Grey Diamond

By Timo Kulkki

The leader of a chart-topping band is killed in front of his old friend, Elias Harmaa. Elias - or "Herr Grau" as he is also known in Germany - leads the team responsible for the security of the band on their world tour. Now he needs to find the killer. The task is puzzled with a bunch of diamonds found in his friend's possession, but as Elias proceeds with his investigations, he soon realizes that appearances may indeed be deceptive.

After some breath-taking events in Munich and Bonn, Elias finds himself and his team life-saving the family of his killed friend at Finnish lake district, dodging bullets and trying to survive.

Rapidly changing actions do not slow Elias down in investigating why his friend had to be killed. And who are the people behind the murder?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Books on Demand
• Release date: Nov 27, 2014
• ISBN: 9789523180741

Timo Kulkki

Kokenut keski-ikäinen kulkija, Timo Kulkki, kyydittää mielellään lukijaa nauttimaan täydestä toiminnasta. Konseptiin kuuluu vaarallisia tilanteita, vaihtuvia matkakohteita ja ripaus kovempaa vauhtia aina loppua kohti. Kansainväliset kokemukset ovat tarttuneet kirjan sivuille ja tapahtumien taustatietoja tutkittaessa totuus on aina välillä tarua ihmeellisempää.

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To my parents and my wife Soili

Table of Contents

Munich, Germany

Bonn, Germany

Somewhere in Finland

Munich, Germany

Steady flow of people approached the Munich Olympic Hall like small rivers from different directions. The light was fading in the warm autumn evening. As heavy street lights of the Olympic Park were lit, the good spirits of the huge crowd of young people reached also the casual passers-by. The youngsters close to the hall with their skateboards and mountain bikes were all desperately waiting to see even a short glimpse of the vocalist of the number-one-billboard band. Perhaps even the guitarist, not to mention the extraordinary drummer.

Last days had been filled with preparations for the concert tonight. It was going to be one of their biggest on the European tour. After this concert the band would be heading to east, Asia and Australia; finally having time to recover from the not-so-successful tour in the United States. The melancholic rock, which the band was playing, was not exactly heavy metal neither traditional rock’n roll. It was something the people in the US were not accustomed to listen. But luckily the blond and pale band members from the north in the dark clothes were exotic for the Asian culture. Especially in Japan the fans welcomed the guys very warmly in each of their concert.

The previous weeks’ gigs in the big show arenas of Warsaw, Copenhagen, Stockholm, London, Amsterdam, Paris and Berlin were taking their toll. A short break after tonight was more than welcome before continuing the trip to east. Maybe the guys would even have some time to drop by at their homes in Stockholm and in Tampere. Visiting sauna and having a kind of mental reset before the next heavy sessions on the tour.

Roadies and other helping hands had built a round stage in the arena of the Olympic Hall. The stage consisted of different bridges and overhangs built in the middle of the audience. It was high enough for the fans not to be able to climb, but low enough for the good visibility and to get close to one’s own idol. The center of the stage was built around the drum set, where all the stage bridges were connected. The guys from the band were free to move among their fans and would not feel restricted in their show movements because of the open structure of the stage. The light show was directed from the control center in the ceiling of the Hall and the pyrotechnics around the stage were promised to look spectacular.

The Munich Olympic Park had enough room for big crowds of people. That is why the concerts in the Olympic Hall between the Olympic Stadium, SeaLife, the Olympic Tower and the Swimming Center were very popular. A small lake in the middle of the Olympic Park attracted people especially in the summer. The area was easy to reach by public transportation; by bus or using U-Bahn. Another alternative would be to use the car, since the parking area was very close to the event places.

The leader of the band, the founder and the vocalist Thomas Järnefelt was watching the area over the lake at the nearby sightseeing platform of the Olympic Hill. One cigarette after another was first consumed and then ended up under his black snake boots. Thomas was using privately a hoodie under his long leather jacket to cover his strong voluminous hair, which he was proud of and which was part of the bands brand, even in the visualization of the record’s cover. On the other hand, it was not easy to enjoy private moments since he was often recognized by other people.

You should colour it Screaming Red, so that my job would be much harder. Thomas suddenly heard a whisper behind his back and nearly dropped his cigarette.

Cheers, Elias. I was already thinking where the hell is he sleeping? Somewhere cozy? Well, your job is to remain invisible, isn’t it?

