Olivia and Walpurga stood side by side in the private chambers of the Abbess. Nothing disturbed the stillness except an old clock ticking quietly over a yawning fireplace. They were clothed in short dresses of thin muslin, wrapped around their bodies and reaching only to the tops of their thighs. Walpurga stared defiantly at the wall, fuming at their betrayal. After all they had endured, the tinkers had handed them straight back for a sovereign apiece. Olivia gazed sadly at the floor. It had not yet sunk in that she was back in the convent.
The Abbess had had them brought directly to her apartment. She sat quietly behind her desk, her hands clasped together on its polished surface. Just beside her stood the Mistress, fingertips massaging her temples. Her eyes were closed as if she were in deep and troubled thought.
'I am surprised at you, Walpurga,' the Abbess said at length. 'You must have known that sooner or later you would be caught. There is no escape from this convent. No matter where you go, or where you hide, I shall find you. Every road and every vehicle that travels upon them leads back here - eventually. Holland, I can understand. She was unaware of how far my arms reach, and was probably easily led. But you have no excuses.'
Olivia kept her head bowed, not daring to look into the penetrating and accusatory eyes. She had realised a while ago that she was a prisoner, but had never believed that the confines of the prison could extend so far and wide.
'Take off those dresses.'
They both obeyed without question. The muslin floated silently to the floor. Olivia put her hands over her nudity. In contrast Walpurga stood insolently, arms hanging by her sides.
The Mistress, without being told, went to a cabinet and returned with a book that she laid on the desk before the Abbess. They both flicked through the pages, silently studying a host of beautifully illustrated paintings done long, long ago, but still as fresh as ever.
'To tell the truth,' the Abbess eventually looked up and said, 'the pair of you ought to be racked and flogged, or put to the wheel. But I will make an exception, just this once.'
'Thank you Abbess,' said Olivia.
Walpurga said nothing.
The Abbess closed the book with a thump and leaned back in her chair, her chin resting on steepled fingers.
'Will the punishment be carried out immediately?' the Mistress asked with a cruel hint of eagerness in her voice.
'Good justice is swift justice. Have them prepared at once, and assemble the convent in the outer bailey. Have the tinkers gone yet?'
'They are having breakfast, Reverend Mother.'
'Retain their services.'
And she dismissed both nuns and Novitiate Mistress with a wave of her hand.