Devil of Delphi: A Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis Mystery (14 page)

Andreas stopped. No one spoke for a moment.

“That’s all the information we have except for one bit of gossip. And I quote,

“‘Virtually all in Eastern Europe who fear her are praying the rumor that she’s terminally ill is true. They believe no one who assumes her role could be as ruthless as Teacher.’”

Andreas looked up from the transcript and stared at Petro. “Got the picture?”

Petro nodded. “I’ll take the swimming pool with the crocodiles.”

Chapter Sixteen

“So, my friend, to what do I owe the honor of this phone call?” said Tassos.

“Sorry to disturb your siesta,” said Andreas, “but Maggie said you won’t be back in Athens until tomorrow and I wanted to give you a heads-up on a development in that
bomba
business with Tank.”

“No problem. At this point in my life all my day is siesta time. I could solve these island homicides in my sleep. Same story line, different players. Follow the passion.”

“I thought it was ‘follow the money’?”

“That’s in big city Athens. Here on the islands we think more with our pricks and pussies.”

“You do realize that’s not a very politically correct approach to police work.”

“I’m open to broadening my thinking. Why just the other day I collared a gay guy who’d planted a hatchet in his boyfriend’s…or was it girlfriend’s…head.”

“Enough. I’ve got something serious to tell you.”

“Okay, what is it?”

“Teacher’s back in play.”

A few seconds passed before Tassos spoke. “Are you sure?”

“I can’t imagine that the guy who gave me her name would have been insane enough to point the finger at Teacher if it weren’t true. Sort of like purposely stepping on Superman’s toes. As I’m sure I don’t have to tell you, her appearance is not a good development.”

“For anyone involved. She’d wipe out your life, my life, our families’ lives, all without even knowing our names. Or caring to know them.”

“That’s why I’m calling you. To tell you we have a problem and we need to come up with a strategy.”

“I think we should follow the example of the cockroach,” said Tassos.

“Which is?”

“They’ve been around for 280 million years because they know how to hide and adapt.”

“Okay, very funny. Now why don’t you tell me what’s really on your mind.”

“Seriously, we can’t be caught out in the open in daylight.”

“Tassos—”

“Okay, okay. Teacher can never know that we’re on to her, so whatever we do we have to make damn sure she thinks Tank is our target and not she. That snitch, the one who named her to you. What’s the chance he’ll get religion and confess that he told you?”

“If he were Catholic, I’d say he’d only confess if he were looking for his last rites.”

“Good,” said Tassos.

“But Tank’s her guy in Greece, which likely means part of her deal is protecting him from cops like us.”

“Remember when we talked about how he didn’t fit the profile of her guys in other countries? Tank is local, and I’d bet you anything he sold himself to her, claiming he could protect his own operation and she needn’t worry about any of that.”

“He’s just arrogant enough to think that way,” said Andreas.

“The more significant question at the moment is, are we arrogant enough to think we can bring down Teacher?”

“If the opportunity presented itself, I’d love to, though I’m guessing the odds on getting that chance are about the same as on achieving world peace.”

“Well, the good news is that whether our goal is to nail Tank, his sister’s killer, or Teacher, as I see it, everything starts with the same thing—shutting down Tank’s operation. If we’re right, and Teacher is behind it all, threatening her investment puts a hell of a lot of pressure on Tank. My bet is that once that happens he’s likely to make a mistake we can use to put him away and, possibly, get him to identify his sister’s killer. Who knows? We might even get lucky and Teacher will make a mistake, too.”

“I put those last two scenarios in the categories of wishful and extraordinarily wishful thinking. The more likely result of shutting Tank down is an immediate spike in the body count among his nearest and dearest. With our esteemed politicians screaming for our heads over the murder of one member of Tank’s family, would you care to guess which parts they’ll be aiming to slice off once that happens?”

Tassos snickered. “Since when has that ever bothered you?”

