Volker gave Fabel a long, dark stare. ‘I could make life very, very difficult for you, Fabel, you know that, don’t you?’

‘It’s kind of you to remind me, Volker. Particularly in front of two witnesses.’

‘Just what do you think we do, Fabel? Do you think we’re just some kind of dirty-tricks department?’

Fabel shrugged. ‘I’m a policeman. I like to let the facts do the talking. And so far those facts tell me not only that you have been concealing evidence from me, but also that you obviously have your own agenda as far as Vitrenko is concerned.’

Volker gave a bitter laugh. ‘For a senior officer investigating serious crimes you seem to have a habit of making the facts fit your particular agenda of prejudices.’

‘You’re denying that you are trying to tie up a deal with Vitrenko?’

‘No. I am not denying that. But not to the extent of ignoring these bloody murders, if that’s what you mean. And I’m not denying that our American friends are perhaps less squeamish about doing deals with the Devil, if it brings them the heads they’re after. But no. If –’ Volker emphasised the word and repeated it – ‘if Vitrenko is indeed your killer, then of course we would not consider dealing with him, although we would want to talk to him. And as for us not being forthcoming with information … you never thought to ask yourself if there was another possible reason for our reticence?’

‘Like what?’

Volker stood up and leaned on his desk. ‘Like maybe you can’t be trusted. Like maybe one of your precious Polizei Hamburg is on the take. And maybe because of that, Klugmann – someone I recruited personally and a bloody good man – was killed.’

‘This is all a smokescreen, Volker.’ Fabel also rose to his feet.

‘Is it? Klugmann was onto the real leak of information from within the Polizei Hamburg. He found out that someone, someone at a high level – perhaps even a Kriminalhauptkommissar – has been selling high-level information to the Ukrainians.’

Fabel took a second before responding. In that second he hastily constructed a web of cables and threw it over the anger that surged within him. ‘Are you telling me that that is why you have been withholding information on Vitrenko? I don’t believe it.’

‘Ask Van Heiden. He knows all about it. Someone either within this Präsidium or in a major city-centre Polizeidirektion is selling Vitrenko information that is helping him to hit his main rivals and take over their operations and hijack their deals – like the Colombian deal where Ulugbay was wiped out.’

‘But you said Klugmann gave the Ukrainians the information …’

‘He did. And that’s why we think he’s dead. Klugmann sensed his contact, Vadim, was pulling back from him. Of course, deep-cover work makes you hyper-paranoid, but Klugmann was very concerned that the Ukrainians were becoming suspicious of him.’

Fabel said nothing, but recalled Sonja’s fear when Fabel’s team had raided the flat in search of Klugmann. And how Klugmann himself had sought deeper refuge somewhere, only to end up lying at the bottom of a filth-strewn swimming pool. Volker could see that Fabel was considering his words, and he eased back into his seat. Fabel did the same. When Volker continued, his tone was markedly less aggressive.