Reading Online Novel

The Glassblower(155)



Steven took her chin gently in his right hand. When her eyes were gazing straight into his, he smiled and said firmly, “My love, I don’t want you to worry about anything anymore. Not about money or anything else. You should just be happy and enjoy what life has to offer. Do you remember what I promised you our first night together? I want to make your life a paradise on earth. Please let me do that.”

She was about to answer him when a movement distracted her. Her mouth curled up in an involuntary smile.

Sensitive to her every shift in mood, Steven followed her glance and then laughed.

Wanda had put Ruth’s shawl on. Holding her mother’s handbag on her lap, she sat in the middle of the sofa like a princess.

“It looks like Wanda’s taken to her new lifestyle like a duck to water!” He waved at Wanda. “But is that surprising? Given her lineage?”

Ruth groaned. “Don’t remind me! Why on earth did your forger friend do that to us?” Baroness Ruthwicka von Lausche—it was bad enough that the fellow had decided to make her an aristocrat, but the name itself was ridiculous.

Steven just laughed. “I think Ruthwicka was a wonderful idea. What if he’d made you an Amanda? Or an Ottilie? Either you’d have jumped every time I called you by the new name, or you wouldn’t have reacted at all. And I think that being a baroness suits you wonderfully.”

“Do you think so?” she asked, half reconciled to the idea. She had to admit that it had a certain mystique.

“I certainly do. You’ll be the talk of the whole ship. Now then!” He stood up and offered Ruth his hand. “I suggest that we go and take our first look around.”

No sooner had they stepped into the first salon than other passengers drew them into conversation. Wherever they went, there was always someone who wanted to introduce himself and talk for a while. The fact that they would be spending the next two weeks in one another’s company seemed to make people inclined to talk.

Casting off from the quayside at Hamburg was a tearful occasion, but once it was over, the bell rang for the first dinner seating. When one of the stewards led them to their table, Ruth was momentarily alarmed; she had been expecting a table just for Steven, Wanda, and herself, not this great round table seating eight diners. But a moment later, she felt Steven’s hand on her back, lending her courage and confidence.

At the beginning of the meal Ruth still felt rather awkward and chose to smile at their fellow passengers rather than take part in conversation. But once Steven had introduced her, their reactions left her no chance to feel insecure. And Wanda’s lovable nature made the whole situation easier. Ruth’s daughter conquered the whole of the Valkyrie with her cherubic smile. Before the evening was over, one waiter brought her extra little treats, an old gentleman at the table knotted his napkin into animal shapes to entertain her, and one of the ladies had picked her up and walked her around for a while. Ruth swelled with pride as she watched complete strangers succumb to her daughter’s charms.



When dinner was over, they finally had a moment alone. Steven suggested a stroll around the deck before they went to sleep. Ruth agreed—she would have agreed to anything!

They stopped on the sundeck amidships, a lonely spot lit by two gas lamps. Ruth put Wanda down on one of the deck chairs, which were arranged in neat rows awaiting the passengers who would lie there the next day to drink in the sun. Steven covered her with his jacket.

Arm in arm they stood at the railing and savored the breeze on their faces.

“I’ve never seen the sunset so red,” Ruth said, her eyes gleaming as she pointed west.

“It’s because there’s nothing here to block the sun’s rays. It has room to show its full splendor. And over there, where the sun glows warmest, that’s your new home,” Steven whispered in her hair as the red ball sank slowly but inexorably down into the boundless sea before them.

“I’m so happy I could cry,” Ruth whispered. And in fact, a few tears spilled down her cheeks.

Steven pulled her closer.

“You mustn’t cry; you should be happy. Learn from your daughter’s example!”

“What about her?” Ruth asked quietly, fighting the tears.

“She seems to be enjoying her new life with all her heart. It’s an unusual gift that a child has, and it’s one that’s well worth emulating.” Steven laughed quietly. “Anybody watching Wanda today might believe that she had been born with a silver spoon in her mouth!”

Ruth’s gaze wandered lovingly over Wanda’s small body and blonde curls, bright against the dark cloth of Steven’s jacket. No, there had been no silver spoons where she came from. Ruth looked back at Steven, her eyes gleaming with pride.