Part 57, Chapter 787
Chapter Seven Hundred Eighty-Seven
2nd January 1950
Potsdam
Anton had been called into Headquarters unexpectedly. Normally he was able to work from his office in Central Berlin, taking cases as he was requested. Because he’d been called in he was wearing the uniform that he normally only wore at funerals.
“Thank you for joining us today Polizeihauptmeister Knoph” Franz Klimek, a Prosecutor who he had worked with in the past said. Anton knew this man to be an officious ass.
“If you could tell me why I am here?” Anton asked.
“We’ll get to that” Franz said, “But we first I must ask, how is your partner?”
“Still on medical leave, shaken up but she wasn’t seriously injured” Anton said, “There’s an ongoing investigation.”
“That investigation is why you are here.”
“I don’t see what I would have to do with it” Anton said, “I wasn’t present when the incident happened.”
“Yes, but you do know your partner” Franz said, “How would you describe her relationship with her father?”
“Icy” Anton said, “She doesn’t approve of him.”
“Would you say that he might make an attempt on her life?”
“That is unlikely” Anton replied, “They might not get along presently, but that is a personal squabble. Katherine has said that in the past her father was willing to do anything for her.”
“In the past, perhaps” Franz said, “Now, we’ve been hearing disturbing rumors.”
“Regarding?” Anton asked, he didn’t like the sound of that.
“Someone is making a play against Otto Mischner, who is a necessary evil if security on the railways is to be maintained. We have no idea who that is. Katherine von Mischner is known to be an ambitious woman.”
“I have no idea who might have told you that, but someone just tried to kill her.”
“About that. More than two hundred shots, her car destroyed, and she miraculously walks away. Eleven people in the surrounding buildings were injured.” Franz said, “There are a few things that seem somewhat suspicious.”
“If you are suggesting that she staged this then you have seriously lost the plot” Anton said, “I was there after she crawled out from under that car. She would have to be the greatest actress in the world to fake something like that.”
“I’m just doing my job” Franz said, “I would be remiss if I didn’t thoroughly examine this course of inquiry. There are procedures in place to handle matters like these.”
Anton had heard enough, “I know how you are with procedures, Franz, especially when there’s a chance to preen before the press” He said, “I was there for the Angel of Death matter, remember.”
It was the case that defined Franz Klimek’s career. Two years earlier a Physician in the Oncology Department at the University Hospital in Munich had been arrested on suspicion of poisoning a patient. A search of the Doctor’s home revealed something unthinkable. He had been conducting unauthorized experiments on his patients and had kept meticulous records. The Doctor had been totally unrepentant, he calmly explained to the investigating detectives that because they were dying anyway it didn’t matter. Only Anton, who had been called in to lead the investigation after the Munich Police realized they were in over their heads, knew the truth. In his hurry to pursue the case and make a splash before the cameras Franz had neglected to file the proper paperwork in the right order. If the defense had challenged the veracity of the search and subsequent confession, all of that would have been thrown out, Josef Mengele would have walked free. The Prosecution had gotten lucky in that the Defense was more interested in saving their client’s life, thinking they had been dealt a bad hand, than challenging the underlaying structure of the case. Still, the result was that Franz and Anton were irrevocably chained together professionally.
“Are you sure that this is the sort of matter you want to destroy yourself over” Franz said.
“You’ll go down with me” Anton said, “Now who told you this story.”
Franz sat there unsure how to proceed.
Berlin
The first day back in classes and Ilse had two armed guards escorting her. She had thought that her status as a social pariah was now indelibly marked until she was approached by another classmate who asked if her sister was alright. Gunfire within the city was huge deal and everyone knew what had happened. There were rumors that were swirling about what was going on. Kat had warned them that this was a war, but to Ilse it was very odd. Life was going on for ordinary people while who knew what was happening in the shadows.
Ilse had a better idea of what was happening then those who were surrounding her. Life was far cheaper than most of the students in the University ever realized. She preferred the view of the veterans who had seen what life was like on the front, but there were far fewer of them in her classes then there had been when she had started at University. When Ilse had been a child She had seen first hand the attrition that had happened among the others in the orphanage and that had been a lesson about the real value of life she had never forgotten. The number had been between three and five percent, per year, every year. Accident, disease, neglect, sometimes even just tough luck and she would be attending another memorial service for a classmate. Ilse remembered how she had an impossible time adjusting to living in Werder and Gia being generous with her things had caused her trouble because in her would no one had done something without expecting something in return. Generosity was something Ilse knew to be warry of because they had all heard the stories…
Now, someone close to her had been hurt, people were concerned about her even though they didn’t need to be, and Ilse was unsure on how to handle it.
