Glancing at his watch Gregory saw that it was nearly half past two, and he wanted to be in plenty of time for his appointment at the Finnish Foreign Office so he stood up and excused himself.
Having collected his furs from the cloakroom he thrust his way through the jam of people in the hall to the desk and said to the fair haired clerk who had booked him in: "I want those papers back now that I gave you just before midday to put in the hotel safe."
The fair man Looked 'at him in blank surprise. "But you sent for them yourself half an hour ago, sir." He reached into a drawer and produced a chit. "We have your signature for them."
Chapter XIII
The Beautiful Erika Von Epp
Told you not to give that packet to anyone-on any pretext," Gregory snarled, the second he could give expression to his amazement and anger.
The clerk gave back before his angry scowl. "But, sir, you» aid you would be wanting the packet again after lunch and I thought…"
"But you say you gave it to someone half an hour ago. It would then have been barely two o'clock."
"In Helsinki many people lunch at midday, sir, and would have finished by then. I thought you were busy, perhaps, and so had sent your friend to collect your parcel."
"If I had, he would have produced the receipt you gave me; and I still have it here. What have you to say to that?"
"Only, sir, that visitors are often careless and mislay the receipts we give them. We consider it quite satisfactory if instead of the original receipt we have the visitor's signature for anything deposited. And here is yours." The clerk extended the slip of paper again.
Gregory glanced at it. "That's not my signature."
"Well, it's very like it, sir." The man shrugged apologetically and pointed to the place in the visitor's book where Gregory himself had written his name earlier that day. The forgery would not have been passed by a bank but it was a pretty fair imitation, and as Gregory, stared at the fair, blue-eyed, bespectacled clerk he suddenly formed a very shrewd suspicion as to what had occurred.
The man behind the desk might be of Finnish nationality but he was certainly not one hundred per cent. Finnish. The Finns have no blood ties with other Scandinavian peoples-they are a race apart-and the only nation to which they are allied y blood and language is Hungary, for over a thousand years ago a colony of Finns migrated into middle-Europe and settled round Lake Balaton. The Finns are of two main types-the Karelians, who come from the North and the East and are a gay, pleasure-loving people, and the Tavastlanders, from the South and the West, who provide the more sober element-but neither, has any resemblance to the Teutons; whereas the clerk's square head and thick neck betrayed his German origin.
That, almost certainly, was the key to what had transpired. The fellow was either a German or had relatives in Germany, which enabled the Gestapo agents in Helsinki to exert pressure on him. As part of his secret duties he had evidently reported that an Englishman had lodged a packet of important papers with him. The member of the Gestapo to whom he reported had then copied Gregory's signature out of the visitors' book and made the clerk hand over the packet.
Gregory knew that he could create a fuss, send for the manager, threaten to sue the hotel and call in the police; but none of these things would get back his vitally-important papers. He swiftly made up his mind that he would try to get the clerk sacked later, if he had time to spare, as the man was dangerous; but there was not a second to lose now. With the smallest possible delay he must try to get on the track of whoever had stolen the packet.
"What was the name of the man to whom you gave my papers?" he asked quickly.
"I don't know, sir."
"Is he staying in the hotel?"
"Oh, no."
"But you knew him?"
"Yes. He has been in here several times in the last two days." "D'you know where he lives?"
The clerk smiled blandly, with almost open insolence. "Na, sir, I haven't the least idea."
"All right. Describe him to me," Gregory snapped. "And remember this: the packet was such a big one that somebody must have noticed you handing it across the counter, and one of the porters would certainly have seen the man walk out with it. I'll have every person in the hotel questioned and if I find that you've lied to me about his description I'll have you put in prison for aiding and abetting a theft. Now, then!"
The clerk wilted slightly as he protested. `But I wouldn't dream of lying to you, sir, and the management will be most distressed about this unfortunate occurrence. The man said you had sent him for the packet and produced your signature, otherwise I should never have given it to him. He was a big man, very strong, I should say, but rather fat. He had fair hair, cut like a brush in front."
"A German?"
"I couldn't say, sir, but he spoke to me in English and I thought he might be Scandinavian or Dutch. He had a heavy, pasty face, spoke in a shrill voice and was wearing a black patch over his left eye.
It was all Gregory could do to suppress an exclamation. The description exactly fitted his old enemy,Herr Gruppenführer Grauber, the chief of the Gestapo Foreign Department, U.A.-1. What was Grauber doing in Finland? But that was easy. Grauber had his spies and agents in every capital and, naturally, now that Finland had become the new storm-centre of the war the Gestapo agents there would be working overtime. Grauber must have come to superintend their activities in person. He had probably walked into the hotel a little before two o'clock, glanced down the visitors' book and seen Gregory's name there. in questioning the clerk he would have learned about the packet that had been deposited and immediately decided that, Whatever the papers were, they were very well worth getting hold of if they belonged to Gregory Sallust. With the clerk's connivance it had been a simple matter to copy the signature from the visitors' book and secure the packet.
By giving a correct description of Grauber the clerk had cleared himself of all but suspicion of complicity, while definitely confirming Gregory's conviction as to the manner in which the papers had been stolen. The fact that Grauber had obtained them under false pretences was of no immediate help, as with the Finnish crisis at its height it would take hours-if not days-to get a warrant for his arrest.
Without another word to the clerk Gregory turned abruptly away It was unlikely that he would be able to get hold of monsieur Wuolijoki before three o'clock, but Erika must have been in Helsinki for the last three weeks and through her connections among the German colony she would be certain to know something of Gestapo activities in the Finnish capital.
Crossing to the hall-porter, he gave him another lavish tip for the use of the telephone in his office and rang up the von Kobenthals. When he had asked for the Countess von Osterberg was told to hold the line and a moment later a low, husky rice, that made his hand tremble as he held the receiver, said:
"Hallo? Who is that?"
"Colonel- Baron yon Lutz," Gregory replied.
There was a little pause and then her voice came again. "I know your name, of course, Herr Oberst-Baron, but I don't think we have met. What can I do for you?"
"Oh, but we have met." Gregory allowed a smile to creep into his voice. "I last saw you at a farm-house outside Berlin, on the night of November the 8th."
There was a little gasp 1 then a swift whisper. "Gregory, is it you? It must be you. Oh, darling "
"Hush” Gregory whispered back. "For God's sake be careful. Can I come up and ‘see you right away?"
"Yes, yes, at once-instantly."
"It is Colonel-Baron von Lutz speaking. You will remember that, won't .you? I'll be with you within a quarter of an hour."