White Night

by J J Marsh

  While she had been clearing her emails, making a few calls and organising her schedule, Theo hit the streets. Not only had he put the Gaia Warriors under the cudgel, but he’d gleaned their means of transport, parking place and time of departure. She sat down on a bench to make notes and located EuroPark on her map.

  “Excellent work! That’s not far from where I am now. I’ll pass by on my return journey to the hotel. What is your plan next? I want you with me when we meet Karoliina at two o’clock.”

  The line was silent for a moment. Beatrice smiled at a young chap with a man bun walking a dachshund. “Theo, are you still there?”

  “Yeah, I’m here. Sure, I’ll come with you to talk to her. Makes sense for us to share what we found from both angles. After that, I can’t help thinking I could get more info from the Aho woman. With your permission, of course. If she hired those fake protestors, that could prove an interesting lead. What I’ll need to do is offer some kind of carrot.”

  Beatrice snorted.

  Theo tutted. “I meant information, as you well know. You’ve already had me wearing a dress in an entrapment sting and I have no intention of graduating to gigolo, at least this early in the job. I just feel I behaved unprofessionally last night and want to make it right.”

  Beatrice got up from her bench and resumed walking. “Listen to me. If you got drunk and blabbed anything indiscreet to that woman, then I would consider you unprofessional. As far as I understand it, you got merry and engaged her trust. No harm done. Any way you can get more out of that horrid female, be my guest. As a friend of mine used to say, just hang onto your ha’penny.”

  “My what? Never mind, I can work that one out for myself. If I she can’t get into my pants, the next best thing is a story to chase. She might be in a generous mood and chuck me a few crumbs. Quid pro quo. What could I tell her?”

  Beatrice ran the possibilities through her mind. Once as a seasoned copper and once as a private investigator. “You cannot tell them anything the police have not yet released. We have to stay on their good side. You could allude to the fact ‘certain sources’ are keeping an eye on the town of Vaasa, in case Valpuri fled to her home town. I can’t see that getting up anyone’s noses but the locals of Vaasa itself, who will shut any journos down.”

  “Great idea. I’ll try that. Thanks, Beatrice. OK, I’ll let you get on with your trail sniffing. How long will we have with Karoliina?”

  “About half an hour. She’s leaving today for the new nuclear plant to rehearse the opening ceremony and check security. We get a window of her time while she packs. Not ideal, but she’s a busy lady. A car is collecting us from the hotel at half past one.”

  “See you there.”

  The Senate Square was a huge space, perfect for large gatherings whether political or celebratory. Along with all the other tourists, Beatrice took photographs, paced around the perimeter, admired the Senate building and studied her map. What marked her as different from the rest of the holidaymakers was her interest in an unobtrusive office building on the right-hand side. LokiEn’s presence was so discreet and understated, one could almost miss it altogether. As Beatrice watched, smartly dressed men and women swiped in and out of the building using security badges. Visitors spoke into an intercom and once their credentials were verified, were permitted into a glass holding area until someone came to claim them. A uniformed guard noticed her attention and stared at her through the window. When he bent his head to speak into his lapel, Beatrice decided it was time to move on.

  The sun beat down on her head and she stopped at a café on Aleksanterinkatu for a fizzy water and a think. She faced up to the facts. Unless she stumbled across a day-glo set of footprints marked Valpuri and Samu, she was unlikely to discover anything pertinent to the whereabouts of these young people. All she could do was present Karoliina with the information they had discovered, such as it was, and book a return flight tomorrow. She had promised, in all sincerity, she would report for wedding duties on Thursday. As that was tomorrow, it was growing increasingly difficult to avoid querulous demands from her nearest and dearest. Decision taken, she made up her mind to go through the motions of asking questions at the cafés near where Samu and Valpuri were last seen, to check out the car park where they had left their minibus and then to return to the hotel for lunch to await Theo.

