Nemesis: Innocence Sold (12 page)

She sighed and abandoned her place in the morning sun. Sitting around inactive for two hours, without a computer or cell phone—hers had said farewell with a plaintive beep due to a dead battery—was unthinkable. So she’d make her way to the swimming complex.

She indecisively looked at the sign in the entrance area that announced that the sports pool would be closed until nine thirty. It had been years since she had been to this complex, but Daniel and his comrades weren’t likely to be swimming in the wave pool or the kiddie pool. Finally she showed her police identification to the lady at the cash register, whose white outfit was offset by pink fingernails and a matching hair band, and pointed to the sign. “Good morning. I was going to pick up my boyfriend, but I’m here too early. Can I go in? I assure you I haven’t hidden a swimsuit in my jeans.”

“If you take your shoes off before you enter the tiled area, it’s all right. Does your boyfriend also work for the police? We’ve been wondering for a while who we’ve been reserving the sports pool for.”

Sandra smiled, and the woman shook her head, causing her ponytail to whip back and forth. “I didn’t think I was going to get an answer. And the jackpot’s up to nearly a hundred euros.”

“What jackpot?”

“Everyone’s put in some money, and the one who finds out who the boys are gets the entire pot.”

“Well, then it would be unfair if I gave it away.” With a wink, Sandra took the plastic chip she would need to get through the turnstile.

“Fifty-fifty,” the woman said with a laugh in her voice. Sandra shook her head. “Damn, then I’ll keep trying through accounting. If I find out who’s paying the bill, I’ve won. MEK? SEK? GSG 9?” she said and twisted her ponytail.

“Lord, you certainly have an active imagination,” Sandra said, deciding to give Daniel a tip regarding the accounting. If it specified US Navy, curious reporters might show up soon.

With her socks and shoes in hand, Sandra went through the changing area and hoped that the glass door would save her a trip through the showers. This turned out to be the case. She passed the children’s area, which was decorated with a ship-and-Captain-Bluebear figure, and the wave pool, which were both still empty. It was only in a pool behind a pane of glass that she saw a number of seniors in hip-deep water following the instructions of a pool attendant. The passage to the sports pool was blocked by two ladies and their cleaning cart. The attention of these ladies, who both appeared to be over fifty, was not focused on the floor that was supposed to be mopped but on what was going on in front of them, and Sandra couldn’t blame them. In separate lanes, three men were plowing through the water at breathtaking speed. With a murmured apology, she squeezed past the cart with the cleaning products and didn’t stop until she had almost run into a wet man’s chest. Her gaze rose, and she was at first inspected from a height of a good six and a half feet.

“If you’re not Doc’s little friend, you can give me your gun and tell me what you’re doing here.”

She was getting used to this tone, but it still surprised her that her gun—well, Daniel’s gun—had been noticed by the man despite the fact that it was hidden under her T-shirt and blazer. But for the time being she refrained from answering because one of the swimmers held on to the edge of the pool instead of turning around. Mark. “Little?” she answered with a smile. “Next to you I guess everyone seems little, even your boss. Do you have a name, too? Or should I call you Big Guy?”

Grinning broadly, he held out a hand, though
paw
would have been a more appropriate designation. “Fox is fine. James Huntington, if you want to be official.”

Sandra shook his hand. “I don’t. Sandra. Sandra Meinke.”

“That’s what I thought, Sandy.” The man must have had something wrong with his ears, but on the other hand, the shortening of her name, if pronounced with an American accent, appealed to her. “Pay attention. You’ll see something interesting in a moment.”

Mark, Jake, and a red-haired man Sandra didn’t know had reduced their speed on their way back and finally let themselves drift near the diving tower. After a shrill whistle from Mark, Fox pointed to the five-meter tower. Sandra took a step forward but was immediately stopped. “Don’t be afraid. He still has to make up for something, and he has volunteered for this crap. A nice gesture from your boyfriend—I hate this shit.”

Shit? That didn’t begin to describe the situation Daniel was in. Blindfolded, with his hands bound behind his back, he balanced on the diving board sixteen feet above the water. Without warning, Tom pushed him off. To his credit, he immediately followed Daniel by executing an elegant dive, but Sandra nevertheless held her breath. Daniel had only halfway managed to enter the water feetfirst; the impact must have hurt like hell. And how was he supposed to rise to the surface?

