C10 Chapter 10

Elisabet had to walk pretty far to get hold of a rose-pink silk ribbon. It was not until she came to the bigger streets that she found a small haberdashery stall. She bought the ribbon and was paying for it with money that Vemund had given her when she suddenly heard a voice out in the street.

“Elisabet!” She turned around. Lillebror came running towards her.

“Are you out on your own?” he said in a slightly admonitory tone of voice. “Do you live nearby?”

“No, not at all,” she said quickly. “I’m just out on a small errand for my employer. And you?”

“I’m driving my mother on her trip to town. She wants to buy some material. Come join me and say hello to her.”

Elisabet hesitated; she was not at all interested. “I’ve hardly got the time ...”

“Just for a brief moment. Mother would love to see you.”

In other words, Mother would think that I was terribly impolite if I didn’t say hello, Elisabet thought to herself. He’s afraid that I will make the wrong impression. How sweet of him! Or is he simply a mummy’s boy?

As they walked down the street, Lillebror said nervously: “Perhaps you should wear a wig when you’re out, Elisabet? Mother might think that you look slightly ...”

He was groping for the right words. Elisabet took hold of the thin, fine shawl she had over her shoulders and used it to cover her hair instead. Lillebror breathed a sigh of relief.

Vemund would not have bothered to think about such trivialities, she thought rebelliously. Now they had reached the coach, where Mrs Tark was handing the driver the things she had bought.

“See who I happened to meet, Mother,” Lillebror said in a hectic and lively tone of voice. “Elisabet!”

Mrs Tark’s smile was more guarded than normal. Mrs Tark probably felt that Lillebror’s pride was a bit exaggerated. Elisabet thought that Mrs Tark wanted him to herself. She craved his admiration. Was this why she accepted me? Because I’m boorish and unsophisticated and I can’t compete with her in trying to win Lillebror’s favour? Sooner or later, Mrs Tark will have to allow Lillebror to get married. She knows that. But she wants a daughter-in-law who doesn’t outshine her. So far, the mother has only seen the humble side of me. She might suspect my strength of will but only very little of it. What she sees in me is a suitably nice farmer’s daughter who is unable to arrange her hair properly, who doesn’t wear makeup, who is nicely dressed but nothing more than that. Alas, Emilie Tark, you’re very fond of my noble title; you think I’m a fool like my mother ... You don’t know the women of the Ice People! If you provoke them, you’ll get to feel their power!

Emilie Tark: don’t make an enemy of a member of the Ice People. It could cost you dear!

Elisabet was feeling extremely irritable and she immediately regretted her thoughts. After all, she mustn’t forget that the lady of the manor of Lekenes had greeted her most kindly.

But Lillebror was a wimp!

Mrs Tark said: “Dear Elisabet, are you on your way home? We’ll drive you home immediately.”

Elisabet said: “That’s very kind of you but I have a few more errands ...”

Emilie Tark looked at her and shook her head. “You’re so secretive about your employer, Elisabet. Who is she and where does she live?”

“Please forgive me but my first promise when I was hired was to be discreet. I’m sure you’ll agree that if I revealed the name of my employer, I would betray the confidence that the person I work for has in me. Then you would also doubt whether you could trust me in future, wouldn’t you?”

Lillebror laughed: “You’re wise and beautiful, Elisabet,” and he got a sharp look from his mother. She was the one who ought to be praised!

“Surely you can reveal one single thing?” Lillebror said. “It’s Vemund’s mistress, isn’t it?”

Elisabet was agitated, which made her careless: “No, it isn’t! Vemund doesn’t have a mistress. It’s an elderly, very fine and kind lady whom I respect very much.”

Mrs Tark raised a telling eyebrow over Elisabet’s heated reply and blushing cheeks.

“I’m sorry,” Elisabet said. “I just don’t want Lillebror to think so badly of his brother.”

“Oh, well, most people surely have a mistress or two,” he said lightly.

That remark made Elisabet feel very uncomfortable and even more firmly determined not to marry him. It was Vemund, that obstinate rascal, she wanted, even if he wanted to throw her into the arms of his scoundrel of a brother.

Mrs Tark placed her hand on the coach door. “Alas, my dear elder son ...! Do you see him from time to time, Elisabet?”

“Yes, but very rarely.”

“We never see him,” Mrs Tark said. “It hurts me more than I can put into words.”

