Page 37 of Under His Skin

Tracht mentally congratulated Anna’s counsel for this neat little defense, although he didn’t think for a second it would shut Franziska up.

Franziska gave a rueful smile. “Some people are unlikely to ever change. She was always quick to excuse her brother’s bad behavior in exchange for a reward. And it seems this habit has extended even to today. I remember the first time it happened… Johannes had beaten our bondservant at the time. Mikhael, I think his name was. And when Anna threatened to tell me about it, Johannes paid her to keep silent.”

Tracht’s body stiffened. How dare she bring that up now, thirty years after the fact. More importantly, how did she even know about his deal with Anna at the time? How did she even know about what he’d done to Mikhael?

It had been the first time that Tracht had really, truly, lost control of himself. Mikhael had been… pretty. Very, very pretty, and a bit frail, and he’d clearly been afraid of everybody in the household in a way that had made young, teenaged Tracht excited. Tracht couldn’t even remember if he had some pretense for beating Mikhael, or if he’d simply decided to follow through on his fantasies.

For a wonderful span of a few months, Mikhael trembled every time Tracht was in the same room, and he whimpered if Tracht even pretended to touch him. Tracht had spent many nights back then jerking off to thoughts of Mikhael’s bruises and tears. Sometimes, when it seemed like Mikhael had forgotten to be afraid, Tracht would corner him and remind him exactly of his place in their household.

But if Franziska had known, maybe that explained why Mikhael’s bond was paid off a full year faster than it had originally been scheduled to. Maybe that explained why she’d forced Tracht to see a new psychiatrist, unsatisfied with the progress Tracht was making with his old one.

As far as Tracht knew, Anna had never said a word. There was nothing for her to gain by betraying him, and she’d confided at one point that she hated Mikhael’s sniveling attitude and the way he sucked up to their mother.

“I believe we’re discussing alleged crimes of today, not hearsay of the past,” Anna’s lawyer said, and her voice drew Tracht back to the matter at hand. “Although I do wonder how you would know of such an incident, if you were never informed of it.”

Franziska raised her eyebrow condescendingly. “I had long suspected that there was something wrong with Johannes, so I had cameras installed to monitor things while I was away. I did not expect to find that Anna was similarly disturbed.”

If not for the courtroom setting, Tracht would have started clapping. It didn’t even surprise him that she’d been spying on them, but he had to admit he was impressed that Franziska had sat on this knowledge for so long, and nursed this grudge, all over a bondservant that she hadn’t treated that much better. Because while Franziska might not have beaten Mikhael, he remembered the verbal lashings that she gave him, and she never showed him any sympathy despite, apparently, having known what Tracht had done to him.

“And so, despite having all this knowledge, you decided to stay quiet about it for years? If Judge Tracht is as morally bankrupt as you say, what does that tell us about you, the mother who knew all this time and made no move to stop her?” Anna’s lawyer turned to the jury. “I think it’s easy to make up stories about people who have fallen from public favor. Everybody believes them, of course. Although it’s quite despicable to accuse both children of something so nasty. I suppose this is something narcissistic parents are known to do.”

Franziska did not flinch at the accusation. Tracht wondered if it was true. He’d heard of how narcissistic parents treated their children, but Tracht couldn’t say one way or the other if that applied to Franziska. Was her cold disapproval the same level of abuse as a mother who locked her child out of the house when she was angry?

“No further questions.” Anna’s lawyer sat down next to Anna again and whispered something in her ear. From where Tracht sat, he couldn’t quite see Anna’s expression, although he couldn’t imagine she was happy about any of what Franziska had said.

He noticed then that Krantz, sitting next to him, had turned fairly pale. Tracht leaned closer to him, and he didn’t miss the way Krantz flinched away.

“Don’t worry,” Tracht said coldly. “She’s lying.”

Or maybe he should have said: Don’t worry, as long as I get Alex back.

===

Tracht and Anna sat in the study, a recording scrambler sitting between them on the coffee table. Anna was nursing her drink this time, perhaps aware that her mood was too dark for alcohol to be a good idea.

After ten minutes of them sitting in silence, Anna said, “Do you think she still has that recording?”

“No.” Tracht had thought about it extensively for the rest of the day. “If she had that recording, the prosecution would have attempted to use it as evidence. I’m sure it would have been inadmissible, but if not in court, then she could have leaked it on the net, or to one of the many gossip rags.”

“Fuck.” Anna’s grip on the wine glass tightened. “Fuck. Is that why she’s been pissed at us all these years? She didn’t even like him! I heard her calling him trash!”

“I had that same thought. She’s a hypocrite.” Tracht raised his glass to Anna and took a small sip. “Your lawyers did a good job. But I think the story scared my lawyer.”

“Do you have any staff who aren’t scared of you, anyway? Mother was a bitch to bring it up but let’s face it, you did brutally beat him.” Anna sighed loudly and stretched her legs out to rest on the coffee table. “You never did tell me why you did it.”

“Because I felt like it.” Tracht thought that might shock her, but Anna stayed as she was.

“Did you rape him?” she asked calmly.

The question caught Tracht off guard. Try as he might, he couldn’t discern her expression. “Why would you think that?”

“I’m not stupid, Johannes. And ever since Alex, you’ve gotten worse at hiding some of your… hobbies.” Anna finally sat up, taking another sip of her wine. “Mother wasn’t wrong that some people don’t change. I don’t think you’re a monster, if you’re worried. And I honestly don’t care if you did. But I used to wonder. I was so damn glad that you were gay.”

“I didn’t rape him.” Not in any way that Anna would have considered rape, in any case. Tracht had no intention of dwelling on the past though. Mikhael might have been an enjoyable diversion in his youth, but he was embarrassed thinking of how clumsy and inexperienced his attempts had been back then. Nothing at all like what he’d done to Alex. “Franziska wasn’t wrong about you either, if you thought I was a rapist all this time, and you didn’t care.”

She waved her hand dismissively. “Yeah, yeah, I’m a callous bitch. Just don’t tell Vasilis or the kids.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

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