Читать книгу Secret doors - Dirk Lützelberger - Страница 6

Chapter 1

The first sunrays of the day shone through the window of his holiday apartment. They flashed playfully between the mountains and cast a golden shimmer on his breakfast table. That’s the way to live, he thought as he gleefully shoved the last bite of his breakfast into his mouth. As was typical for him, it had been a very healthy breakfast. Lots of fruit, yoghurt, a little honey and a strong, freshly brewed coffee. He swallowed the last bite of his morning meal and enjoyed a sip of coffee while looking at the mountains. This is where he liked to be and where he could relax better than anywhere else. It had been a good decision to just put work aside for a few weeks and relax. He had enough interested people who would hire him when he was back home. In today’s age, security is very important, and only few people had enough idea what exactly this meant. He felt comfortable in his job and knew how to satisfy his customers efficiently. The consulting activity was the financial foundation of his life. Moreover, secondary earnings were not excluded, he remembered with a smile.

He pushed the chair back and got up to get ready. His mood was not at its best when he brushed his teeth and put on his jogging clothes. Now came the most difficult part of the morning, he knew that, and even the breath-taking view of the Austrian Alps couldn’t change that, when he stepped outside his apartment door into the cool morning air.

Don’t act so coyly, he spurred himself on and started moving grumpy. The first steps are always the hardest and now move, you old geezer. He didn’t mince matters when it came to his own fitness. At forty-eight, he was no longer the youngest and his belly began to go a bit out of shape when he wasn’t paying attention. As much as he took care of his diet, it didn’t help him to stay fit in the long run if he just sat in front of the TV and relaxed with a glass of red wine. He had to face the fact and admit that he had to work on his figure. A visit to a fitness studio was beyond all question for him. All those well-trained athletes with their hardened bodies would only take away his motivation in the long run. He did not want to join a club either, because he did not like the whole club rules with its regular meetings and events. He was a loner and tried repeatedly to motivate himself to run.

Every year on New Year’s Eve, it was the same game. The good intentions were made and also quickly knocked on the head. But not this year. 2013 was a special challenge, which he was only too happy to face, he thought as he slowly picked up speed and found his rhythm. He had celebrated the New Year with several friends. A young lady he had never seen before had also been there. Her name was Lena. She was about his age and had beautiful, blonde, long hair. They had found each other very sympathetic at first sight, and at the party they talked very intimately the whole evening. Time flew by and they were the last to go to bed early in the morning. In retrospect, they both suspected that this meeting had been arranged by their friends, but everyone vehemently denied this. Whether this meeting was arranged or rather coincidental, lost its importance, because it was the most beautiful evening in the past years, which he gladly remembered. As midnight approached, they had made a promise to each other. They would finally put a resolution into action they had already made in the past years, but never finished it alone. Lena wanted to quit smoking and he wanted to run twice a week to improve his physical fitness. They swore to support each other so that the other would not back out of the deal. In the first months of the new year this went very well until in April Lena received an offer from her company to go abroad. To follow her was beyond question for him, as he loved his job and he still expected many orders here in Germany. They therefore wanted to try a long-distance relationship. After some time of separation, Lena realized what she had to do without in the past weeks. She separated from him after only five months of friendship.

Meanwhile he trotted at his optimal speed through nature and his thoughts circled around Lena. She was the best that ever happened to him. Even though the relationship had not lasted, she had given him the decisive impulse to persevere with his plan. By now it had become almost routine that he put on his running shoes twice a week and ran distances of varying lengths. It was almost fun for him once he had reached the apex of his running route. Furthermore, his success could be measured by his weight and his fitness. It improved from month to month. Although he was still a long way from running a marathon, he enjoyed the small successes when he noticed that another kilo on his scale had permanently left.

He enjoyed the landscape that passed by and he breathed the fresh air. He smelled the pine needles, which gave off their unmistakable scent. The moss that covered the forest floor and was still wet from the cold night glittered in the early morning sun. He heard the birds chirping to greet the morning. The air was much better up here than in his hometown, he thought and breathed all the more deeply, as a stinging stopped him a bit. He rubbed his side and tried to breathe in and out consciously. That damned spleen, he sneered, as a slight pang in his chest was added. He stopped running and continued walking slowly until the discomfort subsided.

The sun was now a little higher in the sky and flashed through the trees. The rays gently warmed his cheek. So early in the morning it was still relatively fresh in the mountains and the sun needed some hours to warm the air.

When the discomfort subsided, he started to walk slowly again. First slowly up the hill and then faster and faster until he finally reached the clearing completely out of breath. Here he paused for a moment to enjoy the beauty of the mountains once again, the cool atmosphere of the early morning and with every breath he took, he sucked the oxygen-saturated air into his lungs. Oh, how nice it was to finally be on the way to a better fitness, he thought. The slight cold he had had in the past few days had gone as quickly as it had come. It didn’t even come to the usual discomfort he usually gets from it. Usually there was a sore throat for a few days, then a coryza and finally a little cough. This time he only noticed a slight scratching in his throat and for two days his nose was a bit congested so he couldn’t breathe properly. But a little nasal spray brought relief and he didn’t even think about going to bed and lazing around. He wanted to hang on and it wouldn’t kill him.

As if in a trance, he continued to run. Expecting the endorphins, he ran faster and faster, but the state of inebriation did not set in today. He had heard that during endurance sports the body always released endorphins at some point and the long-distance runners could run on euphorically. He had never experienced this situation before. Again and again, he had to push himself to get up from the couch and not just stand still afterwards. So, he kept on running at a slow pace, crossing the clearing and following the path further up into the forest. He looked at his watch and noticed that his time had been better before, but those damn stitch had spoiled his time today.

His holiday was coming to an end and the last three weeks were characterized by sports, recreation, long walks and wellness in the spa adjacent to his hotel. He was also looking forward to returning home and to his work. It had been more than necessary to relax again, he thought as he left the forest and turned back onto the country road leading to his holiday home. He wanted to repeat this at all costs. The holiday had been worth it, and he felt how he was looking forward to his work again.

His legs gave way for a moment when he felt that pain in his chest again. This time higher, not so far to the side. Was his spleen out of place? Rubbish, he countered and walked a few steps slower again. He probably just overdid himself and should have left it at the Viennese Schnitzel last night. But his eyes were obviously bigger than his mouth had been, because he absolutely had to have the plum butter dumplings for dessert – with cinnamon crumbs and vanilla sauce. Now he regretted his decision. This dessert was probably still so heavy in his stomach that he had the problems jogging this morning. He should pay even more attention to his diet; he blew his nose again and started to walk slowly. The pain subsided.