White Niggers
Chapter 74
Saturday, December 7th, 2019, 07:30
Feldkirchen, Lagerstraße next to the airport of Graz, Styria
The driver of the white Mercedes gets out of the car.
Approach him slowly, Timur thinks. So you can attack when he least expects it.
Timur approaches him.
The man is at least seventy years old. He wears a Cashmere coat. The pupils of his eyes are cloudy.
She can have any man in Central Europe, Timur thinks. You tell me she voluntarily chose him? If you think this isn't fishy, I got a bridge to sell you.
The old man smiles.
This arrogant prick smiles like he is certain nothing bad can happen to him, Timur thinks. I reckon I will disappoint him today.
Timur is standing opposite of the old man next to his car. Timur is taller and bigger, plus the jack handle gives him an unfair advantage.
Behind the white Mercedes there is a cliff.
The old man puts his hands into the air.
"Hello!" The old man says. "I come in peace, see!"
Good for you, Timur thinks. Because I come to beat you up.
"Morning!" Timur says.
He observes the old man attentively.
"You are Timur, right?" The old man says.
"How do you know?" Timur says.
"Mausi-6 told me all about you," the old man says.
"Who?" Timur says.
"Lisa," the old man says.
"What did she tell you?" Timur says.
"Only the best," the old man says.
"I see," Timur says. "I'm wondering – what did you do to make her date you?"
"I'm wondering, too," the old man says.
"Pardon?" Timur says.
"She was rejecting me constantly," the old man says. "Which I understand. If I was her I'd choose you, too. With your stature and youth. Then, out of the blue, she said yes. I guess I just lucked out."
We'll see about luck, Timur thinks.
Timur makes a step forward.
The old man backs away.
Timur continues to move forward, until the old man stands on the edge of the cliff. One more step and he falls off it.
"You said Lisa was Mausi-6," Timur thinks. "What happened to the previous five Mausis?"
The smile disappears from the old man's face.
"You know, Herr What's-your-name–" Timur says.
"Mörtel," the old man says.
"Herr Mörtel, I think you a serial abuser of women," Timur says. "There are not human to you. You sweep a young lady off her feet, play around with her for a few years, then throw her out like a used condom."
Timur feels suprisingly calm.
This won't be pretty, Timur thinks. You will get dirty with his blood to preserve her purity.
The old man is silent.
"What do you say in your defense?" Timur says.
"What can I say?" The old man says. "Women and men have been exchanging money for sex since time immemorial. The marital market is a market like any other. If a consenting woman agrees to marry a consenting man–"
"Then it means someone screwed with her mind," Timur says.
"You can choose to think whatever you want," the old man says. "Mausi-6 is a grown woman. You know her. Do you really think I could manipulate her into marrying me?"
"That's a good point, Herr Mörtel," Timur says. "What about Mausi-1 through Mausi-5?"
"In our culture–" the old man says.
"I know in your culture it's customary to trade sex for money," Timur says. "It's legal and nobody protests against it."
"Exactly," the old man says. "You are a very bright man, Timur."
"Thank you, Herr Mörtel," Timur thinks. "The thing is, in my culture we believe that a man who kills a guy like you will go to heaven and have non-stop sex with seventy thousand adult virgins. Right now, my culture has physical strength on its side."
"Mine has infrastructural power," the old man says. "You will, most certainly, get caught. You will be the prime suspect if you succeed in killing me and hiding the evidence."
"I concur, Herr Mörtel," Timur says. "The police will definitely find me. I will go to prison."
"Isn't it better to refrain from, ahem, drastic measures?" the old man says.
"Let me explain it to you in a language you understand," Timur says. "If I kill you, I will incur costs – lifelong imprisonment, in the worst case."
Mörtel giggles.
"Quite an inconvenience, right?" Mörtel says.
"The question is: What benefits do I buy by incurring theses costs?" Timur says. "Seventy thousand virgins in the afterlife. That's the first benefit."
"You seriously believe it?" Mörtel says.
"It doesn't matter what I believe in," Timur says. "Suffice to say, I'm willing to murder and die for it."
Timur ticks off on fingers.
"Second, I avenge the suffering of your previous five victims," Timur says. "Last, but not certainly not least, I preserve the honor of Lisa whom I love unconditionally."
"Who?" Mörtel says.
"Mausi-6, Herr Mörtel," Timur says. "To you she is just a number like the other Mausis. To me she is the One."
Mörtel reaches with the left hand to his pocket.
"Hold your hands where I see them," Timur says.
Mörtel raises the hand again.
"Are you a religious person?" Timur says.
"Yes!" Mörtel says.
Timur laughs.
"Everybody gets religious when they are close to death, right, Herr Mörtel?" Timur says. "Do you want to pray?"
"Are you serious about it? Can't we make a deal?" Mörtel says. "Take my car! I can give you money!"
"I am serious," Timur says. "The worst that can happen to me is that I will spend the rest of my life in a comfortable Austrian prison. In exchange Lisa gets a husband she deserves, even if it's not me. I think I take that deal."
"Well, let me pray then," Mörtel says.
"Give me your phone," Timur says. "No funny business."
Mörtel takes his mobile phone out of the coat pocket and gives it to Timur.
Timur throws it into the ravine.
"You can pray now," Timur says.
How will you do it? Timur thinks. It may be not that easy to actually kill him. He may be stronger than he looks.
Mörtels eyes are closed and his lips are moving.
Look at him – he actually pretends to pray.
You should pray, too, Timur thinks. These may be the last few hours of your life as a free man. Take a look at those fields. Who knows when you will see any nature again?
I'm wondering whether beating him up will do the job, Timur thinks. Do I have to actually murder him?
Injuring him may backfire, Timur thinks. Lisa may marry him out of pity. It has to be lethal, then.
Maybe I should pray as well. Although… there will be time for this in prison.
Right now: Focus. Action is the best prayer. You won't see Lisa again. But you still can prevent her from getting hurt.
To kill or not kill isn't the question. To love or not to love, is.