Marlow shrugged. ‘Let’s just say I no longer believe in coincidence.’
‘Meaning?’
‘Hugo Lenz has been missing since yesterday.’
Rath pricked up his ears. ‘And you think the Pirates are behind that too?’
‘That’s what I want you to find out.’
Rath thought he saw a familiar face in the polished rear mirror of the Duesenberg. He turned his head to make sure. It was her! She was coming down Dircksenstrasse, gazing searchingly at police headquarters. Rath ducked.
‘What is it?’ Marlow asked. ‘Are you playing hide-and-seek?’
‘There’s someone outside,’ Rath whispered, ‘who must not see me in your car under any circumstances.’
‘Oh, let’s not be coy now. You’re talking about a woman. The cute dark-haired thing with the green hat?’ Marlow laughed and signalled to Liang. The engine gave off a low, steady rumble and started. ‘The same woman you took to Plaza back in the day, am I right?’
Rath didn’t respond. Slowly he lifted his head over the seat and looked through the rear windscreen. Charly was still gazing at the public entrance, looking at her wristwatch.
‘I like monogamous men,’ Marlow said. ‘It shows loyalty.’
‘I’m a bachelor,’ Rath said. He had no intention of speaking to Johann Marlow about Charly; it was bad enough the man recognised her.
Marlow laughed. ‘But a loyal bachelor, evidently. Got a date, have you? Well, don’t worry. We’ll take a turn around the block and deliver you on time.’
Where on earth was Gereon? Charly took a crumpled packet out of her handbag and lit a Juno. In the same instant a bus came down Grunerstrasse, its upper deck plastered with images of the brand. She inhaled hurriedly and took another look at her watch. He was already more than ten minutes late. True, she had been running five minutes behind schedule herself, but what was the world coming to when even the men no longer appeared on time.
She was furious with him, even though she had no real reason to be; furious with his lateness, and with the fact that he hadn’t even asked what it was about. She was furious with herself, too, furious with the passing time, as she stood there helplessly, driven almost to the brink of madness. Each minute she had to wait she felt her fury rise, and the last five went on Gereon Rath’s account. She drew deeply on her cigarette, inhaling the smoke with the full force of her wrath. It helped a little, but didn’t really calm her down, until there he was at last, standing on the other side of Grunerstrasse in front of the construction hoardings.
He didn’t seem to have noticed her yet, but Kirie wagged her tail and pulled on the lead, as her master looked right and left before crossing the carriageway behind a flashy American sedan. Finally, he saw her and smiled, and immediately she felt better. No longer alone, she stubbed out her cigarette, rage expunged.
Kirie was the first to reach her, jumping up to lick her face. She defended herself as best she could, and stroked the dog’s black fur. ‘Kirie, settle down,’ she said.
‘I should have taken a taxi,’ he said.
She attempted to smile in return, but made a complete hash of it.
Gereon’s smile vanished as he drew a step nearer and took her in his arms. Gratefully she allowed her head to sink onto his shoulders, felt his warm hands stroking the nape of her neck. She had to be careful she didn’t start bawling her eyes out, like a child expelled from school.
‘What is it, my love?’ he asked, and she forgave him for every minute he had been late. She felt a lump in her throat, and it was a moment before she could speak.
‘Oh Gereon,’ she said. ‘I’ve made such a mess of things. You have to help me.’
‘You’re shaking, what on earth’s the matter?’
She hadn’t realised, but he was right, she was shaking all over. She started to cry, which had never happened before in his presence, then turned her face away, but he only held her tighter. She could picture his face filled with consternation, but couldn’t make it out through her tears.
Ten minutes later they were in Aschinger. Charly had wanted to go straight to the Castle, to Records; not to waste a second, but Gereon had insisted that she tell him what happened first, and give her tears a chance to dry. When she saw her face in the mirror of the ladies toilet, she realised it was a good idea. She needed a few minutes to redo her make-up, and when she returned their drinks were on the table: tea with lemon for her, coffee, black as always, for him. Gereon drank coffee at all times of day, even in the evening. For Kirie there were two Bouletten. No sooner had her master set the plate down than she pounced, demolishing the meatballs in record time and devoting herself all the more intensely to licking the plate clean. At least the greedy dog succeeded in coaxing a smile out of her.
Charly took a sip of tea and told Gereon the whole story: the frightened girl in her office, Weber’s assignment, the boor of a sergeant, the commotion in the corridor on account of the dead policeman – and, finally, her catastrophic error.
His reaction wasn’t quite what she had expected. ‘You left a guttersnipe unattended in your office?’
‘I couldn’t know what would happen. I just went to the door…’
‘You didn’t even have her in sight. What if she’d taken a paper knife from the desk and attacked you…’
‘Weber doesn’t have a paper knife on his desk.’
‘You know what I mean.’
‘Gereon, don’t you start. I know I’ve messed up. But this girl… there was something about her. She was scared stiff. Of the cop, I thought, but maybe it was just the uniform.’
‘No wonder! Attacking a police officer is no petty offence. Even if it sometimes feels like it in this city.’
‘I don’t believe she really attacked him. The witness could have invented it. No cop’s come forward to report it.’
‘Charly, open your eyes! She’s dangerous. When I think about what the little brute could have done to you…’
‘She’s not a brute. Who knows what she’s been through? She’s got a gash on her hand herself. When I think of those kids in that old factory…’
‘Charly, Charly!’ Gereon sighed. ‘You can’t afford to have compassion in our job. Even less as a judge or public prosecutor.’
Instinctively she reached for her cigarettes. ‘Define compassion. I just want to know what happened. Now, are you going to help me look for her or not?’
Charly lit a Juno and took a deep drag, feeling her fury rise again. Gereon made a conciliatory gesture with his hands.
‘Of course I’ll help you.’ He took a notebook and pencil from his jacket. ‘So, her last name is Reinhold…’
‘Alexandra Reinhold. I don’t think they were having me on in the factory. The guy seemed to get a kick out of annoying this girl, Vicky, by snitching on Alex. He seems to really hate the pair of them.’
‘It must be possible to find out where she’s from.’
‘That’s why I asked you to help. Let’s go to Records and get the addresses of all Reinholds in Berlin.’
‘We don’t even know that she’s from Berlin…’
‘Gereon, I’m already at my wits’ end. I don’t know if I’m ever going to track this girl down. So, please, do me a favour and stop quibbling. Let’s just try. I might not get another chance.’
‘You’re right, but do you really think you can impress Weber by delivering this Alex?’
‘At least I’ll have made good on my mistake. Besides, the girl needs help.’
‘An arsehole like Weber is just waiting for you to mess up so he can write something negative in your file. He wants to destroy your career, that’s been his aim from the start.’