It was already the second day, but the master still could not see the background of the assassination. He had questioned all the servants, all the guards and the kitchen staff, without any success. The king's personal assistant, Karl Buchner, and one of the guards, a certain Josef Steidl, were untraceable and could not be reached. Naturally, he immediately called the police chief, Thüringer, and asked that the two be put on the wanted list. So far, however, they could not be picked up despite the manhunt.
Candor had once again summoned the maid Dina for questioning. He asked her to remember once again exactly how she had found the prince and to describe everything to him in detail. She should close her eyes and tell everything, but really everything.
She obediently closed her eyes and thought hard. The master noticed that his words were having their suggestive effect. Then she began to speak.
She had left quite late for the prince, as she did every evening; she had showered and put on a clean dress beforehand. The prince, she reported, was already in bed and seemed to be sleeping peacefully.
As she did every night before, she quietly walked around the bed and took the wine cup from the nightstand. She tipped the small amount of wine left into the sink. Then she quietly went out again, put the cup on a sideboard and went back to the prince's room. She took off her clothes and carefully slipped under the covers. She continued, "It was like always, I waited a little," Dina blushed and put her hand over her mouth, ".... then I lifted the covers to .... see if the prince .... was ready."
While she was still looking at him, the prince suddenly began to cough and gag. Startled, she put her hand on his Forehead, which seemed very hot to her. Now she saw that he was pale and completely sweaty. She was violently frightened, but then she got out of bed and called over the house–com to the Baron. He should please come at once.
She was still standing trembling beside the com when the Baron rushed in a few moments later. The baron stared at her completely aghast, she pointed her hand at the prince. Then she noticed his greedy gaze and suddenly became aware of her nakedness. So she hastily dressed, while the baron felt the prince's pulse and stroked his sweaty forehead, then the baron had rushed out again without a word.
She looked to the Baron, who was sitting in the background as usual, waiting for him to say something. The Baron looked at Candor and nodded, then said it had all been the same.
While she was telling, the master had tried to read deeply into her thoughts and could picture the whole situation. After Dina looked at him expectantly again, he asked, "Before you stepped into his room, didn't you see someone in the hallway?"
Dina closed her eyes once more and thought hard. She fidgeted a bit while the master focused on her thoughts again. "Yes, there was someone there" she said hesitantly, looking up at the master in wonder.
The master thought he recognized the figure and asked, "Could it have been the Buchner?" Dina thought for a moment and then said, "Maybe." She thought again strained, then she said, "I have seen him only dimly, but it could have been the Buchner already. But I'm not quite sure."
The master thanked her and allowed her to leave. Then he was alone with the baron. The latter said with great Astonishment, "Man, you hit the bull's eye there!" Candor passed over this remark and said that it was necessary to follow the trail immediately. Immediately, the Baron called the special commission and said that there was still no trace of the Buchner, just as little as of Steidl. Both remained missing.
In the afternoon, however, when he was discussing the results with the Baron, Master Edelmann and Master Gregor together and they were rolling around all kinds of theories, Commissioner Chance came to their rescue: the Special Commission called the Baron and reported that some playing children had found two bodies in the bushes along the Danube Canal near the Weißgerberlände. They were Buchner and Steidl, both had been killed with a shot in the back of the head. The council looked at each other helplessly, for now their only lead had come to nothing. The special commission promised to investigate the murders as quickly as possible. They ended the meeting and parted.
Master Candor sent word to the queen dowager asking if he could call on her for a report, which was answered in the affirmative. Immediately he set out and was about to knock on her door when he heard soft whispering and rustling of clothes behind it. After a few moments, however, he knocked again and waited. The whispering died away, he heard hurried footsteps and the flap of a door, then the queen dowager opened.
She had on a black dress that was cut like a dirndl. She smoothed out her skirt and pulled the dress up over her breasts. One hand still remained on her breast, and she seemed to be testing him to see if he was looking into her eyes. Somewhat disappointed, she lowered her hand, for the master saw through this little gesture immediately. He made no effort to respond to her flirtation.
He followed her inviting gesture, went ahead and sat down on a chair. The queen dowager also sat down, crossed her legs tantalizingly slowly and looked at him from below. They briefly exchanged a few sentences when he inquired how she was today. She said that she was completely broken over the death of two loved ones.
He was about to talk about questioning Dina, but an image appeared before his eyes and he asked, "Wasn't that young Deputy Schneider before?" Her eyelids began to flutter like little birds looking for a way out. Then she awkwardly slowly crossed one leg over the other to draw his gaze to her lower legs, which she actually succeeded in doing this time. She acknowledged his stare with a smug, triumphant smile. Then she said that in hard times you need every good friend you have. Despite the distraction, he managed to catch a glimpse of her thoughts, which confirmed that she was having a fling with Schneider, but for the moment it seemed beside the point. Still, he resolved to look into it later.
Now he reported that in his opinion the prince had not fallen victim to an assassination attempt, but to very unfortunate circumstances. She seemed completely surprised when he reported that Prince Louis had regularly nibbled from the king's wine, and that would ultimately have been his undoing. The assassination would have been for the king alone. Elizabeth began to cry and dabbed at her eyes with a lace handkerchief. Candor could not think of anything he could have said to comfort her.
After a while she looked up and said how sorry she was that her son had been so unreasonable and had drunk of the king's wine. She cried harder when he confirmed this to her in a polite manner. While he waited for her weeping to subside somewhat, he tried to read her thoughts. And it seemed to him that her sorrow and grief were almost exclusively for her child, her Ludwig. Her resentment towards the dead king was unexpectedly fierce, as she now blamed him for everything, and she had every effort to control her thoughts.
But he wanted to know and said that the assassination was probably planned by someone who really hated the king. Questioningly, he looked at her and waited. She stopped sobbing and said that she did not hate the king. Although – here she paused – although it was very hard to wake up every morning next to an old, tired man. He acknowledged it with an encouraging nod, so she continued carelessly, saying that she was still so young and that fate would be so unjust to chain her to the side of this old, flabby man. Cabal and love, thought the master, and said that though he did not approve, he understood very well if she sought friendship by the side of young Mr. Schneider. That was the maximum that politeness allowed him to say.
Much rather he would have told her that she must have known quite well what she was getting into when she ensnared the old king. And that it was quite unseemly for her to despise the king because of his age and to hang around with younger people. But he refrained from that remark and asked her if she had not noticed anything before the assassination. Perhaps a gesture or an utterance by someone who wished the king ill. The queen dowager thought for a long time, and he followed her thoughts as best he could. Schneider reappeared, again and again, and his whispering in her ears.
He waited a moment, then asked very directly if perhaps Schneider had made a remark? Her look betrayed astonishment, but she remained silent. He followed up and asked again what Schneider had said to her? It was a long time before she finally looked up at him again and then hesitantly admitted that Schneider had dropped a remark here and there, but surely only to emphasize his youth and manhood over that of the old man. But then she remembered....
.He immediately harked back. What exactly did the tailor say? Now she was persistently silent. But she remembered, it was a few days before the assassination, that Schneider quietly said if something might happen to the king.... Schneider sat up quickly and said, ".... then Ludwig will be heir to the throne and you will be the Mother Regent, since the Prince is still too young." She had looked at him, startled, and then immediately forgotten the whole thing.
