‘Nothing. But I did get a call from Moscow. He’s found out the end user.’
‘A company?’
She shook her head. ‘A country. The radar is for the Pantsyr-S1E and heading for the Iranian military. You know what an S1E is?’
‘Yeah - ground-to-air missile. Tarasov’s making the boards for the missile systems.’
We carried on towards the RV arm in arm. Guys with radio comms and roll-ups the size of RPGs lingered in the shadows, their pit-bulls snarling at their heels.
We eventually got bored with pushing our way through groups of dithering tourists and local teenagers toking their heads off and darted down a side street.
A figure stepped out from the shadows, a white guy in his early twenties in a black leather jacket and old army cargoes. His head was shaved. Even in this light I could see his eyes were bloodshot and out on stalks.
‘You want cannabis?’
‘No.’
‘Cocaine? Heroin?’
It sounded like a threat rather than an invitation to sample tonight’s special.
We didn’t break step. ‘No.’
Walking backwards just ahead of us, he gestured towards the rear of a nearby building. ‘Come with me, come down here. I can get you anything. Ice? Ket?’
I shook my head. ‘We don’t want anything.’
‘If you don’t want to buy, what are you doing here? You cops?’
Anna was just as sharp with him. ‘We don’t have money.’
He flexed his fist. ‘Yeah, right, and I don’t have a dick.’
We kept going.
He slid his right hand into his pocket. ‘I’ll cut you both. Buy some stuff or fuck off, cop.’
It wasn’t a knife he tugged from his pocket, but a radio.
Anna pulled out the picture. ‘Have you seen her?’
He didn’t even bother looking. ‘Fuck you.’
We carried straight on past him. He wasn’t going to follow us onto the main. Darkness was where he lived. ‘Fuck you, bitches - got no money. Suck my dick and I’ll give you a freebie. Hey, everybody, look out - cops.’
We were opposite the entrance to the alley that led back to Prinsessegade. We were going against the flow. People were pouring past the sign that told us we were entering the EU, three or four abreast.
9
Gandalf was in the corner where we’d left him. It looked as though his glass had been refilled a good few more times. An ashtray was piled with roll-up ends. The one in his mouth had gone out and its ash had taken up residence in his beard.
He looked up blearily to see who had come into the not-so-busy bar and went straight back into waffle mode, as if he’d only finished his last sentence to us a few seconds ago. ‘Gangs. Violence. It’s the government’s fault. We used to sell the best hash in Europe here, right here in Christiania. But then the politi bust the trade. Then the gangs …’
Anna sat down at his table. ‘Maybe you could tell us a little more about the gangs. Where are the Russians? Do you know where we can find them?’
I sat beside her as Gandalf continued his rant. His eyes wobbled and bounced like a one-armed-bandit display but never made contact with either of us.
‘We are citizens of Denmark. We pay our taxes—’
I thought he was going to end his sentence but he started a new one instead.
‘Our music halls and art galleries have contributed to Denmark’s culture and commerce. We have a free health clinic. We shelter and look after addicts, alcoholics, even homeless …’ He raised a nicotine-stained index finger to make sure we understood the full weight of the next category. ‘… and madmen. The cops still do nothing but hassle us. But do they do anything to the gangs? No! We are used by them - what can we do?’
Anna pulled out a pack of Camels and offered him one. ‘Do you know where the Russians are?’ She pulled out Lilian’s picture again. ‘Where can we find them?’
He refused the cigarette. ‘Why do you think I would know? I know nothing.’ He was angry or scared, it was hard to work out which.
His fist went down hard on the table; hard enough to make the glass rattle. ‘Nothing.’
His head went down again. Tears rolled from his eyes. ‘I just cannot take any more …’
We left him to it, and ordered coffees and open salmon sandwiches at the bar. Money upfront, of course.
‘I think we’re going to get a big fuck-all tonight. She may already be drugged up and fucked up, but we won’t find her on the street. Those lads