Tumbleweed ac-2 Read online

  Tumbleweed

  ( Amsterdam cops - 2 )

  Janwillem Van De Wetering

  Janwillem Van De Wetering

  Tumbleweed

  1

  Adjutant-detective Grijpstra felt that this was not the best morning of the year. He sat slouched behind his gray steel desk in the large room in Headquarters that he shared with his assistant, Detective-Sergeant de Gier, and held his heavy square bead between his hands. He was studying the Telex reports of the previous day, printed on cheap pink paper and filed in a worn loose-leaf ledger. His head ached and his throat felt parched and hurt whenever he tried to swallow, which was often.

  "Have you noticed," he asked hoarsely, "that nothing ever happens in Amsterdam?"

  He was asking himself, and his voice was very low. The heavy early-morning traffic in Marnix Street should have drowned his question but two cars which had collided two blocks down were obstructing all traffic and de Gier had heard him.

  "Should be in bed," de Gier thought, and asked, "Hmmf in a loud voice because he didn't want to leave his superior unprotected in his loneliness.

  "In Amsterdam," Grijpstra repeated, "nothing ever happens."

  "You are ill," de Gier said, "you have flu. Go home and go to bed. Take aspirins and drink tea. lea and brandy, and lemon, in a glass. Nice and hot. After that, sleep. Sleep all day. Tomorrow you can read the paper. Day after tomorrow you can read a book. Day after that another book. Day after that is Saturday. Day after that is Sunday. Go for a walk. Come back on Monday."

  "Nothing the matter with me," Grijpstra said in a muffled voice, and lit a cigarette. He coughed a few times, went into a fit of coughing, and nearly choked.

  De Gier smiled and continued to think. "No wonder he doesn't want to go home. Two floors in a narrow house at the Lijnbaansgracht isn't much space. And there is already Mrs. Grijpstra to fill that space, and the three little Grijpstras, and the TV."

  Grijpstra also thought. His thoughts were negative, irritable, spiteful. "Look at him," Grijpstra thought. "Handsome fellow, isn't he? Lovely suit he is wearing. Dark blue denim, tailor made. Pale blue shirt. And that little scarf. Dandy! And the curly hair! And that nose. Bloody film star. Bah."

  But Grijpstra corrected himself. He told himself not to be jealous. He reminded himself that de Gier was his friend. A loyal modest friend. He forced himself to remember the two occasions that de Gier had risked his life for him. He forced himself to forget the three occasions on which he had risked his own life to save de Gier's. "We are in Amsterdam," he told himself. "In Amsterdam the crooks threaten, but they don't kill. It's an easy town. Nothing ever happens in Amsterdam."

  He had said it aloud again, and de Gier bent down to read the pink Telex reports.

  "What do you mean?" de Gier asked. "Look at this. Plenty happens."

  He was standing next to the set of drums which had once, long ago now, miraculously appeared in their room and which Grijpstra had refused to return to whoever might own it. Grijpstra used the drums in his empty moments to revive the dreams of his youth when he had planned to become a jazz musician; and de Gier, at times, accompanied him on a small flute, a relic from de Gier's early days when he played church music at the Dutch Reformed School.

  De Gier picked up one of the drumsticks. "Plenty happens. Here. Traffic accidents (bam on the drum), stolen bicycles (bam) car slipped into the canal (bam)." Grijpstra groaned at the bams. "And here! (roll on the drum). Armed robbery. Three men holding up old lady in cigar store. Lady wounded. That's real crime. Attempted manslaughter, that should have been ours."

  "Not ours," Grijpstra said. "Sietsema and Geurts are taking care of that."

  "Sietsema is a motor cop," de Gier said.

  "He was transferred to the crime squad. Fell off his Guzzi once too often, didn't you hear?"

