The widow expressed shock when she saw his neck and was patently unconvinced when he said his razor had slipped. She welcomed him into the apartment, which was the same as it had been when her husband was alive, apart from orderly piles of paper on the desk. She brought coffee and sat down on the sofa next to him.
‘So, Alex, have you found anything out about my Rudi?’
‘I presume you’ve heard from the police that his death has been classified as suicide by the medical examiner?’
She nodded slowly, her lips tightly pressed together. ‘You know as well as I do how unreliable those people are. All they want is a quiet life.’
Don’t we all, Mavros thought, taking a deep breath. ‘Hildegard, I’m getting conflicting stories about your husband.’
‘What do you mean?’ she asked, eyebrows rising.
‘According to David Waggoner, Rudolf did take part in the massacre in Makrymari. A witness told him so.’
‘Waggoner!’ the widow scoffed. ‘You can’t believe anything that man says.’
‘If your husband didn’t shoot any civilians, why did he pay blackmail for all those years?’
Hildegard sighed and put down her cup. ‘Alex, you must understand. Coming to Crete to live in the Sixties was very difficult for us, but Rudi felt it was his duty to put back as much as he could into the local economy to make up for what happened during the war. As you can imagine, many people didn’t want us and they particularly didn’t want us to build the resort. Rudi eventually convinced the Cretans he was serious by funding village regeneration projects, by setting up scholarships for poor students and so on. But in order to get the permits to start building here, he had to be seen to be cleaner than clean.’
It struck Mavros that there were similarities between the appearance Kersten had to project and the appearances necessary to get funding in Hollywood that Rosie Yellenberg had described.
‘I still don’t understand why he felt he had to pay David Waggoner off.’
The widow looked beyond him towards the sea, which was a mid-afternoon pale-blue, only a few white horses whipped up by the breeze. ‘Alex, I can’t be sure what Rudi did at Makrymari. I’m not sure he knew himself, no matter what he wrote in his diary. He’d received a severe head wound. It may be that, deep down, he saw himself as a cold-blooded murderer of women, boys and old men.’
From what Mavros had seen of the soft-spoken Kersten with his life-worn eyes, that possibility couldn’t be ruled out. But he was sure there was more.
‘What about Kornaria?’ he asked, his tone hardening.
Hildegard regarded him cautiously. ‘The drugs village? What about it?’
Mavros slumped back. ‘If you want me to find out what happened to Rudi – and I know it was murder – you’ll have to help me. Were the Kornariates blackmailing him too?’
‘No, no,’ the old woman said, her eyes holding his. ‘Waggoner was earning enough for all of them.’
‘What do you mean?’
She looked down. ‘The Englishman wasn’t simply blackmailing us because of Rudi’s wartime deeds, whether he took part in the massacre or not. He was extracting protection money. On this island, especially back in the Sixties, you needed someone to look after your property. I don’t think Kornaria was producing many drugs back then. The mountain men watched over us when the resort was being built. They invested those earnings in marijuana cultivation sheds, from what I’ve heard.’
‘And Waggoner was their intermediary?’
‘That’s right. When Rudi told him we had no more money, he started asking about the coin collection. Rudi couldn’t countenance him getting that and said so.’
‘When?’
‘More than once, but the last time was only a few days ago – on Saturday.’ Hildegard went over to the desk and took some papers from one of the piles. ‘I found these when I was going through the drawers here.’ She handed them to Mavros.
He ran his eyes down the sheets. They were copies of emails that Rudolf Kersten had sent to Waggoner in the days before his death. In them, he threatened to expose the former SOE man as a blackmailer if he didn’t leave him alone. They could certainly be construed as a motive for murder.
‘My God,’ he said. ‘Why didn’t you tell me about these before?’
‘I only found them today.’ Hildegard looked at him gravely. ‘They mean he arranged for Rudi’s death, don’t they?’
‘It certainly looks that way. You have to give them to the police.’
She shook her head. ‘No. I told you, they are worthless. It wouldn’t surprise me if Inspector Margaritis was in the pay of Waggoner and the Kornariates – many of the local politicians and officials are.’
Mavros glanced around the room. ‘Where are the coins?’
