He got out of the car and walked into the park. There was no doubt what Trokan wanted Jana to do: hide the diamond so it was not on her when she was questioned. Jana pulled it out of her bra and felt around under the seat, then found an opening at the edge of the cloth above the springs and tucked the diamond inside. She could retrieve it later. Within a few seconds Trokan emerged from the park and got into the car, sighing in satisfaction.
“Now I feel better. I trust you do too.”
He drove her to the police building. Very politely he wished her a good night, and left.
The policeman at the entrance saluted her when she came in but didn’t exchange any of the usual pleasantries, keeping his eyes fixed straight ahead. The word that she was the subject of an investigation had gotten out. She would have to expect the same treatment from the other officers, perhaps worse. She would be a pariah.
Jana needed the exercise, so she walked up to the fifth floor, passing from what was a mostly deserted building into a beehive of activity. There were uniformed police, investigators, clerks, civilians, a number of politicians she had seen on television, as well as people she had never seen before, sitting hunched on benches. There were surprises as she recognized some of them. Sila Covic, the Red Devil, was there glaring at everyone. Jana recognized a man from the finance ministry she knew slightly, and another minor official from the ministry of justice. On one end of the crowded benches sat Ivan Boryda, and on the other end sat Sofia, each of them looking unhappy, both of them trying hard not to look at the other. She was walking toward Sofia when she was intercepted by Sabina Postova, the police officer who had followed her to Switzerland.
The woman was stiff, still angry, and pleased with herself for being in a position of command now. “Jana Matinova, you’re to come with me.”
Jana ignored the slight implied by the omission of her rank. She needed to remain calm and clearheaded, ready to dispel any notions they had developed about her in relationship to whatever it was they were investigating. Sabina walked her down the corridor and into the inner offices, finally selecting one in which another policewoman was waiting. Trokan was right to have Jana get rid of the diamond: she had to undergo a strip search.
Sabina enjoyed every second of what she perceived as Jana’s humiliation, dragging it out as long as possible before permitting Jana to put her clothes back on. Sabina even gave Jana a slight push as she left the office.
“Sabina, one more push and you will regret both of them.”
“Go ahead, tell me that you’re innocent! I can’t wait to hear that coming from your mouth.”
The other officer tugged at Sabina’s arm, muttering a caution, trying to calm her down.
“She was responsible for Ludovit’s death,” Sabina hissed. “You know that, and I know that, and she should be made to admit it.”
The other woman kept talking to her, pulling her back into the room. She was forced to step in front of Postova to stop her from going after Jana as they walked to the captain’s office.
Jana knew Captain Bohumil. It was impossible for Jana not to know everyone who was in the police hierarchy in Bratislava. But she did not know Bohumil well enough to predict his moods. They were not social friends, but each was aware of the other’s reputation. Bohumil was solid, perhaps too solid; not inventive, but honest. And, of all the things Jana had going for her, she was still a commander in the police, and Bohumil was a captain. He could not forget that.
When Jana walked in, Bohumil had a recording unit on his desk and made a great show of activating it, perhaps to make her nervous enough to blurt out something incriminating. He waved an unhappy Sabina out of the office, asking Jana to sit down, motioning the other officer who had brought Jana into the room to sit in a chair that had been strategically placed to one side, in back of Jana.
“I’m Captain Bohumil.” He recited the date and place of the interview for the benefit of the recording machine. “Please state your name for the record,” he requested. Jana gave her name and police rank. Bohumil then related the rest of the required prelude to the questioning to set the stage for the interrogation. “We’re here today to discuss an investigation of official corruption, violation of customs laws and regulations, bribery, money-laundering, and official misconduct.” He droned on, citing at least a dozen felonies. At last Jana had some idea of what the investigation was about.
“Do you admit or deny any of these allegations?”
“I deny all of those charges, and any other charges. For the record, I protest the indignities I’ve already been forced to go through, and I’ll report them to both the general and the minister.”
“Your denial and protest are on the record.”
He made a notation in a notebook he had on his desk, then closed the book with a snap. “I’ll be frank. For the past six to eight weeks, we’ve been working on a case involving the smuggling of contraband both into the country and out of the country. Agencies from the other European states have been cooperating. The United States, Canada, and countries in Latin America are interested as well. Before we started the actual gathering of evidence, we heard rumors of an international criminal ring being involved in this. We began slowly gathering evidence, but it was not until six weeks ago that a credible source informed us that you were involved.”
Jana wondered who this credible source was.
“Captain, I have been involved in the investigation and prosecution of crimes for years. There are lots of people out there who would swear that I’ve committed criminal acts just to get back at me. They’d do that without a qualm, despite the lack of truth to their charges.”
“I said ‘credible,’ not ‘criminal.’”
“Obviously it’s someone who has a grievance against me.”
“I’m sure this person doesn’t.”
“Who is the person?”
“That’s confidential.”
“Then tell me what the person said.”
“That you have consistently given this criminal group inside information so they could avoid prosecution.”