“Okay, assuming shutting down Tank’s business is the place to start, how do you suggest we go about doing it without getting Teacher pissed off at us, too? After all, as you pointed out, it is ultimately her operation and investment we’d be trashing.”

“Hey, why ask me? I’m the siesta-loving cop. You’re the Athens hotshot.”

“Sometimes you’re a real pain in the ass.”

“Okay, I get your point. My only suggestion is that you keep giving Tank all the rope he’s willing to take. Sooner or later he’ll tie himself up in knots, and make what you have to do so obvious and downright simple, that if you didn’t do it, Teacher would think you’re brain dead.”

“In other words, make it so that she blames Tank for the screw-up, not vigorous police work for taking him down.”

“Exactly. People like Teacher don’t get angry with dumb cops who bring them down because of someone else’s stupid mistakes. It’s the smart ones they resent, because those who outthink them make them look bad to themselves. Professor Moriarty would never have given a second thought to doing battle with Watson. It was Sherlock Holmes who drew his ire.”

“Thank you, Watson, for telling me in such an eloquent way to do absolutely nothing.”

“Essentially, yes. But that will not be easy. There will be great trials along the way, challenges to your resilience and character. But in the end you will prevail and cut off Tank’s fucking balls.”

“I’m glad you finally dropped the Yoda impression. It was getting me a bit worried.”

“Good-bye, Andreas. And may the force be with you.”

“I knew you’d say that.”

“Of course you did.” Click.

Andreas smiled. It was a good idea calling Tassos. The world seemed better now.
Do nothing and things will work out on their own.
It was Greece’s national motto. Perhaps this time it would actually work.

***

Andreas heard the secretary say, “Minister, it’s Chief Kaldis on the line.”

Spiros picked up the phone immediately. “Any news?”

“Excuse me while I take a moment to say hello.”

“And hello to you, too.”

Andreas had expected a bit of a bite back, not a cheery reply. It wasn’t like Spiros to give Andreas a pass on sarcasm.

“I have some news, Minister. But it’s…how shall I say…complicated.”

“What do you mean
complicated
?”

“We know who killed her—”

“Terrific. Have you arrested him yet?”

“No, that’s the easy part.”

“Then why haven’t you?”

“Because of the complicated part.” Andreas paused, not sure how much he should tell him. “Minister, I don’t know if I should tell you this, but—”

“Are you crazy? I’m your boss.” The words were as he’d expected from Spiros, but the tone lacked its customary outrage.

“If I tell you what I know and word gets out—because you may feel obligated to tell the prime minister, who’ll then undoubtedly tell others—your life, my life, and a lot of other lives will be in danger.” Andreas saw no reason to say that the prime minister would tell Tank’s family, as that seemed obvious.

“Are you suggesting I can’t be trusted?”

“No, not you.”

“Then who? The prime minister?”

“Let’s put it this way. He’s a politician, and politicians far too often make decisions based on the expediency of the moment. Especially now, with an election looming that polls have him likely to lose, and a hungry press out there screaming for a name to blame for the murder, I’m not betting on him or any politician seeing a bigger picture than his own reelection.”

Andreas braced for an explosion.

“I understand.” Spiros’ voice was flat. “So what can you tell me?”

If Andreas hadn’t personally dialed the minister’s number he’d have sworn he’d called the wrong man. “We don’t want anyone knowing we’ve solved the crime. We also don’t want to do anything that might discourage Tank and his family from screaming at us for not catching his sister’s killer or protecting Greek businessmen from ‘criminal elements.’”

“That’s quite a bit to ask, Andreas. If you think the press is attacking us now, they’ll go nuclear if we can’t show them any progress.”

“I know, but at the end of the day, you’ll look like a hero.”

“That assumes the prime minister doesn’t replace me by the end of
this
day.”

“Is it that bad?”

“Yes.”

“Well, then tell him I’m trying to come up with answers that won’t destroy the credibility of his party.”

“What does that mean?”

