This chapter ended up being so long I split it in two and will post them a few days apart. I do jump about the ballroom and other areas a bit because a few of the scenes happen simultaneously. And everyone talks talks talks, no one would shut it! I do hope it isn't a confusing read.
Chapter Four
"Sometimes things fall apart so that better things can fall together."-Marilyn Monroe
"So tell me again my dear, just what it is you do for Captain Von Trapp?"
"I-I already told you," Maria stuttered, eyes darting nervously about the ballroom to see if anyone was watching, but they seemed to be tucked back into a corner. While Maria had often taken advantage of the fact that governess, or any of the hired help, was often regarded as invisible she did wish in this once instance someone was paying attention. Twisting her wrist in Herr Zeller's grasp she cursed at herself for playing right into his hands. He and his greasy little mustache had slunk their way to where she had been sitting and stopped to comment on the talent of the children. Uncomfortable with how he seemed to linger over her hand after introducing himself she had stood up to leave when he had circled his wrist with his short beefy fingers and held fast.
"Of course, you said your the governess? Is that all you are?"
Maria's forehead crinkled in confusion, "Well, no. I am a postulant at Nonnberg Abbey as well."
Zeller gave a throaty laugh, "This is priceless. A woman of many talents, a nun and governess, mm?"
"And I really must get back to the children so if you'll excuse me I'll just head back up. I do hope you enjoy your evening, sir," Maria bit off the word, once again trying to worm out of his grasp without success.
"Ah ah," he clucked wagging a finger in her face like a metronome. "I'm not ready to let you go. I have many more questions. So many people are very interested in our Captain, you see. Important people," he emphasized with a squeeze to her wrist.
"Naturally with you living here, under his roof, you might be useful." he said, giving her a cold stare, his beady eyes appearing to move even closer together than before.
"I really don't think I can be of any help to you, or your important people," she said, jerking her arm harder, no longer afraid of what others in the ballroom might think. The champagne in the glass she held in her free hand spilled a bit over the rim and she felt the trickle on her hand.
Zeller pulled her in closer and twisted her wrist, she noticed he was sweating above his hairline, "You have nothing. We could make it worth your while," he pressed, hissing into her ear, foul whiskey scented breath wafting past her. Maria yanked harder, looking across the room for help and finding the Captain absent and Max's back turned as he urgently tried to garner Elsa's attention.
"I'm not finished yet," Zeller snapped, as he redoubled his efforts to hold onto her increasingly slippery wrist.
"Oh yes you are!" Maria shot back, her eyes defiant even as her heart started to hammer with fear. She drew in a breath fully prepared to either make a scene by shouting or to resort to the quick lesson sister Berthe had taught her on how to redirect a man's thoughts back to the Lord with a swift application of the knee.
A loud throat clear caught both of their attention.
"Is there a very good reason you've put your hand on my governess?" Georg asked, interrupting the struggle, slowly smiling a smile that bared his teeth.
Maria felt her shoulders sag with relief and the breath she was holding came out in a rush.
Zeller raised an eyebrow in defiance but dropped Maria's wrist in favor of giving her a leering look from head to toe, "Oh, is that what you call them these days? We used to simply to refer to them as-"
"Don't," Georg growled, stepping closer to Zeller, letting his height loom.
"I was only-"
Georg leaned in as though sharing an intimate joke, his chilly little smile morphing into a predatory grin, "Seconds away from making all my dreams of throwing you, unconscious, from home my come true."
"Threats Captain von Trapp? Perhaps the young lady was enjoying my attentions? I found her sitting here alone. Abandoned by your little pet Detweiler-who incidentally seems to be chatting up you're Baroness. Perhaps your governess prefers to talk to me. Perhaps she'd like a dance?" Zeller asked, reaching a hand out as if to take Maria by the arm again.
Georg looked down and examined the nails on his hand, "Touch her one more time against her wishes and I promise whatever dirty little job the Nazis have offered you will be done from a hospital bed."
"Do have any idea whom you're talking too?" Herr Zeller bristled, even as he stepped backward.
"The same coward who stood in a similar position about twenty years ago," Georg hissed, "and as I recall, you didn't get a dance with the lady then either," he retorted, placing a gentle hand on Maria's lower back briefly to guide her away from Zeller. He resisted the urge to shove her behind his back.
