Devil of Delphi: A Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis Mystery

by Jeffrey Siger

  “‘It is the West’s greatest nightmare. An insoluble situation many say. And one Teacher has exploited as ruthlessly as anyone on earth. She has convinced an army of the exploited that they have the power to change their lives. That any who desire simple protection from those who would do them physical harm should join her on the path to a better life.

  “‘She preaches that words alone are not enough for those in mortal fear, and that praying for a better life is not the way. She proves her point by telling them what they already know: that the criminal beast can never be killed off in this world. Far too many want the sex and slaves and drugs that it offers. What she offers, on the other hand, is to tame the beast a bit. To teach those who traffic in evil that it is far wiser to pay the small share she asks for on behalf of her flock than face the assassination and torture she would bring upon them and their families.

  “‘She lives in no one place. She has no family. She lives a private life away from prying eyes. It is said she has no vices because she’s done them all and has attained a state far above what they promise.’”

  Andreas stopped. No one spoke for a moment.

  “That’s all the information we have except for one bit of gossip. And I quote,

  “‘Virtually all in Eastern Europe who fear her are praying the rumor that she’s terminally ill is true. They believe no one who assumes her role could be as ruthless as Teacher.’”

  Andreas looked up from the transcript and stared at Petro. “Got the picture?”

  Petro nodded. “I’ll take the swimming pool with the crocodiles.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  “So, my friend, to what do I owe the honor of this phone call?” said Tassos.

  “Sorry to disturb your siesta,” said Andreas, “but Maggie said you won’t be back in Athens until tomorrow and I wanted to give you a heads-up on a development in that bomba business with Tank.”

  “No problem. At this point in my life all my day is siesta time. I could solve these island homicides in my sleep. Same story line, different players. Follow the passion.”

  “I thought it was ‘follow the money’?”

  “That’s in big city Athens. Here on the islands we think more with our pricks and pussies.”

  “You do realize that’s not a very politically correct approach to police work.”

  “I’m open to broadening my thinking. Why just the other day I collared a gay guy who’d planted a hatchet in his boyfriend’s…or was it girlfriend’s…head.”

  “Enough. I’ve got something serious to tell you.”

  “Okay, what is it?”

  “Teacher’s back in play.”

  A few seconds passed before Tassos spoke. “Are you sure?”

  “I can’t imagine that the guy who gave me her name would have been insane enough to point the finger at Teacher if it weren’t true. Sort of like purposely stepping on Superman’s toes. As I’m sure I don’t have to tell you, her appearance is not a good development.”

  “For anyone involved. She’d wipe out your life, my life, our families’ lives, all without even knowing our names. Or caring to know them.”

  “That’s why I’m calling you. To tell you we have a problem and we need to come up with a strategy.”

  “I think we should follow the example of the cockroach,” said Tassos.

  “Which is?”

  “They’ve been around for 280 million years because they know how to hide and adapt.”

  “Okay, very funny. Now why don’t you tell me what’s really on your mind.”

  “Seriously, we can’t be caught out in the open in daylight.”

  “Tassos—”

  “Okay, okay. Teacher can never know that we’re on to her, so whatever we do we have to make damn sure she thinks Tank is our target and not she. That snitch, the one who named her to you. What’s the chance he’ll get religion and confess that he told you?”

  “If he were Catholic, I’d say he’d only confess if he were looking for his last rites.”

  “Good,” said Tassos.

  “But Tank’s her guy in Greece, which likely means part of her deal is protecting him from cops like us.”

  “Remember when we talked about how he didn’t fit the profile of her guys in other countries? Tank is local, and I’d bet you anything he sold himself to her, claiming he could protect his own operation and she needn’t worry about any of that.”

  “He’s just arrogant enough to think that way,” said Andreas.

  “The more significant question at the moment is, are we arrogant enough to think we can bring down Teacher?”

  “If the opportunity presented itself, I’d love to, though I’m guessing the odds on getting that chance are about the same as on achieving world peace.”

  “Well, the good news is that whether our goal is to nail Tank, his sister’s killer, or Teacher, as I see it, everything starts with the same thing—shutting down Tank’s operation. If we’re right, and Teacher is behind it all, threatening her investment puts a hell of a lot of pressure on Tank. My bet is that once that happens he’s likely to make a mistake we can use to put him away and, possibly, get him to identify his sister’s killer. Who knows? We might even get lucky and Teacher will make a mistake, too.”

  “I put those last two scenarios in the categories of wishful and extraordinarily wishful thinking. The more likely result of shutting Tank down is an immediate spike in the body count among his nearest and dearest. With our esteemed politicians screaming for our heads over the murder of one member of Tank’s family, would you care to guess which parts they’ll be aiming to slice off once that happens?”

  Tassos snickered. “Since when has that ever bothered you?”

