"Do you know Herr Karl's last name?" Kraus asked.Werthen had to shake his head at this."I thought not. Though supreme in their leadership at the café, the Herr Ober has no surname. He is simply Herr Karl or Herr Viktor." Kraus made a dramatic pause, then, "Andric. His name was Karl Jakov Andric.""Sounds Serbian," Berthe said."And it is, dear lady. Actually, Bosnian Serb. Herr Karl's family arrived in Vienna not long after Franz Josef became emperor, escaping Ottoman rule. They were Christians, and only too happy to finally make it to a Christian land. Ironic, however, Herr Karl's choice of trade, don't you think?""You mean the Turkish connection?" Werthen said. "Exactly," Kraus said, looking at Werthen as a pleased headmaster might gaze at a bright pupil. "The family flees Turkish Ottoman rule only to have the son take up a trade created by the Turks. It is a pleasing story for schoolchildren. The loyal Polish trader Kolschitzky rewarded for his spying services during the Turkish siege of Vienna by making off with bags of coffee beans found in the camp of the vanquished Turks. Beans which only he knew what to do with. And like most children's tales, it is mostly myth. The Armenians preceded Kolschitzky, but then who cares for the truth when fable is so much more alluring?""But what could Her Karl's ancestry have to do with his death?" Berthe said, growing exasperated at Kraus's asides."This is hearsay, Advokat," Kraus said, directing the conversation at Werthen in silent rebuke to Berthe--a woman daring to continually badger the greatest intellect of Vienna. "So do not quote me, but from my unofficial café historians I have heard that Herr Karl's father was something of a revolutionary while in Bosnia, eager, though a Serb, to keep that region independent of greater Serbia. It is said that perhaps his emigration was not stirred so much by dislike for the Ottomans, but for fear of retribution from Serbian nationalists. Perhaps they took out revenge on his son at long last. There are rumors, after all, of a secret organization formed by the Serbian military last year. The Black Hand. Quite dramatic, don't you think. The purpose of said secret society is assassination."Werthen did not bother to write down anything more than Herr Karl's full name. This avenue of investigation seemed too incredible to warrant exploration. Excerpted from The Third Place by J. Sydney Jones All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