  As expected, she drew a blank at every café and restaurant on Unioninkatu. Most proprietors and waiting staff spoke English well enough to comprehend her questions, but shook their heads regretfully as she showed the photographs of the missing teenagers. She persevered, turning right along Pohjoisesplanadi and making the same enquiries at a rather posh eatery, only to get the same response. With a resigned expression, she tucked the photos into her handbag and went in search of EuroPark. From the end of Fabianinkatu, she could see the sign indicating the parking lot and crossed the road to walk on the sunny side of the street. Two doors down from the underground garage, she spotted another little café with cartoon vegetables dancing in the window. The menu, written on a blackboard outside, made a big feature of being vegan.

  Beatrice hesitated. Ethical, conscientious activists were far more likely to drop into a place like this for falafels and oat milk lattes than the high-class restaurant she had just left. No stone unturned, she told herself, and opened the café door. A tubby little fellow greeted her and waved a hand at all the empty tables, inviting her to seat herself. She was about to protest and explain her mission but caught sight of the dishes warming on the counter. Instead, she sat and read the menu, translated from Finnish into both Swedish and English. She opted for a summer ragout with härkis and a glass of pomegranate juice, feeling positively virtuous.

  When the young man returned, Beatrice gave him her order and withdrew the photographs, asking him if he had seen either of the two people pictured last Saturday. He studied them for a moment and turned her with a smile.

  “Yes, I know these guys. They came in here on Saturday, after the demo in the square.”

  “Really?” Beatrice asked. “You know them?”

  He shook his head. “Not as friends, I see them sometimes, when they come in here. They were here on Saturday, sitting over there with the others.” He pointed at a table towards the back of the room.

  “The others? They were in a group?” Beatrice scrabbled in her bag for photographs of the newspaper clippings of the other Gaia Warriors. “Were any of these people there?”

  He squinted and pulled an apologetic face. “Maybe, but it was a busy day ... him, yes.” His finger pointed towards Risto. “And definitely her.” He tapped the picture of Tuula. “I remember because I liked her. Pretty girl.”

  “That’s extremely interesting. I’m sorry to take up so much of your time but do you happen to remember what time they left?”

  His round face wreathed into smiles. “Happy to help. Not much else to do today. What time they left? They came here just after twelve, I know because that is when we open. They stayed for one drink, all very nervous, and left when the bus came.”

  “When the bus came,” echoed Beatrice. “So they stayed, what, half an hour?”

  “Half an hour maximum. Like I say, just one drink. That Goth guy left first and came back a few minutes later with a minibus. Parked outside. The little blonde girl paid the bill and they all left together to get on the bus. Oh, there was a young guy who was injured. Hurt his hand, I think, because he held it like this.” He demonstrated by putting his left hand on his right shoulder and cradling his left elbow.

  “This is more helpful than you know. I’m a private investigator. Beatrice Stubbs. Here’s my card. May I ask your name?”

  “Lauri. I work here every day from eleven till five. I’m very observant, you can ask me anything. Do you still want your fava bean ragout?”

  “I most certainly do. I’m very glad I stopped here. Thank you, Lauri.” Beatrice opened her notebook and began writing down every last detail of her breakthrough.

  One delicious ragou
t later, Beatrice visited EuroPark and found precious little of interest. Not that it bothered her one iota. After her conversation with Lauri, she had the most promising lead yet and according to their agreement, intended to share it with Detective Sahlberg at the earliest opportunity. She messaged Theo and ensured he would accompany her to the meeting with Karoliina Nurmi. Their individual findings looked limp in isolation, but together they had a line of enquiry which merited serious attention. As far as Beatrice was concerned, they hadn’t found the kids, but they had learned something the police had not. She would dearly love to stay on a few days to pursue this angle but that was out of the question. She had simply run out of time.

  By the time she got back to the hotel, it was one o’clock and a LokiEn car was scheduled to arrive in thirty minutes to take her and Theo to Karoliina’s home. She called Helsinki police station and asked to speak to Detective Sahlberg. He was unavailable. Annoyed at not having the opportunity to discuss the implications of her findings, she spent twenty minutes composing an email. It would be poor manners to share a discovery with her employer and not the police.

