Chapter 2 The Agreement

Flauber accompanied Erick very clumsily. It seemed that he was not used to all this luxury. At least that's what Sigrid thought at the moment. Although she knew that he had worked on a neighboring farm, where it was said that the owner was very rich and even had a private ship, she had heard stories that he owned all the land around her father's farm. And that many times he offered him money above the value of the property, so that everything would belong to him. But his father was stubborn and did not want to leave the inheritance left by his parents.

They sat down in the pantry and soon the maids began to set the table. Sigrid kept staring at Flauber, but after a while she felt that the insistence of his gaze was bothering her, which immediately reminded her of what her mother had told her when she found out she was pregnant just a few days ago. Did he really just want a fling? Sigrid felt her eyes fill with tears and then she focused on the spinning conversation and didn't look at him again until her father had given them the news.

"Cleuza, girls, you are standing before the new owner of the land nearby." Erick said and pointed at Flauber. "Of course he won't be working for me anymore, having so much more than me now." Erick continued laughing.

Sigrid noticed, that not only her, but Mrs. Cleuza and Astrid were also staring dumbfounded at Flauber who was getting redder by the second.

"But what are you talking about, Erick?" Dona Cleuza asked confused, "Where would Flauber have the money to buy all that land?"

"And he didn't have Dona Cleuza." He answered seriously and this time looked at Sigrid.

"Then explain it properly." Dona Cleuza asked impatiently.

"Calm down woman. Flauber inherited all this land and everything the old man had. Billions of dollars and companies all over the world. Not to mention the properties, which we thought were only about what he had here. But we were wrong. He has many properties like this, all over the world. This one was just his favorite. That's why he spent so much time here. Erick explained satisfied as if he was the one who had received the inheritance.

Mrs. Cleuza looked at Sigrid with happy eyes. Her problems were over. Her father would not refuse such a suitable groom for his daughter, but before she could say anything about it, Erick came forward with his ideas.

"He's going to be our son-in-law Cleuza!"

Flauber bowed his head, and Cleuza found his attitude strange. That was all he wanted, wasn't it? Sigrid would marry him and they would have a child. There was no better happy ending than that. But then why did Flauber look embarrassed?

"That's great. Because this news came just in time. Sigrid..."

"Forget Sigrid, Cleuza!" Erick scolded her. "Flauber is marrying Astrid. What he had with Sigrid was just a.... Passing of time. It meant nothing to them. They were just having fun."

Astrid first widened her eyes in surprise. But after seeing her mother's and Sigrid's expression, she decided that she would not object. She really liked Flauber. She just wouldn't say anything about him starting a romance with Sigrid, and she was enjoying knowing that she would be the richest lady in the area.

"That can't be!" Sigrid looked at Flauber in distress. "Is that really what you want? Look at me!" Sigrid shouted and then he stared at her with pain in his eyes.

"It will be better Sigrid..."

"Better for whom?" she asked and got up, running to her room where she threw herself on the bed and cried rivers of tears.

After half an hour, she sat up in bed and set herself to thinking about what her mother said. And then she knew that she was right about everything. She would not go through with this pregnancy. The thought of this pained her heart. It weighed on her conscience. But she couldn't put a child into a world where single mothers and their bastard children were persecuted by society. She didn't want this for herself, nor did she want such a fate for her child. Suddenly she began to think about the differences between her and her sister. Astrid looked like her father. She had black hair and almond eyes. She herself had very pale skin, and her hair was golden. Her eyes were blue, and she didn't know who she inherited them from, because neither her mother's nor her father's background had eyes the color of hers, from what they always told her. I wonder why Flauber wanted to marry her sister, after showing so much love for her? He was so confused. Could it be that for him, she was just an entertainment and his sister was seen as a girl to marry? She heard a knock at the door and, dismayed, went to open it. It was her old nanny, who had been kept in the house because her mother had grown attached to her for helping her raise her two daughters.

"Daughter, your father demands that you come down and apologize to the guest..." Aida said with sadness in her gaze, for she knew the romance of the two. She was Sigrid's confidant. Astrid, on the other hand, respected her as an authority because her mother obliged her, yet she showed no affection for her.

"It's very humiliating, baba. How am I going to watch my sister get engaged to the man I love and would still father my child?" Sigrid said hugging her nanny.

"Would he? What do you mean would be?" Aida asked confused.

