Chapter 8 Chapter Eight A Portrait of a Woman

Elijah.Was Brush lying on purpose, or was he just saying it offhand?In any case, his claim that he hadn't been anywhere all day was sheer nonsense. In the early morning of August 26, two hours before dawn, the boat set sail.As he had said before, the boat did not anchor at Pressburg.He rowed desperately for twenty hours without rest, and reached fifteen kilometers downstream of Pressburg in one breath.After a short rest, he devoted himself to this kind of mechanical exercise that exceeded the load of ordinary people. Why was Brush so anxious, desperately trying to speed up the voyage and shorten the travel time?He himself does not think it is necessary to explain the reason to Mr. Jaeger, although the latter's vital interests have been seriously damaged.But Mr. Jaeger kept his word, and showed no sign of disappointment, though he might have been offended by the owner's haste.

Besides, Carl.Mr. Jager's attention was distracted by Dragos' concerns.The small loss Mr. Jaeger might incur pales in comparison to Detective Dragos' fears. On the morning of August 26, Dragos noticed a very unusual phenomenon.This incident, combined with the few things he had seen and heard a few days ago, greatly disturbed his mood.It happened around ten o'clock in the morning.Lost in his thoughts, Dragosh looked at Brush absently.Brush stood at the stern, rowing the oar tenaciously like an old scalper.Because of the curve of the river, Brush had to turn the bow to the northwest for a while, so the sun was on his back.He didn't wear a hat, and because of the heat, he was sweating profusely, so he threw down the otter skin cap that usually covered his head, and the sun shone through his thick black hair.

Suddenly, Dragos was startled, he saw a strange thing.If Brush's hair is dark brown, and there is no doubt about the authenticity of the color, then Brush's hair is only partially brown.His hair is black.But the hair with a few millimeters of hair roots is an out-and-out golden yellow. Is this two-colored hair natural?Maybe.However, it is more likely that his hair has been dyed with local methods, and he forgot to re-dye it, and it has become like this after a long time. Dragos had only doubted this at first, but soon became convinced of it.Because in the early morning of the second day, Brush's hair was no longer the same color as the previous day, the fisherman obviously realized his carelessness, so he did some remedial work overnight.

Those blue eyes carefully hidden by dark glasses, the obvious lies during the mooring in Vienna, the inexplicable haste of sailing (which was too inconsistent with his own stated purpose of travel), and the blond hair dyed black , all of these constitute a series of doubts, from which an answer must be found, but what kind of conclusion can be drawn?In the end, Dragos was still at a loss.Bush's whereabouts are suspicious.This is undeniable, but what does it mean? Dragosh pondered over and over the difficult problem before him.Finally, a hypothesis, after being overturned countless times by himself, was finally fixed in his mind.This hypothesis was exactly the one that had been raised in front of him by chance twice.The first time, at the Fisherman's Meeting, the optimist, Serbian Mikael.Mikalovic, the tourists at the hotel in Regensburg for the second time, half-jokingly, half-seriously expressed an idea: under the coat of fishing champion, there is hidden a the bandit leader.Even though the person who said it casually never really believed in this assumption, shouldn't it be seriously verified now?

All in all, why not test this assumption?True, nothing can be ascertained from what has been observed so far, but at the very least, the man should be given a full suspicion watch.And if later observation proves the present suspicions to be true, wouldn't it be a very interesting adventure story for the robber chief to travel so far on the same ship as the sheriff who was ordered to arrest him? In this way, a serious drama can also turn into a farce, and Dragosh is very reluctant to admit that such a bizarre coincidence is actually quite possible.But isn't successful farce all about concentrating on the same place and within a short period of time some ostentatious and unexpected events?And in real life, people usually don't notice these little things, or because they are diffused, they are diluted and appear less comical.Therefore, it is not sound thinking logic to dismiss something casually under the pretext that it is contrary to common sense or unbelievable.It is better to be cautious and admit that anything can be cleverly put together by chance.

