Free The Secret Healer by Ellin Carsta Page A

place.”
    The nobleman hesitated, then picked up the chair and sat back down. Andreas shot him a dangerous smile. “Oh, yes,” he continued. “It proves to the court that you are an unrepentant liar, my lord. Therefore, any intelligent person must question every single word that comes out of your mouth.” His smile grew broader. “Frankly, I’m quite curious as to what else might come up upon closer inspection.” With that, he turned and went back to the defendant’s table, Matthias’s angry gaze aimed at his back.

Chapter Eight
    By noon, Andreas von Balge had disproved every single word of Matthias Trauenstein’s allegations. Madlen was very satisfied with his work as she accompanied him to lunch at the inn across the street from the town hall for the scheduled two-hour break. Exhausted, she let herself fall onto the bench while Andreas ordered. “We’ll need your strength when we go back to the courtroom.”
    “But I—” Madlen began to protest.
    “Don’t worry. This meal’s on me. You’ve already paid me well.”
    “Thank you.”
    “This afternoon will be more difficult once the maid makes her statement. I hope that she says exactly what Matthias Trauenstein tried to make the court swallow earlier. No one will believe a word of it.”
    The host came to the table with two tankards of beer and a platter of ham, bread, and lard. “Here, my good people. On the house.”
    “Why?” Madlen asked. She was puzzled.
    The man’s beer belly hung low as he stood with his legs apart. “I was in the courtroom and came back here shortly before you arrived.” He raised his index finger in warning. “In my opinion, this nobleman’s allegations against you are evil, my child. Trauenstein should be careful he doesn’t take an evening walk around the dark streets of Heidelberg, or he’ll be the one in need of a doctor. Now, enjoy your meal.” He turned and went into an adjoining room.
    Andreas held up his tankard, pressed it to his lips, and took a nice, long slug. “In the blink of an eye, you’ll be back in your cottage, leading a carefree life.”
    Madlen tried to smile. The advocate was probably right, but though he was confident, she still had her doubts. It was almost too easy. She ate a bit of ham and bread silently and only took a tiny sip of beer before the advocate chugged down the rest of her brew.
    “Thank you, sir,” Andreas called out as they took their leave.
    The host opened the door. “My pleasure, my lord. Now go show this nobleman that he can’t shove us around anytime he wants. I hope they hang him.”
    “Why do you say that?” Andreas von Balge asked, although he already knew the answer.
    “He beat his wife so badly that she lost the child. We all know that.”
    Some of the other tavern customers nodded approvingly.
    “But,” the advocate pointed out, “first things first: we’ve got to acquit our Madlen here of any and all charges.”
    “Good luck, girl,” called out one patron. “All the good people of Heidelberg are praying for you!”
    “Nail this bastard!” said one after another.
    Andreas thanked them with a nod and a wave of his hand, then left the tavern with his client. At that moment, he knew exactly why he never wanted to be anything other than a full-fledged lawyer. They walked confidently back over to the courtroom.
    Madlen felt something had changed as she entered the room. Before she’d felt suspicious and judgmental glances from the guards; now the same men opened the doors, gesturing amiably and nodding sympathetically.
    It wasn’t long before the room overflowed with so many spectators that the guards had to refuse entrance to any more. Usually, when court proceedings started in the morning and still hadn’t reached a verdict by lunch, the average Heidelberger had better things to do than continue to follow the case. Usually, the man on the street would hear enough gossip to anticipate the decision of the court. But Madlen’s case was different. Not