A missing child of German nationality,
Razita Hoffer, age 3.
Blonde hair, blue topcoat.
Escort to Wroclaw Red Cross.
Good morning.
Good morning.
ERINYES
Goddesses of Vengeance
CHAPTER 11
PATODICY
GOD HAS CHOSEN THE BEST
OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS
Leibniz, Theodicy
After the tragic events that have
touched the Subterraneum Gymnasium,
professors asked me
as an experienced conspirator
for help.
I forgot to give you this.
It's a good exercise for us,
Monsieur Alphonse.
It's good that you didn't knock
the agreed way.
Lessons need to be better covered.
Why?
I think the camouflage worked.
No SO agent, even the dumbest,
will believe that 8 people,
including a mentally ill grandfather,
meet in this grandfather's flat
to play bridge.
One group will study
with Professor Stefanus
and the other with Professor Murawski.
A team of four,
three students plus the professor,
is easier to cover up.
And learning bridge
is the perfect solution here.
Whereas two students and a professor
look like normal tutoring.
Janka was m*rder*d.
Teresa suffered
a deep spiritual trauma.
Zygmunt was run over by a truck.
Maybe it's a coincidence,
or maybe a sign of persecution.
We must limit our lessons
to what is most important.
To philosophy.
Philosophy?
Meaning?
There are different
philosophical schools.
One of the professors may teach us
that life has meaning,
and the other that it does not.
To choose, we need to know
what each of you will talk about.
So you want a debate.
Great.
I am waiting for topic suggestions.
Where does the evil
in the world come from?
And why does God allow it?
Well. After the debate is over,
each of you will put a card in front of
Professor Murawski or in front of me.
This will be the sign
whom you have chosen.
I'm making my argument.
Miss Janina's death is irrelevant.
Her death
doesn't matter
for the ultimate victory of good.
Because human history
evolves towards good.
What does it mean
to evolve towards good?
As Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
rightly pointed out,
people,
just like biological cells,
unite into higher structures.
And like cells, they form
highly specialized organisms
which are more difficult to destroy.
I had no real evidence
that Janina was a confidante.
Only circumstantial.
Maybe there still is an SO snitch
among these five students.
Andrzej Konarski from Łódź.
Top of the class, an onanist type.
Easy to break.
The disappearance of cruelty
and sl*very in the eyes of the law.
Equalization of people in rights.
The unification of states.
They all indicate
that everything we consider to be good
becomes increasingly popular,
encompassing no longer
only those closest to us,
but also strangers.
A community is formed.
I'm waiting for counter-arguments.
Konstanty Dec.
Son of a Vilnius railroad worker.
Two brothers in prison.
An easy picking for the SO.
In six years--
the two states that have declared--
to be the forerunners of this
illusory evolution toward good,
have become the biggest executioners.
Fryderyka Pasławska.
Is it possible that
the last of the girls is Anastasia?
Marxist promoters
of universal equality
condemned millions
of Ukrainians to starvation.
The Soviets m*rder*d thousands
of Polish officers at Katyn.
And they sent entire nations
to die on the Siberian permafrost.
And the representatives
of the highest culture,
who should, after all,
favor your idea of evolution
towards good;
the Germanic SS men
one in five of whom
had a doctorate in philosophy,
played the violin,
solved chess puzzles--
These God's chosen ones
were sliding in their polished shoes
among the bowels of the Jews
slaughtered in Ukraine at Babi Yar.
They used gas chambers
to k*ll old men,
women, children.
Naked, stripped of human dignity.
Where was your evolution towards good?
The truth is not literary.
It is boring and not appealing.
Are you and your supporters
able to face whole tables of numbers
that I could cite
in favor of evolution for the good?
There.
I have been collecting
and tallying them for ten years,
preparing my book,
the work-- of my life.
You have gone through the hell of w*r.
There is an aggression in you
that swirls like Achilles' wrath.
Please, go ahead.
I want to catch those
who k*lled your daughter.
I can do it.
Where did Janina go then?
I don't know.
And what were you doing then?
What do you mean?
I was drinking and singing.
And she-- was dying-- somewhere there.
