The Scribe(71)

“Helga? Who’s that?”

“You don’t remember? The woman who helped us when we arrived in Fulda. I live with her now.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Do you not have any money? Althar left you a pouch of coins.”

“But I gave it to Helga that very day, as a down payment for board and lodging. I only have a couple of denarii left.”

“Damn it.” He clenched his teeth.

“I could ask Alcuin. He might help us.”

Hoos gave a start when he heard the friar’s name. “Have you lost your mind? Why do you think I fled the abbey? Don’t trust that man, Theresa. He’s not what he seems.”

“Why do you say that? He’s been so good to us.”

“I can’t explain, but you must trust me. Stay away from that friar.”

Theresa did not know what to say. She believed Hoos, but Alcuin seemed like such a good person.

“So what will we do? Your dagger!” she remembered. “We could try to sell it. I’m sure it will fetch you enough to buy a horse.”

“If only I still had it. Those wretched monks must have stolen it,” he complained. “You don’t know anybody who deals in horses? Someone who would let you borrow a mount?”

Theresa shook her head. She added that it was still too soon for him to ride, because his wound would surely open up. Hoos suddenly stopped in his tracks, trying to catch his breath. He was gasping like an old man, holding the wound on his chest.

“Are you all right?”

“That isn’t important. Damn it! I need a horse,” he cried as he coughed and spluttered. He sat down, dejected, on some firewood. For a moment, Theresa thought his wound would come open.

“Now that I remember,” she said, “this morning I was in a place where they kept horses.” She was not sure why she said it.

Hoos stood and looked at Theresa with tenderness. He took her face in his hands and then, slowly, moved in to kiss her. Theresa thought she would die. Her body trembled when she felt the heat of his mouth. She closed her eyes and surrendered to the honey that flooded her body. Her lips parted timidly, allowing his tongue to caress hers. The she slowly pulled away, looking him in the eyes, her cheeks flushed. She thought his eyes were shining more beautifully than ever.

“And what will become of me when you go?” she said.

Hoos kissed her again, and she forgot her worries as if under a spell.


They set off for Helga’s tavern immediately but stopped on each corner for a quick kiss, as jumpy as thieves who might be caught. Each time they laughed and then continued more quickly. When they reached the tavern they went in the back way so that Helga wouldn’t see them. They climbed up to the loft where Theresa slept, and they kissed again. Hoos caressed her breasts, but she moved away. Theresa brought him something to eat, made him comfortable with a blanket, and told him to wait. If everything went well, she would return in a few hours with a mount.

She knew it was crazy, but she left the house equipped with a candle, a steel, and some dry tinder. She also took some raw meat and a kitchen knife. Then she made for the city walls, not knowing whether the gates would be open or closed. Fortunately, the maintenance work on the southern gate was still under way, so she didn’t need to identify herself when she slipped past a guard, who greeted her half-asleep.

As she walked in the direction of the mill, she remembered Hoos’s lips. She felt again the warmth of his whispers and his breath on her cheeks, and her stomach tightened. She quickened her pace, her path lit up by the moon, and prayed the dogs would not discover her. She hoped the ground meat would keep them occupied while she went to the stables. When she arrived in the vicinity, she could see that there was enough light that she could dispense with the tinder. She looked for the dogs but couldn’t see them. However, as a precaution, she placed half of the meat on the main track and spread the rest around the path leading to the stables.

There were just four horses in the building and they seemed to be asleep. She examined them closely, trying to figure out which would be the best, but she could not decide. Suddenly she heard some barking and her heart began thumping in her chest. She ran to a corner, where she crouched down, covered herself with straw, and waited in terror. A few seconds later the barking stopped.

Suddenly she realized the mistake she was about to make. She wondered what she was doing there. How could she have even considered committing a theft? She decided that, though she wanted to help Hoos, this was not the way. She could not betray her own morals—that was not what her father had taught her. Feeling guilty and miserable, she couldn’t even understand how she had ended up at the mill. She could be caught and accused of theft, a crime that was sometimes punishable by death. She was sorry to disappoint Hoos, but she could not continue. She cried at the foolishness of her behavior, then asked God for forgiveness and prayed to Him for help.

She was scared. Every sound, from a horse snorting to the creaking of timber, made her imagine she would be discovered at any moment. Slowly, she crawled between the horses’ legs, trying to reach the exit. But just as she was about to leave the stables, she was horrified to hear four men approaching the building. The dogs had probably alerted them.

She retraced her steps and buried herself under the straw again just as one of the men walked in and started slapping the backs of the animals, who whinnied with alarm. Theresa watched the hoofs of a horse fly past her face and almost cried out, but managed to contain herself. The man bridled one of them, mounted, and set off toward the scrubland at a gallop. She watched as the other three unloaded the cart just outside the stables, carrying its contents into the mill. Theresa thought it odd they appeared to be working at such an unearthly hour and without torches. It occurred to her that the sacks they were unloading had something to do with the grain that Alcuin was investigating.