Their boat spent the night in the wilderness a few kilometers downstream from the town of Komorne.In the early morning of the 28th, Dragos, driven by the thoughts of the previous day, decided to talk to Brush about a topic that the two had never touched on so far. Good morning, Mr. Brush!This morning, as soon as he got out of the cabin, he greeted Brush.Taking advantage of the opportunity of being alone in the cabin just now, he has already designed a whole set of attack plans. Good morning, Mr. Jaeger, replied the fisherman, shaking the oar vigorously as usual. Did you sleep well last night, Mr. Brush?

Had a great sleep.How about you, Mr. Jager? Well so-so. oh?Brush said, if you're not feeling well, why don't you call me? I'm in good health, Mr. Brush, replied Mr. Jagger, but I still feel the night is too long.Frankly, I was keeping my eyes open hoping for daylight to dawn soon. that is because Because I was a little worried, now I can tell you. Worry?Brush repeated, genuinely shocked. It's not the first time I've been so frightened, Jager explained, I've been a little uncomfortable ever since you made the unusual choice to spend the night away from the city and the country.

Well!Brush, waking up from a dream, said, You should have spoken to me long ago, so that I can make other arrangements. You forgot, didn't I promise not to interfere with your freedom of movement.Once a word is spoken, it is hard to follow.But, Mr. Brush, I'm still worried.Why are you doing this?I'm from the city, and the countryside is so lonely and desolate, it's really frightening. It's a matter of habit, Mr. Jagger, said Brush, pleasantly, disagreeing with him, and if our trip was longer you'd get used to it.In fact, in the sparsely populated countryside, it is not as dangerous as in the big cities.Murder and drug trafficking are rampant in big cities.

It's possible you're right, Mr. Brush, Mr. Jaeger agreed, but impressions don't work.Besides, in the present situation, my fears are not unfounded.Because we are now passing through a bandit-infested zone! Bandit rampant?Brush screamed and repeated, Where did you hear that, Mr. Jagger?Let me tell you, I live in this part of the country, but I've never heard of robbers in this part of the world! This time it was Mr. Jagger who was puzzled. Mr. Brush, are you telling the truth?He exclaimed that everyone from Bavaria to Romania knows about it, but you seem to be the only one who is ignorant.

What the hell is going on?asked Brush. oh!A band of thieves, elusive and elusive, looted houses along the banks of the Danube, running from Presberg to the mouth of the river. It's really the first time I've heard of it.Bush's tone was extremely sincere. impossible!Mr. Jaeger said with amazement that nowadays in the whole Danube basin, people only care about this matter. Something new happens every day, Brush calmly pointed out. Has it been a long time? For about a year and a half, Mr. Jagger replied, if they only stole a little stuff!The gang of robbers stole things, and sometimes killed people.In a year and a half, they committed at least ten murders, but the perpetrators are still at large.To be more precise, the last murder took place less than fifty kilometers from here.