  She changed her clothes to look less like a tourist and more like a professional investigator, then waited in the lobby until her assistant arrived.

  The ping of the lifts attracted her attention and she looked up to see Theo emerge. It was impossible to ignore the number of heads turning as he sauntered across the carpeted floor in her direction. He wore an odd-coloured suit, not grey, not green but the material seemed to change its mind every time it passed beneath a sunken spotlight. His shirt was purple and around his neck was a tie in a shade of green Beatrice had only ever seen on a mallard. The hungover wreck of earlier that morning was a distant memory. This individual oozed confidence and, as even an ancient dowager such as herself could observe, sex appeal.

  His dark lashes dipped as he took in her sober slate-grey suit. “Should I change? I didn’t realise the dress code was funeral.”

  “Less of your lip. This is my intimidation gear although it obviously doesn’t work on you. Quick now, before the car comes.” She stood up and linked her arm in his as they walked towards the revolving doors. “Judging by the outfit, you wangled an appointment with that woman. Ooh, I have to say, you do smell rather nice.”

  He bent closer so she could sniff his neck. “You like it? Catinca bought it for me from your old mates at Parfums Parfaits. All about forests and nocturnal predators, so she tells me. I just like the fact that it doesn’t make me choke in the lift. What did the police say?”

  A man in a chauffeur’s uniform stood just inside the front doors; Erik, the same man who had collected them from the airport. He gave a brisk salute.

  “Good afternoon, Ms Stubbs, Mr Wolfe. The car is right outside. Shall we go?”

  Conversation regarding the case was clearly inappropriate under the circumstances. Behind the driver was a glass partition but Beatrice had no way of knowing if there was a microphone picking up every word they said. As the car purred along the coastline, Beatrice decided to pursue a different line of investigation.

  “Do you know, I don’t think anyone in the world has ever bought me perfume. Which is perfectly understandable as I rarely wear the stuff and have such pernickety tastes. Even Matthew, who’s been with me several millennia, still would not presume to buy me scent. Either Catinca is supremely confident in her tastes or you two are closer than I thought.”

  “Subtle as a brick.” Theo shook his head, his smile flashing in the sunshine. “The answer to your question, Inquisitor Stubbs, is no. Catinca and I are not together. I think she’s lovely, I really do, and I’m well glad she gave me this job opportunity. But we’re not right for each other. At least not yet.”

  “Well, obviously it’s going to take more than a brick to beat the gossip out of you. I’m pretty sure you’re not gay, I know you’re not married as I happen to be your employer and everywhere you go, you leave a trail of smitten females in your wake.” She dropped her voice. “Have you taken a vow? You know, celibacy or some such? I won’t judge you. I did something very similar at one time.”

  Theo threw back his head and laughed. The gesture reminded Beatrice of Matthew in a way.

  “My only vow is to be the kind of person I can live with, leave alone with anyone else. Now, will that satisfy you or do I have to make up an entire saga of personal histories just to keep you quiet?”

  Beatrice settled back in her seat and looked out at the multi-coloured façades along the shoreline. “Each to his own,” she said. She waited a beat and added, “Although it is an awful shame.”

  Once again, Karoliina was waiting to meet them on the doorstep, but unlike the last meeting, her husband was present. She introduced him by his first name – Heikki – and them by their full titles. It soon became clear the man was going to stay for the meeting, which of course was Karoliina’s prerogative. They refused tea and Beatrice got straight down to business.

  “The first thing I should say is that Theo and I are here to hand over our findings because we will be leaving Finland tomorrow. I appreciate the fact we have not completed the task with which you charged us, but we have another obligation to fulfil. That said, we have discovered a discrepancy we believe points you in the right direction. I’m only sorry we are unable to take this further.”

  The brown-black cat stalked into the room and brushed past Beatrice’s leg. Cats, in her experience, made a flea-line for anyone who detested them. The more she ignored it, the more attention it would try to demand. She tickled it behind the ears.

