Marienschnee Pt. 03

The story so far...

The secret at Marienschnee has grown. Magdalena, Veronika and Cecilia have been having sex with Toni. And when Theresia discovers what they're up to, she chooses to become part of it. But one cold winter night, Lucia wakes with Toni's cock sliding up between her buttocks--and goes straight to Mother Benedikta.

And now...

***

The abbess listens without interrupting. Her face is set like stone in the light of the single tallow candle. When Lucia falls silent, the old woman rises slowly.

"Sleep here with us tonight. I will sort this out and have a serious word with him tomorrow," she says.

Her voice is low but leaves no room for objection.

"And if I ever see or hear of him laying a hand on you again, he'll be thrown out of here on his ear. Winter or not."

Lucia nods and pulls the blanket tighter around herself. Serafina shifts over to make room for Lucia.

***

All three of them sleep poorly. Benedikta's sleeping space isn't meant for more than two people at most, so every time someone turns over, the others have to shift as well. Benedikta wakes up several times with Lucia's elbow in her side. Eventually, Benedikta lies on her back and stays that way for the rest of the night.

After morning prayers, she asks Toni to remain in the chapel. The others go to their chores.

"Lucia has told me what happened last night."

Toni looks at her.

"I was asleep."

"She said that, too."

"I didn't know I was doing anything."

"I certainly hope not."

Benedikta adjusts the sleeve of her habit.

"You cannot sleep next to her again. From this evening on, you will sleep in my chamber. Serafina and Lucia will take your place in the dormitory."

Toni nods.

"And Toni?"

He stops at the door.

"If it happens again, you'll have to leave the convent. I won't have anyone living in fear of going to bed here."

"I understand."

"Good. Go and help Gertrud with the firewood."

***

Toni moves his few belongings to the abbess's chamber that same evening. The room is small, but the bed is wider than the cots. Benedikta lies down with her back to him, stiff as a board, and extinguishes the light without a word.

***

The new sleeping arrangements make the nights calmer. During the day, the four of them have to find other opportunities.

One morning, Magdalena asks Toni to come to the storeroom to carry sacks of flour. Veronika takes over her spot at the baking table and says nothing when they are gone for a long time.

Another day, Veronika sends him to fetch water. Cecilia ensures Judith gets help with the washing-up. That gives Veronika the chance to follow Toni.

When Cecilia needs Toni in the laundry room, Magdalena keeps Gertrud busy sorting firewood. It takes longer than Gertrud thinks it should.

Theresia rarely needs to ask for help. When she tells Toni to come to the woodshed, he does. Magdalena takes care of her chores until she returns.

And Toni never needs to plan anything. The women ensure he is occupied with them almost every day.

***

One day, as Theresia and Toni are on their way to the woodshed, Gertrud calls out to them.

"I can help Toni. Go back inside and tend to your old, aching legs."

Theresia stares at Gertrud but realizes she cannot object. It would look too suspicious. There will be no cock for her today. She will have to try again tomorrow. Theresia turns and walks back towards the convent.

"Thanks."

Theresia wants to add "you fat cow," but realizes that would be incredibly unwise.

Gertrud and Toni walk in silence to the woodshed. Inside, Toni immediately starts gathering firewood in his arms. When he turns around, he gets the shock of his life. Gertrud is already standing with her back to him, her hands pressed against the log wall and her clothes hiked all the way up over her broad back. Her large, round buttocks are completely bare. Between her thick thighs, her hairy, already glistening pussy is clearly visible.

Toni hesitates for only a second before dropping the wood he is holding. He pulls down his trousers and takes her right where she stands. The head of his cock slides easily against her wet opening. He grabs her sturdy hips and thrusts inside in one hard, deep stroke. Toni is surprised by how she feels. She lets out a hoarse, satisfied sound as he buries himself deep within her.

He fucks her fast and hard against the wall. Every thrust makes her large buttocks jiggle and her enormous breasts sway heavily beneath the fabric. Toni stares at her breasts, wishing she had pulled down her shift as well. Skin slaps against skin. It doesn't take long. Gertrud comes first--a silent, shuddering spasm that makes her inner muscles squeeze his cock tight. Immediately after, he empties himself deep inside her with a muffled groan.