  De Gier put down his drumsticks and looked out of the window. The traffic was moving again and growled past Headquarters, farting its fumes into open windows where policemen were getting ready to deal with another day of maintaining lawful order. De Gier once wanted to be a motor cop but had allowed himself to be talked into detection. "You have a good brain, de Gier," the staff officer had told him, "don't waste your good brain, de Gier." He always wondered if the choice had been right. He could have been a sergeant on a motorcycle, same pay, same conditions. A large white shining Guzzi. Motor cops don't have flat feet. Neither had de Gier, but he would one day. Detectives walk too much. They wait at street comers. They climb endless stairs, usually the wrong stairs. Motor cops never climb stairs.

  "Maybe Sietsema and Geurts will make a mess of it, and the chief inspector will give the job to us."

  "He won't," Grijpstra said, and sneezed.

  "Shall I get you a nice cup of coffee?"

  "Yes," Grijpstra said.

  De Gier went to the door, opened it, and froze.

  "Gentlemen," the commissaris said.

  The commissaris smiled. The time that noncommissioned officers jumped to attention at the mere sight of a passing commissaris was long past. Soon he wouldn't be even called "sir." But some of the men still remembered the old days and showed their memory. "Sir," some of these men were saying now.

  "I was just going out to get some coffee. Can I get you a cup?"

  "Please," the commissaris said.

  "A cigar, sir?" Grijpstra asked, opening the drawer where he kept the tin of little cigars the commissaris liked.

  "Please," the commissaris said.

  "Sit down, sir," Grijpstra said, and pointed at the only comfortable chair the room owned.

  The commissaris sat down, stroking his left leg, which had kept him awake some of the night. Grijpstra noticed the movement of the hand and wondered how long the little old man would wander around the large Headquarters building. He still had five service years to go but his rheumatism seemed to be getting worse lately. Much worse. Twice Grijpstra had seen the commissaris leaning against a wall, paralyzed with pain, his face a white horrible mask.

  De Gier had come back with a plastic tray holding three paper cups. The commissaris took a careful sip, and looked at his two detectives.

  "You remember the houseboat on the Schinkel?" the commissaris asked.

  "The one the chief inspector asked us to keep an eye on?' Grijpstra asked.

  "Right," the commissaris said. "The chief inspector is on holiday now and I don't know how much he has told you. What do you know?"

  Grijpstra grinned. "Not much, sir. The chief inspector never tells us very much. All we know is that we should keep an eye open."

  "Have you?"

  Grijpstra looked at de Gier.

  De Gier took his cue. "We pass that boat at least twice a week, sir, and we have reported to the chief inspector. I have been there by myself as well, on my bicycle and once or twice at night, on foot. It's a nice walk from where I live and it's spring now, I like going there. But there isn't much to tell. The houseboat is expensive, and has two stories. There is only one occupant, a thirty-four-year-old woman. Her name is Maria van Buren, born on the island of Curagao. She is a divorcee and is still using her husband's name. He is a director of a textile factory in the North."

  "Tell us about the woman," the commissaris said.

  "A beautiful woman," de Gier said. "Not altogether white. She drives a white Mercedes sports car, five years old but in good repair. At least three men visit her and stay the night or part of the night. I have the numbers of their cars."

  "You know who the men are?"

  De Gier nodded. "One man is a Belgian diplomat, stationed in The Hague. Drives a black Citroen. He is forty-five years old, looks like a tennis player. The second man is an American army officer, a colonel, stationed in Germany. The third is Dutch, a tall ma
n going bald, fifty-eight years old. I checked him out and he is a big shot, chairman of several companies. He has a house in town but his family lives on Schiermonnikoog* or rather his wife does for his children are grown up. His name is Dsbrand Drachtsma."

  "Did you come to any conclusions?"

  De Gier looked noncommittal. "No, sir."

  The commissaris looked at Grijpstra.

  "Could be just a woman who likes a bit of company," Grijpstra said, "could be that she is earning a little pocket money on the side. We investigated the Dutchman, IJsbrand Drachtsma. He seems a solid citizen. Very wealthy, very respectable. A tycoon in business. The companies he works for do very well. Chemicals, textiles, building materials. A hero as well. He escaped to England during the second year of the war, when the Germans were watching the beaches. In a rowboat, I believe, with three others. They had a small engine but it broke down. Joined the British army and came back fighting, through France and Belgium."

