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Updated: August 14, 2024
She considered that as long as she was a barmaid she must be friendly, and not too sensitive to the chaff of the guests; and if it pained him to see this, it was better that he should remain away. And with an ardent glance she added that when she was his wife he would have her all to himself. Heimert had constrained himself to agree to this.
Heimert watched them closely; every word, every movement, almost every look. But his suspicions were not justified. Heppner was polite, easy, and perfectly unconstrained; while Albina chatted easily and naturally, and accepted the homage of their guest with a kind of haughty tranquillity. Towards her husband she displayed quite unusual tenderness, so long as the sergeant-major was present.
The coarse face with the outstanding ears was made half grotesque, half repellent, by an enormous nose, which was always red. What did it matter that two beautiful, kindly child-like eyes shone from this countenance? Would any one trouble to look for them in the midst of such hideousness? The invalid remembered she had heard that Heimert was going to be married.
Heimert asked suspiciously. "Do you want to cut me out with her?" Heppner laughed at him. "The devil!" he said. "I have two women in the house myself, and that's more than enough. Surely one may make the acquaintance of a comrade's sweetheart?" "And," he added craftily, "have you so little confidence in her, then?" Heimert burst out: "Oh, that's not the reason!"
She shook her head energetically: "No, no!" and whispered wearily: "But if you would only stay just a little while, Herr Heimert!" The sergeant nodded, and remained sitting silently beside her. It was some time before Julie Heppner had the strength to explain to him what had happened to her. While so doing she looked at him more attentively, and was almost frightened by his ugliness.
Heimert ran to her anxiously. He gave her his hand, which she seized and held convulsively, spoke to her soothingly, and wiped the drops of sweat from her brow with his handkerchief. He quietly gave her time to recover from her exhaustion, then said to her gently: "Frau Heppner, would you like me to send to find your own people?"
A violent shudder ran through the limbs; the body contracted, stretched itself again, turned over on itself, and fell on its back. Then all was still. Heimert stood in his place. The hand with the revolver had slowly sunk, and hung down limply. His glance wandered from the corpse to the boundary line at his feet. He had not stepped over it. Everything was according to order.
Albina shook her head over her husband's conduct. The man was ill, of that she was convinced. She spoke to him once of consulting the doctor, but Heimert repulsed her roughly. "Thank God!" he said; "there's nothing the matter with me. I wish everybody were as healthy as I am!" After this she left him in peace.
Heimert lay sleepless. Hour after hour he heard strike; the short May night seemed to him an eternity. The woman beside him had sunk into a deep slumber. Now and then her breathing quickened, and she gave almost a gasp, flinging herself about as though in a troubled dream. With the dawn of morning Heimert came to a decision. He would not allow himself to believe in Albina's guilt.
The whip made deep red marks on the smooth skin, and the shrieks of the woman became more and more piercing. But Heimert drove her down the steps into the barrack-yard. She stumbled, and lost a shoe. No matter! on she must go! If she stopped for a moment the whip lashed round her feet, her ankles, her knees. She cowered, shrieking. With outstretched arms she tried to parry the blows.
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