“If only Mr. Delrick would come,” she sighed. Stefeli had noticed that whenever her parents sought his advice, affairs were usually straightened out, so she was most anxious to find him now.
Mr. Delrick had just left his room and was that moment coming downstairs.
“All ready to start?” he asked kindly, when Stefeli bounded to him and gave him her hand. “Will you take a morning walk with me?”
Stefeli had hoped for this and willingly started on her way with her desired companion. He soon heard what lay heavily on her heart; how Vinzi had red and swollen eyes from crying and the father had pushed away his cup of coffee before finishing it and had quickly gone out; also how terribly sad the mother looked, more sad than she had ever seen her.
“But I am sure you can help us,” Stefeli concluded with firm conviction.
“I’ll do what I can,” Mr. Delrick promised, smilingly.
But the child’s words had made him very thoughtful; he seriously wondered if the mother’s sad supposition would be realized now. The thought worried him the more, as he had fixed upon his departure within the next few days, having planned to meet a friend at the Italian lakes.
When the two returned from their walk, matters had not improved. Vinzi had finally told his mother the words that had crushed him so completely. He thought that everything now was over, but his mother comforted him by saying that the father’s words were probably not final. If only Vinzi tried hard to stick to his work and did everything to please his father, showing in that way that he really cared for what he wanted of him, the time would surely come when he would be allowed to go back to his friends.
But Vinzi shook his head. “Father won’t ever let me go back there, for he said that I was finding pleasure in something he does not want me to do. And it’s true. I understand now what he means, and I never quite knew before.”
To this the mother said nothing, for she could not help feeling that Vinzi was right. Would the boy be sent away again, and where? Her husband had another relative, an older brother, with whom he used to manage their property in Freiburg, till their old cousin in Leuk had died. Her husband had taken charge of it, as they had inherited it together. He had felt that, as the beautiful place was so badly run down, it was better to look after it himself for a number of years, if he wanted to bring it up again. Her husband’s brother was as silent and unsociable as the old cousin who used to live here had been, and he also looked quite as unkempt. Vinzenz Lesa had left a hired man on the farm, who looked after things. His brother never wanted to undertake anything new and only hoped that Vinzenz Lesa would soon return.