Blue Blue Eyes: Crime Novel (13 page)

”You’ve bloody tricked me!”

”Excuse me, who is speaking?”

”You know very well who I am you leech. You and I are going to meet again. Then you will change my statutes so that I am the sole owner of all of my companies. Understood?”

”I’m at my office in Pafos until six. You’re welcome to come but unfortunately I don’t think I’ll be able to help you”, Petros calmly answered.

”It’s not a question of thinking. It’s your bloody duty to make sure I’m the 100% owner of my companies. These are my companies and my money which I have earned.” Patrik was shouting so much saliva was gathering on the side of his mouth.

”I already have your signature on every single document. What do you actually think you can do?”

Patrik was breathing heavily, dried the saliva off his mouth with the back of his hand and then held the wheel so hard his knuckles went white. ”You’re bloody criminal.”

”As I said, you’re welcome at my office in Pafos. I’ll be here until six tonight.”

When Patrik heard the click in his ear he furiously threw the phone on the passenger seat. ”Damn it, damn it, damn it.” With a swift move he picked up the mobile again. He looked through the contacts until he found the number to Johan’s accountant, swept his finger over the green phone and let the signals go through. Three times he dialled the number without getting an answer. The panic was growing and Patrik felt how he once again was losing his grip on the situation.

The vein by his temple was beating frenetically and he was having problems breathing. He increased the speed while the tears were streaming helplessly down his tanned cheeks. The road got blurry and he passed Limassol without noticing. Several stray dogs by the roadside didn’t get his attention either until he unexpectedly heard a loud noise and felt something strange under his tires. A policeman waving a little way down got Patrik back to reality though. He stood on the brakes so the tires screamed and stopped the car just next to the bulky policeman. Ashamed he rolled down his window and looked into a couple of angry black eyes.

”Driver’s license and passport, please.”

Patrik shook his head and took out the wallet from the back pocket of his shorts while cursing. While making a face he gave the gloomy Cypriot police both his driver’s license and passport while thinking of what actually had taken place. Had he really hit something? Was it the big brownish red furry dog he had seen in passing by the roadside? Anxiously Patrik turned around, looked out on the highway full of traffic and saw a bundle a bit further away. He had goose bumps all over his body and he felt like the most idiotic person on the earth.

”You were driving 162 kilometres per hour.” The dark policeman showed him the old speed camera as if that would make Patrik believe him. ”The speed limit on the high way is 100 kilometres per hour.” The police then went and got his PDA from the police car which was parked a few meters behind Patrik’s rented car. ”Where do you live?”

Patrik told him the address in Vasastan in Gothenburg and wondered apprehensively how long he would be able to use that fancy address. Should he take the chance and tell him that he had been cheated by his accountant? But what could the police really do? He had signed those statutes in good faith and now Petros owned 70% of all of his companies to a value of a little over 30 million Swedish crowns.

”You also ran over a dog. Have you been drinking?” The police looked enquiringly at Patrik with a serious face.

”Certainly not.” Patrik dried his tears with the knuckles and coughed.

”You’ll have to blow in the breathalyser anyway, your eyes are shiny and bloodshot. Blow until I tell you to stop.” He put the clear plastic tube in Patrik’s mouth and waited.

”Green, you were lucky.”

Patrik sighed with relief even though he knew he was sober. His throat was itching and he wondered what else could happen to him today. Stressed he took the fine of 84 Euros and then started the car.

”Drive carefully and remember there are often stray dogs on the highway. Not that we mind them dying, but it would be a pity if you ruined the nice car.”

Patrik was then encouraged to pay the fine within two weeks and absolutely before leaving the country. As in a haze he drove up to the highway again and soon afterward passed the tourist attraction Petra Tou Romiou, where the legend said that the goddess of love, Aphrodite, had come up from the sea. Thirty minutes later he parked the Mercedes on the big parking spot in the Old Town of Pafos. Sweaty and thirsty he stopped by at a café, ordered a double espresso and a Coke. Frantically Patrik thought of all he had been through the past 24 hours.

