The Apothecary's Secret

by Johanna Geiges

  He took a small linen bag and opened three little drawers in the huge cabinet. Then he took a wooden spoon that was lying there and handed the small bag to Anna. ‘Fennel, caraway, not too much, and celandine. That should calm the abdominal cramps.’ Very carefully he used the spoon to measure the ingredients into the bag and then retied it.

  Back in the treatment room Aaron handed the little linen bag to the pregnant woman.

  ‘Put two spoonfuls into hot water, mix it up well and drink it lukewarm as needed and you will feel better.’

  ‘How can I thank you?’ the mother asked at last.

  ‘By continuing to care for your daughter so lovingly,’ Aaron replied and led the women out. The next patient, the irritable cloth merchant with gout, was waiting at the door and quickly pushed in.

  And so it went on, an endless coming and going of patients. Anna had soon lost track of numbers but did what she could. All day she dabbed, bandaged, mixed herbs, put ointment into jars, held sleep sponges at the ready and pressed arms and legs down when the Medicus had to remove an ulcer with a knife. By evening she was totally exhausted.

  ‘Is it always so busy in your practice?’ she asked the medicus after the last patient had been treated.

  ‘No,’ Aaron replied mischievously. ‘Today was a particularly quiet day.’

  He smiled and Anna had to smile back.

  But it wasn’t long before there was another knock on the door.

  ‘Come in!’ said the medicus and sighed.

  Chapter IX

  It was now the month of May though the temperature was more like July. This year the long winter had suddenly turned to summer.

  By now Anna had been working as a famula of medicus Aaron for four weeks and she had learned what it meant to be responsible for so many patients: the sick, those who thought they were sick, the poor, the injured, the desperate. Every day, except on the Sabbath, she was out on visits from early till late or had to look after patients in Aaron’s treatment room. Certainly there were some who visited the medicus just for a potion or a herbal mixture, while others she reckoned only came by for a little chat. But with them, too, the medicus took his time, and he had a comforting word for everybody, especially those who had suddenly become widowed or had lost a loved one.

  Anna admired Aaron most for his patience. He never became loud or got angry. He emanated a serenity that calmed everybody including those who were upset or in a panic but still needed his services. He quietly listened, examined, asked questions about the beginnings and the course of an illness and gave advice and remedies when necessary. If there was ever anything he did or said that Anna did not understand, he explained it to her later in private.

  She had a feeling that in the short time she had been with him she had learned more than in all the years in the monastery. She did not want to be unfair to her late infirmarius, but his healing methods and those of Aaron were worlds apart. Certainly there were occasions when a patient who could not be helped any longer died. There were still so many diseases against which no herb had been found yet, as Aaron sometimes remarked. Nevertheless, he was firmly convinced that medical science would one day be such that even the most serious illnesses could be healed. But a lot of water would flow down the river Rhine before then.

  In the meantime Anna had got used to his mockery, though many patients were irritated by it. It was probably Aaron’s way of coping with all the pain and suffering with which he was confronted. Anna was always at his side, whether tending to patients or in the laboratory testing his mixtures or manufacturing his tonics. Initially Esther would eye her suspiciously, but gradually Aaron’s sister learned to trust his new famula, and she focussed on her own job, which was dealing with the finances.

  Anna also helped the medicus in his herb garden, which needed some nurturing and replanting after the violent storm on the day he returned home. Aaron was astonished by Anna’s profound knowledge of medicinal herbs and their effects, and from time to time he even had some praise for her, which always made her feel very proud.

  She quickly got used to Kosher food and could cope well with Aaron’s liberal interpretation of religious rules. He never reprimanded her because there was nothing to reprimand her for, and if she did make a mistake he never pointed it out in front of the patients but dealt with it later in private. Anna tried hard not to make any mistakes.

  When she lay on her bed, dead-tired after a long and exhausting day – and almost all days were long and exhausting – she sometimes prayed, not for herself but for her parents. After the events at the monastery she had lost her childlike faith, and this sometimes made her sad. She could no longer commune with God in the untroubled way she used to. She still argued with her creator even though it was a sin to behave like that and consequently she did not pray regularly any more as she used to in the old days.

