Sergey Baksheev - Secret Target

As she had expected, Maltsev sobered up in a flash.

«Why mine?» he became afraid.

«Have another look. Do you recognize him?»

«Anton…»

«Do you recognize where the photos were taken?»

«In my apartment – that’s my bathrobe – »

«Precisely! Why did you kill your brother?»

«I didn’t kill him! Who did this?»

«I am confident that it was you!» the detective continued to apply pressure.

«No!» Maltsev jerked away.

«Your brother got out of prison. You had a drink of brandy, got into a quarrel, then made peace – it’s a normal sequence of events. But you harbored a grudge. And when Anton went to the bathroom, you hit him with a cleaver.»

«No! We had a drink with Anton – that part’s true. But I left after that. I had to catch a train to St. Petersburg! I have a meeting there tomorrow, I mean, today.»

«Start at the beginning.»

«Of course… Where should I start?»

«Your quarrel with your wife.»

«Inna told you about that? You’ve got to understand, Inna and I haven’t been on the best of terms lately. She’ll say something, I’ll say something back – it’s stop and go. I don’t even know what caused it this time. She threatened to divorce me and I swore she wouldn’t get a penny, so she stormed out and slammed the door.»

«Does your wife have a job?»

«What are you talking about! When we met, Inna was a primary school teacher. No money – just stress. She quit her job about two years later. I insisted on it.»

«At what time did Inna leave the house?»

«I came back from work at two because I had to go to St. Petersburg that evening. She stormed out about an hour later probably.»

«What was she wearing?»

«You think I remember? She buys so much crap!»

«Try your hardest.»

«Detective Petelina, may I have some more coffee?» Maltsev glanced at the kettle longingly.

He calmed down fast. His brother’s death didn’t shock him , Petelina noted as she poured the coffee.

How would he respond to more precise information about his brother’s death? Elena had spent eighteen years looking for Anatoly and had seen many bodies. She was mentally prepared to deal with the loss of a loved one. At this point, she would have been more shocked if she met her brother alive. In any case, she was compelled to discover what happened, where he disappeared to, who was responsible.

«How did it happen? Did you catch the killer?» Maltsev suddenly asked, as though having read the detective’s mind.

«Mr. Maltsev, you are currently at an official interrogation about a murder case. Therefore, as banal as this may sound, I’m the one who asks the questions here. I would like to know what kind of coat your wife was wearing as she left your apartment yesterday.»

«She just put on some coat. Wait – that’s it! It was gray and speckled. She just got it recently.»

«What time did Inna return?»

«If she did, I wasn’t there. I haven’t seen her since.»

«Did you know that Anton Maltsev was being released?»

«I knew that he was supposed to get out one of these days. He was serving his time in Koma and I figured it would take him some time to get back to Moscow. Then suddenly, there he was. It was around five.»

«Why did he go to your place?»

«Anton has his own apartment. I rented it at his request and saved the money for him. That’s why he came to stay with me for the first few days.»

«What happened then?»

«Well, we celebrated his return. But I had to go to the station, so I left him there. „Get some rest,“ I told him. „Get some sleep and make yourself at home.“»

«How did you get to the station?»

«On the subway. I didn’t have any luggage and the subway is nearby. It’s more reliable when there’s traffic too.»

«Did anyone see you leave the building?»

«How would I know? I was in a rush.»

Petelina’s cell phone began to vibrate quietly on the table. The call was from Senior Lieutenant Ivan Mayorov. Elena stepped aside to the window to hear his report.

Mayorov had lingered around until the passengers had all left the train before approaching the weary-looking forty-something car attendant. He introduced himself and showed her a photo of Dmitry Maltsev.

«Do you recognize this man?»

«Why? Who is that?» the woman asked frightened. «A criminal?»

«Did your shift start yesterday?»

«Yes. We went to St. Petersburg in the evening and returned this morning. I’m about to transfer the car over to the other attendant.»

«Try and recall whether this man was among your passengers.»

«Let me see… Oh yeah, I remember. Only, here in the photo, he is sober, but last night he was a little drunk.»

«Did he get on in Moscow and get off in St. Petersburg?» inquired the operative.

«Of course – we don’t run direct.»

Mayorov put the photo away and wrote down the woman’s statement along with her number.

«Write the following here, please: „This is an accurate record of what I said.“ Then add the date and your signature.»

«Is this standard procedure?»

«Yes, don’t forget to write down your number.» Vanya stood up and put away the witness statement. «Tatyana Fedorovna Semyonova, we will call you in the event that your assistance is further required.»

«Why? I already told you everything.»

«Well, we may ask you about that bruise, for example.» Vanya had long since noticed the attendant’s black eye which she had tried to cover with blush. «An unruly passenger?»

«My husband, the bastard.» The woman became upset and turned in profile. «You’re not the only one who noticed. My supervisor did too. Now, I bet I won’t be able to work the corporate lines. And it’s all because Nikolai keeps acting like a rabid dog. But it’s okay, this time I’ll get him put away for a while.»

«They won’t give him more than fifteen days,» Mayorov said doubtfully.

«I’d like to see them try,» the woman raged. «I could go another century without seeing that pig.»

«You could just file for divorce.»

«Yeah, right. And divide up the apartment?»

The attendant placed her hands on her hips and scowled at the operative, as if he was her detested husband standing before her. Ivan backed away slowly until he stepped out onto the platform and dialed Petelina.

Elena thanked Senior Lieutenant Mayorov and as always assured him that he was destined to become a major – and not just because his surname demanded it.

Then she returned to Maltsev. His alibi had been corroborated. He was on the train at the time of his brother’s murder. The detective, however, did not experience any more compassion toward him for this fact. She went on with the interview.

«Did you warn your wife that Anton was coming?»

«Why would I? We’d just had a fight. I wasn’t about to call her.»

«Why didn’t you answer the phone when I called?»

«You did? When?»

«When you were in the train.»

«Eh, I put the phone on silent and went straight to the restaurant as soon as I got on. I had a couple drinks and then it all hit me at once: the family, Inna, problems at work…»

«Don’t forget about the other woman,» Elena decided to test out her theory.

«What? What does the other woman have to do with it?»

«So, you are cheating on your wife?»

«I’m not going to address that. My brother was murdered. Ask me about that.»

«Why did you buy a return ticket as soon as you got there? Didn’t you have a meeting to go to?»

«I told you, I got wasted. Then my mind cleared up. My little brother’s at home and I haven’t seen him in two years. And Inna needs to be calmed down. God forbid something happens to her – she’s a bit fragile, after all.»