Her attention was focused on the object, and he lay quietly watching her, determined to make no sound this time to alert her to his wakeful state. She passed her hands three times over the surface, rocking back and forth, murmuring words in a mixture of English, French, and a strange foreign tongue. Then she stared intently at its surface.
He watched, fascinated, as her face expressed strong emotions. Shock, sadness then fear. She closed her eyes and crossed herself. Then, as though unable to resist its attraction, she gazed again at the disc. It must have been some sort of mirror because the reflection on its surface from the faint rays of sun shining through the window lit up her face. She smiled slightly, then a blush came to her cheeks and her breath quickened. He’d seen the same reaction from her as she shamelessly pleasured herself in his lustful dream yesterday.
Or was it a dream?
From what he knew of them, nuns did not mutter incantations and conjure visions from a looking glass. And if she had not allowed a member of the crew into this room, then it was Sister Bertilde herself who undressed and bathed him…and perhaps had truly handled his private parts in such a brazen way.
He felt his manhood stirring to life once again at the fantasy – or was it indeed a memory – of her long tresses brushing his thighs as her hand fondled his growing erection.
Suspicion flooded his mind. Surely nuns did not engage in such lewd behavior. As he thought about it, he realized she was decidedly outspoken as well and seemed far too knowledgeable about current events for one who claimed to have lived a sheltered life, dedicated to saintly devotion.
She’d never faltered yesterday when reading some of the passages that had led to the banning of Voltaire’s work, ones in which he subtly ridiculed common religious beliefs. Outspoken as she was, as a devout believer, would she allow such words to pass her lips without stopping to comment on their disgraceful message?
It was time to find out the truth about his uninvited guest – and he knew of only one sure way to determine whether a woman was telling the truth.
Teach feigned sleep as his mind raced, designing a plan.