‘No, and do you know why? Because it’s extremely unlikely that he would be given any kind of prison sentence. As you yourself said, his involvement will be considered minor compared to the others. And if he did end up in detention, against all odds, he wouldn’t be in a prison, he would be sent to a young offenders’ facility. And that’s the worst-case scenario. The most likely outcome is that he gets a suspended sentence or acquitted completely. Both because he was coerced and because he did almost nothing. They will also take into consideration that he turned himself in and is willing to cooperate. But none of that is up to us, it’s up to the courts. Just imagine what the world would look like if people disregarded justice whenever it didn’t suit them?’

‘Okay,’ Sonja nodded, with tears streaming down her cheeks. ‘At least I know where you stand.’ She tried to wipe them away but gave up. ‘I shouldn’t even be surprised. It’s always been like this. Work before all else. Before you, me and definitely before your children. Never mind if they go to pieces, so long as justice is done.’

‘What’s the alternative? To sweep this under the carpet and pretend nothing happened? Do you really think that’s going to make him feel better? That the best option for him is to build his entire future on a lie? If he doesn’t take the stand, the accused will blame one another and probably walk away scot-free.’

‘Right, so now he’s supposed to carry the weight of the entire justice system on his shoulders, too.’

‘No, but he has a responsibility and is at a crossroads that he’s going to have to live with for the rest of his life. And if this isn’t the time to nudge him in the right direction, when is?’

Sonja shook her head and sipped her tea, which had long since gone cold.

‘Sonja…’ He tried to catch her eye in a last attempt at persuasion, but she refused. ‘When you started seeing that art dealer, I knew immediately you shared more than an interest in art.’

‘Great.’ She met his eyes for a brief moment before looking away again. ‘Back to that again.’

‘But I didn’t say anything. Instead, I let you stay out all night and come and go as you pleased with nothing but flimsy excuses.’

‘I’m sorry, but what does this have to do with Theodor?’

‘And do you know why? Huh? Do you?’

‘What are you doing?’ She stared him right in the eye. ‘Why do you have to open up—’

‘Because it felt easier! Not because I was indifferent and didn’t care. Quite the opposite. I simply couldn’t handle the conflict just then, even though you going behind my back felt so wrong and just fucking awful, to put it plainly.’