If There Was Love For Me

4 - Tell Me A Secret

It was a hot summer afternoon and the women had decided to take their tea in the shade of a large chestnut tree. Even with the guards fanning them everybody felt drained by the heat and bored by their own exhaustion.

"This is horrid," exclaimed the princess. "I am bored, and there is nothing that will entertain me. Can somebody think of something to busy our self until the sun goes down?"

"Maybe Maria can tell us something about her self!" exclaimed Charlotte. "She has been with us for almost two weeks, but still we don't know anything interesting about her."

"I am afraid there is not much interesting about me, but if you ask I will answer."

"Oh, that will not do," complained Francesca. "We don't know what to ask to get something interesting out of you, that is the whole problem. You must tell something private, something you don't tell everybody, or if you can't think of something you must at least talk on your own, with out being asked by us."

With the eyes of four ladies, all of them of higher standing and on of them the princess, on her, Maria didn't have a choice but to agree.

"Anything for your amusement. So when I was born, my parents were just starting their social climb. My fathers trading company had just become the strongest global company. Sadly he disappeared shortly after my birth and my mother was left alone to tend to me and secure our finances. I barely remember that time, but she managed to use her old connections to first get a place in the palace and finally earn the interest of the king. Thanks to her I have had an easy life with all the education and possibilities I could want."

"What do you mean your father disappeared?" asked Lillian, the second that Maria paused in her speech.

"Oh." Maria looked at her hands, playing with the piece of cake she had been eating with her tea. "Well, he had a lot of work and as a baby I cried a lot, so he couldn't stay with us..."

"But is it true, that your parents are not together anymore?" A gasp ran through the other listeners, as Lillian looked to the ground guiltily. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be indiscreet. You don't have to answer."

"Oh no, you can't start such an interesting story and then leave us hanging. You have to tell, we promise to keep it secret, won't we, Gwinewith?" asked Francesca.

"Let us swear on our lives. We will not tell a soul each other secret and if our life depended on it."

"We swear," agreed the others.

The afternoon was still as hot and sunny, with insects resting their wings on flower petals and not a single cloud on the blue sky. Now it seemed inappropriate for the dark tale Maria was about to tell.

"It is true that my parents are separated. When my mom became pregnant and my father expected a boy, a heir he could leave his company to. Then, when I was born, he... he decided to try to find another woman to give him a son."

"But if your mother is..." Charlotte lowered her voice before she said the next word, "divorced, how can you even be here?"

"Yea, shouldn't you two be in a breadhouse or some other place like this? In your situation you would be lucky to even have a house. You should not be in the palace, with the princess." Francesca continued talking, even when the princess gave her a light slap on the arm.

"Don't be rude. We have taken Maria in as one of our own, and her mother is greatly valued by my father. But still, Maria, how did your mother get here, if she came from such unfortunate circumstances?"

"I am afraid I have to ask the same question," explained Maria. The princesses response had increased her ability to speak freely, despite the dark subject of her tale. "You must understand, I had just been born. I barely remember a time before the palace, and the memories I have are of playing with dolls and crying about having to brush my hair. I can only tell you the few things my mother has told me. After my father left us she had no money, but she still had her old connections and quickly found a friend she could stay with. Like that she worked her self through her connections until a baroness invited her to accompany her to a ball in the palace. Like that she met the king and, after managing to find other reasons to visit the palace again, she finally convinced him to make her his mistress. I was staying with different friends of her during all of this. I think I was eight when I finally was allowed to come to the palace, and I didn't recognize my own mother."

There was an awkward silence, before the princess rose from her spot on the grass, and went to give Maria a hug. They were both hot, both of them were covered in sweat, and the hug was awkward and short lived. Still Maria was touched by the gesture.

"It is so brave that you told us," agreed Charlotte and offered a genuine smile.