Except for meeting Anna it all felt like a vicious nightmare. With a silly smile on his lips he saw her in front of his eyes. He really longed to get to know his daughter and introduce her to the family. But there was a problem, Anna’s mum. Patrik still felt he had far too many secrets he needed to come clean with his family about. As soon as things had calmed down a bit between himself and Linn he would tell her about Anna, his Parkinson’s and how he had been cheated by his accountant. The thought was really liberating. A tiny bit more relaxed he crossed the street to Petros’ office. The bright red button shone angrily at him when he raised his finger and pressed it lightly. The heavy sun-bleached wooden door was opened unexpectedly fast and a man in suit came out from the inner courtyard before anybody had time to answer the intercom.

Patrik nodded slowly, held the old door and went with decisive steps up the blank stone stairs. With a worried feeling he stopped outside the blue door with the large brass sign saying Mr. Petros Christou & CO. Another buzz was heard and Patrik pressed the door-handle. The office had been changed since last year and he noticed that the IKEA furniture had given place to a more fashionable design. At first he was met by silence but soon afterward he heard quick steps on the greyish white marble floor. Patrik felt uncomfortable but knew he had no choice but to confront his accountant. The plan this afternoon was to try and persuade Petros to change the statutes with a threat of going to the police if he didn’t.

Patrik was aware of the fact that his whole future was on the table during the coming meeting. Nervously he paced between the shelves and didn’t feel calm enough to sit down in one of the armchairs. Soon after he had a strange feeling in his body and the air suddenly changed character. With a chill down his spinal cord he turned around and saw Petros appearing. They stared at each-other in silence for a long time before Petros started speaking:

”So, you made an effort to come here despite my promise that there is nothing I can do about the situation.” His face was tight and he continued looking in a cold way at Patrik.

”What did you think? That I would give away the work of my life without lifting a finger, or what?” Patrik spat out the words and felt the anger bubbling within him.

Petros didn’t even try answering the question but corrected his silver-coloured tie instead and then asked Patrik to step into the visitors’ room further down the corridor.

”As I told you earlier, unfortunately I can’t help you. So what are you really doing here?”

”What the hell do you think? You’ve bloody ruined me. Is this really the way you treat your clients?” Patrik clenched his fists and boiled with anger as he looked down at the short man.

”Unfortunately it’s a legal secret what I do with my other clients. What I’ve done to you and your companies is something we can talk about, though, if there is something to discuss?”

”If there is something to discuss? What the hell do you think? You’ve bloody stolen my companies.” Patrik dried the sweat from his upper lip and brusquely pulled out the white leather chair. He sat down heavily by the glass table and stared into Petros’ eyes. Eyes that were full of hatred.

”I’m not the one who has approved it. You have signed all the documents without any coercion. You’ve been bloody naïve. Signing important papers without finding out what’s really written.” Petros felt with his left hand that the toupee was in place and then clasped his hands on top of the glass table.

”Damn it, I trusted you Petros. You gave me your word that I wasn’t signing anything strange.”

Petros laughed viciously. ”You shouldn’t trust anybody my friend.”

”You and I are not friends so stop calling me that.” Patrik slammed his fist on the table and shot the man a flamingly toxic look. ”How can you really live with yourself? What if your beloved wife and daughter knew what you are up to? Daniela must turn in her grave when she sees what a bastard you are.”

”Ah, Daniela, well she unfortunately found out what I was doing. Why do you think she had an accident?” Petros scary laughter reverberated in the visitors’ room.

Patrik stared in shock at the disgusting wolf smile while he heard distant voices outside in the corridor. ”So you mean it was you that killed your wife?” He lost his composure and had to hold the side of the table, the second time in a few hours’. The room was spinning around and he heard Petros’ dark voice somewhere at the edge.

”Nobody gets in my way. Not even my own family.”

The shocking news hit like a bomb and Patrik started sweating profusely. Had he really heard correctly? ”You’re really sick, do you know that? How the hell could you murder your wife?” With his gaze fixed on the wall full of paintings he let the truth sink in. The motifs on the paintings were getting more and more blurry and the ships seemed to disappear into an endless fog. Confused he shook his head, put his hand on his mouth and swallowed the lump in his throat. ”Getting back to my companies.” Patrik’s voice cracked and he cleared his throat several times before continuing: ”I demand to be the sole owner of them or I promise the police will find out how you run your business.”

