Little Benjamin's death was very tragic. He fell off a precipice, hit a flat rock and was killed instantly. But the awful part was not the way he died. This kind of accident happens sometimes and all that can be done is to set up a fence. The awful thing was that his mother laughed when it happened with an insane laugh which would make anybody's hair stand on end. She didn't believe that he was dead. Her tortured mind told her that he had only changed his appearance and moved from this world to a new existence in a mysterious ghostlike land.

She thought Benjamin must have had fun during his last seconds. Anyway, he felt alright now because in the kingdom of the dead, which Marianne had devised, everything was fine despite the darkness which prevailed.

Marianne was now standing at the rusty gate of the churchyard. Visiting churchyards at night was not a popular occupation among the older inhabitants and Marianne was the only one on this occasion. Sometimes ill-mannered young rascals ran around the graves at night, attracted by the moon and the werewolf myth, or in the hope of seeing a ghost. But is was probably best that the teenagers slept at home just now as Marianne might have strangled them in an act of pure love. This world was evil and sad, filled with pain and complaint but in the next life everything was wonderful. None of the ghosts moaned and none needed to be afraid of death. Without in any way suggesting that the insane Marianne was guilty, it can be said that this small market town was known, throughout the country for a series of unsolved murders.