”I have good news. Very good news as a matter of fact” Nikki smiled as broadly as she could and revealed what her boss had discovered. Then it was Sam’s turn to look astounded. The next moment Daphne came storming in looking all dishevelled. Her hair was messy and she looked almost crazy.
”Maria has called again. She claims that Petros Christou is a relative of our third victim.” She looked at the others who had stopped what they were doing. Nikki put the kettle down and looked with wide eyes at her colleague as if they came from outer space. ”What did you just say?”
”The accountant is the son of the dead man we found in the sand-bunker.” Daphne was in her element and didn’t quite know how to behave. Her feet were pounding the hard linoleum-floor and she couldn’t stand still.
”What? How is that possible?” Nikki’s brain couldn’t take in any more information. The tiredness and the night’s events had taken their toll on her. She felt befuddled .
”But don’t you get it, we must interrogate Petros again. Now at once, this could be really crucial for getting him to begin talking.” Nobody could doubt Daphne’s zeal but both Sam and Nikki looked at her in silence without quite getting the point of her words. She looked at Nikki and continued. ”You have to come too Nikki, but you must stay outside and listen and add any necessary input.” Daphne pointed to the interrogation room, stole a raw-food bar and was just about to turn around when Sam interrupted her.
”Of course if you get an order for arrest in the meantime so Carlos can go and pick up Olof Stenvall.” Sam smiled broadly at Daphne and knew that she would be confused.
”What did you say?” Daphne said. She raised her eye-brows in surprise while opening the pack and taking a bite.
Nikki once again described what her boss had found in the police records in Sweden and she could see the light in Daphne’s eyes.
”It’s just bloody unbelievable. That’s one up for you Nikki since you’ve never liked Olof Stenvall.” Daphne swayed a bit on her heels and took another bite. ”It’s not every day I get to ask Carlos to obtain an order for arrest.”
”So you don’t have any idea of when you saw your father last?” Sam said patiently as he paced the sterile interrogation room.
”No”, Petros replied weakly. He really needed to shave and freshen up for now he smelled sweatier than ever.
”Was it last week, a month ago or was it several years ago?” Sam started losing his patience and hit the air hard with the pen.
The accountant shrugged as if he didn’t care. ”Maybe a few years ago, I am not so sure.” He spoke slowly, almost mumbling, on purpose to provoke.
”Sadly your father has been tortured. He is dead.” Sam’s voice was sharp and he tried waking the little man up. But Petros just looked with an empty expression and didn’t show any feelings at all.
”Do you understand what I’m saying?” Sam stopped chewing the pen and looked at Petros who nodded weakly.
”Good, then you’re with me this far. Do you have a name for your father?” Petros quickly looked up as if he had been woken from a nightmare.
”Solon, his name is Solon Christou.”
”Do you know somebody who would want to hurt him?” Sam continued and pulled a tired hand through his raven black hair.
Petros slowly shook his head and then looked to the side.
”Your mother, does she happen to be alive?”
Petros once again shook his head and seemed to be lost in old memories. He was staring in front of him and could hardly be reached.
”OK, let’s change topic. We’ve found a file containing some interesting sales contracts when we searched your office.” Sam put an open A4-file in front of Petros’ nose . ”There’s something I would like you to explain”, he continued and pointed to some lines in one of the documents.
Petros looked down at the file and shrugged. The lawyer gave him a nervous look but asked him once again to explain.
”Eh, I’ve bought shares in some companies”, Petros started stuttering. His shirt was getting wet and there was sweat dripping down his cheeks.
”I don’t understand. You mean that you’ve bought shares in Karl Hofvenskold’s companies for just a few Euros each?” Sam paused and looked straight into Petros’ dull eyes. ”They are bloody worth several millions of Euros each. Don’t tell me that Karl was a bad business man because we know him better than that.” Now Sam had raised his voice considerably and the tone was more than irritated.
A silence spread in the room and the air was completely still. Without any reason Petros suddenly shifted character and started smiling spitefully His sad eyes had been replaced with those of a maniac.
”I made a good deal”, Petros grinned viciously. ”Is there a problem with that?”
”Under duress of course. There is no sane business man who willingly would sell his companies for these extremely low prices.”
”Don’t look at me, talk to the seller instead”, Petros hissed.
”Maybe I should mention that both Sten Arvidsson and Karl Hofvenskold are both dead. Murdered. It’s kind of impossible to ask anyone of them.” Petros just continued grinning wickedly with both hands in cuffs on top of the table.
”You know what, I think you had something to do with their deaths. Your alibi isn’t exactly water tight as you know. Your daughter Sophie can’t confirm whether you were home the night the murders were committed. You might well have sneaked out when she had fallen asleep.”
Petros pressed his lips into a disapproving line. He shrugged again and refused to take the bait with Sam’s upset tone of voice.
”Sten Arvidsson and Karl Hofvenskold are dead. Murdered. Do you understand what I’m saying?” Sam’s voice echoed amid the empty walls. ”Refused to sign the sales deal just like Patrik Kroona? Is that why you had to abuse and torture them to death? And even when they signed you couldn’t be sure if they would expose you or not. Is that what happened?” Sam spat out the last sentence and his gaze was furious.
Petros face was blank and his hands were clasped tightly on his lap. But he didn’t say a word. He remained silent.
Sam tried to breathe normally and looked doubtfully at the accountant. He waited for a while until he was sure he had both Petros’ and his legal counsel’s full attention again.
”OK, you don’t feel like talking but there’s something you should bloody keep in mind. We have enough to keep you here in jail. If we sum up everything we think you are guilty of you can count on a fairly long prison term. Life actually. So far two murders, unless you are the one who murdered your own dad of course, then it will be three. Then we have blackmail, serious abuse, attempted murder and kidnapping”, Sam informed them and showed five fingers. One for each point of accusation.