"I'm pregnant nanny! And you know I can't have a child who besides being a bastard, is going to be the brother of Astrid's children. She is my sister. That's not right. I don't feel good about this situation, Nanny. And I have to do something about it. I also don't want to hurt Mom and Astrid, because they are very important to me. I don't see any other way than to get rid of this baby so that everyone can live their lives in peace."

"Your situation really isn't easy. But I don't think your mother will agree with him in this marriage, no. Give it time. Wipe some water on your face and remove all traces of tears. You should go downstairs and keep calm. Everything will work out. I know many stories like yours, not with sisters, but you are not the only one who has experienced this anguish. Many girls have been through this. At least you won't be abandoned by your parents. You will be able to count on their support, and you may even manage to get a good husband. There is nothing more important than having a good husband. I can even teach you how to pass for a virgin. You can have other children and you won't even miss this one. Put him up for adoption and your problems will be over. You don't have to abort. That is a sin. Don't be distressed. There is always another way to go. I know you will choose what is best for you and your child. Now I have to go downstairs. I haven't been your nanny for many years. Now I'm just an expendable maid, in case I don't fulfill my obligations. I love you, Sigrid, as if you were my own daughter. Even I myself can raise this child you are carrying in your womb, and you can always visit her with the excuse that you want to see your old nanny. Think about it. And I don't think it will bring relief to your mother or even Astrid." Aida said and withdrew after kissing her cheek.

Sigrid went to the basin in her room and washed her face. She pulled herself together and followed her nanny's advice and went down to the pantry. Her entrance seemed to be noticed by no one, but she could not have been more wrong. Her father stared at her angrily as she took her place at the table.

"Have you no shame? Can't you see that you hurt your sister? And what is this lack of decorum with our guest? You don't even deserve to be family! You're a disgrace!" Erick continued to attack her nervously, and Sigrid listened quietly. Her father had just made it clear that he hated her. But this did not make her suffer. For some reason unknown to her, having that hatred formalized in words freed her. She waited quietly for him to finish his offenses. In that time, she looked at Flauber, and he looked at her too. He seemed uncomfortable with the situation, which was not surprising. As soon as Erick vented all his frustration on her and shut up until he was out of breath, Sigrid looked him in the eye. And raised her head.

"And what should my reaction be when I hear that my boyfriend is marrying my sister? And you want to know something else? He's not the saint you imagine. I know that in that twisted head of yours you will put me down as the seductive snake, but we both got into bed. And I got pregnant from that "accident" along the way. Why didn't you give Astrid to him as soon as he got here? Don't answer." Sigrid said raising her hand, as her father with surprised eyes, stared at her dumbfounded. Sigrid didn't know if the surprise was because she had lain with him, or the way she was addressing him, without any shame, or was it her pregnancy. "I know the reason. His skin didn't yet have the glow of fortune. When he was just another peon, he was good enough to be my husband. But he got too interesting and you, convinced him it would be better to marry his younger sister." Sigrid finished speaking as if she was very calm, but she had to hide her hands so that no one would notice that they were shaking. But to her surprise, before her father could pull himself together to give her an answer, and to her own surprise, Flauber stood up with an angry look on his face.

"Our agreement is broken mister Erick. I can't give up marrying the woman I love to marry Astrid. Even more so now that she is expecting a child of mine. I will not allow this child to be born rejected by society. I don't know why I let myself be taken in by your words..." He said firmly and turned to Sigrid. "If you still love me, even after all this humiliation, pack your things and come with me. We will get married. And now not even your father can stop us. You belong to me now, and I'm willing to put the church on this case if your father tries anything against us."

Erick also stood up.

"This doesn't have to be solved like this..." Erick said trying to calm Flauber down. "After your marriage to Astrid, we can work it out. There is a solution. Astrid can confine herself at home after the wedding and when Sigrid gives birth, she takes him as her own son."

Sigrid and Mistress Cleuza looked at Erick in disgust, but said nothing. His desperation to marry his youngest daughter to a millionaire exceeded the norms of common sense, morals and ethics. They were speechless.

"No. Either you give me Sigrid's hand, or I will run away with her. I will no longer allow you to threaten me not to let you see her ever again. Things have changed now. She is carrying my child, and any judge would go in my favor."

"But Flauber... She is so mediocre... Astrid would make you a better wife..."

