Chapter 1

Anja Bartel had never regarded being alone as a misfortune. At twenty-seven, she was young, intelligent, beautiful, and independent enough to enjoy her own company without feeling that something was missing from her life. She worked at a successful bank in the center of the city and earned a salary that allowed her to live comfortably, dress well, travel occasionally, and indulge herself whenever she felt like it. Men noticed her almost everywhere she went, and she was certainly not unaware of the effect she had on them, but attention had never been enough to make her settle for someone she did not genuinely like. She had dated several men, some charming and handsome, some ambitious and successful, but sooner or later she had discovered something that made her realize that she would rather remain alone than compromise the freedom she valued so highly.

Her life had settled into a comfortable rhythm that she enjoyed. During the week she worked hard at the bank, dealing with customers, paperwork, meetings, and the endless stream of financial decisions that demanded concentration and patience. When the working day ended, however, she liked to forget about the bank completely and become simply Anja again, the young woman who enjoyed restaurants, concerts, shopping, movies, weekend trips, and spontaneous evenings with friends. She lived alone in a pleasant apartment and had never found the silence there oppressive. On the contrary, she liked coming home and closing the door behind her, knowing that nobody would ask where she had been or what she intended to do with the evening. She sometimes wondered whether the right man might eventually enter her life, but she did not spend her days searching for him, because she had learned that happiness was much easier to enjoy when it was not treated as something that had to be urgently found.

The pair of shoes arrived on a Tuesday afternoon, packed inside a surprisingly small box. Anja had discovered the online store by accident while browsing after work, and although the website looked rather modest compared with the large shopping platforms she normally used, the photographs of the shoes had immediately caught her attention. They were elegant black high heels with narrow straps and unusually graceful heels that curved slightly inward, giving the shoes a distinctive appearance without making them look ridiculous or excessively fashionable. They were also inexpensive enough that buying them did not require any thought, so after examining the photographs one more time, Anja placed the order and promptly forgot about it.

When the package finally arrived, she opened it while standing in the hallway, expecting either a pleasant surprise or the usual disappointment that sometimes accompanied online purchases. Instead, she found herself smiling as soon as she lifted the first shoe from the box. The leather looked better than it had in the photographs, the stitching appeared neat, and the heels felt surprisingly solid when she tested it with her fingers. She slipped the shoes onto her feet and walked across the apartment, first cautiously and then with increasing confidence, until she stopped in front of the mirror and examined herself from several different angles. They suited her beautifully, making her legs appear longer and giving her posture a subtle elegance that she immediately liked.

She had no particular occasion for them, but that did not bother her because Anja had never believed that beautiful clothes required an official reason. On Friday evening, after finishing a particularly tiring week at the bank, she decided that she would wear the new shoes simply because she wanted to see how they felt outside the apartment. She chose a dark dress that fitted her figure neatly without being provocative, brushed her hair until it fell smoothly over her shoulders, applied a little makeup and perfume, and finally slipped the shoes onto her feet. She stood before the mirror for another moment, turning slightly from side to side, and smiled at the reflection looking back at her.

The evening outside was mild, and the city was full of the ordinary activity that made Friday nights feel different from every other evening of the week. Cars moved steadily along the avenue, their headlights beginning to brighten as the last daylight disappeared between the buildings, while pedestrians filled the sidewalks in small groups. Couples walked close together, friends laughed outside cafés, people carried shopping bags, and somewhere farther down the street a musician was playing beneath the glow of a shop sign. Anja walked comfortably among them, hearing the delicate sound of her heels against the pavement and enjoying the slight change in her posture that the shoes produced. She noticed a few men looking at her as she passed, and although she pretended not to notice, the attention pleased her in the harmless way it sometimes did when she was feeling particularly good about herself.