As he pulls out, a thick stream of semen runs down her thigh. Gertrud carelessly wipes herself with her skirt, adjusts her clothes, bends down, and picks up a substantial armful of firewood as if nothing had happened. Toni is completely bewildered.

***

Benedikta has seen the stains.

The first morning, she thinks it is something else. The second morning, she understands. He is ejaculating in the bed while he sleeps. She immediately thinks of Lucia--of the night the young woman rushed in to see her.

Poor boy, she thinks. Is he dreaming of Lucia, too? It is hard to control one's dreams.

She feels an unexpected surge of compassion. To send him away now would be to condemn him to death in the snow. The mountain pass is closed. He would freeze to death within days. So, she says nothing.

***

Judith and Serafina are sitting and mending clothes when Toni comes in to fetch his work coat. Gertrud is on her way out and asks what it is like sleeping at the Abbess's quarters.

"She hates me," he whispers. "She's going to throw me out as soon as the snow melts."

"Did she say that?"

"No."

Toni takes his work coat and leaves with Gertrud.

Judith watches them go.

"Do you think he really was asleep that night?"

Serafina pulls the needle through the fabric.

"Lucia says he was."

Judith puts down the shirt she is working on.

"I feel sorry for her. She's hardly said a word since then."

"No. But at least she doesn't have to wake up with him right behind her."

"And now he thinks Benedikta is going to throw him out."

"He looked terrified," says Serafina. "He and I have never really got along. But if he was asleep, I actually feel sorry for him."

***

A couple of weeks go by. One night, Benedikta wakes up to movement in the bed. Toni is lying on his back, thrusting his hips upward into the air in his sleep--a steady rhythm that grows increasingly rapid. She lies still for a moment, watching him. He looks tormented to her. Finally, she reaches out, pushes aside the fabric, and grasps his thick, hot member.

It is so rigid that it seems to pulse in her hand. She holds it firmly and lets him thrust against her palm. It takes only a few seconds. He climaxes hard, with a muffled groan, and thick spurts of warm semen spray over her fingers and the back of her hand. She keeps holding him until the last spasms subside. Then she wipes her hand on the duvet, turns over, and falls asleep again.

She feels no regret. She has simply helped someone in need. There is nothing sexual about it.

It happens again the next night. And the night after that. Sometimes twice in the same night. Benedikta begins to almost anticipate the movements beside her and the stillness that follows.

***

After a day spent hauling wood and tending to sick animals, Benedikta is utterly exhausted. When Toni moves toward her and presses himself between her thighs, she hasn't the strength to lift a hand. She lets him carry on. He thrusts between her closed thighs until he comes with a groan in her ear. Warm semen runs down her legs.

The next night, the same thing happens. She keeps telling herself it is merely pity.

On the third night, she lies awake, waiting. When nothing happens, a disappointment creeps through her--one she refuses to acknowledge. Time passes. Barely an hour remains before dawn when she feels him move again. This time, she opens her legs. Willingly.

He slides into her with a long, steady, relentless thrust.

Even though she knew it might happen, she is unprepared. The sensation is so intense she nearly cries out. His thick member thrusts deep into a place that has remained untouched for decades. He moves inside her, deep and steady, and she climaxes for the first time before he has even found his rhythm. Then again. And again. She loses count. Her mouth hangs open, making sounds she has never heard herself utter. Every thrust makes her slack breasts sway. By the time he empties himself inside her, she is already completely undone. And she can feel how he has left his warm semen deep inside her barren body.

It is only when the grey morning light seeps in under the door that she truly understands what has happened. The semen is still trickling out of her, staining the sheet. And she has lain there, receiving it as if it were the only thing she had ever wanted.

***

Since that first time in the woodshed, Gertrud has sought Toni out a few times. She has been just as direct each time, and just as unruffled afterwards. Toni has wanted to ask how she knew, but they have never been alone long enough to talk. Gertrud never lingers, and in those moments, Toni finds it hard to think of anything else.

