CHAPTER TWENTY-NINEI dreaded dinner that evening, and with cause. Colonel von Avenheim had gone. Almost as soon as we had sat down at the table, my grandfather fixed his fierce old eyes on me, and I prepared to weather the storm. It went on a long time.
He was furious. He had fully expected to see me respectably married, and took my failure as a personal affront. According to him, I was wayward, perverse and just like my mother. I thanked him for the compliments and went to my bed-chamber.
Here, I prepared slowly for bed. I was somewhat distractedly brushing out my hair when a knock at the door heralded Katalin. In the mirror, I met her gaze.
“Oh, Katie, why? I thought you liked him!”
“I do. But I don’t wish to marry him.”
She sat down on the bed, regarding me thoughtfully. “Why not?