Nikki and Daphne were both sitting in an office chairs. The day had been extremely long and they were awfully tired. The sun was about to set over the roof tops and a golden light seeped into the dreary conference room. A newly spun spider web could be seen in the window and in the middle there was the rascal waiting patiently for his victims.
”I really hope we can convince Petros so he starts talking because it really seems bad for him.” Daphne sneezed a few times and blew her nose in the serviette.
”Do you really think he is the one behind it all?” Nikki poured yet another cup of tea and stretched her hand out for the milk.
”He’s definitely guilty of putting Patrik in a coma at least. How is he doing by the way?”
Nikki looked at Daphne with sadness and stirred her tea . ”I spoke to Linn a while ago and the situation is unfortunately the same.”
”Miracles have happened before, haven’t they?”
”Yes, I know but it’s eating me up from within. You know how it is, the thoughts buzzing around in your head until you go crazy.” She had a sip of tea and tears welled up in her eyes. ”There is something completely different which I’ve been giving some thought to. You know the photographs I saw in Petros’ office. I have a theory but I’ll need your help to confirm it.”
Daphne looked curiously at Nikki and knew that she usually had ideas bringing them forward in the investigation. ”OK, tell me.”
Nikki shared her thoughts and Daphne whistled. She became curious and went to sit down by the computer, opened the records and started scrolling. Nikki was leaning over the screen and curiously followed Daphne’s methodical work until a well-known ring was heard in her handbag. She put her hand down into her bag and felt around, wondering why she had so many unnecessary things in it. Finally she found her mobile and smiled when she saw the picture of David on the display.
”We’ve got something. The last number has opened the message.”
Nikki rejoiced loudly. ”Finally, if you have time maybe you could go in and have a look in the mobile. I think he’s keeping a lot of secrets.”
David laughed out loud. ”I’ve already had time with that Miss Curious. I found an interesting recording and it should already be in your inbox. It sounds as if the person has been beaten. Listen for yourself. If you’re lucky you’ll recognize one of the voices.”
”Wow, you’re on the ball. A beating you said…” Nikki got stuck on the word beating and drummed her fingers hard on the side of her thigh while seeing some pictures inside her head.
”I’ve also made some searches of the Mafia’s accounts. Hold on now. There is a little over 100 million Euros and their bank is, as expected, in a tax-payer’s paradise.”
”I’ll be damned.”
”The good thing is that I put a trojan there so now I have full access to it. Would you like to buy something…?” David sounded playful and serious at the same time and then he started giggling in a way that only he did. ”Maybe we should empty their account and go to New York for some shopping?” Nikki laughed. ”I’d love to, there’s a lot I need but unfortunately I never have time. 100 million Euros you said...not bad at all. All the money is of course more or less illegal?”
”You bet.”
Nikki thanked him for all the help, sent a kiss and hung up. Then she went back to Daphne who was sitting very close to the computer screen.
”How is it going? Is my theory working out?”
”Hang on a second, I’ll just click on this…but look at this.” Daphne read out loud and Nikki’s hair rose on her neck. ”But what does this information actually tell us?”
”I don’t know yet, it’s just a gut feeling. Could you check the criminal records of the three? And then I would like to know when and how the mother died.”
Daphne looked sceptically at Nikki, changed program and put in Solon Christou’s personal number in the system.
”There is nothing on the father or the sons at all in our criminal records”, she said and put in Gunvor Christous’ personal number instead. ”Let’s see what we have on the little mother. She died 1980, in Sweden as a matter of facts…”
”In Sweden?” Nikki asked surprised and tilted her head.
”Yeah, that’s what it says here at least. And you know what, she was a Swedish citizen as well.”
”I’ll be damned.” Nikki gasped for breath, pulled out her mobile from her denim shorts and dialled the number to her department in Gothenburg. Goran answered on the second ring and they chatted for a while before she asked her question.
”Two questions. I heard from Charlie that you have arrested the man who drugged my sister?”
”Correct. She happened to see the man in town and managed to take a picture of him with her mobile. We could identify him and he was even in the criminal records.”
Nikki breathed out a sigh of relief. ”Thanks for the information. That’s a great weight off my mind”
”We’ve already picked him up and he will not walk since several women have identified him. We had a line-up at the station here yesterday”, Goran said proudly.
”Oh God how wonderful to hear that. I’ll call Charlie later tonight and see how she’s doing.”
”Do that. She is taking it fairly well, I have to say, compared to some of the women who came here yesterday. Some were bundles of nerves and when they saw the offender they broke down completely.”
”I can understand that. Ah, I don’t even want to think of what they have been through.”
”You had another question too, right?”
”Yes. Could you have a quick look at a Gunvor Christou, she died 1980 somewhere in Sweden.” Nikki gave the information and also told Goran that she thought the wife was their last murder victim.
”Of course, what have you found?” Goran asked curiously and started hitting the key-board.
”I don’t know, but something tells me there might be something there.”
”Let’s see then.” Goran was humming to himself while reading through the information.
”She died in Anga under doubtful circumstances.”
”Anga? Where? A bit more information, please.” Nikki waited tensely and knew that Goran would not disappoint her.
”I’m reading, wait”, Goran continued mumbling. ”It says the husband found Gunvor Christou dead at their summer place on Gotland. She was badly beaten and…hang on ….both eyes were missing.”
”What did you say?” Nikki shouted out loudly touching her forehead.
”She was missing both eyes when they found her”, Goran repeated with his broadest Gothenburg dialect and Nikki could see him there dressed in his old-fashioned denims and checked shirt.