He told her exactly as he had seen it. She shook her head defiantly and followed it up with a leg‐over‐leg maneuver, so slow and deliberate that it threw him completely off. That she wore no underwear he must have seen, of course, for the triumphant smile in her eyes reminded him of the insidious look of a cat on the prowl. He was still from a generation where no queen shamelessly flaunted her clean‐shaven cunt and highly visible cleft. He pulled himself together, for he did not want to be distracted by what he had seen in her thoughts. He brushed the other thought aside, sex really didn't matter. He was mostly annoyed with himself for letting her manipulate him at will. He was annoyed at her for still being calculatingly sexy despite her genuine grief.
He stood up abruptly and said goodbye to the queen dowager without looking her in the eye. He hurried down one floor and there he met the baron, who was sitting in front of a screen and dictating into his com. The master sat down next to him and told the essence of his visit to the queen dowager. Immediately, the baron set about finding out everything he could about the deputy Schneider. He was a member of the right wing and represented it in the parliament. That was all the Baron found in this quick search, but it was enough for a discussion.
At first, the master wondered why a rightist would get involved with the queen. On the other hand, however, if he were connected to the assassination, it made perfect sense. Yes, it makes sense to be close to the victim and scout him out. The master consulted with the baron about how he could summon the deputy for questioning and whether that might pose legal or political problems. This was also the Baron's concern, but they did not want to miss any opportunity to shed light on the matter.
After they unsuccessfully discussed the possible legal problems, the Baron decisively pressed his com and called the MP. He exchanged a few pleasantries with the deputy before requesting that he join him at the castle. He was, after all, together with Master Candor, investigating the assassination on behalf of the Queen Dowager. The deputy Schneider agreed without hesitation. They agreed that he would come to the baron in half an hour.
They waited impatiently until the deputy finally appeared and immediately led him into the "interrogation room." Master Candor once again outlined his mission and asked if he would be comfortable being questioned. The young deputy tried to put himself in a good light and hypocritically said that he wanted to do everything he could to help solve this terrible crime. Anything he could contribute, very gladly, and of course he was fine with the questioning being recorded.
Candor conversed with Schneider about various things and events, the answers to which he knew, after all, from the Baron's research. Schneider answered the various simple questions, such as about his origin, his schools, his studies sincerely. In this way, the master made the deputy feel that he was in safe waters and slowly relaxed. Then he began to ask the deputy how he had come into the party of the right and how he had made it to the parliament. Schneider readily gave him information and made no secret of his convictions and loyalty to his party.
The master asked Schneider if the connection that existed between his party and the castle indicated that it was the right‐wingers who carried out the assassination attempt on the king. The right‐wingers were, after all, known for their rejection of the monarchy, although they repeatedly emphasized that they were not rejecting the king personally, but the kingship itself. Austria for the Austrians, was one of their slogans, and not an Austria for the king. Abolition of the king, reintroduction of parliamentary democracy, no employment in the higher civil service for immigrants or first‐generation migrants, to name just a few others.
Schneider denied any connection of his party to the castle, and of course to the assassination. This was outrageous, he said. Master Candor looked at him sternly and asked, "And how, dear sir, am I to see the connection between you and the Queen Dowager? Or do you want to deny that too?"
Schneider ducked his head as if a whip had struck him. He had made Elisabeth a solemn promise not to breathe a word about their relationship. Now he looked somewhat helplessly at the baron, then back at the master, and pressed his lips together. He had no idea at the moment how to get out of this trap. He persistently kept silent, a vein at his temple throbbing violently.
But the master did not let up. He accused Schneider of infiltration and said that the latter had approached the queen dowager only for the purpose of preparing the assassination. He paused for a moment and looked sternly at Schneider, who was squirming like a worm on a hook. No, no, no, cried Schneider, shaking his head, it had not been like that. He sincerely loved Elisabeth and she him.
The master did not give him time to think of anything. "On the contrary," he continued, "you have taken advantage of the Queen's credulity and manipulated her into believing, too, that it was right to remove the King and put Prince Louis in his place. This would have made the queen the Mother Regent, and you, Schneider, would have a safe place in the sun," he thundered. Schneider, who had at first risen indignantly, had now slumped down. He thought for a long time, but could do no more than shake his head. He seemed helpless and disarmed, since his great plan – he really thought – had been exposed. The master shook his head in denial and said, "What a stupid, easily seen‐through plan!"
The Baron had apparently sent a message on his com during this conversation, because soon after the door opened and a senior officer from the Special Branch sat down next to the Baron. He whispered that the police chief was currently unavailable and had sent him. He had listened with interest to the last part of the conversation and was making handwritten notes in a small notepad.
The master said that the queen dowager had told him about such a conversation. He now wanted to know from Schneider who had suggested this plan to him, someone from his party or someone from the castle? But Schneider sat huddled in his chair and remained silent. Although the master asked several times, he gave no answer. The silence dragged on for a few more minutes, then the master dismissed Schneider and asked him to be available for further questioning by the special commission, under no circumstances should he leave the city.
Schneider had left, the three of them still remained seated, and excitedly the baron and the officer drummed their theories into the master. He, however, stuck to his opinion that, firstly, Schneider was far too inexperienced and too simple‐minded to concoct such a plan and also carry it out successfully. Secondly, it would be far too risky for the party of the right to provoke a state crisis with such an assassination that pointed directly at them. The baron and the police officer, however, remained convinced that they were right and decided to investigate Schneider's connections more closely.
The master shrugged his shoulders, saying he had no objection, and stood up. While going to the antechamber, he called the queen and again requested to report. He should come in 20 minutes, the friendly assistant told him. So he used the remaining time and went to the kitchen to have a snack. He did not count himself among the fine people who had food served to them, no, he was a simple person who could sit down in the kitchen. This and his serious demeanor earned him respect. Then he went up to the queen.
The assistant preceded him and knocked on the door, then she opened and told him to enter. No sooner had he sat down than the queen dowager appeared and he surely rose again to greet her. She had put on a shorter black dress that was far too short for her, cut rather wide at the top, the neckline trimmed with lace, invitingly highlighting her full breasts. She smiled in satisfaction as his gaze rested on her breasts for a moment too long. After they were seated, the master turned a little to the side so as not to fall for her leg‐flipping maneuver again, he was determined to do so. He was still a child of the 20th century and had his difficulties with the current highly sexualized society.
To begin with, they talked about trivia and small talk. The master noticed out of the corner of his eye that she kept crossing her legs and tried to draw his attention to it. He could almost physically feel her annoyance that her strategy was not working. That's when he decided to take up the questioning. He reported to the queen dowager in broad outline about the conversation with Schneider. However, he would have to follow up on the matter and asked her to recall once again the conversations with Schneider regarding the king. He asked her to sit back in a relaxed manner, close her eyes, and recall the conversation with Schneider. With a provocative pose, she let herself sink back, and after a flirtatious glance at him, she closed her eyes. The fact that her skirt had ridden up a good bit in the process was certainly not unintentional, nor was the inconspicuous hand movement with which she pushed her skirt even higher. Since she had closed her eyes, he risked a curious glance at her naked shaven pubic area. He continued to speak softly, then realized that she was lapsing into a light trance.
He watched her closely, following her thoughts in zigzags, trying to catch the images. He brushed aside the rapid succession of thoughts as she thought mainly of the pleasurable little moments she had experienced. He was not interested in that at all. "Please tell me again about the conversation with Schneider" he said, interrupting her flow of thoughts whose images revolved around kisses, caresses and lovemaking.
Almost instantly, she focused on the conversation she and Schneider had had. It had begun with her complimenting his beauty and powerful body, saying that the king was old and flabby and no longer had any attraction for her. She complained about going to bed with this old man every night, about giving herself to him once or twice a month, even though she felt no desire to do so. Petty snippets of thoughts about how she gave the old man satisfaction, how she moaned faking climaxes. Her mind was wandering, she seemed to be slowly losing the thread.
