King Sigefrith's little kingdom was flourishing, and everyone seemed happy except for himself and his queen. Maud would talk to him, politely, but whenever he tried to be tender with her she would push him away.

<img src='images/maud_lothere_02.jpg' alt='Don\&#39;t touch me!' height="300" width="400" />

When Sigefrith went to bed before her, he would often wake up late at night to realize that she wasn't there. He would find her sleeping on a cold stone bench in the hall. When he would try to cover her up with a warm deerskin, she would toss it on the floor as soon as he went back upstairs. She would rather suffer the cold than accept any kind gesture from her husband.

<img src='images/sigefrith_maud_03.jpg' alt='Maud would rather freeze' height="300" width="400" />

Sigefrith didn't know what to do. Should he let her go back to the abbey or enter a convent? Should he be more rough with her and force her to at least act like his wife? No, he couldn't bear to lose her, and he could never hurt her. But it made him so unhappy to see his friends walking home with their arms around their wives and children waiting at home, while his own wife would hardly even look at him.

<img src='images/maud_sigefrith_04.jpg' alt='She won\&#39;t even look at him' height="300" width="400" />

King Sigefrith’s little kingdom was flourishing, and everyone seemed happy except for himself and his queen. Maud would talk to him, politely, but whenever he tried to be tender with her she would push him away.

<img src="/images/maud_lothere_02.jpg" alt="Don\'t touch me!" height="300" width="400" />

When Sigefrith went to bed before her, he would often wake up late at night to realize that she wasn’t there. He would find her sleeping on a cold stone bench in the hall. When he would try to cover her up with a warm deerskin, she would toss it on the floor as soon as he went back upstairs. She would rather suffer the cold than accept any kind gesture from her husband.

<img src="/images/sigefrith_maud_03.jpg" alt="Maud would rather freeze" height="300" width="400" />

Sigefrith didn’t know what to do. Should he let her go back to the abbey or enter a convent? Should he be more rough with her and force her to at least act like his wife? No, he couldn’t bear to lose her, and he could never hurt her. But it made him so unhappy to see his friends walking home with their arms around their wives and children waiting at home, while his own wife would hardly even look at him.

<img src="/images/maud_sigefrith_04.jpg" alt="She won\'t even look at him" height="300" width="400" />

Chilly in the Castle