Berlin Vengeance: Historical suspense set in 1933 Berlin (Berlin Tales) by Christopher P Jones

Author:Christopher P Jones [Jones, Christopher P]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Psychological mystery set in 1920s Berlin
Publisher: Thinksheet
Published: 2022-01-30T16:00:00+00:00

20

Outside the room, the corridor was empty, with just the sound of water trickling through the central heating pipework that ran overhead. They moved quietly but at speed. Room 417 was midway along the passageway on the fourth floor. When they reached it they found the door had one of those Please do not disturb notices hanging from the handle. It showed a porter’s face with his finger ‘shushing’ at his lips.

There was no telling if Mayer was inside or not. Arno thought he might have brought his revolver with him. He began to check his pockets for some other object he could use as a weapon if the occasion required.

He put his ear to the door and listened for signs of life. There was no sound. He took the key given to him by the receptionist and gently slipped it into the lock. When he turned it, the key jammed and the lock seized.

‘Damn.’

‘What’s happened?’ Thomas whispered.

The key was stuck in a quarter-turned position. He tried to move it again without making too much noise. The last thing he wanted was to give the man inside forewarning of their arrival.

‘Just keep a lookout,’ Arno said, glancing up at Thomas.

He turned the key in the opposite direction and removed it completely from the door. Kneeling down, he put his eye to the keyhole. He thought the occupant may have blocked the barrel with something, but there was nothing to be seen.

At that moment, an elderly couple both with white hair and a sheen of wealth, came out of an adjacent facing room. As the husband locked their door, the wife took a moment to inspect the two men loitering in the corridor opposite.

‘Good afternoon,’ Thomas said politely as he smiled.

‘Good day,’ the woman responded.

‘Actually,’ Thomas said, engaging the couple. ‘Can you tell me? Have you noticed anyone come or go from this room today?’

‘I’m sorry?’ the woman said, widening her eyes to suggest she hadn’t caught the question.

Arno got up off his knees and pretended to brush himself down. ‘We’re from hotel maintenance, here to fix this door.’

The elderly couple smiled vaguely as if they hadn’t understood a word spoken to them. ‘Come on dear, it’s time for afternoon cake,’ the husband said. He took his wife’s arm and together they shuffled away.

‘What are you doing?’ Arno flared at Thomas.

‘They might have seen Mayer.’

‘We have to be more discreet.’

Arno returned his attention to the door. ‘I’m going to knock.’ Before Thomas could respond, Arno was rapping his finger-knuckles against the door. There was no response. ‘Room service,’ he announced and knocked again.

When no answer came, he put the key back in the lock and put all of his weight behind it, swiftly squeezing it in a full circle. At last, the door opened and they went inside. Arno first, Thomas second.

‘Be careful,’ Arno said, taking charge.

He stepped forward and looked around the room. The bed was unmade. And on one side of the room there was a desk with several empty bottles of Riesling.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.