“Yes,” Lillebror said. “Do you remember, Mother, when Vemund and I would sit at your feet listening to your wise words?”

“Of course I do,” Mrs Tark said tenderly. “Vemund was so gentle and compliant. He was good to his mother ...”

Elisabet was in a rebellious mood. Thank goodness he managed to extricate himself from your group of admirers, she thought. Now you intend to fight tooth and nail to keep Lillebror’s idolatry. If I had liked him more, I would have put up a fight, Emilie Tark. But I can’t be bothered. You can keep him!

“In a few weeks’ time, Uncle Mandrup will be leaving for Denmark,” Lillebror said. “He wants to look a bit further into Gabrielshus.”

“Whatever for?” Elisabet gasped. “You know I don’t want it!”

Her future mother-in-law waved her finger threateningly. “You mustn’t renounce your noble blood, Elisabet. You’re related to a count and when we go further back, to a duke!”

Filled with an urge to strike at them once and for all, Elisabet answered aggressively: “Actually, if we must boast, there are even more distinguished titles: my paternal grandmother, Bronja’s mother, was Marina, Princess of Riesenstein. My ancestor Alexander Paladin came from a family of dukes – he belonged to the House of Schwartzburg.”

That did it! The two from Lekenes stared at her. They were speechless. Elisabet, who was still on the warpath, thought: shopkeepers! Upstarts! Fancy idolizing a worthless title! She seized the occasion to say goodbye with a gracious smile and then walked away.

On her way home, she pondered what Vemund would have said about all that. Perhaps she ought not to mention the meeting? Oh, Vemund. She longed for him because he was so down-to-earth and she longed for his strong, safe arms. A man like him mustn’t die! After all, he was hers! She wanted nobody but him.

Elisabet was woken in the middle of the night by Miss Karin’s anxious calls: “Will you come upstairs?”

She put on her dressing gown and went up immediately. Karin was lying on her back in bed, staring at the ceiling. When Elisabet switched on the light, she saw that tears were trickling down the older lady’s cheeks.

“I’m so scared, Elisabet,” Karin whispered, fumbling for her hand. Elisabet sat down on the edge of the bed, gently holding the frail hand.

“What’s wrong, Miss Karin?”

They could speak freely. The baby slept downstairs with Mrs Vaagen at night. Karin clutched Elisabet’s hand. “There are so many dizzying thoughts, Elisabet. I no longer know who or what I am or where I am in time and space. Everything is so confusing.”

“Have you felt like this before?” Elisabet asked.

“No, never. It’s as if something terrible and sinister is lurking around me somewhere and I’m unable to protect myself against it. I daren’t be on my own.”

“Miss Karin, please listen to me! This terrible darkness ... You see, you’ve been sick for a very long time, and this is what now keeps popping up in your mind. Cruel memories from the time when you were sick. Now you’re slowly getting better, and it’s a difficult process. You must be strong.

“I saw a stranger in the mirror today ...” She shuddered violently.

Elisabet tried to sound calm but she was despairingly unsure. Besides, her feet were cold. She put them discreetly into Karin’s slippers. That helped.

“We must look forward and not back, Miss Karin. You have a great responsibility for Sofie Magdalene. She’s your future, and that’s the most important thing.”

“Yes,” Miss Karin said, relieved. “She means so much to me, the little mite.” Elisabet thought sadly that Miss Karin’s memory loss had taken away her sense of security.

Karin was eager: “I have so many plans ...”

“I’m so glad.”

Miss Karin continued: “We need a bigger house. Out in the country. The town isn’t good for children.”

“My childhood home, Elistrand, is always open for the two of you.”

“You’re so sweet, Elisabet. I want us to be friends, real friends. Your background is also good. Please just call me Karin!”

“Thank you, I’ll gladly do so.”

This was fine with Elisabet, and it was about time, too. She had never liked to say “Yes, Miss Karin” and “No, Miss Karin” with conviction.

You could tell by Karin’s voice that she was still frightened. “The shadows are there all the time, I can’t get rid of them!”

“You never have to be alone any more, Karin. There will always be somebody by your side.”

The thoughts swirled in Karin’s mind. “There’s something I ought to remember but I can’t.”

“Forget it, Karin. You must look to the future!” Elisabet said.

“The memory keeps slipping out of my mind all the time, it’s just so horrendous. If only I knew ...”

“You don’t have these thoughts in the daytime, do you?” Elisabet asked.

