Bathory's Secret: When All The Time In The World Is Not Enough (Affliction Vampires Book 1) (2 page)

“Fresh milk, come get your fresh milk,” shouted the farmer’s wife.

“Lovely bacon I’ve got today, lovely bacon and some fine sausages,” called out the butcher’s boy. She looked at them all pushing their wares with vigor and excitement and sighed. Her voice was never loud enough and if she dared speak the vegetable vendor would laugh at her and tease her merchandise. He was approaching her wheelbarrow with
that
look on his face again. He had curly brown hair and a wart-laden face that made her stomach turn. His nose was particularly populated with them. It resembled some of his prize winning cauliflowers.

“What have we here today, Kati?” She knitted her eyebrows but didn’t say anything. “I’d be silent too with vegetables like that if I were you.”

“Leave me alone,” she retorted.

He held one of her thin carrots between his fingertips and bent the end down with his other hand.

“You’re hoping to sell
this
?” He asked with a sour face and tossed it back into her wheelbarrow. Producing a fine young carrot from his apron pocket, he held it up to her face and snapped it in two. “A carrot isn’t supposed to be flexible.”

“Oh be quiet you horrible old bully!” Said Mrs Borkereskedő, the wine merchant’s wife. “That’s no way to talk to a young lady, or are you that intimidated by a little competition?” She put her hands on her hips causing her ample bosom to jiggle.

“Intimidated by that? Ha!” He said pointing at the vegetables and tossing his carrot halves into her wheelbarrow. “Here, sell that, maybe you can get a good price for it if you throw yours in for free,” he said and walked back to his stall.

“Don’t mind him, dear,” said Mrs Borkereskedő.

“He’s not wrong,” replied Kati with resignation.

“Nonsense! Your parsnips are some of the best I’ve ever tried. His never come out as nice or as sweet and the same goes for your cabbages! Give me two please, and as many parsnips as you have,” she was holding out her basket.

Kati did as she was told and Mrs Borkereskedő put four coins in her hand.

“That’s too much,” said Kati.

“No, that’s fine my dear, that’s how much I think they’re worth,” said the plump woman before caressing the girl’s head with her rough hand and heading off.

Kati was aware this was charity but any money was welcome. Her mother hated being thought of as a charity case, but things were too difficult to turn down good money. Selling vegetables was their main source of income, supplemented by the occasional book binding request from the village, but as these were rural folks the opportunity seldom arose. Also, neither her mother nor Kati could read which didn't help matters. The book binding skill was taught to her mother by a distant cousin who had lived with them briefly one winter when Kati was nine, who was on his way west in search of better prospects. Sadly he never made it as a few months after his arrival a severe fever killed him. Kati would sit with him when he was ill and together they would make up stories. He would start the story and she would chime in whenever she could, a pastime she thoroughly enjoyed.

By the end of the morning when the market was winding up, Kati covered up the rest of her produce with a rag and headed back. Besides the sale to Mrs Borkereskedő she had managed to sell four leeks and the other cabbage. She felt as if the carrots, particularly the one snapped in two which was still in the heap, were mocking her. Parking her wheelbarrow in the muddy alley outside the tavern she went looking for the landlord. Whenever they had a little extra money she would give him some towards her father’s debt and in turn he wouldn’t come knocking on their door threatening debtors' prison. If only the others were equally understanding.

The place stank of stale beer and she could still see puddles of it on the ground from last night’s reveling. The maid was too busy cleaning the tables to worry about the floor. Kati went down to the basement where the landlord was stacking his barrels, made some idle chit chat about how his day was going and gave him half the money she had made before leaving. Even with half the money it was still a good taking so she bought some milk and a loaf of stale bread (always cheaper) and headed back home to help her mother cook.

At the bakery she loved throwing a few admiring glances at the baker’s son who was nearly eighteen. He was tall and pale but with raven black hair and the sweetest brown eyes of anyone in the village. When he caught her looking he would smile at her, causing her to break out in red blotches all over her face and hurry off. At night in bed she would always think of his smile, though it made her blush again.

Reaching the house she made her way towards the back and placed the wheelbarrow in a vertical position against the wall in case it rained later. She put the remaining vegetables on the table and started cutting them for supper. She had discarded the offending carrot along the road where a fortunate mouse or rabbit would find it and have a field day. Her mother was tending to some leeks they would pull out and sell tomorrow.

“How did you do?”

“Mrs Borkereskedő bought so much it allowed me to make a small dent in the tavern debt and I even bought some milk and bread.”

“That’s wonderful dear.” Her mother smiled and kissed her forehead and then they both went indoors. The leeks were big and hearty, and she would get good money for them tomorrow, though she was sure
he
would find something to mock.

One late afternoon after chopping wood for their fire, Kati and her mother were sitting in the front of the house during a brief moment of rest. She loved to play with Kati’s hair, which was straight as needles, and braid it tightly before securing it up in a loop behind the ears. She would say it was to make sure that Kati kept tidy and looked presentable even while she worked but Kati knew that she cherished the few moments they had together when neither of them had anything to do.

Katalina was tall and graceful for her age. Her skin was pale and her eyes were a greyish blue and in the summer freckles peppered her skin. The hair that her mother loved so much was a most unusual auburn, not quite brown and not quite red but with coppery hues that showed best in the sunlight. Tucking a few loose strands into the rest of the braid her mother gazed upwards. The sky was grey and filled with pregnant clouds. The sun hadn't been seen in several hours. “I think we best start thinking of going inside, those clouds mean business,” she said, pulling her shawl over her shoulders and doing the same for her daughter.

