Snow White Must Die (Bodenstein & Kirchhoff, #4)(107)

“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.