The older man turned and strode to his computer. His fingers tapped against the keyboard for a few moments, then he called out, “Ha! The inspector who called Brunner’s death a suicide is Inspector Lena Brandt.”
All eyes turned to Dmytro.
“A member of the local police force on Alpenhorn’s payroll?” Draco asked.
Dmytro nodded. “That is how it appears.”
Cate’s lips pressed together in a tight line. “Now, I really need to talk to Inspector Brandt.”
“I can have the driver take you there,” Hammer offered. “We have him all day.”
Cate pushed to her feet. “Let’s go.”
Draco loved that determined fire in her blue eyes. Why had he let her slip through his fingers?
The woman was on a mission, and he would make sure she didn’t get herself killed carrying out that mission.
Chapter 8
One thing Cate hated worse than criminals was law enforcement that could be bought. She had a bone to pick with Inspector Brandt, but she had to get her anger under control before she spoke with the woman.
Brunner had not committed suicide. Any inspector who claimed he had without going through an autopsy should be fired. No, she should be jailed for obstruction of justice.
Though she wanted to give the woman a piece of her mind, Cate first wanted to know who was pulling Brandt’s strings to make her bend the law to his will. The woman had better have the answers.
The driver dropped them off at the Kantonspolizei station, where Dmytro said the inspector’s office was located.
Cate marched into the station and asked to see Inspector Brandt, claiming she had information concerning Stefan Brunner, hoping that would get her past the door and into the woman’s office.
The officer manning the desk picked up a phone, made a call and waited. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds. Four. Finally, the man set the phone in its cradle and said in heavily French-accented English. “The inspector is not in the office.”
“Do you know when she will return?” Cate asked, frustrated that she couldn’t get right down to business with the inspector.
“No, madame. Perhaps you can come back later.” He looked over her shoulder at the next person in line.
Cate wanted to tell the man she couldn’t come back later if she didn’t know what part of later she should aim for. Instead, she turned and left the station, Draco following.
“Where to now?” he asked.
She tugged at the jacket she still wore. “I need to get into more comfortable clothes. These look great, but they still have that new-clothes stiffness that’s beginning to chafe my neck.”
“Back to the hotel?” Draco asked.
“After a stop at Hammer’s headquarters. I want to take the documents with me. Hopefully, Dmytro made copies.”
Draco texted the driver, who appeared in less than a minute and took them to the Brotherhood building.
Only two people were left in the building. Dmytro and a purple-haired young woman who sat at the terminal next to Dmytro, chewing gum and hammering away at the keyboard like she’d been born with it in her hands.
Dmytro pushed to his feet as soon as Draco and Cate entered the large conference room. “My friends, please. I would introduce you to my colleague, Lucie Monroe.”
The woman looked more like a teenager with her long purple hair gathered loosely into a messy bun at the top of her head, held in place by black, lacquer chopsticks. Over her shoulder, she waved fingers tipped in black nail polish. “Hey.”
Cate grimaced. “Hey.”
“Lucie,” Draco said. “Nice to meet you.”
“Lucie is the second-best technical support person after me.”