Other than her, everyone seemed relaxed. There was no sign of Tom or Daniel. Worried, she stepped closer to the edge of the pool and tried to see down. She jumped back when a shadow unexpectedly detached itself from the light blue, and Daniel appeared in front of her, snorting and spitting out water. He was immediately followed by Tom, who grinned with satisfaction. “New record, Danny Boy. Congratulations!” he said in English.

“You’re dead if you call me Danny one more time,
Tommy
. Good morning, Sandy. Are you out this early already?” Daniel switched effortlessly back and forth between English and German, while Sandra was unable to produce a coherent sentence and was waiting for her racing heart to slow down.

Fox smiled and explained the way the exercise went and its main purpose, which was to practice fighting panic and remaining calm. Still, Sandra was unable to understand how one was supposed to bring one’s hands in front of one’s body, free oneself from the bonds, and then also cover a significant distance underwater after a fall like that. In her eyes that was an insane achievement, but she understood from the faces of the men around her that speed was also a priority. Although she would have preferred to bombard him with further questions, she abstained. She would find out later how Daniel had managed to free his hands.

CHAPTER 12

Three hours later, Sandra was standing in the outer office of the chief of police and doubting her sanity. Had she just drunk an excellent cup of coffee in a thoroughly pleasant atmosphere? Had Tannhäuser actually listened attentively to her and then essentially given her and Daniel free rein during the investigation even if Sven was officially leading the investigation? Daniel as her partner? And the support of Dirk and Sven and the other SEALs? She figured she would wake up in a few minutes and find herself back at her old police station.

A light tap on her arm brought her out of her thoughts. Daniel looked amused; she heard a laugh in his voice. “Are you coming? Stephan’s starting to get impatient.”

“Sorry, I . . . How do you do that? You set that up yesterday when you were supposed to be talking to Jake about your vacation.”

“What’s so strange about that? Dirk and Sven have helped us as often as they could, and it’s only natural we should help them out, too. Of course, making it official with the ID card and everything is new, but it’s no big deal. I’ll get used to it. Sven and Dirk have enough other stuff on their desks, and no one’s as familiar with this case as you. As an involved party, Dirk has to be careful. It’s really a perfect fit.”

“But that still doesn’t tell me . . .”

Stephan sighed deeply and caused Sandra to pause. “If you don’t know why Doc’s doing this, I can’t help you. Can we get started? I still have an appointment with Raddatz.”

“The department head who’s responsible?”

“Exactly. Even if Sven and Dirk are going to be leading the investigation, and I am going to be responsible for human resources, I don’t want to circumvent him completely. Certainly, he’s already given us a crash course, but I want to know why no one followed up on your information and what he has on the assigned colleagues in Lübeck.”

“In accordance with the motto
Trust no one
?”

Instead of smiling as she had expected, Stephan remained serious. “Exactly for that reason. But please keep in mind that that does not apply to your superior. No solo action. You keep me, Dirk, and Sven posted, and before you arrest one of them for proceeding in an unconventional manner, talk to me first. Understood?”

The subtle reference to Mark caused Sandra to grimace before she quickly nodded.

On her way to the drug unit offices, Sandra thought about Stephan’s words. Unofficially, then, no distinction was made between Dirk and Sven, and it appeared not to be the first time that the two had been supported in their solo actions by Stephan’s people or had worked together with the SEALs. Her list of questions for Daniel was getting longer and longer; now she just needed an appropriate opportunity to ask him.

Instead of going directly into his office, Stephan pointed to the large office next door and smiled. “We’ll take care of the official round of introductions later; we need to see Kaspar now. He ought to be sitting with Kat and Lars.”

Kat, Lars, and a man in his forties who was bald and had the beginnings of a potbelly were sitting around a desk strewn with papers. They had been engaged in deep conversation but sat up straight when Stephan came in.

“You know Kat and Lars. That only leaves Kaspar Schmelling, my assistant. He makes sure things run smoothly around here; without him we’d be screwed.”

Like Lars, Kaspar had stood up, and extended his hand to her. “Welcome to the team, Sandra. I’ve already heard about your unusual start. You’re really shaking the place up. Once you’ve solved your first case with your partner, we’ll sit down in peace and quiet and take care of the formalities. There’s some training you should go through and so on. And no doubt you know that from now on you can’t lock up your gun at the station but have to keep it at home and comply with certain conditions.” He held out an envelope. “Your new ID, and I still need an overview of the sites you’ve served and your training. It would be best if you . . .”

