“My name is Adam Sanders. When you read this morning’s paper you may come across an article about the unusual life my sister and I live. The author of this particular article wanted to write about children who had experienced extraordinary losses. Actually, there isn’t anything interesting about my sister Nicole or me, but what we went through is interesting indeed. I can’t remember everything in detail, but enough to tell the story which took place a long time ago.”

It was one day before Christmas. Nicole’s and Adam’s father had gone on a business trip and they stayed with their uncle at his apartment. Victor Jones, the uncle, wasn’t married, didn’t have a girlfriend and no children, for sure. He was a great chef and loved cooking for his guests. While Adam and Nicole were in their room, he prepared dinner and whistled to a song he heard on the radio. He had already finished baking the fruit cake and was just about to grill the steaks.
Meanwhile Nicole and Adam sat in their room, thinking about what they could do. Nicole looked tired, her long blond hair was tied together elegantly and her dress didn’t show any lint. Slight dark circles let assume that she hadn’t sleep very well for the last days. She was lying on a large bed, persisently staring at the ceiling. Her brother Adam sat motionless at the window sill, leaning his head against the cold window. His short blond hair looked tidy just like his sweater and trousers. Minutes passed and they didn’t speak a single word. An opressive silence was in the air.
Adam looked out of the window at snowy New York. Now and then a hooded silhoutte tramped through the snow-covered streets. Like shadows, they were moving slowly against the blizzard.
They didn’t know for how long they were sitting in their room, but when the sun set and darkness fell, they broke away from their stiffness and followed delicious smells which came from the kitchen.
The living-room was furnished tastefully. A big flat-screen TV set stood next to the fire-place, a Christmas tree was bedecked with fairy lights and huge, colorful Christmas tree balls. Victor had switched on the television where a fat old lady with a red head and badly dyed hair, was shrieking the last rhyme of a Christmas carol.
Adam and Nicole sat at the black, wooden table, which was loaded with delicious food: Roast chicken, roast beef, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, steak and bacon, lamb chops, carrots, gravy, frozen chocolate bananas and fruit cake.
Adam and Nicole were accustomed to loads of food - they had four chefs preparing their dinner, after all. Victor came out of the kitchen, took a seat next to Nicole and looked at the two of them with a satisfied face.
“Enjoy the food! And I hope you like it,” he said with a smile and began to eat.
“We always do, uncle Victor,” replied Nicole with a smile and started, too.
“Thank you, Nicole. Remember, tomorrow morning I’ll drive you home, so we can celebrate Christmas with your father. He called me and said he would probably come home at midday tomorrow.”
“He’s coming?” Adam responded surprised and stopped eating. “I thought he would stay in Washington until New Year’s Eve.”
“It seems business proceedings turned out well. I really don’t know, we only talked for a few minutes.”
“It’s getting better and better”, Nicole said and ate an extremely big piece of meat.
Two hours later, they were all stuffed. They watched another bad singer who violated another Christmas carol with his awful voice, only this time it was an old man with grey hair who hadn’t bothered dying his hair, at all. Nicole and Adam went to their bedroom and wished their uncle a good night. He replied with a smile he would clean the kitchen first, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to sleep.


When Adam closed the door, they pulled on their pyjamas and then slipped under the blankets of the two large beds. Nicole turned off the lights and fell asleep within minutes. However Adam couldn’t go to sleep. He stared at the ceiling and could make out the shadows of the snowflakes which flew silently against the window. At the ceiling they looked like black points which were dancing in front of the moonlight. For Adam, the shadows seemed to tell a story. A sad story of a kingdom which had been fallen, perhaps in war. The citizens tried to escape, nearly went down with their kingdom, but a hero saved them all.
A story as old as time itself. It was the old war between good and evil and in the end it was always the same. The good defeated the evil. But if you were confronted with the contrary, would you just feel sorry for the innocent people who may have died? Or would you think about it and whisper to yourself that they perhaps had deserved to? With this question one can define his personality. Heartless or softy. Strong or weak. Confident or unconfident. Adam would probably come to know that the answer wasn’t that easy to find as one would think, because every situation is different and you’ll always act in a different way. Finally, Adam’s eyelids became heavier and he fell asleep.
The next morning, they got up early, had breakfast, got dressed quickly and drove to their home with their uncle. It was unusual for their father to celebrate Christmas with them. After what happened to their mother it was the first time for them spending a holiday together.
Victor parked his new, black Mercedes in the drive-way. The youngsters got out of the car and ran into the big house. The employees were off that day, but had managed to fill up the fridge, to decorate the Christmas tree and to place the presents in front of it. Adam and Nicole pulled off their coats and sat down on the couch, happily waiting for their father.
“Oh shoot!”, said Victor and entered the living-room.
“What is it, uncle Victor? Did anything happen?”, Nicole asked tensely.
“Don’t worry. Your father is about to come in a few minutes. I just forgot to feed my neighbour’s dog. They asked me to take care of it, because they went on vacation. Would you mind if I drive back home and come back again later?”
“Of course not! Dad will be home any minute, so you can drive back home with a good conscience!” Adam answered.
“Thank you. I’ll hurry, I promise,” Victor responded and disappeared behind the big living-room door.


