All of his contemporaries were at least three to five years older, at that age a big gap.’ ‘But he came through alright.’ ‘Oh yes, but I susp...ct it was not easy, particularly at first, and especially personally and socially.’ After half an hour Maria helped Diane to load her car with the diaries and letters to be copied. Suddenly there was a loud roar and a plume of black smoke from the direction of the old house. Maria was startled ‘What on earth is that?’ ‘That,’ confirmed Diane confidently,. The intensity of the moment they had shared the other night still a fresh wound in his memory, the guilt a vicious beast gnawing at his conscience. He bore just as much of the blame for this as Erich, if not more. He came from a strong family, a house of values, of God-fearing decency. His friend lacked this solid ground beneath his feet and thus his behaviour could be pardoned, but Gustav knew better. And yet the urging of his loins was too powerful. The sense of morality his parents, his. He came closer and held his hand out. She hesitated a few seconds before letting him haul her up. She dusted her palms on her jacket, felt the sting of asphalt cutting into her skin like pieces of brittle glass. The enormous man held onto her elbow as she balanced on one leg. Thanks, she said stiffly. I hurt my ankle earlier tonight and I tripped on the pavement. Im fine now, thank you. He didnt reply and for the first time, she looked at his face. The faded street lights were casting. .Ein kleines L?cheln von ihr? Ja wirklich."Das w?nschte ich mir ja selber aber das geht leider nun mal leider nicht. Kommen Sie doch mal her." Ich l?chelte die aufmunternd an und winkte sie hinter meinen Tisch. Sie z?gerte, dann stand sie auf, kam zu mir herum uns stand vor mir."Ist Ihnen jetzt auch hei??" Es war noch vor Mittag, und das Au?enthermometer hatte die 30? schon ?berschritten."Mhm", nickte sie."Lassen Sie mich mal f?hlen", sagte ich, und bevor sie reagieren konnte, legte ich ihr.