Last Stop: Pyongyang

Murderous revenge

People in town felt relieved that at least one of the perpetrators had been arrested in the Amelie case. But how about the other two? Someone must have held the camera. And also the guy with the knife was still at large!

Almost everyone suspected Markus and Frederik of being complicit. But as long as there was no hard evidence for their participation, they remained free. No one felt more devastated at this prospect than Sang-wan – it couldn't be that the two of them were getting away unscathed!

Armin remained silent. His father visited him in prison every day and tried to persuade him to inform on his accomplices, but was met with severe resistance. Sebastian was convinced that Markus and Frederik had to be involved in this terrible crime. What's more, he would have taken bets that Frederik was the driving force behind all of this.

Armin was obviously scared, Sebastian could see that much. But as long as he refused to make a statement, he was unable to do anything for him. Sebastian no longer understood the world – why, why did Armin take this on himself?

Amelie‘s r**e, in all probability also her murder, as well as Carola Braun‘s – Frederik had heavily incriminated Armin – would lead to a long prison sentence. The fact that juvenile criminal law would be applied in Armin's case didn't help. Armin's life was ruined!

Armin, however, had good reason to remain silent. Frederik never tired of pressuring him. Since Dr. Greifer was representing Armin as a lawyer, Frederik was able to smuggle his threatening messages to him into prison without hindrance. If you talk, your dad and sis will be dead. Armin believed every word of it.

Frederik's father didn't bat an eyelid when he handed Armin some documents - including handwritten post-its full of threats. He skillfully covered up the fact that he knew about them and put on a fake smile.

Bernhard felt no sympathy for Armin. His son had certainly not been stupid enough to get caught! He would do everything he could to keep Frederik out of prison.

Armin feared his appointments with his defence lawyer even more than any prison sentence, no matter how harsh. A chill went down his spine, each time the guard led him into the visiting room. He would have preferred to get rid of his lawyer and ask for a public defender, but he did not dare to put these thoughts into words.

***

"The matter is more complicated than expected. We need to be patient," Sang-wan implored his family. Min-ju, Tak and Yu-ja nodded resignedly. It was such a shame that the other two got away! They should have gone to prison long ago!

Neither the Chos nor the Nguyens were happy with the outcome. Just like most of Grünau-Waldheide’s residents, who desperately wanted to see all the perpetrators locked up. The knowledge that a few of them were still at large lay like a leaden blanket over the small town. The criminals were right in their midst!

Nevertheless, things started to move forward. Markus, who could no longer withstand the public pressure, collapsed when Tak stopped him in Daniel's street. Tak had spotted Markus immediately, ran after him and confronted him with Amelie's death.

Crying, Markus sat down on the pavement as the story burst out of him. At first, it was all meant to be fun - to scare girls. Since he had no friends, he decided to team up with Frederik and Armin. At first, they had seemed so cool. But their jokes quickly turned into bitter seriousness.

Initially, Frederik had boosted Markus‘ self-confidence, but over time he increasingly devalued Markus - and Armin. Because he dragged the two into all his criminal activities, he soon gained control over them. Frederik knew exactly how to ensure that nothing stuck to him. Markus had grown very afraid of Frederik.

Tak breathed a sigh of relief. Finally! Monika's desperation, since she had learned about her sister‘s death, and her red-rimmed eyes had given Tak an irrepressible will to bring all of Amelie's murderers to justice. The fact that Armin was the only one in prison was highly dissatisfactory!

"I think you should accompany me to the police station," said Tak shortly, looking down at Markus, who was still sobbing. "Coming clean will relieve you." Markus nodded, but stammered that he wanted to tell his parents first - alone. He promised to proceed to the police station right afterward. "You can count on me," he assured Tak.

Tak nodded and set off to the Traunbergers' house. Yes, he should wait until Markus had made his statement... but Monika was always so happy to see him. Lately, he’d found her quite likeable. If only it weren't for that stupid age difference! Tak shook his head in frustration.