I understand now why you are so frightened, said Brush, if I had known these things I might have been as frightened as you.From now on we shall try to spend the night near the town or the village, as we shall do from this day forward, and at night we shall anchor the boat at Grand. OK!Mr. Jager was happy, we were much safer there.Grand is a big city! If you feel safer there, Brush went on, then I'm relieved.For tonight I intend to leave you alone on board. Do you have something to leave? Yes, Mr. Jager.However, I was only away for a few hours, and I hoped to get to Gland early, and then, after Gland landed, to go to Sarka, which is not far from Gland.You know, I live there.In addition, I must come back before dawn, and I will definitely not delay the sailing early tomorrow morning. Do as you please, Mr. Brush, Mr. Jaeger simply agreed. You want to go home and see, which is completely understandable. As for me staying alone in Grand, there is nothing to be afraid of. For the next half hour, the conversation was temporarily interrupted.After this interval Dragos returned to the original subject and said to Brush: Have you never heard of those bandits that haunt the banks of the Danube?This is so weird.And not to mention, just a few days after the Zigmaringen fishing contest, everyone was talking about it. What's up?asked Brush. I heard that a special operations brigade was set up, led by Budapest policeman Karl.Dragosh led, everyone said that the man is very capable. His task is too difficult.Brush said his opinion.Apparently, the name Dragos didn't shock him.The Danube was too long, and he knew nothing about the criminals, so it was not easy to catch them. You'd be wrong to think so, retorted Mr. Jaeger, the police were not completely clueless.Summarizing the collected evidence, first of all, it is possible to almost accurately outline the appearance of the bandit leader. Oh what does that guy look like?asked Brush. There's nothing special about looks, it's your type Thank goodness!Brush interrupted him with a smile. No, Mr. Jagger went on, he was almost your size and fatness, but otherwise he had nothing in common. Thankfully so!Brush made a deliberate expression of relief. It is said that he has very bright blue eyes, but he does not have to wear dark glasses like you.Besides, you have dark brown hair and a clean shaven beard, while the man has a large beard and is said to be blond.Especially the last point, many people say so, the evidence seems to be very conclusive. Indeed, this is a clue, and Brush admits so, but this is not enough, there are plenty of blond-haired people, and we can't check them one by one They also learned something else.The bandit is said to be a Bulgarian, just like you, Mr. Brush! What do you mean by that?asked Brush, sounding a little alarmed. From your accent, Dragos explained without malice, I guess you might be Bulgarian, but maybe I'm wrong? You guessed right, Brush hesitated for a moment, then admitted. In this way, the bandit leader is still your compatriot.People even whispered his name. Oh yes!Do people still know his name? Of course, this is not official news. Be it official or gossip, what's the guy's name? I don't know if it's true, but the residents of the Danube valley all blame a certain Radko for their disasters. Radko!Brush suddenly stopped rowing, feeling very excited. It's Radko.Dragosh said with certainty, and at the same time looked at the other person's expression from the corner of his eyes. But Brush has calmed down. It's funny, he just said these few words, and the oars in his hands continued to work. What's so funny?Dragos clenched his teeth tightly.Could it be that you know this Radko? I know him?The fisherman argued that I didn't know the man at all.However, Radko is not a Bulgarian name, which is what I find funny. Dragos didn't press any further.If you ask too many questions, you may be in danger.What's more, the result of the interrogation is already satisfactory. The fisherman was so alarmed when he heard the description of the villain's appearance, and he was so embarrassed when he heard that the police knew that the villain was a Bulgarian. Radko was obviously emotional, and all this is an irrefutable fact.Although no conclusive evidence has been obtained, these signs make the original speculation one step further. As expected by Brush, the fishing boat arrived near Grand before two o'clock in the afternoon.About 500 meters away from the nearest house, the fisherman docked the boat on the left bank. He said that this would avoid the time wasted by onlookers. center mooring.Passengers readily agreed. Dragosh moored the ship according to the owner's instructions, and then turned into a detective again.He jumped onto the pier, looking for his men. He had not gone twenty paces before he met Frederick F.Ullmann.The two detectives had a brief conversation. Is everything going well? All went well. It's time to close the net, Ullman.From today onwards, the distance between the two sentry posts will be shortened to one kilometer. Has the situation progressed? Yes. Very good. Tomorrow, your task is to keep a close eye on my whereabouts.I think it's time for