Did you write this?
When I drink, I sing or write poems,
but there is nothing there.
Just the title and four lines.
What is a tiger eye?
It's a stone.
Not very precious but nice.
Jasia took it with her.
For Mrs. Winiarska.
To apologize her.
What is the name of the bald man
that was here?
Are you sure you are well?
You're the one in the hospital, not me.
How's your cough?
You still have a fever.
It will all be gone.
Gone for good.
For good.
Heartbeat.
Breathing.
I'm dying, Edward.
What are you saying?
You'll be well soon.
Everything will be fine, you hear me?
Relax. If you want,
I'll be here with you all the time.
You'll have everything you need.
Are you hungry?
I brought sausages for you.
Have a taste.
What do you need a knife for?
Hide it.
I was pretending.
What for?
I thought you would call the nurse.
She would resuscitate me.
And then I'll ask:
"Tell me what's bothering you."
I might die in a moment.
Honor my last request.
When you came home in Lviv,
you seemingly left all the evil
of your work at the doorstep.
You teased Hanna.
You joked with me at dinner.
You held--
You held Jerzyk on your shoulders.
But I knew that this evil
was still inside you.
It didn't stay behind the door.
You brought it into the house.
Before the w*r,
we talked about it a lot, remember?
You told me about the cases you led.
And now you tell me nothing.
You don't tell me anything.
I can see it all.
I have to catch these m*therf*ckers.
You used to be in a much
better situation than you are now.
You dealt with this hell
together with other police officers.
And now you are dealing with it alone.
It is staring at you.
And today it is epathizing.
When you told me about the poet
who lost his child
and all he had left was
an unfinished poem,
I thought to myself:
a tiger eye is very distinctive.
If these Muscovites
have not escaped from Wroclaw yet,
you have a chance to find them.
What do you think they will do
with this stone?
- They will sell it to a fence.
- No.
Tiger eyes are too beautiful.
This descendant of Genghis Khan
has probably never seen
anything so beautiful in his life.
He will set it in gold.
Go to Mr. Tadeusz Baran on Szczytnicka.
Tell him you are my cousin.
Good morning.
Good morning.
Excuse me, how can I help you?
It's a delicate matter.
And here all walls have ears.
You don't seem to be a supplier
of stolen goods,
and I'm definitely not a fence.
Besides, the only ears here belong to
us and this intelligent creature.
I did not bring any stolen goods.
My name is Edward Popielski.
I'm Leokadia Tchórznicka's cousin.
Oh yes.
I haven't had the chance
to meet you, sir,
but I know, I know.
The whole neighborhood knows
that you live together.
Yes.
It kind of happened.
My cousin has always kept
my house, in Lviv and here.
We managed to survive
thanks to her resourcefulness,
but also thanks to your kindness.
Few jewelry masters would give
as much as you did for this trinket.
Do you remember?
How is Countess doing?
Why do you call her that?
Her moves, gestures,
the grace. She is a countess.
The midnight blue she wears is the work
of the best St. Petersburg masters.
I have an eye on such things.
By the way--
Has anyone come to you lately
with a tiger eye?
I value your cousin.
But I value my own head even more,
and I'm not going to endanger it.
Now I have to open my business.
I am forced to say goodbye to you.
Well, too bad.
My cousin will be
disappointed with your attitude.
Pasierbiak.
Russian fence.
I don't know the exact address,
but it's not far, past the bridge.
He's coming here on Saturday
after closing time
to pick up a signet ring
in which I set a tiger eye.
Do you know where Pasierbiak lives?
Sure, I know everything.
I sit here all day.
But I don't think Pasierbiak is here.
I haven't seen him for a few days.
Ask the caretaker of that tenement.
Sergei Ivanov to Pasierbiak.
Wait here.
Nothing for you.
I only have something for Boroshvili.
What's new?
There's job.
Stop rooking your own folks, you freak.
Don't pick on the cr*pple
because you can be one yourself.
What did you say?
You know what?
Anger detracts from beauty.
Get out of here, now.
All the best.
Boroshvili.
We don't know each other anymore.
I left, do not come to see me.
