The Storm Sister (The Seven Sisters #2) (24 page)

‘I wish to know, Anna, if Herr Bayer had not asked you to go with him to Christiania, whether you would have accepted a proposal of marriage?’

As she thought of all he had done to help her last winter and how fond of him she was, she knew there was only one answer she could give.

‘I would have said yes.’

‘Thank you,’ he said, relief obvious in his expression. ‘So, your father and I have agreed that, given the circumstances, the contracts for the purchase of my family’s
land will be drawn up immediately. Then I will wait for you for a year whilst you go to Christiania. Once you return, I will formally propose to you.’

At this, Anna began to panic. Lars had misunderstood. If he had asked her if she
loved
him like he said he loved her, she would have replied that she didn’t.

‘Anna, do you agree?’

Silence hung over the parlour as Anna tried to gather her thoughts.

‘I hope that you can learn to love me as I do you,’ he said quietly. ‘And perhaps one day, we will travel to America together and begin a new life there. Now, this is for you,
as a seal on our unofficial promise to each other. More useful than a ring, at least for now, I think.’ He reached into his waistcoat pocket and pulled out a long, thin wooden box and gave it
to her.

‘I . . . thank you.’ Brushing her fingers over the polished wood, Anna opened it. Nestled inside lay the most beautiful writing pen she had ever seen, and she knew it must have cost
him dearly. The pen holder was carved out of a light pine, elegantly curved to fit perfectly into her hand, and the nib ended in a delicate point. She held it just as Lars had taught her to. Even
if she didn’t love him or want to marry him, his gift touched her heart and made her eyes brim with tears.

‘Lars, it is the finest thing I have ever owned.’

‘I will wait for you, Anna,’ he said. ‘And perhaps you can use the ink pen to write me letters describing your new life in Christiania?’

‘Of course.’

‘And you agree we will become formally betrothed next year when you are returned from Christiania?’

Feeling the full force of his love and looking down at her beautiful ink pen, Anna felt she could only say one thing.

‘Yes.’

His face broke into a wide smile. ‘Then I am content. Now, we will go and announce to your parents that we have reached an agreement.’ Lars stood up, and took her hand in his. He
bent his head towards it and kissed it. ‘My Anna. Let us hope that God treats us both kindly.’

Two days later, all disturbing thoughts of Lars and what would happen in a year’s time were wiped from Anna’s mind as she rose early to embark on the long journey
to Christiana. Feeling sick with nerves, she could barely force down the special pancakes that her mother had made her for breakfast. As Anders announced it was time to be on their way, Anna stood
up, her legs feeling like goat’s cheese beneath her. Glancing around the cosy kitchen one last time, she felt a sudden desperate urge to unpack her valise and call the whole thing off.

‘It’s all right,
kjære
,’ Berit said, stroking Anna’s long curls to calm her as they embraced, ‘you’ll be back to visit before you know it. Just
don’t forget to say your prayers every night, attend church on Sunday and brush your hair properly.’

‘Mor, stop your fussing or she’ll never get there,’ said Knut dryly, taking his sister in his arms. ‘And don’t forget to have lots of fun,’ he whispered in
her ear, before thumbing the tears from her cheeks.

Her father drove her in their horse and cart to the town of Drammen – almost a day’s journey away – from where she would take a train to the city with Pastor Erslev. They
stayed overnight in a modest guesthouse that also had stabling for the horse, so that they could be up bright and early to get to the railway station in plenty of time for Anna’s train.

Pastor Erslev was waiting on the platform, which was crowded with fellow travellers. When the train finally chugged in, she felt overwhelmed by the hissing plumes of steam and the noise of the
screeching brakes as the passengers hurried to climb on-board. Anders helped her with the capacious valise as they followed the pastor towards the train.

‘Far, I’m so scared,’ she whispered.

‘My Anna, if you find yourself unhappy, you can simply come home,’ he replied gently, reaching out a hand to stroke her cheek. ‘Now, let’s get you settled
on-board.’

They mounted the steps of the train then made their way through the carriage to find seats for the two travellers. After Anders had hoisted her valise onto the metal rack above her head, the
guard blew his whistle and her father bent down swiftly to kiss Anna goodbye. ‘Make sure you write to Lars regularly so we can all hear how you are getting on and remember what an honour has
been bestowed upon you. Show those city folk that their country brethren know how to behave.’

‘I will, Far, I promise.’

‘Good girl. We will see you at Christmas. The Lord bless you, and keep you safe. Goodbye.’

‘Rest assured I will deliver her into Herr Bayer’s safekeeping,’ Pastor Erslev said as he shook hands with Anders.

Anna did her best not to cry as her father left the train, coming alongside to wave her off through the window. But the train moved forward with a jolt and her father’s face soon
disappeared into the clouds of steam.

