And they fidget until the end E-Book

Erik Hartmann

• Herausgeber: epubli
• Kategorie: Abenteuer, Thriller, Horror
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 143

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

A series of gruesome murders of young women begins in the small Westphalian town of Altena. The bodies are left with brutal precision in bushes and forests - without sexual violence, but with the cruel symbol of strangulation. The 59-year-old chief detective Rainer Lennert, who after years of patrol duty has taken refuge in the quiet office work, is suddenly entangled in a nightmare that takes him to the limits of his existence. When he realizes that the victims have a shocking familial connection to him, he embarks on a dangerous battle against time. But this case is not just a hunting game with a brutal murderer - it is a journey into the dark secrets of a city and a confrontation with one's own dark legacy. A psychological thriller that is brutal, suspenseful and full of relentless twists and turns - "And they fidget until the end" keeps the reader in its grip until the last breath.

Leseprobe

Title: And they fidget until the end

Author: Erik Hartmann

Biography:

Erik Hartmann was born in Dortmund in 1983 and grew up in a small, unremarkable town in North Rhine-Westphalia. At an early age he discovered his passion for dark tales and exciting, unfathomable stories, which he often recorded in the form of notes and short stories.

After graduating from high school, he moved to the big city, where he took on various jobs in the catering and security sectors to keep himself financially afloat. During this time, he began to write intensively, although he never moved in literary circles or pursued a traditional course of study. Instead, he drew inspiration from conversations with people, the dark corners of the city, and the many observations of human behavior that he collected in his job as a security guard.

Today, Erik Hartmann lives a secluded life in an oldFarmhouse on the edge of the forest, where he spends most of his time writing and reflecting on the dark depths of the human psyche. He regularly publishes novels and short stories that are characterized by their psychological depth and relentless atmosphere.

Chapter 1: A New Beginning

Monday morning began as Rainer Lennert had dreamed it would in his position: quiet, without new blue lights, without stress, without crazy teenagers racing away from him at the intersection in their shabby Golf at night. Instead, he sat in his office, his feet comfortably on the desk, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. The sun fell diagonally through the blinds and drew a pleasant pattern on the gray linoleum layer of the floor. After 35 years on patrol duty, he had finally worked his way up - or rather, maneuvered his way through - and was now a chief detective.

“Fuck it, life can be so simple,” he muttered contentedly to himself as he opened the first file of the day.

The door flew open and his secretary Gabi - a determined woman in her mid-50s with bright red lipstick and a penchant for tight blouses - stormed in. "Lennert! You're sitting there like the king of Altena, and shit's going down outside!"

“Gabi, what is it now?” Did someone park the mayor wrongly?” Lennert sighed and lethis feet slide heavily off the desk.

"Corpse, Rainer. And not a normal one. Wooded area behind the cemetery. Young woman, badly beaten up.

You can leave the coffee."

"Corpse? Shit..." Lennert grumbled, reaching for his jacket. "First day as a detective and a murder straight away." That's a perfect fit."

When Lennert arrived at the crime scene a little later, he was greeted by a chaotic mess of police, forensic investigators and onlookers who were curiously peering over the barrier tape. His new colleague, the young and far too ambitious detective Tobias Finke, waved to him from afar.

“Lennert, finally. I thought you were taking a nap.”

"Shut up, Finke, I need an overview first. And a coffee. Where is the body?"

“Back there, under the bushes,” said Finke, pointing with his chin to a group of forensic investigators leaning over something on the ground.

Lennert pushed through the thicket and stopped abruptlyThe girl was lying half on her side, her arms grotesquely bent as she tried to defend herself in her death throes. Her face had turned blue, her lips were split. Her neck showed clear strangulation marks, dark bruises were visible like the handwriting of a madman.

"Goddamn it," Lennert muttered. "That's... Who the hell does something like that?"

"Sadistic bastard, if you ask me," said one of the forensic investigators. "She wasn't just strangled." It was slow. Pauses between the strangling phases. She had to suffer the whole thing."

"Holy shit," Lennert said, rubbing his face. "Has anyone identified her yet?"

Finke shook his head. "No ID, no bag, nothing." But she's young. Maybe 20, 22. No dirt under her fingernails, no signs of resistance. Looks like she's given up."

“Or the bastard had her so under control that she couldn’t even run away,” Lennert muttered.

The drive back to the station was spent in depressed silence. While Finke drove in front of him in the patrol car, Lennert pondered what he had seen. He hadn't seen such brutality for a long time - if ever. Altena was a sleepy little place. Sure, there was the occasional shoplifting or bar fight, but murder? And that was it?

Gabi was waiting for him at the station with her arms crossed and her usual, slightly annoyed expression on her face. "So, how was the shit out there?"

"Worse than I thought," Lennert replied. "Bring me a coffee, Gabi, but this time one with a shot."

"I'm not a waitress here, buddy," she growled, but brought him a cup anyway. "Tell me, Lennert, have you already regretted getting a transfer?" You just wanted to put your feet up."

