Vienna Blood

31

RHEINHARDT OPENED THE DRAWER of his desk and slid the unfinished report inside. It landed on a pile of official forms, most of which were only half-completed.

I'll attend to it when I get back.

The thought lacked conviction. So much so that Rheinhardt was obliged to castigate himself: You really must!

He pushed the drawer to, took out his watch from the tight fob pocket of his vest, and gasped.

“Haussmann!” he called out to his assistant. “We'd better get going. Otherwise we'll be late.”

Reluctant witnesses rarely waited long.

The younger man, who had been earnestly copying the contents of his notebook into a bulky dossier, obediently rose from his seat. At that moment, there was a knock on the door, and another young officerdistinctly ursine in appearance-lumbered into the room.

“Sir,” he addressed Rheinhardt. “A man from the zoo-outside. Says he's got to see you straight away.”

“A man from the zoo?” Rheinhardt repeated.

“Zookeeper. Herr Arnoldt.”

Rheinhardt, still thinking about his backlog of unfinished paperwork and the meeting for which he would very soon be late, did not properly register the young officer's announcement. The inspector's expression changed from perplexity through vacancy to puzzlement.

“Herr Arnoldt,” said Haussmann helpfully. “The one who looked after the snake-Hildegard.”

“Ah yes,” said Rheinhardt. “That Herr Arnoldt-whatever can he want?”

The young officer at the door decided that a little detail might encourage the inspector to be more decisive.

“Very anxious to see you he is, sir-very anxious.”

Rheinhardt grimaced. “I can't see him now. Tell him to come back later. Or, even better, tell him to come back tomorrow.”

The young officer was suddenly jostled out of the way and the door was flung open. Herr Arnoldt stumbled into the office. He was obviously in a state of great excitement. His hair was disheveled and his arms were raised, jerking in the air as if they were in the control of a crazed puppeteer.

“Inspector, Inspector,” said the frantic zookeeper. “Thank God you're here! Something remarkable has happened. My memory has returned. I would like to make another statement.”

The ursine officer lifted a large paw and made a sign, communicating that he was very willing to remove the zookeeper if his superior so wished. But Rheinhardt shook his head and said calmly, “Thank you, that will be all.” The young man looked disappointed as he closed the door.

“Herr Arnoldt,” said Rheinhardt. “Perhaps you could return tomorrow. I am due to interview a gentleman in connection with a murder investigation. We have arranged to meet in twenty minutes. I really cannot delay.”

“Murder investigation!” cried Herr Arnoldt. “What about Hildegard? Wasn't she murdered?”

Rheinhardt winced. “Yes, of course she was; however, I am afraid-”

“The emperor's favorite, she was!”

An image flashed into Rheinhardt's mind: Commissioner Brugel, leaning across his desk and scowling. It is my grave duty to inform you of a complaint, delivered to the security office this morning by one of His Majesty's personal aides, concerning…

“Very well, Herr Arnoldt,” said Rheinhardt. “Please sit down. You have already met my assistant.” He nodded toward Haussmann. “He is a capable fellow and will take down every word you say. On my return, I will have sufficient time to give your statement the careful attention that it deserves. If there are any issues arising that require further clarification, I will contact you via Herr Pfundtner at the zoo. Good morning.”

Rheinhardt bowed and, before the zookeeper could object, opened the door and left.

Haussmann, somewhat bemused, repeated the inspector's invitation for Herr Arnoldt to sit.

The zookeeper pulled a chair right up to the desk and leaned forward.

“It's remarkable. My memory, it came back.”

“Just one moment,” said Haussmann, adjusting his chair and removing a blank form from one of the drawers. “I'm sorry-please continue.” He showed that he was ready to write by raising his pen.

“My memory,” said Herr Arnoldt breathlessly. “You remember that I'd lost it, after that scoundrel thumped me on the head. I couldn't remember anything… just having my breakfast in the morning. Well, slowly, things began to come back, all in the correct order. First there was breakfast, but then I recovered a memory of catching the omnibus. Then-after a while-I remembered getting off the omnibus and walking past the palace. Nothing more came back for a while, until about an hour ago. It was like… it was like… the sun rising. In a single instant, everything I had lost was restored.” Herr Arnoldt grinned broadly. “I can remember entering the zoo, unlocking the door to the snake-pit. I can remember preparing Hildegard's food-the carcasses, on the slab in front of me…”

Haussmann's scratching pen came to a halt. He lifted his head.

“A little slower, please, Herr Arnoldt?”

“Of course,” said the zookeeper. He took a deep breath, composed himself, and continued his narrative. “The carcasses-they were on the slab in front of me. I know it was that particular morning-and not another morning-because one of the dead mice had a distinctive pelt-white, with an orange spot. And it was then… then that I heard footsteps. I assumed it was one of the other keepers. You see, they weren't stealthy footsteps, not like you'd expect from someone who intended to creep up behind you and do you some mischief. No, they weren't like that at all. This fellow had a brisk step. Like a march. One two-one two. And not only that, he was whistling… he was whistling this tune.”

Suddenly, Herr Arnoldt burst into song. “Pa, pa, pom, pom, ta-ta-ta-ta, pom, pom pom…”

He completed two phrases and stared, eyes wide open and shining rather too brightly, at the assistant detective. Haussmann began to wonder whether Herr Arnoldt's injury had affected more than just his memory.

Haussmann was not a very musical young man but he judged the tune to be vaguely familiar. It was quite well known, but not as famous as a work by Strauss or Lanner. He wrote “pa, pa, pom” down on the form and then crossed it out, resolving the problematic transcription with a simple worded description: Herr Arnoldt sings a melody. This sentence seemed too brief and after a further moment of reflection Haussmann amended his note, adding (Jolly).

“Well,” said Herr Arnoldt. “What do you think of that?”

Haussmann was not overly impressed by this new intelligence; however, the zookeeper's expression was expectant and Haussmann had learned, by observing his mentor, the value of a diplomatic response.

“Very interesting,” said the assistant detective. “Very interesting indeed.”

The zookeeper smiled, and sat back in his chair. He was obviously relieved.