The statue of the man closing in Thomas could have reminded of any middle-aged working guy. Somebody would describe him more sturdy than heavy and his movements were best described as slick than stiff.

Elias Grey, as his surname indicated, was automatically adapting to his environment due to the nature of his profession. In Germany he was called Herr Grau, whereas in his home country Finland he was known as Mr. Harmaa. Elias was running a personal safety company called Body Guard, which offered its services to anybody in public or private, who was willing to pay for close-to-perfect body guard service tailored for their needs. This was how Elias provided work for his whole team of 40 bodyguards.

It is time to return to the back stage. It’s more secure environment. Somebody in that crowd recognizes your hair and we will have fun time running down the hill. No chance to get the car to cover us.

Elias, I need air. I need heaven and the whole universe. You get it? You ain’t got colour, no vibe. For you all is grey, the whole life. Perhaps it comes in many shades, but not in colour. You’ve never had it.

It is my own choice. Not complaining.

You remember the small bond at home on Road to America? We used to go fishing there, even though it was a long way to ride with our bikes.

You’re getting out of juice in your batteries, if you start remembering the old times now.

Elias and Thomas had known each other their whole life. Elias as the older of the two had been looking after Thomas, always. Good for Thomas, since he had been taking all the chances to try out what life had to offer. You could not expect less from the artistic personality. Thomas and his sisters were from a wealthy Finnish family with lots of traditions. The family business had been covering all kind of trades between Sweden and Finland. The corporation had been expanding to other Nordic countries and lately also to other parts of Europe, especially to the growing markets in the eastern European countries.

The two friends had chosen different paths on their way to adulthood and just before the European tour Thomas had contacted Elias to offer a job and to have a chance to catch up and spend some time together after all those years. Thomas had already for some time felt that he had lost some of his creativity. This tour would have to be the last, if the next album didn’t continue the success of the band. According to all the measures there should have been no doubt about it, but the sole hunch of it was enough to wake up the fear for a possible disaster.

Tonight we’re gonna rock the fans. When we start with Heaven can still wait for a long time, they’ll all get crazy. They are miraculous little human beings. Wish I could still feel the same, the same ecstasy, the pure energy….

Thomas stopped and took a look at the stars, breathing deeply and his eyes were bright as he smiled.

Tomppa, everything’s all right? Sure?

Do not worry, my friend. We should go before you get a heart attack from this waiting! Thomas started to walk down the hill with his snake boots making a distinctive noise on the way.

Elias and Thomas entered the lake side asphalt road without any incidents. There was an electric golf cart already waiting for them. The driver had difficulties in fitting between the seat and the steering wheel. The smiling carrot head with distinctive orange-coloured hair, Shane O’Brien, was the most trusted of Elias’ Body Guards, especially with difficult customers. Nobody could resist the happy laughter of Shane, melting down even the most difficult personalities. With Shane’s abilities they had been successful in solving many dangerous situations for the benefit of all parties.

Hey Sunshine, get the gear in and move on. We need to get this star from the bright sky back to the stage to spread the rock’n roll evangelism.

Elias grabbed the back rails of the cart and jumped on the reverse back seat keeping his eye on the back sectors. Thomas had a hard time trying to fit in the front seat next to Shane.

Cheers, mate. Welcome to the flight to the back stage of the famous Olympic Hall of Munich. Sorry to say, we are not serving any refreshments during the flight. The seat is also not quite First Class, but the ladies at the sofa of the back stage room waiting for you will exceed the quality of any stewardesses at any airline you can imagine!

Shane, any chance you could have your boss to change his attitude to be more positive, too? Thomas was blinking his eye.

Sorry mate, that is mission impossible. Shane smiled and rolled his eyes.

While the Irishman was driving the golf cart along the narrow asphalt roads towards the Olympic Hall, part of the youngsters along the route recognized Thomas and tried to grab the cart in order to get it stopped. Shane’s driving skills together with the excessive speed of the golf cart were needed to make room among the people and in the end they were able to reach the secure VIP area guarded by Elias’ Body Guards. Luckily without casualties.

It was like driving through the minefield in Paris. I remember when....

Shane stopped the sentence short after noticing Elias making the distinctive sign to stop by virtually cutting his throat with his hand. But Thomas was already alerted.

In Paris? Minefields? There cannot be any minefields in Paris? Some old ones from the World War II?