"Yours is she?" he said clucking is tongue in his cheek.
Georg narrowed his eyes, "I protect what is mine, as you well remember, and that includes anyone in my employ. "
"Yes, we were just discussing what you employ her for."
Fists clenched, Georg started forward and a suddenly pale Zeller stepped back. Sensing his prey was weakening Georg sought to press his advantage but he stopped when Maria held up a hand and shook her head in a barely perceptible motion.
"And I told him I was the governess and I really must be getting back to the children," Maria explained calmly, as though soothing the boys after a tussle in the yard, trying to diffuse the situation. Though they seemed to be away from the prying eyes of the party guests she knew a scene wouldn't do any good. Certainly not for her.
Well," Georg drawled, some his cold charming seeping back in as his fury was checked by Maria's calm demeanor, "You've delivered your little offer, now get out."
"Going to have Franz throw me out then? He couldn't weigh more than the little Fraulein here."
"Not at all. What with his bad back. No no. Those gentleman there," Georg gave a wave to a group of burly former naval officers lingering nearby and they waved back, delighted to have been singled out by the Captain.
Georg turned back to Zelelr, "If you and your associates hesitate for a moment to leave my home, those men will be delighted to obey any order I give them, retired or not. They are perfectionists, they will help me ensure you hit every step on the way out."
Herr Zeller stepped further back for good measure as the Captain still had murder in his eyes, and pretended to pick at a spot of link on the lapel of his jacket.
"Well," Zeller stepped back again and drawled, his shaking hand belying his calm tone, "Do let me know when you tire of her von Trapp. The Reich has never had a problem knowing where to put the trash," he hissed looking straight at Maria.
Before Georg could react Maria had already brought the heel of her shoe down as hard as she could onto the toe of Zeller's shiny leather shoes. He let out a high pitched squeal of pain that reminded Georg of Gretl and proceeded to hop and hobble about on one foot.
As soon as Georg had taken off across the ballroom Max grabbed the end of one of Elsa's long white gloves and tugged her a bit closer to the wall.
"Elsa, you know I adore you. But I've heard quite a tale about what you said to Maria-"
"Oh, not you too! Maria is it?"
"Fine, Fraulein Maria, the governess, you were beyond the pale on that one," Max stated evenly, pinning her with one of his rare serious stares. "Overplay your hand and you're going to lose it all if you're not careful. You said it yourself, Georg is not a man to be toyed with. I have known him almost my entire life, what you see is what you get. Are you certain he is what you want to get?"
"Of course I am," Elsa snapped quickly, "Why else would I be here, putting up with the horde of children and that irritating governess?"
Max ran a had through his hair, "This is partly my doing. I pushed and ootched you two together, all that lovely money… But darling, I don't think...the children are part of him and- You need to think carefully about this Elsa. In the end, having seen him here, as he really is, can you-"
"Elsa! There you are!"
A few of the ladies in attendance had circled around Elsa wanting their share of the gossip about whether or not the dashing Captain had popped the question. Max rolled his eyes and snorted, content to eavesdrop and watch the drama unfold on the other end of the room. His eyes widened with sudden alarm as he watched Georg go from charmingly threatening to furious, the square of his shoulders pulling the fabric of his suit jacket taught.
Georg had popped something alright, most likely a blood vessel.
"Elsa," Max whispered, tapping her bare shoulder gently and attempting to interrupt discretely.
"Elsa," he tried a bit louder.
"Elsa!" he whisper shouted. "Oh, I am sorry for startling you ladies but I just remembered something urgent I need to discuss with our glorious girl here. What was that? Uh, yes of course I would love to come back over and discuss how your nephew might use his pet oysters onstage in a performance...uh, if you'll excuse us," he shot them a smile and turned Elsa around to face the increasingly intense standoff happening across the ballroom.
Georg looked ready to peel the skin from Zeller's body, blood spatters on the canapes be damned.
Watching Elsa's eyes widen with comprehension he leaned into her ear, "I think right now might be an opportune moment to go and try to charm Georg into that dance if you don't want your little party to go belly up," he whispered urgently.
