Читать книгу The Ice People 12 - Yearning - Margit Sandemo - Страница 6

Chapter 1

It was the traditional burning of the winter’s dead wood which at long last got Villemo on her feet again.

She awoke from the mental torpor which she’d been in since she had returned from her imprisonment. Her sorrow at being forced to give up Dominic had sapped her strength to such an extent that it almost seemed she would never get well. She suffered one bad cold after the other, with pain in her ears and in her joints, so Gabriella and Kaleb felt they didn’t have a moment’s peace. Their normally happy, determined daughter was lying there, deathly pale and motionless with a distant gaze that seemed to be staring into something unknown. She gave them a smile, thanking them for their concern. She had a terribly guilty conscience because she was causing them so much worry. But even just sitting up in bed made her dizzy.

However, one day she saw the sky turn red and yellow and orange, with heavy, blue clouds of smoke billowing from the fields. Villemo was curious and without realising it, she had actually got out of bed, and was suddenly standing by the window, looking out. Her hands held desperately onto the window frame because she was swaying back and forth, but at least she was standing on her own two feet!

Outside a marvellous scene was unfolding. Flames were dancing everywhere, in small bonfires and in long rows of fire along the fields. Villemo was lost in her thoughts.

‘A fire is burning’, she thought dreamily. ‘And the fire is already spreading much faster than we can see. Underneath, deep in the soil, it glows and smoulders with a secret power that sends warmth down into the layers of the earth. The suppressed, invisible embers of the fire is like ... is like my love. It can never be quelled. It devours me slowly; it’s dim, but fervent and irrepressible.’

In the light of the flames outside, with her thin arms stretched out to help her keep her balance, Villemo finally came alive.

“I love you, Dominic,” she said aloud. The glow from the fire reflected in her eyes so that they lit up like a wild animal’s. “I love you, I want you, and I’ll have you no matter what! Nothing and nobody can separate us, Dominic. Now I’ve got something to live for!”

She had no more strength and she slowly slid to the floor. But her yearning to return to life was so powerful that she crept on all fours over to her bed and crawled between the sheets. There she lay, exhausted but happy. Now she had a purpose in life, and from that moment on, her urge to be close to Dominic ran like a fever in her blood.

The spring of 1675 passed pleasantly in the Parish of Graastensholm. Having caused her loved ones so much worry in recent years, Villemo felt great remorse and a new diligence. She worked like a horse on the farm, almost wearing herself out in her eagerness to be of some use. She spent her spare time studying because she had always been bright, even though as a women she would never be allowed to put it to much use. Kaleb and Gabriella were baffled and elated. She also seemed happy, carefree and jolly.

Only the walls in her room knew what had actually transpired. They had witnessed her sorrow and yearning when she had been sick. They had seen her, sleepless and wistful during the lonely nights, and seen her tears that dropped onto the letters she had secretly sent every time the post wagon drove eastward, bound for Sweden.

She had also received answers. She had arranged for a servant girl to give her the letters from Dominic, so that her parents didn’t discover how many she had actually received. Letters that exuded love and longing, overflowing with confessions and small, funny anecdotes from the Court. Dominic had always had a slightly cruel pen when describing the petty, ridiculous, overdressed dandies and cackling hens that surrounded the king. Villemo had tried to respond in the same register, but wasn’t up to it. She had tried to conceal her yearning, but she hadn’t succeeded all that much.

But now everything had changed. Now there was something restless in everything that Villemo did. She was driven on by a great determination. She planned to defy everyone and everything – Dominic was to be hers.

Dominic didn’t know this, of course. She couldn’t bring herself to write something like that. Nevertheless, he wrote to tell her that he was happy that she had regained her zest for life and that it seemed she had found a sense of purpose in her life. Well, you could say that, couldn’t you? ...

Denmark and Sweden never kept peace for very long. Denmark held a grudge about the old Swedish territories, Scania and Blekinge and so on, which they had lost.

And Sweden had terrible problems with her possessions on the other side of the Baltic Sea. In June, a Swedish army was beaten by the Electorate of Brandenburg. Denmark sent troops to her allies, Brandenburg, the Netherlands and the German Empire, and was successful in re-conquering Gottorp. In October, the Swedes first lost West Pomerania, then Wismar.

Sweden’s King Carl XI was horrified when he discovered the miserable state the Swedish forces were in. He asked for money, but the public purse was empty. He only had himself and a few hand-picked men he could trust. He knew that Sweden’s enemies would strike and there was nothing he could do about it.

