The streets were quiet, just as he liked them, although the air was cold for this time of year. As much as he tried, Karl felt uneasy about walking the streets like everyone else, but sometimes he had no choice. In this part of Amsterdam, the gaps between the streets were broader, impossible to jump, unlike the older districts like the Jordaan where they were narrower. There he felt most at home.
In the distance, he heard a woman shout, followed by a scream. Karl quickened his pace along the Rubenstraat.
He stopped at a corner, and could hear the sound of a woman crying. It came from a small open window of the top apartment on the opposite corner of the street.
"You're a waste of space," he heard a man shout. "How the hell I ever got mixed up with you makes me sick at the thought of it."
"You wanted a relationship," she shouted back. "You wanted to get away from your wife."
"And eventually I did, but I don't need this. You're a bigger mistake than she was."
"Please," she begged, sounding desperate.
Karl heard the sharp crack of a hand hitting skin. She let out a cry, then heard the sound of a door slam. A light went on in the stairway, which led down to the front door. Karl quietly moved to the other side of the street behind a tree, and out of sight.
A man came out of the apartment. He was tall, early thirties, short, neat dark brown hair, and wore an expensive shirt, tight fitting jeans and expensive sneakers. Karl could hear the woman in the apartment weep as the man got into a vintage Volkswagen Beetle parked outside the apartment. He knew he could also hear her, but he didn't bother to look up. The sound of the Volkswagen engine starting up drowned her out. As he pulled away, Karl rushed to the back of the car as it began to pick up speed, and with not too much difficulty jumped onto the back bumper. Hunkering down behind the rear window he gripped the air intake grid and protruding registration plate light with his fingers, and held on.
The Volkswagen drove through the quiet streets of Amsterdam at a relaxed pace. After driving only a couple of kilometers it pulled up to a large red brick stone apartment building on the Stadionkade.
Karl jumped off and hid behind a parked blue Toyota Prius. The man went into the apartment building and thirty seconds later a light went on right on the top floor, Karl smiled. Now he knew where he lived, and it would not be long before he paid him a visit.
Chapter Nine