Erast Fandorin 04 - The Death of Achilles

by Boris Akunin

  “What nonsense was this?”

  The general turned the piece of paper this way and that.

  “An ordinary circular letter! What has this to do with the briefcase?”

  “Surely it’s s-simple enough,” the collegiate assessor in tramp’s clothes said wearily, so upset that he had even begun to stammer. “Someone cunningly exploited the fact that Masa does not understand Russian and has infinite respect for military uniforms, especially if they include a sword.”

  “Ask him what the officer looked like,” the general instructed.

  After listening to a few words of the oriental’s incoherent speech, the young functionary merely waved his hand despairingly.

  “He says, yellow hair, watery eyes… We all l-look alike to him.”

  He turned to the adjutant: “Did you get a good look at this m-man?”

  “Afraid not,” the adjutant replied, spreading his hands in apology and coloring slightly. “I didn’t pay close attention. Blond. Above-average height. Standard gendarme uniform. Captain’s shoulder straps.”

  “Are you telling me you weren’t taught observation and description?” the functionary inquired angrily. “From this desk to that door is no more than ten paces!”

  The adjutant said nothing and blushed an even deeper red.

  “A catastrophe, Your Excellency,” the man in disguise stated. “The million rubles have disappeared! But how did it happen? It’s like some kind of black magic. What are we to do now?”

  “Nonsense,” said Karachentsev dismissively. “The million rubles is not the point, is it? They’ll find it; it won’t all disappear. There are more important things to be dealt with. We need to pay our dear friend Pyotr Parmyonovich Khurtinsky a little visit. Oh, what a character!” said Karachentsev with a grim smile. “He’ll soon clear up all our questions. Well, well, how interestingly everything has turned out. Yes, indeed, this will mean the end of our old beau Dolgorukoi as well. He warmed the viper at his breast, and very lovingly, too!”

  Collegiate Assessor Fandorin started.

  “Yes, yes, let’s go to see Khurtinsky. And let’s hope that we’re not too late.”

  “We’ll have to go to the prince first,” sighed the chief of police. “We can do nothing without his sanction. Never mind; I shall enjoy watching the old fox squirm. Curtains, Your Excellency, you can’t wriggle out of it this time. Sverchinsky!” The general glanced at the adjutant. “My carriage, and look lively about it. And a droshky with an arrest detail to follow me to the governor- general’s house. In plainclothes. Three will do, I think. We should manage without any gunplay in this instance.” And he gave another carnivorous smile.

  The adjutant ran off quickly to carry out the order, and five minutes later a carriage harnessed to a foursome went dashing off at full speed along the cobblestoned road, followed by a droshky swaying gently on its springs, carrying three agents in civilian clothes.

  Having watched the brief procession depart from the window, the adjutant picked up the earpiece of the telephone and wound the handle. He gave a number. Glancing at the door, he asked in a low voice: “Mr. Vedishchev, is that you? This is Sverchinsky.”

  They had to wait in the reception room for an audience. The governor’s secretary, after apologizing extremely politely to the chief of police, nonetheless declared firmly that His Excellency was very busy, had said that no one was to be admitted, and even ordered that no one was to be announced. Karachentsev glanced at Erast Petrovich with an ironical grin, as if to say, “Let the old man put up one last show of strength.” At last — at least a quarter of an hour must have gone by — there was the sound of a bell ringing behind the monumental gilded door.

  “Now, Your Excellency, I shall announce you,” said the secretary, getting up from behind his desk.

  When they entered the study, it became clear what significant matters had been occupying Prince Dolgorukoi’s attention — he had been eating breakfast. Breakfast as such was already over, and the impatient visitors were admitted in time for the very last stage of the meal: Vladimir An-dreevich had started on his coffee, sitting there neatly bibbed with a soft linen napkin, and dunking a bun from Filippov’s bakery in his cup. He appeared complacent in the extreme.

  “Good morning, gentlemen,” the prince said with a warm smile and swallowed a piece of bun. “Please don’t think badly of me for keeping you waiting. My Frol is so strict, and he says I must not be distracted when I am eating. Can I offer you some coffee? The buns are quite excellent; they simply melt in your mouth.”