  "Did you find out anything about the other two?"

  "No, sir," Grijpstra said, "but I am sure the chief inspector did. We gave him all the details and he seemed interested."

  "Did you make any inquiries about the woman?"

  "No," Grijpstra said. "We checked with the municipal files but that was all. We were told to be discreet so we didn't ask about. We could, of course. There are some other boats nearby."

  "Anything special about that woman, sir?" de Gier asked, trying not to show any excitement.

  "Yes," the commissaris said. "You know that we have a Secret Service." He smiled and the two detectives guffawed. They were aware of the existence of the Secret Service. It occupied two rooms on the floor above them, rooms filled with a few middle-aged men and aged secretaries. The middle-aged men talked a lot of football and the secretaries were always typing. Poems, according to Grijpstra. Bad poems. Grijpstra claimed that Holland has no secrets and that the Secret Service was only formed to fill a gap in the state's budget. But the Secret Service was a larger organization than whatever went on in the two rooms above them. They occupied other offices as well, in The Hague and in Rotterdam. They were linked with several ministries, with mayors and with chief constables. They were even linked with the crown, the supreme mystery of the democracy. They might, Grijpstra had once whispered, be connected with God, the Dutch God, an old man living in a stuffy room, a powerful manifestation wearing slippers and interested in a wide range of phenomena, such as waterworks, the price of butter, theology, the right to argue, and Ajax, the national soccer team.

  "The Secret Service," Grijpstra repeated, doing his best to look serious.

  "Yes," the commissaris said, "they are interested in Mrs. van Buren and they asked us to keep an eye on her. For some reason they don't seem to have their own detectives. The tax department has, and the customs have and die army has, but they haven't. They like to use us. When was the last time that you had a look at the houseboat?"

  "Today is Tuesday," de Gier said. "I was there on Thursday. I meant to go during the weekend but I had a friend staying with me. Do you know why the Secret Service is interested, sir?'

  "No," the commissaris said, "but we may find out. Something seems to be wrong. We had a telephone call from the man staying in the boat next door to hers. He says he hasn't seen her for a few days and he wants us to come and have a look. Her cat is wandering about the area and wants to move in with him. He has rung her bell but she doesn't open the door. Her car is parked in front of the boat."

  "When did the call come in, sir?" Grijpstra asked.

  "Just now. Quarter of an hour ago. I want you to go there and break in if necessary. I brought a warrant."

  "Don't you want to come with us, sir?" de Gier asked.

  "No. I have a meeting with the chief constable. If there is anything wrong you can reach me via your radio or the telephone." The commissaris rubbed his leg, got up with some difficulty, and walked out of the room, trying not to limp.

  Within a few minutes they were in Mamix Street waiting at a traffic light. A small motorcycle ignored the red light and raced past a truck coming from the right, managing to miss it.

  "No," de Gier said, but it had happened already. The motorcycle missed the truck, it even missed another truck, but then the rider lost control and the cycle went into a spin. When the helmet of the young man crashed against the sidewalk, Grijpstra reached for the microphone.

  "Comer of Marnix Street and Passeerders Street. Motorcycle. Please call an ambulance. Detectives de Gier and Grijpstra witnesses but no time to stop. Over."

  "OK. Out," the voice from Headquarters answered.

  A little later they heard the sirens. De Gier made way for the ambulance and, within seconds, for a white police Volkswagen. Both had their blue lights flashing.

  "You think he is dead?" de Gier asked.

  Grijpstra shrugged. "Perhaps his helmet saved him, but he must be badly hurt. Crushed his shoulder maybe and his leg. A hot engine burns through your leg in no time at all. He may never walk properly again."

  De Gier drove calmly, trying to forget the accident and concentrating on what he remembered about the houseboat.

  Even with all the lights against them it didn't take long. A short bearded man was standing near the houseboat's door.

  "Police," Grijpstra said as he got out of the car. "Are you the one who phoned?"

  "I am," the man said. "Bart de Jong is the name. Call me Bart, everybody does. I live in that boat over there."

