Odette hoped she had not hurt his feelings. But standing so close to Jorgen, touching his arm, she couldn’t help but focus her attention on him. “Have you had some difficult nights?”
He sighed. “You do not want to hear about my troubles.”
They walked out into the sunlight, and Odette found herself pressed close to his arm as the people jostled them. They waited for two arguing women to pass before continuing on their way. Rutger was ahead of them, too far away to hear their conversation.
“I do not mind listening to whatever is troubling you.” She spoke the truth, even if her greater curiosity was for what he had found out.
He shook his head, pressing his lips between his teeth. “I caught a boy in the woods a few nights ago.”
“Was he the poacher?”
Jorgen shook his head again. “But the poacher was there and had just killed a deer. I think the boy and at least one other person were about to carry it away.” He was quiet for a moment, staring straight ahead.
“So you caught him? Did he tell you who the poacher was?”
“No.” He looked down at his feet as they walked slowly, letting Rutger move farther away. “I lost him. He wriggled out of my grasp. I chased him a long way, but I lost him.” He sighed again.
It felt wrong, but her heart swelled with a surge of relief that the boy had gotten away, while Jorgen’s face was a picture of burdened disappointment. A stab of guilt pierced her chest.
“I am sorry. I know how badly you wanted to catch him.”
“I need to catch him. What kind of forester would I be if I cannot catch a poacher, one who seems to be poaching so much and so often? The margrave will lose confidence in me and replace me with someone else.”
“Surely he would not do that. He must know you are doing your best.”
“And the chancellor dislikes me and is probably leaping at every opportunity to malign me to the margrave.”
“How could anyone dislike you?”
“Ulrich seemed to dislike me from the first time I saw him when we were children. Then he seemed to become jealous when Lord Thornbeck appointed me forester. I think he has been afraid of losing his position ever since the former margrave died in the fire.”
“Some people are jealous. The margrave probably sees his true nature.”
He shrugged. “Possibly.”
“And perhaps he sees that your strong character is the exact opposite of that petty chancellor’s.”
He smiled a little and gazed down at her. “You are very loyal, are you not?”
She thought a moment. “I am loyal, but I hope I am only loyal to people and causes that are worthy.” She smiled up at him. “You are a loyal person, too, are you not?”
“I suppose.”
Thinking of his loyalty to the margrave, she asked, “Do you think it is ever possible to be too loyal?”
His brows came together. “Perhaps.” Then he nodded. “It is possible, if one is loyal to the wrong thing . . . or the wrong person.”
“Very true.” If the margrave had killed his brother so he could take his place, then Jorgen’s loyalty to the man could get him in a lot of trouble and cause him to do things that were wrong. She hoped he would see that, sooner rather than later.
But could she also be loyal to the wrong person or thing? She was only loyal to God, her uncle Rutger, her friend Anna, and the poor. No, her loyalties were certainly righteous.
Odette walked beside Anna as they made their way home the next day with baskets full of fruits and vegetables from the market. Odette had a servant for that chore, but she had enjoyed choosing them in the bustling Thornbeck Marktplatz and talking with the various sellers.
“These melons look so sweet.” Odette thumped the round fruit with her finger.
“You paid too much for them,” Anna scolded. “The woman would have taken less.”
“I did not mind. Besides, she looked as if she needed it more than I did.” Her dress had been patched multiple times, and she wore no shoes at all.
A woman stood beside a cart with bunches of flowers and others planted in earthen pots. The seller held out a pot of bright-red geraniums and called, “Flowers make the heart merry!”
Odette was drawn like a honeybee to the red geraniums. She and Anna exclaimed over their favorite ones. While Anna bartered with the seller, offering her some carrots and leeks for a bunch of flowers, Odette wanted the geraniums.
A man’s voice near her caught her attention as he said, “That new girl is back at The Red House. Remember the young one with the pretty face?”