Quietly, the master tried to forcefully reinforce her light trance with gentle words, admonishing her to continue. Sighing, she continued with how empathetic Schneider was to her complaints. He was such a dear friend, had taken her in his arms and comforted her, and then had meant how nice it would be if she were rid of the king and he had her all to himself. She was very flattered and then said, how would he like to be rid of the king? And then Schneider said that if the king no longer existed, Prince Ludwig would logically be the successor, and since he was too young, she would be the Regent Mother. They both would take over the kingdom.
Here now caution took control of her thoughts again. She said slightly stilted, no, what he was saying would be treason, she would not be for that. The conversation ended here, but the master could see from her thoughts that she imagined the situation several times afterwards in different variations. Regent, yes, but not necessarily together with Schneider. She was clear that he was quite nice as a lover, but she could not imagine him for ruling. He was too young and his worldly views, well, at least curly. She suddenly sat up straight, wide awake, looked him in the eye and said, "No, I have nothing to blame myself for, I had nothing to do with the assassination of the king!"
"But you did mentally go into his performance," he said, looking at her encouragingly. "Obviously Schneider realized exactly what you secretly wished for" he added.
The queen dowager was now wide awake. "It is true that I have thought about it, but I stopped the conversation immediately when I realized where it was going." She energetically tugged her skirt into place and again performed her leg‐crossing maneuver, but to no avail, as the master persistently looked out the window. He asked the queen dowager what she thought about Schneider being involved in the assassination. But she shook her head and said she could not imagine it, he was neither smart nor brave enough for that. When the master asked further, she said that Schneider had tried very hard to interest Buchner and Steidl in the concerns of the Right, that Schneider had mentioned this several times. She then added that she believed that both had developed quite a close relationship with Schneider. He tried to find out more, but she credibly said that she did not know more than that.
The conversation had stalled and the master rose to bid her a polite farewell. Satisfied, he noted that she was annoyed and disappointed that he had not responded to her insinuations. However, he was now firmly convinced of her innocence regarding the assassination.
He let the office know that he would be home for the afternoon, but of course could be reached at any time. He headed home and tried to reach Roxane. However, he did not get a connection and now called Lucy and asked where Roxane was. Lucy said that Roxane was at her club East–West as she was every Wednesday afternoon and probably had her com on standby. He grumbled sullenly at how forgetful he had become, because Roxane took her presence at that club very seriously. She wanted to do something for all those who had left Eastern Europe for the West and now needed advice and help. She had not accepted any function in the association, but was there punctually every Wednesday.
Lieved, he took off the clothes he had been wearing for two days and took a long, hot shower. Then he sat comfortably on his sofa and told Lucy to make coffee. He thought over again how the conversation with the queen dowager had gone and tried to explain to himself what annoyed him about it. The first thing that came to his mind was that the queen didn't take the time to do any grieving. The second was his annoyance that she had to constantly flirt, with everyone and anyone. But then again, that wasn't a surprise; she'd always been that way. What really triggered his anger was the realization that he was reacting so predictably to her manipulative actions.
Slowly his tension eased, he called the Baron and said he would like to go over everything with him again in detail, because it couldn't be that they had no leads at all. He would be back at the castle in a quarter of an hour.
On arriving back at the castle, he was met by the baron and the officer from the special commission who had already been present at Schneider's interrogation that morning, Lieutenant Colonel Kunze, as he recalled. They sat down at the conference table and he was about to start listing the facts they knew when Kunze spoke up. He said that it was perhaps important that almost two‐thirds of the police force belonged to the right wing of the Reich, or at least sympathized with it. He looked at the two and said that the police chief Thüringer was also one of them. He himself did not belong to any party and also held the view that the police had to be neutral. But, he said, perhaps this information was important for their further action. In any case, he said, he had strong doubts as to whether the special commission really cared about the facts and the truth or whether it had little interest in a complete clarification, to say the least.
The three of them were silent, each of them was thinking. Then the Baron said that he had not known that, at least not the dimension. Two thirds! And they would probably be well advised to take that into account in their further actions. Kunze nodded, and the master said that from now on they would have to look at the special commission, which consisted largely of police officers, with a certain distance.
Kunze had a pack of papers with him and spread them out on the table. They were evaluations of the movements of individual persons, the chronological sequence, where they had been the day before the regicide. Also, a list of all telephone calls during that period. They bent over the papers and could see that Buchner and Steidl had met several times. Candor pointed his finger at one of those meeting places: Buchner and Steidl right outside the kitchen, for several minutes, during the royal family's dinner.
"It could very well be that this was exactly when one of them had mixed the poison into the king's drinking cup."
He said, glancing at both of them. They nodded and now tried to trace all of Buchner's and Steidl's lines, to find any other conspiratorial meetings, but came to no conclusion. Buchner had gone to the main gate in the late afternoon, had apparently met Deputy Schneider there, and was back in the office after a few minutes.Master Candor put his finger on the main gate. "I suspect the deputy gave Buchner the poison there, but as I said, that's just a guess. Also, it seems suspicious to me that the deputy had his com turned off for about two hours before this meeting, so we can't trace his movements." Kunze promised to take over the evaluation of video recordings at the main gate himself and left immediately.
The baron approached Candor about the ongoing media coverage, but he still refused to participate in any way. The fuss and gimmicky clamor of some media disgusted him. He agreed with the Baron that the latter, together with the press spokesman, would continue to take over the interviews and that all press releases were to be kept as short and concise as possible, as before, and that no content from their interviews was to be leaked to the press, not a word about the suspicions against Schneider. The baron would have preferred Candor to take this off his hands and grumbled that all the king's advisors had gone underground – and that would have been noticed not only by him. But the master was not persuaded. He only said dryly, "No king – no king's advisers," that would remain so until a new king was appointed.
The baron reported that police chief Thüringer had called him in the afternoon. The party leader of the right, Hoffmann, had complained bitterly to him that the deputy Schneider had been questioned without prior consultation with the right party and that this was unacceptable. The Baron reported, with a full grin on his face, that he had reassured Thüringer and had, of course, promised full cooperation. They agreed that the next questioning of Schneider would be the same as the first, and the police chief would be informed afterwards. They agreed that Schneider's consent would have to suffice and that both Hoffmann and Thüringer would have to be kept in the dark for the time being.
King Charles' son, Prince Erich, had arrived from London the day before and was staying at the residence of his aunt Amelie, Charles' youngest sister. The grandees of the government joined hands and discussed with him the assumption of the throne, but also their most urgent requests to the future king. Both the Baron and Master Candor agreed to wait a little longer to meet Prince Erich. It was, after all, completely unclear whether Prince Erich would leave them in their posts.
Dina, Prince Ludwig's former maid, knocked and entered. She sat down on the far edge of the chair and then brought up her question. What was to become of her now, now that Prince Ludwig .... the rest was lost in weeping. The master said reassuringly that she should continue to come to her service for the time being, until after the funeral ceremonies at the latest, they would see further. Here the Baron interrupted him and said that Dina should enter his service and run his household, because he as a widower would have – he grinned – quite a mess there, so to speak. Dina nodded gratefully, but the master was able to catch some snippets of the Baron's thoughts and had to smile. He nodded in agreement. Dina thanked them both and left. To the Baron, the Master said, still smirking, "You're a bit of a philanderer, aren't you!" They both laughed, and Candor said to the Baron that he begrudged him a clean house.
