last decade. If anything, she’d become even more beautiful. Hiltrud had gained a bit of weight over the years, and a few wrinkles were starting to show on her face. But in spite of her unusual height, she was still considered an attractive woman. Her husband, formerly a bonded goatherd, had also put on a few extra pounds, and the two of them were now respected farmers content with themselves and the world. Much of their happiness was