The next afternoon, Toni and Gertrud carry firewood from the shed to the kitchen. When they return for the third time, Gertrud closes the door behind them.

"How did you know?" Toni asks.

"Know what?"

"That Theresia and I were coming here that day."

"Theresia strangely often needs help from *you*."

Toni looks at her.

"And Magdalena suddenly needs help with the flour sacks. Veronika follows you when you fetch water."

"You can't possibly know what we're doing?"

"I saw you and Cecilia in the laundry room."

"When?"

"The day Magdalena had me sorting the firewood. I finished sooner than she'd expected."

Toni says nothing.

"You aren't as discreet as you think," Gertrud says.

"Have you said anything?"

"To whom?"

"Benedikta."

Gertrud snorts.

"I'm not stupid, you know."

She walks up to him and kisses him. In a matter of seconds, she has hiked up her skirt, turned toward the wall, and taken his hard cock in a single, deep thrust. She climaxes silently, her forehead pressed against the timber, as he fills her. A short while later, she adjusts her skirt and opens the door.

"Grab plenty of firewood now," she says. "Otherwise, Judith will wonder why it's taking so long."

***

Toni fucks five different women over the course of the days.

It happens in brief, stolen moments: behind the barn while the goats are being milked, in the cellar among the sacks of potatoes, in the herb store where the scent of dried leaves mingles with sweat, behind the rowan tree on the way to the woodshed. The five of them sometimes have to go days without him. None of them likes waiting.

Benedikta has him every night.

She keeps telling herself that she is only helping him. Usually, she lies with her back against his chest. Sometimes, his rock-hard cock is simply wedged between her thighs, thrusting there until he comes and the semen coats her skin. On other nights, the thick member slides straight into her pussy from behind. He fucks her slowly and deeply then, his hand resting heavily on her belly.

Sometimes his hands grip her soft breasts and knead them. She usually lies still and lets him carry on. She has grown accustomed to the full sensation as he stretches her, to the warmth when he ejaculates inside her, and to not asking herself what she actually wants.

Toni no longer sleeps through the night. Sometimes he wakes up in the middle of a thrust, realizing exactly where he is and whose pussy is squeezing his cock. He doesn't know what to say. Eventually, he decides to pretend he is asleep even while awake, and continues fucking her.

Benedikta still believes he is asleep.

One night, he slips out of her during a particularly deep thrust. The wet, glistening head of his cock presses against her rear opening instead. Benedikta is on the verge of screaming out loud. Her whole body tenses, but she bites her lip to avoid waking him.

Toni is awake but says nothing. He never intended to try anal sex, but now the head of his cock is already pressed against the tight opening. His cock is slick with her juices and his pre-cum.

It slides in with surprisingly little resistance until he is deep inside her ass. Benedikta lies frozen stiff, her face pressed against the pillow. Then he begins to move. Long, cautious thrusts at first. Then deeper. To her own dismay, she climaxes that night too--shaking and silent--while he fucks her ass and finally empties himself deep inside it.

Afterwards, she lies still for a long time with his soft cock still in her rear opening, trying to determine if he noticed anything.

***

The next day, Benedikta can barely sit. Every step stings. She skips breakfast, mutters something about important work at the office, and eats standing up in her room, her teeth clenched.

***

A week later, Judith and Magdalena are in the storeroom, sorting through sacks of dried beans. Magdalena reaches for a sack on the top shelf. As she lifts her arms, her garment pulls tight across her belly. Judith notices it immediately. She has seen Magdalena every day for years. Magdalena's belly has grown rounder. Not much, but enough for Judith to pause, measuring scoop in hand, and take a second look.

"Shall I hold the jar?" she asks.

"Please."

Magdalena lifts the sack down and places it on the table. Judith holds out the jar while Magdalena pours.

Toni, Judith thinks. So, it isn't just young women like Lucia he's interested in.

She glances at Magdalena's breasts, too. Have they grown larger? Hard to tell beneath the garment. Her belly isn't particularly big yet, either. Perhaps her breasts will start to grow more later on.

