Utopiensammlerin

A Novel by Mira Steffan She knew something was wrong even before she picked up the phone. “Mrs. Reimann, Emma hurt herself in sports class. She probably has a concussion of the brain. The ambulance …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “Have you ever noticed how pale Dad is?” Charlotte stopped raking and sat up, “Now that you mention it. True.” She wiped her forehead thoughtfully, “I think Papa has lost …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Charlotte flipped back and forth in the file folder, back and forth. Why had the department manager canceled the old maintenance contract for the injection molding machines? Somehow, the costs …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Heinze’s incredulous expression said it all. He’s staring like a numbed goldfish, Charlotte thought heretically and almost had to laugh out loud, but suppressed the impulse immediately. Then Heinze cleared …

A Novel by Mira Steffan She parked her car in the parking lot for hikers and got out. Again she took a deep breath. The air scented of damp earth, leaves and grass. Without paying …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Charlotte opened the front door. Silence greeted her. Emma and Justus had gone swimming. She hung up her coat on the coat rack, added her shoes, and strolled into the …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Pauline nodded in Charlotte’s direction. She had been ranting unabated for ten minutes about the pros and cons of different grave borders. They sat across from each other at her …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “Ms. Lah could print this out straight away,” Meier told Charlotte. What she meant was the adjusted figures for the budget planning she had just discussed with Meier. They left …

A Novel by Mira Steffan The moderator’s voice was getting on her nerves. The world was so noisy. People everywhere were talking, gossiping, arguing. The people were wearing her out. Charlotte turned off the car …

A Novel by Mira Steffan The hollow cheeks, the black circles under her eyes, the hurried expression on her face. Justus didn’t like this at all. Charlotte worked too hard and too much. But when …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “Yes, yes, that’s what I say. It goes on and on.” Short break. Then a shrill exclamation, “My God! NO! OH! Oh, the poor thing!” Charlotte cringed. She was sitting …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Work was a distraction that Charlotte immersed herself in. She took care of Emma as much as her work allowed, had sex with Justus, went to invitations, smiled, chatted, talked, …

A Novel by Mira Steffan The world was standing still. Or was it her standing still? And the world kept on rotating? Minutes, hours, days melted into one another. Her life was falling apart, and …

A Novel by Mira Steffan The following weeks blurred in the routine of everyday life. The conversation with Dorothea faded. Office, household, child demanded her full attention. Charlotte and Justus met in the kitchen for …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “How nice of you, that you could come over,” Dorothea said, hugging Charlotte and taking her coat. “I’ve already opened a bottle of white wine for us,” she continued, pointing …

A Novel by Mira Steffan In a rush and focused on the shopping list in her hand, Charlotte was pushing the shopping cart through the aisles of the grocery store when she was abruptly brought …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Robert casually raised his right hand, which was resting on Ute’s shoulder, and greeted everyone. But then his gaze slid past them. Automatically, Charlotte turned and saw two attractive men …

A novel by Mira Steffan Smiling, she followed her instruction and looked up at her. Her chin-length, fringed blonde hair framed her oval face, giving it a soft, feminine expression. With her dark blue eyes, …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “Have you signed up?” with a stern look on her face, Susanne wagged her index finger back and forth. It was another Saturday morning. There were red and yellow tulips …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Not three steps away from her, she saw a man who had already caught her eye in the seminar because of his endless questioning. “What are you doing here?” “I’m …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Done. She had done it. The applications had been sent. Thoughtfully, she turned on the kettle, got a chamomile tea bag and her teacup from the cupboard. Leaning her hip …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Two more job interviews followed in the next few weeks. But the salary expectations matched even less than those with UPPA Energie GmbH. After another two weeks, Charlotte was about …

A Novel by Mira Steffan The energy and the voices of the others were stuck in her head. Charlotte turned off the radio. Not a single sound could she bear anymore. The clock on her …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Charlotte looked around her office. She liked the small room of about ten square meters and the window front to the right of her desk. Above all, and this was …

A Novel by Mira Steffan 7:30 p.m.: Charlotte switched off her computer and left. She had a dinner date with her sister Pauline. Twenty-five minutes later, she pulled into the restaurant parking lot. As she …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “Mhm,” Charlotte looked at the menu impatiently. Hopefully she would change the topic of this conversation. After all, she didn’t feel like pretending that everything was fine with her and …

A Novel by Mira Steffan She bent wearily over her desk like a flabby banana skin. Her head was now as empty as a scooped out pumpkin. She nervously glanced at the clock in the …

A Novel by Mira Steffan Something was wrong with the calculation of the costs. Charlotte did the math again, then with the desk calculator. It was clear. Someone in accounting had not only added up …

A Novel by Mira Steffan “You have to turn right in here.” Charlotte sat in the passenger seat and cheerfully gave Justus instructions. He promptly rolled his eyes, “I know how to drive. I know …