Broken Wish Page 5

  Papa was silent as her feet continued pacing.

  “The year our corn grew twice as tall as you,” Mama went on, “you bought the horses for next to nothing, and then a blight killed our apple trees. The week Rayner was born, we had an enormous wheat harvest, and then all the bread I baked went bad within three hours. Every time something good happens, I hold my breath, wondering what terrible occurrence will come next.”

  “I don’t deny there has been a strange pattern, my dear, but it could be a coincidence.”

  “No. This…this curse is because of me. And it’s my fault Elva is the way she is, not Mathilda’s or anyone else’s.” There was a long pause. “I need to go find Mathilda. Perhaps she won’t be too angry to listen.”

  “No. Absolutely not.”

  “But she’s our chance to make Elva normal,” Mama pleaded. “Even if she can’t stop the rest of it, maybe she can make Elva just like any other little girl. We know she hasn’t gone far, not with the signs up all over town warning people to stay away from the ‘witch of the North Woods.’”

  Elva clutched a fold of her nightdress, frozen where she stood. A trickle of fear crept like a spider down her back. Were Mama and Papa going to send her to a witch?

  “You’re not thinking clearly,” Papa said. “You cut ties with her long ago, and no one would make the connection now. What if someone sees you visit her? After all these years, after how careful we’ve been to build up our respectability…”

  “What if someone were to find out about Elva? All it takes is one evil gossip.” Mama’s dress rustled as she peered nervously into the other room at their guests. “I’m frightened, Oskar. It’s so easy for someone to be accused of being a witch. Girls and women who are pretty, who are rich yet unmarried, who are passing through town, who hum songs the church doesn’t like.”

  “Agnes, calm yourself. We won’t let anything happen to Elva.”

  “I won’t look for Mathilda if it upsets you, but at least promise me that if her path and mine should cross, you will support me in seeking her help. I don’t want Elva to be different.”

  Papa sighed heavily. “I promise that we can ask her to make Elva normal if the opportunity arises, but that is all. You promised me you would end all association with her long ago, and I know you don’t want our reputation sullied any more than I do. Come, we’ve been away too long. Let’s get back to our guests.”

  Within moments, the grown-ups were all talking and laughing again, and Elva went slowly back to her room. It wasn’t right, Mama had said. It wasn’t normal for Elva to see things happening before they did. And now people might think she was a witch like that lady her parents mentioned, and no one would want to play with her or come to her house.

  Elva’s chin quivered. She had upset Mama and Papa. She didn’t want to look at water ever again. She would try to close her eyes whenever she took a drink or washed her face or splashed in the rain with her brothers. That way, she wouldn’t worry her parents, they wouldn’t have to send her to the witch, and no one else would know she wasn’t normal.

  After all, she had promised Mama.

  And as Mama always said, a promise was a promise.

  Elva had never seen anything as pretty as the Bauers’ barn decorated for the Easter party. Earlier that day, after church, Papa, Rayner, and Cay had gone over with the other men to clear the space for dancing. They had pushed the heavy barrels, firewood, and hay into the corners and dragged in tables and benches for the food. And then Frau Bauer and her three daughters had covered every surface with jars of wildflowers and tiny twinkling candles. As soon as the sun went down and the musicians began to play, the barn looked almost magical.

  “Come on, Elva! Let’s see if you can keep up!” cried Peter Bauer, as the fiddle sang over the harmonica, horn, and flute. He took Elva’s hand and spun her into the crowd of men keeping rhythm with their feet and women twirling their colorful skirts to the melody.

  Elva saw Mama and Papa sitting with the Bauers, all smiling broadly as they watched her and Peter dancing, and she tossed her head. Whatever their parents hoped, she and Peter thought of each other as siblings and would never marry. Besides, Elva thought, I’m only sixteen. And there are so many other handsome young men to dance with!

  As soon as the song ended, Karl Bergmann asked her to dance. And then his older brother, Kurt, back from university and oh, so sophisticated, claimed the next set. Then Stefan gave her his hand, and after him came Anton and Daniel and Lukas and Georg.