The baron, a not very tall man in his late forties with a small prosperity belly, bald head with a silver‐gray fringe of hair, and very energetic appearance, had entered Charles' service immediately after the death of his father, who had been in Charles' service since the beginning of Charles' reign, as one of the most loyal, and had rendered valuable services to the king. Not only had he been assigned the education and upbringing of the prince, but also the task of keeping the queen's escapades and love affairs under wraps, which he succeeded in doing very well – only a few within the court knew exactly what was going on with the queens affairs. The sudden, unexpected death of his wife put him out of step for a few months, but he remained devoted to his duties and to the king, for the king understood his feelings and asked him to afternoon coffee almost every day, which was very good for the baron. And now, in this very complex investigation, he was an eager, upright helper who, unlike Candor, did not shy away from dealing with the world outside the court. The murder of the king and the prince had forged the two of them close together.
On the way home, Candor took a quick look at Heroes' Park, the former Heroes' Square. In the middle of the artfully laid out park, a large area was just laid out with wooden boards as a speaker's stage and a high spectator stand was erected for the illustrious guests. He had noticed that many high‐ranking guests, presidents, kings and heads of government were arriving for the funeral ceremonies. He was glad that he had nothing to do with these preparations and that they were managed by the proven castle staff as well as professional organizers.
All the weight of the past days fell from his shoulders when he arrived home and had dinner with Roxane and Marco. They stayed at the table for a long time, and he told them how his investigation was going. Although he had signed a confidentiality agreement, he took the liberty of discussing everything with Roxane, of which he had informed the other Masters and the King. Marco had gone to his room and sat down to play on his game computer.
They had sat down comfortably in the living room, side by side on the couch, drinking wine. Under the existing stress, he had started smoking again, as Roxane observed with some concern. Now that Marco was out of earshot, he recounted his conversations with the Queen Dowager and her lewd behavior. Roxane listened patiently and then interjected that from what one heard, the queen had always been a lecherous temptress. He said that there was no danger for him in this respect, because he knew about it and could therefore arm himself before any conversation. Besides, he was much too old for the queen dowager. Curious, Roxane asked if the queen really didn't wear underwear, and he had to smile before answering and saying, "Yes, that's right, I've seen it with my own eyes," and then they both laughed heartily as, to tease Roxane, he recounted everything in minute detail. For Roxane, sex was something taken for granted, but she was not at all inclined to be provocative or flirtatious. And the more detailed he now embellished the details, the more heartily she laughed with him and was squealing with delight. He could tell that she was more than a little bit voyeuristically inclined.
Eager to know how the coverage was going, he had Lucy turn up the TV and watch some news channels. Everywhere the double murder in the castle was topic number one, various experts were giving their theories, one conspiracy idea after another was rolled out widely. He noted with some satisfaction that neither the domestic nor the foreign news agencies were reporting any tangible results. The agencies had no idea whatsoever of what had probably occurred. Nevertheless, after some time he switched off and they went to bed.
When he got up the next morning, Marco had already left for school and Roxane was sitting on the couch reading. When he sat down at his desk with a cup of coffee after showering and was about to start up the computer screen, he was abruptly overcome by a vision. Elaine, who usually seemed friendly and relaxed, this time looked at him very seriously and said, without her usual greeting, "Dearest, I'm so afraid for you!" He asked her, silently of course, what she meant. Roxane, correctly interpreting his absent look, got up quietly and went into the next room. Elaine said, "Bombs have been planted! They are to explode tomorrow at the funeral ceremony!" He was thunderstruck and looked motionlessly into space.
As abruptly as the vision had appeared, it instantly disappeared. His thoughts whirling, he was tempted to sound the alarm in the castle immediately, but that would inevitably make known his hitherto secret ability of visions. This would also be the case if he privately confided in the Baron or Lieutenant Colonel Kunze. So what could he do? Almost instantly he had the saving idea: he would raise the alarm anonymously, but then his confidence left him – how could he have a phone conversation anonymously in this totally monitored state, knowing that every conversation was automatically recorded and anyone who gained authorized or unauthorized access to the logs could trace a call.
He got up and went to Roxane. In soft words he described his vision and then said that Marco had to help him, that the boy was very skilled in using the computer and that he knew no one with better computer skills. Roxane understood instantly and thought only briefly, then called the school and asked that Marco be sent home immediately because of an urgent family matter. "No," she said forcefully, "this is not a crank call, I am Marco's mother!"
No more than 10 minutes passed before Marco stormed into the apartment. Worried, he looked at his mother and then questioningly at Candor. The latter asked him to sit down and briefly described his dilemma: he urgently and immediately needed to be able to make anonymous phone calls and possibly hide his identity as best he could. Maybe change or delete his own phone number? Marco didn't ask and thought about it in a flash, then he sat down at the large desk and turned on the screen. He searched and typed, typed and searched, sometimes frowning and typing again on the keyboard. Hardly more than fifteen minutes could have passed when he sat back in satisfaction, skimmed over what he had typed once more, and then said, "Done!"
"Uncle Leo," he addressed Candor directly, "here's how it works: before you make the call, type 149 into your com, then you can make a phone call anonymously without worry. If you want to have another phone call, just type 149. I have it set up so that in the official logs the recipient is also entered as the sender, so it appears as if the called party called himself. Second, I included a voice distorter so that people can't recognize you by your voice. And third, the log entry of the call is deleted on your own com. Program 149 was very well hidden in the com, but an expert could find it easily, of course." Mark's eyes clearly showed his triumph. The master pondered for a while, then praised the boy, thanked him, and concluded by saying that on the one hand he was pleased with how good the boy's computer skills were. On the other hand – here he scratched the back of his head – one had to be afraid of what was possible with technology today. But now he would be glad that he benefited from it.
Roxane told Marco that she was also very grateful for his help, but if he left right now, he could still make the next class on time. Marco grumbled a little, as any 14–year old would in this situation, but obediently grabbed his satchel and left.
The master immediately called the castle chancellery, succinctly deposited that a bomb attack on the assembled heads of state was planned for tomorrow and hung up. He dialed the Foreign Ministry a second time and gave the alarm there with the same words. Lastly, he called the special commission. Then he leaned back on the sofa and smoked silently. But the com remained silent, apparently the call could not indeed be traced.
Just as he lit his third cigarette, the baron called. In a bright panic, he said that the master had to come to the castle immediately and as soon as possible, it was really important, and that was all he could say on the phone. The master promised to be on his way right away. He said goodbye to Roxane and went to the castle.
The baron was already waiting for him impatiently at the main gate. As they walked toward the chancellery, he whispered that a bomb threat had arrived and that he had asked Lieutenant Colonel Kunze to begin checking it immediately. The latter had reacted quickly, summoned the people from the defusing service and also notified the French and American Secret Service in the embassies with the request to possibly send their trained people to him. The baron could no more hide his nervousness than the master, they stood side by side at the window of the chancellery and looked out over the Heroes' Park.
Just a few minutes later the first wagons of the raiding party appeared, the men swarmed out and began to search the grandstand. Gradually, the French and the Americans also arrived. For minutes all that could be seen was feverish searching. After half an eternity, suddenly one of the men raised his hand and whistled shrilly. Everyone froze instantly. The commander ran to the man and they talked excitedly, the man pointing to the underside of a bench. Now the commander turned to the men in a loud voice and ordered them what to do. They all now felt around the undersides of the benches and carefully pulled out long, thin white packets and small black boxes. They were hidden under the colorful paper strips that were only supposed to conceal the wood.
The Baron could stand it no longer and called the commander directly through his com. The latter explained to him succinctly that they had indeed found something, he would report right after the end of the action. So they continued to watch as the officers unearthed package after package. Suddenly there was a loud bang.