He did, however, get a breather: he used the coming winter to prepare Sweden for war. Somehow he managed to gather an army which he sent to Scania in the spring of 1676. His plans were offensive. He wanted to conquer Zealand. The Swedish army in Scania waited for its navy which was to take them to Denmark. The navy was large, but it was also in a miserable state, and it had taken King Carl a long time to re-arm it. The first time the navy departed with a fanfare, it had been forced to return almost immediately: 190 men out of 200 had become seasick on one of the ships. Things weren’t much better on the other ships. The Danes believed that the crews were nothing but “farm boys dipped in water.”

So there was nothing to do but start again from scratch. They believed that now they would succeed and so they sailed from Stockholm down through the Baltic Sea in order to join the army in Scania and “beat those damn Danes to a pulp.”

Finally, Lene Paladin’s much delayed wedding to Örjan Stege was set for May 1676. Her paternal grandmother, Cecilie, was well again, the plague was over and everything would be perfect if war wasn’t in the offing.

The Swedish branch of the Ice People, the Linds – Mikael, Anette and Dominic – had already travelled from Stockholm to Gabrielshus in Denmark for the wedding. The entire Norwegian branch of the family were on their way. The Ice People didn’t pay much attention to the looming war, and now Lene insisted on having her beloved Örjan, for whom she had been waiting all those years.

The fact that Dominic, the Swedish King’s courier, had been allowed to journey at all was pure chance. His services were not needed just then and since he had time off, he hadn’t even asked for leave. When all hell broke loose and every courier was needed, he simply wasn’t there any longer. The Oxenstiernas had advised Mikael, Anette and Dominic not to leave. Dominic’s parents had been somewhat concerned, but wild horses couldn’t have kept Dominic at home. So all three of them left just before the threat of war became imminent.

Tancred and Tristan, Lene’s father and brother, were in a different situation altogether. They were both to fight on the Danish side, so it had been difficult for them to attend the wedding.

However, the bridegroom was in the most precarious situation of all. Örjan Stege was from Scania and therefore now a Swede, and as if that weren’t enough, he happened to be an officer as well.

Yet somehow, they all managed to arrive at Gabrielshus on the planned date. For the first time in many, many years, the entire clan was gathered. This was a long-awaited moment.

Meanwhile, Villemo walked restlessly back and forth onboard the ship from Norway. Never had a ship dragged along so slowly. She couldn’t care less about the beautiful scenery, the sea and the sky. Everything was insignificant apart from this one, big event: She was on her way to Dominic!

But what if he didn’t turn up? Rumours of the tense relations between Denmark and Sweden had reached them, and they knew that they travelled at their own risk. Maybe it wouldn’t be possible for them to return home? They had taken the chance because a wedding in the family was far too great an event to allow a miserable war to upset.

But what if Dominic didn’t make it? Villemo was scared stiff.

Her mother, Gabriella, walked over to her by the gunwale just as the ship glided into the Baltic Sea and they could see land on either side. It was far too obvious that the mother had something unpleasant in mind.

“Er, Villemo ...”

‘What a cautious opening!’ thought Villemo. ‘Get to the matter, dear mother, I know very well what it is you want to say.’

“Yes?”

“You’re ... likely to meet Dominic.”

‘Yes, I certainly hope so,’ Villemo thought. Aloud she said, “Yes?”

“Please ... won’t you please be a bit careful? I know you love each other.”

Villemo just nodded briefly.

“Will you promise me and your Dad that you won’t ... encourage Dominic?”

“Encourage?” she asked, to irritate her mother.

“Oh, you know very well what I’m driving at. Will you promise to stay away from him? Completely? Anette and I have corresponded with each other and she and Mikael have forced Dominic to give a similar promise. You’ll never be alone and you will try to observe the laws of the Ice People. You must not encourage a love that is doomed to die, Villemo.”

“That is a very tall order, mother,” Villemo said passionately. “This is the first time in many years that I’ll be seeing him.”

“I’m sorry about that, Villemo. We’re not saying that you can’t speak to one another. But it just has to be in the presence of others. Do you understand what I’m getting at?”

Villemo was silent for a long time. This was a great disappointment. She knew very well that her mother was right. She also knew that she wouldn’t dream of defying her parents ... But, oh, she had yearned so much to meet Dominic again. All those dreams and fantasies she’d had!

At last, after a tough struggle with herself, she said, ”Alright. I’ll be careful. But allow me at least to say a proper farewell to him once these short days are over. It can be in everybody’s presence, if need be. But I want to do it properly. I want to be allowed to hug him and cry a little. Be allowed to feel that he exists, be allowed to touch him. Is that asking too much?”

