The chief of police touched it cautiously. “Don’t be shy, chief,” Stolz laughed. “Sit down and try it for a size. What do you think? Does is feel like a replica? No! I assure you; this is a genuine Victorian armchair with the original upholstery. Don't be skeptical because it looks so fresh. Do you know what it is stuffed with?”
Police chief obediently muttered the answer he had heard many times.
“You are absolutely correct. It is real horsehair. Noone makes this kind of furniture nowadays. You won't find this anywhere.”
“Still, the price is a bit high for me”, Renk said and got up reluctantly.
Bruno politely sat him back down. “I must give it some more thought and discuss it with my sister. After all, there is a very important question of where it should be placed.” Renk raised light colored, barely noticeable eyebrows on his plump face.
“It will improve the appearance of the whole house,” pressed Stolz.
“I don’t know… It’s so very bright. What would people think when they see me carry it down the street. Everyone will be watching.”
Incredulous, Stolz threw up his hands in the air.
“Certainly, you would not carry it yourself. How could you even think that, Otto!? Here, look at these wonderful wings. Do you see them? Do you remember seeing the same kind of chair in the Sherlock Holmes movie? It is so very comfortable. You can lay your head down and take a nap in front of TV.”
Such conversations eventually became enjoyable. The two of them even became friends, a city councilor and shop owner Bruno Stolz and the Parhima Police Chief Otto Renck.
Bruno watched a hay cart passing by his windows. The haystack was so high it almost reached the gutter. It was sinched on all four sides with an orange rope, yet swayed dangerously all the same. Stolz startled out of his reverie as he suddenly remembered his employee Cozy. Stolz hurried downstairs. The ground floor, the shop and the corner counter were all perfectly in order, tidy and clean. Shuffling, Bruno turned to go to the kitchen. He needed to make sure the boy was not shirking his work. He almost reached the shop door when he heard a sound. Herr Stolz turned his head towards the display window. Utterly unbelievable! That big-headed tadpole Cozy was once again sitting in the English chair mindlessly twisting a toy puzzle in his hands. The brightly colored plastic contraption could only be of interest to a preschool child and no one older! Herr Stolz personally studied it for the first time now, having snatched it out of Cozy's hands. Only such a simple-minded nitwit can mess with it endlessly!