Michael Walters - The Shadow Walker

Their conversation on the return flight had been desultory, partly because of Drew’s tiredness and partly because there seemed to be little worth saying and the case was, in theory, being handled by the local police chief, but there was no doubt that in practice he reported to Nergui. The relationship had been obvious to Drew, watching their conversation at the murder scene, even though he could not understand what was being said.

Compared with the previous murders, these were straightforward. Collins had been stabbed repeatedly in the chest and back, and appeared to have died from the loss of blood. Batkhuyag had been strangled, probably with a belt. Although no precise time of death had yet been established, both had been dead for some time before Nergui had found them, which explained how Maxon had been able to make the escape. The working assumption was that Maxon was the killer, and only Nergui seemed to be treating this as anything other than simple fact.

Even before they had embarked on their morning flight back to Ulan Baatar, a full-scale manhunt was underway. The local police chief had confidently expressed the opinion that Maxon would be picked up by the end of the day. After all, he had pointed out, how easy could it be for a Westerner to hide in the Gobi?

Nergui had called as soon as their plane had touched down to see whether this prediction showed any sign of being fulfilled. The answer was no. No one had yet reported seeing or even hearing of Maxon or any other Westerner outside the tourist camp. Police officers on motorbikes were making the rounds of all the surrounding gers, but so far to no effect. Still, it was, as the chief kept repeating, early days.

Drew assumed that by the time they met that evening, Nergui would have something more concrete to report. As before, Drew came down from his hotel room to find Nergui holding solitary court in the corner of the bar. Drew was pleased to note that he had already ordered the beers.

Before Drew could ask the obvious question, Nergui was already shaking his head. “Nothing,” he said. “No news at all.”

Drew sat down opposite Nergui and took a long pull on his beer. “When did you last check with them?”

“Twenty minutes ago. They’ve promised me they’ll call as soon as they have anything to report.” He smiled. “But I’m not sure I trust them to be assiduous enough so I’ll probably call them again later. Just in case.”

“Someone must have seen him.”

“You would have thought so, wouldn’t you? I don’t see how a Westerner on the run can stay unnoticed in the middle of the Gobi for long.”

“Is it possible he’s being sheltered?”

“I suppose so. It’s quite possible that there’s some herdsman out there who’s not heard the news-though many of them have shortwave radios, these days-and who’s taken pity on him. But you’d have thought we’d have found something.”

“Maybe he’s not trying to hide. Maybe he’s committed suicide or just ridden off into the desert.”

Nergui nodded. “I suppose it’s not beyond the realms of possibility, if it is true that he’s responsible for these killings.”

“You still think he might not be?”

“I genuinely don’t know. It is the logical assumption. Although we then have to consider what the link is with the earlier murders, or we’re left with two killers. But mainly it is that old instinct again, nothing more. I don’t think it is as simple as that.”

“You think the same person is responsible for all these killings?” It sounded ridiculous, Drew thought. But the alternative seemed even more absurd.

Nergui shrugged. “There is no point in speculating. But my instinct says no. Which is a truly terrifying prospect.”

“I understand you’ve asked my bosses if I can stay on here.” Drew realized too late that the statement sounded accusatory. He hadn’t intended that, but maybe he was right to be annoyed.

Nergui nodded. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I have been thoughtless. I should have asked you first. But I had the impression you were keen to stay a little while longer. And I was certainly keen to draw on your experience.” He paused. “But I was forgetting about your wife and family. That was inconsiderate. I am sorry.”

Drew wondered about trying to extract some moral leverage from Nergui’s apparent embarrassment. But, in truth, he wasn’t even sure how genuine this embarrassment was. Nergui struck him as a man who always knew exactly what he was doing. If he’d neglected to ask Drew first, this was probably because he didn’t want to take the risk that Drew might decline. Much easier to go above Drew’s head and get the deal done that way. Maybe in Nergui’s position he’d have done the same. Maybe.

“Well, I think I’ve managed to square that side of it. Sue isn’t best pleased, but I think she accepted that it isn’t my choice. But what I can’t really understand is why you want me to stay. I’m not sure there’s really much I can add.”

“You are too modest,” Nergui said, in a tone that suggested sincerity about this at least. “Other than Doripalam, most of our men are amateurs or worse. We have never had to deal with anything remotely like this.”

“Who has?”

“Well, you have much more relevant experience than any of us.”

Drew wasn’t convinced by this. His own suspicion was that Nergui wanted to have him around because he was a neutral third party. He imagined that Nergui’s professional life was almost as lonely as his domestic life seemed to be. He had no obvious peers in the police, other than Doripalam, and the relationship there was uneasy. His relationship with the rest of the team seemed to be distant and untrusting. And no doubt his relationships with the Minister and his other political masters were far from straightforward. It was probably a relief to find himself working with someone who had no particular axes to grind.

“Well, I’ll accept the compliment,” Drew said. “To be honest, I’d be sorry to have gone back now. Partly because there’s nothing more frustrating than leaving a case before it’s resolved. And partly because I want to see more of your country while I’m here.”

“I am surprised it holds many attractions for you anymore,” Nergui said. “The presence of corpses tends to take the edge off the tourist trail.”

“Is that what your Minister thinks?”

“It is one of his concerns, of course. Our tourist trade is growing, partly because this is seen as being one of the last unexplored parts of the world. But also because we have a relatively safe environment.”

“And the presence of a serial killer-or, worse still, two serial killers-doesn’t particularly enhance that reputation.”

“Quite. But I think his bigger concern- our bigger concern-is that there may be something more behind this.”

Drew took a large drink of his beer. There seemed little point in holding back his thoughts. He was unsure what games everyone else might be playing, so there was probably some mileage in being completely straightforward. “My friend the ambassador thinks you know things you’re not sharing. Is that true?”

“Me personally, or the Ministry in general?” Nergui said, without hesitation.

“Either. Both. I mean, I think the ambassador’s concerns are with the Ministry. But from what I’ve seen, I think it’s more likely that you might know something you’re not sharing with anyone else. On your side or mine.”

“Are we on different sides, then?” Nergui regarded Drew with something approaching amusement.

“You tell me. The ambassador clearly thinks we are. I hope not. But all this is new to me.”

“Much of it is new to me also, Drew. I do not think we are opposing sides in this. But then I am not sure what the sides are.”