Aladdin’s heart crashed against his chest. “How badly was he hurt?”
“Herr Kaufmann was on the floor and did not open his eyes for a few minutes. He has been in bed ever since.”
“And Abu? Is he well? He was not hurt, was he?”
“No, Abu is well. He was asleep in his bed when it happened.”
“Is Herr Kaufmann well enough that I might speak to him?”
“I believe he would like that. But first, I would like to tell you that we all regret that you were cast out of the house. I hope you will forgive Herr Kaufmann.”
“Of course. I don’t hold any grudge against Herr Kaufmann.”
“That is very gracious of you.” Johann’s fingernails bore the stains of dark paints, and his hair was rather unkempt. “We are grateful for your forgiving nature, because now I, Herr Kaufmann, and all the family are hoping you will help us.”
Aladdin leaned forward, waiting for the quiet man, who was pausing in his speech.
“I have been trying to take care of Herr Kaufmann’s business affairs during his illness—from which, the physicians say, he may never recover—and I am doing a very poor job of it.” His thick brown brows rose to meet the hair that hung down on his forehead. “I am an artist. I love my work. But I have no mind for business, buying and selling and numbers. I came back here to see if Grethel would marry me. I am willing to stay in Lüneburg as long as Grethel’s father needs her, but if the business is entrusted to me, I’m afraid there will be nothing left of it in six months.
“Which is why I am imploring you to return here to Lüneburg, to help Herr Kaufmann with his business affairs. He is willing and eager to make you his full partner, both legally and in every other way. Would you be willing to help us?” Johann waited, never taking his eyes off Aladdin’s.
“I . . . I would have to speak with Lady Kirstyn before I could agree to stay permanently. But I can help.”
Johann let out a sigh and smiled for the first time. “I am most grateful to you. Now I can go back to painting and Herr Kaufmann can rest instead of trying to teach me how to run things.”
“May I see Herr Kaufmann?”
“Of course. I shall take you to him.”
Aladdin climbed the stairs behind Johann as they made their way to Herr Kaufmann’s bedchamber.
“Herr Kaufmann.” Johann approached the bed. “Aladdin is here to see you. Are you able to speak with him now?”
“Aladdin? Aladdin is here?”
“I am, Herr Kaufmann.” Aladdin couldn’t see him yet, as the bed curtains blocked his view.
Johann moved aside and Aladdin stepped forward.
Herr Kaufmann’s face was pale and gray, and his eyes were hollow. He reached out, and Aladdin took his hand in both of his.
“Aladdin, my son.” Tears welled up in his eyes and his lower lip and chin trembled.
Aladdin’s own eyes filled with tears.
“How are you feeling? I have heard you’ve been sick.”
Herr Kaufmann drew in a raspy breath. “I have wronged you, Aladdin. I treated you poorly, you who had been so faithful to me. Will you forgive me?” A tear slipped from the corner of his eye and ran down to his pillow.
“I do, Herr Kaufmann. Of course I forgive you. Please don’t upset yourself. I love you too well to hold anything against you.”
Herr Kaufmann squeezed his hand. “But Michael . . . He is out there on the streets again. The town’s guards haven’t been able to find him.”
“Duke Wilhelm is here, and he and his knights and soldiers will find him, I have no doubt.”
“That is comforting.”
“And while we wait for him to be captured . . . I want to see you well and healthy again. What do the doctors say is the matter?”
“Thank you, dear boy. You always were kind and good, and God’s favor rests on you.” He took a deep breath and let it out. “As for me, I am old, and my physician says my heart is weak. The shock of seeing Cedric and the blow to my head must have brought on the bad humors.” He waved his hand in the air. “But it is no matter. I am old and my life has run its course.”
“You mustn’t say such a thing. Length of life is God’s business. He will decide.”
“That is true. And you always do me good.” Herr Kaufmann’s eyes twinkled as he made an effort to sit up. Aladdin and a nearby servant helped pull him up and arranged his pillows so he could sit higher.
