The Cost of Sugar(24)

Rebecca herself looked on with a blissful smile, and then walked through the house to look at everything. Sarith asked whether it was all right to have the errand boy take her things upstairs and ordered Mini-mini to unpack for her. She had taken it for granted that she could stay in Elza’s house whenever she chose.

When Rutger returned home, Aunt Rachel and Rebecca had already left. He was clearly surprised to see Sarith and made no secret of it. He gave her a warm hug and told her time upon time how he had missed her. After lunch everyone took a siesta. Rutger usually went for his afternoon nap and was already in bed when Elza came upstairs, since he had to be at the office again at four to go to the stock exchange with Mr van Omhoog. Today, however, Elza waited alone, with no sign of Rutger. Where could he be for such a long time, Elza wondered. He would surely not want to miss his afternoon nap, especially as they were going out that evening. She got out of bed, intending to go downstairs to see where Rutger had got to, and walked along the passage. But when she was passing the guest bedroom, where Sarith slept, on the other side of the passage, near the stairs, she heard voices in that room. She heard clearly Rutger’s voice and then Sarith’s cooing titters, and then Rutger’s voice again.

“Oh God, no, not that.” Elza had been expecting anything and everything, but not this. She suppressed the urge to look through the keyhole, for she knew full well what she would see if she did. She hurried back to her own room. The tears burning her eyes, she lay on her bed, thinking: how low, how dreadful; how could Rutger do such a thing! How could Sarith do such a thing! It was as if she suddenly heard Rutger’s words that Sunday afternoon at Hébron: “Promise me one thing: never be jealous.” She had promised, but this she had never expected. Who on earth could have anticipated something like this? She knew, too, that she had said that afternoon, “That would surely not happen in my house?”

Had he not promised that? What had he answered when she asked that? She didn’t know any more. But no, this was simply not acceptable, and she would tell him so, too. This was too much. Wait – as soon as he left the room she would tell him. But Rutger did not come to her room. She heard him a little while later whistling as he went outside to the bathhouse, and as always Alex had laid his clothes out in the small office downstairs, near the outer door, and from there he went away. She heard the front door closing.

When Elza sat in the front room around six o’clock waiting for Rutger, Sarith also came into the room as soon as he arrived home. Elza was silent during the visit they were paying to acquaintances that evening. Rutger talked with the host and Sarith giggled a lot and talked sweet nothings with the lady of the house, now and then involving Elza in the conversation.

Was Rutger tired out due to his having missed his siesta? Or was it feelings of guilt that made him say, on arrival back home, “We’re going straight to bed, Sarith; sleep tight.”

In their own room, Elza thought, it’s now or never, and said, “Rutger, you were with Sarith in her room this afternoon.”

Rutger denied nothing, saying, “Yes, I was there.”

“And you went to bed with her,” said Elza.

“Yes, hmmm, well yes,” replied Rutger.

“Oh Rutger, how could you; how could you do such a thing?”

“Listen, Elza, you promised that you would not be a jealous woman, remember?”

“Yes, I promised that … but this …”

Rutger continued, “Oh dear girl, don’t take it so seriously. Look, I didn’t want this, but she wanted it so much; she pretty well forced me into it.”

“Rutger, how despicable: how vile of you to say such a thing. You know full well it’s not true.” Elza was livid.

“What do you mean, not true? It is the truth. I didn’t want it,” said Rutger.

“An innocent young girl can never force a man into such a thing.” Elza was now really incensed.

“An innocent young girl?” Now it was Rutger’s turn to be angry. “An innocent young girl? Do you really think that Sarith is an innocent young girl? Dear child, she is an experienced woman. You are an innocent girl, but she? Do you think I’m the first man she’s had in her bed? If that was the case I would certainly not have done it, but darling, you seem to know your stepsister hardly at all. She has certainly had three or four other men.”

“Oh no, that’s impossible.” Elza couldn’t believe her ears. “I thought … I always thought …”

“Listen Elza, and believe me: she wanted this so much, and when I said that it was better not to, she told me herself that she had first had a certain Charles van Hennegouwen, and then a captain and then still someone whose name she didn’t want to mention because it is someone I know and she found it rather painful.”