"That's enough," Judith says when the jar is full.

Magdalena sets the sack aside and begins to retie it.

Judith wonders what their plan is. Has Magdalena said anything to Toni? Does he even know? And if he does know, what does he think will happen when the others find out? Or has she already told Benedikta?

She puts the lid on the jar. Magdalena's pregnancy is none of her business. Magdalena can tell people when she likes. But Judith would certainly like to hear what both she and Toni have to say.

***

Over the next few days, Judith catches herself keeping an eye on Magdalena more often than usual. She tries not to. It is none of her business.

One morning, Magdalena and Toni are standing together by the well. Magdalena says something that makes him laugh. Judith cannot hear what it is. She wonders if he knows. The next day, she sees Magdalena go in to see Benedikta. When she comes out a short while later, she looks exactly as usual. That tells Judith nothing.

She considers asking Benedikta. That might be wise. If the abbess already knows, Judith won't need to say anything at all to either Magdalena or Toni.

Two days later, she goes into the storeroom to get a new needle. Toni is standing there alone, looking for a pair of work gloves.

"So," says Judith.

Toni turns around. He is holding a pair of work gloves.

"What?"

"Nothing."

She walks over to the box of sewing needles and lifts the lid. There are three needles inside. She only needs one, but she stands there looking at them.

"How is Magdalena?" she asks.

"Fine, I think."

"You don't know?"

"What? Why are you asking?"

Judith picks up a needle.

"She's put on a little weight."

Toni says nothing.

"You've noticed, haven't you?"

"Yeah."

Judith closes the box.

"Do you know why?"

He looks at her. Then at the door.

"What do you mean?"

"Toni. I'm forty-four years old. I know what a pregnant woman looks like."

"Have you said anything to anyone?"

"No."

"Not to Benedikta?"

"No. Does she know?"

"Not that I know of."

Judith tucks the needle into her sleeve.

"And what do you plan to do?"

"Plan?"

"You and Magdalena."

Toni sits down on a sack.

"I don't know."

"How long have you known?"

"For a while."

"And you haven't talked about what's going to happen?"

"We have. But we don't know."

Judith nods slowly.

"I understand."

She doesn't, really. Toni twists the gloves between his hands.

"You aren't going to tell anyone, are you?"

"No, this is none of my business."

"Not even Serafina?"

"No."

"But you tell each other everything."

Judith looks at him.

"A lot, but not everything."

He places his gloves in his lap.

"I didn't think anyone had noticed anything."

"Magdalena won't be able to hide under her work clothes all winter."

"No."

Judith walks toward the door.

"Like I said, I'm not going to say anything. But I hope you talk to Benedikta before she hears it from someone else."

Then she disappears through the door, leaving Toni alone with all the questions.

***

An hour later, Toni finds Judith in the cold dormitory. She is sitting on her cot, mending a tear in her work uniform. The others are still busy with their afternoon chores.

"I've been thinking about what you said."

Judith looks up.

"That was quick."

"What would you have done?"

"About what?"

"If it were you."

"If I were Magdalena?"

"No. If it were you and me."

Judith remains seated, needle in hand. Then she laughs.

"What kind of question is that?"

"You seemed to know what we ought to do."

"I said you ought to talk to Benedikta."

"Would you have done it?"

"If I were Magdalena?"

"If it were us."

Judith puts down her sewing.

"No," she says after a moment. "Actually, I wouldn't."

"Why not?"

"Because she'd go ballistic. And then she'd decide on something we couldn't undo."

"Like throwing me out?"

"For example."

Toni sits down on the cot, a short distance away from her.

"What would you do then?"

"Keep quiet for as long as I could. And think it through carefully."

"That's more or less what we're doing."

"Yes," says Judith. "I suppose so."

She picks up her sewing again but doesn't put the needle into the fabric.

"Though if it were me, you probably wouldn't have to worry about a pregnant belly."

"Why's that?"

"Toni. Have you seen me?"

"Yes."

"I'm small, like a twelve-year-old, and I hardly have any breasts."