His eyes raised to the ceiling, Stephan held up a hand. “Stop, Kaspar. You’re completely right, but let her have a little time first. We’ll take care of all that stuff later. After the conference with Raddatz, the two have an appointment in Lübeck, and before that they have to make a stop at Sandra’s old station. Kat, Lars, you know Doc. If he needs additional support beyond Dirk and Sven, you’re it, and that also goes for our colleagues from the rest of the department. I’ll send around an e-mail to that effect later. I imagine it’s not necessary to mention that any instructions from him are to be followed as if they came from me. Apart from you three, the official word is that Daniel’s been assigned to us in a special case within the framework of legal and administrative assistance. You know who Daniel works for, but otherwise his employer is of no interest. Any questions?”

Confused, Lars looked back and forth from Sandra to Daniel. “Several. Have I understood this correctly? You’re working with Doc? I don’t understand anything at all anymore. Why? On what? By the way, Daniel, it’s nice to see you. Oh, yes, and of course, welcome to the team. I mean Sandra—you and I know each other, although last time you were here as a visitor and not so much our boss.”

“Man, Lars, think for a minute, now.” Kat rolled her eyes and embraced Sandra. The impulse fit the lively policewoman, and Sandra immediately responded to the hearty greeting. Her brow furrowed, Kat sat down on the desk. “I’m figuring this out—something of which men, at least that one there, aren’t capable.” She ignored Lars’s outrage as well as Daniel’s grin. “It’s about Tim, of course. Logical, because Dirk and Stephan work closely together. That explains the support from Daniel and company because Mark and Dirk are also close. I just don’t understand how Sandra’s involved.”

Lars waved this off. “Great, you master detective. And what makes you think of Tim?”

“Raddatz is waiting for Stephan, Watson. Therefore what’s behind the attempted kidnapping is not revenge but organized crime, and Sandra has no doubt been onto that somehow. And once again we see why I’m the brains of this operation, and you’re the muscle. At least now I’m getting decent reinforcement. It’s about time.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Lars began, but he was interrupted by Stephan, who was smiling.

“That’s enough. Sandra, fill them in. I’ll take on Raddatz by myself and follow up afterward. If you participated in the conference, he’d want to—or have to—justify himself. I think it’ll be more productive if I talk to him one-on-one.”

Sandra watched in disbelief as Stephan went into his office and closed the door behind him.

“What now?” Daniel asked.

“I’m not accustomed to having my boss tell me why he does what he does so I won’t feel left out.”

Rather than dismissing Sandra’s explanation, Daniel nodded. “I know what you mean. Not everyone’s as lucky with bosses as we are. But now summarize the whole thing for your colleagues. Stephan’s conference isn’t going to take forever.”

Although everything in her resisted Daniel’s authoritarian tone, she obeyed. After Stephan’s clear instructions, it didn’t make sense to tell him off in front of her colleagues; she could do that in private later. Kat’s wink told Sandra that she had guessed her thoughts at least partially. As she had earlier, Sandra started with her assignment at the center for asylum seekers, and she ended with gesturing around the office. “And so finally I ended up here.”

Lars gave a quiet whistle. “I’ve gotten used to ordering my books on the Internet, but the fact that one can order children, too, is unbelievable.”

“Yes, it is.” Sandra slammed the flat of her hand down on the desk so violently that Lars jerked back in shock.

“What?”

“Since last night I’ve been thinking about what’s been bothering me and haven’t been able to figure it out. It’s no wonder, in view of all the chaos. But the decisive question is of course why they targeted Tim and Eric, the little Dutch kid. If someone wants a blond boy with brown eyes, they’re not going to go out and check every playground, of course. In the case of Tim, it was planned somehow, with that fake gardening job. They must have some kind of catalog? A stockroom? Like an online shop? I don’t know, it sounds sick, but . . .”

“Keep going, Sandy. That sounds good. Schools? Day care centers?” Daniel said, considering.

“That wouldn’t fit the case of little Eric. He was on vacation with his parents on Fehmarn.”

“Newspaper,” Kat said and dug around on her desk until she finally pulled out the
Hamburger Abendblatt
from beneath a stack of files. “Lars, google the boy and the words
castle competition
.” She unfolded the newspaper and handed it to Sandra. “Maybe they deviated from their usual system here. I read this this morning, and it really made me lose my appetite. Take a look at the photo.” Eric stood laughing with a trophy in his hand in front of a truly enormous sand castle. His brown eyes could be seen well. In the text, the reporter described the family vacation’s tragic end.

