Kristin Lavransdatter Part 18

A little later Fru Aashild stood up to go to the cookhouse and prepare some food. She had started the fire out there because Erlend's men would be sleeping in the cookhouse that night. She asked Kristin to come along, "because I want to be able to swear to Lavrans Bjrgulfsn that the two of you were never alone for a single minute in my house," she said crossly.

Kristin laughed and went out with Aashild. Erlend at once came sauntering after them, pulled up a three-legged stool to the hearth and sat down. He kept getting in the women's way. He grabbed Kristin every time she came near him as she bustled and flew around. Finally he pulled her down onto his knee.

"It's probably true what Ulv said, that you're the wife I need."

"Oh yes," said Aashild, both laughing and annoyed, "she will certainly serve you well. She's the one risking everything in this venture; you're not risking much."

"That's true," said Erlend, "but I've shown my willingness to go to her along the proper paths. Don't be so angry, Aunt Aashild."

"I have every right to be angry," she said. "No sooner do you get your affairs in order than you put yourself in a position where you have to run away from everything with a woman."

"You must remember, Aunt," said Erlend, "that it has always been true that it's not the worst men who get themselves into trouble for the sake of a woman. That's what all the sagas say."

"Oh, G.o.d help us," said Aashild. Her face grew soft and young. "I've heard that speech before, Erlend." She took his head in her hands and ruffled his hair.

At that moment Ulv Haldorsn tore open the door and shut it at once behind him.

"A guest has arrived at the farm, Erlend-the one person you would least want to see, I think."

"Is it Lavrans Bjrgulfsn?" asked Erlend, jumping up.

"Unfortunately not," said the man. "It's Eline Ormsdatter."

The door was opened from the outside; the woman who entered shoved Ulv aside and stepped into the light. Kristin looked over at Erlend. At first he seemed to wither and collapse; then he straightened up, his face dark red.

"Where the Devil did you come from? What do you want here?"

Fru Aashild stepped forward and said, "Come with us up to the house, Eline Ormsdatter. We have enough courtesy on this farm that we don't receive our guests in the cookhouse."

"I don't expect Erlend's kin to greet me as a guest, Fru Aashild," said the woman. "You asked where I came from? I come from Husaby, as you well know. I bring you greetings from Orm and Margret; they are well."

Erlend didn't reply.

"When I heard that you had asked Gissur Arnfinsn to raise money for you, and that you were heading south again," she went on, "I thought you would probably visit your kinsmen in Gudbrandsdal this time. I knew that you had made inquiries about the daughter of their neighbor."

She looked at Kristin for the first time and met the girl's eyes. Kristin was very pale, but she gazed at the other woman with a calm and searching expression.

Kristin was as calm as a rock. From the moment she heard who had arrived, she realized that it was the thought of Eline Ormsdatter that she had been constantly fleeing from, that she had tried to drown it out with defiance and restlessness and impatience. The whole time she had been striving not to think about whether Erlend had freed himself completely from his former mistress. Now she had been overtaken, and it was futile to fight it anymore. But she did not try to avoid it.

She saw that Eline Ormsdatter was beautiful. She was no longer young, but she was lovely, and at one time she must have been radiantly beautiful. She had let her hood fall back; her forehead was round and smooth, her cheekbones jutted out slightly-but it was still easy to see that once she had been quite striking. Her wimple covered only the back of her head; as she spoke, Eline tucked the shiny gold, wavy hair in front under the cloth. Kristin had never seen a woman with such big eyes; they were dark brown, round, and hard, but beneath the narrow, coal-black eyebrows and the long eyelashes her eyes were strangely beautiful next to her golden hair. Her skin and lips were chapped from the ride in the cold, but this did not detract from her appearance; she was much too beautiful for that. The heavy traveling clothes enshrouded her figure, but she wore them and carried herself as only a woman can who bears the most confident pride in the splendor of her own body. She was not quite as tall as Kristin, but she had such a bearing that she seemed taller than the slim, small-boned girl.

"Has she been with you at Husaby the whole time?" Kristin asked quietly.

"I haven't been at Husaby," said Erlend brusquely, his face flushing again. "I've been at Hestnaes for most of the summer."