  She loved the way they watched her dance, her new blue-and-cream dress swirling around her. But she hadn’t worn it for them, and she hadn’t pinned starflowers all over her long, bright gold hair for them, either. It was for someone else, and he wasn’t even here….

  “Elva Heinrich,” said Freida Bauer, when Elva finally sat down to catch her breath, “do you plan to keep all of the men to yourself tonight? I would hate you if you weren’t so sweet.”

  Elva laughed. “And if I weren’t your closest friend.”

  Freida reached over and carefully repinned one of the tiny white flowers in Elva’s hair. “I see we’re wearing Mama’s best cream ribbons tonight. For whom, I wonder, hmm?”

  “Hush!” Elva stole a glance at her parents, who were safely out of earshot. “It was all for nothing. I haven’t even seen him all night.”

  “He is a farmhand. Maybe he’s still out in the fields, working,” Freida suggested. “Anyway, what do you want with Willem when all of these other good-looking young men have eyes only for you? Don’t pretend to be modest. You’re the prettiest girl here, and your papa has a thriving farm. All of the gossips are placing bets on who catches you.”

  “What about you?” Elva poked her lightly in the ribs. “This is your papa’s party, and you’re every bit as pretty. Karl Bergmann looked at you the whole time he danced with me.”

  “Liar!” Freida squealed, looking delighted.

  “And here comes the sugar bread,” Elva said slyly. Frau Steiner and Frau Bauer were carrying in a platter with a gigantic golden-brown loaf. “I hope your Karl gets the copper ring.”

  They put their arms around each other’s waists and giggled. They weren’t the only two to do so. All around the barn, every unmarried girl over fifteen blushed and whispered to friends and looked at one or two—or even three—prospective young men as the sugar bread arrived.

  The special sugar bread made an appearance every Easter, no matter who hosted the barn dance. The women of the village all contributed eggs, sugar, flour, and butter to the making of the dough, and then the hostess would slip a little copper ring inside before she baked it. A large slice would be given to every unmarried young man at the party, and whoever found the ring won the right to kiss the girl of his choice.

  “Silence, please!” Herr Bauer clapped his hands for attention. He had the same rosy cheeks and dark hair as his daughter, Freida, and his eyes shone like hers as his wife and a few other women began cutting into the bread. “Will all of the unmarried men please step forth?”

  There was laughter, teasing, and some shoving as the young men gathered before their host. One by one, they accepted a slice of the sugar bread from Frau Bauer, and an air of tense anticipation hung over the room as they began eating.

  Stefan, who stood not far from Elva, had the nerve to wink at her as he bit into his bread. She tried to give him her loftiest expression but collapsed into giggles when she met Freida’s eyes. Stefan was bold and daring and handsome, and nothing scared him—last year he had nearly broken his neck trying to ride his father’s most aggressive stallion. Every girl in Hanau had scratched her initials with his into the loving tree, the oak by the river Main that had sheltered generations of lovers, and Elva was sure he would definitely know how to kiss.

  The only problem was, she had been hoping to save her first kiss for someone else—someone who, it seemed, still had yet to arrive.

  The barn was silent…and then…

  “Ha!” A big hand popped into the a
ir—a hand that was attached to a very nice arm, tawny and thick with muscle. It waved a shiny copper ring for Herr and Frau Bauer to see, and the room exploded into piercing whistles and cheers. The man’s back was turned to Elva, and through the crowd of hopefuls she could see only a gray work shirt stretched over broad shoulders. When the other young men moved away good-naturedly, leaving him alone in the middle of the room, she recognized the red-brown hair and the line of his square jaw. He turned in a slow circle, studying the guests, and his dark eyes gleamed with triumph when he found her. Elva’s heart leaped.

  “Willem Roth,” Herr Bauer said, clapping him on the back. He faced the guests with the air of an auctioneer. “A worthy, honest, and hardworking young man. Eighteen years of age and a farmhand in my employ. Ladies, do I hear any starting bids?”

