the parishioners got him out. It was unusual, to do that.”
What it was like, day to day. A waitress collecting a check, a thousand cruelties, then the odd act of grace.
“Did you know him before? I mean, was this your church?”
“No. Why?”
“I was wondering if anyone could trace you through him.”
“Oh,” she said quietly.
He glanced at her, her head nodding, not yet asleep but drowsy, as peaceful as one of the children. Not just bait but living with a man asking questions, vulnerable either way. There had to be another place, somewhere nobody knew. But who had flats? Generals’ girls and whores.
“You passed the street,” she mumbled as he sped up Tauentzienstrasse toward the Memorial Church.
“I have to make a stop. Just for a minute.”
He double-parked in front of Ronny’s in a row of jeeps.
“Here?” she said, puzzled.
“I won’t be long.” He turned to one of the waiting drivers. “Do me a favor, will you, and keep an eye on the lady?”
“Now I need a guard?” Lena said softly.
“Watch her yourself,” the GI said, then took in Jake’s uniform patch and stood up. “Sir,” he said with a salute.
There was the usual blare of music as he went through the door, a trumpet leading “Let Me Off Uptown,” loud even in the noisy room.
The club seemed more crowded than before, but Danny still had his own corner table, Noel Coward hair slicked back, drumming his fingers to the music, a permanent piece of the furniture. Only one girl tonight, and next to him Gunther, staring into a glass.
“Well, here’s a treat,” Danny said. “Come to cheer old Gunther up, have you?” He nudged Gunther, who barely managed an acknowledging glance before going back to his glass. “Bit down in the dumps, he is. Not the best advert for the girls. You remember Trude?” A hopeful smile from the blonde.
“Got a second?” Jake said. “I need a favor.”
Danny stood up. “Such as?”
“Can you fix me up with a room? A flat, if you’ve got it.”
“For yourself?”
“A lady,” Jake said, leaning closer, not wanting to be overheard.
“How long do you need?” Danny said, glancing at his watch.
“No. A place to live.”
“Oh, you don’t want to be getting mixed up in that. Get their hooks in and then what? You want to spread the wealth. Cheaper in the end.”
“Can you doit?”
Danny looked at him narrowly, ready for business. “It’ll cost you.”
“That’s all right. But nobody’s to know.” He met Danny’s eyes. “She has a husband. Can you fix it with the landlord?”
“Well, that’d be me, wouldn’t it?”
“You own it?”
“I told you, nothing like property. You see how it comes in handy. Mind, I’ll have to chuck somebody out-they won’t like that a bit. They’ll need a little something for relocation. That’d be extra.”
“Done.”
Danny glanced up, surprised not to have to bargain. “Right. Give me a day.”
“And not with the other girls. I don’t want people coming and going.”
“Respectable, like.”
“Yes.”
“Well, it’s your lookout. Smoke?” He opened a gold cigarette case, a prop from Private Lives. “Take my advice, don’t do it. You don t want to settle in, makes it worse after. Me, I like a choice.”
“I appreciate this,” Jake said, ignoring him. He took out some money. “Do you want something down?”
Danny looked away, embarrassed again by actual cash. “You’re good for it, aren’t you? Friend of Gunther’s.” He turned and pulled out a chair. “Here, have a drink. Come on, Gunther, share and share alike. Pour out, pour out.”
“That’s all right,” Jake said. “I’ve got somebody waiting.” He nodded at the bottle. “Looks like I’d have a lot of catching up to do. You been here all day?” he said to Gunther.
“No,” Gunther said calmly, “working for you.” Looking at him steadily, so that Jake understood the trial that morning was to be put aside, something gone with the rest of the bottle. “I spoke to Willi.”
“Let me guess,” Jake said, sitting down for a minute. “A Russian’s been paying him to watch the house.”
“Yes.”
“Find out about the one in the market? The sharpshooter?”
“I inquired, yes.”
“One of Sikorsky’s men?”
“He must have been. Vassily said he didn’t know, and Vassily knows everyone. So.” He looked up. “How did you know?”
“I talked to Shaeffer, the man who was shot. He and Sikorsky have been playing cat and mouse for a couple of weeks now. Sikorsky laid a trap and he walked right into it.”
“But the mouse got away. So. You didn’t need my services after all. What else do you know? ”
“That Tully knew where Brandt was. He didn’t just let him go, he sent him there. It was a setup. Then he collects some Russian money. They do connect. That’s what he was selling-information about Brandt.”
Gunther considered this for a moment, then picked up his drink. “Yes. It was the money that was confusing. So much. People are cheap in Berlin. You can sell them for less.”
“Not this one. He’s important. Your friend Sikorsky would be interested, for instance.”
“My friend,” he said, almost snorting. “A business acquaintance.” He smiled slightly at Jake’s expression. “Everybody does a little business.”
“The Russians must have Emil. You thought so this morning.”
A nod. “It’s the logic. And you think Vassily would tell me? On these matters, I’m afraid, a man of principle. If he knows.”
“Then maybe he’ll tell you who drove Tully to Potsdam. I’ve been thinking about that. How did he get there?”
“The general is not a chauffeur, Herr Geismar.”
“Somebody met Tully at the airport. Somebody drove him to Potsdam and killed him. It had to be a Russian.”
“The same man?”
“What do you mean?”
“Would you spend all day with someone you intended to kill? What would you do with him all day? No, you would do it.” He made a chopping motion with the side of his hand.
“He’s got you there, mate,” Danny said, surprising Jake, who’d forgotten he was at the table.
“But the driver, anyway,” Jake said, annoyed at being interrupted, “he’d be Russian. Why not ask?”
“Because you would learn nothing,” Gunther said, serious. “Nothing. And you would make yourself- conspicuous. Never be conspicuous with the Russians. Not a patient people. They strike.” He lifted a finger for emphasis. “Keep your head down until you know. Be a policeman, follow the numbers.”
“This is where they lead.”
Gunther shrugged. “The airport, yes, that’s interesting. The driver, what would that tell me? Unless it’s the same man-but how could that be?” He shook his head. “It’s the wrong question. Besides, you know, I have my interests to protect.”
“Yeah. Everybody does a little business.”