  Grijpstra shook the man's hand and said his name. De Gier joined them. Bart looked unusual, but not very unusual, considering they were in Amsterdam. A short-set strong-looking man some forty years old. The beard seemed to grow right up to his small twinkly eyes. Dark eyes, like beads, black and pearly. The left ear was decorated with a gold earring. He wore a corduroy suit and an open-necked shirt and leather boots, beautifully polished, covering his ankles. The narrow trouser legs had been tucked into the boots. The man looked clean, even his hair was neatly brushed.

  "What's this about the lady's cat?" Grijpstra asked.

  Bart offered cigarettes. De Gier noticed that his hand shook as he held the burning match. "Ah. The cat. The cat has been bothering me for the last two days. The cat often calls on me, scratches my door and I let him in. Beautiful animal, a Persian. There he is now."

  A cat came stalking along the narrow path leading to a small houseboat, lying next to the luxurious structure that was directly facing them. De Gier squatted down and patted the cat's head while it rubbed itself against his leg, half-closing the large yellow luminous eyes in obvious pleasure.

  "Friendly animal," de Gier said. "I prefer Siamese cats myself but this one is pretty, has a lot of fur."

  "Exactly," Bart said, "that's what I've got against him. I don't mind him visiting me and he can get milk and meat any time he likes but he wants much more. He is used to being properly pampered, hair has got to be brushed ten times a day for he doesn't like things sticking to it, and he walks through the plants here and messes himself up. And if you refuse to brush him he begins to whine and scratch your legs. If he does that I send him home, but he has kept on coming back for the last two days. I rang Mrs. van Buren's bell but she doesn't want to open her door. Her cat is here and I am sure she is home, so perhaps something happened to her."

  "Let's try the bell again," de Gier said.

  They rang the bell, knocked and shouted. No response.

  "So?" Bart asked.

  "We'll break the door."

  "I thought even the police weren't allowed to break doors in this country," Bart said.

  "We are special police," de Gier said, "and we have a warrant."

  "And we won't break the door," Grijpstra said. "Let's find another way."

  De Gier reached out from the gangway and studied a window.

  "You have long legs," Grijpstra said.

  De Gier nodded and produced his pistol. The glass broke with the first tap of its butt.

  "Careful now," Grijpstra said.
"Last time you climbed through a window you hurt yourself and bled all over your suit."

  "I live and learn," de Gier said, and eased his arm through the broken window. The window swung open after a while and de Gier, supported by Grijpstra, climbed through. Within seconds the front door opened.

  "You don't want me to come in?" Bart asked.

  "No. Wait here. We won't be long. Hell! Watch it."

  The cat, which had been with them on the boat's gangplank and had seemed to be eager to get in, had suddenly made an extraordinary sound, a deep yowl ending in a bloodcurdling shriek, and had turned in a flash and rushed off. It stopped at a safe distance and sat down. Its thick furry coat seemed twice its usual size.

  Bart was shaking his head. "That's not so good. You better go in and see what's wrong. Something is wrong."

  "Yes," Grijpstra said, and pushed his body into movement. He tapped de Gier on the shoulder. De Gier was still watching the cat.

  They found nothing in the lower story of the boat. Everything looked in order, a bit dusty possibly. The lady had decorated her home with a strange taste. A strange but expensive taste. Persian carpets, a large stone fireplace. De Gier stopped a second in front of a statue carved out of wood, depicting three female figures standing on top of one another. Their breasts were exaggerated, pointed, with long nipples. The lips were thick and the foreheads low. The three tongues, lolling in three open mouths, had been painted red, and the very white teeth were pointed seashells. An African fertility symbol perhaps, he thought, but there was more than fertility in the three figures. They seemed to radiate some strong power.

  There were other statues in the room. On a shelf he saw at least a dozen little men, varying in height from two to six inches. They were African warriors, carrying spears and other weapons. All the little men looked very intent, as if their ferocity was directed at a common goal.

  "Me," de Gier thought, "they want me. What the hell do they want me for?"

  But he felt comforted immediately. They didn't want just him, they would want anyone who came in their way.