  The barn roared with laughter and Willem’s face turned pink, but he did not take his eyes from Elva. She didn’t realize she had seized Freida’s hand and was squeezing it with all her might until Freida gave a squeak.

  “Well, Willem, you’ve found the copper ring and earned a kiss. Who will it be from?”

  “Elva Heinrich,” the young man said, his voice ringing throughout the barn.

  People began clapping and hooting, and a few of the other girls murmured enviously as Elva, face hot, rose to her feet. She had dreamed of this moment since first meeting Willem, but now that it was here, she didn’t know if she wanted it to happen in front of everyone in Hanau. In front of her parents. But Mama and Papa didn’t seem bothered, and both were smiling.

  It’s just a kiss, she told herself, as her feet carried her across the room. A silly tradition.

  Yet when Elva looked into Willem’s kind eyes, everything faded away. The Bauers’ barn, her parents, and the guests seemed to disappear, and all that was left was the two of them. She stood shyly before him, keeping an arm’s length between them. He hadn’t seemed quite so tall and imposing whenever they had chatted on the riverbank. She had to tip her head back to look at him, and the corners of his eyes crinkled at her when he saw the white starflowers, his favorite, in her hair.

  “Hello,” he whispered.

  “Hello,” Elva whispered back.

  He reached out and took her right hand, and it was all she could do not to gasp at the touch of his skin. His hand was warm and callused as it slipped the copper ring onto her finger. Her heart thundered as he pulled her gently to him. They were closer than they had ever been before. The heat and the solidness of him made Elva feel giddy and faint. He smelled like hay and fresh air and sunshine. His eyes shone as he lowered his face a few inches above hers.

  “May I kiss you?” he asked softly, for her ears alone.

  “Yes, you may.” Elva couldn’t help laughing at his lovely, old-fashioned manners, and as she beamed up at him, he caught her mouth with his. As rough as his hands were with work, his lips were as soft as silk and tasted of the sugar bread he had just eaten.

  And despite the whole town watching and her desire to show him she was self-possessed and mature, both of her traitorous knees buckled beneath her at once. She would have collapsed right there at his feet if his arm hadn’t gone quickly around her waist.

  Elva hid her face against his chest as the entire room erupted with laughter. She felt the deep rumble of Willem chuckling, too, as he kept his arm tightly around her.

  “Now that’s a kiss!” someone yelled.

  “Come on, strike up a tune for Willem and Elva! We’ll see if they dance as well as they kiss!” Herr Bauer cried, and the musicians began playing a lively song.

  Elva relished the feeling of being in Willem’s arms as he twirled her around. Other couples soon joined them, shielding them in their own little world. “I thought you weren’t going to come tonight,” she told him, trying to keep her gaze on his eyes. Her knees had already betrayed her; if she kept looking at his mouth, she didn’t know what her lips might do.

  “How could I not come, knowing you’d be here? I’d swim across the river if I had to.” Willem lowered his lips to her ear, and the feel of his breath on her neck sent a delicious tingle down her spine. “Walk down to the water with me. I’ve a mind to practice that kiss again.”

  Her heart began to race again at once. “Now?” she asked, giggling.

  “No time like the present,” he said with a devilish wink, dancing her to the barn door.

  They pushed through the crowd of dancers and slipped into the cool evening air. Elva hoped her parents hadn’t noticed her leaving with Willem. A moonlight stroll on the night of the party was as much a tradition as sugar bread, judging by how many young couples were shyly holding hands and talking—or not talking much at all—in the shadows of trees, but Elva knew Mama and Papa wouldn’t understand. They wanted her to have a chaperone at all times, even if it was just one of her brothers. She stifled a laugh, imagining Rayner’s disgust if she asked him to join her and Willem on their romantic walk. Cay, the sweeter of the two boys, might agree more readily and perhaps even move apart to give her privacy.

  “Are you cold?” Willem gazed at her, and all thoughts of her family faded at once. She loved the crinkles at the corners of his eyes and the slow curve of his smile, like a secret meant only for her. His arm brushed hers, solid and warm. “I can go back and get a shawl for you.”

