by Tony Jenkins
Without another word Gunari left and Tigo suddenly remembered the story he had planned to tell him to excuse his impetuous behaviour. The police must have told Gunari all about his actions at the Pusztai house. Left alone, he examined the small tent and food, as well as the rifle and the special package. It was a Kalashnikov like the one he had dropped, but better made and fitted with a good quality scope. He was thick skinned enough to quickly forget the criticism of his actions because with this excellent weapon he could kill Demeter from a good distance. After a few weeks had passed he would use Renko’s incriminating documents to persuade senior officials to help him with the claim to the Pusztai lands.
With his few belongings, it did not take him long to bundle everything up inside the rolled-up tent. He would be ready to ride off early in the morning and leave no signs that he had ever been in the vardo. He would have to find himself an abandoned house, or hut to give him and his horse extra shelter from the autumn winds, but in spite of his failed attempt, he was still confident that he could take over the Pusztai lands. With his knowledge of the area, Gunari could at least have given him directions to suitable hiding places, but in his angry mood Gunari only wanted him out of the vardo to protect his own safety.
When Gunari was told about the failed attack on Demeter, he realised that he could no longer control, or help Tigo without risking everything he had gained since leaving Budestin. His future could only be protected if Tigo was killed before he could implicate his mentor. Gunari decided that he must take advantage of any opportunities which would allow him to destroy Tigo and protect himself.
Chapter 29
Exploration
It was a clear day with a bite in the air and Jack was glad that he had on a thick coat as the Kawasaki surged away from the house. The powerful machine-made light work of climbing the grassy slopes and Jack planned to work his way through each of the likely sites suggested by Demeter. The two men had decided that he would work to a ten-mile radius around the house, assuming that the attacker would not want to remain too near, but settle for an easy horse ride to keep watch on the Pusztai house. There was plenty of grass for the horse and Jack was guessing that it would be tethered during most of the day, before being ridden out in the late afternoon. The attacker would want to avoid daylight when he might be seen.
Demeter’s grandfather had made full use of the land by growing wheat and maize, as well as owning a herd of Longhorn cattle. After the war and during the period of communist control, the land was neglected and the stock was either killed, or stolen. In the new democratic Hungary, farming was gradually expanding and barns and cattle shelters were being repaired, or replaced. Jack was carefully checking buildings and wooded areas on his list after studying them beforehand with the binoculars. He wanted to spot anyone sheltering inside, before they saw him. His army experience with the paratroops was once again proving useful. At midday he was riding near a ruined stone shell with most of the roof missing and a group of twenty or so cattle grazing nearby. His sensitive nose picked up the aroma of coffee and wood smoke, which warned him that the building was occupied. He drove to the side of the building and switched off the engine of the Kawasaki.
The noise would have alerted anyone inside to his presence, but if they were hostile, they would be watching the only entrance. He edged up to a window opening and carefully looked inside. He saw an old horse eating hay from a trough built into the stone wall. Then he looked at a figure sitting in front of a small fire and facing a pot hung from an iron trivet. When the man saw Jack at the window with a rifle trained on him his face showed his fright. Leaping to his feet the man raised both hands above his head and began pleading with Jack in a foreign language. Raising his hand and lowering the rifle, Jack tried to reassure the man that he meant him no harm and walked around to join him near his fire.
When Jack was appointed to the Hun-Al Board he began learning Hungarian and he guessed that the man was a Tigani speaking his own language. Many Tigani also spoke Hungarian and by using his limited vocabulary and sign language, Jack was able to communicate with the man. His name was Robi and he was collecting cattle, which had been allowed to follow the lush grass during the summer, so that they could be put in fenced areas as winter approached and fodder had to be provided.
After explaining that he was looking for a renegade horseman who had shot the housekeeper at the Pusztai house, the man immediately wanted to help. He knew Aranka and respected Demeter as a good friend of the Tigani. Robi spent days and nights rounding up the cattle and he had seen a lone rider in the distance on two occasions. Taking Jack outside the building he showed the direction the man came from and where he had headed. Jack had brought food for his lunch, which he shared with Robi, who in turn provided him with very strong black coffee. Thanking the man for the coffee and his help, Jack drove off in the direction the rider had come from.
After half an hour he reached the edge of the forest, which was too thick to allow him to use the quad bike. Since it was a remote area, he disabled the machine and taking his gun he began walking along the tree line to look for any trails, or tracks made by a horse. After walking south for an hour, he came to a dirt track entering the forest and when he checked the surface there were tyre tracks. Since it was late afternoon and it would take him an hour to walk back to the quad bike, he decided to postpone following the track until the next day.
