Taylor opened her satchel and pulled out the copy of theTimeswith Vance’s face on the front page and set it on the counter in front of Johannes.
Brodie said, “We were supposed to meet him here in Berlin. News broke while we were mid-flight.”
Johannes’ face dropped as he looked at the picture. “I am so sorry. Yes, I’ve seen him in here a few times. Nice gentleman. I was shocked when I saw his picture on the news.”
Taylor said, “We were looking forward to meeting his lady friend and were hoping we could still find her.”
Johannes nodded. “Yes. She must be devastated. Nice woman. They seemed happy.”
“Harry never gave us her contact,” said Brodie. “Do you know a way we might find her?”
Johannes thought a moment. “I’m not sure. I don’t even know her full name… just Anna. She paid in cash. No credit card.” He added, “She used to come here alone over the years, and then started to bring your friend with her.”
Taylor said, “We were supposed to meet them at Café König on Stargarder Straße, so we assumed she lived in the area.”
Johannes shook his head. “I am sorry. I just don’t know.”
Brodie looked at the man. At the risk of sounding like a cop, he asked, “When did you see them last?”
“Last week, I think. Yes. Maybe Thursday evening.”
Taylor said, “We really lost touch and I guess we’re desperate for information about him. He was excited to introduce us to Anna but really didn’t tell us much about her. But maybe you can.” She added, “I’m sorry if this is inappropriate.”
“No, no,” said Johannes with some sympathy. “It’s all right. She was younger than your friend, maybe mid-thirties. Good-looking woman, brunette, kind of petite.” He thought for a moment. “You know, I recall that one time a few months ago she came in and forgot her wallet. She said she was going home to get it and that didn’t take very long, so I suppose she does live nearby.”
In his mind Brodie ran through all the questions that an investigator would ask but a friend wouldn’t:How often did Anna come here with Harry? How would you describe their behavior toward each other? Was there a noticeable change in either of their demeanors on their last visit?
They could tin the guy and go into full detective mode, but Brodie felt he was going to have plenty of reasons in the coming days to cross some jurisdictional lines and piss off the Germans, and it was best to choose his transgressions. He did ask, however, “Was she German?” He added, “I mean, ethnic German?”
If Johannes wondered why they didn’t know this, he didn’t comment, but said, “Yes. A Berliner by her accent.”
Brodie bought an expensive bottle of schnapps to thank the man, and to make up for the Art Hotel’s lack of amenities. Then he said to Johannes, “If Anna comes here again, please tell her that Mr. Vance’s American friends came by. Jack and Lisa.” He took a pen from his jacket pocket, then wrote his phone number on the back of the store’s business card and slid it to Johannes. “And please give me a call if you see Anna.”
Johannes nodded. “I will. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful. And my condolences on your loss.”
They thanked him again, left the store, and continued walking along the street.
Taylor said, “An attractive brunette woman named Anna, petite, German, in her mid-thirties, who lives in a few-block radius of this store. It’s not great, but it’s something.”
“And she likes schnapps. I’ll just strike up a conversation with every good-looking petite brunette we come across.”
“I’m sure you would enjoy that. But for the moment, let’s work with what we have.”
“Right. Let’s assume Harry Vance was staying with her.”
“That’s fair.”
“And let’s assume he took the metro to Neukölln after leaving her apartment.”
“A little less fair. He could have been coming from anywhere.”
“He could have been,” said Brodie. “But let’s assume he wasn’t out and about all night carrying his M9. He left Anna’s place sometime after twoA.M.What are the nearby stations?”
Taylor pulled up the GPS on her phone and analyzed it for a minute. “The closest station from here is the U-Bahn on Eberswalder Straße. Next closest is the Prenzlauer Allee S-Bahn, and then to the northwest is the Schönhauser Allee station which serves both systems.”
“Good.” He pulled out his cell phone along with FBI Agent Jason Butler’s business card and dialed the number.
Butler picked up after a couple rings. “Guten Tag.”