"You're forty-four."

"Thanks. I'd almost forgotten."

He smiles.

"You asked if I'd seen you."

Judith tries not to smile back.

"But who knows. If you'd gotten me pregnant, maybe I'd have ended up with a huge belly and a pair of breasts to match it."

Toni doesn't answer. He sits there gazing ahead with a faint smile. Judith laughs.

"You aren't sitting there thinking about getting me pregnant, are you?"

"Huh? Um..."

"Do you think a massive belly and melon-sized breasts would suit this body?"

Judith is still laughing as she describes herself. But Toni still looks serious.

"You're beautiful just as you are. I'd feel honored if you wanted me."

She looks down at the tear in her outfit. It's strange how much easier it was to talk to him when the conversation was about Magdalena.

"You don't have to say things like that just to be nice."

"I'm not trying to be nice."

He stays where he is. Judith pulls the needle through the fabric, but the stitch comes out crooked. She unpicks it.

"Are you serious?" she asks.

"Yes."

"Seriously? With me?"

"Yes, Judith."

She sets the garment aside.

"You're out of your mind."

"You might be right about that."

Judith laughs softly. Then she leans forward and kisses him.

***

At first, Toni sits perfectly still. When she pulls away, he looks at her as if he can't quite believe it happened.

"Well," says Judith.

"Well?"

"You could kiss me back, you know."

He does.

Forty-four years old and still untouched. Had anyone asked her fifteen minutes ago, she would have said she was going to die a virgin. She never would have imagined that a man who grew up behind the same walls would be the one to change that.

She wraps her hands around the back of his neck. When he stands up, she goes with him, but soon her feet no longer touch the floor.

"Toni!"

"What?"

"I'm flying."

He sets her down again.

"Sorry."

"I didn't say I didn't like it."

She laughs at his expression and kisses him again--deeper this time. Her hands slide down and undo his trousers. When his rock-hard cock springs free, she cups it in both hands for a moment, feeling its weight and heat. Then she hikes her shift up beneath her arms.

Toni lifts her up again. Judith wraps her arms around his neck and locks her legs tightly around his waist. He supports her light body with his hands beneath her bare buttocks. The head of his cock presses against her virgin opening. She is wet, but tight. Very tight. As he slowly lowers her onto his cock, she feels the resistance, feels something inside her stretching and tearing with a sharp, burning sensation. She clenches her jaw against his shoulder but says nothing.

He assumes it is simply her body that is unaccustomed to the act.

When he is fully inside her, he pauses for a moment. Judith breathes heavily against his neck. Then he begins to move her up and down along his thick cock. Each time he lifts her, she nearly slides off him; each time he lowers her again, the head of his cock thrusts deep against her cervix. She is so tight that he can feel every millimeter. The wet, sticky sound of her virgin blood and juices mingles with the sound of their breathing.

Judith holds tight to the back of his neck, taking thrust after thrust as she hangs in his arms. Her small breasts sway against his chest. She comes suddenly, taken by surprise, a stifled sound escaping against his skin as her previously unused pussy rhythmically clenches around him. Toni doesn't last long after that. A few deep, hard thrusts later, he groans and spurts thickly inside her, filling her bleeding, spasming vagina while still supporting her full weight.

A moment later, Toni is still standing there holding Judith in his arms. Her arms are wrapped around his neck, her legs around his body. Her entire weight rests in his hands. She often thinks about how small her body is, but here, it is actually an advantage.

"You can put me down now," she says.

"Sure."

He does so gently. Judith takes a step back, keeping her hand on his arm until she is steady on her feet. Between her thighs, she can feel the sticky mixture of semen and the thin blood from her lost virginity.

"Well," she says.

"You say that a lot."

"I've had reason to today."

She picks up her shift but stands there holding it in her hands.

"Toni?"

"Yes?"

"That was my first time."

He looks at her.

"First time?"

"Yes. I haven't done it before."

"I didn't know that."

"No. It didn't really occur to me to say so."

"Did I hurt you?"

"A little. But I would have told you if I wanted you to stop."

