فصل 15

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

A little bit of Schubert

When the lift came to a stop, Hiro stepped out to find himself in a small area used only by hotel workers. Opposite the lift, there was a door. Hiro pushed it open. The next moment, as if going through a secret entrance hidden in the wall, he came out into a public corridor of the hotel. He was halfway along. The corridor, its floor covered in deep red carpet, stretched in both directions.

Hiro didn’t know which way to go. He chose one way, but saw that the numbers on the doors were going up: 325, 327, 329. So he turned round, and the numbers on the doors began to go down, even numbers on the left, odd numbers on the right. He followed them down: 325, 323, 321. As he passed this last room, he felt his heart begin to beat very fast.

All of a sudden he was there: Room 319. He was about to knock, when he stopped himself. He realised he had no idea what he was going to say or do. His confidence suddenly left him. Was he really so certain a murder was about to take place?

Hiro didn’t hear the door to the room behind him open. Out of nowhere, he heard a voice speaking in German.

Hiro turned to see a man of about thirty standing in the doorway of Room 320. The man looked quite tough - like a soldier perhaps, but in ordinary clothes.

Hiro felt helpless. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t understand German,’ he said in English.

The man looked confused. ‘You don’t speak German?’

‘No,’ Hiro said.

The man narrowed his eyes. ‘But you work here?’

Hiro felt weak at the knees. He’d forgotten the white jacket and the sheets he was carrying; now he couldn’t think how to explain them. ‘No, I’m a student,’ he said quietly. ‘But I must see the man in this room, Mr Schmidt. I have some important information for him.’

Immediately the man’s body became tight. ‘I think you’d better tell me first. I’m a colleague of Mr Schmidt.’

Hiro didn’t know what to say.

‘Well, I’m waiting,’ the man went on.

Hiro wasn’t sure if he could trust the man. But there was no time to decide. Hiro had to give an explanation. ‘I came to see Mr Schmidt because…’ he began, then stopped. ‘Well, his life might be in danger.’

Now the man’s eyes became very sharp. ‘We’d better talk about this in my room,’ he said after a moment. His voice made it clear that Hiro shouldn’t argue.

The man stood back and let Hiro go past into the room. As soon as they were both inside, the man shut the door quickly and looked through the eyehole to the corridor outside.

‘Please sit down,’ the man said, turning back to Hiro.

Hiro dropped the sheets behind the door and chose the nearest chair.

The man continued immediately. ‘OK, you say you’re a student?’ He didn’t sit down or wait for an answer. ‘So, what information do you have for Mr Schmidt?’

‘I was on the train to Berlin,’ Hiro began, his voice shaking. ‘By accident I looked at another man’s phone and read a message - two messages, in fact. They talked about an assignment here in this hotel in Room 319 this evening.’

The man looked surprised. ‘Go on,’ he said quickly.

‘Well, the man on the train. He tried to kill me. And he’s in the hotel now. I saw him only twenty minutes ago.’

At that, the man pulled up another chair and sat very close. His voice became very serious. ‘This isn’t a student joke, is it?’ he said. ‘It’s very important. Do you understand?’

‘Yes, I do.’ Hiro looked straight back into the man’s eyes. ‘I was kidnapped as well,’ he added after a moment. ‘I’ve been very frightened.’

The man paused, then nodded. ‘Do you know who Mr Schmidt really is?’

Hiro shook his head. ‘No. What do you mean? Isn’t Schmidt his real name?’

‘No, it isn’t.’ The man watched Hiro closely. After a moment’s thought, he went on: ‘Listen, I’m going to tell you things which perhaps I shouldn’t. But it seems there’s very little time, so I’ll have to take a chance. It doesn’t matter who Schmidt is - it’s enough to know he’s someone extremely important. And for reasons I can’t explain, Mr Schmidt is here in the hotel secretly.’

‘OK,’ Hiro answered.

‘Well, I’m his bodyguard - his personal bodyguard - I’m here to make sure he’s safe. Normally he has several bodyguards with him, but as he’s here in secret I’m the only one with him tonight. Understand?’

Hiro nodded.

The man was very serious now, sitting forward closely. ‘Now who is this man who’s come to kill him? What does he look like?’

Hiro coughed. For a second he couldn’t speak. ‘He’s old… but there’s something really frightening about him. He’s like a shark - he’s got the same eyes and teeth. On the train he said his name was Erik Bjornson and that he was a businessman, but he came into the hotel this evening dressed as a priest.’

‘A priest!’ the man repeated.

‘Yes, I’m sure of it,’ replied Hiro.

The man jumped up from his chair and went to the door. For a moment he looked through the eyehole. Then he stood back. He thought for a second or two, then spoke again. ‘OK, listen. There’s no time to call my colleagues, so I’m going to need your help. What’s your phone number?’ Hiro felt very frightened now, but he also had the wonderful feeling that he wasn’t on his own any more - someone had believed him at last. He told the man his number and the man typed it into his own phone. Immediately, he pressed ‘Call’. Hiro’s phone began to ring, then stopped.

‘Right,’ the man said, ‘you’ve got my number now as well.’ He paused and sat down opposite Hiro again. ‘OK, this is what I want you to do. I’m going to try and get the pr-, I mean, Mr Schmidt, out of this place, or at least into another room. I want you to stay here. Stand by the door and look out through the eyehole. If this guy shows up - the priest, that is - the second you see him, call my number. Is that clear?’

‘Yes,’ Hiro answered.

‘Good.’ The man sat up. He looked at Hiro for a second, then said, ‘What’s your name?’

‘Hiro Adachi.’

‘Mine’s Schubert, Franz Schubert,’ the man replied. He immediately held up his hand. ‘Yes, I know, there’s a famous composer with the same name. My parents were crazy about classical music. Anyway, please call me Franz.’

‘OK, Franz,’ Hiro said.

‘Great,’ Schubert answered. He put a hand on Hiro’s shoulder. ‘You’ve done brilliantly, Hiro. And you’ve been very brave.’

He didn’t delay any longer. Giving Hiro a nod, he got to his feet, picked up a small bag by the wall and went to the door. ‘OK, this is it,’ he said. As he did so, he reached inside his jacket and pulled out a gun. There was something very cold-looking about the black metal. Then he dropped his arm down by his side. ‘See you in fifteen minutes,’ he said in a whisper.

The next moment the man had gone. Silence fell inside the room.

Hiro looked at the door. Fear suddenly filled him. He was on his own again.