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two years, or thereabouts. But of course, she was a very well-qualified teacher. May I ask you something? What kind of a stand is Mitter making?”
    “What do you mean?”
    Suurna shuffled in his chair.
    “Well, er, what kind of a stand is he making?”
    “Not guilty.”
    “I see…. Yes, of course. He’s not pleading without premeditation, nothing like that?”
    “No. Nothing like that.”
    Suurna nodded.
    “And what you are looking for now is…?”
    “I’m looking for two or three witnesses.”
    “Witnesses? But surely that’s impossible?”
    “Character witnesses, Mr. Suurna, people who are willing to stand up in court and speak in support of Mitter. People who know him, as a person and as a colleague, who can give a positive picture of him. And a true one, of course.”
    “I’m with you. The man behind the name?”
    “Something like that. Perhaps a pupil as well. And preferably you yourself, Mr. Suurna.”
    “Oh, I don’t really think…”
    “Or somebody you can suggest. If you give me four or five names, I can choose from among them.”
    “Who would he prefer to have? Wouldn’t it be more appropriate for him to say who he’d like to have?”
    “Hmm, that’s the tricky thing….” Rüger took a sip of coffee. It was weak and had a faint taste of disinfectant. He gave thanks for his bad cold. “Mitter has, er, how should I put it? On principle he declines to speak in his own favor. It goes against the grain for him to…proselytize. I must say that I can sympathize with him. Sigurdsen and Weiss seem to have been the members of staff closest to him, but I don’t know…?”
    “Weiss and Sigurdsen? Yes, that’s probably correct. Yes, I’ve nothing against them.”
    “Even so, it might also be good to have somebody who wasn’t all that close to him. Good friends naturally only have good things to say about one another. Nobody expects anything different.”
    “I understand.”
    Rüger closed his eyes and forced down the rest of the coffee.
    “To be precise, what I am asking you to provide is a colleague, one of his pupils, and, er, shall we say a representative of the school management—you yourself, or somebody you think would be suitable.”
    “I’ll have a word with Eger, he’s our deputy head. I’ve no doubt he’ll be happy to oblige. As for the pupils, I have no idea. I must ask you to be extremely discreet. Perhaps you could get some help from Sigurdsen and Weiss, if you speak to them.”
    “I’m most grateful.”
    “You ought to know that I’m…er, we all are, of course…very upset about what has happened. Some have taken it harder than others, and it’s obvious that everybody on the staff has been on edge. But even so, we have managed to carry on working. I’d like you to bear that in mind. It has been…and still is…a very difficult time for all of us at this school. However, I think we’ve succeeded in showing the pupils that we don’t let them down even when we’re under this kind of pressure.”
    “I understand, Headmaster. I’m very well aware of what you must have been going through. When do you think I’ll be able to meet my witnesses?”
    “When would suit you? You must give me a little time, and obviously it must take place after school is finished for the day. We must not disrupt teaching any more than has happened already.”
    “The trial starts on Thursday. Witnesses for the defense are unlikely to be called before Tuesday or Wednesday next week.”
    “I shall make appropriate arrangements, Mr. Rüger. Tomorrow afternoon, perhaps?”
    “Excellent.”
    “I’ll be in touch.”
    He slid back his desk chair. Rüger handed him his business card and started wriggling his way up from the armchair.
    “Edwin Rüger…Yes, I do believe I recall him. A promising young man. What’s he doing now?”
    “Unemployed.”
    “Ah, I see…So, good-bye, Mr. Rüger. Is there anything else I can do for you?”
    Hardly, Rüger thought. He shook his head and wiped