The Other Einstein(32)

What had I done to make her dislike me? Was it that I wasn’t Jewish? Albert had described his upbringing as largely secular, so I doubted that was the sole reason. Was it that I was a university student and not a more traditional young woman, readying herself for marriage? That couldn’t be the case; Albert’s parents planned for Maja to receive a university education as well. Perhaps she simply loathed me for being eastern European.

I played with a few responses to her comments, but it occurred to me that nothing I could say would appease her. She was predetermined to dislike me. So I settled on the truth. “If you mean that I am serious about my studies, Mrs. Einstein, that is indeed true.”

Albert, finally realizing that our exchange was bordering on disastrous, intervened. He offered, “Miss Mari? keeps me on track, Mama.”

When his mother failed to take his pretty bait, Albert changed the subject altogether to Aarau and the Winterlers. While Albert, his mother, and sister gossiped, Mr. Einstein gestured for me to sit down and offered to pour me tea. As we sipped from our steaming cups and pretended to listen to the others, his natural cheerfulness slipped through his wife’s barricade, and we shared a few pleasant words. But Mrs. Einstein was quick to exact a penance upon him for his kindness with a scathing look.

I tried not to think about this unpleasant exchange with Albert’s mother as I flipped over the letter to search for its author’s name. At first, I felt relief. The author wasn’t his mother. But then I realized that it wasn’t Maja either. It was someone named Julia Niggli.

Your invitation to help you idle away the hours is most enticing. I should like to visit you in Mettmenstetten if you plan on being there with your family in late August. Please send word if you do.

Affectionate greetings,

Julia Niggli

As I turned the page over to read the front, Albert asked, “What brilliant theory of Drude’s has you so captivated?”

“It isn’t Drude that has me captivated, Albert.”

“No?”

“No. It’s Julia Niggli.”

He said nothing, but his cheeks flamed.

I shoved the letter into his hand. “I’m quite familiar with how you idle away the hours, and I shudder to think of you sharing them with Julia Niggli, whoever she is. How do you explain this?”

Glancing over the front of the page, he handed me back the letter. “Look on the front, Dollie. What date do you see there?”

“August 3, 1899.” I shook my head, sickened at the date. “Around the same time that you were writing me notes from Aarau, while I was at the Spire in Ka?.” I remembered well those notes from Albert. In fact, I had even memorized some of them. Last summer, I’d been trapped in the Spire while scarlet fever plagued the countryside, and Albert’s love letters had been my solace.

“Exactly. I was in Aarau and Mettmenstetten last summer with my family who, you know well, were very aware of my relationship with you. My mother and my sister, Maja, even wrote notes to you in the postscript of my letters, for heaven’s sake. Miss Niggli was a family friend with whom I played violin a few times. Nothing more.”

His explanation was credible, but my suspicions were not fully allayed. “Why did you continue to correspond?”

“Because she was searching for a governess position, and my aunt was looking for a governess. I placed them in contact.”

I suddenly felt ridiculous. Why would I doubt my Johnnie? He had never shown me anything but devotion, even when I pushed him away for so long. My true concerns about him had nothing to do with his love for me, only his obstinacy with Weber and his future employment prospects. I started to apologize when he interrupted me.

“No, Dollie. You have nothing to be sorry for. I would act the same if I found a note from another gentleman in your textbook. Jealousy is a hard, unpredictable business, even if you trust your beloved implicitly. Please know that last summer, spent in the philistine, empty world of my family and their vapid friends, like Miss Niggli, made my appreciation for you grow.”

“You swear?”

“Yes, Dollie.”

“Even when your parents urge you to leave your dark foreigner and find a more suitable girl?” Once Albert’s mother realized that our relationship was not fleeting and she met me this past fall, the kind but very distant greetings I’d received in her letters last summer had turned into strident admonitions about Albert settling on a more “appropriate” partner this winter. His mother’s efforts created a knot in my stomach that hadn’t untangled. Only Maja still sent salutations in the letters Albert wrote me when we were apart. “Perhaps one like this Julia Niggli?”

“Dollie, my parents never pushed Miss Niggli or any other girl on me, no matter their misgivings about your bookish ways. They know better. They know I love only you.”

I smiled at him for a long moment. By the time I broke our gaze, I was looking into the indignant face of Mrs. Engelbrecht.

“Ah, Miss Mari?. I should have known you were ensconced in the parlor with Mr. Einstein. It explains why you did not respond to the dinner bell.” I had rarely seen her so angry. But then, I’d utterly upended her order. “Misses Dra?i? and Bota await.”

“My apologies, Mrs. Engelbrecht. I will head to the dining room directly.” I curtsied, nodded to Albert, and hurried away. “Good evening, Mr. Einstein.”