“No, because I’m so busy taking care of little Sofie Magdalene,” Karin replied.

“Do you want something to help you sleep?”

“Yes, please. That would be nice. Right now, I feel more scared than I’ve ever been before! It’s as if I’m waiting to hear somebody give a hard knock at the front door!”

“Don’t worry, Karin. I’ll stay right here until you’re asleep. Tomorrow evening, Vemund will come. Then you’ll be all right, won’t you? I’ll be going home to see my parents for a few days but Vemund will keep you company.”

“Vemund is so strong. I’ll be all right. But is it really respectable?”

“Mrs Vaagen is here as your companion. I suppose Dr Hansen will drop by tomorrow as well.”

She could hear how Karin literally brightened up. “Oh, Dr Hansen. Do you know, he said that I look so much better now?”

“Well, Karin, you do! You look like a young girl again.”

Elisabet immediately regretted what she had just said. After all, Karin had always believed that she was young. However, all went well because all Karin said was: “Nothing makes sense to me! How old am I, in actual fact?”

Elisabet was cowardly enough to reply: “I don’t know. You’d better ask Vemund.”

“Vemund? He’s such a fine person. Where does he come from? My head feels so empty and big. Nothing makes sense!”

“That’s a part of your illness, Karin. All your memories are coming back, bit by bit.” (Heaven forbid!)

“Do you think so? It’s just so awful not being able to remember anything!” Karin said.

“I can well understand. The best thing would be if you could begin a new life from scratch, as if there had been nothing before. A new life for little orphaned Sofie Magdalene, who has been given such a wonderful and caring mother as you,” Elisabet said.

“Do you really think so? Yes, because otherwise she would have been doomed, wouldn’t she? I remember that ... That horrible shack. Her father, who wanted to kill her. We saved her life, didn’t we?”

“You were the one who saved her life. I didn’t have the time to take care of her.”

“Sofie Magdalene,” Karin whispered happily.

Elisabet administered the sleeping powder to Karin.

“I remember that you scolded me,” Karin said, leaning back against the pillows once more.

Goodness, she remembered that as well. Everything seemed to have been turning around in Karin’s mind. Let’s hope she won’t remember the disaster of long ago, whatever the reason for it. Or would it be an advantage if she remembered? No, Vemund had said that the memory of that horrific event was bound to kill her.

Karin laughed helplessly. “I think I deserved that telling-off you gave me. I was certainly very angry with you but I have a horrible feeling that I was very self-obsessed.”

Elisabet replied: “It was just a result of your illness. Just forget it. All you need to think about is giving the most loving care and devotion to little Sofie Magdalene.”

Karin’s hand seized Elisabet’s once more. “Do you think I’ll be allowed to keep her?”

Elisabet replied: “I can’t see why not? She couldn’t be better cared for than by you.”

Karin said: “What if somebody comes and takes her from me? Then I’ll die!”

Elisabet knew this was true. Karin would not be able to suffer another setback. “I’ll prevent that. I shan’t let anybody in! You’ve no idea how strong I can be. But now you must sleep. I’ll switch off the light and settle in the chair over there.”

“Yes,” Karin said. “Between me and the unknown shadows.”

Elisabet got up and patted her on the shoulder. It was so thin: even though Karin had gained weight recently, her bones protruded. “I’ve never heard you so lively and full of zest as this evening.”

Karin said: “I can thank Sofie Magdalene for that.”

“Yes,” Elisabet said.

What was all this leading to? That Karin might recall the horrific event, leading to a renewed breakdown that would be decisive?

Dear little Sofie Magdalene. Keep your foster-mother’s feet on the ground. Let her see what is the most important thing in life, which is your future and hers ... not a memory of something that slipped away ... well, many years ago?

The mail coach heading south was leaving at an ungodly hour in the morning. Elisabet asked Mrs Aakerstrøm to deliver a letter to Vemund. She had written the following:

Dear Friend,

Can you be with Karin for two nights? She is afraid of “shadows” – which are undoubtedly memories she cannot quite fathom. You can stay in my room: you will give it a more masculine atmosphere, which I can inhale afterwards when I come back – provided you do not throw empty bottles about. I will not “tolerate any of that”!

I will be back as soon as I can.

Your friend, Elisabet

Did “Dear Friend” seem too intimate? She didn’t think so. At first, she had considered writing “Dearest Friend,” but thought it best not to do so, after all. He was not to know how much she desired him.