  “I’m all right, thank you,” she said, blushing when his eyes flickered to her lips. Her heart gave a tug of anticipation, wondering when he would kiss her again. She had never seen him at night, and never alone—they had always met in the sunshine with Rayner or Cay or Freida lingering nearby. In the shadows, Willem’s face looked elegant and grown-up, far from the boy who had laughed and joked with her on the riverbank.

  A starflower slipped from her hair as they walked, and he caught it before it could tumble to the ground. “I’ve loved these since I first saw them,” he said, touching the fragile white petals. “It’s because they only grow in Hanau, which reminds me of how my father always wanted to move here before he died.” He glanced sideways at her. “When I saw these in your hair the first time we met, it felt like fate. The other farmhands always tease me for taking my lunch hour alone, but that day, I’m glad I did.”

  Elva’s breath hitched when he gave her his warm, slow smile again. “It’s been a whole year since we met,” she said playfully. “Do you still remember which tree it was?”

  They had reached the river at the end of the rough stone path. The water gleamed with the stars and the spring moon, like a dark blue ribbon embroidered with constellations. All along the riverbank, great oak trees stretched their branches toward the sky and one another, creating a soft canopy of shadows. Elva saw the famous loving tree about a hundred yards to the left, tucked in a blanket of wildflowers, but Willem moved confidently to the graceful willow nearest them.

  “I was in this tree, dreaming. When I opened my eyes, you were sitting by the trunk.”

  “Freida was there, too,” she pointed out.

  “I didn’t see anyone but you. You wore a blue-and-white dress like that one, with your hair all over your shoulders like sunshine. I thought I had pulled you right out of my dreams.”

  Elva ducked her head shyly. She remembered everything about that bright April afternoon: the warm tree at her back, the wildflower garlands she had woven, and the handsome farmhand who had jumped down from the branches to talk to her. Other young men had never dared speak to her without her father’s permission, but this one had been new to Hanau and hadn’t known any better, and he had been funny and charming and kind.

  “I couldn’t stop looking at you,” Willem said softly, “just like I can’t stop looking at you now. Elva…”

  She couldn’t remember crossing the short distance between them. But in a split second, the whole universe became Willem’s arms wrapped tightly around her and his gentle lips moving on hers. She supposed she had flung herself at him and ought to be embarrassed, but it was dark and the moon was shining and a fragrant spring wind blew, and he didn’t se
em to mind one bit. They gasped for breath through their noses, not wanting to break the kiss. It might have lasted for a few minutes or an eternity, for all she knew.

  Finally, Willem pulled away. “I’ve wanted to do that for a whole year.”

  “Me too,” Elva confessed, thrilling at his soft laugh. “I’m glad you came to Hanau.”

  “It was the first place I thought to look for work when my parents passed away. I didn’t know I’d find you, too.” Willem hugged her close to him and leaned back against the trunk of the sheltering willow.

  Elva listened to the comforting thump of his heart. “Tell me about your parents.”

  “Papa was a blacksmith. A hardworking one, but all of our money went toward Mama’s medicine. She was sick for a long time, and when she died, Papa seemed to forget how to live.”

  “He must have loved her very much.”

  “More than anything. When he died, too, I told myself I would fight to have a good life. I would never starve or go cold or see a loved one suffer without medicine again. Herr Bauer says I work harder than any of his farmhands, and it’s because I know what it is to be hungry.”

  “I think that makes you brave, Willem Roth,” Elva told him, her heart swelling with pity and admiration. “And I think your mama and papa would be proud of you.”

  He bent to kiss her again, and as he did so, they heard a rustling noise and turned to see a piece of paper nailed to the trunk of the tree. It was a notice for yet another missing child, the latest of several who had been disappearing from Hanau and the surrounding towns for years.

  “This one’s only ten. One year younger than Cay,” Elva said sadly. “His poor parents.”

  “Do you know the family?”

  She shook her head. “They must live on the other side of the river. Mama and Papa had a cottage there once when I was just a baby.” She studied the drawing of the boy, with his big eyes and button nose. “It says this boy was last seen near the North Woods.”