Could my readers have guessed, when I met her in the garden, that Madame Zertha would turn out to be such a remarkably capricious creature?
4. AN OBSCURE STORY HAPPENS AGAIN
One evening I got word that I had won one hundred thousand guilders in the Lottery of The Hague. I walked up and down one of the busy main streets, deep in serious thought. I was thinking about how fortune smiles upon some people who do absolutely nothing to attract its attention whereas there are thousands upon thousands who do everything in their power to be noticed, and fortune turns her face away.
It was about eleven o'clock when I decided to go home and I turned into a small side street when I noticed a female following me.
“Excuse me, sir, but are you not the Baron so-and-so?”
“As far as I know, yes.”
“My mistress inquires if you would be kind enough to exchange a few words…”
“And who is your mistress?”
“Aye, I am not allowed to tell you; but I am sure you will find out for yourself.”
“Well, this looks terribly much like an adventure. I think I will be kind enough.”
“But one more thing… you will have to follow me in the dark, and climb an awful lot of stairs, and you can only talk to Madame in the dark, because if my master… oh, God help my soul.”
“Let's go, dear girl, I am very curious.”
I followed her through the house, through a long and narrow corridor, up two flights of stairs.
“Stop, girl, I have to take a deep breath.”
Curiosity, uncertainty, and a little bit of fear, all had their fingers around my throat. I was also standing a little lower than my charming guide, and thus I happened to throw one arm around her hips while my other hand explored under her skirts. I kissed her.
“Phooey, don't you know that Madame is waiting for you?”
“But tell me, dear girl, what is the purpose of my visit?”
“Patience, my lord-phooey, don't do that! — my master is a real hot-tempered old miser and he expects her in his bed every night by midnight at the latest.”
We climbed another staircase, tiptoed through another long corridor and finally arrived in a large, darkened anteroom.
“Here,” my dear guide said, “sit down.” She arranged a heavily upholstered armchair for me and put a pillow under my feet. “Wait, but if you happen to hear the doors of the big room open, you must get up quickly and hide yourself in this closet. I don't believe it will be necessary, but one can never know what my master will do from one moment to the next.”
She went into the other room which was only very dimly lit and soon thereafter a beautiful figure was standing in the doorway.
I got up.
“Don't get up! Please, remain where you are,” called the beautiful figure, closing the door behind her.
“But, beautiful lady, don't I deserve the pleasure of admiring your beauty in the light?”
“If my husband were to spot a light in this room, that unusual fact would bring him here instantly.”
“Don't you have a room here…?”
“In the presence of my servant? And even more, with the possibility of the tenants in the roof apartments of the neighboring homes gaping and looking in? My dear Baron, I have made perfectly safe arrangements, but please, first answer my question: What do you think of my behavior?”
“I think that the beautiful lady has something of importance to tell me.”
I meanwhile groped around, found and grabbed a soft body, only very thinly dressed. I put it on my lap. She shivered.
“I have put my trust, I hope, in a noble-minded gentleman. I love you! The darkness makes this confession easy for me. I have fought it, and instead of being able to fight an insane desire for you, you can now see the result for yourself.”
I pressed her close to me, kissed the lips that had just spoken so highly of me. They were hot and moist and tasted like pure passion.
Again I asked her for more light on the subject.
“Please allow me my folly, dear Baron. At least for tonight. I promise I will try everything to fulfill your wishes as soon as it is possible.”
My hands felt a bosom as full and fresh as a rose blooming in the morning dew. Her calves and thighs were firm and somewhat large, her hips round and soft, her silken skin was smooth as the finest marble and her love bush, the entrance to her passion pit… oh, my imagination was a marvelous painter.
Her kisses were passionate, her hands feather soft; deep sighs welled up out of her heaving breasts and she embraced me harder and more passionately with every breath.
“Oh, woman, created for loving… and such an uncomfortable place.”
“Not as uncomfortable as you think.”
And the high back of the armchair suddenly reclined. I got up the moment I noticed that and prepared myself for the coming battle. I bedded my sweetheart down; she was glowing all over, and judging from her breathing and her movements one would have sworn that she was already sampling the joys of ecstasy. I was almost right, because when I carefully mounted her and felt my way toward her passion pit, I noticed that it was about to overflow. This made me very passionate and I drove my rod home. Never before had it received such a hearty welcome; the altar graciously swallowed the sacrifice that was brought to it.
My sweetheart embraced me firmly and crushed her lips against mine. Every one of her movements was accompanied by a deep breathing that sounded like mournful sighs. My imagination proved to be very active and helpful; I was afraid that I could no longer control my ever-increasing passion.
“Ooh, you are swelling… ooh!”
“Hold me tight, my love!”
“Lift up… a little bit.”-
I penetrated up to the root and the balsam of life spurted like a jet stream, causing the most delightful sensations.
“Oh, it burns through my veins… what a delicious feeling inside!”
She was moving uncontrollably. I noticed convulsions deep inside her, her breath quivered and a hesitant cooing escaped her throat.
After she had recuperated somewhat, she said, “That must be-the true delight of love. Have pity on me, my dear Baron. For three years now, an old man once in a while sleeps with me and despite all I try, I don't even succeed in making him lukewarm. And worst of all, it sometimes happens that he causes me to feel passionate, only to extinguish that feeling with his cold body. Hush! There he comes, you know what to do.”
The door at the end of the corridor opened, my unknown sweetheart rushed into her room, and I went into the cabinet.
“But why so early tonight, my dear?” I heard her ask.
“I am sleepy,” mumbled the old man, shuffling after her into the room.
Soon thereafter the maid appeared with a light, and opened the cabinet. “Oh, what a beautiful sight,” she said smilingly. “You may have to stay with me for a while till the other servants are asleep.”
“But how could you think, my dear child, that I would leave you? I will stay with you!”
“And what would Madame say about that?”
“You will find out the moment you tell her.”
“Oh no, dear sir, I don't like to pick the bones from somebody else's meal.”
“But I like you, dear girl. I want to stay with you. Where is your bedroom?”
I opened a door, and-sure enough-it was her bedroom. I took the girl by the arm, led her inside and locked the door behind us.
“I believe you are serious.”
“But naturally I am, dear girl.” I took the light out of her hand and put it on the table. Then I pulled my girl toward me on the bed.
“Oh, phooey! Let go of me!”
After a very light struggle, laced with many a “phooey,” she was only wearing a very thin shirt.
“You see, little girl, I am very serious.”
And in no time at all I was standing nude in front of her. She hid her eyes in the hollows of her hands and completely forgot to refuse me when I took off her shirt. She suddenly collapsed in my arms and trembled against me as if she were trying to hide herself.