us to start. Understood. Don't doze off!Be alert and act fast! Just look at mine. If you get any news, send a signal ashore, got it? certainly. The two parted, and Dragos returned to the boat. Mr. Jaeger said that he usually does not rest well because of worries, but this night, although he will no longer be frightened, the violent wind and rain made it difficult for him to fall asleep.At midnight the storm came in from the east, increasing in intensity, and pouring downpours of rain. When Brush came back to the boat at five o'clock in the morning, the rain was still pouring and the wind was howling and blowing against the current.However, the fisherman set sail without hesitation.He untied the cable, immediately pushed the boat to the middle of the river, and then kept paddling again.After a busy night, it takes extraordinary courage to sail in such bad weather. In the first few hours of the morning, the storm showed no sign of abating, but intensified.Although the boat is sailing with the current, it is already very difficult to keep the boat from capsizing against this terrible headwind. After four hours of hard work, he was barely more than ten kilometers away from Grand.The fork of the Iberi River is not far from here, and the Sarka, which Bush claimed to have returned to the night before, is on the right bank of this tributary. By this time the storm had intensified, and their situation was at a critical juncture.Although the Danube cannot be compared with the sea, its surface is quite wide.When there is a strong wind, it will also roll up layers of huge waves.It happened to be such bad weather that day.Although Brush was agile and skilled, he had to sail to the left bank to escape for a while. He shouldn't be leaning over there. When there were still more than fifty meters away from the river bank, a terrifying scene appeared.Not far upriver, a row of trees on the embankment fell violently into the river.The tree was all broken at the root, as if it had been cut by a huge sickle.At the same time, the river was lifted up by an overwhelming force; it slapped the river bank fiercely, and then rolled back to form a huge wave, approaching the boat. Apparently, a tornado formed in the atmosphere just now, and the eye of the tornado happened to pass over the river, and its power was irresistible. Knowing that the situation was dangerous, Brush swung the oar with all his strength to make the boat turn around and approach the right bank.His efforts didn't quite have the desired effect, but thanks to his timely control, the fisherman and passengers were spared. Although the whirlwind was still raging fiercely, chasing the small fishing boat, at least the fishing boat avoided the overwhelming waves rolled up by the eye of the wind.In this way, the boat was not engulfed by the crest of the waves, and the danger just now would have been fatal had it not been for the superb skill of Brush.Now, the boat was only hit by the outermost airflow of the tornado, and was thrown out along a large arc. The tentacles of the aerial octopus missed the target, and the boat was released immediately after being sucked in, so the hull only suffered some slight damage.In just a few seconds, the tornado has passed.The waves roared and fled downstream.At this time, under the resistance of the river water, the high speed of the boat after being hit by the violent waves gradually calmed down. Unfortunately, the speed of the boat has not been completely controlled, and a new danger suddenly appeared.The boat was chopping the waves at the speed of the train, and the fisherman suddenly found a big tree uprooted by the wind directly in front of the boat.Once the boat hits the tangled tree roots, it is difficult to guarantee that it will not be capsized, or at least severely damaged.Brush uttered a cry of horror at the unexpected obstacle. However, Dragosh has also discovered this danger and knows the seriousness of the matter.He rushed to the bow of the boat without hesitation, grasped the tree roots twisting on the water surface with both hands, bowed his body to support it, resisted the momentum of the boat with his body strength, and tried to make the boat deviate from the dangerous direction. He did it.The boat deviated from its original course and rushed straight down like an arrow off the string. The hull scraped the roots of the trees, and then the tops of the trees with surviving branches and leaves.In an instant, the boat left behind the green wreck that was being pushed feebly by the current. At this moment, Dragosh, who was standing in the bow, was hit in the chest by the last branch in the air.He tried in vain to stabilize his body against the violent shock, but he lost his balance and plunged into the water without a trace. Immediately after Dragos fell into the water, another person jumped into the water on his own initiative.When Brush saw the passengers falling into the water, he did not hesitate to save them. However, the river has been turned into orange mud by the violent wind and heavy rain, and nothing can be seen clearly.Brush searched in the water for more than a minute, exhausted, and began to despair that Mr. Jaeger