Jana straightened up, pressing herself against the back of her chair, fuming at the suggestion that she would compromise any case she investigated.
“Specifically, what cases have I investigated that I set out to destroy?”
“Not your cases, Commander. My cases.”
Jana was shaken.
“Impossible. I don’t know anything about your cases. How could I? Who would tell me?”
“Then how do you explain these reports that we found in your house after we searched it yesterday?” He took a folder from his desk and waved it in the air. “Not one case report, but three. How do you explain them?”
Jana gawked at the folder, making a huge effort to pull herself together, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Impossible. I didn’t take them from this building. I didn’t have them in my house.” She started to rise and felt the hand of the officer behind her on her shoulder. She sat back down, telling herself to remain calm.
“I want to see these reports,” she said.
“They’re confidential.”
“If I’d had them, I would’ve read them already, so the information they contain would no longer be secret. Consequently, there’s no reason not to show me the reports.”
Bohumil shook his head, refusing to let her examine the reports.
“Did you run the reports you recovered for fingerprints?”
Bohumil’s eyes glazed over, then snapped back into focus. “That’s none of your business.”
“Don’t be stupid. Of course it’s my business. If I had brought those reports home and examined them closely enough to give someone information about their contents, I would have left my fingerprints on them.” Jana couldn’t stop the anger from bubbling up inside her. “You dolt, if my fingerprints were on the reports, that would be conclusive evidence that I’d handled them, hence of my guilt.” Again, she was forced to calm herself. “As well, if anyone else in your de
partment, or mine, or any other police officer handled the reports, their prints would probably be on them.”
The woman behind her finally spoke. “We’d also need to identify the chain of people fingering the reports from the time of discovery until now, Captain.”
Bohumil reluctantly nodded.
Jana turned in her chair to face the woman. “Thank you, Officer. Perhaps you have a nose for this work.” She turned back to Bohumil. “There’ll soon be a vacancy in my unit. Can you guess who it will be?”
The captain took a deep breath.
“It wasn’t Seges who informed on you.”
Each tried to outstare the other. Jana broke contact first, realizing how juvenile she was being. Another issue was also probably disturbing Bohumil. Jana had to deal with it.
“I didn’t have anything to do with the death of Ludovit in Switzerland, Captain. The Swiss police will tell you I couldn’t possibly have fired the shots that killed him. There was no reason for me to participate in a plot against him. I think Ludovit saw someone in the crowd, and they recognized each other. The person in the crowd was quicker to shoot. I think that person may have been after me, and Ludovit may have tried to stop him.”
Bohumil had a quizzical expression on his face. “You think he tried to save you?”
“I think he may have.” She waited for the information to sink in. “If that’s the case, if Ludovit tried to stop someone from killing me, we have to ask ourselves why the killer was after me. Then, perhaps, you may explain the presence of the reports in my house.”
“Are you saying that the shooter may have been after you because, in some peripheral way, you have something to do with this investigation?”
“Possible.” She thought through the events. “You searched my house to find an item you thought was there. Were you searching to find these reports, or was it some other piece of evidence you hoped to find, an object that you’d been told would be there?”
The captain fiddled with his pencil, not replying.
“A suggestion: you have insufficient evidence to take me into custody. There are leads that you have to pursue, and leads that I have to pursue. We each have to go ahead.”
The door to the office opened. Jana shifted to see who had come in.
It was Peter. He and Jana exchanged glances. Jana felt the earth giving way.
They said nothing to each other.
“I think we are finished for the moment, Commander.” Peter gestured toward the door. “You’re free to go now.”
Jana quickly looked around the room before she left. It was not apparent, but it had to be there. There was a microphone in the room, and Peter had listened to the conversation between Jana and Bohumil. That way, both men could hear exactly how she responded and would later compare their observations.
Jana did not look at Peter as she left the room. She took the stairs so she wouldn’t have to see the people who were still waiting in the entry hall. Jana wasn’t up to facing anyone. It was all she could do to walk down the steps without breaking into tears.
Chapter 30
Trokan was right: her house was a mess. She worked on it all morning and into the early part of the afternoon, and had almost finished when there was a knock on her door. Giles, his jeweled glasses prominently perched on his nose, stood outside, smiling up at her. It made Jana very uneasy. Giles knew the rules: he couldn’t come to her house under any circumstances. And the rules of the police department were every bit as explicit: police officers couldn’t privately associate or socialize with informants or known criminals. Even worse, Jana was expecting them to set up a police observation of her, and her home, because of the ongoing investigation. An officer on surveillance would have unquestionably seen Giles come up to the house. Jana opened the door, but rather than letting Giles come in, she prodded him further out.
“Walk back to the sidewalk, Giles.” She took his elbow, edging him down the walk, Giles protesting her lack of hospitality at every step.
“You know the game, Giles,” she continued. “You never come to my house. You stay away from my life.” She looked around for Spis, his bodyguard. He was sitting in a car, his face and head bandaged. The flesh outside the swathe of the bandages was bruised red, black, and purple. He appeared to be in pain. Nonetheless, Jana kept her eye on him while she talked to Giles.