“No idea, but being the politician he is, his mind will run to all the possibilities and he’ll come up with something to justify your strategy.”

“But even assuming he doesn’t want me to press you for details, he’s going to want a timetable for when he’ll have his answers.”

“Tell him, we expect it all to break for us within a matter of days.”

“Is that true?”

Andreas looked at his free hand, remembered an American gesture, and crossed his fingers. “Absolutely.”

***

Spiros hung up on his call with Andreas and stared at a deep brown Chesterfield armchair in the far corner. He stood up, walked across his office, and dropped down into the chair. His wife hated the big, cushiony leather thing, which was why he insisted on keeping it—though in his office, not at home.

He sighed. He’d restrained his curiosity over wanting to know all that Andreas knew, and wasn’t sure Andreas was correct in his strategy, but he’d let it all pass. Despite all the bad blood between them over the years, he knew he could trust Andreas not to set him up.
It’s a shame
, he thought,
that he couldn’t say the same thing about me
.

Spiros leaned his head back against the chair, shut his eyes, and whispered, “That’s why I owe him this.”

Chapter Seventeen

Four days after his sister’s death, Tank and his family held a memorial service practically canonizing her. Every politician, cleric, and business leader who mattered in Greece seemed to have made the pilgrimage to Thessaloniki for the service. And every journalist—mattering or not—attended with camera and pen in hand feasting on the spectacle. Two TV channels carried the service live.

Tank did not miss the opportunity to make his point. He delivered an eloquent eulogy, ending with a message that would be repeated endlessly in sound bites across Greek television.

“My fellow Greeks, as hard as it is to accept, I must accept that my sister is gone and that I shall never see her again in this life. But what I cannot accept and will not accept is that any of you must needlessly suffer as my family and I have suffered.

“I want none of you
ever
to witness one of your own loved ones slaughtered before your eyes. I want none of you
ever
to find your property, your business, your very way of life targeted by those who’ll tell you, ‘Give us what we want or watch your family die.’ That is the message my sister’s murderer meant to send to all of Greece.

“But how can we, a simple people unschooled in violent ways, resist such men? We cannot. For that protection we must rely upon our government and our police. I call upon you, Mr. Prime Minister, Mr. Mayor, and Mr. Public Order Minister, to tell me and my family why in the time since my sister’s death you have accomplished absolutely nothing toward bringing her slayer to justice? The murderer is not a phantom. I have personally described him in detail.
Shame on all of you
.

“But my fellow Greeks, when I speak of shame, I speak of national shame, for if we allow our government to continue doing nothing, if we allow this violent criminal element to fester and grow, if we allow this scourge to further undermine the basic values of our beloved Greece, then I say to you, my countrymen,
SHAME ON US ALL.”

The applause that followed was spontaneous and deafening, joined in even by the politicians singled out in Tank’s excoriation of their ways.

“Sounds like he’s running for office,” said Andreas nodding toward the television in his office.

“And if we’re wrong in our strategy, there will be a hell of lot of them to fill,” said Tassos.

“Plus a few chief and detective slots I can think of,” said Kouros.

“Aw, don’t worry,” said Andreas. “He’s percolating along just fine. Pretty soon he’ll be ready.”

“To devour or explode?” said Tassos.

“Ah, yes, it’s those small details that make life challenging,” said Andreas.

Tassos nodded. “Yep, ‘the devil is in the details.’”

Kouros pointed at the television showing Tank standing by the podium basking in a standing ovation. “Nope, today I’d say he’s right up there in Thessaloniki.”

***

“Hello, Teacher, it’s Tank.”

She checked to make sure the scrambler was operating before answering. “What can I do for you?”

“I know you don’t like to chit-chat so I’ll get right to the point.”

He paused as if waiting for a response, but Teacher said nothing.

“We’ve had a bit of a disagreement recently, but I want to assure you I received your message loud and clear and all that media talk you’ve heard from me since then is only meant to benefit our mutual interests.”