As Elisabet passed the river, she saw Sofie Magdalene’s boorish father leaving the shore in his boat. She quickly ran to the shack in the slum to bring news to the mother, who was now out of bed.

“Is everyone all right here?” Elisabet asked.

“Yes, we’re fine. That’s to say, he doesn’t care for the girls but he’s very proud of the boy.”

Elisabet said bitterly: “Someday soon, I’ll think of something to make the girls happy. But you mustn’t fret about your baby girl! She has a home that is full of love. She won’t lack anything in future. She has also been given a wet nurse.”

“Thank you so much, but I don’t want to know where. Then I won’t be tempted to see her and feel the loss.”

“I know,” Elisabet said. “Good luck with the other children.” Then Elisabet ran through the streets to the mail coach and at the very last moment managed to jump on board. The trip was dusty and much too slow, even though the horses moved at a good pace. She could not afford a horse of her own so she had to be patient.

Unfortunately, Elisabet’s seat was opposite a man who thought he was a highly gifted womanizer. He began a persistent knee flirtation with her, smiling self-assuredly with arrogantly raised eyebrows. Elisabet grew more and more furious; there seemed no way in which she could get away from him because the coach was full. No matter where she put her knees, he was there once more. Finally, she lost her self-control: she kicked him so sharply on the shin that he moaned. When he got out at Bragenes, she heaved a sigh of relief. The other passengers in the coach smiled at her sigh and the atmosphere became lighter.

Late in the evening, they reached the small market town of Holmestrand. Elisabet went to the nearest inn and immediately began to question the landlady. She knew so very little, but began by asking the landlady about the Tark family’s estate.

“Tark? I’ve heard the name before but ... Wait a moment, I’ll ask.”

She disappeared into the kitchen. It was a long time before she reappeared.

“It’s here. “But they don’t live here any more.”

“I know that,” Elisabet said. “I just want to visit the place where they once lived.”

The landlady said: “It’s outside the town. My cook has drawn a map. She says they are delightful people.”

Elisabet had heard this remark before! Early next morning, she was on her way, following the map she had been given. She found an estate nowhere near as large and beautiful as Lekenes. This was where Vemund grew up, she thought, touched. I wonder whether he climbed that big tree over there, with Lillebror screaming down below because he was too scared to climb up?

The people on the farm were unable to tell her much about the Tarks. They had only just moved in. However, a visit to the nearest neighbour paid off.

“They were such wonderful people!” Elisabet thought that she would scream if she heard this once more. “They were so nice,” sighed the woman who lived there. “The lady was the most beautiful of them all: she looked like a queen, a goddess.”

“They had two boys, didn’t they?”

“Exactly. Lovely little boys, especially the younger one. He looked like a cherub. The older one kept more to himself.”

Elisabet dared to ask: “Was there also someone by the name of Karin Ulriksby?”

“Karin Ulriksby? No, I’ve never heard that name before,” the woman said.

“But the name of the estate is Bode, isn’t it?”

“Bode? No, it’s not.”

The peasant woman mentioned the name of the estate but it did not register with Elisabet.

“I see. I know this is a strange question but where’s the hospital for the mentally ill in this town?”

“I’ve no idea. It’s not here.”

Elisabet was at a loss. Had she been put on the wrong track entirely?

No, Vemund had lived here.

“Wait a moment,” the peasant woman said. “Bode? Isn’t that near Horten? Yes, of course it is. I seem to recall that they sent a few crazy people to Horten. The place has a lunatic asylum.”

Elisabet said: “Really? Horten ... Is it a market town?”

The peasant woman said: “No, it’s just a ferry berth, but it’s quite big. The Tarks didn’t stay all that long. They came from ... let me see ... ah, yes, from around Horten. Yes, indeed they did!”

That helped. “Do you remember when they moved here?” Elisabet asked.

“I’m afraid not, it’s such a long time ago. Our son was probably about ten years old at the time and now he’s past thirty.”

This did not tally very well, but Elisabet had to make use of the lead she had been given. She was able to hire a horse from the farm next door to the Tarks’ old home, and she rode towards Horten as quickly as the horse could manage.

It was not quite as far away as she had feared. She reached Horten on the afternoon of the same day. It was just a group of houses around a ferry berth by the fiord. She asked for directions until she came across an old man sitting on a bench in the park. He could tell her about Bode. After Elisabet had treated him to a dram, he was able to tell her what he knew. She counted how much money was left in her modest purse and gave him some coins. The old man nodded.