  At this point the governor looked a little more closely at the general’s companion and began blinking in surprise. On the way to Tverskaya Street, Erast Petrovich had pulled off his gray beard and wig, but there had been no chance to change out of his rags, so his appearance really was quite unusual.

  Vladimir Andreevich shook his head disapprovingly and coughed.

  “Erast Petrovich, of course I did tell you that you needn’t wear your uniform to visit me, but, my dear fellow, this is really going too far. Have you lost all your money at cards, is that it?” There was an unaccustomed severity in the prince’s voice. “Certainly, I am a man without prejudices, but even so, I would ask you in future not to come here in such a state. It simply won’t do.”

  He shook his head reproachfully and began munching on his bun again, but the chief of police and the collegiate assessor had such strange expressions on their faces that Dolgorukoi stopped chewing and asked in bewilderment, “What on earth has happened, gentlemen? Is there a fire somewhere?”

  “Worse, Your Excellency. Much worse,” Karachentsev said with voluptuous emphasis and sat down in an armchair without waiting to be invited. Fandorin remained standing. “Your head of the secret chancelry is a thief, a criminal, and the protector of all the criminals in Moscow’s underworld. Collegiate Assessor Fandorin has proof of it. Most embarrassing, Your Excellency, most embarrassing. I really have no idea how we are going to deal with this.” He paused briefly to let the old man grasp what he had said and continued ingratiatingly. “I have had the honor on numerous occasions of reporting to Your Excellency concerning the unseemly behavior of Mr. Khurtinsky, but you paid no attention to me. However, it naturally never even occurred to me that his activities might be criminal to such an appalling degree.”

  The governor-general listened to this short but impressive speech with his mouth half-open. Erast Petrovich expected an exclamation, a cry of indignation, questions concerning the proofs, but the prince’s composure was not shaken in the least. While the chief of police maintained an expectant silence, the prince thoughtfully finished chewing his piece of bun and took a sip of coffee. Then he sighed reproachfully.

  “It is really most unfortunate, Evgeny Osipovich, that it never occurred to you. You are, after all, the head of the Moscow police, our pillar of law and order. I am no gendarme, and I am encumbered with rather more important matters than you are; I have to bear the entire arduous business of municipal government on my shoulders. And I have long had my suspicions concerning Petrusha Khurtinsky.”

  “Indeed?” the chief of police asked sarcastically. “Since when would that be?”

  “Oh, for quite a long time,” the prince drawled. “Yes, I lost my liking for Petrusha a long time ago. Just three months ago I wrote to inform your minister, Count Tolstov, that according to information in my possession, Court Counselor Khurtinsky was not merely a bribe-taker, but also a thief and general miscreant.” The prince rustled the papers on his desk. “There was a copy here somewhere, of my letter, that is… ah, there it is.” He picked up a sheet of paper and waved it in the air. “And there was a reply from the count. Where could it be? Aha.” He picked up another sheet, a monogrammed one. “Shall I read it to you? The minister reassured me absolutely that I had no need to feel concerned about Khurtinsky.”

  The governor put on his pince-nez.

  “Listen to this.”

  As to any doubts that Your Excellency may happen to enterta
in concerning the activities of Court Counselor Khurtinsky, I hasten to assure you that while this functionary may on occasion behave in a way that is hard to explain, this is by no means out of any criminal intent, but only in the execution of a secret state mission of immense importance, which is known both to me and to His Imperial Majesty. Allow me, therefore, to reassure you, my dearest Vladimir Andreevich, and in particular to mention that the mission that Khurtinsky is carrying out is in no wise directed against…

  “M-m, well, that has nothing to do with the matter. All in all, gentlemen, as you can see for yourselves — if anyone is at fault here, then it is certainly not Dolgorukoi, but rather your department, Evgeny Osipovich. What grounds could I possibly have for not trusting the Ministry of Internal Affairs?”

  The shock was too much for the police chief’s self-control and he stood up abruptly and reached out for the letter, which was rather stupid, since in such a serious matter any subterfuge on the prince’s part was entirely out of the question — it was too easy to verify. Dolgorukoi complacently handed the sheet of paper to the ginger-haired general.