Petros laughed even more viciously and looked sternly at Patrik. ”Why should I give up three and a half million Euros? Give me one reason.” Petros stopped for a few seconds but when he didn’t get a reply he continued. ”You on the other hand will have the honour to sign that we’ve just had an extraordinary shareholder’s meeting, in that way we can make an extra dividend.” Petros decisively pushed a large bunch of documents and a black ball-pen with the company’s logo and name on it.

”Hell no!” Patrik shouted furiously and hastily got up. He noticed the glass door in to the visitors’ room quickly opening and the last thing he remembered before fainting was the pain pulsating at his left temple.

Saturday, June 8th

Most of the drive up to Coral Bay police station Nikki was driving far too fast. Even though it was left hand driving she had quickly come into the rhythm of the traffic, it was only the roundabouts that were a little tough. The evening was Mediterranean warm and Nikki had taken down the roof while enjoying the winds playing with her long dark hair. Despite the sudden change of plans Nikki felt harmonious as she was driving along by the sea.

Of course she had been looking forward to kissing the boys but she hoped to be home in a few days’ time. The street lights lit up the dark evening and the high-way wasn’t busy as it had been a few hours earlier. She faithfully followed the signs for Pafos and went through the events of the last few hours. It was the first time Nikki had got off an airplane right before take-off. Confused she had called her boss, who had sighed with relief upon hearing Nikki’s voice. Kerstin Hogstrom had briefed her on all she knew about the deaths of both Karl Hofvenskold and Sten Arvidsson. She had also told Nikki that she had sent a mail to the Chief of Police Carlos García Rodríguez at Coral Bay’s police station to say that Nikki would turn up.

Nikki thought she saw shadows running along the roadside but didn’t give it another thought until she saw a blinking animal ambulance further down helping a dog that had been run over. The pain over the animal’s helplessness cut in her stomach and Nikki hoped it would be alright. While she slowed down she took her mobile out of the handbag, calling Axel to tell him he didn’t need to pick her up at Landvetter.

”Hi, this is mum. How are you?”

”Hi, it’s fine. I’m chilling out with AT.”

”Great. I just wanted to let you know that I will not be coming home tonight as planned.”

”Oh, really?”

”I have got a case here in Cyprus which I have to deal with.”

”Cyprus? How come?”

”The Cypriot police found two dead Swedes here on the island and they need my help.”

”Your help? Mum, this sounds a little strange. Why should you go to Cyprus and help the police out?”

”I know it - sounds strange but when you know more about the cases, which I’m sure you’ll be reading about in the newspapers now any day, you’ll understand. Unfortunately I don’t know how long I’ll be staying here; maybe it will only be a couple of days. Are you OK with that?”

”Don’t worry about me, of course I’ll manage.”

”You have the Ica card…don’t buy anything unnecessary, OK? You know I can check the receipts later. So how is home?”

”It’s cool. We’ve contacted a company which helps young people get a job in Australia. They want a little over 24 000 crowns for a visa, job interviews, a place to live and airline tickets. That’s OK, isn’t it?”

”You’ve been fast. What’s the name of the company and how do you know if they’re serious?”

”Hell, yes, they are totally serious. They’re called Travel&Work and they’ve been around since 1991.”

”Why not? Where in Australia are they stationed?”

”In Sydney. The first available plane flies down on the tenth of September. I’ve sent in an expression of interest together with AT and Fredrik.”

”Expression of interest? Are you not moving a bit too fast now, honey? Remember that I want to have time to check out the company and talk to you face to face before you book anything. OK?”

”Yeah, yeah.”

”Sorry but I have to hang up now, it’s also forbidden to drive and talk on the mobile here. Take care, I’ll call you tomorrow. And you- no nonsense when I’m gone, promise me that.”

”I’m just going to invite the whole company over for a party the day after tomorrow and put up on Facebook that it’s a No parents.” Axel laughed wickedly at his own little joke.

”Fun. Hugs and kisses. Love you, talk to you tomorrow. Kiss.”

As she ended the call Nikki sent a message to Gustav informing him of having had to go to Cyprus for a murder investigation. She promised herself to call her son on Monday as she knew he would be easier to reach after his exam.

