of nourishment, he thought, was becoming ridiculously complex.
“You did what?” James exclaimed, outraged. He had come back to the sitting room some ten minutes before and had tried to listen in reserved silence to what Saint-Germain was telling him.
“I saw that she was fed and given a room. I’m sorry that this adds so many complications. Had Roger been able to reach Mirelle, the problem would not have arisen.” He was unruffled by James’ outburst.
“First, you send your valet out to get a cooperative widow for me, and when that doesn’t work because he can’t get through to the village, he brings a half-starved Austrian refugee here as a weird kind of substitute, never mind what the poor woman thinks, being half kidnapped. Second, you think I’ll go along with this impossible scheme. Third, you’re telling me that you bring women here the way some cooks rustle up a half a dozen eggs, and I’m supposed to be grateful?” His voice had risen to a shout, as much to conceal the guilty pleasure he felt at the prospect of so tantalizing a meeting.
“Mister Tree, if there were not a war going on, all this would be handled differently. It may surprise you to know that I am not in the habit of ‘rustling up,’ as you say, cooperative widows or anyone else, for that matter. However, your situation will be critical soon, if something is not done, and I had hoped to find as undisruptive a solution as possible.”
“Well, you sure as hell botched it,” James said, taking secret pleasure in seeing this elegant stranger at a loss.
“Lamentably, I must concur.” He thrust his hands into his pockets and started toward the door.
James could not resist a parting shot. “You mean you were going to lay out a woman for me, like a smorgasbord, so I could …”
Saint-Germain’s mobile lips turned down in disgust “What do you take me for, Mister Tree? Mirelle knows what I am and finds it most satisfying. She would enjoy the … variety you would offer her. Good God, you don’t believe that I would expose a woman like Madame Kunst to what we are, do you? She understands there is a man here suffering from battle fatigue, and is prepared to make allowances. It is dangerous and unwise to spend time with those who are repelled by us. If you are to survive in this life, you must learn to be circumspect.” He reached for the door, then added, “Roger found the two boxes of earth from Denver, and that will afford you some relief, but not, I fear, a great deal.”
“Earth from Denver?” James echoed.
“Of course. When Madelaine knew that you would walk after death, she arranged to have two cartons of your native earth shipped here, in case it was needed.” It was said lightly, but the significance did not escape James. “She had stored it in the stables, and Roger did not find it until late afternoon.”
“Earth from Denver. I can’t believe it.” There would have been comfort and denial in laughter, but James could not summon any.
“She cares what happens to you, Mister Tree. It was not whim but concern for your welfare that made her get those two boxes.” He opened the door wide and stepped into the hall. His face was clouded with thought and he made his way slowly to the kitchen.
Roger looked up as Saint-Germain came quietly through the door. “She’s bathed and gone to bed.”
“Good. Did you learn anything more?” He was frowning slightly; there was an indefinable restlessness about him.
“Nothing significant. She’s twenty-nine, comes from Salzburg. She used to teach school, her husband …”
“Gunther?”
“Yes. He was an attorney, I gather.” He finished tidying the clutter in the kitchen and turned to bank the coals in the huge, wood-burning stove.
“Do you believe her?” Saint-Germain asked quietly.
“That she was a teacher and her husband an attorney, yes. The rest, I don’t know.” Roger closed the fuelbox and wiped his hands on a rag, leaving blackened smudges on the worn cloth.
“Nor do I,” Saint-Germain admitted. “It may only be shock, but. But.”
Roger blew out one of the kerosene lanterns. “Is she what she seems?”
“Superficially, no doubt,” Saint-Germain said measuredly. “And everything she has told us may be true. If that’s the case, she might be blackmailed. If she has children, and they are held by the SS, she might undertake almost anything to save them. Because if she is what she claims to be, and wants to