“I can’t believe it. It’s the first time we’re celebrating Christmas together since mom has died,” said Nicole with a rather sad smile on her face.
“I know. Maybe things will get better,” replied Adam, but he didn’t believe in what he was saying. He had a strange, horrible feeling.
Suddenly they heard a car door slam. Both of them ran to the window instantly. A huge man with gleaming, blond hair and horn-rimmed glasses on his crooked nose leaned against his black Porsche and shouted in his cell phone. Adam and Nicole couldn’t suppress a smile.
“Dad,” whispered Adam. They both ran outside. James Sanders, their father, hung up angrily. He put his cell phone back into his pocket and ran his fingers through his hair. He turned around and faced his children, smiling.
A black Mercedes drove down the street at high speed. The window was let down and a gun was unsheathed. Everything around Adam and Nicole seemed to become quiet. The next thing they could hear was a shot, fired from far away. James Sanders’s eyes widened and for one moment he stood motionless, looking at his children still smiling. Then he fell on his knees opened his mouth, but before he could say anything he fell on his back and lay lifeless in the snow. His blood spread like a stainless, red flower in the snow. Nicole began screaming and the world arose from its short sleep. The black Mercedes disappeared behind the next corner and people came out of their houses curiously.
Within three minutes, the police arrived and two policemen ran a yellow tape around the front yard which said “Crime scene do not cross”. A soft, cold wind blew through the street and made everything more bitter.
Detective Matthew Walker, raised his eyebrow when he entered the scene of crime. He finished his coffee, threw the paper cup into a trash basket and got an overview of the scene.
“Name of the deceased?” he asked a policeman in a monotonously voice.
“James Sanders. He was forty-four, worked as a broker and was a widower. His wife, Emilia Sanders, had died of cancer, two years before. His wife’s brother, Victor Jones, helped him to raise the children by taking care of them when he went on business trips. We questioned both children Adam and Nicole, and Victor Jones. At the time of crime he was on his way back home to feed a neighbour’s dog. We checked that and his neighbours went on vacation indeed, but nobody can assert that he really drove back home.”
“Do you have any good news for me?”, Matthew asked annoyed.
“I do. The kids saw a black Mercedes and the driver shot James Sanders. Unfortunately, they didn’t see his face, but guess who drives a black Mercedes”, the policeman didn’t have to say another word.
“I want this Victor Jones at headquarters!”, he said and was about to go.
“Sir”, the policeman replied nervously.
Matthew Walker turned around and looked at the man. “What else?”
“Adam and Nicole Sanders. They don’t have any relatives. Where are they going to stay, because we can’t-“
“I know we can’t let them stay here alone!”, Matthew shouted.
In the same moment a red BMW arrived at the yellow tape. A middle-aged man with grey hair got out of the car and came up to Nicole and Adam. It was a good friend of James and Emilia Sanders. Dominic Young was his name, hugged Adam and Nicole and took them by their hands.
“What the-”, Matthew watched Dominic Young walking to his car with the children. “Hey. Mister!”, he yelled twice.
Dominic turned around irritably. “Yes?”, he asked friendly, when Matthew got through to him.
“Who are you? You can’t just take them with you!”, he pointed at the Sanders siblings.
“I’m Dominic Young and an old friend of James and Emilia Sanders. I heard what happened and I can’t let them stay with their lunatic uncle. Are you aware of his prehistory? He is an alcoholic! And I knew that something like that was going to happen. Is it true that James got shot by a driver in a black Mercedes just like Victor’s?”, said Dominic in an unpleasant tone.
“I can’t-“, but Matthew was interrupted.
“I knew it! I’ll blame you if anything happens to Niki or Adam, because of that guy! Good day!”, Dominic turned around. The three of them got into the car and he started the motor.
“Wait a second!”, Matthew shouted and ran to the red BMW. “Where can I find you? I need to know where the children are if we have any further questions!”
“Park Avenue, next to a café called ‘La maison du chocolat’”, and with these words he mashed on the gas pedal and raced around the corner.
“Is uncle Victor going to jail? I don’t think it was him who –“, Nicole stopped abruptly.
“You don’t have to think about it, Niki. He’ll get what he deserves. I just can’t believe it. Which moron shoots a man at Christmas? Adam would you please fasten!”, Dominic said with a look into the rearview mirror.
“We are almost there, aren’t we?”, Adam replied furiously.
“Still! The last thing we need is another person hurt!” Dominic turned into a quiet street. He owned a little house with a big double garage. It was white, fenced and the front yard looked manicured. The flower beds were covered with snow just like the rest of the property.