After the evening meal, he told Demeter about his meeting with Robi and the dirt track leading into the forest. His friend tried to persuade Jack to call in the police, but Jack was adamant that this was something he wanted to do quickly and in his own way. Demeter had surprising news from Budapest Police HQ,
“That Romanian policeman Bumbesco is determined to get Tigo and arranged to have the prints checked as a top priority. The prints on the gun we found are positively Tigo’s. Your guess about him cutting his hair and shaving off his beard was right. I got a good look at him in the kitchen, but didn’t recognise him. Now Bumbesco is trying to convince our Colonel Herceg that he should be allowed to join us in the hunt, but after hearing what Tigo did to two Romanians, I don’t think he wants to bother with extradition.”
“Bumbesco is a terrier and very smart. He would be a good man to have with us and as a double murderer Tigo should be sent back to Romania, dead or alive.”
“I agree with you Jack. Bumbesco would make an ideal companion in your search. I will telephone Herceg tomorrow morning and do my best to persuade him that you need the extra help, which would save Hungarian expense.”
Early the next morning Jack drove off and headed straight for the dirt road leading into the forest. Within minutes he was startled to see a large wooden caravan parked in a small clearing. After slamming on the brakes, he gripped his rifle and jumped down to the ground, using the Kawasaki as cover as he studied the caravan for signs of life. After looking carefully through the binoculars, he was beginning to think the house on wheels was empty, when he heard the sound of a car engine approaching. He watched as an old Dacia saloon drove up and a man got out and stood looking at Jack as he crouched behind his machine, with a rifle cradled in his arms.
“Is that you Mr Randil?”
Jack recognised Gunari and was able to understand him although he spoke in halting Hungarian, which was a big improvement on his complete silence during their first meetings. Jack stood up and walked towards him, with his rifle held trail style in his left hand and the Romanian greeted him.
“Are you on a hunting drive in these woods Mr Randil?”
“Hello Gunari. I am actually hunting for the man who shot Demeter’s housekeeper and appears to have ridden this way on his horse when he escaped.”
“Oh yes. The police told me about the attack. I do not understand why anyone would want to attack Demeter, who has always been a very good friend to the Tigani people.”
“We now know that the man who shot Aranka was Tigo, the half-brother of Renko, who was a long-time enemy of the Pusztai family.”
&n
bsp; “I know Tigo and when we met at his village in Romania, he was a good host and we spent time together hunting in the forest. He told me about the tragic death of his brother and some details of the dispute between Renko and the Pusztai’s. As a fellow Tigani, I convinced him that he must learn to read and write and he began taking lessons. While I was with him, I never heard him make any threats against Demeter, but perhaps something happened after I left. Did you think Tigo was living in my vardo?”
“It would certainly be an ideal place for him to hide and it is an easy ride to the Pusztai house.”
“I would be very angry if he has been hiding in my vardo. When I bought it, I had to spend many hours making repairs and it is my treasure and somewhere for me to come to relax. Would you like to look inside?”
Jack nodded his head and followed as Gunari led the way and climbed up the wooden entry steps. The interior was beautifully fitted out and showed the amount of time and effort lavished on it by Gunari. Everything was very neat and tidy and certainly showed no signs of being used as a refuge. As he stood beside Gunari, Jack’s keen sense of smell told him something very relevant to his search, but he said nothing and instead complimented Gunari on his ‘treasure’. They left the vardo and Jack said he was going to drive on and continue his search. Before leaving he had one question.
“You have done well to run your own car and I congratulate you on settling in so well here. You must find driving more comfortable than riding. Do you keep a horse as well?”
Shaking his head, Gunari replied that he had never been much of a rider and was much happier with his car. As Jack rode away, his mind was turning over the possibilities on why Gunari had lied about someone, probably Tigo, having stayed in his vardo. Jack was very familiar with the distinctive odour of horses and obviously as Tigo spent time on a horse, his clothes absorbed the smell, which was still present in the vardo.
After watching the big man walk away and as he was returning to the vardo, Gunari thought about the Englishman and wondered how he had been able to trace Tigo to the isolated forest area so quickly. Fortunately, the inside was immaculate and he was fairly sure that he had convinced Jack that no one had been staying there. Somehow though he still sensed that the man had his suspicions and he knew that if that was the case, Jack would keep prying. He had spent too much time and energy building his privileged position in the area to have it all put at risk by a nosey foreigner. The man would have to be stopped and he decided he would ask Tigo to repay him for helping with food and the replacement gun by killing Jack. He wrote a message on the bottom of the hidden compartment where he was leaving food for Tigo.
Jack spent the rest of the day searching the forest surrounding the vardo in the hope that Tigo would stay in an area which had become familiar to him. If he had left the vardo for some reason, he would still have to find alternative overnight shelter for himself and his horse. Jack tried to divide his search into manageable areas by parking the Kawasaki in different spots and searching the forest alongside. By late afternoon, he had found no signs of Tigo, or his horse and drove back to the Pusztai house. Demeter had not returned, but with her arm and shoulder bandaged, Aranka was supervising as Janos was preparing the evening meal, which was served as soon as Demeter arrived. Jack was reading in the lounge when he heard voices and looked up to see Demeter and was introduced to a smiling Petru Bumbesco, who had joined them from Romania.
