The commissaris apologized.
De Gier busied himself sipping alternate juices.
'U.S. immigration stamps all foreign passports,' the commissaris said briskly. 'Your suspect told me he had been here twice, once as a member of a guided tour group, once to investigate the alleged murder. If there are more stamps he will have to explain them. What makes you think that Jo was here in New York when old Termeer was killed?'
De Gier hesitated. Then he mentioned Road Warrior, a movie character. According to policewoman Maggie, a Road Warrior look-alike participated in the Central Park contest the Sunday Bert Termeer died.
'I'm not familiar with the character, Sergeant.'
'He is an avenger, sir.'
'Tell me the movie.' The commissaris smiled. 'You're good at that. Remember the movies you told me when I was ill for a month? Every Tuesday and Thursday evenings. And when I saw them myself later they weren't anywhere near as good as you told them.'
Chief O'Neill was on his way so there was no time for much detail. De Gier sketched the plot. Civilization, after a catastrophic global war, has come to an end. Homo sapiens is an endangered species. Somehow the Australian desert has escaped devastation in the atomic mayhem. Two small bands of desperados roam endless sand- and rockscapes in leftover automobiles.
One band is good. One band is bad.
In a conflict over the last supply of gasoline the good guys are losing to the bad guys.
Mel Gibson plays a lone warrior, detached, independent, driving a battered racing car, manned by himself and a feral dog, and revenging the atrocities committed by the bad guys on the good guys.
Jo Termeer had told de Gier that he liked 'Australian futuristic bizarre action movies.'
'But he didn't specify this particular Road Warrior movie, did he?'
De Gier made another note on his napkin.
'What are you writing, Sergeant?'
'Reminding myself to tell Grijpstra to investigate Termeer's interest in The Road Warrior, sir.'
'Is this independent, detached Road Warrior character gay?' the commissaris asked.
Maggie had told de Gier about a previous Road Warrior movie entided Mad Max, in which the same character appears as a heterosexual male whose wife and child are killed by bad gay guys. In the second episode of the saga, the one de Gier had seen, Road Warrior is too detached to show any interest in sex whatsoever. He does, however, get the eye from a woman dressed in white, but she dies.
'Bad gay guys figure in both movies, sir,' de Gier said, 'and Road Warrior manages to kill most of the fuckers. Sorry, sir.'
The commissaris, tearing the skin of a mandarin, said 'Aha, aha.'
'It all fits,' de Gier said triumphantly.
'If,' the commissaris said, 'Jo was in Central Park, and dressed up as this Road Warrior. This actor Mel Gibson is handsome?'
'Yes,' de Gier said.
'Well, so is Jo Termeer. Black leather, I suppose? Boots? That sort of thing? Outfit all roughed up? Some dangerous-looking weaponry?'
'A riot gun.'
The commissaris drank his coffee. 'I could think of another more likely suspect, Sergeant. I think you could too.'
De Gier, after many years of practicing the art of criminal detection, had no trouble changing leads. He dropped Jo Termeer without effort.
'Charlie,' de Gier said brightly. 'Termeer's neighbor. Charlie is often in Central Park. The man is very visible. I have three reliable informants who describe subject as an older muscular type of male, who drags a leg. He allegedly looks kind and prosperous. Subject is suntanned. He works out near the Natural History Museum. He is often accompanied by a seeing-eye dog, a large female Alsatian.
'One informant tells me Kali was also seen with Bert Termeer.'
'Aha,' the commissaris said. 'Termeer didn't have bad vision, did he? Does Charlie have bad vision?'
'We'll know tonight, sir.'
'Tell me about your informants.'
De Gier specified:
1) Antonio, a recovered alcoholic gay male nurse, an intelligent man living a disciplined life with a well- organized friend in a Horatio Street bed and breakfast, who visits Central Park regularly to sail his model boat. Antonio has often noticed Charlie. He also noticed the dog, Kali.
'Aha,' the commissaris said. 'I like recovering alcoholics. Antonio knows the pair by name? There is friendship?'
'No, sir, I put in the names.'
'Antonio saw Charlie in the park on the day old Termeer died?'
'He thinks he may have.'
'Ah,' the commissaris said. 'Ah. The good Antonio again. Didn't you say that Antonio knew Termeer too? Called him 'a prophet'?'
'Yessir, the two met. Termeer told Antonio 'to watch it.' There would be a philosophical implication.'
'Please continue,' the commissaris said. 'Maybe have some coffee first? Let me pour it for you. Here you go. No sugar, a little milk. I'll stir it.'
De Gier sipped gratefully, then continued.
2) The Central Park Precinct's efficient and intelligent-looking uniformed desk-sergeant knows both Charlie and Kali by name. He didn't see them on the day Bert Termeer died.
3) Mounted Policewoman Maggie McLaughlin, a levelheaded and intelligent person, knew both Charlie and Kali by name. She had told Charlie to keep the dog leashed, which he didn't. She was fairly sure she saw Charlie and Kali in the park on the day Termeer died.
'Now it's the other way around,' the commissaris said. 'We have opportunity, but do we have motive?'
Chapter 18
The commissaris, in earlier, more positive and therefore more restricted times, used to say that 'good luck comes to those who keep trying.' He was lately heard to say that 'good luck comes to those who are lucky.'
Two events happened that afternoon. While the commissaris attended his lecture at One Police Plaza, where he viewed slides showing deadly weapons made from junk by handy criminals who, the burly captain lecturing said, 'were out of cash but used these to get it,' and while de Gier wandered about the magnificent display of Papuan art in the Metropolitan Museum, admiring wooden demons who sprouted other wooden demons out of the tops of their heads, Maggotmaid killer Trevor was shot dead in Central Park by Detective Tom Tierney.
Events that led up to Trevor's killing began when Detective Jerry Curran, dressed as a hobo, overheard Trevor talking into a public telephone. Trevor, when repeating the other party's information, used the words 'Zabar's' 'NYNEX' and 'Alice' and the code figure/ letter combinations 'IK,' '2P' and '4P.' Detective-Sergeant Hurrell cracked Trevor's code. He correctly surmised that Trevor was to meet his party at the bronze statue of Alice in Wonderland in Central Park at 2 P.M.
Both parties would be carrying shopping bags from the famous New York deli Zabar's. Each bag would contain a NYNEX phonebook. They would not greet each other but would sit down on the same bench. They would leave carrying each other's shopping bags.
If no police activity occurred, the parties would meet again at the Alice statue at 4 P.M. This time Trevor's bag would contain cash in the amount of the going wholesale price for one kilo of heroin and the other party's bag would contain the product.
When Hurrell and his two assistants attempted to arrest Trevor, who was carrying the heroin-filled shopping bag, Trevor pulled a pistol from under his jacket. Trevor's gun turned out to be unloaded.