"He'll ruin the canapes if he punches him," Elsa whined, eying the table behind Zeller. "Oh, dear lord that upstart mountain child is out of control!" She gave a little stamp of her expensively shod foot.
Max breathed a sigh of relief, "And you might want to include a groveling apology for the governess while you dance," he whispered in her ear, earning a vicious glare from Elsa as he gave the small of her back a firm push to hasten her along as he followed after.
Georg snorted with laughter as Maria glared at Zeller as though considering doing the same damage to the other foot. His bespectacled minion had rushed over and was trying to assist him over to the side of the room.
Maria turned to the closest group of busybodies, who most certainly had noticed the grown man squealing behind them, and gave them a winning smile, "Such a clumsy moment. You know how shoes can be these days," she gestured to her sensible flats and gave a shrug. Several of the men in the group joined Goerg as he laughed and one of them even winked at her.
"I'm sorry about that sir. You'll have to sack me for certain now."
"On the contrary," he said, watching Zeller be dragged away, "I'm going to have to give you hazard pay," his eyes narrowed again as he watched Zeller and his mustache finally reach the doorway out. "I rather wish you had let me hit him," he sighed as though denied a favorite treat, "But I should have known you could rescue yourself."
Georg turned to Maria and smiled, a real smile and jerked his head to indicate the departing Zeller, "Something you, uh, learned at the abbey?"
Maria felt herself smile back, trying to make the right words come out instead of blurting out how handsome he was when he smiled. Giving her head a shake she focused on her hands before speaking.
"Yes, Sister Berthe teaches all the novices in her spare time. They say she can kill a man with only a spoon."
"Really?"
"No," she laughed, "Not really but I have confidence that given enough time she would succeed," Maria quipped, giving a nervous little laugh that quickly faded into awkward silence as they both simply stared, unsure of what to say.
"Would you care to-"
"Captain, I really must-"
They laughed again at their mutual embarrassment. Sensing an opportunity to finish the dance they started Georg held out his arm.
"Would you care to da-"
"I would be delighted darling! How did you know?" Elsa slithered her arm over Georg's and gave Maria a brittle crooked smile.
"I'm certain Fraulein Maria has duties to attend to while the grownups dance, yes?"
Georg shook his head, "I-"
"I do hope your enjoying your evening Maria," Elsa fluttered her lashes and offered a snide little smile as she drug Georg onto the dance floor.
Max turned to Maria, for once in his life without a single word to say. He simply reached out and rested his hand on her shoulder and wondered of the right thing to do was to ask her to dance or to escort her back upstairs where she had been trying to escape to all night. He was about to open his mouth and give voice to her options when he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Matthew, delighted to see you my boy!" Max giving the tall blond lad beside him a clap on the back, glad for the interruption. "I saw your father in Vienna a few weeks ago, he mentioned you would be here in Salzburg for a few months. I am so glad I will be able to tell him you were looking as strapping as ever!"
"Yes, sir. My father is here tonight someplace, most likely sitting down and holding court, at his age it is his privilege. It is good to see you as well," he said to Max while keeping both his eyes on Maria. Max, following the line of his gaze and the distracted note in his voice rushed to make introductions, gleefully aware that a little competition for Maria could be just what georg needed.
"Oh, how remiss of me! Matthew Schwanzer this is Maria Rainer," Max said, stepping back a bit to give them room to clasp hands.
"I wouldn't want to intrude if you had already claimed a dance Herr Detweiler, but if you haven't I was hoping you might honor me?" Matthew smiled a sweet smile and held out a hand.
Maria flicked her eyes at Max who gave her a wink and turned to Matthew, "I would be delighted sir, thank you. If you'll excuse me Herr Detweiler."
Max watched as she was whirled off with a sly smile on his face. A little competition for the Fraulein might light a fire under Georg… Who was he kidding? It wouldn't do him any harm either, considering he was partly responsible for this charade. Now where had that waiter gone with the champagne?
Georg was seething, the anger and frustration pouring off his skin and making the room feel much warmer than it ought. He resisted the urge to tuck his finger in his collar and tug at it to loosen the constriction on his airway.
"Do stop fidgeting Georg! I can feel you twitching underneath your jacket," Elsa admonished, enjoying the eyes on her and Georg as he swept her in a turn.