The two men shook hands and all three were then hurried to the dining table by an anxious Janos, who was under strict instructions that the meal must be served before it spoiled.
Over their meal together, Jack heard how with the close co-operation of the Hungarian and Romanian police, it had been agreed that Petru should take some holiday and visit Hungary. He had brought with him copies of the file on Tigo’s crimes and would be happy to join Jack on a hunting trip in the area. Demeter would provide him with a rifle and if they were attacked by Tigo, they would certainly be within the law to respond in self-defence. Jack updated Petru on his searches and his meeting with Gunari. Since their native tongues were different, the three men conversed in French, which was their only common language.
“You may not know that Gunari was in the Romanian militia Jack and he met Tigo at Budestin when he was sent to investigate the crucifixion of the half-brother Renko. He did not report back as he was ordered and is liable to arrest in my country for failing in his duty and desertion.”
Jack nodded his head and Petru continued.
“When the Budestin people attacked our soldiers and killed one, Gunari and Tigo were away somewhere. We discovered that the two men had become close friends and spent much time together. After Budestin was burned down we do not know where the two went, but because Tigo’s mother was killed by the soldiers, we think he took his revenge on Commissar Dalca and sergeant-major Dinescu, who was in charge of the soldiers at Budestin.”
When Petru described how the two Romanians had been killed, both Jack and Demeter were horrified and could understand why the Romanians were so determined to capture Tigo. Jack had seen enough violence in his clashes with the Liverpool gangs, but the way in which the Romanians had been killed still shocked him.
“Revenge is always a bad thing, but that is barbaric behaviour, even for a thug like Tigo. It was only by luck that his shot did not kill Aranka when he broke in to the kitchen and he was lucky that Demeter’s shot hit his rifle. We must stop him and make him pay for his crimes. If Demeter’s shot had been only a couple of inches higher, he could be in prison now or dead, but he was probably wounded.”
“I have been tracking him for months Jack and wounded him myself in a shootout in Romania. I will help all I can to protect Demeter and catch my renegade countryman.”
The next morning, with Jack driving and Petru sharing the seat, the two men headed for the forest where Gunari’s vardo was parked. As they were passing the stone barn, Jack saw that the small herd of cattle had gone and stopped near the primitive doorway. It would be an ideal haven for Tigo and both men carried their cocked rifles in front of them as they looked inside. The sheltered inside of the barn was quite empty. Jack smoothed his hand over the blackened ashes of the fire, but they were cold and Robi must have left very early to move the herd. There was still some hay in the horse trough, but no other signs that Robi had been using it as shelter.
They climbed back on the Kawasaki and continued on to the forest. Since he still had his suspicions, Jack drove along the dirt track and parked alongside Gunari’s vardo. There was just a chance that Tigo had returned. Again, the door was not locked and when he looked at the inside, Petru was impressed by the amount of work Gunari had done. Gunari might well be upset about the two trespassing, but they would just have to assure him that they were checking that Tigo was not hiding in the wooden caravan.
Although Petru’s sense of smell was not as sharp as Jack’s, he too was able to detect a faint trace of horse odour. The layout was very similar to the vardo used by the big Tigani policeman Rudi in the search for Tigo in Romania. Remembering a hidden compartment, which Rudi had shown him, Petru tried sliding part of the panelling at the rear and exposed a small compartment. Peering inside he saw a cardboard box filled with food. There were cupboards over the cooking area and he could not understand why Gunari had chosen the hideaway to store the food.
“Why would Gunari hide food in here Jack? He has left the door unlocked, which shows he is not worried about intruders.”
“According to Demeter, the man is very well respected here and is seen as a sort of spokesman for a number of Tigani villages. The locals would know the vardo was his and would not touch it, so you are right Petru, why would he hide food, unless it was intended for someone he would not want to be seen helping.”
“I am sure Jack that if we watch the vardo, Tigo will eventually come for his food and we should be able to catch him. He will probably come at night under cover of darkness. Both of them are Romanians and good friends from the reports I read, so it is not
surprising that Gunari would be willing to help Tigo, even though he has become a fugitive.”
The two men climbed back on the Kawasaki for their return journey to the Pusztai house. In the late afternoon they returned and parked under cover of some trees a mile away. They then walked back to the vardo and settled down in the bushes surrounding the clearing to keep watch for Tigo. Both men were wearing thick outer clothing to protect themselves during their cold night watch. Jack expected him to come on his horse so that he could make a rapid retreat. Petru thought he would come instead on foot to make less noise. They faced a long cold night as they waited to trap the man and discover who was right. Both men were wrong.
Chapter 30
Delusion
After Gunari had left the vardo and Tigo had gathered his belongings for an early morning start, he sat down on the bunk bed to think about what he should do next. He and Gunari had been friends since they first met, but now the man was only interested in himself and would probably not hesitate to betray him to protect his own interests. Knowing that he must now be on the wanted list of the local police, there was a risk in returning to the vardo to collect the food he had been promised.