“Spis looks like he was beaten. Generally, he’s the one who does the beating.”
“That’s why I came: to tell you.” He shook himself free of her hand. “To advise you of what happened. We just got back from the hospital.” He brushed himself off, adjusting his glasses. “I sent Spis on an errand. The older Guzak brother, Kristoe, was waiting for him with a club and before Spis knew it, he had been beaten into this condition.” Giles gestured at the car. “You should have seen him. Bloody all over, cuts, huge gashes in his head, teeth knocked out, four broken ribs, and bruises everywhere. He was a mess. The only reason he’s not dead is because of his impossibly thick skull.” Giles smirked at his joke. “People tried to stop it, so Guzak ran before he finished the job. He would’ve killed Spis if it had gone on any longer.”
“To get back at you,” Jana offered.
“Naturally. It was the first step to get to me. With Spis out of the way, there is an open road to killing Giles.” Giles grimaced at the thought. “That’s not joyous for me to contemplate. It hurts my stomach. I couldn’t eat breakfast this morning.” His voice took on a whine. “You owe me favors. Time to pay me.”
“I’ve given you all the favors you’re due.”
“I provided you with information just a few days ago,” Giles protested. “Are you going to let him kill me? Look what he did to poor Spis. Think of what he will do to me. I’m the one he’s really after.”
“I asked you if you wanted your favor then or in the future. You chose to take it then.”
“This is part of that favor. You told me about Guzak. Take the next step. Do something about him. Will you let him kill me? What kind of a policeman are you?” Giles’s voice was rising into a wail. “I am lost. Giles is a lost soul.” He covered his face in his hands, first making sure that his glasses were pushed up to his forehead and out of harm’s way. “Giles has just been thrown away, garbage to be disposed of without hesitation because he’s of no further use.”
Jana ignored Giles’s histrionics for a moment, looking for the officer who had been assigned to watch the house. She was across the street and down the block. It was the same detective who’d intervened between Jana and Sabina. Jana raised her hand in the woman’s direction to show her that she knew she was there; the woman raised her hand in return. She would report Giles’s presence and that Jana had refused to admit him.
“Who are you waving at?” Giles was wary, apprehensive about the woman. “She’s not a neighbor.”
“Not a neighbor,” Jana agreed. “A police officer.”
“Why is she there?” His attitude abruptly changed. “I know why. Last night, you were taken to police headquarters and questioned. She’s part of that.”
Jana put her arm on the little man’s shoulder. It was not to comfort him. “Giles had better tell me how Giles knows this fact, or Giles will find himself behind bars again.” Jana’s voice was cold and threatening. “I asked a question of Giles. How does he know?”
“You don’t have to accuse me, Commander,” Giles pouted. Then his pout turned into a sly, knowing look. “All right,” he acknowledged. “By a strange coincidence I learned about this. People who ordinarily would never talk to me ‘revealed’ you’d been brought to the main police station. They told me about the other people as well. It’s all over Bratislava. Pick up the newspaper. Your name’s not mentioned, but others are. It doesn’t take much to extrapolate from the facts set forth.”
He removed her hand from his shoulder, letting it down gently. “I’m not spying on you like your own people are. Don’t even think that, dear Commander.” He brushed off his shoulder where her hand had just rested. “Lin
t gathers on the oil left by a human touch.”
Sometimes Giles drove her crazy with his idiosyncrasies. She had to fight the urge to throttle him. It was worse today, when she had very little patience to wait the little man out.
“Giles, you’re smug. Self-satisfied. And irritating. Those aren’t great traits for a man in your business. Then again, you’re always like this when you have information to sell. You need to realize that I’ve no credit or money to buy with unless you have the goods that I want. I told you before: one hand washes the other. What kind of merchandise do you have for me today?”
He put on a woebegone expression. “Ah, you want more, always more, in return for helping poor Giles.”
“You need protection. Is that behind your visit to me?”
“I don’t want protection. People like me can’t walk around with police officers as bodyguards. It’s bad for business. I just want Guzak out of the way. Deal with him. Arrest him for what he did to Spis.”
“We can put more men on it.”
“Good. More men. That’s a start. What else can you do to get him?” He snapped his fingers. “I know, post a reward. Put out a full-scale alert for the pig. Can you do that?”
“I can,” Jana acknowledged.
“Decided, then.”
Giles stuck his hand out, hoping to seal the contract with a handclasp. Jana ignored it.
“What is it?” Giles asked, appearing bewildered.
“Your information, Giles.”
“Yes, that.” A look of disdain appeared on his face. “Always tit for tat with you. Why isn’t friendship more meaningful for police officers?”
“Giles, I told you before, we’re not friends.”
“I refuse to believe that, not after all we’ve been through together.”
“We haven’t been through anything together. If you remember, I was the one who put you in prison.”
Giles ignored her statement, played at pondering what he should tell her, seemed to decide that he couldn’t get any more favors from her, and came out with what he had.
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