'And what then?' I hoped he wasn't planning some private little execution, because I didn't feel up to wrestling with my conscience, especially when there was a lot of money involved.
'Before delivering the murderer into the hands of the authorities you will recover my property. On no account must they get their hands on it.'
'What exactly are we talking about?'
Six folded his hands thoughtfully, then unfolded them again, and then swathed himself with his arms like a party-girl's wrap. He looked quizzically at me.
'Confidentially, of course,' I growled.
'Jewels,' he said. 'You see, Herr Gunther, my daughter died intestate, and without a will all her property goes to her husband's estate. Paul did make a will, leaving everything to the Reich.' He shook his head. 'Can you believe such stupidity, Herr Gunther? He left everything. Everything. One can hardly credit it.'
'He was a patriot then.'
Six failed to perceive the irony in my remark. He snorted with derision. 'My dear Herr Gunther, he was a National Socialist. Those people think that they are the first people ever to love the Fatherland.' He smiled grimly. 'I love my country. And there is nobody who gives more than I do. But I simply cannot stand the thought that the Reich is to be enriched even further at my expense. Do you understand me?
'I think so.'
'Not only that, but the jewels were her mother's, so quite apart from their intrinsic value, which I can tell you is considerable, they are also of some sentimental account.'
'How much are they worth?'
Schemm stirred himself to offer up some facts and figures. 'I think I can be of some assistance here, Herr Six,' he said, delving into a briefcase that lay by his feet, and producing a buff-coloured file which he laid on the rug between the two sofas. 'I have here the last insurance valuations, as well as some photographs.' He lifted a sheet of paper and read off the bottom-line figure with no more expression than if it had been the amount of his monthly newspaper account. 'Seven hundred and fifty thousand Reichsmarks.' I let out an involuntary whistle. Schemm winced at that, and handed me some photographs. I had seen bigger stones, but only in photographs of the pyramids. Six took over with a description of their history.
'In 1925 the world jewel market was flooded with gems sold by Russian exiles or put on sale by the Bolsheviks, who had discovered a treasure trove walled up in the palace of Prince Youssoupov, husband to the niece of the Tsar. I acquired several pieces in Switzerland that same year: a brooch, a bracelet and, most precious of all, a diamond collet necklace consisting of twenty brilliants. It was made by Cartier and weighs over one hundred carats. It goes without saying, Herr Gunther, that it will not be easy to dispose of such a piece.'
'No, indeed.' It might seem cynical of me, but the sentimental value of the jewels was now looking quite insignificant beside their monetary value. 'Tell me about the safe.'
'I paid for it,' said Six. 'Just as I paid for the house. Paul didn't have a great deal of money. When Crete's mother died I gave her the jewels, and at the same time I had a safe installed so that she could keep them there when they weren't in the vault at the bank.'
'So she had been wearing them quite recently?'
'Yes. She accompanied my wife and myself to a ball just a few nights before she was killed.'
'What kind of safe was it?'
'A Stockinger. Wall-mounted, combination lock.'
'And who knew the combination?'
'My daughter, and Paul, of course. They had no secrets from each other, and I believe he kept certain papers to do with his work there.'
'Nobody else?'
'No. Not even me.'
'Do you know how the safe was opened, if there were any explosives used?'
'I believe there were no explosives used.'
'A nutcracker then.'
'How's that?'
'A professional safe-cracker. Mind you, it would have to be someone very good to puzzle it.' Six leaned forward on the sofa.
'Perhaps,' he said, 'the thief forced Grete or Paul to open it, then ordered them back to bed, where he shot them both. And afterwards he set fire to the house in order to cover his tracks throw the police off the scent.'
'Yes, that's possible,' I admitted. I rubbed a perfectly circular area of smooth skin on my otherwise stubbly face: it's where a mosquito bit me when I was in Turkey, and ever since then I've never had to shave it. But quite often I find myself rubbing it when I feel uneasy about something. And if there's one thing guaranteed to make me feel uneasy, it's a client playing detective. I didn't rule out what he was suggesting might have happened, but it was my turn to play the expert: 'Possible, but messy,' I said. 'I can't think of a better way of raising the alarm than making your own private Reichstag. Playing Van der Lubbe and torching the place doesn't sound like the sort of thing a professional thief would do, but then neither does murder.' There were a lot of holes in that of course: I had no idea that it was a professional; not only that, but in my experience it's rare that a professional job also involves murder. I just wanted to hear my own voice for a change.
'Who would have known she had jewels in the safe?' I asked.
'Me,' said Six. 'Grete wouldn't have told anyone. I don't know if Paul had.'
'And did either of them have any enemies?'
'I can't answer for Paul,' he said, 'but I'm sure that Grete didn't have an enemy in the world.' While I could accept the possibility that Daddy's little girl always brushed her teeth and said her prayers at night, I found it hard to ignore how vague Six was about his son-in-law. That made the second time he was uncertain about what Paul would have done.
'What about you?' I said. 'A rich and powerful man like yourself must have your fair share of enemies.' He nodded. 'Is there anyone who might hate you bad enough to want to get back at you through your daughter?'
He re-kindled his Black Wisdom, puffed at it and then held it away from him between the tips of his fingers. 'Enemies are the inevitable corollary of great wealth, Herr Gunther,' he told me. 'But these are business rivals I'm talking about, not gangsters. I don't think any of them would be capable of something as cold-blooded as this.' He stood up and went to attend to the fire. With a large brass poker he dealt vigorously with the log that was threatening to topple out of the grate. While Six was off-guard I jabbed him with one about the son-in-law.
'Did you and your daughter's husband get on?'
He twisted round to look at me, poker still in hand, and face slightly flushed.
It was all the answer that I needed, but still he tried to throw some sand in my eyes. 'Why ever do you ask such a question?' he demanded.
'Really, Herr Gunther,' said Schemm, affecting shock at my asking such an insensitive question.
'We had our differences of opinion,' said Six. 'But what man can be expected sometimes not to agree with his son-in-law?' He put down the poker. I kept quiet for a minute. Eventually he said: 'Now then, with regard to the conduct of your investigations, I would prefer it if you would confine your activities specifically to searching for the jewels. I don't care for the idea of you snooping around in the affairs of my family. I'll pay your fees, whatever they are '
'Seventy marks a day, plus expenses,' I lied, hoping that Schemm hadn't checked it out.
'What is more, the Germania Life Assurance and Germania Insurance Companies will pay you a recovery fee of five per cent. Is that agreeable to you, Herr Gunther?' Mentally I calculated the figure to be 37,500. With that sort of money I was set. I found myself nodding, although I didn't care for the ground rules he was laying down: but then for nearly 40,000 it was his game.
'But I warn you, I'm not a patient man,' he said. 'I want results, and I want them quickly. I have written out a cheque for your immediate requirements.' He nodded to his stooge, who handed me a cheque. It was for 1,000 marks and made out to cash at the Privat Kommerz Bank. Schemm dug into his briefcase again and handed me a letter on the Germania Life Assurance Company's notepaper.
'This states that you have been retained by our company to investigate the fire, pending a claim by the estate. The house was insured by us. If you have any problems you should contact me. On no account are you to bother Herr Six, or to mention his name. Here is a file containing any background information you may need.'
