Фолькер Кучер - The Silent Death

‘Thanks. Did Herr Wittkamp say where he can be reached?’

‘No, he didn’t. He said he’ll try again.’

‘And Herr Weinert?’

‘No, but it sounded like an office. There were typewriters clattering.’

‘Many thanks.’

‘I’m off to meet my sister,’ she said, taking her leave.

Weinert wasn’t at the office or in Nürnberger Strasse. It was lunchtime! He tried the Excelsior .

‘I’m afraid Herr Wittkamp isn’t in his room,’ the porter said.

‘Did he say where he was going?’

‘He’s most likely having his lunch. Should I pass on a message?’

‘Just ne schöne Jrooß ,’ Rath said.

‘Pardon me?’

‘Cologne dialect.’

He put Kirie on her lead and took her outside. With its building sites and crowds of people, Alexanderplatz wasn’t an ideal place for young dogs, so Rath strolled up Dircksenstrasse past the city railway and towards Monbijou Park. He liked this quiet green oasis in the heart of the city, and this modest little castle that didn’t match the pomp the Hohenzollern had otherwise sought to establish in the capital. He came here whenever he needed to think in peace and escape the clatter of typewriters in the Castle and the traffic on Alex. Usually there wasn’t much going on: a few mothers strolling with prams, perhaps a few traders from the nearby stock exchange stretching their legs.

He sat down on a park bench near the bank of the river and looked onto the northern tip of the Spreeinsel, where the Kaiser-Friedrich Museum jutted into the river like the bow of a ship, and immersed himself in his thoughts. Kirie sniffed curiously at the wire netting of a waste-paper basket. Rath unpacked the dog biscuits that Erika Voss had bought from Wertheim, and threw her one which she caught in mid-air.

‘What am I going to do with you?’ he said. ‘You wouldn’t make a good police dog, but perhaps I should keep you anyway. You like me at least.’

Kirie seemed to smile.

After she had taken care of her business, they returned to Alex. It was already late, so Rath ordered three Buletten to go from Aschinger, two for himself and one for Kirie.

He had just bitten into his when he realised she had already devoured hers and was gazing longingly at the paper bag in his hand. Rath looked for some more dog biscuits but couldn’t find any.

‘Very well,’ he said, sacrificing the second Bulette. ‘Next time, we’ll share more equally. You’re much smaller than me, you shouldn’t be eating more.’

His stomach rumbled but there wasn’t enough time to go back to Aschinger. It was nearly two already.

Since he had to return Kirie to Erika Voss, Rath was the last to appear in the conference room. Gennat interrupted his report while he found a seat. Brenner seemed to be missing again, but this time he wouldn’t be off sick.

Buddha summarised the results of the Bellmann interrogation and turned to those investigating the cinema killings. They had a wealth of new information to impart. Assistant Detective Lange reported on those in possession of a key to the abandoned cinemas.

‘Upon realising that there was no positive correlation to be found using the initial lists,’ he said, in the ponderous officialese that could only be truly mastered at Prussian police academy, ‘we made a conscious choice to further our search to include the personal and professional circles in which the relevant keys circulated prior to the closure of the picture palaces in question, and, following a comparison of all addresses, uncovered exactly four companies in possession of such keys.’

‘You can say cinemas!’ one of the older officers yelled. Everyone laughed, and Lange blushed.

‘At any rate, it seems we are dealing with a cleaning firm that specialised in picture… cinemas, as well as several film labs and distribution companies that must have had access to the pic… cinemas. So far, we have been unable to commence our review of these companies, but will endeavour to…’

‘…carry out said undertaking immediately subsequent to the conclusion of this briefing,’ the joker suggested, this time earning a reproachful glance from Gennat.

‘Excellent work, Lange,’ Gennat said. ‘We look forward to your results. Are there any duplicates? Keys that were not returned? If you should find anything else today, please let me know immediately.’

‘Yes, Sir.’

Lange sat down, having grown at least three inches taller.

Next Czerwinski stood up. The last time that fatso had contributed anything meaningful to an investigation the Prussian police must still have been wearing spiked helmets.

Czerwinski cleared his throat before beginning. He seemed very pleased with himself. ‘We researched the history of both cinemas, Sir. The question is why he, the killer, that is, chose to plant the corpses in such dilapidated hovels?’

‘And? Did you make any progress?’

‘I think so!’ Czerwinski puffed out his chest. ‘We found a connection.’ He made a dramatic pause before continuing, to ensure that everyone was listening. ‘It is this: the Luxor was, or is, the cinema in which Vivian Franck’s first film had its premiere. That was November twenty-eight. And Kosmos screened Jeanette Fastré’s first film in twenty-seven. The two women are… or, I should say, were in their premiere cinemas.’

‘That might be significant.’ Gennat gave a nod of appreciation, and Czerwinski sat down, grinning happily. ‘Perhaps that’s one of the messages the perpetrator is trying to send us with his staging of the corpses.’

‘Maybe we should also check where Betty Winter’s first film had its premiere,’ Rath said. ‘I can’t shake the feeling that she has something to do with the other two actresses.’

‘You believe too much of what’s in the papers,’ Böhm said. ‘Isn’t the Chinese gooseberry fiasco enough for you?’

Rath was already regretting having aired his thoughts when Gennat spoke. ‘It isn’t such a bad idea.’ He looked at Czerwinski. ‘Could you take care of that? Let me know when you have traced the cinema in question.’

Then Gennat allocated their tasks.

‘The Winter case has priority,’ he said. ‘It’s possible we are on the verge of a breakthrough. At any rate, we have a closed circle of suspects, and must apply more pressure.’

This closed circle of suspects was still big enough. All those who knew the production schedule and had access to the lighting bridges – that is, almost all La Belle employees in Marienfelde. As a lone outsider, Manfred Oppenberg might have known about everything through Felix Krempin.

For the time being only a small cast of officers was investigating the cinema killer, as he was now known, since Gennat needed every officer available to seek out possible motives amongst Bellmann’s staff. Böhm was to take care of Oppenberg, Gräf would take Cora Bellmann, and Rath was tasked with reinterviewing Victor Meisner. It was Gennat’s way of showing the three former lead investigators that he had read the interrogation records and found them wanting. He was providing an opportunity for all three to revisit anything they had previously overlooked.

Rath returned to his office without exchanging a word with anyone.

Meisner, of all people, that snivelling little wretch! This was going to be some day.

Erika Voss was on the telephone again, and Kirie lay asleep under the desk.

‘He’s just coming now,’ she said. ‘One minute, Police Director, I’ll put you through.’

She pressed a button and hung up. In the next room Rath’s telephone started to ring.

‘Who is it?’ he asked. ‘Not Scholz surely?’ The head of CID was the only police director he had dealings with at Alex.