Gabriella looked sad. “No, my darling, that isn’t asking too much. We’re so sorry to have to hurt the two of you, but I’m sure you understand?”

Villemo just nodded. She didn’t want to talk any more about her feelings of disappointment.

Dominic walked about in Gabrielshus, waiting. It often occurred to him that he could ride to Copenhagen to meet the ship from Norway, but decided that this would seem too rash.

Gabrielshus by far exceeded anything that other members of the Ice People possessed. The interior was so luxurious and lavish that you could walk about for many days and still come across new things of value.

Right now Gabrielshus was in a fever of excitement because of the wedding preparations. Cecilie, who was now 74 years old, bossed everybody about. She wanted to have a hand in everything. She was driving the family and the servants mad with her zeal. Now and then they couldn’t help wishing that she would get sick again, so that she would have to lie still in her bed.

But the trouble was that Cecilie had never accepted that she no longer had so much of a say in things. More than fifty years ago, she had arrived at Gabrielshus as the young bride of Alexander Paladin in an extremely strange marriage. Here she had fought for Alexander’s life along with young Tarjei and the old, loyal servant, Wilhelmsen. Now they had all passed away. Jessica, Tancred’s wife, was now Lady of Gabrielshus and Cecilie didn’t want to interfere with her daughter-in-law, whom she was very fond of. But she couldn’t help it because that was her nature and an old habit of hers. The years of happiness and tragedy hadn’t changed Cecilie. She was the same as she had always been.

Irmelin was still there, with her same quiet and gentle demeanour. Cecilie couldn’t help noticing how Irmelin and Dominic were suffering. She had always been very understanding of young people and took Irmelin and Tarjei’s grandchild, Dominic, out into Gabrielhus’ magnificent rose garden.

“Finally, your misfortune has reached my ears. Nobody tells me anything nowadays. They’re scared that I’ll interfere and they have every reason to. Dominic, you mustn’t marry my grandchild, Villemo. She holds a very special place in my heart since I’m able to understand her thoughts. She and I are very much alike. And you, Irmelin, can’t have Niklas from Linden Avenue. You’re all of the Ice People and thus carry the evil legacy. It’s cruel because you’re so well suited for one another, both couples! And now we’re eagerly awaiting the arrival of the two others from Norway. The long separation hasn’t helped at all, I suppose?”

“No, Aunt Cecilie. Not at all,” Irmelin answered, who was taller than even Cecilie. But she seemed slight when she stood next to Dominic.

“We probably shouldn’t have written to each other,” Dominic said pensively. “Because, at times, letters can become explosive. But we were allowed to write and those letters have been rays of comfort during this difficult time.”

“I agree,” Irmelin said. “You’re right, Dominic. Letters can be dangerous. They can keep the fire burning, create illusions, bring two people closer to one another than if they were in the same room.”

“That’s true,” Cecilie answered. “So what do you intend to do now?”

“I haven’t thought beyond the moment when I’ll see Villemo once more. I’ve yearned to see her again for more than eighteen months now,” Dominic said as he picked roses for the old lady.

“And I haven’t seen Niklas for three years,” Irmelin said. “I don’t dare imagine anything beyond just seeing him, hearing his voice, touching his skin. But I know my place, Aunt Cecilie, we won’t violate the pledge which we’ve given our parents.”

“We all know that. But just be careful with Villemo, Dominic. She’s the wildest of you all and she’d be only too happy to be carried away by her feelings.”

“Not any longer, it would seem,” he said thoughtfully. “Her parents are very pleased with her and very surprised at her complacency.”

“Yes, I’ve heard my daughter, Gabriella, mention it. But still waters run deep, so they say. This is something that concerns all four of you: try not to be alone with your beloved ones and don’t expose yourselves to temptation. The Ice People’s legacy shouldn’t be taken lightly! Thank you very much for the gorgeous roses, Dominic. You have fine taste and have managed to pick the very best, which I intend to put on the wedding table.”

She glanced thoughtfully at the two young people as they walked away. How she understood their dilemma! Her thoughts went back to the time in a shed by the churchyard back home at Graastensholm. How easily had she given in to temptation? With a young priest and just because he resembled Alexander, whom she wasn’t allowed to marry.

And now these young people, with their fervent love, were to meet again after a long time. Cecilie shuddered. It was as if Tengel the Evil’s shadow glided past her.