"Oh, Gabi, shut up," said Lennert, took a deep drink and leaned back. But the calm in his head did not return. The image of the dead woman followed him like a dark shadow.

Something about this case was bothering him – and that was just the beginning.

Chapter 2: The Homicide Squad

The conference room at the Altena police station had rarely been so full. At the head of the long table stood Chief Inspector Klaus Dürr, a gaunt man with a sharp-cut face and glasses that gave him the expression of a slightly annoyed owl researcher. Next to him lay the files, photos of the crime scene and a small stack of digital printouts from forensic investigations.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Dürr began, raising his hands to urge the officers present to remain calm. "Altena has not seen a murder case for years. Now we have one - and what a murder case. A young girl, brutally strangled, presumably with breaks. We have no identity of the victim, no suspects and no usable traces. In short: we are in the dark here."

The officers exchanged serious glances. Lennert sat at the end of the table, his arms folded, and looked at the photos that Dürr had pinned to the bulletin board. The picture of the girl, the twisted body, the strangulation marks. It still sat in his stomach.

“The homicide squad will be managed centrally by us,” continued Dürr. “That means we will have staff from Hagen andDortmund. But since Altena is the crime scene, the local police station is closely involved. Chief Inspector Lennert –"

“Here,” Lennert grumbled, raising his hand without much enthusiasm.

"You will take over the management on site," said Dürr, giving Lennert a piercing look. "That means you will coordinate the measures in Altena. The main work will of course be carried out at headquarters, but you are our interface here. Clear?"

"Sure," Lennert replied dryly. He didn't particularly like Dürr, but the feeling was probably mutual.

After the meeting, Lennert remained in the room while the other officials left. Dürr came to him and sat on the edge of the table.

"Lennert, I'll be honest with you," he began. "This is a tricky business. If you screw up here, we'll all be in trouble. Altena may be small, but the press will pounce on the case if we don't deliver results."

“Sounds like you really trust me,” said Lennert sarcastically.

"I trust your experience. Otherwise you wouldn't be here. But let the other investigators do their job and take care of the basics on site. Contact with witnesses, securing the area, the usual."

“Understood,” said Lennert, took his jacket and left the room.

In the office, Lennert sat down at his desk and looked at the files that Gabi had put on the table. "What a load of crap," he muttered to himself.

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Finke stuck his head in. "Boss, quick info: the victim's identity has been revealed. The forensics team has compared fingerprints."

"That's good news. Who is she?"

“Nina Schulte, 21 years old. Studies art history in Münster, but originally comes from Altena. Parents live nearby. Her colleagues are already onthe way to inform them."

Lennert leaned back. "Altena. Of course. Most of the bodies we find here have something to do with this place. Do you know anything about the family?"

"Normal people, as far as I know. Father is a teacher, mother works in the city library. No previous convictions, no abnormalities."

"Then we should take a look at the parents," said Lennert. "Let the colleagues do their thing and then I'll drive by later." Maybe they noticed something."

The afternoon was almost sluggish. Lennert worked through the previous reports, but there were no useful leads. No witnesses, no clues to the perpetrator. Only the disturbing details of the method of murder: the slow, precise strangulation with pauses. An act that could not have been done in the heat of the moment, but had been planned with terrifying cold-bloodedness.

When he finally left the office to go to the victim's parents, he left the way to Gabi.

"Well, boss? Is the life of a homicide detective fun?" she asked acidly.

“Shut up, Gabi,” grumbled Lennert, got into his car and drove off.

The Schultes lived in a single-family house on the outskirts of town. The garden was neatly tended, the curtains drawn. Lennert rang the bell, and after a few moments a middle-aged woman with a tear-stained face opened the door.

"Mrs. Schulte?" asked Lennert, and she nodded silently. "I'm Chief Inspector Lennert. May I come in?"

The victim's father was sitting in an armchair in the living room, his hands shaking as he clutched a cup of tea. The conversation was difficult, full of tears and halting words. But she told Lennert that Nina had been visiting Altena over the weekend. She had met up with friends but had not come home. The next morning she had reported herself missing.

“Did Nina have enemies? Any problems?” Lennert asked cautiously.

"No," the mother whispered. "Nina was a sweet girl. She... She didn't hurt anyone."

The father shook his head, tears running down his cheeks. "Who would do something like that? Who would do something like that to a young girl?"

“That’s what I’m trying to find out,” Lennert said quietly.

When he got back to the office, the sun had already set. Finke was still sitting at his desk, but the rest of the station was empty.

“And what do the parents say?” asked Finke.

"Nothing that helps us," Lennert replied. "The girl was visiting, had friends here. No argument, no trouble. It doesn't make sense."

"Maybe it'll make sense," Finke said. "Or maybe we'll just get a new case. Welcome to the pros, boss."

“Thanks, Finke,” growled Lennert. “Really helpful.”

As he leaned back in his chair, Lennert could not shake the feeling that this case was going to get much bigger and more personal than hecould imagine.

Chapter 3: The Second Murder

Rainer Lennert sat at his desk, his feet on the edge of the desk, leafing through Nina Schulte's file for the fifth time. Something was bothering him, something felt wrong, as if a crucial piece of the puzzle was missing. But before he could think about it any further, the shrill ringing of his phone tore him out of his concentration.

