"THE SEVENTH CONTINENT" "PART I" "Morning." "Morning." "Good morning, darling." "Get up!" "Evi!" "Morning." "Wear your read sweater!" "Are you ready for school?" " Your brother's coming tonight." " I know." "Wanna help with the shopping?" "I'll pick you up." "Will you bring me back something?" " What?" " Something good." "Dear father and mother forgive us, Georg and I, for taking so long to write, but so much has happened since mom passed away that we haven't found the time to do it before now." "My brother Alexander was so upset, that we didn't know what to do." "He fell into a deep depression." "Some days, he didn't even get out of bed." "He finally had to be put into the hospital where he underwent painful treatment." "It was horrible." "I had to manage the store by myself, handle the will, and take care of the house, of the family and of my brother, all at the same time." "But thank God, things have more or less calmed down." "Alexander has recovered well enough that I finally have the luxury to write you." "Throughout all this, Georg was really wonderful even though he was also going through a difficult period." "He was transfered to another department where he's been told he has much better chances for advancement." "Unfortunately, he has a new boss, an incompetent who's a few years away from retirement but thinks he knows everything and, fearing that Georg might replace him, makes the job very difficult." "But you know your son:" "This can only spur him on and he's focusing all his time and energies to do the best job possible and to prove that he's the best." "He actually got enough of a raise that with my inheritance from Mom, our financial situation is really excellent." "What more can I tell you?" "Yes, Eva had been worrying us, but she suddenly seems to be in perfect health." "Since our visit last winter, she hasn't had an asthma attack and the doctor's very pleased." "She sends big hugs to both of you." "I guess I only have good news to tell you and to our Evi's, I add my own hugs and kisses." "Your daughter-in-law Anna." "p.s." "Georg sends you his warmest regards and begs your forgiveness for not having the time to write himself." "She's inside." "Go to your classrooms." "Let me through." "Well." "Now tell me what's the matter." "Come on, be reasonable and tell me." "She can't see anymore." "Is this true?" "Is this true?" "Yes." "Since when?" "When did she stop seeing?" "Just now." "In the bathroom." "Is this true?" "Try to open your eyes." "Come on, open your eyes!" "I'm asking you to open your eyes!" "How can I see what the problem is?" "Very well, Eva." "If you won't open your eyes, we'll go away and leave you here all by yourself." "Come!" "Miss!" "Yes?" "I can't see." "Now look at me." "Can you see me?" " And that?" " No." "What?" "What "what"?" " What can't you see?" " Well, your..." "No one guessed just how near-sighted she was." "She hid it incredibly well." "Thank you." "To think she was my friend." "Straigten up, please." "You can imagine, at that age:" "Ugly, her face full of pimples and obsessed with the idea of becoming my best friend." "It's not as if I didn't have other things on my mind at the time." "Believe me." "Look up, please." "Well, anyway, one day, she showed up with huge, thick glasses." "They were grotesque." "Look straight ahead, please." "She really looked like a frog." "I mean, she was rather pitiful but you know how kids are." ""How do you like your best friend's glasses?"" ""Horrible," I told her." "She gave me this look a look I'll never forget." " And in her German accent..." " Look down." "...full of hate, she said:" ""I wish you all to have to wear glasses!"" "We died laughing, of course." "She just stood there not knowing what to do and suddenly, she pissed herself..." "Uh, I mean, she peed on herself." "I mean, imagine: standing like that, in the middle of the classroom and suddenly, a little puddle on the floor." "And... what became of her curse?" "Well... by senior year, we all wore glasses." "The whole class?" "The whole class." "The teacher came in and asked what was on the floor." "She ran away." "So it was up to us to clean it up anyway." "But," "I mean, you know how kids are." "What else could we have said?" "Hi." "187 schilling." "Yes, hello?" "Good morning..." "Why, what is it?" "No, I'm afraid it's not possible this week." "But why?" "What did she do?" "What?" "I can't believe it..." "What is the matter with you?" "Hey, are you not well?" " Why?" " What