She eyed the hunched-up figure on the sofa and established that he didn’t have an ax hidden under his clothes, at least.
Then she came out from behind the counter, put a hand on his shoulder and asked him to accompany her.
He did as he was bidden without protesting, allowing him self to be led through the narrow corridors and into the inner most of the two cells, the one that could be locked.
“Wait here,” said Miss deWitt. “An officer will come to interrogate you shortly. Anything you say might be used in evi dence against you.”
She wondered why she’d said that last sentence. Mr. Woll ner sat on the bench and started wringing his hands, and she decided to leave him to his fate. She considered phoning
Mooser, who was duty officer, but decided not to. Instead she made the coffee and waited for Inspector Kropke, who duly put in an appearance at seven-thirty on the dot.
“The Axman has confessed,” she said.
“What the hell…?” said Kropke.
“I’ve locked him into the cell,” said Miss deWitt.
“What the hell?” repeated Inspector Kropke. “Who… who is it?”
“I don’t know,” said Miss deWitt. “But I think his name’s Wollner.”
After thinking it over, Kropke decided that it would be best to wait for one of the DCIs to appear, and so it was twenty min utes to nine before the first interrogation of the presumed murderer could take place. Those present, apart from Kropke and the chief of police, were Inspector Moerk and Constable
Mooser.
To be on the safe side, they recorded the proceedings on two tape recorders, partly with an eye to possible requirements if the case eventually went to court, and partly so that the two experts who had been called in from outside, Van Veeteren and
Munster, could be sure of an opportunity to form a correct opinion of the circumstances.
Bausen:
Your full name, please.
Wollner:
Peter Matthias Wollner.
Bausen:
Born?
Wollner:
February 15, 1936.
Bausen:
Address?
Wollner:
Morgenstraat 16.
Bausen:
Kaalbringen?
Wollner:
Yes.
Bausen:
Are you married?
Wollner:
No.
Bausen:
Everything you say may be used in evidence against you. You have the right to remain silent if you wish. Would you like a solicitor to be present?
Wollner:
No.
Bausen:
Why have you come here?
Wollner:
To confess to the murders.
Bausen:
The murders of Heinz Eggers, Ernst Simmel and Maurice Ruhme?
Wollner:
Yes.
Bausen:
Tell us how you did it.
Wollner:
I killed them with my ax.
Bausen:
What kind of ax was it?
Wollner:
I’ve had it for several years. A butcher’s tool,
I think.
Bausen:
Can you describe it?
Wollner: Sharp. Quite light. The blade went in very easily.
Bausen:
Where did you get hold of it?
Wollner: Bought it when I was abroad four or five years ago.
Bausen:
Where?
Wollner: Italy. I can’t remember what the town was called.
Bausen:
Why did you murder Eggers, Simmel and
Ruhme?
No reply.
Kropke:
Why don’t you answer the question?
No reply.
Bausen:
Can you give us more details of how you went about it?
Wollner: Which one?
Bausen:
Maurice Ruhme, for instance.
Wollner: I rang the bell and he opened the door… I killed him.
Moerk:
Why?
Wollner: That’s why I went there.
Bausen:
Describe exactly what you did.
Wollner: I said I’d hurt my back. Dropped my watch on the floor. As I couldn’t bend down to pick it up, the doctor did it for me… I hit him with the ax on the back of his head.
Kropke:
Were you acquainted with Dr. Ruhme?
Wollner: I was a patient of his.
Moerk:
Did he know you were coming?
Wollner: Yes.
Moerk:
Are you saying that he received patients at his home at that time of night?
Wollner: I had to push.
Bausen:
What was Ruhme wearing?
Wollner: Polo shirt… grayish-green. Black trousers, dark-colored socks…
Bausen:
What time was it?
Wollner: About eleven.
Kropke:
What was Ernst Simmel wearing when you killed him?
Wollner: White shirt and tie. Jacket and trousers.
Brown shoes, I think. It was dark.
Bausen:
That’s right, dammit… What do you think,
Moerk?
Moerk:
I find it difficult to believe you, Mr. Wollner.
Why did you do it?
Wollner: I’m prepared to take my punishment.
Pause. Short break in the tape.
Bausen:
You claim that you killed three people, Mr.
Wollner. Now you’d damn well better tell me why! We have better things to do than sit here listening to self-punishing types who crave a little attention.
Moerk:
But…
Wollner: I killed them because they were evil people.
Bausen:
Evil?
Wollner: Evil people.
Bausen:
Was that the only reason?
Wollner: It’s reason enough.
Kropke:
Why those particular three?
No answer.
Bausen:
What were you wearing that evening when you killed Ernst Simmel?
Wollner:
What was I wearing?
Bausen:
Yes. How were you dressed?
Wollner:
I can’t really remember… Hat and coat, I think.
Moerk:
And when you killed Ruhme?
Wollner:
Tracksuit.
Bausen:
Why did you leave the ax in Dr. Ruhme’s body?
Wollner:
He was the last.
Bausen:
The last? Aren’t there any more evil people?
Wollner:
Not as far as I’m concerned. I’m prepared to take my punishment.
Bausen:
You’re not thinking of murdering anybody else?
Wollner:
No.
Kropke:
Why have you come here today of all days?
Wollner:
I was forced.
Bausen:
Forced? What is your job, Mr. Wollner?
Wollner:
I’m a janitor.
Moerk:
Where?
Wollner:
At The Light of Life.
Kropke:
The church, do you mean?
Wollner:
Yes.
Pause. Whispers and the scraping of chairs.
Bausen:
Is there anybody who instructed you to commit these murders, Mr. Wollner?
Wollner:
I have a mission.
Bausen:
Given to you by whom?
No answer.
Moerk:
God, perhaps?
Wollner:
Yes.
Silence.
Bausen:
We’ll take a break here. Mooser, get rid of this bastard and lock him up again. We’ll erase this tape later.
“Well,” said Bausen. “What do you think?”
“As mad as a hatter,” said Kropke.
“He’s lying,” said Moerk.
“What about the details, though?” said Kropke. “How could he know so many details?”
Beate Moerk shrugged.
“The media, presumably…”
“Have the papers printed anything about the clothes?” wondered Mooser.
“Dunno. We’ll have to check. But they’ve certainly printed quite a lot.”
“It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if it turned out to be him,” said Kropke. “The Light of Life crowd are as weird as they come.”
“No doubt,” said Bausen. “But how weird? They’re not in the habit of wandering around killing people, are they?”
“Where are our guests today?” wondered Kropke, trying to look knowing.