“Bode doesn’t exist anymore. It burnt down many years ago, lock, stock and barrel.”

Elisabet felt that all hope was gone. “Did it really?”

“Yes, a crazy damsel set fire to it all. A terrible story!” But at least Elisabet now knew where it had once stood. She rode to the place, a good distance outside Horten, but here she met stiff opposition. On the only neighbouring farm, the woman hissed and spat when she heard the name Tark mentioned.

“Yuck! They were a bad lot! I don’t want to speak about the Tarks and Svendsen! You, madam, must know that I’m a God-fearing person!”

“I understand. However, I need to know more. You see it’s a matter of life and death. Can you tell me whether a Miss Karin Ulriksby lived there by any chance?”

“Ulriksby? Don’t mention that name! But Karin ... That must be the one. Poor girl. Oh, dear, is all I can say. She was the one who set fire to their home, and quite rightly so! I would have done the same, but they locked her away. In the loony bin!”

“Where is that?” Elisabet asked.

“The asylum? On the other side of town. Quite far away. But I tell you: I’ve no idea what happened. I only heard the most horrific rumours, which made me make the sign of the cross! Now I don’t want to speak any more about that abomination. You, Miss, ought to stay away from meddling into all this!”

Elisabet would not give up. She had not been let into the house. She and the neighbour stood on either side of the lower part of the door.

“As I told you before: I’m not asking you out of curiosity. This has to do with a human soul and a human life. Isn’t there anyone at all who can tell me what happened? Were there no witnesses? Apart from the two boys?”

“Boys? What boys?” the old woman asked.

“Well, at least one of the boys. The older one,” Elisabet replied.

“I don’t know anything about any boys. There was one witness but she turned religious. She became a nun.”

“A nun? There are no nuns any more.”

“She’s some sort of assistant in the church. That was Miss Spitze, who was German. She moved to Christiania and became very religious. She helped the vicar in some congregation. Now I don’t want to say any more. Bode is gone now and so is the evil that surrounded it. Goodbye!”

The top half of the door was slammed in Elisabet’s face.

She rode out onto Bode’s fields. She was surprised at how overgrown the building seemed. Then she rode back to the ferry berth once again.

She pondered ... In Holmestrand, they were esteemed. “Delightful people.” But here, close to Bode, they were despised. This was where it had happened. Then they had moved away from the scandal, or whatever it was, and settled in Holmestrand. They had probably felt that it was too fearfully close to the fatal Bode and so they moved on to Christiania. They seemed to have plenty of money since they could afford stately Lekenes. It was probably as Vemund had once said: they had grown rich at the expense of poor peasants and smallholders.

Elisabet did not quite understand this matter of the boys. They were in Holmestrand and at Lekenes but not at Bode. What if the Tarks who lived at Lekenes were not the same people who had lived at Bode? Perhaps they had taken the place of the others? Perhaps they had even murdered the original Tarks and taken their name? Tark and Svendsen ... But Karin Ulriksby was the same. She was the one who had borne all the suffering along with Vemund, who had understood it.

Elisabet had an idea. What if she could get hold of Miss Spitze and confront her with the people at Lekenes? And what if Miss Spitze said that they were not the true Tark Family but the murderers and fraudsters from Bode?

With these thoughts of extricating Karin and Vemund from their burden, Elisabet rode into Horten’s small ferry berth. Now it was almost dark. There was no time to visit the asylum in a hurry. Very late in the evening, she reached the farm from which she had borrowed the horse. She handed it back and apologized for being so late. She had not had much time for meals these last few days but the landlady at the inn in Holmestrand was understanding, laying a fine table for her late guest. Elisabet ate almost all the food she put on it.

The next morning, on the third day of her journey, she caught the mail coach and returned to Christiania. It was quite a cold trip for her. Among the passengers were two young ladies, heavily made up and with their hair powdered white, so Elisabet could not sit inside in the cramped coach. She had to sit outside next to the driver, with swollen eyes, sneezing away.

“I was born in the wrong century,” she gasped. “That powder is the scourge of my life.”

“I feel sorry for you,” the driver muttered.

Late in the evening, she climbed down in the square in Christiania. It was a very cold evening and she had a sinking feeling that she had missed something. That she had asked all the wrong questions on her secret spying mission.