The Neighbours Next Door (Part Three)

Verena strode angrily down the street by Piersom's place with a shopping basket at her side. It's not fair what they did to Claudine! She is so sweet, and such a loving mother!
Her eyes flashed sparks when she caught sight of Claus What's-His-Name.

“You!” She planted herself firmly in front of him and shoved her hands down on her hips. “You are the cause of so much trouble in this town!”

Immediately two or three people stopped what there were doing, curious to know what the youthful maiden was upset about. Verena was swinging her basket dangerously and Claus stepped back, not willing to be hit.

Verena turned to the onlookers. “He's the guilty culprit. It's because of him that Margariete and Pieter and Nicholae are without a mother!”

“Him?” the shoemaker exploded. “ You mean those children are going motherless because of him?”

“Aye,” another voice chimed in. “And she was such a sweet singer. She sang like a bird. I always slowed my pace while going this way to hear her music.”

When Claus saw the hefty blacksmith lumber towards him, he tried to scurry away, but the big man grabbed him by the shoulder and nearly lifted him off the ground. “It's about time you learn to pick on people your own size,” he bellowed. “What think ye, good folks, should this man be taught a lesson?”

“Yes, yes!” The crowd was swelling.

Verena caught sight of Margariete's white, frightened face in the nearby window, and wondered what she had started. The crowd was getting out of hand, and the mood had turned ugly.

Someone at the back of the crowd yelled, “Judas!” And the cry of “Judas traitor!” flew from tongue to tongue. Verena found herself pushed along with the rabble as they plunged down the street. She stared as the men angrily demolished Claus' shop but didn't join in while they ran him out of town. Somehow she knew Claudine wouldn't like how he was being treated.

Verena retraced her steps back to Margariete's door, but the child was too frightened to open it until she called out her name.

“How's you Mama doing?” Verena asked gently.

Margariete started to sob and little Nicholae wrapped his thin arms around her.

“They have brought her to Ypres.”

“To Ypres? You mean the dungeon there?” Verena looked shocked. “What a dreadful place for a young mother with a baby to be confined!”

Verena turned to Piersom who had just walked in. He looked patiently, serene but Verena wondered how his wife was. “How is Claudine doing” she demanded.

“She's of good courage,” Piersom said, handing her a piece of paper. “Everyday someone is able to bring her food and smuggle back a letter. “She is concerned about the other children, but having the babe with her brings her much cheer.”

The next day he heard rumors that Jans would be removed from his mother's care to help break her down.