They both ducked as the windows shook, cautiously reemerging from their cover and looking out over the park again. A small cloud of smoke drifted across the park, the men of the defusing squad had all jumped aside, and the grandstand structure swayed and collapsed. Immediately, several men rushed forward into the blast center and began feverishly pushing aside debris and rescuing injured people. What at first seemed like a hopeless mess soon proved to be a purposeful effort. The injured were carefully lifted out, carried away or laid on the grass of the park.
Paramedics and emergency doctors rushed over, they were on site with ambulances for all these missions. The Master and the Baron looked out of the window, they were both horrified by this attack and now the Baron couldn't stand it anymore, he activated his com and called the incident commander. But he could only confirm that there were several injured, there was no information about dead people yet. Then he hung up, because he had no time to deal with a court's rascal.
The Master and the Baron were talking in a subdued mood, suspecting that the explosion had either been triggered externally, or that one of the men of the defusing squad had accidentally set off a detonation. It was now clear that this was not the fault of Schneider or the right‐wingers, no, this was much greater. But they now had to question Schneider all the sooner, because this was their only lead. They stood at the window for almost an hour, then decided to go down to the park and inquire further. The head of the defusing service at first seemed annoyed that civilians were approaching the scene, but then he recognized them and gave them more information.
There had indeed been one man from his squad killed, 8 others had been injured, but none life‐threatening. They had been taken to the hospital, where they were well taken care of. He did not want to prejudge the further investigations of the technology, but he suspected that the fatally injured man had probably unintentionally triggered the explosion himself. He explained on the basis of one of the small black boxes, which they had found, that a release over the Comnet had been impossible, since they had isolated the area immediately radio‐technically and therefore from the outside no signal could penetrate. So the only possibility left was that the man had accidentally set off the blast himself. The explosive itself was R12, certainly ten times as strong as Semtex and, like Semtex, officially available only to the military. But it could be bought on the black market at any time, he added with a grim face.
Although the castle bailiff had immediately set up a cordon, the media were on the scene a short time later, reporters chattering still completely unconfirmed facts into their cameras, cameras clicking and zooming in on the rubble with large lenses. Soon, the media also reported this assassination worldwide and rolled the question of whether and when the funeral ceremonies could take place.
The Master and the Baron went back up to the second floor, where they gave instructions to invite the President of the Government and some selected staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to talk to them. Then they worked together to prepare an official press release, which they had sent out.
Not an hour passed and the president of the government and staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had arrived, as well as the bailiff of the castle and an assistant to the queen dowager. They sat down in the large conference room and the Baron not only read the press release, but also explained in his own words what had happened. In conclusion, he asked those present to discuss the factual situation and decide regarding the funeral ceremonies. He sat down and waited anxiously for the discussion. Master Candor had meanwhile informed Master Edelmann and Master Gregor and asked them to participate as well. With some delay they arrived and sat down quietly at the side of Master Candor.
The President of the Government insisted that the festivities must take place as planned, since distinguished persons and majesties had arrived who could not simply be sent home again. Besides, he concluded, you can't let terrorists dictate what happens. He sat down again and looked into the round, which seemed to follow him. Then Master Gregor stood up and said that they did not know who was behind it, nor did they know if there were more bombs hidden somewhere. The kingdom could not afford for anything to happen to a foreign guest. He pleaded for letting the guests return home unharmed but safe and for either postponing the funerals or, what he personally considered better, making up for it on a small scale.
Several more people present spoke and made their opinions known, but in essence it remained with these two proposals. When the clamor of voices and confusion died down a bit, the Baron said a vote had to be taken. This turned out in favor of Master Gregor. The Baron, who acted as a quasi chairman, now assigned the tasks: the President of the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would have to inform all the guests and their state representatives, respectively, that the festivities were canceled and that the guests, for their own good, would have to leave for home as soon as possible. Their safety could not be guaranteed for a further stay. The funeral for King Charles and Prince Ludwig would take place at a later date, probably not for another two or three weeks. The announcement and invitations for this were to be made only shortly beforehand, so that there would be no possibility for an assassin to make another attempt. This task would be done by the castle bailiff together with the castle chancellery. He looked around and then stated that these proposals were hereby accepted. People stood up and the conference hall emptied. However, the President of the Government, whose need for power was surpassed only by his lust for the media, hurried to the cameras in the castle garden and willingly allowed himself to be interviewed.
The Master had gone back to the Chancellery with the Baron, where they made contact with Lieutenant Colonel Kunze. They wanted to entrust him with further missions of the bomb disposal squad, but he said with a smile that he had already arranged all that. Employees of the Technical University had once again searched for bombs on the grounds of the Burghof using the best and latest equipment and had discovered that two relatively large bombs had been installed under the lawn where the speaker's stand had been set up. They were removed by the defusing service. In addition, he had immediately arranged for the city's waterworks and electricity supply to also be investigated, after which he had increased guards posted in front of these institutions and a few others. Altogether more than 600 policemen were thereby in use.
The master and the baron had asked Master Gregory to be present at Schneider's interrogation, although it was already late evening. But while they were waiting, feedback came from the special commission that Schneider was nowhere to be found and had switched off his com. So they decided that Schneider should be put out on a large‐scale manhunt and brought out by force if necessary. After that, everyone went home, having agreed to meet again in the office in the morning.
After dinner, the master sat with Roxane on the comfortable couch for a long time, he smoked and they drank a glass of wine. He had called her shortly after the explosion and said that he was not one of the injured, but now he had enough time to tell her what had happened in all details. Roxane listened to him very attentively, then said that it was probably not an action of Schneider. Rather, she believed that there was a direct connection to the assassination of the king. She paused and drank from her glass. Then she continued: if you looked at it – chronologically – from the back to the front, that is, that the main goal was an assassination of the heads of state and majesties, then the assassination of the king had served only to gather the heads of state and majesties in a certain, clearly foreseeable place, in order to kill them altogether there.
.The Master said that this was what the group with which he was investigating had thought, and had concluded that this was the most likely variant. He also said that, from this point of view, it made little sense to pursue the trail through Schneider. This one, he said, was probably just a small cog in a big game. But who were the players? Who had so much power? It had to be someone who had an interest in the chaos of the European states and kingdoms. The right‐wingers and their populist friends and sympathizers were far too small and insignificant to carry out such a major attack. Islamist terror regularly carried out isolated smaller attacks, but there had been no major assassination in the past 30 years.
They watched news on TV for a while longer, then went to bed. But try as he might, he could not fall asleep. Quietly he got up, looked at his beautiful lover who was sleeping peacefully and went to the living room. He read the news spread on the Internet on his big screen and then decided to send a silent message to the Baron, which practically meant "are you still awake?". The Baron answered the phone almost instantly, admitting that he, too, was unable to sleep. The excitements of the day and various theories and conjectures were going round and round in his head, and he was glad to have someone to talk to.
Not much new came out of it. But both men were glad to have someone to talk to. They rolled various thoughts back and forth, pondered together who was probably behind this attack, or rather, the attacks. Neither of them believed that the right‐wingers alone were responsible. They had probably participated, but there had to be someone big and powerful behind it. The baron said that although there were enough enemies of the king among the great and rich families of the kingdom, it seemed unlikely even to him that one of them was responsible. Abroad, of course, there were some big players. The great powers, the right‐wing populist parties of Scandinavia, which had joined together to form a great front, but also the Islamists, who had regained strength since the 1930s, all of these could be expected to do something.