Toni nods.

"Forty-four years," she says, pulling the shift over her head. "It was about time."

"I'm glad you wanted to."

"So am I."

She looks down at the rest of her clothes, lying on the cot next to his work coat.

"What if you got me pregnant right now?"

Toni looks at her.

"Yeah."

"Yeah? Is that all you have to say?"

"What am I supposed to say?"

"You could start by looking a little worried."

He tries. Judith starts to laugh. But she stops, holding the shift in her hands.

"Have you said anything to anyone about our conversation earlier today?" she asks.

"No."

"Not to Magdalena?"

"No. I haven't had time. I've been trying to get you to myself again."

Judith nods and gets dressed. She picks up the work suit and examines the tear. Some of the stitches have come undone.

"That's just great."

"I can help you."

"With the sewing?"

"Yes."

She looks at him.

"No, Toni. I really don't think so."

She finds the needle, sits on the cot, and begins mending the garment while he tidies his clothes. When he is finished, he remains standing there, waiting.

"You don't need to stand there looking guilty," she says.

"Do I?"

"Yes. Go and do something useful."

He walks toward the door.

"And Toni?"

He turns around.

"What we talked about earlier. I'll keep my promise."

"I know."

"Good."

He leaves. Judith finishes mending the tear, bites off the thread, and holds the garment up in front of her. The stitches are uneven.

Serafina will notice it immediately.

***

Just over two weeks later, Lucia and Magdalena are standing in the kitchen, peeling turnips. Magdalena bends down to pick up one that has rolled onto the floor. As she straightens up, she runs her hand over her belly and adjusts her garment. That is when it dawns on Lucia. She had noticed the belly before, but only now does she understand what it might mean.

"Are you all right?" she asks.

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"No particular reason."

Lucia finishes peeling her turnip and places the knife on the table. She says she needs to fetch something and leaves the kitchen. She walks straight to Benedikta's chamber.

***

Benedikta summons Magdalena to her office after dinner. As the door closes behind her, Magdalena already knows what the matter concerns. The conversation drags on. At first, Magdalena tries to give minimal answers, but eventually, she breaks down. She speaks of those first nights with Toni, of how things continued, and of the child she is carrying. She says nothing about the other women. Benedikta sits in silence for a long time after Magdalena has finished speaking.

"You may stay through the winter," she says at last. "But when the mountain pass opens in the spring, you must leave the convent."

"And Toni?"

"He may stay. He has performed his duties impeccably and given no further cause for complaint."

Magdalena looks at her but says nothing. Nor does Benedikta mention what goes on in her own bed at night. The fact that he has taken her--both front and back--on virtually every one of those nights surely had nothing to do with this matter.

That same evening, Magdalena tells the others that she is pregnant and must leave Marienschnee in the spring.

***

Serafina finds Judith in the dormitory after evening prayers. Judith is sitting on her cot, folding her clothes.

"I still can't believe Toni gets to stay," says Serafina. "And Magdalena has to leave."

"It wasn't just him doing it, after all."

"You're defending him?"

"Magdalena is forty-one years old. I don't think Toni needed to trick her into anything."

Judith has been with Toni three times now. After the first time, she had told herself that was enough. Yet, twice in the past week, she has sought him out in secret. She knows she won't be able to go back to a life of abstinence.

"He ought to take responsibility, at least," says Serafina.

"They both should. But Benedikta has already decided what that responsibility is going to cost Magdalena."

"She broke her promises."

"Yes. But she's going to have a baby, too."

Serafina looks at her.

"So, you think Benedikta is doing the wrong thing?"

"I think she could have waited before making up her mind."

"And let them carry on?"

"I don't think Magdalena regrets everything that led to this."

"You can't possibly know that."

"No. I can't."

Serafina pulls the blanket over her knees.

"I would never let Toni get close to me like that."

"No one has asked you to, either."

"No, thank goodness."

Judith finishes folding the last shirt.

"But you don't know what you'd want if you were asked."

"Actually, I do."

"I see."

"Why do you say that?"

