Pia sat with a gloomy face at her desk typing the report about the interview with Pietsch, Dombrowski, and Richter into her computer. She was angry because she hadn’t been able to keep Claudius Terlinden in custody any longer. His lawyer had lodged another complaint, insisting on the immediate release of his client. After consulting with Commissioner Engel, Pia had finally had to let him go. Her telephone rang.
“The girl’s temple was definitely crushed by a blow with this tire iron,” said Henning Kirchhoff in a sepulchral voice, without bothering to say hello. “And we did find foreign DNA in her vagina. But it’ll take a while before we can narrow it down further.”
“Okay, great,” said Pia. “And what about the tire iron? Can you do another analysis of the traces left back then?”
“I’ll check to see how busy our lab is.” He paused briefly. “Pia…”
“Yes?”
“Did Miriam get in touch with you?”
“No. Why should she?”
“Because that stupid cow called her yesterday and told her I’d gotten her pregnant.”
“Oh, shit. Now what?”
“Well.” Henning heaved a sigh. “Miriam was completely calm. She asked me if that was possible. When I had to admit it was, she didn’t say another word. She just picked up her purse and left.”
Pia was careful not to give him a lecture about faithfulness and adultery. He didn’t sound like he could cope with that at the moment. Although it was none of her business, she did feel sorry for her ex-husband.
“Have you considered that this L?blich woman might be trying to take you for a ride?” she asked. “If I were you, I’d make inquiries. Is she really pregnant? And if so, couldn’t another man be involved?”
“That’s not the point,” he replied.
“What is the point then?”
Henning hesitated with his reply.
“I cheated on Miriam, fool that I am,” he said after a while. “And she’ll never forgive me for it.”
* * *
Bodenstein looked at the private prescription that Dr. Lauterbach had written for Thies, and glanced at the names of the drugs. Ritalin, droperidol, fluphenazine, fentanyl, and lorazepam. Even as a layman he knew that autism was not a disease that could be treated with psychopharmaceuticals and sedatives.
“It’s simply easier to solve problems with a chemical sledgehammer than via the difficult path of therapy.” Heidi Brückner spoke in a muted voice, but the fury in her words was unmistakable. “My sister has taken the path of least resistance all her life. When the twins were small, she preferred traveling with her husband to looking after the kids. Thies and Lars experienced extreme neglect in their early childhood. Housemaids who spoke not a word of German were hardly the correct substitute for a mother.”
“What are you trying to say?”
Heidi Brückner’s nostrils flared.
“That Thies’s problems were created at home,” she said. “It quickly became clear that he had difficulties. He was aggressive, had a tendency to angry outbursts, and didn’t obey. Until he was four or five he didn’t speak a word. But who would he speak to? His parents were practically never home. Claudius and Christine never tried to help the boy with therapies, they always relied on drugs. Thies would spend weeks completely sedated, just sitting around listlessly. As soon as they discontinued the medication he would flip out. They put him in the children’s psychiatric clinic and left him there for years. What a nightmare. The boy is sensitive and highly intelligent and was forced to live with mentally handicapped patients!”
“Why didn’t anyone intervene?” Bodenstein wanted to know.
“Who would have done that?” She sounded sarcastic. “Thies never had contact with normal people or with teachers who might have noticed what was wrong with him.”
“You mean, he’s not autistic after all?”
“No, he certainly is. But autism is not a clearly defined disease. It ranges from really serious mental handicaps to the mild manifestations of Asperger’s syndrome, where the patient is perfectly capable of living an independent, though limited life. Many autistic adults learn to cope with their idiosyncrasies.” She shook her head. “Thies is a victim of his egotistical parents. And Lars became one too.”
“Oh?”
“As a child and teenager Lars was extremely shy. He hardly dared open his mouth to speak. In addition he was deeply religious, and wanted to be a pastor,” said Heidi Brückner matter-of-factly. “Since Thies obviously couldn’t take over the firm, Claudius pinned all his hopes on Lars. He refused to let him study theology, sent him to England, and made him take a degree in business administration. Lars was never really happy. And now he’s dead.”
“Why didn’t you intervene, if you knew all this?” asked Bodenstein, disconcerted.
“I tried for many years.” She shrugged. “Since I couldn’t talk about it with my sister, I spoke to Claudius. It was 1994, I remember that very clearly, because I had just returned from Southeast Asia where I was working as a development aide. A lot had changed here. Wilhelm, my brother-in-law’s older brother, had died a couple of years earlier; Claudius had taken over the firm and moved into this gigantic box of a house. I would gladly have stayed for a while to help out Christine a little.”
She snorted contemptuously.
“Claudius didn’t think that was a good idea. He never could stand me, because he couldn’t intimidate and control me. I stayed two weeks and observed the whole scene. My sister would spend her days at one golf course after another, leaving the boys in the care of a housemaid from the village and this Daniela. One day Claudius and I got into an awful fight. Christine had gone to Mallorca, as she so often did. Fixing up the house there.” Heidi Brückner laughed contemptuously. “That was more important than her sons. I had gone for a walk and came back in the house through the downstairs. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I entered the living room and surprised my brother-in-law with the daughter of the housekeeper. The girl was no more than fourteen or fifteen…”
She broke off, shaking her head in disgust at the memory of this incident. Bodenstein was paying close attention. Her account jibed with what Claudius Terlinden himself had said—up to one decisive point.
