Time Heals No Wounds (13 page)

Hannes looked down at the floor. In the morning rush, he had chosen his tightest T-shirt. “No, I’m a canoeist. Anyway, thanks for your time, and I wish you all the best at your new job.”

But Irene did not seem to get the message or ignored it. “Oh, you’re an athlete? How amazing!”

Fortunately, Ms. Wagner rescued Hannes. “Irene! When you’re done, I have an urgent task for you.”

Irene rolled her eyes and lowered her voice. “Maybe you can take me out on your boat sometime? You know where to find me,” she said before walking back to her desk. Hannes loved her shapely figure and how she looked in high heels.

Anna sat down; she was a sharp contrast to Irene. She wore a skirt that ended at her knees, a conservative striped blouse, and only a trace of makeup—Hannes was able to make out the freckles on her nose.

He looked over and saw Fritz leave Mr. Ternheim’s office and disappear with Ms. Wagner behind another door. He turned back to Anna. “This must all come as a surprise to you, Ms. Stahl. Definitely not an easy situation.”

Anna brushed a strand of brown hair behind her ear and blushed. “No,” she said and wrung her hands in her lap. “That was really an awful surprise this morning. I read the headlines at a newspaper stand while waiting for my bus. I couldn’t believe it. Just last week, I was discussing the gala this Friday with Ms. Ternheim, and now . . .” She shrugged and looked back at her desk, as if she could find the answers there.

“How long have you been working here?” Hannes asked.

“Oh, I’ve been at Lagussa for almost ten years now. After high school, I entered a training program here and then worked in market research. Lagussa is a very good employer, and I’ve always felt challenged. I’ve never had a reason to change jobs.”

“And how long have you worked as an executive assistant?”

“Three years last month. I know because . . . Ms. Ternheim gave me a bouquet of flowers on my anniversary.”

Hannes wondered about Irene’s statements. The picture she had painted of Ms. Ternheim was hardly one of a CEO who would bring a bouquet of flowers on her assistant’s third anniversary.

“Ms. Ternheim must have been very pleased with you,” he commented.

“Yes, we always got along great. She was a nice woman, though very demanding. But she was always fair. And she was a sympathetic audience.”

“Could you give me an example?”

“Well . . . To this day, I’m still grateful for what she did. Two years ago, my mother got really sick. She . . . her health declined very quickly, and it soon became clear she was near the end. Ms. Ternheim was understanding and gave me a lot of leeway. She even told Ms. Wagner I could work flexible hours. This went on for about four months. She even came to the funeral.”

Hannes began to wonder if the two assistants were talking about the same person. “That’s very extraordinary and definitely says something about Ms. Ternheim.”

“Yes. Perhaps she was especially sympathetic in my case because she had taken care of her father for many years. He worked here until about ten years ago—long enough for me to remember him. Of course, I never really saw him, but then again, I was also only an apprentice. After he handed over control of the company to Helene and Christian, he became a little reclusive and it’s said a little crazy too. Ms. Ternheim drove out to the country at least once a week to check on him.”

“Do you know more about her father?”

“Not much. When my mother was dying, she sometimes spoke about him. He paints pictures and is mute. I know Ms. Ternheim was very worried about him. But she didn’t talk about him often, and when she did, it was more in a general way. Where he lives now must be very idyllic.”

“What was Ms. Ternheim’s relationship with her brother like?”

“Well . . . basically, they saw eye to eye when it came to the company. Of course, they sometimes had their disagreements. But they always worked closely together. Although . . .”

“What?”

Anna’s hands tensed. “No, nothing. They had a good relationship.”

Hannes knew there was more to this, but it was clear he would be unable to get it out of her now. “What do you know about the CEO’s private life?”

“She didn’t have much time for a private life. She loved her sports car, so sometimes she went on road trips. She was always talking about cars with the men in our company. Oh, and she loved the outdoors, especially the shore. She once told me that’s where she could best unwind.”