“Has Johann told you?” Herr Kaufmann motioned for Aladdin to lean in. “We need your help, Aladdin. No one knows the business better than you, and no one is so competent as you. Won’t you come back and take over the business? I shall have papers drawn up so that everything will belong to you and Grethel. We all miss the days when you were here.”
“I will need to speak to Lady Kirstyn, as we are hoping to be married soon. If she agrees to come to Lüneburg, we will wish to have our own house.”
“Of course, of course. I will make it so you have complete control over the business. You may have the money to buy any house you wish. You will visit me, won’t you? A few times a week?”
“I will.”
“You are faithful to your word. You always were.” A sorrowful expression swept over his face, and Aladdin imagined he was thinking of Cedric Michael.
The visit was soon over. Aladdin stepped out of the room and into the corridor with Johann, and they were joined by Grethel, who took Johann’s arm and smiled up at him. Then she turned her eyes on Aladdin.
“Thank you for coming.”
“Grethel. I am glad to see you.” After all, she was like a sister to him. And he was very glad to see that she was glad to be with Johann.
“Aladdin! You’re home!” Abu came running up the stairs.
Aladdin embraced the boy and then held him out by his shoulders so he could look him over. “I believe you’ve grown half a foot since I left.”
“And I’m faster too! Shall we have a race?”
Aladdin couldn’t help laughing. “We shall, when I’m wearing something more suitable for racing, and when we go out to the Heath again.”
They talked of what Abu had been studying with his tutor and how Herr Kaufmann had promised to get Abu a larger boat and go sailing with him when the weather was warmer—but that was before Herr Kaufmann had fallen sick.
“I don’t like to ask him for anything now,” Abu said softly. “But now that you are here, I think he will get well again.”
Aladdin smiled and tousled Abu’s hair. “I hope so.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Aladdin worked late every evening. Herr Kaufmann’s books were in chaos. In addition to the mess in the ledgers, Michael’s old childhood friends had been stealing from the warehouse and from the cogs that carried the salt from Lüneburg to Hamburg. By the end of one week, two of the thieves had already been captured.
Meanwhile, Duke Wilhelm and his men were working with the town council to find Michael. They agreed to release Anna and see if she would lead them to Michael. Duke Wilhelm’s men were following her.
Aladdin made time every midday to go to Herr Kaufmann’s house and visit him, and soon he was even getting out of bed, letting the servants help him down the stairs so he could have his midday meal with Aladdin in the dining hall.
And no matter how tired he was at the end of the day, Aladdin still managed to write to Kirstyn every night and send the letters by courier.
Would you be willing to live in Lüneburg? he wrote to her. There are many orphans here, much more than in Hagenheim, who live on the streets and are sometimes beaten for stealing food. They need someone to help them, to start an orphanage, or even to adopt them. She wouldn’t be able to resist that.
He had only been in Lüneburg about a week when he found a house. It was large, made of brick and half timbers, with five floors and a beautiful, decorative doorway of variegated brick. The previous owner had died after a forty-year marriage to his wife, who preceded him in death by only a few weeks. They had been very content,
by all accounts, a generous couple who helped their neighbors.
The house’s interior was in very good condition, and the heirs were even selling most of the furniture. Aladdin imagined bringing Kirstyn there. Would she like it after living at Hagenheim Castle all her life? It was one of the best houses in town, but it was no castle.
While still thinking it over, Aladdin stepped outside and looked up. There, on the flat surface made by a row of windows that jutted out from the fifth story, a stork was building its nest.
Aladdin bought the house that same day.
“Aladdin.”
Aladdin looked up as he sat in the warehouse going over the accounts. He turned around on his stool, and a young woman was standing in the doorway. “Anna.”
“Greetings, Aladdin.” Her eyes looked hollow and her clothes were dirty. “I’m sorry to disturb you, but I thought you would like to know where Michael is hiding.”
