The first day after
What happened so far:
Jonas Keller is in the restaurant “Frost & Flamme,” which is being prepared for an upcoming Christmas dinner with prominent guests. He is the host and co-owner, but feels the pressure that a single mistake could ruin everything. During a charity dinner, where his partner is on stage presenting their joint Christmas hit, Jonas feels increasingly uncomfortable. The song that torments him every year is playing again, and Jonas struggles with the feeling that the stage doesn't really belong to him.
The guest room seemed smaller in the morning. Without guests, without light, without the artificial shine, everything looked more sober. The chairs were on the tables, the floor was still damp from wiping in places. Only in one place did something darker shimmer in the wood – as if the night had left a shadow.
Jonas stood at the edge of the barrier tape and watched the forensics at work. Flashlights from cameras, measuring tapes, quiet commands. Above all, the calm, cool presence of the investigator, who sent her gaze through the room as if she could find cracks in the walls.
He had slept badly, not at all, actually. The night had been a succession of images: the fall, the sound, the sudden silence afterwards. The moment when the song broke off, as if someone had cut off the power to hell.
Officially, he was the shocked business partner. Unofficially, he counted every movement, every word he would say in the next few hours. One wrong sentence, one wrong emphasis, and years of painstakingly built façade would crumble.
On the counter was the printout of the event program. His name directly below that of the dead man.
Hosts: Jonas Keller, Stefan Albrecht
One of them now existed only on paper. The other wondered how long before his own name tag slipped.
German Audio
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