The Luck of the Weissensteiners (The Three Nations Trilogy) by Christoph Fischer Page B

claimed to work late and to be busy at the shop, but he had lied to her and there had to be a reason for this secrecy. She was not going to confront him in front of his party members and when she arrived back at the workshop she just said that she had missed Wilhelm and was going to leave tomorrow on her own instead. Everyone who knew Wilhelm’s committed work ethics had to be surprised at this statement and Jonah and Wilma certainly raised an eyebrow but they were happy to have one more evening with their beloved Greta and did not question her any further.
    The next morning Greta walked back to the farm on her own and found nobody in the house but Roswitha, who was preparing lunch.
    “Oh hello Greta. I did not know you were coming back today. Are you feeling better?” she asked while stirring the contents of one of the pots.
    “Thanks Roswitha,” she replied. “Yes I do feel much better. Where is Karl? Is he asleep?” she asked.
    “Johanna has taken him to the lake to feed the birds.”
    “On a weekday?”
    “Yes, I know it is strange, but she is completely besotted with the boy and she promised to take him out to see the birds if he manages to go potty by himself. He did it three days in a row and the silly woman thinks he is specially gifted. The boy is almost three,” Roswitha said with rolling eyes.
    Greta felt a surge of jealousy when she heard that she had missed such a stepping stone in the development of her child and she started to realise the extent to which Johanna had taken over the role of mother. She was close to tears but she could not afford to let them show. If Roswitha told anyone about her crying she would be banished from the farm again and from seeing her son and she couldn't let that happen.
    When Johanna and Karl came home a few hours later Karl was too exhausted from the walk to take proper notice of Greta and Johanna took him to his bed for a nap.
    “You don't have to worry about him,” she assured the worried mother.  “He is having a great time with his auntie Johanna. There is no need for you to rush back and make a big drama. It is better if you take your time and gather your strength. Losing a child is the ultimate ordeal a mother can go through and it must have taken its toll. I know Benedikt pushes everyone to go back to normal as soon as they can but I think it is wrong. Karl must never see you down like the way you were. Are you quite sure that you are ready to take him on again? He is quite a stubborn little prince. I am glad I had three children of my own to deal with his little schemes.”
    “I am fine, Johanna. I miss him. I need him back and he needs me,” Greta said less confidently than she would have liked.
    “I know that is what every mother thinks but it is not true,” Johanna contradicted. “A child does not necessarily need his mother but someone who acts like a mother and knows what she is doing. You may need him but that may not be a good thing for him. He comes first,” she said with dramatic emphasis and paused before adding, “… and then you. This is how we Winkelmeiers handle child rearing.
    “That is a lie!” Greta almost screamed at her.  “You brought up your children in exactly the opposite way. Your children are last by a long way in the pecking order and they always have been.”
    “They needed to be and they still are,” said Johanna not in the least impressed by the emotional outburst.  “If it was their life or mine to save I would always chose theirs. That is what I am talking about. You are no help to your son if you can't pull yourself together and put his feelings first. You are not thinking about his best but about your own best. ”
    “Don't worry about that. I am fine now,” Greta replied with as much strength as she could muster.
    “We will see. Just don't let yourself go again, do you understand?”
    Close to tears but determined not to let Johanna break her spirit she sai d. “Yes, I understand. So what needs to be