  Instead she read a lot. The medicus’ library was extraordinarily comprehensive, and Aaron had given her permission to read whatever book or manuscript she chose. Many she did not understand or she was not familiar with the language. She knew Latin perfectly, but some of the books were written in Greek or Arabic or Hebrew. The medicus was a master of languages. Whenever she did not understand something, she asked him, and he never tired of explaining to her everything he could. His energy seemed inexhaustible. Only sometimes, in poor light when it got dark, he had difficulties with his eyes. To read by candlelight he needed a glass that a glassmaker had prepared for him. Anna had looked through it once, noticing how it miraculously enlarged the letters if held over the page at the correct angle. If his eyes began to hurt too much from his efforts he would ask Anna to read to him. It happened once or twice that he nodded off but as she noticed it and stopped reading, he would start up and say that it was probably time to go to bed.

  So everything was fine and Anna led a happy life in the house of the medicus. Only sometimes when she was lying in bed after snuffing out the candle and her thoughts began to wander was she seized with a great fear. What if things were to change rather than stay the way they were? A strange premonition would grip her heart like an iron clamp and as she tried to fall asleep the dark wave which was moving towards her would grow more threatening.

  Then she would get up, sneak into the kitchen and prepare a herbal brew which she would drink slowly. No, she would not be defeated, no matter what happened, and with this rock-solid resolution as her final thought she would creep back to her straw mattress and fall asleep.

  Chapter X

  The four-wheeled cart with Lutz and Oswald on the coach box was bumping along the rocky, dusty country road which wound along the hills overlooking the Rhine. The sun blazed down and Gero von Hochstaden, who was impatiently riding ahead on his black horse, was sweating terribly. Much to his annoyance, he had to stop frequently and wait for the slow cart. Once again he reined in his horse and waited till the unwieldy cart with his companions rumbled closer. The cart, which served as a cover, was loaded with various weapons and light armour for Gero as well as a large cage of carrier pigeons. Oswald and Lutz would pretend to be the servants of a nobleman who were travelling ahead to find him suitable accommodation in a guest house. Gero was to pose as the second son of Baron von Geldern, going out into the world to get hired as a knight to a local ruler and make a name for himself.

  When the cart caught up with Gero, he raised his hand and stopped it. ‘I will now continue on my own. You look for accommodation in Oppenheim. We are sure to find each other again.’

  ‘And what happens if they have no use for somebody like you at Landskron Castle – what will we do then?’ Lutz asked.

  ‘We will see,’ Gero answered curtly. ‘But I am sure they will take me once they see how I handle weapons. Hand me my bow and arrows.’

  He stroked his sparsely sprouting reddish beard as Lutz climbed onto the back of the cart to look for the bow and the quiver of arrows and passed them to his friend.

  ‘God be with you!’ shouted Gero as he turned his horse and gallope
d off in a cloud of dust.

  The closer he came to Oppenheim, the busier the roads became. Whether travelling on horseback, with a cart or on foot, people were hurrying along. Gero was surprised, as he believed it to be neither market day nor a particular holiday. If a new construction phase of St Catherine’s Church was being celebrated, his uncle, the archbishop, would have been the first to know and would have told him.

  He reined in his quietly trotting horse. He could make out Landskron castle in a haze in the distance and, before it, the high walls and towers of Oppenheim. He rode on until the road joined a larger one leading straight to the Gautor gate of the city. There a guard of honour was forming, and people appeared to be waiting for something of great importance to happen. A black-bearded guard with a lance stepped in front of Gero and ordered him curtly to dismount.

  ‘Why? What’s happening?’ Gero asked.

  The guard answered softly: ‘Do you really not know that his majesty is honouring Oppenheim with a visit?’

  Now Gero was really surprised. ‘The king? Do you mean Conrad IV?!’ he asked.

