The Killing of Emma Gross Read Online Free Page B
Vogel.
'No one likes a smartarse, Thomas,' Ritter said. 'Specially not a Marxist smartarse.'
'That Volksstimme reporter was one of my noses, a casual informant, as well you know. The rest was trumped up charges invented by you.'
He spoke over me: 'You're accusing me of making false accusations? In front of a brother officer?' He nodded back at Vogel, who scribbled on his pad. 'What possible reasons could I have for doing such a thing?'
He held me in an unblinking stare. He had me there. I couldn't offer any evidence to expose him without exposing myself and he knew that.
'You do know that high treason is still a crime?' he said, threading his hands together and putting them behind his head.
'Falsifying evidence, too,' I said. 'Look, I'm going to be late for my night shift if you don't let me go.'
'Oh don't worry, I've informed your watch commander as to recent events. He didn't sound particularly surprised.' Terrific. Like the old man needed any more excuses to shit me out when I got back. Ritter leaned forward and indicated the tagged evidence. 'I'll try and piece things together and you go ahead and stop me if I go wrong.'
He pointed at the first envelope. 'According to this letter, on Wednesday the 14 th Maria Butlies takes the train in from Cologne to look for work here as a domestic servant. She gets picked up at the station by an unsavoury character who tries to have his way with her in the park. Before he can succeed, another man comes along to rescue her and take her to the women's hostel at St Gertrude's. Only, irony of ironies, her rescuer takes her to the woods and rapes her instead. Three days later, she writes to a friend she met on the train to describe the incident. In her statement to you she gives no reason for this odd delay.'
He pointed at the second envelope. The label confirmed that this one held the statement Butlies had given me.
'Now,' he said, 'here's the bit where you might have to correct me. She writes to her friend but the letter is delivered to the wrong woman?'
He paused and looked at me. I wasn't getting out of this without giving him everything I had on my lead.
'That's right,' I said. 'She got the name wrong, apparently. This Frau Brugmann who got the letter thought the rapist might be the Ripper so she handed the letter in at the precinct house.'
Ritter smiled. 'See?' he said. 'This is what cooperating with a police investigation feels like. Not so bad, is it? So, you tracked Butlies down at the hostel. She'd already found her rapist's apartment from her memory of the night he attacked her. Am I right?'
Another pause.
'He took her there for something to eat before taking her out to the woods,' I said.
'Thoughtful man,' Ritter said. Vogel snickered. I didn't like that. Butlies had suffered, and rape wasn't funny.
'You went with Butlies to the apartment house.' Ritter leaned over the table and held up the scissors. The lab boys had scraped off much of the blood for testing. 'Sometime after this you discovered which apartment was Kürten's. You gained entry. Somehow.' He lingered over the last word and raised an eyebrow. 'Where you found these.'
He dropped the scissors back on the tabletop.
'Now why in God's name didn't you come to the murder commission at this point? Or at least notify your watch commander?'
I opened my mouth. I had no idea what words would come.
Ritter cut in before I could think of any:
'You know what this looks like? It looks like you were going to pass this lot onto your Commie friends, is what it looks like.' He turned back to Vogel. 'Wouldn't you say, Vogel?'
Vogel looked up at Ritter, then at me, then back. He shrugged. 'Not for me to say, sir.'
'No, good man, I suppose not.' Ritter turned back to me. 'Well?'
'Well what?'
'The question, Thomas, is what the hell you were planning to do with all of this. Solve the Ripper case all by yourself?' He laughed.
I blushed. 'Hey, it wasn't like I could have done any worse than you. Anyway, I wanted to
'No one likes a smartarse, Thomas,' Ritter said. 'Specially not a Marxist smartarse.'
'That Volksstimme reporter was one of my noses, a casual informant, as well you know. The rest was trumped up charges invented by you.'
He spoke over me: 'You're accusing me of making false accusations? In front of a brother officer?' He nodded back at Vogel, who scribbled on his pad. 'What possible reasons could I have for doing such a thing?'
He held me in an unblinking stare. He had me there. I couldn't offer any evidence to expose him without exposing myself and he knew that.
'You do know that high treason is still a crime?' he said, threading his hands together and putting them behind his head.
'Falsifying evidence, too,' I said. 'Look, I'm going to be late for my night shift if you don't let me go.'
'Oh don't worry, I've informed your watch commander as to recent events. He didn't sound particularly surprised.' Terrific. Like the old man needed any more excuses to shit me out when I got back. Ritter leaned forward and indicated the tagged evidence. 'I'll try and piece things together and you go ahead and stop me if I go wrong.'
He pointed at the first envelope. 'According to this letter, on Wednesday the 14 th Maria Butlies takes the train in from Cologne to look for work here as a domestic servant. She gets picked up at the station by an unsavoury character who tries to have his way with her in the park. Before he can succeed, another man comes along to rescue her and take her to the women's hostel at St Gertrude's. Only, irony of ironies, her rescuer takes her to the woods and rapes her instead. Three days later, she writes to a friend she met on the train to describe the incident. In her statement to you she gives no reason for this odd delay.'
He pointed at the second envelope. The label confirmed that this one held the statement Butlies had given me.
'Now,' he said, 'here's the bit where you might have to correct me. She writes to her friend but the letter is delivered to the wrong woman?'
He paused and looked at me. I wasn't getting out of this without giving him everything I had on my lead.
'That's right,' I said. 'She got the name wrong, apparently. This Frau Brugmann who got the letter thought the rapist might be the Ripper so she handed the letter in at the precinct house.'
Ritter smiled. 'See?' he said. 'This is what cooperating with a police investigation feels like. Not so bad, is it? So, you tracked Butlies down at the hostel. She'd already found her rapist's apartment from her memory of the night he attacked her. Am I right?'
Another pause.
'He took her there for something to eat before taking her out to the woods,' I said.
'Thoughtful man,' Ritter said. Vogel snickered. I didn't like that. Butlies had suffered, and rape wasn't funny.
'You went with Butlies to the apartment house.' Ritter leaned over the table and held up the scissors. The lab boys had scraped off much of the blood for testing. 'Sometime after this you discovered which apartment was Kürten's. You gained entry. Somehow.' He lingered over the last word and raised an eyebrow. 'Where you found these.'
He dropped the scissors back on the tabletop.
'Now why in God's name didn't you come to the murder commission at this point? Or at least notify your watch commander?'
I opened my mouth. I had no idea what words would come.
Ritter cut in before I could think of any:
'You know what this looks like? It looks like you were going to pass this lot onto your Commie friends, is what it looks like.' He turned back to Vogel. 'Wouldn't you say, Vogel?'
Vogel looked up at Ritter, then at me, then back. He shrugged. 'Not for me to say, sir.'
'No, good man, I suppose not.' Ritter turned back to me. 'Well?'
'Well what?'
'The question, Thomas, is what the hell you were planning to do with all of this. Solve the Ripper case all by yourself?' He laughed.
I blushed. 'Hey, it wasn't like I could have done any worse than you. Anyway, I wanted to
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