Frauleinstein

Chapter XIII: Meanwhile, Back in Bistritz... Part II

"Don't do anything funny, Williams!" shouted Detective Miklos.

"I haven't done anything funny yet," Roddy told him. "There's no reason to think I might start now."

"Everyone stand, and back away from the table," Dancescu ordered.

"What's this all about, Detective?" Roddy asked as he stood together with the others. "I answered all your questions!"

"Well maybe I've thought up a few more since yesterday," Miklos told him. "We're on to you, Williams! You finally messed up, and your little crime spree is over. We matched fingerprints from the church in Berlin to your prints from the morgue last night. It won't take us long to unravel everything you've been up to!"

"I'm not sure what went on in Berlin, but if you matched it to prints from the morgue then it had nothing to do with me. I was at home alone all last night."

"Then you've got nothing to fear," Dancescu told him. "But that church was desecrated way back in 1948, so we know the criminal from the morgue last night must be over ninety years old! And I don't see anyone else around here matching that description!"

Klaus and Maria inadvertently glanced in Zolfina's direction. Dancescu and Miklos followed their gaze, slowly turning their attention to the ancient gypsy woman. Miklos looked puzzled for a moment before asking, "How old are you?"

Zolfina crossed her arms and threw her head back indignantly. "Oh! Such impertinence!"

Dancescu leaned in toward Miklos. "She doesn't really look big or horrible either," he pointed out.

"Alright, fine!" said Roddy. "If all it will take is to check our fingerprints for you to know we aren't master criminals who've been on a mad crime spree since the 1940s, we'll come downtown."

"Now you're being smart," said Dancescu.

But Zolfina turned to Roddy, concern on her face. "Roddy, we don't have time. We need to leave, now! If we are arrested we will be too late!"

Zolfina had a way of always knowing exactly what was going to happen. Roddy didn't understand it, but he was beginning to trust it. With their hands hidden from Miklos' view, Zolfina passed a hard, metal object to Roddy. He took it and instinctively turned to point the gun at the two policemen.

"Drop the guns, and nobody gets hurt!" Roddy called out. He took a brief moment to check the gun which Zolfina had handed to him.

"This is my Webley service revolver!" he said aside to Zolfina. "Where did you get it?"

"I stopped by your apartment before I came here," she answered.

"How did you get in?" Roddy asked.

Zolfina shrugged. "I am a gypsy."

"Give it up Williams," Miklos told him, not dropping his gun an inch. "You can't win. Two of us with two guns, against one of you with one gun. There's only one way this ends."

Roddy turned his concentration back to the two guns pointed at him. He needed to find a way out; maybe if Miklos really believed he was a desperate criminal...

"You're right, Miklos! The two of us, we've been pulling off heists all over this region for over seventy years!"

"And we would have gotten away with it too, if it hadn't been for these kids!" Zolfina added, looking at Klaus and Maria.

Maria looked hurt. "Roddy, we are with you!" she said, upset that he seemed to be distancing himself from them.

"No Maria," Roddy said firmly. "I'm a criminal, you're not!"

Roddy attempted to shove Maria away, but she grabbed his arm and pulled herself in front of him.

"That's right, Roddy. And now I am your hostage!" Maria said. Holding his arm around her throat, it appeared as if Roddy was holding a struggling hostage as he struggled to let her go.

Let the woman go, Williams!" Miklos told him.

Roddy looked at Maria, playing the distraught hostage for all she was worth while she held herself firmly in front of him. There was nothing to be done except play along at this point.

"Guns on the floor, then kick them over here!" Roddy demanded.

"Do as he says!" Klaus yelled, getting into the role of concerned bystander. "He'll kill her!"

Miklos hesitated for a moment, but then pointed his gun down. He and Dancescu put their guns on the floor and kicked them away.

"Get the guns!" Roddy said to Zolfina. "You stay here with the hostages. I'll lock up these two in the back."

"You'll never get away," Miklos said as he and Dancescu were herded into the kitchen. "I called for backup before we came in."

"I don't think you did," Roddy told him. "That's not your style, to ask for help taking down a ninety-five year-old man."

"I told you we should have called for backup," said Dancescu.

"Handcuff yourselves to that pipe."

Roddy took care of the fine details of securing enemy combatants, then returned to the dining room. Zolfina, Klaus and Maria were ready to leave.

"So, is there a plan from here?" Klaus asked.

"Not as such, no," Zolfina told him.

"Well, we just assaulted a couple of police officers, and apparently kidnapped two hostages," said Roddy. "So maybe we should go somewhere to think through our options. Is there anything else you can tell us?"

"Only that the Nazi woman was key. Her death has set them back, but she did not work alone. And also, as evil as she was, you need to know that there is another who is more evil still."