Although... Yu-ja was two years younger than Daniel, and that didn't seem to bother anyone. She had just turned seventeen. His parents were now getting worked up about other things. Despite Sang-wan and Min-ju's severe resistance, Yu-ja managed to get to sleep at Daniel's every Friday - their relationship was getting closer and closer. Hopefully, she didn't get pregnant straight away...

On his way to Monika, Tak stared thoughtfully into the cloudy sky. The cloud cover was so thick that only a slight yellow-golden shimmer penetrated it. A real stormy sky, Tak thought as he turned into Monika's street.

Sixteen year-old Monika had been following Tak persistently for over a year. Now Tak had reached her house. He walked briskly past the gnarled old cypress trees that towered into the sky, and rang the bell. Monika's younger sister Angelika answered the door. "Come in. Monika's in the living room," she said in a sad voice. Amelie's death had also affected her terribly.

Tak followed Angelika into the gloomy room he remembered from his last visit. Here, he always experienced a really bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn't know why.

Monika put her book aside and got up from the sofa when she saw Tak. Despite her sadness, a smile spread across her face. Tak had come to see her!

"My parents aren't home. Do you want to go out?" she asked him. She wanted to be alone with Tak. After having checked with Angelika that she would be fine for the next hour or so, Monika put on her snow-white woollen coat and left the house with Tak. They walked leisurely out of the driveway and towards the forest path. The bare trees loomed threateningly in front of them.

Tak quickly pushed Monika into a different direction. He had no desire to walk through this forest with her, even though an attack was unlikely - Armin was in custody and Markus about to turn himself in. Nevertheless, an uneasy feeling arose in Tak.

***

Frederik, who was just trotting down the footpath from the villa district, stopped dead and stared in disbelief at the heavily sobbing Markus, who had just been questioned by Tak. Not a second too soon!

Markus sat on the floor like a heap of misery. He never stopped crying. Frederik waited until Tak was out of sight and crept closer. He carefully peeked out from behind the high gray stone wall that surrounded one of the gardens.

He had only heard the last words, but that was enough. Frederik thought he had made it crystal clear that Markus had to shut up. Armin would keep quiet and he and Markus get away unscathed. Apparently, this weakling needed a reminder that he had him by the balls!

Markus, who was now turning in Frederik's direction, didn't seem to have noticed him. As always, he didn’t pay particular attention to his surroundings.. Frederik's face took on a mocking expression when he noticed Markus' dirty, faded jeans.

Dr. Friedmann's villa was located at the end of the street, right at the back of the forest. How convenient. Up there, he could easily corner Markus.

Frederik, who was now hiding behind a large garbage can, saw Markus trotting past him uphill with his head bowed. He followed his friend silently.

Markus had now reached the hill and was facing the villas in the front row. Even he understood that these properties were unaffordable for average salary earners. This attempt at distraction failed miserably – his father’s image immediately entered his mind. He would be angry, and terribly disappointed...

Right in front of the Friedmann villa, Markus turned around - a loud c***k had startled him. Frederik cursed himself. Why had he stepped on that stupid branch? Markus' eyes widened in horror.

"What's up, man." Frederik caught up with him effortlessly and patted him lightly on the shoulder. He had to control himself so as not to pull a face when his fingers touched Markus' dirty denim jacket. "Wanna hang out later?"

Markus shook his head so hard that his peroxide-blonde hair flew in all directions. He couldn't get out a word and desperately wanted to get away from Frederik. Good thing he was almost home!

Frederik saw the fear in Markus' eyes. His determination to come clean, this time for real. He had to act.

Markus turned around and ran behind a group of trees. Frederik stared after him in disbelief. How stupid could he be? He couldn't even imagine escaping him!

Frederik started to whistle. Nobody could harm him - he had internalized that early on. He picked up a thick branch and walked around the big trees in a relaxed manner. It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for. Markus crouched behind one of the thick trunks, trembling. He looked up in fear. His scream died away as the heavy branch came crashing down on his forehead with full force. Frederik struck again.

Snorting contemptuously, Frederik threw the branch into a bush and strutted away.