At first they didn’t hear the footsteps in the gravel, which was odd because it was always clearly audible when someone approached the house. The gravel had in fact been laid by Kati’s father so he had some warning when someone was coming in order to get out via the back of the house and observe from the forest whether they were there for a good reason or whether they wanted money, which was most often the case. She was almost right in front of them before they noticed her and when they spotted the dark figure in the pathway they were slightly taken aback. They immediately rose to their feet and dropped their heads out of respect.

The only way Kati could describe how she looked was divine. She was so beautiful and so authoritative it was frightening. She stood extremely straight and wore a green velvet bodice and a skirt so dark it appeared black, over a white linen chemise which puffed at the sleeves. The bodice was neatly laced with golden rope at the front and the skirt was delicately embroidered at the base with flowers of gold, silver and red thread and on the front of it hung a fine lace apron, nothing like their rough, torn and heavily soiled ones. Her forehead was large and impressive and her hair hid underneath a white bonnet which was also beautifully and richly embroidered with flowers and vines. Her eyes were such a deep black that Kati could not distinguish the pupil from the iris.

She casually approached the two women and when she spoke Kati could not believe she was being addressed by Countess Erzsébet Báthory herself.

“Please, please, do not be afraid.” Her voice was rich and melodic. They raised their heads and smiled shyly at her.

“What can we do for you, Your Grace?” Asked Kati’s mother.

“I have come to employ your daughter; I am in urgent need of good staff as there has been an outbreak of cholera in the castle and I have lost a great deal of valuable girls. I am completely heartbroken. You spend your life educating these girls and teaching them the joys of work and suddenly God takes them from you so cruelly.” She spoke all the right words, but her tone lacked warmth.

Kati’s mother gripped her daughter’s shoulders as she stood behind her and she could feel the concern in her entire body as it stiffened. “Do not be alarmed however. I believe the malady to have expiated by now. It’s at its worst in the summer and ever since the cooler nights have come we have noticed no one else become unwell. I promise that if by next summer we notice more malady, I will close the castle and move to colder climes with the staff until it dissipates once again.” Kati laughed a little inside at this as she knew it would be of no comfort to her mother. “Also, a group of girls from several noble families are arriving at the castle shortly, to benefit from my tutelage, and I need more staff in order to care for them. The cholera outbreak has left me with too few to be able to proceed with this venture.” She approached the two women and looked at Kati closely, caressing her cheek.

“Such a pretty young thing. Wouldn’t you love to come to my castle and help with these girls Katalina? A little class might even rub off on you and you might learn a thing or two as well,” she said smiling at them. “The pay is twenty five forints a year,” continued the Countess, at which announcement Kati’s heart stopped. That was more money than both she and her mother could expect to make in five years and it would quickly settle her father’s remaining debts, leaving enough to buy some cattle.

“The work is hard and the hours long, but I compensate all my staff well and in time a good match with a boy might be arranged for her.”

Even with her crush on the baker’s boy a match was not something she had considered but she knew it was important to her mother. As for the hours, most of her time was already filled with work and there was never any financial guarantee. To have the prospect of a salary paid for a year was beyond fortunate and she couldn't believe her luck.

“I will be over here while you discuss it, but please do not take too long, I must get back,” the Countess announced as she walked a few paces up the stone walk as quietly as she had arrived.

Kati turned to look at her mother full of expectation and saw fear in her eyes. “I know it sounds ideal, child, but usually when something is too good to be true, it is.”

“But we’ll finally be free, Mother, all the debtors will be gone, we can buy some animals, a loom even! Think about it. I will be out of your way so you won’t have to worry about me and I’ll send you money every month and I’ll come see you every chance I get. It’s not too far away, only a few hours' walk.”

“Only the Lord can set you free, child, no one else. Do not for a moment think that working for a woman like that will be any easier than living as we do now, and I’ve heard whispers in the village that ungodly things are happening in that castle. Have you not wondered why she came here all by herself to tell us? The nobility have staff for these things.”

“Maybe she thought that we might be convinced more easily if she came herself. The Countess, Mama, in person, in our front yard!”

“Oh put your eyes back in your head, child! You can go if you really wish to but be careful for the love of God, I beg of you. And if something happens which you deem to be untoward promise you’ll return to me at once and not be concerned with what the Countess will say. Do you understand me?”

“Yes Mother, I understand and I promise I’ll have eyes in the back of my head!” And with that she ran inside, collected a few of her things in an old pillow case, embraced her mother who would not let her go, and ran towards the Countess who was already walking up the path to her carriage.

The door was opened by the driver, Erzsébet got in and he closed it behind her. He indicated to Kati that she would be sitting next to him at the front so she climbed up. It was the first time she had ever been on a carriage and her excitement was unrestrained.

As they drove off she turned to look at her waving mother, thinking of her tight and unrelenting embrace but brushed it off out of sheer anticipation.
She’s just being overprotective
, she thought to herself.

The carriage set off, slowly building pace the further it got from the house. The cold winter air hit her face with force and made her skin and nose tingle. She felt a snowflake land on her eyelid and immediately thought of the vegetables. She hoped her mother would remember to protect them in the event of snow. The carrots had been left too long in the ground, hence their feeble composition. This winter had thankfully not been too harsh and had not hurt their crops too much. Existence was precarious in these woods for all the residents.