فصل 78

emilia

She was leaving. Why did everyone leave me? But Joana was special. A doctor had chosen her for work. A flurry of commotion erupted when the train arrived. We turned away from the tracks and followed the sailor toward the port.

The sailor concerned me. Something shadowed lay beneath his surface. Ingrid would have felt it. As the group was talking to Joana, a starving dog approached the sailor. The poor animal, too weak to even bark, sniffed plaintively at his feet. The sailor kicked the suffering creature away with his boot, annoyed and disgusted.

“Remember, don’t speak,” the knight whispered to me. “You’re Latvian.”

My knight hadn’t left me yet. He was happy about something. The sailor or Joana. Maybe both. But he would probably have to leave me too. Father hadn’t wanted to leave me. I had felt his struggle as I eavesdropped from behind the door.

“Promise me, Martin,” Father had said to Mr. Kleist. “Promise me you’ll protect her, take care of her, love her like your own. She’s all I have.” I couldn’t erase the memory of choked emotion in my father’s voice.

Mr. Kleist had promised. “Yes, Michal, we’ll take good care of her. She’ll love the countryside and the farm. Else and August will be happy to have another young voice in the house.”

“And what about Erna?” asked Father. “Are you certain she will welcome her?”

“Erna . . . yes,” said Mr. Kleist.

I continually returned to the conversation in my mind. He had spoken the word yes but something screamed no. And then I revisited the truth:

Martin Kleist welcomed me.

Else Kleist welcomed me.

August Kleist truly welcomed me.

But Erna Kleist, she did not welcome me.

Ever.