“He had a full-blown erection when I came into the living room and screamed at him. The girl ran away. Claudius stood before me with his pants down, beet-red in the face. Denial was no longer possible. And suddenly Lars was standing there too. I’ll never in my life forget the expression on his face. You can imagine why I haven’t been welcome here since then. Christine never had the guts to rebel against her husband. She refused to believe me when I phoned her at once to tell her what I’d seen. She called me a liar and said I was just jealous. Today is the first time we’ve seen each other in fourteen years. And to be honest, I don’t plan to stay long.”
She heaved a sigh.
“I’ve always tried to make excuses for my sister,” she went on after a moment. “Maybe it was a way to ease my guilty conscience. I’ve always secretly feared that one day things would end in disaster, but I never expected anything like this.”
“And now?”
Heidi Brückner understood what Bodenstein meant.
“This morning I finally realized that having family ties to someone doesn’t mean you have to defend their actions. My sister leaves everything to that Daniela, as she always has. What good am I here?”
“You don’t like Dr. Lauterbach?” Bodenstein asked.
“No. I used to think there was something wrong with her. All that exaggerated concern for everyone. And the way she mothers her husband—I found that strange, almost sick.” Heidi Brückner swept a stray lock of hair out of her face. Bodenstein saw a wedding ring on her left hand. For an instant he felt disappointed and then wondered why he had such an absurd reaction. He didn’t know this woman at all, and after the investigation was over he would probably never see her again.
“After I saw those piles of medicines I thought even less of her,” Heidi Brückner went on. “I’m no pharmacist, but I’ve extensively researched Thies’s symptoms. That woman doesn’t have to tell me a thing.”
“Did you see her this morning?”
“Yes, she was here briefly to check on Christine.”
“When did you arrive?”
“Last night around nine thirty. I left home at once after Christine called and told me what had happened. It takes me an hour to drive here from Schotten.”
“You mean, Dr. Lauterbach wasn’t here all night?” Bodenstein asked in surprise.
“No. She arrived a little while ago, around seven thirty, stayed for a cup of coffee, and then left. Why?” Her green eyes were inquisitive, but Bodenstein didn’t reply. The pieces of the puzzle were falling into place as if by themselves. Daniela Lauterbach had lied to him. And certainly not for the first time.
“Here’s my number.” He handed her his business card. “And thank you so much for your candor. You’ve helped me a great deal.”
“You’re welcome.” Heidi Brückner nodded and held out her hand. Her handshake was warm and firm. Bodenstein hesitated.
“Oh, in case I have another question—how can I reach you?”
A tiny smile flitted across her serious face. She pulled out her wallet and took out a card for him.
“I probably won’t be here for much longer,” she said. “As soon as my brother-in-law comes home, he’ll undoubtedly throw me out.”
* * *
After breakfast they had plodded through the deep snow for a couple of hours, enjoying the magnificent view of the Bernese Alps covered with snow. Then the weather suddenly changed, which was typical of the high mountains. Within minutes the radiant blue sky clouded over, and without warning a blizzard moved in. Hand in hand they returned to the cabin, breathlessly got out of their soaking wet clothing and climbed up the ladder to the loft stark naked. Heat from the wood stove had risen to the ceiling. Cuddled close together they lay on the bed while the wind howled around the cabin and the windowpanes rattled. They looked at each other. Her eyes were close to his and he could feel her breath. Tobias pushed the hair out of his face and shut his eyes when she slid down his naked body, licking his skin, teasing him with her tongue. All his pores broke out in a sweat as he panted, and his muscles tensed to the breaking point. With a moan he pulled her onto him and saw her face filled with lust. She began to move with more intensity, full of desire for him, and her sweat dripped onto him. Ecstatic joy flooded through him, then broke with unexpected force over him, and he felt as if the walls were swaying and the floor shaking beneath him. For a while they lay there, exhausted and happy, panting and waiting for their heartbeats to return to normal. Tobias took her face in his hands and gave her a long, tender kiss.
“That was wonderful,” he said softly.
“Yes. That’s how it will be forever and ever,” Nadia whispered, her voice husky. “Just you and me.”
Her lips brushed his shoulder, and smiling she snuggled up closer to him. He pulled the covers up over them and closed his eyes. Yes, that’s how it would be. His muscles relaxed and he felt how tired he was.
But suddenly he pictured Amelie’s face. It felt like he’d been punched in the face, and in a flash he was wide awake. How could he lie here so calmly while she was still missing and possibly fighting for her life somewhere?
“What is it?” Nadia murmured sleepily. It wasn’t a good idea to talk about another woman in bed, but Nadia was also worried about Amelie.
“I was just thinking about Amelie,” he replied honestly. “Where could she be? I hope nothing’s happened to her.”
He wasn’t prepared for Nadia’s reaction. She stiffened in his arms, jumped up and shoved him violently away from her. Her beautiful face was contorted with rage.
“Are you crazy?” she yelled, beside herself. “You fuck me and then start babbling about some other woman? Aren’t I enough for you?”
She clenched her fists and pounded on his chest with a strength he wouldn’t have believed possible. Tobias had a hard time defending himself. Panting and stunned by this outburst, he stared at her.
“You fucking asshole!” Nadia screamed, the tears gushing from her eyes. “Why do you always think about other women? I always had to listen to you talking about what you’d said and done with some other girl! Haven’t you ever thought how that might hurt me? And now you’re lying here with me in bed and jabbering about that … that little slut!”
* * *