2nd January 1950
Potsdam
Anton had been called into Headquarters unexpectedly. Normally he was able to work from his office in Central Berlin, taking cases as he was requested. Because he’d been called in he was wearing the uniform that he normally only wore at funerals.
“Thank you for joining us today Polizeihauptmeister Knoph” Franz Klimek, a Prosecutor who he had worked with in the past said. Anton knew this man to be an officious ass.
“If you could tell me why I am here?” Anton asked.
“We’ll get to that” Franz said, “But we first I must ask, how is your partner?”
“Still on medical leave, shaken up but she wasn’t seriously injured” Anton said, “There’s an ongoing investigation.”
“That investigation is why you are here.”
“I don’t see what I would have to do with it” Anton said, “I wasn’t present when the incident happened.”
“Yes, but you do know your partner” Franz said, “How would you describe her relationship with her father?”
“Icy” Anton said, “She doesn’t approve of him.”
“Would you say that he might make an attempt on her life?”
“That is unlikely” Anton replied, “They might not get along presently, but that is a personal squabble. Katherine has said that in the past her father was willing to do anything for her.”
“In the past, perhaps” Franz said, “Now, we’ve been hearing disturbing rumors.”
“Regarding?” Anton asked, he didn’t like the sound of that.
“Someone is making a play against Otto Mischner, who is a necessary evil if security on the railways is to be maintained. We have no idea who that is. Katherine von Mischner is known to be an ambitious woman.”
“I have no idea who might have told you that, but someone just tried to kill her.”
“About that. More than two hundred shots, her car destroyed, and she miraculously walks away. Eleven people in the surrounding buildings were injured.” Franz said, “There are a few things that seem somewhat suspicious.”
“If you are suggesting that she staged this then you have seriously lost the plot” Anton said, “I was there after she crawled out from under that car. She would have to be the greatest actress in the world to fake something like that.”
“I’m just doing my job” Franz said, “I would be remiss if I didn’t thoroughly examine this course of inquiry. There are procedures in place to handle matters like these.”
Anton had heard enough, “I know how you are with procedures, Franz, especially when there’s a chance to preen before the press” He said, “I was there for the Angel of Death matter, remember.”
It was the case that defined Franz Klimek’s career. Two years earlier a Physician in the Oncology Department at the University Hospital in Munich had been arrested on suspicion of poisoning a patient. A search of the Doctor’s home revealed something unthinkable. He had been conducting unauthorized experiments on his patients and had kept meticulous records. The Doctor had been totally unrepentant, he calmly explained to the investigating detectives that because they were dying anyway it didn’t matter. Only Anton, who had been called in to lead the investigation after the Munich Police realized they were in over their heads, knew the truth. In his hurry to pursue the case and make a splash before the cameras Franz had neglected to file the proper paperwork in the right order. If the defense had challenged the veracity of the search and subsequent confession, all of that would have been thrown out, Josef Mengele would have walked free. The Prosecution had gotten lucky in that the Defense was more interested in saving their client’s life, thinking they had been dealt a bad hand, than challenging the underlaying structure of the case. Still, the result was that Franz and Anton were irrevocably chained together professionally.
“Are you sure that this is the sort of matter you want to destroy yourself over” Franz said.
“You’ll go down with me” Anton said, “Now who told you this story.”
Franz sat there unsure how to proceed.
Berlin
The first day back in classes and Ilse had two armed guards escorting her. She had thought that her status as a social pariah was now indelibly marked until she was approached by another classmate who asked if her sister was alright. Gunfire within the city was huge deal and everyone knew what had happened. There were rumors that were swirling about what was going on. Kat had warned them that this was a war, but to Ilse it was very odd. Life was going on for ordinary people while who knew what was happening in the shadows.
Ilse had a better idea of what was happening then those who were surrounding her. Life was far cheaper than most of the students in the University ever realized. She preferred the view of the veterans who had seen what life was like on the front, but there were far fewer of them in her classes then there had been when she had started at University. When Ilse had been a child She had seen first hand the attrition that had happened among the others in the orphanage and that had been a lesson about the real value of life she had never forgotten. The number had been between three and five percent, per year, every year. Accident, disease, neglect, sometimes even just tough luck and she would be attending another memorial service for a classmate. Ilse remembered how she had an impossible time adjusting to living in Werder and Gia being generous with her things had caused her trouble because in her would no one had done something without expecting something in return. Generosity was something Ilse knew to be warry of because they had all heard the stories…
Now, someone close to her had been hurt, people were concerned about her even though they didn’t need to be, and Ilse was unsure on how to handle it.
)