“And maybe more than that.”
“Could be. Could be someone pushed Dorpmüller off that railway platform. Could be that someone was Friedrich Jauch. Could be that’s why he applied for a job in claims. Just so that he could scupper a possible investigation by this department. Think about that for a moment. It’s a nice sweet scheme, investigating a claim on a policy that he’d sold himself.”
“You have got a dirty mind, haven’t you. Now I come to think about it I was a little surprised he applied for the job in the first place. It’s not just MRE who make money from Friedrich Jauch’s salesmanship. It’s him, too. What with commission, becoming a claims adjustor would have meant a substantial pay cut.”
“Did you ask him about that?”
“Yes. He said he was getting a little tired of shaking hands and smiling all day. That he’d been thinking a job in claims might suit him better.”
“How did he take it when you turned him down?”
“Just fine. They sweetened his deal as a salesman. Gave him a company car and another percentage point on his commission. He could hardly turn up his nose at that.”
“Not without it drawing attention to himself.”
“Of course, there is another possibility. It could be that Dorpmüller just didn’t get around to claiming for his time off work. That he was too busy.”
“You don’t believe that. And nor does Timothy Q. Mouse.”
“But I want to believe it,” said Dietrich. “There’s a subtle difference. Friedrich Jauch is almost a friend of mine.”
“Look, it’s not like Dorpmüller’s premium would have gone up if he’d claimed. He was covered for that, too.”
“You noticed that, as well? You learn fast, Christof.”
“I’ve learned not to make allegations like this without evidence. And the evidence is all written in that file you’re holding. I’ve read it, cover to cover. And I’m still walking away with something bad on my shoe.”
“So what would you suggest?”
“It’s the widow who’ll be expecting the Irma Grese treatment. After all, she’s the one in line for the big payday. Not Friedrich Jauch. So why don’t I tail him for a couple of days? See what I come up with. If they are in this together he’ll be keeping his head low for now. If they had any sense they’ll have made an agreement not to contact each other until after the check is paid over. So all the trust is on his side. Especially after she has the money. Which means that maybe we can flush him out like a rabbit.” Even as I was talking to Dietrich I felt I was sharpening my blunted forensic skills like a razor’s edge on a leather strop. “Yes. That might work. Here’s what I’d like you to consider.”
“I’m listening.”
“I’d like you to speak to the accounts department and have them raise a certified check for twenty thousand deutschmarks, payable to Ursula Dorpmüller.”
“After all you said? You disappoint me.”
“But here’s the thing. Get them to date the check a week ago. And to let you have a photostat.”
“What are you planning?”
“To test the age-old theory that there’s no honor among thieves and even less among murderers.”
THIRTEEN
–
It probably took a German to invent the idea of an archduke. A German duke, that is, not satisfied with being an ordinary duke. It was much the same, I supposed, with German insurance men: According to Friedrich Jauch’s job title he was the Chief Senior Sales Executive in Charge of New Business Development. As if to match his long title, he was very tall and straight and thin; in his pale gray suit and light green tie he most resembled an aspen tree. I suppose he was in his mid-thirties, although his boyishly styled fair hair and lisping, high-pitched voice made him appear even younger. Young enough and stupid enough to see murder as an easy solution to a common problem: money and the lack of it. We’d met a couple of times before but this time I engineered it so that I seemed to meet him accidentally, on the broad marble staircase leading down to the magnificent main hall in MRE, just a couple of days after I’d first shared my suspicions about him with Dietrich. He was on his way out somewhere, wearing a hunter-green loden coat and a hat with half a badger attached to the crown.
“Good afternoon, how are you?” I said brightly.
“Well, thanks. How are you settling in here at MRE? How’s Dumbo?”
“Is he always so grumpy?”
“Always.”
“I think he believes he’s all that stands between this company and financial ruin. By the way, maybe you’d like to know, we paid off on the Dorpmüller life claim.”
“You did? Right. Good. At least I think it’s good. It was a lot of money, as I recall.”
“That’s right. It is. I looked into all the facts but we couldn’t see anything suspicious about it. Much to Dietrich’s irritation. As you can probably imagine. He hates paying up on a claim of that size. Anyway, I delivered the check myself. As a matter of fact I have a photostat here in this file. Perhaps you’d like to see it. If it was payable to me I’d probably have it framed.”
I opened the file under my arm and showed him the copy of a check for twenty thousand deutschmarks made payable to Ursula Dorpmüller, hoping he would notice the date.
“Look at that,” I said. “Twenty thousand deutschmarks. What I couldn’t do with money like that.”
“It’s a lot of money, all right.”
“I didn’t want to trust it to the postal service, given how much it was. So I delivered it to the widow personally. Took it round to her apartment in Nymphenburg, just a few days ago. I’m still finding my feet a little around here and I’m still not exactly sure how the bureaucracy of insurance works, but anyway, I thought you’d like to know.” I closed the file and offered him my friendliest