  “Yes,” muttered Karachentsev. “That is Dmitry Andreevich’s signature. Not the slightest doubt about it.”

  The prince inquired solicitously: “Did your superiors really not consider it necessary to inform you? Tut-tut, that was very bad of them. So it would appear that you do not know what kind of secret mission Khurtinsky was carrying out?”

  Karachentsev said nothing, absolutely stunned.

  Meanwhile, Fandorin was pondering an intriguing circumstance — — how had it come about that the prince had three-month-old correspondence to hand among his current paperwork? However, what the collegiate assessor said out loud was: “I am also not aware of the nature of Mr. Khurtinsky’s secret activity; however, on this occasion he has clearly overstepped its limits. His connection with bandits in Khitrovka is indubitable and cannot be justified by any interests of state. And most important of all: Khurtinsky is clearly implicated in the death of General Sobolev.”

  Then Fandorin summarized, point by point, the story of the stolen million rubles. The governor listened very attentively. At the end he said decisively: “A scoundrel, a palpable scoundrel. He must be arrested and questioned.”

  “That is why we c-came to you, Vladimir Andreevich.”

  Speaking in a completely different tone now — bright and respectful — the chief of police inquired: “Will you permit me to do that, Your Excellency?”

  “Of course, my dear fellow,” said Dolgorukoi with a nod. “Let that villain answer for everything.”

  They walked quickly down the long corridors, the officers in plainclothes clattering along in step behind them. Erast Petrovich did not utter a word and tried not to look at Karachentsev — he understood how excruciatingly he was suffering after this debacle. And it was even more unpleasant and alarming that apparently there were certain secret matters that the top brass preferred not to entrust to Moscow’s chief of police, but to his eternal rival, the head of the secret section of the governor’s chancelry.

  They went up to the second floor, where the offices were located. Erast Petrovich asked the attendant on duty at the door if Mr. Khurtinsky was in. It turned out that he had been in his office since early that morning.

  Karachentsev took heart and doubled his pace, hurtling along the corridor like a cannonball, spurs jingling and aiguillettes clattering.

  The reception room of the head of the secret section was overflowing with visitors.

  “Is he in?” the general asked the secretary abruptly.

  “Yes, he is, Your Excellency, but he asked not to be disturbed. Shall I announce you?”

  The chief of police brushed him aside. He glanced at Fandorin, smiled into his thick mustache, and opened the door.

  At first sight, Erast Petrovich thought that Pyotr Parmyonovich Khurtinsky was standing on the windowsill and looking out the window. But a moment later he saw quite clearly that he was not standing, but hanging.

  * * *

  ELEVEN

  In which the case takes an unexpected turn

  Vladimir Andreevich Dolgorukoi knitted his brows as he read the lines written in that familiar hasty scrawl for the third time:

  I, Pyotr Khurtinsky, am guilty of having committed a crime against my duty out of avarice and of having betrayed him whom I should have served faithfully and assisted in every way possible in his onerous obligations. God is my judge.

  The lines were written crookedly, overlapping one another, and the last line even ended with a blot, as if the writer’s strength had been totally drained by his excess of repentance.

  “What was the secretary’s account of events again?” the governor asked slowly. “Tell it to me once more, please, Evgeny Osipovich, my dear fellow, in greater detail.”

  Karachentsev related their latest discoveries for the second time, more coherently and calmly than at the first attempt.

  “Khurtinsky came to work, as usual, at nine o’clock. He appeared normal; the secretary noticed no signs of anxiety or agitation. After perusing the correspondence, Khurtinsky began receiving visitors. At about five to eleven the secretary was approached by a gendarme officer who introduced himself as Captain Pevtsov, a courier from St. Petersburg who had come to see the court counselor on urgent business. The captain was holding a brown briefcase described as precisely matching the stolen one. Pevtsov was immediately shown into the study and the reception of visitors was halted. Shortly after that, Khurtinsky stuck his head out and ordered that no one else was to be allowed in until he gave specific instructions and that in general he was not to be disturbed for any reason whatsoever. According to the secretary, he appeared extremely anxious. About ten minutes later, the captain left and confirmed that the counselor of state was busy and had given instructions that he was not to be disturbed, since he was studying secret documents. And a quarter of an hour after that, at twenty minutes past eleven, Erast Petrovich and I arrived.”