Aladdin sprang from his seat and grabbed his sword from where he kept it under his desk. Then he followed Anna outside.
She glanced over her shoulder at him. “He’s in an old building near the town gate.”
“Why are you telling me this?” Aladdin walked fast to keep up with her.
Anna didn’t answer, she just kept walking.
They hurried down the street as they wove their way through the people and animals. Finally Anna went down a small alley.
“I’ll wait for you to tell him I’m here.” Aladdin stopped just at the entrance of the narrow side street.
She disappeared. A few minutes later Michael emerged from behind a dilapidated building. His face was twisted into a sneer. He was holding a battle-ax.
“You thought you could take my father’s business.” Michael advanced a step.
“You thought you could take my inheritance.” He advanced another step. “You even thought you could take my sister as your wife.” As he stepped out into the sunlight, the blade of his battle-ax gleamed and glinted.
“But I took Lady Kirstyn, and there was nothing you could do about it. And now . . .” Michael swung the ax to the left, then the right as he advanced more quickly. “I shall take your life.”
Aladdin had never fought anyone with a battle-ax, but he parried his first strike the same as he would have a man with a sword. Michael was slow to recover, the battle-ax heavier and slower than Aladdin’s sword. Aladdin took advantage by striking out, going on the offensive, quickly beating Michael back to the entrance of the alley.
Michael’s face grew redder and fiercer. Finally Aladdin lunged, aiming his sword at Michael’s ribs, a moment before Michael swung the ax at Aladdin’s head.
Aladdin sidestepped and ducked. The ax blade whooshed past Aladdin’s ear just as his sword point sank into Michael’s side.
Michael let out a scream of fury. He lifted the ax with another cry. Aladdin waited for him to bring down the ax, leaping back to avoid the blade. Then he plunged his sword into Michael’s chest.
Michael sank to his knees, then fell over on the ground, lifeless.
Only then did Aladdin realize Duke Wilhelm’s men were behind him, watching.
Anna ran forward and fell at Michael’s side. She turned him over and screamed at his lifeless face.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Kirstyn sat at her desk writing a letter to Aladdin.
I miss feeling your arms around me. I miss talking to you and seeing you. I know it will take some time for you to find a house for us, and I may not see you for many weeks, but
Footsteps came down the hall toward her room at a rapid pace. Suddenly Adela burst into the room. “It’s Aladdin and Father.” She was breathing hard, her eyes big and round.
“What? What about Aladdin and Father?” Kirstyn stood, her heart pounding.
“They’re here!”
Kirstyn ran out of the door and Adela followed her.
“A guard came and said they’re on their way home, just outside of town. They’ll be at the castle in minutes.”
Kirstyn hurried down the stairs. “Is this dress becoming enough? Perhaps I should change.” She put her hands to her hair. Was it in place?
“You look very pretty,” Adela said, nudging her with her hands. “He doesn’t care about your dress or your hair. Come!”
Kirstyn’s heart was bursting as she ran the rest of the way to the front door and outside into the hazy sunshine. She strained her eyes but did not see him. She passed through the castle gatehouse. Adela stopped, but Kirstyn kept going. One of the guards shouted at her, then followed close behind her as she ran.
She hurried to the town gate that she and Aladdin always exited through to go walking in the woods. Just as she reached it, Aladdin came into view, sitting atop a cream-colored horse. His eyes locked on hers. He halted his horse and dismounted. They ran to each other, and she threw herself into his arms.
She held him tight, afraid to let go, because if she did, she might forget that there were people watching them, including her father and his knights, and kiss him right here. But when he started talking, his breath near her ear, it was almost as good as a kiss.
“Oh, Kirstyn,” he said in a ragged whisper. “It feels so good to hold you.”
“Have you come to take me back to Lüneburg with you?” she asked, not loosening her grip on him.
“Yes, and if your father won’t give his permission, I’m prepared to steal you away and marry you without his consent.”