No more girls. Too hot.
On Saturday after 6 PM
pick up the signet ring. Pasierbiak.
The world pursues excellence.
Which means it is imperfect.
Do you agree with me?
Yes, it is very imperfect.
So,
in striving for perfection, the world
must overcome its imperfection.
Logical.
Well, yes.
To overcome its imperfection,
the world must suffer.
The world is you, me, everyone else.
We all suffer.
Suffering is
an indispensable condition
for the development
of the world towards good.
We are similar to soldiers
dying in fight for universal peace.
Can I--
ask a personal question?
Yes, of course.
I won't answer it, in the worst case.
When you were suffering in Auschwitz,
when the Germans beat
and famished you for 4 years,
did you feel like a soldier
who suffers in fight for good?
When I suffered,
I could only howl with pain.
I was made of pain.
My mind did not exist.
The meaning of suffering,
the existence of God.
All other thoughts disappeared.
But sometimes the pain went away.
For a short time, but it did.
During those short moments, I felt--
an indescribable joy of life.
My mind was awakening,
and thoughts were coming
from everywhere.
Thoughts of evolution towards good.
I want to show you my patodicy,
that is my defense
of the phenomenon of suffering.
These are my notes, read them.
What should I do with the signet ring?
Take it. You like cats.
A tiger eye is perfect for you.
Stop, hands up!
Thank you for your help.
Comrade Captain.
You thank me for saving you, comrade?
Captain Mikhail Chernikov.
So let's take a ride.
You set me on one
of the murderers of Janina Maksymońko.
How can I repay you?
Leave my country
and take all your compatriots with you.
It's nice in here. Lovely villas.
What is this street?
Mickiewicz. You probably haven't heard
of him. Our greatest poet.
I could leave your country in two ways.
Either by order of my commanders
or by order of God.
In a wooden suit
and with a posthumous medal
on my chest.
You are not my commander,
but maybe you are God.
In such silence, I strain
my ear curiously, I would hear
a voice from Lithuania.
Let's go, no one is calling.
Will you drop me off at the barracks?
How come you know Polish so well?
I was born in Siberia, in Yakutsk.
Is it Chernikov or Chernik?
Ryleyev.
- What?
- This will be our password.
Untie me!
Pull him up.
Let me go!
You don't give me orders!
Listen, Sashka.
I promised this city
that I would throw your carcass
on the grave of the girl
you tortured to death.
You and your comrades.
And I will keep my word.
The only choice you have is
to hang with or without your feet.
You are free.
Nod your head, Sashka.
If you want your feet
to dangle with you on the gallows--
Do you think Sashka that
I wouldn't be able
to personally cut off
the toes of a r*pist like you?
Go on.
Sergant Vladimir Boroshvili
and Red Army solder
Bakhtiyar Kekilbayev.
A descendant of Polish exiles
quoting Mickiewicz from memory.
Maybe he's a communist blocking out
all the crimes of Stalinism.
We'll see.
Pasierbiak?
The man you ambushed
testified that he had two companions.
They were waiting for him
behind the jewelry shop.
I must have scared them away.
One of them is a Kazakh, Kekilbayev.
And the other is a Georgian,
Boroshvili.
Boroshvili.
There were two letters.
What is it?
Stop! Stop, you bugger!
What the f*ck?
f*ck off, you bald m*therf*cker.
I'm not going to give you
the money from the second envelope.
You can k*ll me.
- I don't f*cking have it.
- Where is the letter?
I threw it away.
Where?
I asked where you threw it.
If I find the letter,
I'll forgive you, understand?
I don't mean the money,
I mean the letter.
Dear professor.
With this letter I repay my debt.
One hundred dollars.
My deepest apologies.
Sincerely, Pasierbiak.
Murawski and Pasierbiak
had very lucrative business relations,
since the fence owed him
a hundred dollars.
Pasierbiak was not only a fence,
but also a pimp
who for money supplied the Soviets
with addresses of different girls.
Koldashov and his two comrades
r*ped Murawski's students.
Could the professor
be the first link in this chain?