Adam and Nicole walked through the snow trance-like and they weren’t aware of the world around them, they didn’t care about people around them, anymore. They lost everything they had once loved.
Nicole’s hair wasn’t tied together elegantly any longer. It looked ruffled and her white dress showed spots of blood. Tears were running over her face, but she didn’t make a sound.
Adam looked confused. He couldn’t quite understand what had happened. His entire world caved in within seconds. His mother gone, his father gone, no grandparents. Uncle Victor was the only real relative they had, but he may be going to jail. ‘It’s a cruel world, we live in’, Adam thought full of anger.
It was midday. The sun was smothered entirely by white clouds. The trees were all leafless, no flower dared to reflourish. In this cold winter everything seemed to be frozen. Not just nature, people, too. Their actions
were inexplicable, their feelings touched bottom. In that kind of world, it seems every person acts for selfish reasons and their excuse is simple: “I want to live an easy life!”
It smelled of coffee. Apparently, Dominic had had breakfast before he had arrived at the scene of crime. The thought of breakfast made Adam nauseous. Dominic took their coats and pulled them away. The two siblings sat down and gazed into space.
“I know it’s hard to lose your parents. And to loose your parents in that kind of way is all the worse. If you want to talk about it, I’ll be there”, Dominic looked at the two of them with a serious expression.
Adam and Nicole just nodded. They didn’t know what to say and for the second time in their life they were speechless. First they had to realize what had happened and what it meant for them. Slowly they stood up and didn’t want to look at Dominic once.
The guest room was tiny and two beds were squeezed into it. The walls were painted blue, the ceiling was white and the floor was covered with awful-looking carpets. Dimly sunlight flooded through the only window of the room.
Nicole closed the door and both lay down on the beds. It became quiet. Adam couldn’t hear anything, except the humming of Dominic who was in the kitchen. ‘I bet he thinks about a way to cheer us up’, Adam thought. ‘The only thing I need is silence. And I think Nicole does, too. She doesn’t look well. Of course given the circumstances, it’s no big surprise’, he thought.
Nicole was exactly thinking the same thing and it was a shame that they talked just a few words to each other, because they had more in common than they could imagine.
Hour after hour passed. Adam and Nicole were lying on their beds, thinking about their future lives. The golden sunlight turned into a light red, filled the tiny guest room with a warm atmosphere and the two went to sleep.
It was in the dead of night when Adam woke up again. He looked around and tried to remember where he was. Reality hit him like a punch in the face. “Am I doomed? Maybe I’m not meant to be happy. Why did this happen to me? What did I do to deserve a punishment this hard?”, Adam whispered into the darkness, desperately hoping to get an answer. Unfortunately, the room kept quiet and Adam fell asleep within a few minutes.
When Nicole opened her eyes, she instantly felt a horrible sadness inside her. Nothing mattered to her and she wondered if her brother felt the same. She sat up and found Adam’s bed empty. Nicole put on her socks and walked through the room up to a mirror. A fourteen-year old girl, with shiny blue eyes and dishevelled-looking hair looked at her. ‘You look horrible’, she thought to herself. She ran her fingers through her hair and tried to straighten it. She got dressed and looked into the mirror, once more again.
“What are you doing?”, Adam’s voice said from behind.
Nicole turned around and watched her brother walking through the room, curiously. “Nothing? Why are you asking? And how long have you been standing there, spying on me?”, she asked.
“Nevermind. Dominic drove away, fifteen minutes ago. He left a note that he’d probably come back in an hour”, he replied and looked out of the window. The world looked innocent at this early hour. Adam could only laugh at that thought.
Both went into the living-room and wanted to watch TV. Unfortunately, they couldn’t find the remote controle. They searched everywhere.
Adam opend a door of a huge, brown cupboard and was surprised of what he found in there. “Nicole!”, he said hoarsely.
She kneed next to Adam and looked into the cupboard. It was stuffed with letters, all adressed to Dominic Young. And the sender was no other than Nicole’s and Adam’s mother Emilia Sanders.
Adam got the first letter and unfolded it. It was posted 20 years ago and written in a neat hand writing. Both recognized the writing, at once. It was a letter from their mother, indeed. Adam’s hand began to shake and he read out loud:

