Chapter 26

The sharp rapping brought Wolfgang gracefully off the hardwood floor and quickly to his feet. He reached for his Glock 29, sweeping the pistol from the coffee table and moving towards the bedroom. There he found Eva as she emerged fresh from her bath, wet and wrapped in a thin bathrobe. She held a large, Colt .45 semi-automatic and the young woman smiled at her brother as she slapped a full magazine into the butt and pulled back on the slide, letting it spring forward with a satisfying sound.

"I'll be right here," Wolfgang said softly, taking a position so he would have a clear line of sight into the sitting room and the front door.

They'd been waiting for this with growing tension and they were both relieved that the moment was upon them. Wolfgang's hand was steady despite being flushed and damp with sweat from his exertions. He'd been doing sit-ups to relieve the stressful tedium and he wiped a bead of perspiration from his left temple. Eva's solution had been to soak in a hot bath for several hours and read from The Mysteries of Udolpho.

Eva entered the sitting room from their bedroom, padding silently on her bare feet. She approached the door slowly, pausing at the wall beside it, careful to remain clear of her brother's line of fire.

The rapping came again, sounding impatient.

"Who is it?" she asked in clear voice.

"Dieter," a man's voice replied and Eva looked at Wolfgang, nodding her head.

She reached across the door and turned the bolt with a loud snick and then drew back once more. "The door is open, Detective List."

A second later the door swung slowly on its hinges towards her and a tall man in a dark overcoat stood framed in the gray afternoon light. He caught sight of Wolfgang standing to his left and frowned for a second before finally stepping into the flat, dripping rain water around his leather shoes. Eva closed the door behind him with her left hand and pressed the cold steel of her pistol against the back of the man's neck, forcing him to tilt his face down as his empty hands rose slowly.

"It's nice to see you again, Eva," he said without humor. "We were worried about you."

"Shut-up," she breathed. "Unbutton your coat. Are you alone?"

"I'm alone," List answered, undoing his buttons with slow, deliberate fingers. "I don't know you, but ... you look familiar to me."

He'd spoken to Wolfgang who was only slightly more relaxed and still covering the man with his pistol. Wolfgang didn't bother to reply, but merely gave a tiny shrug of his shoulders.

"That's enough," Eva said, knocking the man's hand away and reaching inside his coat.

"You don't have to be nervous," List said with a small jerk as Eva pulled the man's pistol free of the holster at his hip. It was a standard issue, 9mm Glock 17 and Eva dropped the gun to the floor and kicked it towards Wolfgang.

"You should be nervous," Eva said, frisking the man expertly. "Or didn't they mention that I asked for you personally?"

The policeman didn't answer, but Eva thought she saw some small hint of surprise in his hazel eyes.

She pulled out his Police ID, a thin wallet that she opened for a quick glance and a derisive snort. "Inspector List? You were promoted, I see."

"This is Germany," the man shrugged. "Failure has its own rewards."

"Not for me!" Eva retorted, shoving the wallet back into his coat. "What was my reward, eh?"

"The left pocket is what you want," List said slowly. "We were all very sorry for what happened to you, Eva. I..." he started turning his head, " ... was very sorry."

"Don't move," Eva told him, reinforcing her command with a push of her gun into his flesh. "You betrayed me Dieter. You left me there, with those pigs. I trusted you."