“I have it,” Lars said. “The report on the contest, including the photo of the boy, was in the
Lübecker Nachrichten
and the
Abendblatt
two days ago. Probably it was in some local rags as well, but I’m not going to find them this way.”

“You don’t need to. I’m guessing Lübeck and therefore
Lübecker Nachrichten
,” Sandra said, earning broad agreement.

“All right, that’s how they found Eric. The question of how they proceed otherwise remains. Blond hair and brown eyes is a rare combination,” Lars said, thinking aloud. “Maybe it’s what Daniel was thinking about: day care centers, schools, clubs. That would make sense, but how would it work?”

They were at a loss, and silence spread until Daniel took out his cell phone and dialed. “Maybe Alex will have an idea. Will you explain what we want from her, Sandy?”

Sandra reluctantly took the phone. Sandra was surprised that Alex greeted her in friendly fashion, switched to the informal
du
as if this were a given, and in no way resembled the fury who had attacked her in the past. “I understand what you’re getting at. I don’t have an idea off the top of my head—I can only say that there wasn’t a picture of Tim in any newspaper. But I’ll postpone my appointment this morning and have a talk with the head of the day care center. Can I reach you at Daniel’s number?”

“Yes.”

“Good. I’ll be in touch when I have something. And, Sandra?”

Here it came. “Yes.”

“Thanks for all your efforts and everything. This is going a bit beyond your normal job.”

“Well, somebody has to do it, and it’s time to get these bastards.”

“You’re right about that. Talk to you soon.”

Sandra hung up and looked at Daniel. “Get everything?”

“Yes. Now we’ll see what Stephan has to say.” He nodded at Stephan, who was quickly coming closer but first looked at each of them in turn.

“Anything new?”

In precise and brief words, Sandra updated him, earning an approving nod.

“Good work. Raddatz is sorry that they didn’t take action back then. His assistant was overworked. His application for early retirement was just approved. Honestly, it’s a wonder our colleagues last that long given what they work with. I’m very glad we’ll be able to go back to our usual business after this. However, he also mentioned that there have long been indications of increased activity in Northern Germany. Lübeck is involved again and again, but he doesn’t know of any intensified investigations there. That could mean something but maybe not.”

Daniel tilted his head to the side in thought. “Add that flawed missing-persons report, and the picture becomes clearer. But we’ll see how the Lübeckers react when we talk to them later.”

“I hope you’re wrong. Keep me posted. Do you need a car?”

“No. I’m here with Dirk’s Audi. We’ll drive together, and there’s a car waiting for me in Lübeck.” Daniel winked at Sandra. “Sorry,
us
.”

“And why aren’t we driving back to Hamburg with those two?” Sandra asked.

“Because we’re still going to make a side trip in Lübeck. I want to see what my new partner can do.”

“Good idea. Thanks, Doc. See you,” Stephan said and went back into his office, leaving Sandra behind, perplexed.

“I love the way you guys communicate. It’s like you’re twins who barely have to speak to understand each other. Really great, Daniel. What was all that about?” Sandra asked.

“It’ll be a surprise.”

Dirk parked the Audi behind two patrol cars, blocking them in. Before the trip there had been some friendly banter about the seating arrangement that had ended with Sandra and Daniel sitting in the back. “Should one of us go with you?” Sven asked.

“All of you,” Sandra would have preferred to answer, but she silently shook her head.

“I’ll come with you anyway. A little backup won’t hurt, partner,” Daniel said. “As long as you don’t need me, I’ll make myself invisible.”

Sandra shrugged and got out. She could still remember the expectations she had when she had looked at the entrance months ago. After only a few days she had come here reluctantly, until she absolutely had to force herself not to turn around and forget the whole thing. Gritting her teeth, she pushed open the entrance door. She should have felt triumph or relief that that time was behind her; instead there was only rage at how a station leader could rule with such absolute power and how up to now she had had no way to escape him.

Claus Laatz stood at the reception desk. His gray-green eyes looked at her with concern from behind his Harry Potter glasses. “It’s about time you got here. The old man’s really pissed. Just take care of the crap on your desk—I’ll say you’ve been here for a while.”

The kind gesture didn’t surprise her. Claus had always been friendly to her, while her other colleagues had been distant since it had become obvious that she topped the list of people her boss wanted to shoot down. “Thanks, Claus. But I just want to empty my locker and pick up my gun. Then I’ll be gone—forever.”