The Defeated Aristocrat (14 page)

‘The first two notes were pushed through the door of the Richters’s house around three in the morning. After Lilli Richter received the first note, I stationed men in the turret of a house opposite the Richters’s that overlooks their front door. Klein and another officer were there and awake the night Lilli received the note about Dresdner.’

‘They saw who left the notes?’

‘They heard the bell ring at three a.m. They saw no one approach the front door.’

‘That’s strange.’

‘It gets stranger. Lilli said the third note was delivered around seven o’clock this morning. Her caretaker heard the doorbell ring but he was busy helping the coal man make a delivery through the cellar door which is at the opposite end of the building to the front door. By the time he went into the house and opened the front door, whoever had delivered the note had left. He took the note to Lilli and she telephoned HQ as soon as she read it. I visited her within the hour, examined the note, picked up Klein, then came here and found Gluck’s body. Klein swears he heard the Richters’s’ doorbell ring shortly before seven o’clock but saw no one in the street other than the coal man and the caretaker, and they were nowhere near the front door.’

‘Can the doorbell be rung from inside the house?’ Wolf asked.

‘I have no idea,’ Georg conceded.

Wolf hesitated. ‘Do you think the murderer could be living in the Richters’s house?’

‘I think that’s something I’m hoping you’ll find out, Mau.’

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Inn on Kohlmarkt, The Kneiphof, Konigsberg, Saturday January 11th 1919

After Georg left the room, Wolf moved to the chair that overlooked the street. Half a dozen kriminalassistents were standing stiffly to attention in the sub-zero temperature manning the barricades around the hotel. He recalled Peter mentioning that the lowest rank of police officer equated to that of army corporal. It was steep demotion for a colonel, but he wasn’t complaining. Not after seeing the crowds of unemployed men who had nowhere to go other than street corners.

Martha was a born manager and with free accommodation either in the Richters’s or Gebaur Strasse, his wage, plus produce from the estate – provided Franz hadn’t run it completely into the ground – he, Heinrich and Martha would survive. If extra was needed for clothes or school books for his son there was the money Johanna had secreted in Baumgarten’s.

He remembered the murder victims as they’d been in life. Comrades if not friends. They’d fought side by side, lived together for the best part of five years – a fifth of his life. Men he’d trusted to stand with him against the enemy, even ones like Helmut he’d taken an aversion to.

There’d been a strong bond between the surviving officers of the Konigsberg volunteers who’d enlisted together in 1914. So strong that he and Peter had discharged themselves from the hospital tent where they’d been recuperating from wounds as soon as they heard a ‘push’ was imminent. Even Anton had tried to join them although he’d taken a bullet in the chest and could barely breathe, let alone rise from his cot.

Desperately short of men, the generals had encouraged the sick and wounded to return to the front line. Battle-hardened by four years in the trenches, his regiment had been the first ordered to advance, and the first to be marooned behind Allied lines when the Australians and British had counter-attacked. Surrounded by forces superior in both arms and numbers, he’d passed down the order to retreat.

His leg wound had re-opened during the battle. He couldn’t walk. Peter had refused to leave him, as had Ralf and Josef because they’d believed the British would shoot him when they saw his colonel’s insignia. They’d insisted it was their duty to ‘protect’ him but when the Australians arrived and pointed their guns, their only option was to drop their weapons and raise their hands.

Would Peter and the others have evaded capture if they hadn’t stayed with him? Helmut Norde was with them because he’d lacked the courage to obey the order to retreat. But dwelling on the last battle they’d fought was no help in tracking down the murderer of his brother-in-law, Dresdner, and Gluck

Were the killings the result of Anton and Dresdner’s roving eye? The anger of a jealous husband saddled with a wife who’d forgotten her ‘forsaking all others’ vow? If so, it didn’t explain Gluck’s murder.

Was there something more sinister behind the murders and mutilations? A factor connected with the regiment and the war? Or as Martin had suggested, ritual killings inspired by the occult and engineered by one of the political groups that were vying for supremacy in post-war Germany?

He picked up the photographs Georg had given him and was studying them when the kriminaldirektor returned.

