The Keep

Why, then, was she eavesdropping? It was not like her.

She heard a heavy tread on the front stoop, and then on the floor as the man entered. His voice echoed up the stairwell.

"Ah, i

"Yes ... yes, sir." Iuliu's voice sounded hoarse, strained, frightened.

"Can you do it?"

"Yes. I—I'll have my nephew come over right away."

"And a room for myself."

"We have two left. Please sign."

There was a pause. "You can give me the one directly overhead—the one on the north side."

"Uh, pardon, sir, but you must put your surname. 'Gle

"Do you have anyone else named Gle

"No."

"Is there anyone else in the area named Gle

"No, but—"

"Then Gle

"Very well, sir. But I must tell you that the north room is occupied. You may have the east room."

"Whoever it is, tell him to switch rooms. I'll pay extra."

"It's not a him, sir. It's a her, and I don't think she'll move."

How very true, Iuliu, Magda thought.

"Tell her!" It was a command, in a tone not to be denied.

As Magda heard Iuliu's scurrying feet approach the stairs, she ducked into her room and waited. The stranger's attitude infuriated her. And what had he done to frighten Iuliu so?

She opened her door at the first knock and stared at the portly i

"Please, Domnisoara Cuza," he blurted, "there's a man downstairs who wants this room. Will you please let him have it? Please?"

He was whining. Pleading. Magda felt sorry for him, but she was not going to give up this room.

"Absolutely not!" She began to close the door but he put his hand out.

"But you must!"

"I will not, Iuliu. And that's final!"

"Then would you ... would you tell him. Please?"

"Why are you so afraid of him? Who is he?"

"I don't know who he is. And I'm not really..." His voice trailed off. "Won't you please tell him for me?"

Iuliu was actually quivering with fear. Magda's first impulse was to let the i

"Of course I'll tell him."

She squeezed past Iuliu and hurried down the steps. The man was waiting impassively in the foyer, casually and confidently leaning on the long, flat box she had previously seen strapped to the horse's flank. It was the first time she had seen him in the light and she reconsidered her initial assessment. Yes, he was grimy, and she could smell him from the foot of the stairs, but his features were even, his nose long and straight, his cheekbones high. She noticed how truly red his hair was, like a dark flame; a bit wild and overlong, perhaps, but that, like his odor, could well be the natural result of a long, hard trip. His eyes held her for a moment, startling in their blueness, their clarity. The only jarring note in his appearance was the olive tone of his skin—out of place in the company of his hair and eyes.

"I thought it might be you."

"I'm keeping my room."

"I require it," he said, straightening up.

"It's mine for now. You're welcome to it when I leave."

He took a step toward her. "It's important that I have a northern exposure. I—"

"I have my own reasons for wanting to keep my eye on the keep," Magda said, cutting him off from another lie, "just as I'm sure you have yours. But mine are of great personal importance. I will not leave."

His eyes blazed suddenly, and for an instant Magda was afraid she had overstepped her bounds. Just as suddenly, he cooled and stepped back, a half-smile playing about the corners of his mouth.

"You're obviously not from around here."

"Bucharest."

"I thought as much." Magda caught a hint of something in his eyes, something akin to grudging respect. But that didn't seem right. Why would he look at her that way when she was blocking him from what he wanted? "You won't reconsider?" he said.

"No."

"Ah, well," he sighed, "an eastern exposure it is, then. I

Iuliu came rushing down the stairs, nearly tripping in his haste. "Right away, sir. The room to the right at the top of the stairs is all ready for you. I'll take this—" He reached for the case but Gle

"I can handle that very well by myself. But there's a blanket roll on the back of my horse that I'll be needing." He started up the stairs. "And be sure to see to that horse! She's a good and true beast." With a brief parting glance at Magda, a glance that stirred an unfamiliar but not unpleasant sensation within her, he went up the steps two at a time. "And draw me a bath immediately!"

"Yes, sir!" Iuliu leaned over to Magda and clasped both her hands in his. "Thank you!" he whispered, still frightened, but apparently less so. He then rushed out to the horse.

Magda stood in the middle of the foyer for a moment, wondering at the evening's strange chain of events. There were unanswered questions here at the i

The keep! She had forgotten about Papa! She hurried up the stairs, passing the closed door to Gle

She sighed with relief and lay back on the bed. A bed ... a real bed. Maybe everything would turn out all right tonight after all. She smiled to herself. No, that tactic wasn't going to work. Something was going to happen. She closed her eyes against the light of the guttering candle atop the dresser, its glow doubled by the mirror behind it. She was tired. If for just a minute she could rest her eyes, she'd be better ... think about good things, like Papa being allowed to go back to Bucharest with her, fleeing the Germans and that hideous manifestation...

The sound of movement out in the hall drew her thoughts away from the keep. It sounded like that man, Gle

Nothing made sense anymore ... her thoughts drifted...

The sound of a door closing startled her awake. It was not her own. It must have been Gle

There was no sound from below, but she could make out the dim shape of a man moving along the path toward the causeway. His movements were catlike. Silent. She was sure it was Gle