"I have no doubt that Astrid will make a good wife for the man who is lucky enough to win her heart. But, besides the fact that she is not a commodity, she is the Sigrid I love. Now I can see clearly that it would make no sense to marry another woman if she is the one who occupies my thoughts and my whole heart. You underestimate Sigrid. She is also a good woman and has everything to make a man happy. I hope she accepts my proposal, and so do you. Because one way or another, unless she doesn't want me to, I will take her away from here.

Sigrid felt her heart warm up. Then her father threatened Flauber not to let him see her again if he didn't marry her sister. She looked at her father who was red with anger, searching for words to refute Flauber's arguments. She hated him. If before she had begged him for attention and love, which he had always refused to give, now she wanted nothing more from that man. Her love as a daughter had died there. If she understood correctly, he offered her as Flauber's mistress, while Astrid went out on tours and trips as his wife. She didn't understand her father's unbridled preference for Astrid, she was even rebellious. She didn't obey him at all. It was so strange.

"That's fine. You will marry Sigrid. But before you marry, I have two conditions. First, that you will not meet again until the wedding day and you will pay for all expenses. And I also demand a dowry. The amount, we'll talk about that after dinner." Erick said and stared at Flauber.

"I accept." Flauber said and sat down again, but he had lost all hunger. He was thinking about Sigrid. What was she thinking now? Surely he desired both sisters. But that was not true. He had never looked at Astrid as a woman. He loved Sigrid. But the fear of never seeing her again, as Erick had promised, if he did not agree to marry Astrid, was greater than his lucidity. He would not allow anyone else to take him away from Sigrid. He no longer had an appetite and turned back to Sigrid. "Sigrid, I love you. Will you agree to marry me? I cannot allow your father to decide that for you."

Sigrid stared at him with a piercing gaze and took a deep breath.

"Yes. I do. Because I love you too." She said and everyone at the table became silent and no one else touched their food.

This moment of embarrassment was a long one. Mrs. Cleusa suddenly stood up and turned back to her husband.

"Let's talk in the library. Then you and Flauber can talk alone. But now I am the one who needs to speak to you urgently." She said and walked toward the library without waiting for an answer.

Erick excused himself and also retired to the library.

As soon as he left Astrid also stood up. She had a contented smile on her lips. She turned to them.

"I'm going to my room. That will leave the way clear for you to talk. Because after today, you won't see each other for another month or so. Don't leave anything unresolved between you. Good night." Astrid said throwing kisses to them and retiring.

Sigrid looked gracelessly at Flauber. Now that they were alone, she didn't know what else to say. She had prepared a speech for when they were alone, but it went blank in her head .

"Sigrid... Forgive me. I was driven to accept this arrangement from your father for fear of never being able to see you again. I'm really sorry."

Sigrid stood up suddenly and held out her hand to him.

"My father has always committed many injustices against me. I don't care about him anymore. But there is something more inside this decision of his and my mother knows what it is. Let's go. We'll listen behind the door."

Flauber stood up and accepted the hand she extended and together they proceeded down the hallway, stopped and stuck their ears to the door.

"You will not sell my daughter!" Mrs. Cleuza said energetically, as Sigrid had never seen, for she was always very submissive.... "I don't care if you don't like her. I don't even think she cares about that anymore. But I won't let you charge anything for her hand. You wouldn't charge for Astrid! They are marrying for love. They met exactly to be united!"

"Astrid is my daughter. Your Sigrid, on the other hand, is her mother. You can't tell me what to do, because I saved you from shame, when I agreed to marry you even though you were pregnant by another man! And I'll be rewarded yes, for all the years I've fed that damned Sigrid!"

"Don't be cynical. You only agreed to marry me because you were about to lose that farm and my father bought you for me! If this farm is still yours, it is thanks to my family. How many times during these years we've been together, you were about to lose it again and my father gave you money to keep it? You don't even know how to manage what you have. You want money? Work. Because I won't allow Flauber to give a cent to get my daughter's hand, which was already his by right. If you keep insisting on this, I will send a letter to my father, explaining the situation and withdrawing your pension. I want to see how you will live without my family's money." Dona Cleuza said haughtily.

"I have to get something out of this marriage! I didn't raise and feed you for nothing in return! Your father paid me to get you out of shame, not to get your daughter out of shame and not even to have to feed her. You owe me much more than you ever gave me!"