could not be found, but at last he caught the poor man.It turned out that the passenger was unconscious and suspended in the water. In contrast, it would be better for him to be unconscious.Drowning people usually have to struggle desperately, but they don't know that this will increase the difficulty of rescue.On the contrary, after a person faints, it is no different from a pile of inanimate objects. As long as the rescuer is highly skilled, he will not worry about being unable to rescue him. Brush immediately lifted Jaeger's head out of the water, stroked his arms vigorously, and swam to the boat.At this time, the boat was already thirty meters away from them. For this strong swimmer, this distance is like playing.Seeing him slapping twice, he approached the fishing boat.Brush grabbed the side of the boat with one hand and supported the still unconscious passenger with the other. Now it was just a matter of hoisting Mr. Jaeger onto the deck of the boat.But this is not an easy task.It took a lot of effort for Brush to get the passengers aboard. Brush put the drowning man flat on the bunk in the cabin, immediately undressed him, took out a few dry towels from the box, and rubbed his body vigorously. Mr. Jagger soon opened his eyes and woke up.Generally speaking, the drowning time is not long, and it is estimated that there will be no trouble. Hello!Hello!Mr. Jaeger, when Brush saw the drowned man regain consciousness, he called out, You are very good at diving! Mr. Jagger smiled weakly and made no reply. It'll be all right, Brush went on, continuing to rub hard.Taking a bath in this hot August day is nothing good for the body! Thank you, Mr. Brush, Dragosh mumbled. It's nothing, the fisherman replied happily, I should thank you, Mr. Jager, you just let me take a good bath. In a blink of an eye, Dragos' physical strength began to recover.It would be nice to have a sip of soju, but there seems to be no soju.Brush rummaged through boxes and chests for a long time but couldn't find a drop, and seemed very anxious.The baijiu that had been stored was all gone, and there was not a drop of liquor left on board. How infuriating!cried Brush, we're out of any brandy in our trunks. It's all right, Mr. Brush, Dragosh said feebly, I'll be fine without the schnapps, I assure you. But Dragosh said so, but his body was trembling.Apparently, some alcohol and blood circulation are indispensable for him. You're not right, replied Brush, who had no illusions about the passenger's physical condition.Mr. Jaeger, you must have a drink, let me do it, and I will be fine in a while. The fisherman quickly took off his wet clothes and put on a dry one. After rowing the oar a few times, he pulled the boat to the left bank.He fastened the boat tightly with cables. I'll be there in a minute, Mr. Jagger.Brush said as he jumped ashore.I am very familiar with this place, look, isn't this the fork of the Iberi River?There is a small village less than 500 meters away from here, where I can buy everything I need, and I will be back in half an hour. After finishing speaking, Brush turned and left without waiting for the other party's answer. Only Dragos himself was left in the cabin.He fell headlong on the bunk.In fact, he was exhausted, he just didn't want to say it.After a while, he tiredly closed his eyes. However, the vitality of life quickly recovered, and the blood pulsated in the vessels of the whole body with the ups and downs of the heart.Soon, he opened his eyes again, looking around, his eyes became firmer every minute. The first thing his still blurred vision caught sight of was an open box which, in his haste to land, forgot to close the lid.The box was rummaged through by the fisherman when he was looking for shochu just now. When he glanced at it, he only saw a pile of messy clothes.Rough underwear, poor coats, and sturdy leather boots are all piled up in one place. Why did Dragosh's eyes suddenly shine?To be honest, there was nothing exciting about this scene, but what was he so interested in?Even after contemplating it for a moment, propped himself up on his elbows, so that he could more easily observe the wide open wooden box? Indeed, neither the coat nor the underclothes aroused the curiosity of the imprudent passenger, but the detective's searching eye spotted something more deserving of his attention amidst these disarray. It was a wallet half-opened, and many of the papers contained in it were exposed.A wallet!Some paper heads!That is to say, Dragos may be able to find an answer to the questions that have been accumulated in his mind for the past few days. The detective couldn't hold back any longer, he hesitated for a moment at the thought of ungrateful repayment, but he soon gave up on it.He reached into the case, pulled out the alluring wallet, and immediately began to read the information inside. First came a few letters, which Dragosh glanced at quickly, but the addresses on the envelopes were all Sarka; addressed to Ilya.From Mr. Brush; and several receipts, among them rent receipts, also paid by Elijah.brush.None of these things are of much value. Just as Dragos was about to give up, something suddenly caught his