‘In a safe place,’ the widow replied. ‘Not in the resort.’
‘Better you don’t tell me.’
‘Very well. What do you intend to do?’
‘Take down David Waggoner.’
‘Yes, but how?’
‘Better I don’t tell you that.’ He got to his feet. ‘Make sure you keep all the windows and doors locked. Short of putting up signs saying the coins are no longer here – which no one would believe – there isn’t anything to do apart from ensuring the security is as high as it can be. I’ll talk to Capaldi again.’
‘He’s a good man. Rudi trusted him and he’s never let us down.’
‘Apart from the night your grandson got in and took the thirty coins.’
Hildegard nodded. ‘True. I much appreciate what you’re doing, Alex. Rudi said you were an honourable man and a dogged investigator. He looked you up on the Internet.’
Mavros was strangely moved by that. ‘You shouldn’t stay here, you know. Even another room in the hotel would be better.’
‘This was our home. I’m not leaving, especially when Rudi is still not buried.’
‘I understand. Keep your phone close at all times and call me if anything worries you.’
They said their goodbyes and he left for the actress’s suite.
TWENTY
‘What happened?’ Cara Parks demanded. ‘Rosie told me that Maria was kidnapped.’
Mavros wondered how the producer knew that – had the police or paramedics blabbed to the local radio station, or was she in with the men who’d taken Maria?
He told the actress what had happened to Maria at Yiota Prevelaki’s house and about Mikis’s head wound. That reminded him to call the hospital. Doctor Stavrakakis told him that the driver was still unconscious and that there was swelling inside his cranium – if it continued to expand, he would have to operate.
‘Did you believe Rosie and her brother?’ he asked. ‘I mean, when they said they had nothing to do with their father’s drug trafficking?’
‘I don’t know what to believe. Thinking of them as brother and sister is hard enough. But dope-dealers?’
‘Hm.’ Mavros gave her a potted version of what he had learned from Maria’s cousin and from Hildegard Kersten.
‘Hold up,’ the actress said. ‘Where are you going with this? Are you suggesting Maria’s in the drug business as well?’
He shrugged. ‘I’m having trouble understanding why she’s been kidnapped twice. And why she refused to tell anyone – even you – about what happened to her after we got her back from Kornaria.’
‘She had a head injury,’ Cara said, but she wasn’t even convincing herself. ‘Jesus. This is the kind of shit that’ll fuck the movie up big time.’
Mavros wasn’t impressed. ‘Well, fuck Freedom or Death then. Do you know what really happened at Makrymari? The woman your character is based on didn’t get away while her fellow villagers bravely took the bullets for her. She was shot down like the rest of them. That’s what happens on this island, in case you haven’t noticed. People live and die violently.’ Suddenly he thought of the black youth Cara had driven into. ‘Like on Mulholland Drive.’
Cara’s head went down. ‘Old Mr Kersten didn’t commit suicide, d
id he?’ she said, in a small voice.
‘The authorities are saying he did, but I’m certain he was murdered. As well as looking for Maria, I’m trying to find his killer.’
The actress looked up. ‘I’ll help you.’
‘By doing what, exactly? Can you fire a gun?’
‘Rifle, shotgun, pistol and revolver,’ she said, with a smile. ‘My daddy made sure I could handle firearms before I turned sixteen.’
‘Right,’ Mavros said, taken aback. ‘I suppose you can fight as well.’
‘Kick-boxing, judo and karate – state champion at high school.’
He took an involuntary step back. ‘Uh-huh. So, Ms Parks, what do you think you can personally bring to this role?’
She laughed. ‘I might be able to save your ass, Alex – not just in a brawl with those crazy villagers, but with Maria. If she really is her mobster father’s daughter, she might cut up rough – but not with me. She loves me, for Christ’s sake.’
‘What makes you think Maria’s not being held captive up in Kornaria? She’d been mistreated when she came down the hillside the last time.’
Cara thought about that. ‘It’s hard to put my finger on. She was different when she was in the clinic. Sure, she’d been through some shit – like you guys on the road back down – but she didn’t seem particularly affected by it. I’m beginning to think she might be a better actor than me. I mean, you saw her when she said she was coming back to work. She didn’t exactly look traumatized, did she?’