None of them realised that the Danish navy had left the Sound in order to enter the Baltic Sea and meet the Swedes there. The Ice People were convinced that they would be allowed to celebrate the wedding in peace and that everyone would return safely afterwards. There was no reason to hurry – Sweden and Denmark rattled the sabre all the time, it was nothing new.

And so the vast Norwegian branch of the clan arrived. Cecilie was the first to catch sight of them. She had sat by the window all day, keeping a look-out.

“There they are! They’ve arrived!” she shouted, excited and proud at being the first one to bring the happy news.

Everyone rushed out to meet the carriages. Servants from Gabrielshus had already waited quite some time in Copenhagen to welcome the Norwegians and escort them.

Villemo waited and was the last one to leave the carriage. She bent her head, not daring to look up, believing that she couldn’t face up to the emotional pressure. She felt as though she were in a trance and everything seemed hazy before her eyes, preventing her from seeing clearly, let alone thinking clearly.

Grandma Cecilie took her in her arms and Villemo was surprised at how little and frail her grandmother had become, she who had always been so tall with such a straight posture. But then again, Villemo was bound to have grown a bit since the last time they met.

Here was Irmelin ... While they embraced one another, Villemo gazed at the lush rose garden across Irmelin’s shoulder. Everything was diffuse, as in a silver mirror. How nice it was to meet her childhood friend again.

My God, was that really Tristan? That tall, young adolescent with the sad eyes? What had happened to his pimples and his insecurity?

And there was Lene. It’s certainly been a long time.

“Warmest congratulations, Lene. I look forward to meeting your Örjan.”

She could laugh and joke! Her voice was okay and her lips moved. Villemo was quite surprised at herself.

Aunt Jessica. Just as sweet and warm as always, but her hair was turning grey. Members of the clan said that this was because she was concerned about Tristan. But nobody was really able to explain the exact reason for her worries.

Apparently Aunt Jessica was saying something to her: “You’re quite grown up, Villemo and very pretty. And you’ve let your hair grow long again!”

Uncle Tancred – jocular as always. “Gabriella! Who does this Paladin take after? Your daughter is so beautiful. She also appears to be intelligent – when she doesn’t open her mouth, that is!”

“Don’t listen to him, Villemo,” Gabriella laughed. “He always teases when he’s moved!”

Villemo smiled but she was tense with excitement.

‘I know you’re here, Dominic. I can see your tall, dark shadow from the corner of my eye. But I dare not look. Not yet.’

A difficult meeting: Dominic’s parents. A deep curtsy from Aunt Anette. I’m half Paladin, but she’s de Saint Colombe through and through. From Loupiac in Béarn.

‘I’ve always felt slightly scared of Aunt Anette. She always looks slightly uptight. Mum says I shouldn’t think about that, it’s only because Aunt Anette is so unsure of herself and she’s afraid of doing something wrong. Mum says that she’s actually very nice. Only I don’t think she likes me. She knows. She knows that Dominic has asked for my hand in marriage, which is why she’s scared of me. Paladin is prestigious, but what about Kalebsdatter Elistrand? She’s bound to be the only one in the family that looks down on Kaleb because of his humble extraction. My Dad, who happens to be the finest man in the whole world! ... After Dominic, of course. No, I refuse to get angry.

Uncle Mikael. The dreamer. I feel a warm sensation in my heart. Uncle Mikael is so sweet, so lost in this world. They are just so incompatible, those two. However, I saw her take his hand secretly and squeeze it just a moment ago. As if to gather her strength to meet the entire clan. Maybe it’s true what Mum says – that Aunt Anette’s mother ruined her when she was a child? It’s a shame if so.’

All of these continuous thoughts just to postpone the big moment. Villemo sent Anette a beaming smile across Mikael’s shoulder and received a thin, prim and anxious smile in return.

Poor Uncle Mikael. He gave me an extra tight hug. He, too, knows everything but he understands my pain. Now there’s only one left ...

His deep voice. “Hello, Villemo. So nice to see you again.”

‘Be strong Villemo! You’ll get some satisfaction when you bid him farewell. Until then you must obey your parents.’

“Hello, Dominic. You’ve grown so much!”

At last she can lift her head. He laughs. They all laugh. This was the meeting which everyone had dreaded.

‘I’ve struck the right note. Everyone’s relieved. I’m the only one to feel Dominic’s lingering handshake. We’re the only ones who see the yearning and the warmth in each others glance. All the others embraced me. Dominic didn’t do so. Thank you for not doing so, my friend. We both know that we wouldn’t be able to handle it. Nothing has changed. Maybe it’s wrong to think like this but ... Thank goodness for that!