  “Okay, assuming shutting down Tank’s business is the place to start, how do you suggest we go about doing it without getting Teacher pissed off at us, too? After all, as you pointed out, it is ultimately her operation and investment we’d be trashing.”

  “Hey, why ask me? I’m the siesta-loving cop. You’re the Athens hotshot.”

  “Sometimes you’re a real pain in the ass.”

  “Okay, I get your point. My only suggestion is that you keep giving Tank all the rope he’s willing to take. Sooner or later he’ll tie himself up in knots, and make what you have to do so obvious and downright simple, that if you didn’t do it, Teacher would think you’re brain dead.”

  “In other words, make it so that she blames Tank for the screw-up, not vigorous police work for taking him down.”

  “Exactly. People like Teacher don’t get angry with dumb cops who bring them down because of someone else’s stupid mistakes. It’s the smart ones they resent, because those who outthink them make them look bad to themselves. Professor Moriarty would never have given a second thought to doing battle with Watson. It was Sherlock Holmes who drew his ire.”

  “Thank you, Watson, for telling me in such an eloquent way to do absolutely nothing.”

  “Essentially, yes. But that will not be easy. There will be great trials along the way, challenges to your resilience and character. But in the end you will prevail and cut off Tank’s fucking balls.”

  “I’m glad you finally dropped the Yoda impression. It was getting me a bit worried.”

  “Good-bye, Andreas. And may the force be with you.”

  “I knew you’d say that.”

  “Of course you did.” Click.

  Andreas smiled. It was a good idea calling Tassos. The world seemed better now. Do nothing and things will work out on their own. It was Greece’s national motto. Perhaps this time it would actually work.

  ***

  Andreas heard the secretary say, “Minister, it’s Chief Kaldis on the line.”

  Spiros picked up the phone immediately. “Any news?”

  “Excuse me while I take a moment to say hello.”

&n
bsp; “And hello to you, too.”

  Andreas had expected a bit of a bite back, not a cheery reply. It wasn’t like Spiros to give Andreas a pass on sarcasm.

  “I have some news, Minister. But it’s…how shall I say…complicated.”

  “What do you mean complicated?”

  “We know who killed her—”

  “Terrific. Have you arrested him yet?”

  “No, that’s the easy part.”

  “Then why haven’t you?”

  “Because of the complicated part.” Andreas paused, not sure how much he should tell him. “Minister, I don’t know if I should tell you this, but—”

  “Are you crazy? I’m your boss.” The words were as he’d expected from Spiros, but the tone lacked its customary outrage.

  “If I tell you what I know and word gets out—because you may feel obligated to tell the prime minister, who’ll then undoubtedly tell others—your life, my life, and a lot of other lives will be in danger.” Andreas saw no reason to say that the prime minister would tell Tank’s family, as that seemed obvious.

  “Are you suggesting I can’t be trusted?”

  “No, not you.”

  “Then who? The prime minister?”

  “Let’s put it this way. He’s a politician, and politicians far too often make decisions based on the expediency of the moment. Especially now, with an election looming that polls have him likely to lose, and a hungry press out there screaming for a name to blame for the murder, I’m not betting on him or any politician seeing a bigger picture than his own reelection.”

  Andreas braced for an explosion.

  “I understand.” Spiros’ voice was flat. “So what can you tell me?”

  If Andreas hadn’t personally dialed the minister’s number he’d have sworn he’d called the wrong man. “We don’t want anyone knowing we’ve solved the crime. We also don’t want to do anything that might discourage Tank and his family from screaming at us for not catching his sister’s killer or protecting Greek businessmen from ‘criminal elements.’”

  “That’s quite a bit to ask, Andreas. If you think the press is attacking us now, they’ll go nuclear if we can’t show them any progress.”

  “I know, but at the end of the day, you’ll look like a hero.”

  “That assumes the prime minister doesn’t replace me by the end of this day.”

  “Is it that bad?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, then tell him I’m trying to come up with answers that won’t destroy the credibility of his party.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “No idea, but being the politician he is, his mind will run to all the possibilities and he’ll come up with something to justify your strategy.”

  “But even assuming he doesn’t want me to press you for details, he’s going to want a timetable for when he’ll have his answers.”

  “Tell him, we expect it all to break for us within a matter of days.”

  “Is that true?”

  Andreas looked at his free hand, remembered an American gesture, and crossed his fingers. “Absolutely.”

  ***

  Spiros hung up on his call with Andreas and stared at a deep brown Chesterfield armchair in the far corner. He stood up, walked across his office, and dropped down into the chair. His wife hated the big, cushiony leather thing, which was why he insisted on keeping it—though in his office, not at home.

  He sighed. He’d restrained his curiosity over wanting to know all that Andreas knew, and wasn’t sure Andreas was correct in his strategy, but he’d let it all pass. Despite all the bad blood between them over the years, he knew he could trust Andreas not to set him up. It’s a shame, he thought, that he couldn’t say the same thing about me.