“Do you know if Ms. Ternheim rented or purchased a place recently?” asked Hannes.

“I don’t think so.”

“Did you ever hear anything about her friends?”

“No. She never mentioned any friends or acquaintances. I think she was somewhat of a loner.”

“Did Ms. Ternheim have a partner?”

Anna squirmed in her seat and rubbed her nose. “Well . . . no . . . I don’t think so. I never heard that there was a man in her life. As I said, she had no time for friends or a relationship. She was always here or on business trips.”

Again Hannes felt she was not telling him everything. She spoke in a very low voice and repeatedly glanced at the center of the room. Fritz and Ms. Wagner were standing there while Irene was typing on the computer.

“Did Ms. Ternheim have any enemies?”

“Was the newspaper right? Was she murdered?”

“That’s a fairly routine question,” he said after a pause. “I have to ask it.”

“Well, I can’t imagine someone was so at odds with her that he’d kill her. Although . . .”

“What?”

“Oh, nothing. Lately, she seemed a little absent. Left the office early, which wasn’t typical. Sometimes I’d come into her office while she was on the phone, and she’d seem upset. It was unusual because she only made business calls and was always extremely professional.”

Hannes rubbed the bump on his forehead. “Ms. Stahl, thank you for this information and taking the time to answer my questions. Still . . . I have the feeling you’re not telling me everything. From what you’ve told me, I can see you liked Ms. Ternheim very much and that she treated you very well. Anything you can tell us is important. By helping us, you’re also helping her.”

Anna took another quick look around. Hannes noticed Ms. Wagner looking suspiciously in their direction.

“What would you say if we were to meet at a neutral location? Somewhere you can talk freely?”

“You’re right.” Her voice was a whisper. “How about tonight?”

Hannes was ecstatic, although he had hoped to start training again after getting cleared by his doctor. But he was convinced Anna was keeping secrets. “All right. Do you have a place in mind?”

“Do you know the Chameleon on the south part of town?”

“I do. How about six?”

Anna nodded, and they shook hands.

Back at the station, Fritz and Hannes sat in silence in the cafeteria. On their way out of Lagussa’s headquarters, the people in the hall had shot them several furtive looks. The whole building had seemed to be whispering.

“It wasn’t easy to calm down Mr. Ternheim,” Fritz said after he had emptied half his coffee and Hannes had devoured a sandwich. “He’s convinced we leaked the story to the press. He’s really keeping his head as far as the death’s concerned. I haven’t noticed any signs of grief, or maybe he just has a lot of self-control. If Ms. Ternheim was wired the same way, then the atmosphere must have been pretty chilly there.”

“I’m not so sure,” Hannes said and briefed Fritz on the different perceptions of the two assistants.

Fritz nodded. “Ms. Maler’s opinion doesn’t surprise me. As I was chatting with the head secretary in Ms. Ternheim’s office, she told me Ms. Maler would not stay following her probation period. Ms. Ternheim argued in favor of waiting out her six-month contract so she could look for a new job without any stress. It’s obvious Ms. Maler hasn’t met any of the expectations set forth in her job interview.”

“Ms. Stahl seemed a little scared to speak candidly. She kept looking over at her colleagues and spoke very softly. I’m meeting with her alone tonight. I’m convinced she has more to say. Is that okay, or should we do it as a team?”

“Go ahead. She’ll probably be more willing to talk if there isn’t an old bag sitting next to her. Do you have any idea what she might be keeping secret?”

“No, all I found out was that the relationship between the Ternheim siblings had cooled a little lately. Were you able to coax anything from Mr. Ternheim?”

Fritz shook his head. “The guy clams up the moment he’s asked a personal question. According to him, his sister was totally focused on the company, just like him. Neither of them had much of a private life. In fact, both are unmarried and single.”

“That’s crazy! What kind of a life is that? I don’t think I could ever be so consumed by a job that it becomes my whole life. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to achieve something professionally or be invested in my job. Don’t get me wrong . . .”

