Ellen called Lisa at home, telling her that Judge Simons had gotten her case and that the perpetrators were already on remand.

She also asked if she could speak to one of the security guards, to which Lisa gave her cell phone to Bennie. Ellen told him Judge Simons' consideration, that he was not sure if the lawyers of these men could be susceptible to bribery, and urged them, as security guards, to remain alert.

Bennie reacted enthusiastically, genuinely pleased that Judge Simons was going to fight for Lisa. "That gives us hope, Ellen! And we will definitely stay alert. I'll pass it on to Marieke and my colleagues via our group app. Do you have a date yet for the first meeting in court?"

"No, I have no idea about that yet, but I assume Lisa will get an email or a letter about that automatically. I'll ask him about it. If it's otherwise, I'll let you know."

Bennie ended the conversation and looked at the expectant faces across from him.

"Good news, Lisa, that Judge Simons is going to fight for you. He's that judge who Marieke thought was perfect for your case. And the perpetrators are already on remand. Judge Simons did say that we have to stay on our toes, because he doesn't know if the perpetrators are able to bribe their lawyers."

Lisa nodded, "I think that's good advice, you never know what such men will manage. It's nice that Simons is going to be our judge. He will listen, really listen..." Lisa stared ahead, feeling a burden slip from her shoulders.

She got up, walked to the other room and picked up her violin. She felt how a happy, dancing melody sprang up inside her and began to play what she heard inside. Sjaak, Bennie and Joke listened in surprise. This was not what they had expected.

"Johan's message has given her hope, she makes her violin sing and dance. Wonderful!" whispered Joke.

Sjaak nodded, got up and sat down behind the piano. Lisa didn't notice, she had her eyes closed while she played. Only when he hit the first keys did she know he had come to her. She didn't think about it any further, she was so swept along on the stream of tones coming out through her violin. In fact she hardly heard what Sjaak was playing. Only afterwards, when she finished her song, did she feel as if in a memory how Sjaak had made his fingers dance over the keys, how they had played in unity again. She saw Bennie and Joke standing in the gate of the room, both visibly touched.

Joke swallowed, wanting to say something about what she had just heard, but she couldn't find the right words. She only sighed deeply, and smiled at Lisa.

Lisa put the violin back on the rug at the piano. She slipped past the security guards and called over her shoulder, "Time for coffee?"

She got no answer. Everyone was still under the spell of the music. Lisa smiled and walked on to the kitchen. The rattle of the coffee machine was like new music to her ears. She sniffed the delicious smell of the fresh coffee.

It took her a while to get four mugs filled by the machine. She had left the sugar bowl and a weck jar with cups of coffee cream on the table, because they needed them all the time anyway. She handed out the coffee mugs and sat down next to Sjaak on the couch. She picked up her mug and put both hands around it. "Nicely warm," she said, breaking the silence.

Bennie smiled as he also picked up his mug, "Yes, nicely warm. Although I must say that your music was at least as warming. Ellen's message clearly gave you, or rather both of you, hope. Your instruments just overflowed with joy."

Bennie waited a moment for his emotions to calm down a bit. "You touched me again, even more than last time. Just imagine, you have the whole trial in front of you, and then being able to play like that!"

Lisa explained how she had experienced it herself, how she had felt the melody come out of her insides like a stream. "It felt like my belly was a fountain, it just spurted out. I love it, that it comes out through my violin like that. As if my violin and I are one, so special! And your piano playing, Sjaak... Somewhere I heard you start to play, but I actually only followed my own flow. There was no moment when I listened to see if my music matched yours. Only after it was over did I seem to really hear what we had played together, feel how we had been a unit again in it." She laid her head on his shoulder for a moment, snuggling like a kitten.

"It was so special, so beautiful." Sjaak wiped a tear from his cheek. "Lisa, I really have no words for it, this is just beyond description! And if I'm honest, I outdid myself in piano playing. I never thought I would ever be able to do this!"

Sjaak looked at their regular day guests, "I have dreamed about this regularly in the past, that I would play with a violinist. And you know, in those dreams it was wonderful every time, but then when I woke up, I was convinced to myself, that this was impossible, that I would not be able to pull this off. I could improvise a bit myself, just play from my heart, not from paper. But it's quite another thing to play with someone else, not knowing where her melody will go. And now it's just happening. I honestly feel pretty overwhelmed."

Sjaak again wiped a few stray tears from his cheeks and tried to lighten the conversation with a joke: "I'm awake aren't I? Or is this another dream?"

"You're wide awake, feel it!" Lisa didn’t gently squeeze his leg.

"Ouch! Little cat head!" shouted Sjaak startled. "I'd rather get a cat snuggle from you!"

Remorseful, Lisa put her head back on his shoulder, "Sorry dear, I'll never do it again! I think..." She looked up at him mischievously and saw that his face relaxed.

He gave her a kiss on her nose, "This is better, for me... on the other hand, that spunky is exactly what belongs to you. Beautiful girl!"

"I want a relationship like that too," Joke sighed. "You guys are so wonderfully real, and so connected to each other. It's a delight to watch it!"

To chapter 197. A special reunion with a special confession

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