  Spiros leaned his head back against the chair, shut his eyes, and whispered, “That’s why I owe him this.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Four days after his sister’s death, Tank and his family held a memorial service practically canonizing her. Every politician, cleric, and business leader who mattered in Greece seemed to have made the pilgrimage to Thessaloniki for the service. And every journalist—mattering or not—attended with camera and pen in hand feasting on the spectacle. Two TV channels carried the service live.

  Tank did not miss the opportunity to make his point. He delivered an eloquent eulogy, ending with a message that would be repeated endlessly in sound bites across Greek television.

  “My fellow Greeks, as hard as it is to accept, I must accept that my sister is gone and that I shall never see her again in this life. But what I cannot accept and will not accept is that any of you must needlessly suffer as my family and I have suffered.

  “I want none of you ever to witness one of your own loved ones slaughtered before your eyes. I want none of you ever to find your property, your business, your very way of life targeted by those who’ll tell you, ‘Give us what we want or watch your family die.’ That is the message my sister’s murderer meant to send to all of Greece.

  “But how can we, a simple people unschooled in violent ways, resist such men? We cannot. For that protection we must rely upon our government and our police. I call upon you, Mr. Prime Minister, Mr. Mayor, and Mr. Public Order Minister, to tell me and my family why in the time since my sister’s death you have accomplished absolutely nothing toward bringing her slayer to justice? The murderer is not a phantom. I have personally described him in detail. Shame on all of you.

  “But my fellow Greeks, when I speak of shame, I speak of national shame, for if we allow our government to continue doing nothing, if we allow this violent criminal element to fester and grow, if we allow this scourge to further undermine the basic values of our beloved Greece, then I say to you, my countrymen, SHAME ON US ALL.”

  The applause that followed was spontaneous and deafening, joined in even by the politicians singled out in Tank’s excoriation of their ways.

  “Sounds like he’s running for office,” said Andreas nodding toward the television in his office.

  “And if we’re wrong in our strategy, there will be a hell of lot of them to fill,” said Tassos.

  “Plus a few chief and detective slots I can think of,” said Kouros.

  “Aw, don’t worry,” said Andreas. “He’s percolating along just fine. Pretty soon he’ll be ready.”

  “To devour or explode?” said Tassos.

  “Ah, yes, it’s those small details that make life challenging,” said Andreas.

  Tassos nodded. “Yep, ‘the devil is in the details.’”

  Kouros pointed at the television showing Tank standing by the podium basking in a standing ovation. “Nope, today I’d say he’s right up there in Thessaloniki.”

  ***

  “Hello, Teacher, it’s Tank.”

  She checked to make sure the scrambler was operating before answering. “What can I do for you?”

  “I know you don’t like to chit-chat so I’ll get right to the point.”

  He paused as if waiting for a response, but Teacher said nothing.

  “We’ve had a bit of a disagreement recently, but I want to assure you I received your message loud and clear and all that media talk you’ve heard from me since then is only meant to benefit our mutual interests.”

  She checked the scrambler again. “From what I hear, you’re demanding that Greek authorities bring your sister’s killer to justice and protect you and your countrymen from foreign criminal extortionists. How could I possibly see any of that as intended other than ‘to benefit our mutual interests’?”

  Tank gave a nervous laugh. “You have no reason to worry about the police finding your man. I gave them a completely wrong description.” He swallowed. “Honestly, it’s been a great opportunity for gaining political cover for our business. No one will touch us with all the sympathetic press we’re getting. A
nd if anyone does, I’ll scream that I’ve been set up by the very criminal element I’m pushing our politicians to attack.”

  Teacher paused. “I have only one question for you. Why do you always find it necessary to seek your own path on every journey, even when there is a direct, reliable road taking you straight to all you could ever possibly hope to gain from whatever you’re pursuing?”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I was afraid you’d say that. Let me give you one example. I have given you the means for duplicating the best Greek wines, yet you have this infatuation with copying the highest level French and American wines, something far beyond your abilities.”

  “I don’t know how you knew about those plans, but I intended to surprise you.”

  “I’m sure. But haven’t you learned by now that you’re wasting your time trying to keep secrets from me that concern my business?”

  Tank swallowed again. “The way I’ve handled the media has made me so popular that people are saying I should run for public office. I’m thinking of running for mayor. After all, our current one comes out of the wine business, so why couldn’t I be next?”

  “He’s honest.”

  “So what? People get tired of honest politicians. They want mayors they can work with.”

  “Didn’t the mayor before this one get a life sentence for that sort of thinking?”

  “He was sloppy and arrogant.”

  Teacher paused and cleared her throat. “I think you should consider getting a realistic grip on your ambitions. All this press coverage I’m sure is exciting for you, but the press has a way of eating its favorites.”

  “I can handle them.”