show up. Probably he was still fast asleep in his bed.
If that was how I was supposed to feel I decided to do it differently. So instead of breakfasting on my fingernails and wearing out my cheap shoes pacing round the room, I tried a little self-relaxation, or whatever it was that Dr Meyer had called it. Eyes closed, breathing deeply through my nose, my mind concentrated on a simple shape, I managed to remain calm. So calm I didn’t even hear the door. After a while I opened my eyes and stared into the face of the bull who had come in. He nodded slowly.
‘Well, you’re a cool one,’ he said, picking up my magazine.
‘Aren’t I just?’ I looked at my watch. Half an hour had gone by. ‘You took your time.’
‘Did I? I’m sorry. Glad you weren’t bored though. I can see you expected to be here a while.’
‘Doesn’t everyone?’ I shrugged, watching a boil the size of a wheel-nut rub at the edge of his greasy collar.
When he spoke his voice came from deep within him, his scarred chin dipping down to his broad chest like a cabaret tenor.
‘Oh yes,’ he said. ‘You’re a private detective, aren’t you? A professional smart-ass. Do you mind me asking, what kind of a living do you people make?’
‘What’s the matter, the bribes not coming in regular enough for you?’ He forced himself to smile through that one. ‘I do all right.’
‘Don’t you find that it gets lonely? I mean, you’re a bull down here, you’ve got friends.’
‘Don’t make me laugh. I’ve got a partner, so I get all the friendly shoulder to cry on I need, right?’
‘Oh yes. Your partner. That would be Bruno Stahlecker, wouldn’t it?’
‘That’s right. I could give you his address if you like, but I think he’s married.’
‘All right, Gunther. You’ve proved you’re not scared. No need to make a performance out of it. You were picked up at 4.30. It’s now seven — ’
‘Ask a policeman if you want the right time.’
‘ — but you still haven’t asked anyone why you’re here.’
‘I thought that’s what we were talking about.’
‘Were we? Assume I’m ignorant. That shouldn’t be too difficult for a smart-ass like you. What did we say?’
‘Oh shit, look, this is your sideshow, not mine, so don’t expect me to bring up the curtain and work the fucking lights. You go right ahead with your act and I’ll just try to laugh and clap in the right places.’
‘Very well,’ he said, his voice hardening. ‘So where were you last night?’
‘At home.’
‘Got an alibi?’
‘Yeah. My teddy bear. I was in bed, asleep.’
‘And before that?’
‘I was seeing a client.’
‘Mind telling me who?’
‘Look, I don’t like this. What are we trawling for? Tell me now, or I don’t say another lousy word.’
‘We’ve got your partner downstairs.’
‘What’s he supposed to have done?’
‘What he’s done is get himself killed.’
I shook my head. ‘Killed?’
‘Murdered, to be rather more precise. That’s what we usually call it in these sort of circumstances.’
‘Shit,’ I said, closing my eyes again.
‘That’s my act, Gunther. And I do expect you to help me with the curtain and the lights.’ He jabbed a forefinger against my numb chest. ‘So let’s have some fucking answers, eh?’
‘You stupid bastard. You don’t think I had anything to do with it, do you? Christ, I was the only friend he had. When you and all your cute friends here at the Alex managed to have him posted out to some backwater in Spreewald, I was the one who came through for him. I was the one who appreciated that despite his awkward lack of enthusiasm for the Nazis, he was still a good bull.’ I shook my head bitterly, and swore again.
‘When did you last see him?’
‘Last night, around eight o’clock. I left him in the car park behind the Metropol on Nollendorfplatz.’
‘Was he working?’
‘Yes.’
‘Doing what?’
‘Tailing someone. No, keeping someone under
If that was how I was supposed to feel I decided to do it differently. So instead of breakfasting on my fingernails and wearing out my cheap shoes pacing round the room, I tried a little self-relaxation, or whatever it was that Dr Meyer had called it. Eyes closed, breathing deeply through my nose, my mind concentrated on a simple shape, I managed to remain calm. So calm I didn’t even hear the door. After a while I opened my eyes and stared into the face of the bull who had come in. He nodded slowly.
‘Well, you’re a cool one,’ he said, picking up my magazine.
‘Aren’t I just?’ I looked at my watch. Half an hour had gone by. ‘You took your time.’
‘Did I? I’m sorry. Glad you weren’t bored though. I can see you expected to be here a while.’
‘Doesn’t everyone?’ I shrugged, watching a boil the size of a wheel-nut rub at the edge of his greasy collar.
When he spoke his voice came from deep within him, his scarred chin dipping down to his broad chest like a cabaret tenor.
‘Oh yes,’ he said. ‘You’re a private detective, aren’t you? A professional smart-ass. Do you mind me asking, what kind of a living do you people make?’
‘What’s the matter, the bribes not coming in regular enough for you?’ He forced himself to smile through that one. ‘I do all right.’
‘Don’t you find that it gets lonely? I mean, you’re a bull down here, you’ve got friends.’
‘Don’t make me laugh. I’ve got a partner, so I get all the friendly shoulder to cry on I need, right?’
‘Oh yes. Your partner. That would be Bruno Stahlecker, wouldn’t it?’
‘That’s right. I could give you his address if you like, but I think he’s married.’
‘All right, Gunther. You’ve proved you’re not scared. No need to make a performance out of it. You were picked up at 4.30. It’s now seven — ’
‘Ask a policeman if you want the right time.’
‘ — but you still haven’t asked anyone why you’re here.’
‘I thought that’s what we were talking about.’
‘Were we? Assume I’m ignorant. That shouldn’t be too difficult for a smart-ass like you. What did we say?’
‘Oh shit, look, this is your sideshow, not mine, so don’t expect me to bring up the curtain and work the fucking lights. You go right ahead with your act and I’ll just try to laugh and clap in the right places.’
‘Very well,’ he said, his voice hardening. ‘So where were you last night?’
‘At home.’
‘Got an alibi?’
‘Yeah. My teddy bear. I was in bed, asleep.’
‘And before that?’
‘I was seeing a client.’
‘Mind telling me who?’
‘Look, I don’t like this. What are we trawling for? Tell me now, or I don’t say another lousy word.’
‘We’ve got your partner downstairs.’
‘What’s he supposed to have done?’
‘What he’s done is get himself killed.’
I shook my head. ‘Killed?’
‘Murdered, to be rather more precise. That’s what we usually call it in these sort of circumstances.’
‘Shit,’ I said, closing my eyes again.
‘That’s my act, Gunther. And I do expect you to help me with the curtain and the lights.’ He jabbed a forefinger against my numb chest. ‘So let’s have some fucking answers, eh?’
‘You stupid bastard. You don’t think I had anything to do with it, do you? Christ, I was the only friend he had. When you and all your cute friends here at the Alex managed to have him posted out to some backwater in Spreewald, I was the one who came through for him. I was the one who appreciated that despite his awkward lack of enthusiasm for the Nazis, he was still a good bull.’ I shook my head bitterly, and swore again.
‘When did you last see him?’
‘Last night, around eight o’clock. I left him in the car park behind the Metropol on Nollendorfplatz.’
‘Was he working?’
‘Yes.’
‘Doing what?’
‘Tailing someone. No, keeping someone under
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