‘No,’ he replied, remembering the Greek-American’s demeanour. ‘More like traumatizing.’
Cara laughed. ‘Give me a moment. I’ve got to change.’
She reappeared in a dark-blue tracksuit that emphasized her curves. Her trainers were pristine but thick-soled, and she’d gathered her hair back.
‘Charlie’s Angel?’ Mavros asked.
‘And Frankenstein’s monster.’ She offered her arm. ‘Let’s knock ’em out, Boris.’
The big man on the door stared at them as they brushed past him. Cara told him not to follow them.
‘Take the stairs,’ Mavros said. ‘I’ll race you.’
Despite the start he’d given himself, she overtook him one flight down and was waiting on the ground floor when he got there, panting. He missed his footing on the bottom step and toppled forward. Cara moved quickly towards him and caught him in surprisingly strong arms.
‘Shit,’ he grunted and they both started to laugh hysterically, holding on to each other like kids who’d taken their first toke.
‘What’s the joke?’ came a voice that silenced Mavros instantly.
He looked over the actress’s shoulder and saw Niki a few metres away, an overnight bag between her bare legs and her face set hard.
‘My woman,’ Mavros whispered to Cara. ‘Cover for me. Please.’
‘Don’t sweat it,’ she returned, taking her arms away and stepping back. ‘My, my, Alex, you need to be more careful. If I hadn’t caught you, you’d have done some serious damage to that magnificent nose.’
‘Thanks for nothing,’ he muttered, going towards the seething Niki. ‘My love,’ he said, in Greek. ‘What are you doing here?’
Niki stared at the bandage on his neck. ‘Let’s stick to English. I’d like your friend to hear.’ She pronounced the ‘f’ word as if it were a curse. ‘And you are?’ she said, moving forward and extending her hand.
‘Cara Parks,’ the actress said, smiling broadly. ‘It’s so nice to meet you. Alex has told me so much about you.’
Mavros glared at her, aware that he hadn’t mentioned Niki’s existence.
‘I’m Alex’s other, better half,’ Niki said acidly. ‘What was so funny?’
‘Oh, nothing,’ Cara said, waving her hand loosely. ‘We were just horsing around.’
Niki turned her frozen gaze on Mavros and then looked back at the actress.
‘Cara Parks? The star? Oh my God.’ She put her hand out again. ‘It’s a real pleasure to meet you. I love your work.’
Mavros knew he wasn’t off the hook, but Niki’s transformation from ice queen to quivering fan was an eye-opener.
While the women were building bridges, Mavros went over to reception and asked for Renzo Capaldi. The security manager arrived hotfoot.
‘Ah, Mr Mavros. I have been looking for you. How is the throat?’
‘Painful. Why did you want me?’
‘To tell you that I am going to look after Mrs Kersten personally. I will patrol outside her windows all night.’ The Italian raised his massive shoulders. ‘Of course, my staff will be doing their usual rounds, but I will provide extra protection.’
‘That’s very good of you.’
‘It’s nothing. Mr Kersten was a great man and a very kind employer. I . . . I would do anything to bring him back.’ Tears appeared in his eyes and he wiped them away with the arm of his suit.
Mavros nodded to him and went over to the women.
Niki’s gaze was slightly less frosty. ‘Cara tells me you’re going out on a job.’
The actress smiled at him, despite the look she got in return.
‘Job?’ he repeated. ‘I’d hardly call it that.’
‘Oh?’ Niki said. ‘And how would you describe going to rescue Cara’s assistant from a village full of criminals?’ She raised an eyebrow. ‘I’m coming too.’
Mavros’s joy was confined.
‘Where are we going?’ Niki asked. She was squeezed between Cara Parks and Mavros in the Jeep, having left her bag at the hotel. He had explained about his neck wound without going into too much detail.
‘Chania,’ he replied.
‘Not the village?’ Niki smiled crookedly. ‘You don’t think we’re up to it, do you?’
‘Three of us taking on a horde of heavily armed Cretan mountain men who have proclaimed a vendetta . . .’ He stopped himself too late.