“Dear Dominic, my love,
We only met a couple of weeks ago, but it feels as if I have known you forever. I don’t know what to say, because you make my heart beat faster. I can’t think when you look into my eyes with your dark green loving eyes. You are the wittiest, most charming and chivalrous person I have ever met. I can’t tell you this in person that’s why I am writing to you.
I love you Dominic and I always will. I just wanted you to know that.
Please write back as soon as you can,
Emilia

Silence followed these words. Seconds passed and they just stared at this sheet of paper and couldn’t believe what they just read. Nobody had ever mentioned that Dominic and their mother had a relationship.
“Here’s another letter. It was sent 16 years ago. You want to read it?”, Adam asked uncertainly and looked into Nicoles eyes.
“I don’t know. On one hand it’s private and I really don’t want to nose around but on the other hand I want to know what happened between them.” Nicole sounded seriously. She took the letter, unfolded it and began to read:

“Dominic,
I’m sorry for not calling you back. It’s as I told you. I met another guy and I want to marry him. I want to spend the rest of my life with him, so would you please stop stalking me! You been really acting odd, the last few weeks. It’s hard to lose someone you loved I know, but please, life goes on!
James Sanders is the man I love and I want you to leave us alone!
Emilia

Again it became quiet. Neither Nicole nor Adam could understand why their mother had reacted that way. Her words sounded hate-filled.
“August the twenty-first, 1994”, Nicole whispered and suddenly it became so clear. Their mother had been pregnant, at that time. Adam was born, just two months later.
“Adam. Do you think Dominic killed our dad, because he didn’t forgive him for taking the woman he once loved away from him?”, she sounded frightened and panicky.
He didn’t answer promptly, because he was distracted by a car key. He took it and looked more precisely.
“Get up!”, he shouted and ran out of the room, followed by Nicole. Adam ran outside and stopped in front of the garage. “Help me please!”, together they heaved the garage door into the air. Carefully they walked inside.
If you looked out of the big window of the garage you could see the front yard. A big steel door leaded into the backyard. If you opened the garage door, light flooded through the room.
Two cars were kept in Dominic’s garage. The red BMW and a black Mercedes like Victor’s. Adam and Nicole didn’t move. Their eyes were focused on the black car.
“This is a nightmare!”, Adam stuttered bewildered. ‘This can’t be true! Dominic is the nicest person in the world. He didn’t kill my dad!’, Adam thought with a shake of his head just as though to banish the horrible imagination.
“Why did you poke your nose into other people’s business?”, Dominic said cold-blooded.
Paralysed by fear both stood motionless in the middle of the garage. Slowly Dominic appeared in front of them, aiming a gun at Adam.
“You did it, didn’t you?”, Adam asked tensed.
“What? Oh, you mean I killed your father? No”, he said with a giggle. “Someone else took the load off me. But I would have done it! Your father took away what belonged to me. And he deserved to die”, Dominic said and with each word his grasp around the gun tightened and so did his face.
“You miserable, pathetic lunatic!”, Nicole cried.
“Oh, Niki, don’t!”, Dominic said in a honeyed tone and aimed the gun at her. “You believe me, don’t you?”
“The hell I do!”, she shouted and tears were running down her cheeks.
“It’s a shame. I don’t want to kill you, though. But I have to. It’s the only way to get your inheritance. Of course, I have to kill Victor first!”, Dominic laughed.
“Burn in hell!”, Adam yelled, but didn’t say a further word, because Victor aimed his gun at him again.
“You know. I never really liked you. You’re too inhibited, because-“, Dominic’s eyes widened.
Nicole and Adam had heard a strange noise like glass splintering. Both turned around and the window of the garage showed a big hole, indeed. Adam looked around and saw Dominic slumped down. His shirt bloody red.
Steps were audible. Ten, perhaps twenty armed policemen were running into the little garage and with them, Victor!
“Uncle Victor?”, Adam asked in disbelief and looked away from Dominic’s dead body.
“I don’t want you to see that!”, he replied with a serious voice and took them by their hands. “Go to the officer over there”, he said after a few minutes when the garage was empty. The policemen had left the garage area and were waiting for forensics to arrive.
Adam and Nicole nodded silently and ran to the officer. Victor smiled. But when he turned around, his face became stiff. He looked down at Dominic and said with a cold smile: “Thank you very much, Dominic! Your death was really helpful! Now, nobody will come to know that it was me who killed James. And that’s not all! I will take what belongs to me by rights. Not just the heritage, which my dumb father gave my useless sister, I will take the house, too. If Adam or Nicole will stand in my way … Well, you know what happened to James!”

Impressum

Tag der Veröffentlichung: 02.08.2010

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