eye and made him shudder.In fact, this thing couldn't be simpler.Faced with such a piece of so-called information, a detective will not remain indifferent. It was a portrait, a portrait of a young woman whose beauty would have excited even an artist when he painted it.But the sheriff was no artist, and Dragos' heart was not pounding because he was fascinated by this intoxicating face.To tell the truth, all he noticed in the whole portrait was a single line of Bulgarian writing at the bottom of the portrait: To my dear husband, Nadya.Radko.Dragos could read the fine print, and he was so excited that he couldn't help it. In this way, his suspicions were all confirmed, and his reasoning based on the oddities he observed were logical.It was with Radko that he had flown down the river for so many days.This sinister villain has been able to remain unnoticed until today, it turned out that he was hiding under the good guy's face of the Danube Association Fishing Championship! What action will Dragosh take after discovering this?Before he could make up his mind, he suddenly heard footsteps on the shore.He quickly threw the wallet back to the bottom of the box and closed the lid smoothly.It will not be Elijah.Brush, because he's only been gone for about ten minutes. Mr. Dragos!A voice called from outside. Frederick.Ullmann!Dragos stood up with difficulty and staggered out of the cabin. Excuse me for calling you, said Ullmann apologetically after seeing his superior, just now I saw your traveling companion disembark and knew you were here alone. What's the matter?Dragos asked. Something new, sir.There was a robbery last night. last night!Dragosh exclaimed, immediately remembering that Brush hadn't been on board the night before. A villa not far from here was robbed and the guard was beaten. do you died? No, but the injury was serious. All right, said Dragos, gesturing for his men to be quiet for a moment. He was lost in thought.How should we do it?Of course something had to be done, and, if he did, he would still have strength.The news he heard just now is the best medicine, and there is no trace left by the drowning accident on his body.Now, he didn't have to hold on to the cabin's wall, and when his nerves were tense, his blood rushed straight up. Yes, action must be taken.But how do you do it?Do you want to wait for Elijah?Brush back?Or rather, until Radko returned, for that was the real name of his traveling companion.As soon as he was back on board, unexpectedly twisted his hands behind his back and arrested him in the name of the law?It seems most sensible to do so.For henceforth the man who calls himself a fisherman is undoubtedly guilty.The criminal took great care to conceal his real identity, the mystery that surrounded him; he happened to have the same name and surname as the rumored robber leader; he happened not to be on board when the crime happened last night.All of this points out to Dragos: Ilya.Brush is the robber to hunt down. However, it was this robber who saved his life!This makes the situation delicate! A bandit, not only that, but also a murderer without blinking an eye, how could he jump into the water and save him on the boat?Even if Brush was a murderer, and this unbelievable fact is true, then, should a person he has just saved from death take such a way to repay his savior?On the other hand, what if Brush was not arrested immediately?Now, the mask of the fake Bush has been removed, and his true identity has been exposed. It is more difficult for him to escape the pursuit of the police deployed heavily on both sides of the river.If a further investigation proves that the so-called fisherman is indeed a criminal, at that time, more troops will be deployed to arrest him. In this way, the arrest will be a bit late, but nothing will go wrong. For five full minutes, Dragos thought about it, hesitating.with Elijah.Brush leaving without saying goodbye?Or wait here, tell Ullmann to lie in ambush in the cabin, and when the fisherman emerges, pounce on him quietly, and then explain?No, absolutely not.How could he bear to repay such kindness with hatred!It would be better to risk giving criminals a chance to escape, temporarily put aside their own prejudices, and start investigating until the truth comes to light.If the spearhead of the future investigation is still directed at Ilya.Brush, if his duty compelled him to treat his benefactor as an enemy, was at least a face-to-face confrontation after giving the opponent ample time to defend himself. Dragos waved his hand, as if to express the courage to bear all the consequences of the decision he just made.After making up his mind, he went into the cabin and wrote a note and put it in a conspicuous place, telling Bush that he had to leave for something, and asked the owner to wait for him for at least twenty-four hours.Then he stepped out of the cabin and asked Ullman: How many hands do we have? There were only two, but they were calling others.By evening, there will be about ten of us. Okay, Dragos nodded, didn't you just say that the scene is not far from here? It's about two kilometers.Ullman replied. Take me to see.Dragos jumped ashore as he spoke.