I felt like my legs might give out if I listened to Ruediger’s voice any longer—it was like a feather tickling my ear. It was the type of voice that made women swoon and men envious. The voice of masculinity itself.

I went ahead and led him inside, but there wasn’t really anywhere to entertain him. In the end, I showed him to a seat at the kitchen table. His eyes widened a bit when he realized he’d been led into a kitchen rather than a drawing room, but he didn’t say anything.

“I live with my nephew, but he’s sick,” I said. “Do you mind if I give him some medicine before we talk?”

“Not at all. Please do,” he graciously assented.

Not that I’d expected him to mind, of course. I took the medicine and a spoonful of honey upstairs.

“Luca?” I called.

He turned his feverish head toward the sound of the door opening and peered at me through half-shut, bloodshot eyes.

Poor thing. This would be the last time he had to suffer in poverty. Soon he’d be off to Winterwald. I swallowed my regrets at what could’ve been and smiled.

“There you are. Let’s have some medicine.”

Luca scrunched his face at the bitter taste, but he swallowed it down.

“Oh, my tough little guy. Good job!” I said.

“What’s all the fuss for? I’m not a little kid.”

Oh, Luca. Of course, you are. I smiled widely instead of responding and placed the spoon of honey between his scrunched-up lips. “Let’s have some pot-au-feu for supper.”

“Who’s gonna pay for it?” he asked.

“I told you not to worry about money,” I scolded playfully.

Judith must’ve really laid into him. Every other word out of his mouth was money. I let out a hollow laugh as I picked up the medicine dish and stood to leave, but when I stood up, his gaze trembled.

“Are you going out?” he asked.

It was clear he wanted me to sit with him a little longer—a stark change from the little boy who’d told me to go to the May Festival if I wanted the night before, but there wasn’t anything wrong with that. Kids are supposed to pout a little sometimes. Luca bottled things up too much. It was a shame I couldn’t stay with him longer. I’d have loved to.

“I’m not going out, but we have a guest,” I said.

“A man?”

“That’s right. How did you know?”

“I heard him outside,” Luca said.

“Was it loud?”

“No. He wanted to see you?” he asked.

Not me, you. He’s your uncle. I swallowed the words before they slipped from my mouth. “N-no. I don’t think he’s here to see me. I still have to hear what he has to say... But you need to get some more rest.”

I pulled the blankets up over Luca’s shoulders and patted him on the chest, then turned to leave the room again. As I pulled the door shut—trying to make sure none of my conversation with Ruediger slipped through the crack between the door and the frame—I caught a glimpse of a strange look on Luca’s face.

It was like he was uncomfortable with something, but I couldn’t think of any reason for it, so I let it go.

* * *

Ruediger was sitting to attention with his back straight in the chair, exactly as I’d left him.

“Would you like some tea?” I asked.

“It would be much appreciated.”

I lifted the tea kettle onto the furnace and made a mental list of things to be careful about while the water boiled. First, I had to ensure it didn’t seem like I was pawning Luca off on Ruediger. Second, I couldn’t let anything I know from the novel slip.

Ruediger would do everything in his power to take Luca with him, so I knew I didn’t have to worry about much else. Since the conclusion was already set, it was easy to be decisive.

Once the kettle began to whistle, I took it off of the furnace, poured my guest a cup, and placed it in front of him.

“It’s just a wildflower tea from petals I picked and dried. I’m afraid it won’t be to your taste, but it’s all we have,” I said worriedly.

“It’s very fragrant,” he said.

He was kind, but the crease in his brow suggested I’d made it too bitter. Another thing I had in common with Judith: Neither of us could make a decent cup of tea.

I sat down across from him and continued the conversation we’d been having outside. “As you said, this is the Maibaum house. But I’ve never heard of any Jonas. I can’t imagine our family, all the way out here, has any connection to the House of Winterwald.”

“But you must. Didn’t someone here write a letter to Jonas around five years ago? Mentioning an illegitimate son?” he said.

So that was it. Lalisa wrote Jonas a letter. It must’ve been shortly before she died from the plague. Neither Judith nor I had any memory of a letter. In the novel, it was only important that Jonas be aware of his illegitimate child—it didn’t matter how.

“If someone sent a letter five years ago, it seems a bit late to be responding” I countered.

“I make no excuse,” he said, bowing his head solemnly in apology. “Jonas is my half-brother. He hid the child from the family. He recently fell from his horse and passed away. The letter and the child’s existence were discovered in settling his estate. That’s what brings me here.”

“Oh, I’m sorry for your loss,” I said.

Jonas, you deadbeat. The novel always did describe him as a scoundrel. The world was probably better off without him, but I couldn’t just say that to his younger brother. Having briefly paid my respects, I fretted over how to appear appropriately shocked by the whole situation, but Ruediger seemed to find it awkward enough himself that he didn’t notice my reaction. That was a relief.

“The only thing I could glean from the letter was the surname Maibaum, so it took me some time to find you. I’m sorry,” he said.

“No need to be sorry. You did what you could, given your brother’s death,” I responded, easing the tension.

Honestly, I was in love with Ruediger. The character, I mean. I liked him every bit as much as I liked Luca. The hero and the devoted mentor who comes to his aid. It would be hard not to like them. And they were so good-looking, too. It was only natural to be infatuated by them.

Encouraged by my accommodating response, Luca’s handsome future mentor glanced up at the second floor. “It seems the child upstairs is my brother’s son.”

“It seems so.”

“His name?”

“Luca. His name is Luca.”

“Luca,” he repeated under his breath. It must be a surge of emotions to realize the nephew you didn’t know you had is right upstairs. Especially for Ruediger because he didn’t believe in love. As a man who didn’t want love or marriage or children, there was little chance of him ever having a child of his own. He must’ve thought that Luca was all the more special because of that. The novel describes him as treating Luca like his own son.

On the other hand, when he looks that good, it’s kind of an insult to humanity for him not to believe in love. Those genes would be a blessing to future generations. I sighed, thinking about what a shame it was that he felt this way.

While I was questioning the imperatives of evolution, Ruediger seemed to have misread my serious face. “I’m sorry to ask, miss, but what relation are you to Luca?” he said.

“I’m his aunt,” I exclaimed urgently. I thought I saw a hint of relief cross his face.

He continued in a more relaxed voice. “And Luca’s mother?”

“She passed away from the plague five years ago,” I answered.

His face darkened again and he lowered his blue-gray gaze. For a moment, tears shimmered like a morning fog, but when he looked back up, his stare was as firm as a stone wall. He pursed his lips and made the sign of the cross over his chest, a grave expression on his face.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” he intoned. He looked so reverent that I almost thought a halo of light might appear around his head. “I can’t apologize enough for Jonas’ misdeeds. He was so utterly irresponsible. I’m ashamed on behalf of the House of Winterwald.”

“Well, there’s one in every family,” I said. And among the Maibaums, it was Judith. But since she wasn’t me and I wasn’t her, I didn’t give it a second thought.

Nor did it occur to Ruediger that the woman sitting across from him might be exactly that type of person, so he nodded his head in agreement. “Jonas was unmarried. Luca is his only child. Since my mother and father learned of Luca’s existence, they’ve been waiting anxiously to meet him,” he said, then paused. He looked like he was preparing to say something shameless.

My heart pounded in my chest with expectation.

His lips shifted, then he took a deep breath of determination. He squeezed his fist on the table. After a few silent moments, he finally spoke.

“I know the discourtesy I do by asking such a thing of the woman who raised him, but please permit me to take Luca to Winterwald.”