"Elsa, it's no use."
"Of course it is, you're a grown man. You can control your fidgets,"
"No. I meant this, us, I can't, won't do this to you. I have been unfair. To both of us. I hid so well, pushing away who I was, am, that you believed me to be the worst kind of reprobate. You knew one man in Vienna and met a stranger in my house and for that I am sorry."
"Georg, we have known one another a long time and I think I know you well enough. But we can talk about this later, not in the middle of a dance floor," Elsa looked pointedly around at the people surrounding them.
As the music ended Georg dropped his arms from her body and and gave her a customarily little bow, "Elsa, it's over for me. You deserve someone who can love you-"
"No. I deserve you. I can make you see reason. I refuse to lose you to her."
Georg watched as she walked away, knowing he was already lost.
After the very delightfully polite Matthew, Maria found herself rather the almost the belle of the ball as more than one young man, a one very elderly one, asked her for a dance.
While she enjoyed their attention, and the fact that dancing with all these men would give Sister Berthe heartburn, she was always conscious of where the Captain was in the ballroom. She had caught his eye by accident trying not to stare more than once. She was embarrassed to admit she didn't remember the name of the man she was dancing with, when they had been introduced she had been staring, again.
As she followed his lead around the floor she realized that perhaps that was all it was ever going to be. Staring at a man who might return her affections but could certainly never act on them. She caught sight of him on the other side of the room, making a group of gorgeously dressed admirers laugh at something he said, Elsa hanging of his words and his arm.
Thanking the gentleman as the dance ended she found the edge of room and hoped to slip away quietly, pack her things, and return to the abbey where she belonged. At least for now. Maybe this window had been opened to her so that she might explore what else her life could be outside of the abbey. She could have a family. She could dare to have a different future, but not until her heart had finished breaking for this one.
"Leaving?" Max said, stepping out of the shadow of a pillar behind the stairs in the great echoing foyer.
"Herr Detweiler-"
""Ah, we agreed on Max, yes?"
"Max. Yes, I think it's best. I am in my way up now to pack my things."
"Pack? I wish you wouldn't."
"And I appreciate it, all your help tonight. But this isn't my world. I belong at the abbey, where it's safe."
"He needs you."
Maria looked back through the open doors of the ballroom and shook her head, "But he seems to want her," she said sadly, her eyes fixed on the happy couple just inside her field of vision and her eyes welled with tears. They appeared so perfect, a matched salt and pepper shaker whose movements seemed choreographed. One dark, one light, both beautiful. She looked down at her hands, rough from a lifetime of chores and she knew she was more suited to polishing the floor of the ballroom with a mop than fine satin shoes.
"Appearances can be deceiving… In the beginning, perhaps, but now? He wants to want her. There's a difference."
"Not in my mind," she acknowledged, a tear escaping despite her best efforts. The strain of the evening was beginning to make her head hurt and she simply wanted to go home, wherever that may be.
Max held out a lily white handkerchief, "Elsa Schrader, love her though I do-warts and all, is the safe and easy choice, it costs him nothing, certainly not his heart. You my dear girl, you would be the hard choice, because you ask for nothing and he can't help but give you everything."
"She shouldn't want him to be less than he is."
"No, she shouldn't. But loneliness makes us do things we might regret in the end."
"Then I am sorry for her. But I cannot stay here. Surely you must see that?"
"If you insist I will drive you myself to the abbey in the morning. Don't go out into the night and don't leave without saying goodbye the children. The heartbreak and weeping would bring the walls down around us."
Maria gave a weak smile and nodded, "I'll stay until morning then. Hopefully arrangements can be made soon for another governess."
Max snorted, "Doubtful."
Maria raised a brow in question.
"You'd be surprised, their little reputations proceed them."
Maria gave him a genuine smile, "I think I'll go and have walk by the lake, clear my head of all this rich food and champagne."
Max raised his glass to her in salute, "Good evening, Fraulein," and headed back into the ballroom to give Georg a shove in the direction of the lake.
Headfirst if necessary.
A very big thank you to all of you who have read or left a review or favorited this. Hugs to everyone!
One last chapter to go! Oddly enough it's the very first one I wrote for this little story because it has all the kisses and I like to have dessert first!