  “I see,” said Karoliina, her complexion wan. “I hoped we might persuade you to stay until the weekend.”

  “Unfortunately not. Believe me, if I could, I would. In summary, Theo and I have been researching parallel lines of enquiry and it seems one particular angle requires a closer look. I should tell you I have shared our findings with Detective Sahlberg, as per our agreement.”

  “And are the police pursuing it?” asked Heikki, leaning on his forearms.

  Beatrice gave the man her attention, noting his neatly trimmed stubble and cap-sleeved T-shirt, revealing muscular biceps. “That remains to be seen. I hope to have a conversation with Detective Sahlberg before we leave in the morning. The theory we are pursuing is that the young people are willing participants in their own abduction.”

  Karoliina exhaled in disappointment. “That’s what Jouko Lahti said. I can’t believe that flabby old fool is right.”

  “On the other hand,” interjected Theo, “the alarm surrounding Samu Pekkanen’s health is less of an emergency. There is no way he would have participated in a fake kidnapping without sufficient medication. We believe he must have taken a second inhaler without his mother’s knowledge. If we are correct in our assumptions, and we can’t be sure of that, Samu and Valpuri are alive and well.”

  Heikki shot a meaningful look at Karoliina and bounced up from his chair to pace into the kitchen. “I need a beer. Can I get anything for you, detectives?”

  Beatrice did not need another distraction and drinking on duty was not a professional look. “Not for me, thank you, Mr Nurmi.”

  “Heikki, please. I’m not Mr Nurmi. My wife and I kept our own names. What about you, Theo? Join me in a beer?”

  Theo gave him a friendly smile. “Thanks, but not when I’m on duty.”

  Internally, Beatrice added another tick to her assessment of his performance.

  “Very wise,” said Karoliina. “Can we get to the details of the matter? I’m sorry to hurry you but I have to leave at three o’clock. I have a dinner with our sponsors tonight and a full tour and inspection of the facility tomorrow. Everything needs to be perfect before Saturday’s opening. Including some good news about those missing teenagers.”

  Heikki returned from the kitchen and resumed his place, drinking from a bottle of beer and carrying a plate of dried meat slices. He offered them around the table. Karoliina and Theo refused, but Beatrice took one. It was very strong and chewy but n
ot unpleasant. She wondered if the gamey flavour might be reindeer and decided not to have another.

  Beatrice withdrew some papers from her briefcase and handed them to Karoliina. “The detail is all in here. But in a nutshell, Theo has been in conversation with several members of the Gaia Warriors movement while I made enquiries in the neighbourhood where they went missing. The leaders of the protest told Theo they returned to their minibus and left the city without Valpuri and Samu at just after one o’clock in the afternoon. My enquiries, on the other hand, indicate that all six of them were in a café on Fabianinkatu between twelve and half past. After that, one of them collected the minibus and they all drove away together. This leads us to believe the protesters arranged the ‘disappearance’ of two of their members, hoping to capitalise on the negative publicity. From now on, prosecuting this angle must be down to the police.”

  “Do you think the same people are responsible for sending both my partners and me those death threats?” asked Karoliina.

  “Of course they are! A bunch of kids stirring up a shit storm and trying to frighten you. I hope the police throw the book at those little bastards,” Heikki exploded. “In fact, they should be out there now, arresting these so-called Gaia Warriors and piling on the pressure until they get the truth. Then they can find this pair of losers and expose the whole scam by Friday. That way, Saturday’s opening will be 100% positive.” The cat bounded onto the table with a demanding miaow and Heikki offered it a piece of meat. It accepted, taking the dried flesh from his fingers and jumped off to devour it elsewhere.

  Theo cleared his throat. “I should tell you the Gaia Warriors themselves have received a similar letter. That could be a smokescreen, deflecting attention, or it could be there is someone else involved. Whatever happens, we’re handing all we know over to the police and returning to the UK.”