Nikki couldn’t fathom that Karl Hofvenskold had been found murdered. Karl had belonged to one of Gothenburg’s big estate kings, was worth billions and owned more than half of all the properties in Gothenburg’s special street, Avenyn. What had caused his death? And why Cyprus of all places?

An hour and a half later Nikki parked the car outside the police station. The street lamps were spreading a dull light and the cicadas were playing their usual night music. Around the banana tree she saw four kittens chasing each-other while the mama cat was lazily lying on the side, cleaning herself. With a wide gesture Nikki pulled a brush through her windblown hair and reapplied her lip-gloss before walking up the gravel-path to the old stone building. The big clock on the dirty white wall on top of the reception showed almost one o’clock. Covering her mouth Nikki quenched a yawn and looked curiously around. A scent of something old and sweet came into her nostrils and she wrinkled her nose. This was the most run down police station she had ever seen before and she wondered in surprise how the police could do their work in this kind of environment. She laughed to herself silently when she saw they had a jail cell five meters away from the reception, just like in the old western movies. The only difference was the colour on the grid, which was the only thing shining in the shabby station.

”Can I help you with something?”

Nikki jumped at the sound of the squeaky voice, turned around and went back to the worn out reception. ”My name is Nikki Swahn and I work as a police officer in Sweden. My boss, Kerstin Hogstrom, should have informed you about my arrival. I’m going to help in the murder investigation of the two Swedes you’ve recently found.”

”I don’t know anything about this”, Stella said without interest as she continued staring at the bulky computer screen which had been modern in the beginning of the 90’s.

”Do you possibly have some police reports about Sten Arvidsson and Karl Hofvenskold which I could have copies of? Then I can catch up with the cases tonight.” Nikki showed her police id and was eternally grateful that she always carried it with her, regardless of where she went.

Stella didn’t even look at the black cover but just answered with a yawn: ”Come back tomorrow morning instead, then the Chief will be here.”

”Do you mean Carlos?” Nikki said with some frustration and irritably stomped her sandals on the old linoleum.

”Correct. He hasn’t mentioned anything about any Swedish police coming here and taking over our jobs, so you’ll just have to wait.” Stella was twisting a red curl around her index finger, looking passed Nikki as though she didn’t exist.

”I’m sorry, but is Carlos here now?” Nikki memorized the redhead’s name from her badge which was stuck on the pocket of her uniform blouse and sighed out loud.

Stella started laughing, bent over the counter so her ample bust lay as an extra fluffy shelf over the reception. ”Carlos works day-time, nothing else. As I said, you have to come back tomorrow morning again.”

”But seriously, can’t you call him so he can approve of you giving me the police reports?”

Stella started laughing even louder and her round face wrinkled up like a reddish pig’s snout. ”Calling Carlos, no that’s not something you just do. He doesn’t want to be disturbed, you see, unless something really important has happened. And that’s not the case now, is it?”

Nikki growled, quickly turned around and went out into the pitch black night. The rental car left deep tracks behind in the dry gravel when she put the accelerator all the way down and left the police station. Frustrated she drove down the hill toward Thalassa Boutique & Spa Hotel again where she had checked out just a few hours prior.

It was almost seven and the star-filled night had disappeared quickly and was replaced by a fast rising sun. 150 burpees and a cup of rooibos tea later, Nikki said thank you and left. She didn’t have the guts to stay at the all too expensive hotel and knew that her boss would faint when she showed her the bill for the previous night. As the sky was blue she put down the roof and enjoyed the fantastic summer heat that she could never get enough of. The sun was hot and burnt her tanned face. She picked up her white cap from the passenger seat and put this on, as well as her beloved Maui Jim’s.

With her gaze toward the mountain Nikki left the turquoise blue sea behind and drove through the empty restaurant street in Coral Bay. The fruit- and vegetable vendors were the only ones up, proudly displaying their colourful stalls on the pavements. There wasn’t much traffic and Nikki ended up behind a pickup loaded with green bananas. Five minutes later she arrived at Coral Bay’s police station and noticed that the deep tracks from her fast departure the night before were still visible. She took off her cap, put it on the passenger’s seat and got out of the car. She was wondering if Stella was still on duty as she opened the heavy door.

