Michael Walters - The Shadow Walker

“Plus this strange convocation of visitors to the Gobi.”

“Yes, and that.” But at best, Drew thought, it was as if they had a few pieces from a much larger jigsaw puzzle. A couple of edges, a bit of sky, part of a face. But nothing that might make a picture.

“And this chap Maxon has really gone missing?”

“Apparently.”

“That seems difficult to believe.”

“That’s how Nergui feels. He thinks it’s virtually impossible.”

They were sitting in the ambassador’s personal lounge, a comfortable room with low armchairs, thick piled carpet and glossy mahogany tables. It was late morning and autumn sunshine was incongruously bright outside the window. The ambassador sipped his coffee. “And do you believe him?”

Drew hesitated perhaps a fraction too long. “I think so,” he said. “I mean, I’ve no idea what to make of any of this, but I’ve seen no reason not to trust Nergui so far.” This was true. On the other hand, he also didn’t know whether there was any positive reason why he should trust Nergui.

The ambassador did not look convinced. “Well,” he said, finally, “is it safe to assume that Maxon is behind all of this?”

Drew shook his head. “No. Not necessarily. I mean, of course it’s possible. He’s been in the country longer than Collins-for nearly three weeks. And, interestingly, although he’s now here as a tourist, it’s not his first visit. He’s been here, supposedly on business, a couple of times before-made visits to various of the mines in the north of the country. We’re in contact with the FBI, but they’re not telling us much. There’s nothing to connect him to the murders here, so far as we can see.”

“But if he isn’t, then it looks as if we have two psychopaths on the loose simultaneously. Quite a first for this place.”

“Assuming,” Drew said, “that Maxon was responsible for Collins’s and Batkhuyag’s murders.”

“You think there’s any chance he wasn’t?”

“I really don’t know,” Drew said. “I mean, if these two murders had happened in isolation, of course he’d be the obvious candidate in the frame. But it’s still hard to see quite why he’d have killed those two at that point. And it’s hard to tie any of that in with the earlier killings.”

“Maybe they’re not linked.”

Drew shrugged. “Maybe not. In which case, as you say, we have two rampant psychopaths and one hell of a coincidence.”

The ambassador nodded, making a show of stirring his coffee again and selecting one of the luxurious biscuits from the plate in front of them. “So what do you think they know?”

“Who?”

“Nergui’s people. The Ministry. Intelligence. They must have more knowledge than they’re letting on.”

“I don’t get that impression. But then I wouldn’t, I suppose.” He paused. “To be quite frank, I’m feeling out of my depth in all this.”

“Out of your depth?” The ambassador raised his eyebrows. “An experienced policeman? You’re dealing with a bunch of amateurs here. Other than Nergui, that is.”

“It’s not that,” Drew said. “Though this case is like nothing I’ve ever had to deal with as a policeman. It’s the politics. It’s the sense that there’s something else going on, coded signals I’m not picking up.”

“Ah, the politics …” The ambassador sat back in his chair, smiling. “Well, I’m with you there. Even though it’s my job.”

Drew didn’t bother to add that he saw the ambassador as part of the problem. He thought it was probably better to move on. “But to go back to your question, no, I don’t get the impression they know more than they’re letting on. Certainly not at the operational level, anyway. It’s difficult to tell what Nergui might know, as I’m sure you’ve experienced. But I think he’s as disturbed by this as anyone. More than most, in fact. And I think that’s because he doesn’t usually come up against things he doesn’t understand.”

“Well, that would make sense. I think Nergui’s used to being in control of things. And I imagine he must be under a lot of pressure, though we’d never know.”

“Pressure?”

“From his Minister. If all this has just been the work of some lone psychopath, that would have been bad enough in terms of its impact. If, as it appears, it’s something more complicated than that, then the Minister will be getting very anxious.”

Drew finally got around to taking a sip of his coffee, which was already growing cold. “Why?”

“Well, there’s a lot of noble talk about, you know, protecting the fabric of society and all that-and I’m sure Nergui genuinely believes some of that-but for the Minister this is just our old friend politics once again.” The ambassador paused, as if he were wondering how openly to speak. Drew had already decided that the ambassador’s apparent willingness to take Drew into his confidence was simply more game playing. He would share only what he needed to, Drew had concluded, in the hope of getting something back. “It’s the problem with democracy, I suppose,” the ambassador went on. “Since this country introduced democracy at the beginning of the 1990s, there have been many changes but the Communist Party has largely retained power.”

“So what’s the problem? Aren’t the Communists firmly entrenched now?”

“To some extent, but there’s a lot of public unrest. There are plenty who think the country’s going to hell in a handcart. Who knows what’s around the corner? A psychopath on the loose for too long wouldn’t be particularly helpful to the career of the Minister of Security. But if it’s something more than that-particularly if there are commercial interests involved in some way-well, that could really be a knockout blow.”

“So the Minister will want this sorted?”

“One way or another, yes. And quickly.”

“What do you mean-one way or another?”

The ambassador shrugged. “I’m sure you must encounter these kinds of problems from time to time. Politicians want solutions. They don’t really care whether the solution really solves the problem, so long as they can be seen to have done something.”

“That kind of thing doesn’t usually get down to my level, I’m glad to say.”

The ambassador smiled, coldly. “Then, young man, you should count yourself very lucky. Enjoy it while you can.” He spoke as though Drew’s privileged status might change at any moment.

It was only after Drew had concluded his meeting with the ambassador that he remembered that he and Nergui were due to have dinner at the embassy that same evening. The relative lightheartedness he had felt at finally getting away from the ambassador melted away. What he had said was true. He was increasingly feeling out of his depth in this world, unsure who to trust or what to think. The prospect of an evening between the ambassador and Nergui was not an enticing one.

And how long was he supposed to stay out here? The original plan had been for him to fly home at the end of the week, with only the possibility of a return. But then he had received a message on his cell phone from the Chief Constable’s office to say that Nergui had requested he stay here a few more days, with the Ministry picking up the expenses. It was made clear that in the interests of international relations-not to mention the PR-Drew should accept the request.

There was also a message from Nergui suggesting that they meet in the bar of the Chinggis Khaan for a drink before dinner. He had last seen Nergui during their flight back from the Gobi that morning. Drew had been feeling exhausted after their disturbed night and although Nergui had the same brightness and energy that Drew had noted from the start, he looked troubled by the events of the night.