They discussed which foreign power could probably be behind these attacks. Of course, they first considered what advantages the USA, Russia or China could expect from it. But except a general chaos probably nothing was to be expected, which could use these states hardly, besides the kingdom had to these states good relations. Neighboring European states such as France could be safely excluded, because they would have no advantages from these brutal attacks, the same applied to Germany as well as Spain or Italy. However, both could imagine that an Eastern European state could be responsible. The Master warned himself and the Baron against jumping to conclusions, because the fact that the Eastern European states were all in serious state crises, and in some of them even civil war was raging, could lead one to suspect them. The kingdom had peace with all these states and no open conflict, but the neighborhood towards the east meant that smugglers, dubious arms dealers and hotheads from all camps had a foothold in the kingdom.
Nevertheless, it seemed advisable to make contact with people with whom one had a connection over the next few days. The Master expressed regret that he had no contacts with intelligence agencies, and the Baron said he would put out feelers. Very briefly, the Master thought of involving Roxane through the Association East–West, but he immediately discarded the idea – his family must not be involved in his professional affairs under any circumstances.
Outside, the morning began to dawn, they said their goodbyes, and then the master went back to bed, sleeping for another two–three hours before finally getting up and having breakfast. He briefly told Roxane about the night conversation with the Baron. Roxane had listened attentively, and when he had finished, she said she would listen very carefully in her club and let him know immediately if anything anywhere might turn out to be a lead. And no, he would not have to worry, she would be good at listening and would in no way venture into dangerous territory. She had placed her hand reassuringly on his forearm and smiled at him. He was glad and grateful for the quiet trust and unity they both felt.
On arriving at the office, a surprise awaited him. Lieutenant Colonel Kunze was very excited and reported that Schneider had been caught in an express bus to Salzburg and immediately brought back to the castle. He said that the good man was completely out of his mind and hardly responsive. He had arranged for him to be checked every 10 minutes because of the danger of suicide. They were to interrogate him as quickly as possible, because Schneider seemed to be in an exceptional situation that favored interrogation.
No sooner had the baron arrived than they sought out the interrogation room and had Schneider brought forward. Completely absentminded, Schneider took his seat, his eyes red from crying and he sat with his shoulders drooping. The master nodded to the baron, and he began the interrogation.
The baron wanted to know what had happened. Schneider began to cry again, shaking his head the whole time and remaining silent. The Baron asked again, and very slowly Schneider raised his left forearm and held it out to him. The Baron quickly grasped the situation and he reached for the com on Schneider's forearm, released it with a push of a button and looked questioningly at Schneider. The latter silently asked him to operate the device. The Baron now pressed the smooth, chrome‐plated surface and read the latest messages. His face expressed intense consternation. He showed the last messages to the master and the lieutenant colonel.
They were not prepared to read these terrible messages. It showed two pictures of a child and two women. They were lying tied on the ground and had apparently been killed by gunshots to the head. Below them was a sentence that read, "you fucked it all up!" With silent dismay, the baron put the com back on the table.
The three of them all looked silently at Schneider and waited patiently until he had recovered somewhat and was no longer crying and sobbing as violently as before. After several minutes of silence, the Baron raised his voice again and asked who these people were. Schneider could only answer in a stammer, at some point it was possible to understand: "my daughter Lily, my mother‐in‐law and the nanny – in Salzburg!" He looked at the three in mute despair and shouted, "dead! ... All dead!" His face tensed again and he sobbed in despair.
The three were silent and hung their thoughts. The baron whispered that they should wait a bit and continue later. With a wave of his hand, he gestured to one of the policemen guarding the door to bring them water. When he placed the water on the table, they drank in silence, giving Schneider time to regain his composure. The minutes passed agonizingly slowly.
It was clear to the master that special care would have to be taken here, and at first he spoke monotonously and reassuringly to Schneider. Obviously something terrible had happened here, but it was very important that Schneider reported things from the beginning. He would have to remember the beginning, the first contact, and tell them everything, even every little detail.
Schneider wiped his eyes again, then looked straight at the master and reported. Buchner and Steidl he had already addressed months ago and tried to inspire them for the right party, that was his initiative and had nothing to do with the subsequent events. His eight‐year‐old daughter Lily had gone on vacation with her nanny to Salzburg to visit her mother‐in‐law, as she does every year. Schneider interrupted himself, sobbing, desperately struggling for composure.
Two days before the attack on the king, he had received a call from an unknown person. At the same time as the call, he received a photo showing his mother‐in‐law, nanny and Lily tied up in the living room, with two gunmen standing behind them. The stranger told him all three would die if he resisted and did not carry out his order. Schneider was deeply frightened and asked what was expected of him? The stranger said that he would have to wait at the main gate of the castle at exactly 5 p.m. the next day and that someone would slip him a vial. He would then have to immediately hand over the vial to Buchner or Steidl with the request that they mix the contents into the king's wine goblet. For camouflage, he could leave the castle beforehand, and it seemed most convenient if Buchner or Steidl did it on the way from the kitchen to the dining room. Then both could still disappear in time from the castle. The unknown man had still asked him if he had understood everything and repeated his threat that the three would be killed in Salzburg if he failed.
Schneider took a deep breath, for he had now told the essentials. The three waited patiently until he continued speaking again. He had racked his brain for hours to see if he had a way out, but he found none. And no, he had not said a word to the queen, even when she asked him what was bothering him. He had calmed her down with a meaningless excuse.
Then the mischief had proceeded exactly according to the stranger's instructions. He had been punctually at the castle gate, someone he thought was a passerby, stopped briefly with him and pressed a small package into his hand before he went on. The face he had not been able to recognize, it would have all gone very quickly.
He had lied to Buchner and Steidl and made them believe that it was a joke from the king's circle of friends. One wanted to spoil the appetite of the king, who loved to eat for his life, for one day. The king, as was generally known, had apparently served bad wine at the last round table with his friends, which had paralyzed them for a day with diarrhea and vomiting. Buchner and Steidl, who actually loved and revered the king, were not averse to playing a trick on him for once in view of the incidents.
He had handed the package to Buchner at the main gate, whom he had ordered there, and had impressed upon him that they should both leave the castle immediately afterwards so that they would not be suspected, because playing a prank on the king could quickly cost one his job. Schneider looked around, he had finished his report.
Now it was up to the master to ask questions. What could he say about the unknown caller? Schneider said the man spoke with a heavy accent, but he couldn't say what country the man might be from. European? Western? Eastern European? Was it a Slavic accent? But Schneider couldn't confirm anything, saying he spoke no foreign language other than English, he couldn't do anything at all with the caller's accent.
Further questioning of Schneider yielded no new information. He had no idea who was blackmailing him, he could give no clues as to who was behind the attacks, and he was unable to give any clues as to the identity, nationality, or origin of the assassins. The baron had Schneider taken away and ordered him to remain in custody until further – trial for double murder and high treason.
The course of the assassination seemed clear to all. Lieutenant Colonel Kunze had looked for an entry in his sheets during Schneider's testimony and now confirmed that Schneider had indeed received a phone call from an unidentified number two days before the assassination. He further reported that they had identified on the surveillance tapes the two hit men who had executed Buchner and Steidl. One a Frenchman from Corsica and the other from Bulgaria. They had been immediately put on the wanted list and the police were confident that they would soon have caught the two. They had also accurately identified the explosives recovered from the debris of the spectator stand and their detonators, they were indeed R12 as well as homemade detonators that would have been detonated via the Comnet. No fingerprints of any kind could be recovered, so it was not possible to follow up on this lead. The detonators could be easily assembled with instructions that were freely available on the Internet, the materials were available in any store and did not yield any clues to the perpetrators.