"Here is the news I wanted to bring you, Erlend," said Eline. "You no longer need to seek lodgings with your kinsmen and test their hospitality while I keep house for you. This autumn I became a widow."

Erlend stood motionless.

"I wasn't the one who asked you to come to Husaby to keep house last year," he said with difficulty.

"I heard that everything was going downhill there," said Eline. "I still had enough good feelings toward you from the old days, Erlend, that I thought I should look out for your well-being-though G.o.d knows you haven't treated me or our children very kindly."

"I've done what I could for the children," said Erlend, "and you know full well that it was for their sake that I allowed you to stay at Husaby. You can't say that you did either them or me any good," he added, smiling spitefully. "Gissur could manage quite well without your help."

"Yes, you've always trusted Gissur," said Eline, laughing softly. "But the fact is, Erlend-now I am free. If you wish, you can keep the promise you once gave me."

Erlend was silent.

"Do you remember," said Eline, "the night I gave birth to your son? You promised then that you would marry me when Sigurd died."

Erlend pushed back his hair, wet with sweat.

"Yes, I remember," he said.

"Will you keep your word now?" asked Eline.

"No," said Erlend.

Eline Ormsdatter looked over at Kristin, smiled slightly, and nodded. Then she turned back to Erlend.

"That was ten years ago, Eline," he said. "Since that day we have lived together year in and year out like two people condemned to h.e.l.l."

"That's not entirely true," she said with the same smile.

"It's been years since there was anything else," said Erlend, exhausted. "It wouldn't help the children. And you know . . . you know that I can hardly stand to be in the same room with you anymore," he almost screamed.

"I didn't notice that when you were home this summer," said Eline with a telling smile. "We weren't enemies then. Not all the time."

"If you think that meant we were friends, go ahead and think so," said Erlend wearily.

"Are you just going to stand here?" said Fru Aashild. She ladled some porridge into two large wooden trenchers and handed one of them to Kristin. The girl took it. "Take it over to the house. Here, Ulv, take the other one. Put them on the table; we must have supper no matter how things stand."

Kristin and the servant went out with the dishes of food. Fru Aashild said to the others, "Come along, you two; it does no good for you to stand here barking at each other."

"It's best for Eline and me to talk this out with each other now," said Erlend.

Fru Aashild said no more and left.

Over in the house Kristin put the food on the table and brought up ale from the cellar. She sat down on the outer bench, erect as a candlestick, her face calm, but she did not eat. Bjrn and Erlend's men didn't have much appet.i.te either. Only Bjrn's man and the servant who had come with Eline ate anything. Fru Aashild sat down and ate a little porridge. No one said a word.

Finally Eline Ormsdatter came in alone. Fru Aashild offered her a place between Kristin and herself; Eline sat down and ate something. Every once in a while the trace of a secret smile flitted across her face, and she would glance at Kristin.

After a while Fru Aashild went out to the cookhouse.

The fire had almost gone out. Erlend was sitting on the three-legged stool near the hearth, huddled up with his head on his arms. Fru Aashild went over and put her hand on his shoulder. "G.o.d forgive you, Erlend, for the way you have handled things."

Erlend looked up. His face was tear-streaked with misery.

"She's with child," he said and closed his eyes.

Fru Aashild's face flamed up; she gripped his shoulder hard. "Whose is it?" she asked bluntly and with contempt.

"Well, it isn't mine," said Erlend dully. "But you probably won't believe me. No one will. . . ." He collapsed once more.

Fru Aashild sat down in front of him at the edge of the hearth.

"You must try to pull yourself together, Erlend. It's not so easy to believe you in this matter. Do you swear that it's not yours?"

Erlend lifted his haggard face. "As truly as I need G.o.d's mercy. As truly as I hope that . . . that G.o.d has comforted Mother in Heaven for all that she had to endure down here. I have not not touched Eline since the first time I saw Kristin!" He shouted so that Fru Aashild had to hush him. touched Eline since the first time I saw Kristin!" He shouted so that Fru Aashild had to hush him.

"Then I don't see that this is such a misfortune. You must find out who the father is and pay him to marry her."

"I think it's Gissur Arnfinsn, my foreman at Husaby," said Erlend wearily. "We talked about it last fall-and since then too. Sigurd's death has been expected for some time. Gissur was willing to marry her when she became a widow if I would give her a sufficient dowry."