“Lennert,” he said grumpily.

"Boss, we have a problem," Finke's voice came from the receiver. "Another body. Another young girl. Strangled again. This time in the city park."

Lennert felt his blood freeze in his veins. "What the hell... When was she found?"

"About an hour ago. A jogger discovered the body. Forensics is on site and Dürr has already called. This is officially a serial murder, Lennert."

"Shit." Lennert dropped the file on the table, put on his jacket and reached for his car keys. "I'm on my way."

Altena's city park was a small, inconspicuous place, popular with families, dog owners and joggers. Now it was bathed in bright blue lights that made the bare trees and wet grass seem unreal. Police had cordoned off a wide area and forensics were already working on the body that had been found in a bush near a playground.

"Well, boss, welcome to the shit show," Finke greeted him as he stood at the barrier with his hands in his pockets. "The press is already on its way and Dürr wants results." And he wants them yesterday."

“Shut up, Finke,” Lennert grumbled and went to the crime scene.

The girl was lying half on her back, her arms over her chest in a defensive gesture. Her face was twisted into a painful grimace, her neck bore the same strangulation marks as Nina Schulte's. But this time the scene was even more gruesome. The perpetrator had placed a strange arrangement of flowers on the corpse's chest -wildflowers that had obviously come from the area.

“What’s this shit with the flowers?” Lennert asked the forensic team who was taking photos.

"I don't know," one of the technicians replied. "Maybe it's an art ritual? Or the guy is trying to fool us."

"Or both." Lennert frowned. "Is the woman's identity known?"

"Not yet," said Finke, who was standing behind him. "No papers, no cell phone, nothing." But she is young, around 20. That fits the first victim."

"This is no coincidence," said Lennert, pointing to the strangulation marks. "The guy is doing this on purpose." He enjoys it. Slowly strangle him, then the flowers. This is not an emotion, this is a sick plan."

"Want something to drink, boss?" asked Finke with a crooked smile. "I have a bottle of whiskey in the car."

“Shut up, Finke,” growled Lennert and turned back to the corpse.

Back at the station, the mood was depressed. Gabi stood at the coffee machine and stared blankly at the dripping filter. When Lennert entered, she turned to him.

“Another corpse, I heard,” she said quietly.

“Yes, Gabi, another corpse,” Lennert replied, falling heavily into his chair.

"And what are you doing now?"

"What should I do?" Lennert stared at the notes he had taken while inspecting the crime scene. "I have no idea who the guy is, why he's doing this, or what the hell those flowers mean. I'm not a damn psychic."

“Maybe you should complain less and think more,” Gabi said dryly and handed him a cup of coffee.

Late that evening, Lennert sat alone in his office. The rain was pounding against the window and the neon lights were humming softly. He had spread out the files from both murders in front of him and was trying to find connections. Both victims were young, both had been killed in a strange ritualized way. But there was no obvious connection between them - no mutual friends, no similar social circles.

His cell phone rang. It was Jutta Gruber, the landlady of his local bar and one of the few people Lennert spent time with outside of work.

“Rainer? Are you still at the station?”

"Yes why?"

"I heard what happened. Two murders, right? In Altena! That's crazy."

"Yes, it is," Lennert replied. "What do you want?"

"I thought you could use a beer." Or two. You sound like shit."

Lennert hesitated. He didn't really have time for beer, but Jutta was right - he felt like shit. "I'll come over."

It was surprisingly quiet in Jutta's pub. Only a few regulars were sitting at the bar, and Jutta was standing behind the bar as usual. When Lennert entered, she gave him a warm smile.

"There you are," she said, placing a freshly tapped pilsner in front of him. "Have a seat."

“Thank you,” Lennert mumbled and took a deep drink.

“So? Any progress?”

“None,” Lennert replied. “Two murders, zero clues.The guy is a ghost. A sick, fucking ghost."

"You'll get him," said Jutta firmly. "You're a stubborn old goat, Lennert. If anyone's going to get him, it's going to be you."

Lennert laughed dryly. “Let’s see if that’s enough.”

As he sipped his beer, he couldn't help but wonder how many more bodies there would be before he could solve this case.

Chapter 4: The pressure is increasing

The next morning, Lennert sat at his desk with a pounding head. The night in Jutta's bar had eased the stress a little, but the tiredness was like a burr that had stuck to his mind. He rubbed his eyes and stared at his computer screen, where he had placed the data of the two victims next to each other.

Nina Schulte:21 years old, student. Visited her parents in Altena at the weekend. Found in the forest behind the cemetery.

The second victim:No identity yet. Found in the city park, also strangled, draped with flowers.

“What are you trying to tell me, you bastard?” Lennert muttered quietly to himself and tapped the photo of the second crime scene with his finger.

The sound of heavy footsteps tore him from his thoughts. Finke stormed into the office, a printout in his hand.

“Boss, we have the identity of the second victim!” he shouted, ignoring Lennert’s disgruntled expression.