"We've both lived here a long time. There are some things we don't know very much about."

"You don't have to do everything to know you don't want to."

"No. But you don't have to condemn it just because you've abstained yourself."

Serafina studies her for a moment.

"You've become very understanding toward Toni."

Judith feels her face flush. She adjusts a shirt that is already lying straight.

"I suppose I've gotten older."

"You've always been older than him."

"That's true."

Serafina shakes her head.

"I still wouldn't want to."

"Then you shouldn't."

Judith stands up with the pile of clothes in her arms.

"But if you ever change your mind, you don't have to report it to me."

"That's not likely to happen."

"Then you won't have to worry about it," says Judith, walking off to put the clothes away.

***

After supper, Judith arranges for Serafina to help Lucia go through the linens in the storeroom. It is a task that should take at least an hour. Once the two of them have left, Magdalena, Veronika, Cecilia, Theresia, and Gertrud gather in the dormitory. Toni arrives last.

"Where's Judith?" asks Magdalena.

"Here."

Judith closes the door behind her. Veronika looks from her to Toni.

"You too?"

"Yes," says Judith.

"I see."

Theresia gives a short laugh.

"Well, I'll be damned."

"Theresia," says Magdalena.

"What? I was surprised."

Gertrud sits down on the cot. No one seems particularly surprised that she is there.

"We don't have all the time in the world," says Judith. "Serafina and Lucia will be back when they're finished."

Magdalena looks at Toni.

"Do you know why we're here?"

"Because Benedikta is planning to kick you out, I guess."

"Exactly," says Veronika.

"But she doesn't know everything," says Cecilia.

The others look at her. Cecilia keeps her hands clasped in front of her.

"I'm pregnant too."

Silence falls. Toni looks down at the floor.

"Since when?" asks Theresia.

"I don't know exactly. I think things got a bit messy that night you happened to hear me. Toni was asleep and I... I couldn't help myself. I got stuck, so to speak, with him inside me."

"Have you said anything to Benedikta?"

"No."

"Good," says Theresia. "Then we have at least a little time."

Gertrud clears her throat.

"I suppose I'd better say it too."

Veronika turns toward her.

"Say what?"

"I'm pregnant."

"Good God," says Theresia.

"I already said that myself."

"You could have said something sooner, couldn't you?"

"To whom? We haven't exactly had a council meeting before."

Judith sits down beside her. She hadn't expected this. Three babies, and Benedikta only knows about one of them.

"Getting angry with each other won't help," she says.

"What do you suggest, then?" asks Veronika.

"That we decide what to tell Benedikta. And that none of us says anything until we're in agreement."

"Magdalena has already received her sentence," says Cecilia.

"Surely a decision can be changed," says Judith.

"Not when Benedikta has made it," says Theresia.

Toni has been standing silently by the door. Now he straightens up.

"I'll talk to her."

"You?" says Veronika.

"Yes."

"What will you say?"

"Everything."

Magdalena looks at him in horror.

"Toni, you don't know what she's going to do."

"Yes," he says. "I actually think I do."

"What do you mean?"

He looks at them one by one.

"I'll take care of this."

Judith opens her mouth to ask how, but Toni has already turned toward the door. He has made up his mind.

***

Toni has long since noticed what the abbess does at night. He himself is usually awake these days. Every time she spreads her legs, every time she presses her old cunt back against him, every time she comes silently with his cock deep inside her. He hasn't said anything. Not to her. Not to the others.

Tonight, while he is deep inside her, he suddenly lifts her hips, puts her on all fours, and kneels in behind her. His thrusts immediately become harder, deeper, more deliberate, and more determined. He grips her hips and fucks her in earnest--long, powerful strokes that make her buttocks sway and her now well-used cunt splash wetly around his cock. When she comes with a long, involuntary shudder, she suddenly understands. No sleeping person could fuck her like this.

She squeezes her eyes shut and holds the position for a few seconds while he continues to thrust. Then she jerks and gasps for air. She turns her head toward him, her eyes wide open.

"What... what are you doing?"