"You fed her with my father's money. She and not even I owe you anything. Everything you have done for us, you have been well paid for. I even gave you a daughter, when I should never have lain with you."

"You are as disastrous as your daughter! I hate it when I look into those eyes and see him! Because I can see what her father looked like staring at her. And you were never a good wife, because you only gave me a daughter, when I needed a son. You didn't keep your end of the bargain. And now you want to throw in my face that I was paid for it? Do you really think that the alms your father sends is enough to keep you under this roof, to pay employees and the easy women I need?

Mrs. Cleuza looked at him with contempt.

"You disgust me. If the money my father sends you doesn't cover all my expenses and my daughters' expenses, I will ask him to send it to me and I will leave this farm. I know very well the amount he sends you. And I also know that with this amount I can live comfortably with my daughters in the city. Say one more word and I will take back everything you have. You will not be able to maintain this farm without help from my family, because you are nothing but a failure."

Erick turned red and his eyes showed the fear he had that his wife would keep her word. Because he was aware that it was all true.

"Cleuza..." He said in a loving voice, to try to convince her. "He has plenty of money now. A dowry won't make him poorer. And it wouldn't be for me. It would be to guarantee the future of the child that is going to be born."

Dona Cleuza looked at him as if he were a worm. How dare he try to fool her with that stupid line?

"What are you thinking of asking him for? Money?"

"No. I want the land he has around ours. All of it."

"That's a lot for a dowry..." Dona Cleuza said thoughtfully.

"For him it's nothing."

"I agree with you, but just as you have given him two conditions, I also demand two conditions for this deal to be done."

"Yes." Erick agreed suspiciously. Cleuza was not an easy woman to convince when she took a stand to defend something.

"The first condition, is that because of the amount of the dowry, you will bear the expenses of the marriage. After all since the early days the father of the bride has paid for the wedding expenses."

"I can't accept that. She is not my daughter."

"Okay. Then you also have no authority to ask for dowry for a girl who is not your daughter."

Erick ran his hand through his hair nervously.

"Where am I going to get the money to afford a wedding? We can't just throw a party like we're poor. Our friends are all from high society. I can't go through this embarrassment."

"I know you'll die living on appearances.... Talk to my father. He won't deny a perfect marriage for his granddaughter."

"He's already given me too much money this month.

"And what have you done with the money? He always sends more than we need..."

"I... I went out at night..."

Cleuza looked at him understandingly. It was clear as day that he had spent the money on drink and women.

"I'll send him a letter myself then."

"Yes. If he doesn't refuse, I agree. What is the other condition?"

"No. There are two conditions. You couldn't fulfill the first one I gave you, so since I'm the one who will settle the marriage, that one has become invalid for you."

Erick stared at her with hatred, but he knew he had to accept it. All his life he would have to put up with this woman. Unless he found another woman who would give him everything he could get out of Cleuza's family.

"So the first condition, is that I will participate in this deal that will be made with Flauber and you will accept the proposal he makes to you. You will not demand anything from him!" She said willfully ignoring the hatred in her husband's gaze.

"I accept."

"The second condition is that this dowry will be passed into the name of Sigrid's son."

"We can't do that." Erick was finding it difficult not to hit that woman and put her in her rightful place. "We don't even know if it will be a boy or a girl. You can't put an asset in the name of a person who hasn't even been born yet. You're out of your mind. If we let him marry Sigrid before he gives us that dowry, he might not do it later.

"He will put it in Sigrid's name, who will have to sign an agreement that she will only be the guardian of the dowry until the child is old enough to take care of what is hers."

Erick walked around the room in circular motions as he thought. Then he had an idea. He knew that he really wasn't going to be able to profit from that marriage. The fact that he had never treated Sigrid as his daughter had eventually paid off. Sigrid, as guardian of the dowry would leave him with nothing. She didn't like him, and that feeling was reciprocated. But she could still enjoy Flauber's fortune, just as she did Cleuza's father.

"Okay. But we will move to the mansion on the land that our grandson will inherit. I even think that if the wedding is there, it will be more suitable. And I want to be the lord of those lands, while my grandson is not old enough to command what is his."

"If Flauber agrees to this nonsense, I will not object. And what will you do with this farm?"

