Stasi Child Read Free

Kriminalpolizei , to discover the identity of the girl, and to find evidence to support this account.’ Jäger again held Müller’s gaze, with a seriousness that made her give a small shudder. ‘Should you find evidence to the contrary, I would suggest you keep such evidence tightly controlled. And bring it straight to me.’ Müller nodded slowly. ‘ Unterleutnant Tilsner?’ he asked, turning to her deputy. ‘You too understand what I am saying?’
    ‘Of course, Comrade Oberstleutnant . We will maintain absolute discretion. You can be sure of it.’
    Sighing, as though already wearied by the case, Jäger rose to his feet and beckoned them forward. ‘I’d better show you the body. I warn you, though: it’s not a pleasant sight. For reasons that will become obvious in a moment, identification will prove very difficult.’
    Müller grimaced as she and Tilsner began to follow the Stasi officer. She didn’t enjoy examining dead bodies at the best of times. That of a young girl – where identification would prove ‘very difficult’ – sounded particularly distasteful.
    Ice and frozen snow crunched and popped underfoot as they followed the cemetery path back to the scene of the body, Müller stamping hard with each stride to work some blood and warmth into her feet. She lagged behind the other two, a sense of foreboding settling over her. Something here was awry.
    The handful of officers from the various ministries parted to let the three of them get in close. Jäger gave a nod, and one of the men pulled the shroud away.
    Müller looked at the body: a girl, face down in the snow. One leg apparently lacerated – by the barrier’s barbed wire? – the other at a crazy angle to the rest of her body. Wounds in her back, evidenced by a blood-besmirched white T-shirt, partially showing through a top covering of torn, black material, which looked as though it had once been some sort of cape. She didn’t appear to have been dressed for the winter weather. The regular pattern of the injuries suggested automatic gunfire, and the body was facing away from the protection barrier, towards the Hauptstadt. At least that fitted with the official account. She looked back towards the Wall, the searchlights, watchtower and the buildings of the capitalist West on the other side, adorned with their garish advertisements. From where exactly had she been shot? How had she managed to struggle so far?
    ‘ Verdammt! ’ exclaimed Tilsner suddenly, from his vantage point behind the girl’s head. Müller watched Jäger raise his eyebrows, but there was no formal admonishment. ‘There’s no way we’ll be able to identify that. The face is a complete mess.’
    This time Jäger did intervene. ‘ Her face please, Unterleutnant . She wasn’t some inanimate object. And someone, somewhere, will be missing her. But yes, unpleasant. The cemetery gardener discovered her at dawn, but a stray dog had apparently got there first.’
    Müller moved around to Tilsner’s position, and saw what had provoked his reaction. Skin torn away from her chin to her eye socket. In its place was raw flesh, like a cheap cut of meat on a butcher’s slab. The side of her mouth was open, but no teeth – just bloody, mangled gums. An animal couldn’t have done that, could it? The sight – and the thought – was too much. Müller suddenly found herself retching, and quickly moved behind a gravestone, bending out of sight as the remains of last night’s meal and vodka made a return journey out of her mouth. To try to hide her embarrassment, she started faking a cough, kicking snow with her boot to cover the evidence.
    ‘Are you quite alright, Comrade Müller?’ asked Jäger.
    She nodded, avoiding Tilsner’s gaze. Steeling herself, Müller looked back towards the body. It was then that she saw the girl’s hand, splayed out in the snow. A teenager’s hand, with pure, unlined skin. But what startled the detective were the black nails at the end of each digit.