Her voice is hoarse, as if she's trying to pretend she's just woken up. He doesn't answer. But he doesn't stop, either. He pulls almost his entire cock out of her and then thrusts it back in to the hilt--hard.

"Toni, what are you doing?"

"You don't have to pretend."

Benedikta goes completely still. Not Toni. He fucks her in a steady, ruthless rhythm.

"What do you mean?"

"I know you've been awake. Every night."

"I just woke up."

"Hardly."

He keeps driving his thick cock into her, thrust after thrust. Benedikta does nothing to make him stop. On the contrary, she lowers her back a little more so he can go even deeper.

"Stop speaking to me like that. Show some respect."

"Respect for what? For the fact that you let me fuck you every night when you think I'm asleep?"

"I don't. Besides, I'm the one asking the questions here."

"Not tonight."

She closes her eyes to keep from moaning aloud as he drives his cock in extra hard. Still, a hoarse sound escapes her.

"You... You're forgetting who you're talking to."

"No. Definitely not. I'm currently fucking my abbess in the ass... no, sorry, in the pussy. Still in the pussy. But you like getting it in the ass just as much."

Benedikta tries to rise but sinks back onto all fours when he grips her hips tighter and picks up the pace. She lets his thick cock ram into her with powerful thrusts. Partly to catch her breath, and partly because she is ashamed of how damn good it feels. Though she doesn't even admit that last part to herself.

"If this concerns Magdalena, the matter is already decided."

"Then you'll just have to change your mind."

"She has broken her vows."

"So have you. You've let me fuck you for months."

Benedikta glares back at him over her shoulder. Yet she still makes no attempt to break free. His hard cock is still thrusting inside her, and she clenches around it, almost imperceptibly.

"Watch yourself."

"Cecilia is pregnant."

For the first time, the anger vanishes from her face.

"What?"

"Gertrud too."

"My God. Have you slept with all of them?"

"Yes. And a few others."

"Who?"

"Why should I tell you? Are you planning to send them all away?"

She closes her eyes for a moment. She opens her mouth to object, but what escapes her lips is an involuntary moan.

"Are you going to let Magdalena stay?"

"No. I've made my decision."

"Then you'll have to make a new one."

"You can't come here and dictate terms to me."

Toni looks down at her as she stands on all fours with his cock inside her.

"I didn't come here. I sleep here. And you spread your legs for me every night."

That silences her again.

"You don't understand what this means for the convent," she says after a moment, her voice trembling from both anger and the act of him fucking her.

"Then you'll have to explain it."

"Three pregnant sisters. Three children with three different women."

"Yes."

Benedikta tries once more to compose herself.

"Magdalena has broken her vows and must face the consequences."

"Then everyone has to."

"What does that mean?"

"That if Magdalena is to leave the convent, you'll have to throw out Cecilia and Gertrud too. And Veronika... And Theresia... And Judith..."

Toni makes a distinct pause between each new name. With every name, he thrusts harder into her. Benedikta gasps loudly at each one.

"And you, too."

Benedikta says nothing. Her anger is plain to see, yet her hips still move backward against him. Toni has all but stopped thrusting himself; now she is the one fucking herself backward onto his cock--short, hungry movements she can no longer suppress.

"Or Magdalena can stay."

"And what if I say no anyway?"

"Then I'm leaving too."

Now she looks at him properly, her buttocks still raised and his cock sliding in and out of her.

"I forbid it."

"That'll be difficult, seeing as three of the women in the convent are pregnant. You would have been too, if you weren't past the age for it."

"I am still the abbess here."

"Yes."

The simple answer seems to irritate her more than if he had argued. She thrusts backward with extra force.

"Don't think you can tell me what to do."

"I'm not."

"Then what are you doing?"

"Giving you a choice."

He grabs her hips again and begins to fuck her properly--hard and deep.

"But from now on, I won't hide. If someone lifts her skirt, she gets cock. Even at the breakfast table."

When he finally groans deeply and empties himself inside her--thick, hot spurts filling her aging cunt--he pulls out immediately.

"If you want more, I'll see you at the breakfast table."

***