Wolf took the file with him when he accompanied Georg up the back staircase and down the main stairs to the entrance hall where Klein was standing guard. After introducing Wolf, Georg opened the door to Room Two.

To Wolf’s surprise his brother was examining the corpse.

‘Good morning again,’ Martin greeted him.

‘You haven’t seen Dr von Mau, Klein, Herr Mau,’ Georg cautioned. ‘He isn’t here.’

‘Yes, sir,’ Klein closed the door on them.

‘What can you tell us, Dr von Mau?’ Georg asked.

‘There are marked differences between this corpse and that of my brother-in-law, sir. This man was mutilated after death, not before. The genitals have been placed glans first in the mouth, in reverse position to the last corpse where the tip of the penis was projecting out.’

‘So the arrangement of the body is different from the first two victims,’ Georg checked.

‘I didn’t attend the first corpse, sir.’

‘More’s the pity,’ Georg reached for the file Wolf was holding. ‘Would you look at the photographs of the first scene for me please, Doctor?’

‘There’s a question of professional courtesy, sir. Dr Feiner was in attendance …’

‘As Kriminaldirektor I have the right to demand a second opinion on evidence at the crime scene. As for professional courtesy, Dr von Mau, I can see how it would apply if there was a dispute between experts on the treatment of a living patient but it’s hardly applicable in a criminal case. A murderer is loose in the city. It’s my duty to apprehend the killer and ensure the streets are safe for people to go about their lawful business without fear of murder or mutilation.’

‘As you put it like that, I’d be happy to study the photographs, sir,’ Martin took the file.

‘You said there were differences between the way this victim was left and Dresdner ?’ Georg prompted.

‘No branks fitted to the head. No securing of the hands and feet to the bed, and no bruises to suggest he’d been tied. No carving of letters on the chest. He’s fully dressed not stripped. His clothes have smears of coal dust. As if someone tried to brush it off but ingrained it in the cloth. My interim report.’ He handed Georg a notepad.

Georg read Martin’s handwritten notes while Martin studied the photographs of von Braunsch.

‘Gluck has a head wound?’ Georg noted.

‘More than one. He was struck several times by a long slim object, possibly metal, possibly wood. The impact fractured his skull and left these marks.’ Martin parted the hair of the corpse.

‘Looks like he was beaten by a stick?’

‘Could well be, sir, although anything of a similar size would make those marks. A rod, poker, even a whip handle.’

‘The blows killed him?’

‘I won’t know until I carry out a post mortem. The blows would have stunned him, possibly rendered him unconscious. But this is Dr Feiner’s case …’

‘Not for much longer if I have my way,’ Georg interposed.

‘The genitals of this man were removed after blood pooling. I’d say he’d been dead at least two hours before they were cut away.’

‘Explain blood pooling,’ Georg interrupted.

‘When the heart ceases pumping the blood “pools” to the lowest point in the body. He was laid out on his back for some time after death. See the lividity – discolouration of the skin here.’ Martin rolled the corpse on its side and lifted the tunic and vest. ‘The skin is red and blotchy because blood flowed into the vessels below the surface, filling them. The blood vessels on the front have been drained so the skin is marbled.’

‘How long would the victim have had to lie on his back for that to happen?’

‘At least two to three hours . You can see from the rigidity of the corpse rigor mortis has set in. That usually indicates death occurred between two and six hours before. But I can’t use that to suggest a time of death in this case because it’s freezing outside and cold can delay and prolong rigor.’

‘You think this victim was murdered in the open air?’

‘His hair and jacket were slightly damp, but no more than they would be if he stepped out into a snowfall for a few minutes. I’ve found no evidence that points to him being outdoors for any length of time,’ Martin answered.

‘Could he have been murdered in this room?’

‘It’s possible, but as the lack of blood suggests that mutilation was carried out hours after death, the killer would either have had to remain with the body or return later.’

‘Which would have increased the risk of being caught,’ Georg observed.

‘I can’t see a killer sitting with the corpse of a man he’s murdered, or coming back to the scene of the crime. Do we know what time the room was rented?’ Wolf asked.

‘It wasn’t,’ Georg answered. ‘The night clerk was adamant the key to this room was hanging on the hook behind the desk when he left reception at six a.m. When my officers woke him around eight this morning, it had gone and the corpse was in the room.’