My God, I don’t remember him being so charming though! That, of course, has a lot to do with my own emotions, but I felt a pang of unbearable yearning in my heart. It was a physical pain. I was drawn to him and was just about to allow myself to fall into his arms.

Actually, I’ve never been allowed to rest in his arms – only once many years ago on the mountain at Romerike, but that was only because I was no longer able to stand on my feet.

All these wise, sensible people who know so much about the Ice People’s evil legacy have managed to keep us apart.What do they know of feverish passion running in a person’s blood? A fever due to an intense yearning to be close to the one you love?

Now Dominic has let go of my hand, something he should have done much sooner but we both hesitated. I must move away from him now. Turn around and say something mundane. Please, body, obey me! All senses: obey me!’

A swift change of topic. “Oh, Lene, is this your fiancé over there?”

Lene radiated like the sun. She was energetic, self-composed and very intelligent. Good to have as a friend, straightforward and reliable. Not an overpowering beauty, but certainly charming.

“Yes, this is Örjan,” she smiled. “Do come and meet him, and here are his parents.”

Örjan Stege was not at all like Villemo had imagined. He wasn’t particularly good looking, he was somewhat nondescript actually. But she knew that love had nothing to do with appearance. Love looks for something indefinable, something which Lene had clearly encountered with Örjan. Something that suited her specifically and which she found irresistibly attractive. It could be a small thing, an inner quality, a liking or attraction between just these two, which nobody else could see.

Villemo had certainly learned a lot when at the age of seventeen she fell head over heels in love with Eldar Black Forest’s sensuous good looks.

In spite of her first encounter with Lene’s future husband, she could see how you could come to like this man, even if he appeared slightly boring. He inspired confidence in people, somebody you could trust and feel safe with. Once again, Villemo marvelled at how often people who looked alike sought one another. As a matter of fact, Lene and Örjan resembled each other both in terms of appearance and personality. They seemed very happy together.Villemo felt a tug at her heart and she sought Dominic’s gaze, which was easy. While the others cackled and talked so that it was impossible to hear anything, Villemo and Dominic showed their feelings for each other unconditionally.

The letters, which had become increasingly passionate, had only strengthened what should have died out quietly. A discreet cough from Irmelin made them wake up. But defiance arose once more in Villemo.

‘I must have him. Not now. I promised my parents just as he promised his parents. For the time being, the only thing I have to look forward to is the big hug I’ll give him when we say goodbye. In everybody’s presence I’ll embrace him and hold him close for a short second and give him all my love. That is all I have to look forward to. I can’t think further into the future.’

Despite the omen of war, the wedding was lavish and lasted for three days. Three happy days at Gabrielshus where everybody put aside their worries and simply enjoyed being together with the rest of the clan.

But there were four who couldn’t ignore their problems because they had to face them all the time. Although they tried to avoid each other, each of the four young people were painfully aware that the object of their hopeless dreams lived under the same roof as they themselves did, and that it was merely a question of time before one of them would give up the struggle to respect the ban.

On the second day of the wedding, 1 June, the Danish and Swedish navy met at the Sound in a crushing battle at sea. Crushing for the Swedes, that is. They lost 11 ships, including the flagship “Stora Kronan,” with 130 cannons. 4,200 men perished. Very little was left of the proud Swedish fleet, so the decisive battle would have to be fought on land, that is to say, in Scania.

However, it took a while before this news reached Denmark. The wedding celebrations at Gabrielshus continued because nobody wanted to leave now that the clan was finally gathered. The Ice People had always had a particularly deep sense of kinship, which meant that any member who got separated from the rest of the clan felt helpless and abandoned. Mikael was probably the one who had felt this the most.

Only the Steges left and went back home to Scania with the young bride. Lene left her childhood home for good, heading towards the old Danish province, which had now become enemy territory.

They had all noticed and feared a new despair in Irmelin. So they kept an eye on Niklas who seemed to be brewing over something in his mind. Most of all, Andreas and Eli wanted to return with the boy and Hilde was all worked up because it wasn’t possible to travel back with Irmelin at that point.

This was why nobody took particular notice of Villemo and Dominic. One day the inevitable occurred. They met alone on the roof of Gabrielshus, inside the parapet, which was a relic from the time when the farm was forced to defend itself from attacking enemies.

Their meeting wasn’t deliberate. In fact, they had been very careful to avoid each other. But now their flight had led them in the same direction. A light summer breeze whistled between the stones of the parapet. Otherwise not a sound could be heard.