‘I understand Klugmann worked for LKA7, in the Mobiles Einsatz Kommando attached to your drugs unit, before he was dismissed …’

‘That is correct … unfortunately …’ answered Buchholz. ‘We had a few ops go wrong. It was as if the targets had inside information, but we never for a moment considered that one of our own was the source. Then, of course, it came out that Klugmann was exchanging information for drugs. If we hadn’t sprung him when we did, who knows what damage he could have done …’

‘How did you catch him out?’

‘We searched his locker,’ answered Kolski. He folded his arms and the thick cables of muscle strained against the fabric of his shirt. ‘We found an unregistered automatic, a pile of cash and some cocaine …’

‘What, here in the Präsidium?’

‘Yes.’

‘Didn’t that strike you as a bit … well, odd? Convenient, even?’

‘Yes, it did, as a matter of fact,’ said Buchholz. ‘The other thing was that we had been tipped off by an anonymous call, otherwise we never would have caught him. But Klugmann confessed almost immediately that he was using drugs and claimed he had thought the Präsidium was the safest possible hiding place. After all, who would think of searching for illegal drugs here?’

‘But we’re talking about a tiny amount of drugs, aren’t we?’

‘Yes, a few grams. But enough.’ Buchholz leaned forward. ‘As you say, it was all a bit too easy, but we have a theory about that.’

‘Oh?’

‘Ulugbay has quite a pull on Klugmann. We were never able to prove that Klugmann had been supplying information about our operations to the Turks. If we had, then Klugmann would still be behind bars. As it happens all we could get him on was possession of a tiny amount of drugs and the illegal firearm. He even got to keep the cash: we couldn’t prove that it was dirty. It was all enough to get him kicked off the force but not enough to have him put away.’

Kolski picked up the thread. ‘But Ulugbay could, at any time, hand us the evidence we need – and Klugmann’s head on a plate.’

Fabel nodded. ‘So Klugmann had no choice but to work for Ulugbay …’

‘Exactly,’ said Buchholz.

‘Do you think that Ulugbay was behind the anonymous tip-off?’

‘Possible, but highly unlikely. Klugmann is very valuable to Ulugbay now – as a source of information and a highly trained heavy – but he was a hell of a lot more valuable when he was a serving police officer in a special-operations unit.’

‘So who ratted on Klugmann? Any ideas?’

‘Your guess is as good as mine,’ Buchholz said. ‘It was highly valuable information – something we would have paid an informant well for. It was very strange that we were handed it free of charge and anonymously.’

‘Maybe someone in the Ulugbay organisation had his own agenda?’

‘Again possible – and again highly unlikely. These bloody Turks are tight. Informing isn’t just against the code, it’s punishable by death – a very unpleasant death – and having your face carved off.’