"I see," said Fru Aashild.

Erlend went on. "She swears that she won't have him. She will name me as the father. If I swear that I'm not . . . do you think anyone will believe that I'm not swearing falsely?"

"You'll have to dissuade her," said Fru Aashild. "There's no other way out. You must go home with her to Husaby tomorrow. And then you must stand firm and arrange this marriage between your foreman and Eline."

"You're right," said Erlend. Then he bent forward and sobbed aloud.

"Don't you see, Aunt . . . What do you think Kristin will believe?"

That night Erlend slept in the cookhouse with the servants. In the house Kristin slept with Fru Aashild in her bed, and Eline Ormsdatter slept in the other one. Bjrn went out to sleep in the stable.

The next morning Kristin followed Fru Aashild out to the cowshed. While Fru Aashild went to the cookhouse to make breakfast, Kristin carried the milk up to the house.

A candle was burning on the table. Eline was dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed. Kristin greeted her quietly, got out a basin, and strained the milk.

"Would you give me some milk?" asked Eline. Kristin took a wooden ladle and handed it to the woman. She drank greedily and looked over the rim at Kristin.

"So you're Kristin Lavransdatter, the one who has robbed me of Erlend's affections," she said, handing the ladle back.

"You're the one who should know whether there were any affections to rob," replied the young maiden.

Eline bit her lip. "What will you do," she said, "if Erlend grows tired of you and one day offers to marry you to his servant? Would you obey Erlend in that too?"

Kristin didn't answer.

Then the other woman laughed and said, "You obey him in everything, I imagine. What do you think, Kristin-shall we throw the dice for our man, we two mistresses of Erlend Nikulaussn?" When she received no reply, she laughed again and said, "Are you so simple-minded that you don't deny you're a kept woman?"

"To you I don't feel like lying," said Kristin.

"It wouldn't do you much good anyway," replied Eline in the same tone of voice. "I know that boy. I can imagine that he probably rushed at you like a black grouse the second time you were together. And it's too bad for you, pretty child that you are."

Kristin's cheeks grew pale. Sick with loathing she said quietly, "I don't want to talk to you."

"Do you think he'll treat you any better than he did me?" Eline continued.

Then Kristin replied sharply, "I won't complain about Erlend, no matter what he does. I was the one who took the wrong path, and I won't moan and feel sorry for myself even if it leads me out over the scree."

Eline was silent for a moment. Then she said, flushed and uncertain, "I was a maiden too, when he took me, Kristin-even though I had been the old man's wife for seven years. But you probably can't understand what a wretched life that was."

Kristin started to tremble violently. Eline gazed at her. Then she took a little horn out of her traveling box which stood at her side on the step of the bed.

She broke the seal and said quietly, "You are young and I am old, Kristin. I know it's useless for me to fight against you-now it's your turn. Will you drink with me, Kristin?"

Kristin didn't move. Then the other woman put the horn to her lips. Kristin noticed that she did not drink.

Eline said, "You might at least do me the honor of drinking to me-and promise that you won't be a harsh stepmother to my children."

Kristin took the horn. At that moment Erlend opened the door. He stood there, looking from one woman to the other.

"What's this?" he asked.

Then Kristin replied, and her voice was shrill and wild. "We're drinking to each other, your two mistresses."

He grabbed her wrist and s.n.a.t.c.hed away the horn. "Be quiet," he said harshly. "You shall not drink with her."

"Why not?" said Kristin in the same voice as before. "She was just as pure as I was when you seduced her."

"She's said that so often that she believes it herself," replied Erlend. "Do you remember when you made me go to Sigurd with that lie, Eline, and he produced witnesses that he had caught you with another man?"

Pale with disgust, Kristin turned away. Eline's face had flushed dark red. Then she said spitefully, "Even so, that girl isn't going to turn into a leper if she drinks with me."

Furious, Erlend turned toward Eline-and then his face suddenly grew rigid and the man gasped in horror.

"Jesus!" he said almost inaudibly. He grabbed Eline by the arm.

"Then drink to her, her," he said, his voice harsh and quavering. "Drink first, and then she'll drink with you."