As Pastor Erslev opened his prayer book, Anna amused herself by looking round the carriage at the other occupants and felt suddenly conspicuous in her traditional dress. The rest of the men and
women wore smart town clothes, making Anna feel exactly like the peasant she was. Reaching inside the pockets of her skirt, she pulled out the letter that Lars had given her yesterday when
they’d said their farewells. He’d made her promise not to read it until she was on her way. Exaggerating the movement, just to show the other residents of the carriage that she might be
a country girl but that she could
read
, Anna opened the seal.

The words in front of her, scripted in Lars’ neat writing, presented her with a challenge, but she doggedly persevered.

Anna folded the letter carefully and replaced it in her pocket. She found it difficult to equate the physical being of Lars, who was so awkward and quiet, with the flowing
eloquence of the words he had written in the letter. As the train chugged towards Christiania and she watched Pastor Erslev dozing in the seat opposite her, a small drip of moisture hanging
perilously from the end of his nose and never quite falling, Anna quashed the surge of panic she felt every time she thought of her forthcoming marriage. However, a year was a very long time in
which many things might happen. People could be struck by lightning, or catch a bad chest cold and die.
She
might die, she thought, as the train lurched to the right suddenly. And with
that thought, Anna closed her eyes and tried to take some rest.

‘Good day, Pastor Erslev! And my dear Frøken Landvik, allow me to welcome you to Christiania. May I ask the favour of calling you Anna, given that we will be
living in such close quarters?’ Herr Bayer asked her as he took her valise and helped her down from the train.

‘Yes, of course, sir,’ Anna replied shyly.

‘How was your journey, Pastor Erslev?’ Herr Bayer asked the elderly priest as he limped along the bustling platform beside them.

‘It was comfortable, thank you. Now, my duty is done and I can see Pastor Eriksonn waiting for me,’ he said as he gave a wave to a small bald man dressed in identical robes to
himself. ‘So I will say goodbye, Anna.’

‘Goodbye, Pastor Erslev.’

Anna watched the last link to all she had ever known disappear through the gates of the station and out onto a busy road where a number of horse-drawn carriages were waiting.

‘Here, we too will hire one of these to speed us home. Normally I take the tram, but I fear it may be too much for you after your long journey.’

Having issued instructions to the driver, Herr Bayer helped Anna inside. As she sat down on the bench, upholstered in a soft red fabric and far more comfortable than her family’s special
settle at home, she felt thrilled to be travelling in such opulent style.

‘It is only a short ride to my apartment,’ Herr Bayer commented. ‘And my housekeeper has prepared us some supper. You must be hungry after your journey.’

Anna secretly hoped that the journey in the carriage would take a very long time. She pushed aside the little brocade curtains and peered out of the window in wonder as they rode into the centre
of the city. Rather than the rough narrow tracks that criss-crossed the town of Skien, here the thoroughfares were wide, tree-lined and very busy. They passed a horse-drawn tram, its passengers
dressed smartly, the mens’ heads crowned with shiny top hats and the womens’ with extravagant creations adorned with flowers and ribbons. Anna tried to imagine herself wearing the same
and suppressed a giggle.

‘Of course there is much to discuss,’ Herr Bayer went on, ‘but we have plenty of time until . . .’

‘Until what, sir?’ Anna asked.

‘Oh, until you are ready to greet a wider public, my dear young lady. Now, here we are.’ He opened the window and called out to the driver to pull the carriage over. As he helped
Anna step out and then collected her valise, she looked up at the tall stone building whose many floors with glinting windows seemed to stretch high up to the heavens above her.

‘Sadly, we are yet to have one of those newfangled lift machines installed, so we must take the stairs,’ he instructed her as they entered through the grand double doors and stood in
the echoing marble-floored entrance hall. ‘When I reach the apartment,’ Herr Bayer commented as they began to ascend the curved staircase with its gleaming brass handrail, ‘at
least I feel as though I have earned my supper!’

Anna only counted three short flights of stairs, which felt far easier to climb than a mountain slope in the rain, before Herr Bayer led her along a wide corridor and unlocked a door.

‘Frøken Olsdatter, we are back and Anna is here!’ he called out as he led her along a passageway and into a huge drawing room, its walls covered in rich ruby-red wallpaper and
containing a set of the biggest glass windows she’d ever seen.

‘Where has that woman got to?’ complained Herr Bayer. ‘Excuse me one moment, Anna my dear, whilst I go and find her. Please, sit down and make yourself comfortable.’

Anna was too tense to be still, so instead she took the opportunity to study the room. Beside one of the windows stood a grand piano, and underneath another a huge mahogany desk overflowed with
piles of sheet music. The centre of the room was dominated by a large and far grander version of her family’s settle. Facing it were two elegant chairs covered in matching pink and brown
striped material, and in between stood a low table made of handsome dark wood, piled high with books and a collection of snuff boxes. The walls were adorned with oil paintings of countryside
landscapes, not unlike the vistas that surrounded her home in Heddal. There were also a number of framed certificates and letters. One of them caught her eye, and she walked forwards to look more
closely.