“You don’t need to justify yourself,” Fritz said and laughed. “And you don’t have to explain the value of free time to me. The sooner I’m done with this crap, the better off I’ll be. I get what you mean about work-life balance. But the Ternheim family doesn’t seem to know how to strike that balance. If Old Ternheim was anything like them, that might explain his somewhat antisocial behavior.”

“Speaking of which, why did the old man not tell his son immediately after finding his daughter dead on the beach? Or did he not recognize her?”

“Good question. Apparently, the father and son don’t have a very cordial relationship and haven’t been in contact lately.”

“That’s unusual. You’d think after something like this, it’d bring the family closer together.”

Fritz shrugged. “Interpersonal relationships don’t seem to matter too much in this family. Let’s hope you can get the assistant to chat this evening. For what it’s worth, she didn’t seem entirely uninterested in you.”

Hannes quickly changed the topic. “What did Mr. Ternheim say about the body’s anomalies?”

Fritz took a long sip from his coffee cup. “He can’t explain them. His sister had always had an aversion to tattoos, and it seems unlikely she’d have become fond of them now. I showed him a reasonably tame photo of the tattoo, but he couldn’t make anything of it either. He’s already told us that she never dyed her hair and at least until last week still had her natural color. The traces of the sedative surprised him too. She was grounded and always had her life under control.”

“Other than murder, what other explanation could there be for the condition of the body?”

Fritz shrugged again. “I still wouldn’t rule out a suicide or accident. But of course you’re right, there’s already a lot of evidence that points to foul play. And it’s extremely unfortunate that the few people associated with Ms. Ternheim don’t know anything or don’t want to talk. I couldn’t get anything useful out of Ms. Wagner, and there was nothing interesting in Ms. Ternheim’s office either—not a single personal item. Mr. Ternheim denied the possibility that his sister’s death could have anything to do with the company. One of us has to pay Old Ternheim another visit. If he didn’t recognize his daughter, which I think in spite of the dyed hair is extremely unlikely, he must be officially informed of her death. And in any case, we’ve got to get him to talk, because he ought to have a lot to say about this, especially if she regularly visited him and took care of him.”

“So who’s going to visit the old man?”

Fritz leaned back in his chair. “I delivered the bad news to the brother, now it’s your turn. It’s part of our job, and you better get used to it! Also, I think you have a better shot of forging a rapport with him. Just consider our last visit.”

“What are you going to do in the meantime?” Hannes asked.

“I’ve been following the only other lead we have so far. Mr. Ternheim did share one interesting fact with me, which may give our case some momentum: Guess who Ms. Ternheim bought her chic penthouse from three years ago?”

“You mean . . . It can’t be!”

“Oh, it can. The transaction was conducted by the same agent who was also spotted at the crime scene and who disappeared once we started poking around. Also interesting is the fact that the transaction didn’t go too smoothly.”

“Why, what happened?”

“Schneider had apparently pocketed the commission without paying taxes on it. He was caught because Ms. Ternheim had included these costs in her tax returns and the revenue service conducted a routine audit. They then took a closer look at Schneider. It turns out that he was regularly evading taxes.”

Hannes shook his head. “How stupid is this man? He ought to have expected that his clients would deduct his commission from their taxes. Eventually, someone would have caught on!”

“Well, usually when this happens, there’s an agreement between the real estate agent and the buyer. The agent reduces the fee, doesn’t issue an invoice, and doesn’t have to pay the taxes.”

“That may be, but Ms. Ternheim was obviously not interested in such a condition.”

“Schneider claimed the opposite, which Ms. Ternheim denied. Fortunately, she actually had an invoice; but unfortunately, that invoice was surprisingly low. In any case, Schneider was found guilty of tax evasion. He luckily escaped a prison sentence, but the fine was probably pretty hefty and put him into some serious financial trouble.”