‘A vendetta?’ Niki said. ‘Against who?’
‘Um, me,’ Mavros mumbled. ‘And the guy who was driving this.’ He had no choice but to recount the story, without going into Mikis’s use of the Colt.
‘You threw a rock into the face of an armed man from the most dangerous village in Crete?’ Niki said, her voicing rising to a shriek. ‘Are you completely insane?’
‘He was only knocked out,’ Cara said, trying to calm her. ‘And Alex got my friend Maria back.’
‘Who’s since been kidnapped – again.’ Niki turned and gave her an appraising look. ‘I can see why they call you “Twin Peaks”. Are they real?’
Mavros restrained himself from smashing his head against the steering wheel. ‘For Christ’s sake, Niki, get a grip. Cara isn’t the enemy.’
‘Is that right?’ Niki took a deep breath. ‘OK, I’m sorry, that was rude. I’m . . . I’m worried.’ She looked through the windscreen. ‘This island is like a foreign country – one with extremely restless natives.’
‘They’re not all bad,’ Mavros said. ‘Behave yourself, please. We’re about to meet some of the good ones.’
He had looked at the map before they left the Heavenly Blue and now found the Tsifakis depot without trouble. There was a fenced enclosure with numerous cars and small buses beyond a wide gate. The offices were in what looked like an old factory. A lot of money had clearly been spent on its renovation.
Haris Tsifakis met them in the stone-flagged reception area.
‘Alex,’ he said, nodding. ‘Ms Parks.’ He waited to be introduced to Niki.
‘Oh, this is my . . . partner from Athens,’ Mavros said awkwardly.
‘Niki Glezou.’ When she wanted, Niki could be very user-friendly. She gave the Cretan a broad smile and shook his hand vigorously.
‘What news of Mikis?’ Mavros asked.
‘My wife is at the clinic,’ he said, his face falling. ‘Our son is still unconscious. It seems he will need an operation, but the doctors want to wait until this evening to decide. Please, come to my office.’ He led them into a large room with two mahogany desks, b
oth equipped with computers and several telephones. ‘Eleni and I have always worked together. We set up the car-hire business in 1966 and grew it very quickly, largely thanks to Mr Kersten. He used us for guest tours and transfers.’ He shook his head. ‘His death is a tragedy.’
Mavros was interested by the Cretan’s response. He wasn’t old enough to have fought in the war, but his parents’ generation would have lived through the horrors of the German occupation. He still revered a man who had landed by parachute on the first day of the invasion.
‘Can I use one of the computers?’ he asked.
Haris went behind the nearer desk and booted up the machine. Mavros found what he wanted in under a minute and printed out the image.
‘We urgently need to find this man,’ he said, handing over the picture. ‘I know he’s in Chania or the environs.’
‘That’s the antiquities dealer who’s always walking out of court with a sick smile on his face,’ the Cretan said.
‘Tryfon Roufos,’ Mavros confirmed. ‘Can you find where’s he’s staying?’
‘Easily – if he’s in a hotel or pension.’ Haris picked up a phone and gave instructions to an employee. ‘If he’s in a private house, it’ll take a bit longer, but I can circulate his photo.’
‘I saw him in a taverna in the old town a few nights ago,’ Mavros said. He described the location.
‘Tou Philippou. Good, the owner is a friend.’
‘He was with David Waggoner.’
‘Was he now? I’ve never thought much of Mr Waggoner. He made much of his exploits here during the war, but the truth is that the local resistance leaders were much more important in the fight against the occupiers.’
Mavros didn’t need much more convincing that the former SOE man had feet of clay. The question was, had he orchestrated Rudolf Kersten’s death?
‘Leave this with me,’ Haris said. ‘I’ll call you as soon as I get anything. I presume you want to keep the Jeep?’
‘Is that all right?’
‘Of course.’ The Cretan beamed at Cara. ‘It’s on the film’s account.’
Mavros thanked him and led the women out.
‘You didn’t tell me Roufos was on Crete,’ Niki said, as they headed for the vehicle. ‘Then again, there are a lot of things you haven’t told me.’
The Silver Stain Page 23