The Noble Ladies' Orphanage

Chapter 3

The Roths' torch-lit carriage rumbled through the cobblestone streets of Brno on its way to the Reduta Theatre. A young footman hung off the back of the carriage, soaking in the spring breeze. The sun had set behind the two-story buildings in the center of Brno, but had left some of its red glow on the buildings' facades.

Inside the carriage, Captain and Mistress Roth sat across from their two daughters. "It's by that fellow Shakespeare," Captain Roth said. "I hear it's quite good. Richter saw it when he was in Germany, and it was performed by the same troupe that's performing here in Brno tonight."

"I can't wait!" Claudia said, clapping her hands together. "Are many of the soldiers going to be there, Father?"

Captain Roth chuckled. "Oh, probably so, Claus. Probably so. But you must behave yourself," he added. He winked at his other daughter Maria, who was seated beside her sister. Maria smiled at her father. He looked so handsome in his captain's uniform with the feather in his hat. His reddish hair curled around his ruddy face.

"As if you cared, Balthasar," Mrs. Roth said. She smoothed the chestnut ringlets around her face as she looked out the carriage window. Her brown eyes passed over the city streets but seemed to take in nothing.

"And what do you mean by that, may I ask?" Captain Roth demanded.

Mrs. Roth raised her perfect eyebrows in mock surprise. "Oh nothing. Only, I mean that you'll be too busy drinking to notice what your daughters are doing during the play. That's all," Mrs. Roth said. The carriage slowed down as it approached the theatre. Several other carriages waited in front of them.

"Too busy drinking," Captain Roth muttered. He continued to mutter under his breath as Mrs. Roth stretched her aging neck out of the open window.

"Hello! Hello!" Mrs. Roth said to someone outside. Her face suddenly became animated as she saw people she knew. She waved her fan out the window and exchanged greetings with someone on the sidewalk.

"Father, what else do you know about the play?" Maria asked.

"What's that?" Captain Roth asked. When he turned to look at his elder daughter, the furrowed brow smoothed out. "The play? Well, it's rather an old play—almost a hundred years old, I believe. In England it's been a huge success. That young Dr. Richter from Strasbourg said he's seen it several times. I suspect we'll see him here tonight. He's rather a good fellow, eh Maria?"

"I suppose so," Maria said. The carriage stopped, and the young footman opened the carriage door. Mrs. Roth stepped out first, carefully arranging her flounced skirts and train behind her. Claudia followed her mother, who had already enveloped herself in a group of soldiers and silk-gowned women standing outside the theatre door. Maria took her father's arm, and they entered the theatre.

Inside, the torches were already lit. It was warm, and Maria was glad that she'd worn a lightweight dress, even though it was only late March. Here and there, soldiers rose to their feet and bowed to Captain Roth as he walked by. Maria avoided the soldiers' eyes and focused her attention on the stage, which was decked with fresh flowers and garlands.

"Now where did they go?" Captain Roth asked. Just then, Maria heard her mother's and sister's laughter and turned to see them surrounded by a group of smiling soldiers.

"Insufferable, simply insufferable," Mrs. Roth was saying. Claudia was nodding her head and trying to smother her laughter with a gloved hand.

"Could we sit down?" Maria asked her father.

"Yes, let's," he said. He led her to their seats near the front of the theatre. Captain Roth spoke jovially with the young man next to him, who was also in a military uniform.