She checked the scrambler again. “From what I hear, you’re demanding that Greek authorities bring your sister’s killer to justice and protect you and your countrymen from foreign criminal extortionists. How could I possibly see any of that as intended other than ‘to benefit our mutual interests’?”

Tank gave a nervous laugh. “You have no reason to worry about the police finding your man. I gave them a completely wrong description.” He swallowed. “Honestly, it’s been a great opportunity for gaining political cover for our business. No one will touch us with all the sympathetic press we’re getting. And if anyone does, I’ll scream that I’ve been set up by the very criminal element I’m pushing our politicians to attack.”

Teacher paused. “I have only one question for you. Why do you always find it necessary to seek your own path on every journey, even when there is a direct, reliable road taking you straight to all you could ever possibly hope to gain from whatever you’re pursuing?”

“I don’t understand.”

“I was afraid you’d say that. Let me give you one example. I have given you the means for duplicating the best Greek wines, yet you have this infatuation with copying the highest level French and American wines, something far beyond your abilities.”

“I don’t know how you knew about those plans, but I intended to surprise you.”

“I’m sure. But haven’t you learned by now that you’re wasting your time trying to keep secrets from me that concern my business?”

Tank swallowed again. “The way I’ve handled the media has made me so popular that people are saying I should run for public office. I’m thinking of running for mayor. After all, our current one comes out of the wine business, so why couldn’t I be next?”

“He’s honest.”

“So what? People get tired of honest politicians. They want mayors they can work with.”

“Didn’t the mayor before this one get a life sentence for that sort of thinking?”

“He was sloppy and arrogant.”

Teacher paused and cleared her throat. “I think you should consider getting a realistic grip on your ambitions. All this press coverage I’m sure is exciting for you, but the press has a way of eating its favorites.”

“I can handle them.”

“Fine, so let me put this differently. I have given you a program to follow that yields great profits everywhere it’s employed. I expect you to adhere to the product formulas, but if you wish to pursue your love affair with the media as a means for enhancing our business I shall not oppose you.”

“Thank you.”

“But if one day you should
again
conclude there is a way to cheat me, or your actions deny me the full measure of all you’ve agreed to pay me, I can assure you that the press you see venerating you today will be reporting on speeches demanding justice for your assassination.”

“That’s a wholly unnecessary approach for you to take with me.”

“I think not. You just called the murder of your sister a ‘bit of a disagreement’ and raved on about how you’ve turned it into a ‘great opportunity’ for ‘our business.’ You should be cursing me, hating me, fearing me. Instead you’re trying to hustle me with your bullshit delusions of grandeur. I’ve seen it all, I’ve done it all, I’ve been it all. My bottom line is simple: I don’t care what sort of little masturbation games you want to play with yourself, but if you ever even
think
of screwing with me or our arrangement again, I promise to cut your balls off. Literally. Slowly. Painfully.”

Silence.

“Understand?”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t hear you.”

“
Yes!
”

“Good. Your next wire transfer is due tomorrow.” Teacher hung up without saying another word and slammed her hand on the desktop.

She drew in and let out a deep breath. She hated when she lost her temper. She swallowed and looked at the photo on her desk. “This one just doesn’t get it. He’s a narcissistic sociopath, coddled and protected by his parents for so long he thinks he can get away with anything.”

She rubbed her forehead with the hand she’d slammed onto the desk. “I hope he’s right, or if he’s wrong that his parents remain prepared to be there for him. Losing one child is more than any parent should ever have to bear.”

***

“My, aren’t we home early,” said Lila looking up from the computer screen on her desk. She sat in her study, framed from behind by a lightly draped floor-to-ceiling window view of Athens’ majestic Likavitos, sister hill to the Acropolis. She glanced at her watch. “It’s still midafternoon.”

