The Seamen's Secret

Prologue

"Adela, come out into the great hall darling, we have visitors." Four year old Adela Gertensburg put her doll unto the floor at the beckoning of her father. Adela loved her father. He had a nice voice and she never ceased to enjoy hearing him call her name. She hurried to the door and tried to open it but the handle was too high up for her to reach. Frau Gertrude, her nursemaid, rushed to pull the door open for her. Then stopped. "Let me see you..." Adela turned to face the nun. The woman tsked and said, "you have aa stain down the front of your dress and your hair is all knotted. You must be presentable for the visitors." Sometimes Adela did not like Frau Gertrude... What did she care of her dress was stained? Frau Gertrude dressed her in a pale blue frock that made her eyes stand out and then the nun pulled her white blond curls into a bun. As soon as the nun's hand put the last pin in, Adela rushed out of the nursery to see her papa. Duke Wilhelm was hard looking on the outside with a battle worn face, but his heart melted whenever he saw one of his children. "You look lovely my dear... is that a new dress?" He asked in his softest voice. "No, but it is my favourite because it's so pretty, watch." Adela said. Then twirled for her papa. He clapped his hands. He loved Adele dearly. He hoped his friend's son would be a good match for her. "Adela, our visitors are here." She turned around and there stood a man with a kind face and a boy with reddish hair and a timid smile. Both were tall and proud looking. Adela did not like them. Duke Wilhelm knelt in front of Adela. "Liebling, do you know what a betrothal is?" Adela shook her head. "Well... you understand how Margeretha and Kristyn are promised to Duke Adolf and Baron Sholtz, and Valten was promised to Sophie?" Adela nodded. "They had promised to marry these men and woman. A betrothal is just a promise to marry someone when you are ready." Adela nodded again but was confused. "Why are you telling me this Papa?" He and the man shared a look. "Duke Friedrecton and I have agreed that it would be wonderful if our families would be bonded by marriage also. So we agreed that my youngest daughter and his eldest son be betrothed. You and Kurt..." he nodded to the boy beside Duke Friedrecton "will marry when you turn sixteen." Adela looked this 'Kurt' boy up and down and said immediately, "I do not want to marry him, he is strange and his head looks as if it's on fire." She pointed his hair to her father. He looked at her sternly with a look that said that was rude. Adela did not care. She was merely stating the truth. Kurt's face lit up red with a blush but his father laughed. "Oh Wilhelm," Duke Friedrecton said with a chuckle, "they will do very well together. Do you have the papers?" Adela's father pulled out a scroll. Duke Friedrecton pulled out an identical one from his expensive looking cloak. "Has it been signed by your priest in Rosenstein?" Asked Wilhelm. Friedrecton nodded. "Our priest in Hagenheim has done so also. All we need is our signatures since Lady Rose has already signed." The men were brought quills and ink pots. They dipped their quills into the ink, set the tips to the parchment and signed. That was it, Adela was betrothed. She glared at Kirt, this was all his fault. Then without a word to her father, she flounced away to go play with her doll.