do you mean, "why"?" "What gave you the idea to say you were blind?" "Are you mad?" "I didn't say that." "What didn't you say?" "Your teacher is not making this up!" "Please, answer me!" "I didn't say that." "Look at me." "Is it true you pretended to be blind?" "Tell me if you did it." "I just want to know if it's true." "Come on, tell me." "You needn't be scared." "I won't do anything to you." "But tell me:" "You pretended to be blind?" "Yes." ""The entire classroom?" Anna asks." ""Yes," she says, "the entire classroom" ""was wearing hor-ri-ble glasses!"" "I told her:" ""Your little witch apparently didn't know about contact lenses."" " You want some more?" " Please." "Was the extension granted for the rights transfer?" "Almost." "We haven't gotten the official word." "Mr. Kopp says they'll grant it given the investments that were made in the store." "That's not too bad for you either." "I'll say!" "Should I turn it down?" "Not on my account." "Thank you." "This is delicious, sis." "Thank you." "What kind of seasoning did you use?" "Well, salt, pepper a clove of garlic, some thyme basil... and to deglaze, a touch of tabasco." "What is it?" "What's the matter?" "Hold on." "You know what Mom said a few days before she died?" ""Sometimes, I imagine myself with people who" ""instead of an opaque head," ""have a screen where I can read their thoughts."" "Did you brush your teeth, precious?" "Did you like the Mickey your uncle Alex brought you?" "He loves you very much." "You know that?" "Me too." "Yes." "Do you feel alone sometimes?" "Do you love Dad and me?" "Okay, time to say your prayers." "Dear Jesus, let me be a good girl so I can go to heaven." "Okay, time to sleep snow." "Goodnight." "Could you leave the light on a little longer?" "No, it's too late." "Sweet dreams." "Goodnight." "Goodnight." "What is it?" "Nothing." "Part II" " Morning, darling." " Morning." "It's raining." "Morning, precious." "Get up, sweetie." "Morning." "At the beginning of the month four days ago" "Georg started his new job." "Things didn't go smoothly." "Perhaps you'll recall that when he was transfered, his new boss was quite hostile." "You could say he won that battle." "His commitment has rejuvenated the department and since his boss has recently been suffering from a rather stubborn intestinal ailment and has been mostly out sick, they've asked Georg to step in as the acting manager." "Whatever the case, his boss is close to retirement and it's a mere formality before Georg is made department head." "So you have every reason to be proud of your son." "Alex is also in good shape now." "This summer, he took a cruise in Scandinavia, and it did him a lot of good." "He asks me to give you his best." "Tonight, Mr. Breitenfels," "Georg's executive director, is coming to dinner in reciprocity for the dinner party he gave us a couple of weeks ago, where Georg's new role was more or less made official." "They say he's a gourmet." "So I'll have to do my culinary best to impress him." "To which end, mother, your recipe for stuffed duck will be vital." "Please wish me luck..." "I just stopped by to pick up my personal things." "They're... they're not here." "Why?" "They were..." "I had them set aside." "You see, I didn't want to mess up your personal things while I worked." "I understand." "And where did you have them..." "put?" "With Human Resources." "I see..." "Thank you." " Right." " Are you better now?" " Pardon?" "Oh right." "Yes, of course." "Of course." " I'm glad to hear it." " Yes." "You must have overlooked this." "I'm sorry to have disturbed you." "Not at all." "Good day." "Hello." "I hope the rain won't prevent you from coming." "His wife has a cold." "He's coming alone." "You think it's a pretext?" "He was very nice." "What's going on over there?" "An accident." "Probably." "Part III" "And be careful driving." "There's a lot of traffic today, the radio said." "Yes, Mom." "Thanks again for everything." " Go on, go." " Be well, my dear Eva!" " 'Bye." " Give me a kiss." "Give nana a kiss." " Okay, take care." " Goodbye, mother." " See you soon, Eva darling." " See you." "Goodbye, Mom." "And write once in a while." "At least you, Anna." "I know there's no point in reminding my son." "Yes, mother." "She didn't feed them yesterday or today." "Mrs. Gebhardt didn't feed the fish!" "We'll let her go." "Tomorrow." "Eva!" "Come and eat!" "Would you like something to eat?" "Thanks!" "Thank you." "That's enough." " You're going to