Andreas leaned across the desk and kissed her on the forehead. He stepped back and dropped onto a beige and crème damask Queen Anne sofa set back against five wall-spanning rows of lacquered bookshelves.

“That’s all I get, a forehead kiss?”

“I’m practicing restraint in all aspects of my life.”

“Come again?”

“It’s that mess up in Thessaloniki. We’re letting that asshole Tank wail away at us and not hit back. It’s emotionally exhausting. We can’t even swear at him.”

“That doesn’t sound like you.”

“It isn’t me, but the strategy is to let him punch away at us as often and hard as he likes until he makes a mistake that we can use to bring him down.”

“I get it. A variation on ‘rope-a-dope.’”

Andreas blinked. “You never fail to amaze me. I didn’t know you were a fan of American boxing.”

“‘Thrilla in Manila.’”

Andreas smiled. “You should have stopped while you were ahead. ‘Thrilla’ was Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. ‘Rope-a-dope’ came out of Ali’s fight before that one, when he beat George Foreman to regain his heavyweight championship in ‘The Rumble in the Jungle.’”

Lila shrugged. “Okay, so you caught me. Besides, those two phrases exhaust my knowledge of American boxing.”

“But you’re right about us and rope-a-dope. Ali let Foreman bang the hell out of him while he curled up against the ropes, letting the ropes absorb most of the shock from Foreman’s punches. That’s sort of our plan with Tank. Let him pound away at us until he knocks himself out.”

“Sounds like a painful strategy.”

“You’ve no idea.”

“How’s Spiros holding up?”

“Considering he’s taking most of the punches on his chin, amazing.”

“He must be on drugs,” said Lila. “Or else he’s found a guru the entire world should be following.”

“Or it could just be that his health problems have put everything else in perspective. Whatever the reason, so far he hasn’t cracked.”

“How much longer do you think he can take the pressure?”

“No telling. But if he caves in now, after Tank’s televised eulogy today, the whole country will think Tank was right about him. Make that right about
us
. We’ll all be out of work. Let’s just hope he hangs tough for at least a bit longer.”

“How long is a ‘bit longer’?”

“Until Tank makes a mistake that gives us an opening to hit him as hard as we can with the best we have.”

“How long did it take Ali to find his opening?”

“He knocked Foreman out in the eighth round.”

“Ouch, that’s a lot of pounding to take to get there.”

“And we’ve no way of telling which round we’re in with Tank.”

“Only one more boxing question. If Spiros is playing Ali, who are you?”

“Today, I’d say I’m the ropes.”

Lila stood up from her desk, walked over to the sofa, and sat down beside him. She put one hand around Andreas’ neck, the other on his upper thigh, and kissed him on the cheek. “Are you sure you want to practice ‘restraint’ in
all
aspects of your life?” She squeezed his thigh.

He smiled, still staring off in the general direction of the window. “At the moment, sadly, yes.”

She kissed him again on the cheek. “Too bad you didn’t decide on doing that sooner.”

He turned his head to face her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

She nodded toward the desk. “I was just checking my emails. One is from my doctor.”

“What’s—”

Lila stopped him with a finger to his lips. “Shhh, I’ll tell you.” She sat back and took his hands in hers. “I’m pregnant.

Andreas’ face lit into a smile. “I can’t believe it. That’s terrific!” He squeezed her hands, dropping them only to hug and kiss her. “Tassaki’s going to have a baby…baby what?”

“Too soon to tell.”

“I’m so excited.” Andreas hugged her again.

Lila took his hands in hers. “Me, too. And I think there’s a sign to be drawn from this.”

“What sort of sign?”

“That your rope-a-dope strategy is working.”

Andreas gave her a ‘what are you talking about?’ look. “How could such wonderful news about your being pregnant possibly be a sign of anything having to do with that piece of garbage Tank?”

“I see it as a sign of the power of your knock up punch.”

Andreas burst out laughing. “It’s ‘
knockout
’ punch.”

Lila smiled. “Oh, well. That too.”