The labourers and Mauri, a tight, armed group, stand in front of Henrik, still seated on the steps. Only now do I notice that one of the workers is dangling an axe against his thigh and the other has grabbed a knife sticking out from his belt. Mauri looks like an armed little boy, sheltered between them. At a distance, Erik is tramping restlessly back and forth, back and forth. Anna is staring at the field with her face in her hands and the Farmhand has started towards me, trudging slowly, his head and shoulders bowed.
When he reaches me, he raises his head. I know the old scoundrel well enough to see he is about to explode with laughter.
Just my luck, getting mixed up in this mess. I would have had to get involved sooner or later, of course, in my official capacity. But I would have dealt with the matter in the usual fashion and summoned the parties to my office. I would not have made this long journey simply to ruin a few people’s lives. Not that these peasants and their plots are any concern of mine. I do feel rather sorry for the Old Mistress, though.
Cursed be the day when that Mauri person turned up to talk to me. It seemed like a perfectly ordinary day to begin with. I had enjoyed my breakfast at leisure and wished my lady wife God’s grace for the day. As usual I had gone the short distance to my office by foot. Upon arriving, I noticed a lowly creature crouching on the bench. I did not think much of it. I let him wait a good while before I saw him. Experience has taught me that haste is not advisable when one is carrying out official duties. When I finally ordered that he be admitted, I did not at first look up from my papers. Instead I let him stand there in front of my desk, another trick experience has taught me. It gives all those whiners who flock to see me the chance to put their message into words. When I did look up, I saw a runt of a man eyeing me feverishly. He had an unnaturally large head. His beard was so scanty that no self-respecting burgher would think it fit for his maid’s yard-broom.
He made a clumsy attempt to bow. Then, with a trembling hand, he passed over a couple of sheets of paper. He said in a shrill, womanish voice, ‘I’ve got these certificates, see.’
I was surprised when I saw what they were. I had not expected that. He and his papers did not go together; they were at odds with each other, like a tramp strolling around in the drawing room of a mansion, or a nobleman on a dunghill holding a pitchfork. On the other hand, I have seen both in my time, so I merely nodded and put the sheets down.
‘I want all this done quick,’ he said.
‘The matter will be settled in good time,’ I replied. ‘I’m sure sir understands that, given the current circumstances, the matter cannot be hurried.’
‘Why not? It’s all there in black and white.’
‘The documents are sure to be in order, but times have changed. Has sir not noticed that we’ve become part of an empire? Such a change means extensive reorganization.’
He started chewing air, shocked. He masticated away, quite as if his mouth were full of tobacco. He carried on like that for a while, before asking, in a voice that was hoarse with stubbornness, ‘The law’s not on my side, then?’
I could have revealed to him the real situation and explained that I was not that clear about my powers and therefore not willing to take any action. I said, ‘The new situation demands that I receive confirmation of the relevant sections of the law and how they are to be put into practice. And that may take time.’
‘I haven’t got time,’ he said. ‘My time was up long ago.’
I spread my hands. ‘I can’t do anything about that. Sir will just have to wait.’
‘And is that Mr Crown Bailiff’s last word?’ he asked. If he could have spat bullets out of his eyes, you would have been able to see through the holes in my face. ‘That I can’t get justice in this matter?’
I was growing seriously irritated with him. I said, ‘Sir will get justice all right. But sir shouldn’t imagine that the whole realm dances to his tune. Just leave your address in the office, go home and wait till you’re summoned again for a hearing.’
‘And the papers?’
‘They’ll stay here for the forthcoming proceedings.’
‘How do I know they’re safe?’
I stood up, staying calm, and walked round my desk. ‘The clerk will give you a certificate with the official stamp of the Empire for the papers and their contents.’
His eyes darted about wildly. ‘A certificate for the certificates?’
I opened the door for him with my own hands. ‘Exactly. Please go now. And wait.’
Perhaps it was at that very moment that he made up his mind not to wait. I suspected nothing. I forgot him before the day was done. Nothing in my career had prepared me for it: that raggedy dwarf turned out to be the most devious and unscrupulous crook I have ever encountered.
I do not completely dismiss the notion that higher powers intervened in my fate, punishing me for my immoral conduct. If my offence comes to light some day, despite all my precautions, I will appeal to the fact that the harlot was put in my way maliciously, as a temptation. A man who has carried out heavy official duties for decades should be judged by different standards from those applied to some dung-cart driver or ploughman. And the conclusions drawn when judging his actions should surely also differ. I undoubtedly did wrong in getting mixed up with that slattern, but there are mitigating circumstances. Unfortunately, they are unlikely to impress my lady wife.
I suppose I fell for the whore’s youth. A man of a certain age knows when he is over the hill. The valley looms down below and the man grows anxious. He is moved to mourn all the chances he thinks are lost. I was unexpectedly offered such a chance. It was positively handed to me on a platter. I happened to pay a brief visit to the salon on the outskirts of the town. No one could count me among its regular clientele, but nonetheless, I occasionally found my way there in order to escape the toll exacted by my heavy workload. I thought I would just sit down for a while, drink a well-deserved glass of liqueur and maybe smoke a pipe, when an unknown woman unexpectedly joined me. She was giggling naughtily and fluttering her eyelashes. She smelt of warm thighs.
The madam of the salon came over. She whispered into my ear that there was a room upstairs that happened to be unoccupied. Somebody had left a bed in it. That bed had clean sheets. I did not think much about what I was doing. We ascended the stairs and reached the end chamber. The woman seemed to have four pairs of hands, grown for fornication, and three pairs of legs suitable for the same purpose. Then the door we had shut suddenly sprang open. She vanished from the tangle. After twisting into a sitting position I saw that creature Mauri, whom I had by now blissfully forgotten. He had two men with him. They may not have been the most esteemed gentlemen of the town, but they were nevertheless trustworthy burghers. I knew their testimony would carry weight. I rapidly assessed the situation. I realized that if their testimonies were to be supplemented by the evidence given by the scarecrow named Mauri and the harlot who was presently pulling on her dress in a corner, and if their reports all matched up, I would find it extremely hard to prove them false. So I sent the others on their way and asked the scarecrow what he wanted from me.
‘There’s that business I came to see you about,’ he said.
‘Yes, that’s true,’ I replied, yanking on my trousers. ‘I was intending to act in the matter first thing tomorrow.’
‘Thought so.’
I had no choice but to comply with his wishes. However chaotic the official machinery of the realm might be nowadays, I do not doubt but that my actions will have the force of law in this matter. I need not have a guilty conscience in that respect. On the contrary, one could argue that I have shown commendable initiative in carrying out my duties. I would now be able to forget the whole thing, along with all the other trivia I have had to deal with in my life, had I not seen the eyes of the older mistress of the house.