wash up?" " Yes, Mom." "Dear Jesus, let me be a good girl so I can go to heaven." "Good." "Goodnight, sweetheart." "Will you leave the light on a bit?" "No, you must sleep." "It was a long trip." "Goodnight." "Goodnight." "Goodnight." "'Night." "We'll have to cancel the newspaper subscription." "Dear Mom and Dad," "Here you are, receiving a prompt letter even though you always accuse me of not writing and of not staying in touch." "Today, one day after our visit," "I have resigned from work." "My boss was shocked as you must also be, but he said that I must have better prospects and that you should never hold back someone who wants to move on." "He's right..." "You must be wondering why I didn't mention anything during our visit." "But don't you agree that such discussions would have only spoiled our good time?" "When you've made a decision, you must stick to it." "That's what you've always said, Dad." "And we've made our decision." "We've decided to set sail, because except for you, nothing else is holding us here." "Even before our visit," "Anna had settled with her brother all necessary details to turn the business over to him." "Is this for a wedding?" " No, no." "Just like that." " You have guests." "No." "What's the matter, Eva?" "You have a bug?" "I'm so itchy." "Let me see." "There's nothing." "Yes, there is." "You're all red from scratching." " But it's tickling me." " Sit down and stop scratching." "This is the last time." "You're well now." "Thank you." "Here's my medical note." "Thank you." "Is that all?" "Yes." "It comes to 478,000.60 schilling." "But I can't add any interest because of the 5-year waiting period." "It doesn't matter." "Why do you need this money so soon?" "Perhaps a loan would have been more advantageous?" "You could borrow against your account." "We're leaving the country." "For Australia." "Yes, hello." "Is Mrs. Polasek still there?" "Yes, thank you." "I'll hold." "Yes, hello." "This is Anna Schober." "Eva can't come to school today." "She must have caught a cold while skiing" "She has a fever of almost 40 degrees." "What do they want?" "They brought food." "There's only our little Eva left... and we wondered for a long time if we'd take her with us or if it was better to leave her with you." "As you can imagine, Mom, and certainly you too, dear Dad, our decision caused us both heartache and headaches because even though we're sure of what's best for us, it's something else entirely to decide the fate" "of the one we love above all else." "Perhaps you'll remember last Easter, when we all heard that cantata at your church." "It said:" ""I rejoice at the thought of death."" "And Evi said afterwards:" ""Me too"... and you were so scared." "We've talked about it a lot since then and I know that death doesn't scare Evi at all." "Now that we've decided to take her with us, we've talked about it again with her and it was both beautiful and sad to realize how easy it was for her to agree to stay with us." "I think that, remembering the life we led, it is easy to accept the idea of an end." "I beg you, don't be sad don't blame yourselves and don't take it as any kind of criticism:" "What I'm telling you is a simple observation that has nothing to do with you." "With all my love, Your son Georg." "I think we'll only manage to do it this way." "You'd better put on some nice shoes, princess." "And be careful not to hurt yourself." "Sure." "No." "No, let go of me!" "Let me go!" "Calm down!" "Stop it!" "I'm sorry." "I think I heard something." "Yes?" "This is the phone repair service." "We were called about your telephone." "People can't reach you." "You must have badly hung up the receiver." "Yes, that's correct." "I didn't want to be reached." " You know that's forbidden." " No." "We're required to cut off your phone service." "I see." "That's not necessary." "I'll hang up the phone." "May I see your phone?" "No!" "Goodbye." "Can I still watch TV in the bedroom?" "This is so bitter." "Dear Jesus, let me be a good girl so I can go to heaven." "The S. family was found on January 17, 1989." "Subsequent to a request from the wife's worried brother, the door of the apartment was knocked down." "On February 20, the family was buried." "In spite of the letter left for the parents, they refused to believe it was a suicide and filed a murder complaint against Parties Unknown." "The police investigation following up on this suspicion was without results." "The matter was filed as an unsolved case."