‘Was the front door locked?’

‘Both inner and outer front doors were closed but not locked. Apparently the inn has market traders among the regular guests who leave in the early hours to set up their stalls.’

‘So anyone could have brought the corpse into the hotel early this morning.’ Wolf took the file from Martin.

‘So it appears,’ Georg concurred. ‘You said his clothes were damp …’

‘Slightly damp,’ Martin emphasised.

‘Snow was falling when I picked up the note. You can’t give me a better indication of time of death?’ Georg pressed.

‘Any sightings you have of the victim would be more use than anything I can tell you,’ Martin said.

‘The last confirmed sighting we have of Gluck is when he signed off his day shift at Police HQ at seven thirty yesterday evening. Can I keep these?’ Georg held up the notes Martin had given him.

‘Of course. I should be able to give you more detailed observations if I complete a post mortem.’

‘It’s amazing how much you can determine from a corpse.’ Wolf was impressed by his brother’s summation.

‘Surprised I did something other than drink beer and schnapps in university?’

‘Surprised corpses can be read like a book. We had a surfeit of them on the Western Front. All we did was dig holes and bury them. The newspaper articles on the first two murders … the photographs that were taken at the scenes …’ Wolf hesitated.

‘I’d welcome your opinion, Mau,’ Georg encouraged.

‘The lack of branks, blood, restraints on the wrists and ankles, the blow to the head, this murder is different from the first two. Could it have been carried out by someone who read about the first two in the newspapers and wanted the police to think it was the work of the same killer?’

‘It could, or perhaps this victim struggled more than the first two and was killed before the murderer could mutilate him,’ Georg suggested. ‘In which case there would be no point in tying him up or fitting a branks to stop him from screaming.’

‘The reports I read in the papers said nothing about the scolds’ bridles.’ Wolf glanced at the photographs again.

‘I try to keep at least one piece of evidence from the press because of idiots who enjoy confessing to crimes they haven’t committed. There are homeless who’d regard a cell, even a cold one with three indifferent meals a day, a luxury. Especially if they have an alibi for the time of the murder, they can produce at a later date to save them from the guillotine.’

Wolf looked up from a photograph of Anton’s body. ‘If Gluck fought back and was killed by an unlucky blow before the murderer intended him to die, his body could have been mutilated and arranged after death solely to suggest a connection to the others.’

‘If that’s the case I’d like to know why the killer chose an inn this time not a brothel.’ Georg moved to the window.

‘Gluck was a drunk, not a womaniser,’ Wolf reminded him. ‘If the killer invited him to a brothel it’s possible he refused.’

‘Good suggestion, Mau. It’s time to contact the victims’ comrades and warn them they need to be on their guard. Thank you again, Dr von Mau. I’ll talk to my superiors and recommend that you’re officially instated as Police Doctor.’

‘Whether I receive an official appointment or not, I would be happy to assist you in any way I can, Kriminaldirektor.’

‘Without payment, Dr von Mau?’

Martin dropped his notepad into his doctor’s bag. ‘Money is of no consequence, Kriminaldirektor. You’re investigating the murder of my brother-in-law. His killer needs to be brought to justice.’

‘Thank you. I appreciate your assistance.’ Georg tapped the door, Klein opened it. ‘See the doctor out.’ Georg waited until Martin left before turning to Wolf. ‘Dedleff Gluck was a brute and a bully who beat his wife senseless, but he didn’t deserve to suffer those indignities in death.’

‘Few men deserve the indignities heaped upon them before, during, or after death.’

‘You’re thinking of the war?’

‘I regard any man who dies peacefully in his own bed as fortunate.’

Georg opened the door. ‘You can leave here after the undertaker removes the body, Klein.’

‘Do you want me to inform the family, sir?’ Klein asked.

‘No, I will,’ Georg replied.

Georg and Wolf returned to the room off the back staircase. Georg refilled their beer glasses. ‘Have you considered my proposition?’

‘Yes. I accept, sir.’

‘And the conditions that no officer other than Peter, Blau, Klein and myself know you are working for me, and you live in an apartment in the Richters’s house?’