Page 307 of Edge of Eternity (The Century 3)

There, in an oak-paneled room with bookshelves full of works of biblical scholarship, Odo and Karolin were locked in a passionate embrace. They were kissing with their mouths open. Karolin's hands were on Odo's head, her fingers buried in his long, thick hair. Odo was stroking and squeezing Karolin's breasts. She pressed against him, her body curved tautly like an archer's bow.

Lili was shocked silent. She thought of Karolin as her brother's wife, the fact that they were not actually married a mere technicality. It had never occurred to her that Karolin could become fond of another man--let alone the pastor! For a moment her mind searched wildly for some alternative explanation: they were rehearsing a play, or doing calisthenics.

Then Thorsten said: "My God!"

Odo and Karolin jumped apart with a suddenness that was almost comic. Shock and guilt showed on their faces. After a moment they spoke together. Odo said: "We were going to tell you." At the same time Karolin said: "Oh, Lili, I'm so sorry . . ."

For a frozen moment, Lili was vividly conscious of details: the check pattern of Odo's jacket, Karolin's nipples poking through her dress, Odo's theological degree in a brass frame on the wall, the old-fashioned flowered carpet with a threadbare patch in front of the fireplace.

Then she remembered the emergency that had brought her upstairs. "The police have come," she said. "They're in the basement."

Odo said: "Hell!" He strode out and Lili heard him hurrying down the stairs.

Karolin stared at Lili. Neither woman knew what to say. Then Karolin broke the spell. "I must go with him," she said, and followed Odo.

Lili and Thorsten were left in the study. It was a nice place for kissing, Lili thought sadly: the oak paneling, the fireplace, the books, the carpet. She wondered how often Odo and Karolin had done this, and when it had started. She thought about Walli. Poor Walli.

She heard shouting from downstairs, and that energized her. She had no reason to return to the basement, she realized. Her coat was down there but the evening was not bitterly cold: she could manage without it. She might escape.

The front door of the house was on the opposite side of the building from the basement entrance. She wondered whether the police had the whole place surrounded, and decided probably not.

She crossed the hall and opened the front door. There were no police in sight.

She said to Thorsten: "Shall we leave?"

"Yes, quickly."

They went out, closing the door quietly.

"I'll see you home," Thorsten said.

They hurried around the corner, then slowed their pace when they were out of sight of the church. Thorsten said: "That must have been a shock for you."

"I thought she loved Walli!" Lili wailed. "How could she do this to him?" She began to cry.

Thorsten put his arm around her shoulders as they walked along. "When was it that Walli left?"

"Almost four years ago."

"Have Karolin's prospects of emigrating got any better?"

Lili shook her head. "Worse."

"She needs someone to help her raise Alice."

"She has me, and my family!"

"Perhaps she feels that Alice needs a father."

"But . . . the pastor!"

"Most men wouldn't even think about taking on an unmarried mother. Odo is different just because he is a pastor."

At the house, Lili had to ring the doorbell because her key was in her coat. Her mother came to the door, saw her face, and said: "What on earth has happened?"

Lili and Thorsten stepped inside. Lili said: "The police raided the church, and I went to warn Karolin and found her kissing Odo!" She burst into fresh tears.

Carla closed the front door. "You mean really kissing him?"

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