Lieutenant Colonel Kunze promised to have the pictures from Schneider's com evaluated immediately, perhaps they could at least be used to create mug shots of the two gunmen. Kunze quickly said goodbye and hurried to his team, the others remained seated and discussed Schneider's statements. None of those present had the impression that Schneider had not testified truthfully to everything, none could detect a hole in the chain of reasoning. It was a rather simple, but terrible plan, which used the regicide only to wipe out the elite of Europe.
The heads of state and majesties had left under the highest security precautions, secretly all were glad that thereby the danger of a still larger attack could be banished. There was no agreement on when and where the funeral ceremonies would take place, but it was not an urgent problem. It was much more important to find those behind the attacks.
The Baron had already approached some people from the secret service, they had immediately promised him any help. After the meeting, the master took the baron aside and said he would like to be personally present at the talks with the foreign intelligence people. The baron rolled his eyes and said that this could be very difficult, because he had been able to hear from the conversations with his intelligence contacts that they themselves wanted to talk only to the foreign intelligence people. He promised to do his best.
The master went home and sat down in his comfortable living room with a glass of cognac, quietly reflecting on recent events. Schneider's confession had sufficiently clarified the course of the assassination, he felt great pity for the poor man who had lost his entire family, probably also his freedom for the rest of his life. With a brutal blow of his fist, fate had completely destroyed his life.
Further investigation, he believed, would be very difficult. His request to the baron to let him in on the conversations with the intelligence people stemmed from his belief that he could read their minds and possibly learn something more than they were saying. Usually he used his talent of putting the other person into a light trance to steer their thoughts in a certain direction and then read them – mostly in pictures –. Only Roxane was informed about this gift, he was able to keep it secret from everyone else until now. He knew how useless it would be if his fellow men knew about it.
At that moment he remembered that he had to cancel his monthly appointment with Dr. Fürböck. He stroked the com and immediately called the institute, but Dr. Fürböck was not available in person. So he left word that he would have to cancel his appointments until further notice and justified this with the events that were known from the news. He was unavailable, working in the castle for professional reasons.
Then the baron called and reported that he had had no success in his intelligence contacts. It was unthinkable that an outsider – even an advisor to the king – could participate in a conversation among intelligence people. At least, however, the Baron had found out when and where the first conversation would take place, namely, as early as 5 p.m. today at the Memorial Hotel with a Frenchman. The master said he would go there and try to get involved somehow. The baron announced he would be there too, they would meet at the Hotel Memorial.
When the conversation was over, the Master regretted that his knowledge of French was very poor and faded, although he had learned French at school sometime – over 100 years ago. He doubted, however, that he would understand much of the conversation. It was getting late, he quickly showered and dressed in his finest clothes, then left a small handwritten note for Roxane that he would be home late today.
Shortly before 5 p.m. he had arrived at the Hotel Memorial – the former Bristol – and immediately caught sight of the Baron. After a short greeting, he asked the Baron where the conversation was taking place. The latter batted his eyes and pointed to one of the back tables where two gentlemen were talking. Quietly, the baron said that this was his acquaintance and the Frenchman. The master immediately tried to read their minds, but they were too far away and all around the animated conversations of other guests seemed distracting. He gave up his efforts and, following an intuition, asked the Baron how his French was. The baron cheerfully assured that he spoke fluent French and looked questioningly at the master. The latter thought only briefly, then told the Baron that they would have to address them when they left. The baron wasn't quite sure if they could make that happen, but he promised to try.
In fact, the two gentlemen left after some time and headed towards the exit, at which point the Baron rose and greeted his acquaintance very amicably and extended his hand. The latter, of necessity, introduced him to the Frenchman. The Baron was delighted and immediately started chattering in French and with an inviting gesture he asked both gentlemen to take a seat at his table. Now the Frenchman was introduced as a businessman and the master as an advisor to the king, he apologized in very bumpy French that he could not speak the language well.
The conversation continued in French, and the master was amazed that he could understand most of it or make out the context from single words. After the small talk had lasted for a while, he interfered in the conversation again in bumpy French and asked the Frenchman directly who he thought could be behind these terrible and horrible attacks? The Frenchman looked at him briefly and then said that it was a complete mystery to him who was behind it. The master tried in vain to see the Frenchman's thoughts in pictures. Either he could not follow his thoughts, or the Frenchman really knew nothing. After some time they said goodbye and left the hotel lobby.
The master and the baron walked together towards Freyung, the square in front of his Palais Harrach, where the master lived. He thanked the Baron, it had been very informative, because his impression of the Frenchman was that he really knew nothing. It had been very important to him to hear that in a personal conversation. He thanked the Baron again and said how important it was to talk in person with someone who might have known something. In a personal conversation, many factors can promote communication, much of what could not be said came out that way. The words, the language would of course matter, but he could read the sublime little facts of non‐verbal communication very accurately. Therefore, it would also be absolutely necessary, if possible, to talk on a personal basis with the people from the U.S., Russia, and whomever the intelligence people could reach. They had arrived at the Freyung, where the first rush to the snack stalls and small cafeterias was already subsiding.
They took a seat at one of the secluded tables at "Da Toni" and drank Italian beer – it was a Nastro del diavolo, a rather strong beer from Moretti. Once again the Master came to talk about the importance of personal contact and his presence in these conversations, reading the micro expression etc. He had to get the Baron on his side, which he succeeded in doing. The Baron, for his part, now began to think aloud how best to go about it. Nothing new came out, they would have to use the greeting trick again.
Later then, at the second nastro, they talked about the future, what they would do if the new king did not continue to employ them. Here the Baron became quite melancholy, for the von Stettens had always served faithfully under both King Francis and King Charles. He was quite downhearted at the thought of struggling through life in the future as a teacher or official with a soccer team. Just to put him out of this misery the master said the new king would surely keep both of them in service. There was not much more he could do, he himself had no worries, as he could live very well from his fortune.
The mood had improved and now the master learned that Baron von Stetten's first name was Rüdiger. He said that his civil name was Leo Puchmann, whereupon the Baron – probably also inspired by the now third Nastro – waved off and said that he knew all that, since he had still carried out his examination on behalf of King Charles. They both laughed and the master said, just as well that there were no more secrets between them. He began to question the Baron – Rudiger – and was very relieved that the latter had found only the legend invented by his lawyers. He would have had to explain a great deal and their professional friendship would certainly have suffered badly if the Baron had come to know the true background. When the glasses were empty, the master considered another glass, but he noticed in time that the baron was looking uneasily at the time display. A brief, tiny check into the Baron's mind showed that he was already on the move, as he was expected by Dina. He smiled mildly and said that Baron could safely leave, he himself was already very tired and wanted to go to bed. Gratefully, Baron von Stetten said goodbye and hurried home, the master paid as usual with his com and left as well, he was practically already at home.
As he quietly entered the apartment, Roxane, who had been waiting for him on the couch, awoke. She rose and ordered Lucy to heat up dinner, noticing his pleasing look at her body, for she was wearing the thin, short nothing he loved so much. "Or do you just want dessert?" she asked teasingly, but his gaze had darkened again and he thought it had been a long and tiring day. She sat down next to him while he ate quietly and reported that she thought she recognized one of the men on the APB, the Bulgarian, and he had probably been accommodated by her club, East–West. She said she would go to the club again tomorrow and try to find out his whereabouts. He had listened to her carefully and said that this might be an important lead, but that she should be careful. They went to bed and he gently stroked her hip, then immediately fell asleep and slept deeply and dreamlessly until morning.