She pulled away and looked up into his face. What a wonderful face it was. Dark skin that stood out against the cream-colored shirt under his cloak, the warm brown eyes that told her he wished he could kiss her lips. But he leaned down and kissed her cheek instead.
He held her hand and his horse’s reins, and they started walking back. “I bought us a house,” Aladdin said with a shy smile.
A shiver of pleasure rippled through her. “What does it look like?”
Aladdin described the house in detail, then said, “And it has a stork’s nest.”
“Oh!” Kirstyn hugged his arm. “It’s a sign from God.” They both laughed.
When they entered the castle gates, many people called out and waved to Aladdin, some coming to slap him on the back and say a few words of greeting. He was so well loved. From the lowliest servant to the highest-ranking knight, everyone seemed glad to see him.
The next hour was a blur of talking with Mother, Adela, and Toby, as well as eating and drinking and showing Aladdin to the room where he would be staying. Kirstyn wished to be alone with him, but to be near Aladdin, to look upon him, and to hear his voice was enough—for now.
When her father came in, he talked with the group for a few minutes, then he and Aladdin excused themselves and went to talk privately.
Kirstyn laughed and talked with her mother and siblings, though her thoughts were often on what Aladdin and her father were saying.
Valten went to his home a half hour’s ride away and brought back Gisela and their children. So many of her family members were there that they made a lively group. Everyone looked at Kirstyn with such strange expressions, as if they were pleased and glad but a bit sad at the same time, for it was no secret that she and Aladdin were planning to marry and leave Hagenheim.
Finally Father and Aladdin returned and joined them. Aladdin smiled and came straight to Kirstyn to whisper in her ear, “Your father says we may marry as soon as we like—and I am in favor of soon, as I need to get back to Lüneburg and the business. But you may set the date.”
“May we get married here?” Kirstyn asked. The noise around them actually gave them a bit of privacy, as no one else could hear them.
“Yes, here at the castle. You say when.”
“Rapunzel and Gerek should be able to get here in only a few days, but I don’t think I can bear to wait for Sophie and Gabe. Besides, they won’t be able to come for months. Sophie could give birth at any time.”
“So, in a few days? Four days? Five days?”
“Five days.” Kirstyn cou
ldn’t help smiling and staring at his lips. For a moment she thought he would kiss her, but again, he only leaned down and kissed her cheek.
A courier was dispatched to Keiterhafen Castle with an invitation to the wedding for Rapunzel and Sir Gerek. Meanwhile, the servants prepared a betrothal feast for Aladdin and Kirstyn, and afterward there was music and dancing. Aladdin and Kirstyn danced all the dances for nearly an hour before going back to the table to sit.
While no one seemed to be paying them any attention, Aladdin leaned in, his face very close to Kirstyn’s.
“I want you to know, I’m so grateful you love me. I feel like the most blessed man alive.”
She caressed his hand, then lifted it to her face, brushing the back of it against her cheek.
“I tried so hard to never make a mistake, to be the best at everything, so you would love me, and so your father would allow me to marry you. But I know that God—and you—will love me in spite of my imperfections.”
“I am very happy to hear that, because I’ve learned that I don’t have to have some extraordinary talent for God—and you—to love me. And I had to get kidnapped to realize how much my family loves me.”
He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her fingers. She caressed his cheek, the prickly stubble of his three-day growth of beard rasping against her fingertips.
“I would like all orphans to know that they don’t have to feel as if no one loves them, and I’m particularly thinking about Abu. Do you think Herr Kaufmann would allow us to adopt Abu? And do you think Abu would like that?”
Aladdin’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. “I don’t know, but we can ask.”
“You would like that, would you not?”
“I would indeed.” He brushed her neck with his fingertips. “I love you, Kirstyn. My heart is yours forever.” He leaned in, and this time he kissed her lips—the kiss she’d been waiting weeks for. But they kept it brief, as people were all around them.