  “What did the doctor say? Could it be murder?”

  “He says it is a typical case of suicide by hanging. Khurtinsky tied the cord from the transom window around his neck and jumped. A standard fracture of the cervical vertebrae. And then, as you can see for yourself, there is no reason to doubt the note. Forgery is out of the question.”

  The governor-general crossed himself and, borrowing a phrase from the Bible, remarked: “ “And abandoning the pieces of silver in the temple, he went out and hanged himself.” Well, now the criminal’s fate is in the hands of a judge more righteous than you or I, gentlemen.”

  Erast Petrovich had the feeling that such an outcome suited Prince Dolgorukoi better than any other. In contrast, the chief of police was quite clearly downcast: Just when he thought that he had taken hold of the precious thread that would lead him to the pot of gold, the thread had simply snapped in his fingers.

  Erast Petrovich’s thoughts were concerned, not with state secrets and interdepartmental intrigues, but with the mysterious Captain Pevtsov. It was perfectly obvious that he was the same man who, forty minutes before appearing in Khurtinsky’s reception room, had tricked poor Masa into giving him Sobolev’s million rubles. From Malaya Nikitskaya Street the captain of gendarmes (or, as Fandorin was inclined to presume, some individual dressed in a blue uniform) had set out directly for Tverskaya Street. The secretary had got a clearer look at this individual than the police chief’s adjutant and described him as follows: height approximately two arshins and seven vershoks, broad shoulders, straw- blond hair. One distinctive feature was that he had very light, almost transparent eyes. This detail made Fandorin shiver. In his youth he had had an encounter with a man who had eyes exactly like that, and he preferred not to recall that story from long ago, which had cost him too dear. However, the painful memory had nothing to do with this case, and he banished the gloomy shadow from his mind.

  His questions arranged themselves in the following sequence. Was this man really a gendarme? If he was
(and, more interestingly, even if he was not), then what was his role in the Sobolev case? But most important, how could he possibly be so fiendishly well-informed and so incredibly ubiquitous?

  Just at that moment the governor-general began stating the questions that interested him, which naturally sounded somewhat different: “Now what are we going to do, my esteemed detectives? What would you have me report to my superiors? Was Sobolev murdered, or did he die a natural death? What was Khurtinsky doing right under my… or rather, your nose, Evgeny Osipovich? Where has the million rubles got to? Who is this fellow Pevtsov?” There was a note of menace underlying the feigned benevolence of the prince’s voice. “What do you say, Your Excellency, our dear defender and protector?”

  The agitated chief of police wiped his sweaty forehead with a handkerchief.

  “I have no Pevtsov in my department. Perhaps he really did come from St. Petersburg and was dealing directly with Khurtinsky, bypassing the provincial administration. I surmise the following.” Karachentsev tugged nervously on one ginger sideburn. “Acting in secret from you and from me” — the chief of police swallowed — “Khurtinsky was carrying out certain confidential assignments from high up. These assignments evidently included provisions for Sobolev’s visit. To what end this was necessary, I do not know. Obviously Khurtinsky found out from somewhere that Sobolev had a very large sum of money with him and that his retinue knew nothing about it. On Thursday night Khurtinsky was informed of Sobolev’s sudden death in one of the suites at the hotel Anglia — probably by agents who were secretly observing the general, well, and… As we already know, the court counselor was greedy and not particularly choosy about his methods. He succumbed to the temptation to pocket this incredible haul and sent his minion, the housebreaker Little Misha, to extract the briefcase from the safe. However, Khurtinsky’s dubious enterprise was discovered by Captain Pevtsov, who, in all probability, had been assigned to observe the observer — that happens quite often in our department. Pevtsov confiscated the briefcase, came to Khurtinsky, and accused him of double-dealing and theft. Immediately after the captain left, the state counselor realized that his goose was cooked, so he wrote a repentant note and hanged himself. That is the only explanation that occurs to me.”