  ‘Well, who else? Do you happen to know another king?’ the guard asked irritably.

  ‘But . . .’ said Gero calculating feverishly, ‘his majesty is only . . . fourteen?’

  ‘Yes, but he is the king, crowned by his most Christian majesty, our emperor. So kindly take your hat off and bow when he passes.’

  The soldier passed on announcing the regulations to all who were lining the roadside full of curiosity.

  Conrad IV here! The thought flashed through Gero’s head. How fortunate he was to be able to send such an important message to his uncle right at the start of his mission!

  More and more people came and lined the road. Only now did Gero notice that most of them had put on their Sunday clothes, and even the simplest and poorest farmers were relatively clean. It would appear that the emperor and his son, the king, had more supporters in Oppenheim and its environs than the archbishop had thought. Or was it merely the once-in-a-lifetime prospect of seeing a real king?

  Suddenly an advance guard of two horse soldiers in the black and gold livery of the Staufers came charging forward. Each bore in his right hand the banner of the Staufers: three black lions on a golden background. The soldiers rode along the rows of people waiting on both sides of the road to make sure that no one ran out to look for the royal retinue.

  The news of the king’s arrival had spread like wildfire and a huge crowd of people had gathered in the market square of Oppenheim. Aaron and Anna rushed to be among them as soon as they heard what was happening and stood awaiting eagerly the spectacle of the visit of Conrad IV.

  Initially the matter had been a strict secret. The tensions in the realm between the Staufers and the Guelphs were so great that the Staufers feared the worst – even an attempt on the life of the young king. Nevertheless, the king could not simply hide away in one of his castles as he was, after all, the representative of imperial power in the realm, and he guaranteed law, order and stability and all the hopes of his supporters. Without him, lawlessness and civil war were inevitable. Already there were rumblings between the different factions. Many of the powerful princes, most notably the archbishop of Cologne, Konrad von Hochstaden, could not accept that Emperor Frederick II had simply imposed his son on them as king. The princes were only waiting to pursue their own agenda. Therefore Conrad IV, young, inexperienced and insecure as he was, had to show himself to the people and put on a display of strength. His power base was weak and his enemies numerous, but one of the few princes definitely loyal to him was Count Georg von Landskron, and so he could use the occasion of a visit to him to show his friendship and demonstrate his power.

  *

  Anna and Aaron had managed to get a good viewing place on the slightly elevated side of the market square through which the royal procession was due to pass, a few streets from the Gautor gate. There were even more people here than outside the city walls. The lanes of the city were narrow, with multi-storey half-timbered houses standing close together. Everywhere the proud citizens of Oppenheim had dressed to show their wealth in the most beautiful colours. The men had put on doublets and hose of the best cloth and wore fine calfskin boots. Some were even decked out in capes and hats with decorative feathers. Women of rank wore pointed shoes and long, elaborately embroidered multi-coloured tunics.

  The usual stink of rubbish and waste was gone because the ankle-deep dirt on the roads had been removed. Straw had been spread everywhere on the streets and little girls were walking around with baskets strewing flowers.

  Suddenly there was a blast of fanfare and Georg von Landskron came riding down from his imposing castle above the city to receive the king. All heads turned towards the road that led down from the castle as ten herald trumpeters emerged clad in the red and gold of von Landskron. They formed a large guard of honour holding back the crowd.

  Just then the heavy oak doors of the city hall opened and two dozen splendidly dressed gentlemen stepped out and lined up.

  ‘What a show! Who are they?’ Anna asked as she stood next to Aaron.

  ‘That is the welcoming committee of Oppenheim, the aldermen and guild masters,’ the medicus answered. ‘Two or three of them you should recognise because they have come to us for treatment.’

  Anna was craning her neck in every direction to see better. Aaron was right, she did know one or two of them, but they were hard to recognise in their robes and chains, decorated with medals, coats of arms and emblems in gold and silver and the feathered hats that covered half their faces.

