Ghikas knew all that, but I was certain he hadn't said anything to them, because it was in his interests to follow their tack. He realized, however, that he couldn't go on keeping to himself. 'What Inspector Haritos says is fundamentally true. There are, of course, exceptions,' he said, to cover himself. I wanted to tell him that the FBI saw it differently, but I let it go.
Delopoulos saw that he was losing ground and went on the attack. 'Do I have your blessing to go public with all this, Minister? I'm curious to know what public opinion will make of all these theories.'
It was exactly what I'd been afraid of. He'd stirred up the public against Kolakoglou, turned Kolakoglou into public enemy number one, and if he were to come out now and say that the police ruled out the possibility of his being the murderer, they'd all turn on us. The minister must have thought the same thing, because he more or less implored him: 'Let's not be in too much of a hurry, Mr. Delopoulos. Leave it a few days more. I feel confident we'll find Kolakoglou and it will all be cleared up.'
'So be it. I respect your wishes,' Delopoulos acquiesced. 'Besides, I have every confidence in Superintendent Ghikas. And in order to show just how cooperative we are, here you are.'
From his pocket he took a folded piece of paper and gave it to the minister, who took it and examined it. 'What's this?' he said surprised.
'The sample of Mr. Petratos's handwriting that your subordinate had been seeking. You can compare it with the handwriting on the letters that you found in Karayoryi's house. But on one condition. That you remove your subordinate from the case, or at least stop him from harassing us. He unjustly made accusations against a distinguished newsman simply because the man once had a brief affair with Karayoryi, and he shouldn't be allowed to get away with it.'
So that was the price for my head: a sample of Petratos's handwriting. Delopoulos was so sure of himself that he thought it unnecessary to even mention my name and referred to me as the 'subordinate.'
'That was the case this morning, Mr. Delopoulos,' I said, still very calmly. 'In the meantime, new evidence has come to light.'
'What new evidence?' It was Ghikas who asked.
'First of all, I verified that Mr. Petratos was absent both from his house and from the studio at the time that Kostarakou was killed.'
'Along with another five million Greeks, most likely,' Delopoulos said sarcastically. 'Can't you put a stop, for heaven's sake, to your obstinacy and your prejudices?'
'Mr. Petratos had in his possession something that the other five million didn't have. The wire that was used to strangle Martha Kostarakou.'
'What was that?' The minister almost jumped out of his seat. Delopoulos stared at me blankly. He didn't know how to react.
'In the garage of his apartment building, next to the space where Mr. Petratos parks his car, I found a length of wire identical to that which was used to strangle Kostarakou. I have a witness to the finding.'
'Are you positive that this is what was used to strangle Kostarakou?' Ghikas said.
'I handed it over this evening to the lab people. We'll know more as soon as we have the results of the tests. You'll have my written report on your desk tomorrow morning.'
All three of them remained silent. They realized only too well the implications of what I had said. If they took me off the case and I turned out to be right, someone would come across my report and would haul them over the coals.
'Very well. You can go, Inspector,' the minister said.
I said good-bye, but no one was taking any notice of me. They were all lost in thought. Ghikas had a barely perceptible smile on his face, and there was a wily glint in his eyes. He seemed to be enjoying it, though I'd got nothing out of it. He was playing his own game.
I left with the satisfaction, at least, that I'd gone against the tide. Not as a lamb to the slaughter, but as a slaughterer of lambs.
CHAPTER 24
I was holding the croissant in my left hand and writing furiously with my right. I wanted to get my report to Ghikas before being suspended or transferred. I had made up my mind not to deal with anything else, but I'd reckoned without Thanassis, who I found waiting for me, just like every morning.
'Go away, I have work to do;' I told him curtly, needing to get rid of him. But he didn't budge. And not only that, he didn't have his usual moron look.
'We have a lead on Kolakoglou.'
That was just great. If he'd told me this the previous day, I'd have been pleased and had a good word to say to him. But right now, having woken up resolved to get off the case, I'd convinced myself that it was no longer my concern. Let Ghikas tear his hair out since he'd taken charge of it. On the other hand, I didn't want to provoke comment and so I asked, purely as a formality: 'What lead?'
'He was seen yesterday, around midnight, in a bar on Michael Voda Street, with another man. The owner recognized him and called 100, but by the time the patrol car got there, they'd gone.'
'You see what I said about him still being in Athens?' When you're getting a pasting on all fronts, even the least bit of vindication is a comfort.
'The owner recognized the other man. His name is Sourpis and he's known in the street as a fence, a loan shark. The owner doesn't know where he lives, but he goes to the bar now and again to pick up a girl. As of today, I'll have one of our men waiting there. As soon as either of them shows up, he'll nab him.'
'Fine. Put it all in your report.'
'Report?'
He was expecting a pat on the back, but I was more concerned about my own situation. I'd send his report to Ghikas along with my own, so he'd see that I hadn't confined myself to Petratos, but that I had pressed on with the search for Kolakoglou. I wanted him to see that he'd treated me unfairly. From then on, he could do as he thought fit. Thanassis went on staring at me in surprise. He was about to say something, but thought better of it and left the office.
I bit into my croissant without much appetite, more out of habit than anything, and I kept writing. I wondered if I'd find croissants in the place they were going to send me or if I'd have to make do with a run-of-the-mill cheese pie. Most probably Adriani would have to pack me sandwiches, wrapped in tinfoil.
When I got home the previous evening, she'd pretended to be asleep. But I'd found the table set and the food simmering on the stove. It was another of her ways of showing that, even though we weren't talking, she still worried about me. I hadn't slept a wink. She'd felt me tossing and turning beside her but had said not a word. When I got up in the morning, she was asleep, perhaps because it had been late when she finally dozed off. Before I left, I had put the housekeeping money on the table together with five thousand more. An ambiguous gesture. Had I done it deliberately or because I'd miscounted the money? She could decide.
I had filled two sides of A4 paper and I was getting to the conclusions when Sotiris came in.
'Not now,' I said, without lifting my head, like a student taking an exam.
'There's a girl outside who wants to see you.'
'When I'm finished.'
'She says she's Yanna Karayoryi's niece.'
I stopped in midsentence. Anna Antonakaki was the last person I'd expected to see that morning. 'Show her in,' I said to Sotiris.
She was wearing black trousers tucked into cowboy boots, a gray pullover, and a black leather jacket on top. She was carrying a plastic bag. Once again, I was taken aback by her likeness to Yanna. That same haughty air. Except that she was still young and didn't have the irony in her look yet. She was simply cold and kept the world at arm's length. She stood next to the door, staring at me. I wondered if she shared her aunt's loathing for men.
'Come in, sit down.'
She sat on the edge of the chair and continued to stare at me. 'I don't know if what I'm doing is right,' she said after a while.
She remained silent after that, as if she expected something from me. Maybe she was waiting for me to make it easy for her. But what could I say? I didn't know why she'd come, or what her intentions were, so I let her work it out for herself.
