Free The Great Rabbit Revenge Plan by Burkhard Spinnen Page B

nice. Or maybe it’s precisely because she does such odd things that he thinks she’s nice.
    At last, he dares to ask, ‘What was all that about? You know, with your mother?’
    Fridz looks at him. ‘She was sleeping again,’ she says.
    â€˜Yes, well, I know that, but why did you throw water in her face?’
    â€˜To wake her up.’
    â€˜Right,’ says Konrad. She’s being pretty snippy. And he doesn’t want to ask any more, because he’s afraid that snippy could easily turn into downright nasty. In the end, though, he does ask, ‘But why did she have to wake up?’
    First Fridz throws a whole handful of stones into the water. ‘You really haven’t a clue, have you?’ she says. ‘My mum is unhappy, do you see? And because she is unhappy, she can’t always manage. Then she just goes to bed and sleeps. She can bear it all a bit better while she is asleep. Or so she says.’
    â€˜So just let her sleep, then.’
    But Fridz shakes her head, making her long red hair fly about. ‘She takes tablets,’ she says. ‘Because she can’t sleep without them. But – ’ and here she boxes Konrad prettyhard in the arm, ‘these tablets, I’m telling you, if you take too many of them, they’re dangerous.’
    â€˜Ah,’ says Konrad. ‘So could a person sleep until next Sunday?’
    â€˜Oh, you thicko! You don’t sleep. You die!’
    â€˜Oh, right, I see,’ says Konrad.
    And then the two of them sit by the dark brown canal without speaking. Until Fridz says, ‘I could kill her!’
    â€˜Who?’ cries Konrad, shocked. ‘Your mum?’
    â€˜Don’t talk such rubbish!’ Fridz stands up and starts walking, and Konrad has to hurry to catch up with her.
    â€˜That Kristine,’ says Fridz. ‘Kristine with a K. My dad’s girlfriend. I could kill her. If it wasn’t for her, then we wouldn’t have all this trouble. The stupid cow.’
    â€˜Hmm,’ says Konrad. ‘You should tell your dad to come home. Tell him he should do it for your mum’s sake. That usually works.’
    â€˜You are soft in the head.’ Fridz doesn’t even look at Konrad. She just walks more quickly along the canal path. ‘What do you think he would do if I said that?’
    â€˜Dunno,’ says Konrad, who is a little out of breath.
    Then Fridz stops. She stands in front of Konrad with her hands on her hips. ‘My dear child,’ she says in a very deep voice. ‘I know that all this is hard for you. But there is nothing I can do about that. You see, my angel, when two people don’t love each other any more, then they have to separate. Otherwise, it all just gets even worse. And that’s no good to anyone. So!’
    â€˜So,’ says Fridz again, this time in her normal voice. ‘Andthen he hugs me and gives me a cuddle and says, “You’re my little dandelion, my little princess, my fairy queen.” ’ She rolls her eyes. ‘And then off he goes again to his blonde Kristine.’
    Oh dear, oh dear! Konrad senses danger. Fridz looks as if she is about to burst into tears. And then Konrad Bantelmann would be here at the canal, which is not allowed, he would be here with a girl, which is just not right for a boy, and the girl would, moreover, be crying! Konrad just couldn’t cope with so many terrible and forbidden things all at once.
    â€˜Well,’ he says quickly. ‘Well …’ He has to say something that will make sure Fridz doesn’t start crying. ‘You could …’ he says, though he still has no idea what on earth she could do. ‘You could…set a trap for Kristine!’
    â€˜What kind of a trap?’
    Well, at least she’s not crying.
    â€˜A trap … with … a trap with …’
    Oh lordy me, Konrad Bantelmann, you are getting absolutely nowhere. He can’t think