”May I help you?”

Nikki, startled, turned around suddenly and saw a dark pretty girl in front of her. She took out her police ID and introduced herself.

”I’m looking for Carlos García Rodríguez.”

”He will not be in before eight. Maybe I can help you instead?”

”Well, I don’t know”, Nikki hesitated with yesterday’s unpleasant welcome fresh in mind, but decided to give it a chance. ”I’m from the police in Gothenburg. My boss should have informed Carlos via mail that I was coming.” She put her hands in the pockets of the white shorts and was once again prepared for a rejection.

”Oh dear, Carlos didn’t mention anything about that”, Daphne said apologizing. ”Just a moment.” She went to the side and dialled Carlos’ number.

”Good morning, this is Daphne. A Swedish police officer by the name Nikki is here looking for you. You are supposed to have received a mail from the Chief of Police Hogstrom that Nikki will be participating in our investigation of the two Swedes who were murdered.” Daphne walked the few meters to the kitchen and put on the water boiler.

”The police in Gothenburg?” Carlos asked

”When did you actually check your mail?” Daphne took out the tea-pot from the kitchen cabinet and looked for some healthy tea-bags.

”Eh, I don’t know, I never check my mail. Katerina takes care of that for me”, Carlos said with an excuse.

”I’ll ask Katerina. I can hear her coming now. You’re on your way here, aren’t you?”

”Just have to take care of a few things, then I’ll be in.”

Daphne poured the boiling water in the tea-pot and put two bags with chai flavour in, which were left to brew for a few minutes. On her way back to the reception Daphne saw Katerina wobble to her workstation on her really high shoes. As Katerina was putting a plastic bag full with chocolate-balls on her desk and put down the can of Sprite Light next to it Daphne cleared her throat as an excuse.

”Do you know if we have received an e-mail from the police in Gothenburg about a Nikki Swahn who will help us out with the murder investigation of the two Swedish men?” Daphne quietly asked.

”That sounds familiar. I wrote out a mail yesterday before going home and put it on Carlos’ desk. Hang on, I’ll see if it’s still there. By the way- why are we whispering?”

”Because Nikki is standing over there”, Daphne said and pointed to the big notice board with all the wanted criminals which Nikki was studying.

Katerina unsteadily went into Carlos’ office on her pink heels and came back with a paper in her hand. ”Here it is”, she said panting and dried off a couple of drops of sweat beginning to form on top of her lip.

”Thanks.” Daphne quickly glanced through the print-out, turned around with a smile and went back to Nikki. ”You’re right. Your boss has sent us a mail.” Daphne showed her the printed mail in her left hand.

”Oh, that’s good. When I came here last night Stella didn’t have an inkling of what I was talking about”, Nikki said and frowned.

”You came last night?” Daphne asked with surprise.

”Yes, I wanted to read about the cases as soon as possible but that Stella put a stop to that. She wasn’t exactly service-minded if you know what I mean.”

”Ah, unfortunately I’m not surprised. Stella, well how can I put it…she’s a bit special. She’s Carlos’ cousin and well, I don’t know how to put it but you’ll understand when you’ve been around for a few days. But naturally I’ll apologize on behalf of the station that she treated you in that manner. Daphne tilted her head and gave her a bright smile. ”Would like to have a cup of tea and I can brief you meanwhile on what we know so far about the cases.”

”Yes, please.”

Nikki followed Daphne to the kitchen and helped her carry the mugs to the conference room. She had a quick look at Daphne and saw a happy, nice girl with long, black hair. Her positive energy balanced the otherwise so dreary police station. Nikki felt herself lifted up and immediately had a feeling of expectation. It was like walking into a sauna in the conference room. Embarrassed Daphne put on the A/C and put the plastic files on the dead Swedes on the conference table. She poured the green tea in the mugs and then went up to the white-board.

”I’m sorry about the heat in here but there are restrictions on how to use the electricity in this police station. Unfortunately in this room the aircon is left off since we’re seldom in here. The boss thinks that we use the A/C far too much since electricity is incredibly expensive on this island and our budget unfortunately too tight, so we have to cut back.”