He could have sold the addresses
of the female students to Pasierbiak,
and he gave them to the Soviets.
Monsieur Alphonse. Bonsoir.
What's the matter?
What do you want? We are in a hurry.
Where to?
To Murawski.
Professor Murawski
is teaching extra classes now?
I can help you with Janette
and take her there myself.
- Will you take her home later?
- With pleasure.
Au revoir.
Merci.
Someone is having the hots.
I can't see the professor at home.
He sometimes gets terribly upset
when-- you know.
He shouts all sorts of nonsense.
I have to shush him,
but he doesn't stop.
What does he shout?
For example, that God is the devil.
Or that God does not exist.
That's what he shouted.
You don't let him in
for such a trivial reason?
If you let it go hang,
you wouldn't have to walk at night.
Once he was shouting so much that
my grandpa got scared and shrieked.
And when I went to his room,
grandpa pooped.
Poor fellow,
he is not used to such screaming.
Monsieur Alphonse forbade me
to see him in my house.
What are you doing here?
I am a private detective,
and I am doing my job.
Today I'm escorting
Miss Janette. Shall we?
No, go away, please.
And don't bother me.
Can I help you, Professor?
No, Mr. Józek. They are pedlars.
Come in.
Show me what you have.
Maybe I'll buy something too.
You no longer work for us,
Mr. Popielski.
I don't want to see you here.
It's against the conspiracy rules.
May I smoke a cigarette
in your kitchen?
Or do I have to introduce
Janette to your students?
Smoke.
God is a sadist.
People in ancient times
saw sadists in their deities.
To appease them,
they sacrificed their fellow men.
They inflicted evil
because the deity pressurized them.
Are we pressurized by anyone?
No. No.
People of the new times
can safely say
that religion and worship are evil
and reject them all.
Life is absurd.
But it's worth choosing.
Goodbye.
Nice?
He calls me Fryderyka.
Fredzia.
No, b*tch. No. Mom.
- Good morning.
- Good morning.
Allow me to introduce.
This is my deputy Captain Chernikov.
And this is Captain Strizhenyuk.
- Yevgeny.
- Mikhail.
A very nice place.
Nikolai Ivanovych, I heard
that the show was perfect.
Great.
Congratulations.
But why was only one captured?
Colonel Davydov is wondering
when will the other two rapists,
the Georgian and the Kazakh
walk down the streets of Wroclaw?
Quickly, as soon as possible.
A week.
Colonel Davydov gives you a week
and not a day more!
After that
he will come here personally--
with the entire NKVD regiment.
Goodbye.
Within a week--
you will find two Poles
and have them confess to raping
together with Koldashov.
Finding a Georgian-looking brunet
is not a problem.
But there is no guarantee
that I will find a Mongolian.
Then find those
who are really guilty of it.
A set of silverware.
Okay.
Lieutenant Yakovlev
is waiting to see you.
Let him come in.
Wait.
Good morning, Voter Colonel.
May I help you?
No.
Sit down and report what's new.
Anastasia broke the silence
after a few weeks.
Shall I read it, Voter Colonel?
No need.
Just summarize.
There is an interesting bird
in the report.
Stefanus.
He has written a book
that he wants to publish in France.
He corresponds with
a well-known philosopher, a Jesuit.
His name is Pierre Teilhard de Chardin.
Stefanus claims
that the book he has written
will make him famous
all over the world.
This book has to be on our desk
as soon as possible.
You understand such nonsense.
Read it.
And then throw it into the oven.
for Gosia
THE SERIES IS AN ADAPTATION
OF MAREK KRAJEWSKI'S BOOKS:
Erinyes, Charon's Numbers, The Rivers
of Hades, In the Depths of Darkness
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01x11 - Patodycea
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Edward Popielski, a detective of extraordinary intellect and physical strength but tormented by epileptic visions that help him in his investigations, is specially appointed by the gods to avenge crimes in the city of Lviv in 1930s Poland.
Edward Popielski, a detective of extraordinary intellect and physical strength but tormented by epileptic visions that help him in his investigations, is specially appointed by the gods to avenge crimes in the city of Lviv in 1930s Poland.