  Suddenly there was a strange tension in the air. The buzz of voices dropped noticeably as if everybody were holding their breath.

  Through the silence a clatter of hooves could be heard. Two riders approached from the direction of the castle. Eventually they reached the market square and reined in before the rows of notables who bowed. The elder of the two riders who returned the greeting was Count Georg von Landskron, a handsome man in the prime of life. Next to him on a black horse with a white blaze rode a very young nobleman dressed in blue with a gold-lined red cloak that bore a clearly visible coat of arms: a griffin’s claw on a golden background. His eyes flashed happily as his long black hair fluttered in the breeze.

  Anna didn’t trust her eyes – it was the man from her dream! The young knight who always came with the blue flower that could heal all the suffering in the world. As he inspected the colourful scene, she could see his narrow face with the high cheek bones and the slight shadow of a beard. Noticing how Anna had literally jumped at seeing him, Aaron asked: ‘What is it?’

  ‘N-nothing,’ she stuttered before scolding herself for being so naïve as to believe that a dream would come true. It was simply a gentleman on his high horse, his beauty and princely bearing making him the idol of every young woman in the square. Still she dared to ask Aaron: ‘Who is that next to the count?’

  ‘He must be a relative of the count’s. It’s also the first time that I have see him.’

  A man who was standing behind Aaron, and who to go by his clothes belonged to the better-class citizens, said softly: ‘That is Chassim von Greifenklau, the count’s brother-in-law. He has won several tournaments.’

  Anna nodded, grateful for his explanation. Chassim – at least her dream now had a name. But she did not have much time to think about it as the blare of another fanfare made the nervous horses prance.

  ‘Why is the count’s wife not here?’ Anna, curious, asked Aaron.

  ‘Because she is expecting,’ he whispered. ‘I am her medicus but it would be better if nobody knew about it. I have forbidden her to do anything that requires an effort because she has suffered several miscarriages in the past. You may meet her soon. I visit her regularly.’

  A third fanfare was heard. And now, at last, the royal retinue was about to arrive. Anna dared take a step forward so as not to miss a single detail of the spectacle. Or was it so as to better see the nobleman dressed in blue
, who with his heels had skilfully manoeuvred his horse backwards, stopping very close to Anna? He turned around to make sure he kept his distance from the crowd of spectators and in this brief moment their gazes met. It only lasted a heartbeat, but Anna gasped. Yes, with his well-proportioned, clean-shaven face, he was the knight of her dream. Her heart also told her that it had to be him and she thought he had smiled at her briefly before turning away again.

  Anna sighed. Chassim von Greifenklau, who most likely was long betrothed to a young woman of his rank and standing, most definitely would not be interested in a slight, shy, spindly girl in a dark tunic who was hiding her bare head under a hood.

  She lowered her eyes, ashamed of herself; ashamed that she looked so plain and ordinary, and that she was arrogant and vain enough at this moment to wish ardently to have beautiful long hair as was fashionable among the noble ladies – even if they mostly kept it hidden under knotted scarves or bonnets.

  Or was she ashamed of her inappropriate but strong desire to be kissed by such a youth? The thought made her body feel hot and her head swirl. She furtively glanced at Aaron who normally didn’t miss a thing to see whether he had noticed her blush. But the medicus’ attention was captivated by the impressive ceremony taking place before their eyes. She tried with all her might to think of other things. For the first time in her life she understood what the monks meant when they talked about temptation and why they flogged themselves in their cells at night to atone for their impure desires.

  An accidental jolt from the elbow of an onlooker pushing forward brought Anna back to reality. Thundering hoof beats resounded through the lanes as two outriders charged into the square.

  One of the little flower girls who stood scared in front of her now pressed herself trustingly against Anna who put her arms reassuringly around her.

  The two outriders in their yellow tunics carrying their fluttering banners bearing the arms of the Staufers halted in front of the count, Chassim and the notables of the city. The embroidery of the richly caparisoned horses and the golden tassels and fringes of their bridles sparkled in the sun.