The next day he sat with the Baron and Lieutenant Colonel Kunze in the briefing room and they went over all the known facts again. It was not much, because with Schneider's confession most of the questions were answered. Only the question of who was behind the attack remained completely in the dark.
Lieutenant Colonel Kunze reported that one of the two killers who had killed Buchner and Steidl, Frenchman Michel Duvier, had long since left the country and was now presumably in Spain. Despite the large‐scale international manhunt, the suspect has not yet been caught.
Master Candor reported that the other killer, the one from Bulgaria, had apparently been seen in the East–West club and he was following up on that lead.
In the middle of their conversation, Miss Firnbach burst in and told the gentlemen they were expected one floor up in the small conference room, Prince Erich was asking them all to come in for a talk. Then she added that she had already summoned the king's other advisors and they were already upstairs in the conference room. They immediately set off and went upstairs.
They had to wait a good quarter of an hour before the prince entered. He was a tall, slender man in his mid‐40s, he had his father's square chin covered by a neat, thin beard. His eyes were bright and looked intently at his interlocutors. He was dressed in middle‐class civilian clothes and seemed to place value on his physical appearance, but his neatly manicured fingernails did not indicate excessive mannerisms. He sat down across from them at the conference table and greeted them with a slight inclination of his head. After they had mused at each other for a few moments, the prince spoke:
"Gentlemen, thank you very much for coming. As you already know, I have been recalled from London in my capacity as Crown Prince to take up the office of King here. Although I was abroad for almost 20 years, I always remained close to the King. We wrote to each other at least once a quarter, I also constantly received a detailed status report from you, dear Master Reichenhall. Thus, I was constantly informed firsthand about what was happening in the Reich, even though now that I am to become king, it seems extremely important that I work with good people and also receive good information.
Therefore, I would like to ask all of you quite sincerely to remain in your present posts and continue to serve me after I ascend the throne. All their powers, their rights and, of course, their salaries will continue unchanged. I expect all of you to be ready for this service. Should any of you wish to resign, he is at liberty to do so; I would be angry with no one if he so chose." The prince glanced from one to the other to find out if everyone was still on board.
Master Berkel rose awkwardly, bowed to the prince and said, "Dear Prince Erich, as I have already discussed with King Karl, I wanted to retire at the end of this year, I can no longer perform the work conscientiously. I am approaching my 90th birthday and hope for your understanding as I retire and give my place to someone else." He bowed again and sat awkwardly back in his chair.
The prince looked up again from the papers before him and looked kindly at Master Berkel. "Dear Master Berkel, have thanks for your frankness and the most sincere thanks of the kingdom for your good services so far. Of course, I accept and wish you many more good and, above all, healthy years. I will remember you kindly in my inaugural address and assure you a good legacy for the future. You have served the King faithfully in all technical matters as an excellent expert during your service, and this will not go unmentioned! Have thanks again, and remain with us during this session." The prince's gaze rested kindly on Master Berkel, and Candor could see in the prince's thoughts a picture of satisfaction, but also of concern as to who might be considered as his successor.
Now the prince turned to everyone again and said:
"My first question to you is what recommendation you have for the funeral ceremonies." The men looked at each other, then Master Edelmann rose and said:
"It is our opinion that in about two weeks the joint funeral of King Charles and Prince Louis should be celebrated. All members of the court, the government and representatives of the wealthy and influential families should be invited. It was not to be an international but a national event, so the coverage would also be rather small. Since the king had already decided during his lifetime to be buried at the side of his father King Franz in the Hofburg, this question had also been settled. I will gladly take over the organization, if it is all right." Edelmann looked around at the group and sat down again.
"Now that this is settled, I come to another point I would like to discuss with my advisors." The prince paused briefly and looked around the room. "It concerns Elizabeth, my father's widow. It seems to be common knowledge that I have never been happy with this decision of my father's and have never hidden this fact. That is also the reason why I now reside with my aunt. In the long run, however, I have to move to the castle, so my question to you is: how should we deal with the queen dowager?"
The men looked at each other, it was clear to all that Erich and Elisabeth could not live under one roof. There had been no discussion about this yet, so everyone had to freely express their off‐the‐cuff opinions. Edelmann, Gregor and also Lieutenant Colonel Kunze thought that the queen dowager would be best off in Salzburg; Mirabell Palace was in the middle of the city and had been recently renovated, so she did not have to feel sidelined. Salzburg was one of the most beautiful cities in the empire and offered much culturally and socially. And Lieutenant Colonel Kunze added that her safety could also be well taken care of there.
For the first time Candor took the floor. He was against it, he said, because the way he assessed the Queen Dowager, she would feel sidelined there after all. It would be better to respond to the Queen Dowager's very impulsive personality. She had always lived in the city of Vienna and all her roots, friends and acquaintances, her whole social Network were here. He would rather recommend that she be housed in one of the many palaces in the city. The royal house had several of these palaces, and the choice could be left to her, this also in the sense of a peaceful and friendly solution for the Queen Dowager. In any case, approaching her actively and offering her a choice would be better than an order "from above" that might be perceived as confrontation. And, Candor added, a confrontation would probably damage everyone.
He looked around the room, and gradually everyone nodded their agreement. Prince Erich now looked at Master Candor and asked, "is that now unanimously accepted?" and Candor nodded, answering, "Yes, my prince!"
The latter sat back, then smiled and said, "it's really interesting how decisions are made in this circle. But I think it's a good thing!" The Prince then asked that one of those present delicately evaluate the issue with the Queen Dowager, with all due caution. He expected a final statement no later than tomorrow evening. Candor thought to himself that the prince was one who liked to make decisions quickly and who also did not appreciate lengthy debates. In this sense, the prince had won a point.
Now Baron von Stetten spoke up. He said he had been in the service of kings all his life and hoped not to speak too highly when he claimed to have been one of his closest confidants, entrusted with delicate assignments such as the education of Prince Louis. Now he asked the prince to continue to trust him and to keep him in his service. One could see in the prince's face that he would have liked to scratch his head, but his excellent upbringing and long stay in rather subdued England won the day.
"My dear Baron," said the Prince with great kindness, "of course you will stay with me and receive your orders when they arise." Again it seemed as if the prince was trying to steer around a difficult cliff and scratch his head before continuing, "Please understand that I have taken my long‐time butler, Mortimer, with me and that he is not only my butler in the strictest sense, but also my closest associate in the sense of an aide and an excellent bodyguard. I can only hope that you will work well with Mortimer." The Baron nodded eagerly and said, "Thank you, my Prince!"
"In general, I wish to state," said the Prince, "That I have brought with me from London a number of persons who enjoy my full confidence, and I shall do my utmost to see that they are well integrated here. My chef Henri, my companion Princess Claudia, my butler Mortimer. I'll probably have to leave my chauffeur and sports cars in London, since it's difficult to impossible to maintain cars with internal combustion engines here." The Prince paused thoughtfully, then continued, "Both King Charles and King Francis loved to ride their horses through the Lobau – the wild chase, as the tabloids described it. I myself am not a special rider, but I am known as a lover of fast cars. It's a pity that I will hardly be able to pursue this hobby here in my homeland."
And that above all therefore, thought Candor with itself, because with us driving with more than 0.0 per mille is punished strictly. And besides, I take it as it is with the companion Claudia: she is your last conquest, this pretty child from Denmark – the hot blood of the Pospischil–kings also runs through your veins! Candor brushed these thoughts aside. For his part, he was pleased with how accessible the prince's mind seemed to him; it would encourage their further cooperation. In any case, he saw no problem in the fact that the prince liked to drink a good drop and chase after pretty young girls. He was certainly no alcoholic and no pederast.