"One day our grandson will grow up, and we must have somewhere to go back to. I will continue to take care of it. It is my father's inheritance and has been in his family for centuries."

"Now he is your grandson?" Mrs. Cleuza asked rhetorically. "Then I will return and tell Flauber to accompany me here."

Upon hearing those words, Sigrid, who was holding her hand to her mouth and her eyes shedding tears, for finding out that way that that man was not her father and all that disgusting story, turned scared to Flauber who also looked shocked. But it was necessary to get out of there, before Mrs. Cleuza opened the door and discovered them there.

Flauber took Sigrid's hand and quickly guided her back to the pantry. She didn't know what to say. It was horrible, everything that man was. And he would punish him. For Mistress Cleuza and for Sigrid.

"I'm going to my room." Sigrid said with a choked voice. "Then we'll talk about it. I'll ask for mom's help, so we can meet before the wedding." She said and gave a quick kiss on his mouth and hurried up the stairs.

Flauber sat down at the table and took a drink of water. He needed to pretend he knew nothing. It would be very embarrassing for Mrs. Cleuza and her daughters if he acted with the aggressiveness with Erick that he was willing to and he needed to calm down so that it wouldn't happen.

As he was about to open the door to leave Mrs. Cleuza stopped for a moment and turned to Erick.

"Just one more thing. Don't you ever dare touch my grandson. And always remember this. He is my grandson. Not yours. Just as you have made it clear that Sigrid is my daughter. Not yours." She said and seeing the shocked expression on Erick's face, she opened the door and walked out satisfied.

She found Flauber with his honey-colored eyes sitting at the table alone and staring at her curiously. She stared at him for a moment, feeling that she owed him an explanation. But she couldn't give them at that moment.

"Where are the girls?" Dona Cleuza asked curiously looking around.

"They... They asked to be excused and went to their rooms." He answered calmly.

"And they went up together?"

Flauber stared at her for a long time before answering.

"One at a time."

Mrs. Cleuza looked at him and nodded, as if he had told her a story. Flauber knew at that moment that she was a woman of great wisdom.

"Come with me, please. We need to come to an agreement."

Flauber immediately got up and accompanied her to the library, where Mistress Cleuza locked the door from the inside and invited him to sit in a chair facing the table where Erick occupied the other side and she then sat on Flauber's side.

Then, with apologies and with the justification that he was very hurt that his daughter was getting married pregnant and that he was a victim, because according to him he had been deceived by Flauber, who had secretly violated the innocence of his beloved daughter, he said that he himself would bear the wedding expenses and made her the proposal about the land.

Flauber already knew all of this, knew every lie, but he didn't want to hand over that he had heard everything behind the door and didn't feel obligated to be decent to that man. It pained Flauber to have to let him live comfortably in the mansion that had been his father's. But he would allow it for a while, until he thought of something different than what he was going to propose.

"My son is my heir. He will inherit everything I own anyway. I see no reason for such an arrangement. If Sigrid, my wife will take care of not only these lands, but all our assets. She doesn't need any paper other than the marriage certificate to prove that everything is hers and my son's. I make a counter proposal. Sell me this farm. I will give you three other farms elsewhere, to keep this one and include Sigrid's dowry."

"No. That will never happen. This farm is an inheritance from my parents. I will not part with it." Erick said impatiently.

"Then ask for something else. Because everything I own is also a family heirloom.

"Family heirloom? What consideration can you have for this family if you barely knew your father?"

"Still it is an inheritance, isn't it?"

"I'm going to get some coffee." Dona Cleusa said with satisfaction in her gaze, getting up and walking away.

As soon as he found himself alone with the boy, Erick tried to convince him.

"Flauber... My situation is not as good as you may be thinking. This farm is good, prosperous, but my resources end there. By living in your father's mansion and taking care of his land, I will have more resources to arrange a good marriage for Astrid. Here my resources are minimal, because I support three women and you know that women are only a source of expense. They don't help us with the manual labor on the farm. And even here in the house they don't do anything. I pay for maids because they are useless. So at least let us move into your father's mansion and enjoy the profits for a few years until Astrid marries. Then you won't be giving up anything. Everything will remain yours."

Flauber listened to him and looked at him thoughtfully. Maybe if he hadn't heard the conversation he had earlier with Ms. Cleuza in the library, he would have believed him. But now he would give him a chance to begin his revenge.