Well, in Paris you can find some suburban areas, which are not really Paris as such anymore. But on this topic of driving: I could earn millions of euros in Formula One, but they are not building big enough cars. Adonis like me cannot fit behind the steering wheel! Shane was changing the topic.

Shane and Elias had both been serving in the special security unit on the United Nations payroll. The main task of the unit was to ensure that the security of the personnel responsible for different kind of negotiations was guaranteed under all circumstances. The negotiations in the media between the head of states, the prime ministers and other important officials are just a small part of the missions. The important work is done when different kinds of interest groups, even terrorists, are on the other side of the table. The public part of the incidents can be seen in the television, for example when the released hostages arrive at the airport, shake hands with officials and meet at last with their families. But how the situation has been solved in order to reach the happy end remain very often behind the curtains. Somebody has been needed to negotiate somewhere with someone on the other side about the freedom of the hostages in an environment in which both parties should be safe. This special UN unit is responsible for the security of the negotiator – it is said that they work even more effectively than the Secret Service is securing the President of the United States.

Couple of years ago Shane was acting as a driver on the mission in Paris where Elias was the personal guard of the negotiator. In the suburban area, outside the law and order, the local idealistic leader of a small group had threatened to expand his activities in the area which included the Eiffel tower without giving out any further information. The task for the negotiator was to find out a solution and prevent any panic, which would have been imminent if the target of the group was to be made public.

At some point during the negotiations, in the basement of a big suburban apartment block, the group was starting to argue internally about their preferred way forward. The number-two leader of the group drew his gun and emptied the whole magazine in the chest of the soon-to-be-former leader. The new leader of the group would have next targeted the negotiator and Elias, but they were already half-way out of the door and on their way to Shane and the car. Thanks to the fast reaction of Elias.

This kind of fast reaction to any kind of threat without using violence is the number one priority and the fire arms are used only in the uttermost emergency. The main purpose is to avoid any kind of retaliation. The only negative outcome would be interrupted negotiations. In this case the main problem for the getaway was to drive safely through the surrounding minefield. At the arrival the group members had been leading the way in for the negotiator team. Shane needed to remember the way back in the reverse order at the same time when the group members tried to catch them with their French vehicles. Finally the negotiator team were all happily through the ordeal, thanks to Shane’s driving, whereas the pursuers did miss the safe route through the minefield one by one.

After their UN contracts were due, Elias offered his qualified colleagues the opportunity to start working in his company as associates. Body Guard, Elias’ company, offered similar service as the UN unit in the private sector for the people in need. At the moment Thomas and his band were paying for the full cover.

Okay, make way to Tomppa. We are already late getting the boys for the next interview.

Anders Jonsson, the manager of the band, came out of the door and grabbed hold of Thomas immediately pushing him indoors. Shane and Elias checked that no other thrilled fans were around, but the guards were convinced that the line would hold all out who were not allowed to enter the premises.

Manager Jonsson had been behind many successful Swedish bands. He was the one listening to Thomas, Hanski in guitar, Henkka in bass and Reiska in drums, when they were for the first time playing in the studio in Stockholm. This opportunity for a studio recording was a present from Henkka’s father who ran a recording studio business for new bands. Anders Jonsson had noticed the market value of Thomas as a prominent singer and music maker and the boys had been playing very well together already at the first time in the studio. Now, after several years and 12 records, the business was going better than expected in the beginning. In the meantime the short and slim Anders Jonsson had changed to short and fat Anders Jonsson, the stereotype for any successful band manager.

At the same time as Jonsson and Thomas hurried indoors for the interviews, the door opened again revealing this time a gorgeous blond beauty with blue eyes. She was wearing a similar jump suit as the other guards in Elias’ company. Eleanor Bernstein, between friends just Elly, was a former officer in Israel Army. Her route to work for Elias had been a bit different than the one of any other associates. Anyone would guess from her looks that Elly had a Nordic background like Elias, but she was really originally from Tel Aviv and the proud of her Jewish parents.

All entries and exits have been checked. The possible risks in the structures have been minimized and the necessary resources are at hand in case of too excited fans close to the stage. Elly reported her responsibility areas to Elias.

How about the results of the background check of the personnel? Anything outstanding?

No more than some drunk arrests, but you cannot expect any high moral standards from this group. The job is hard and the leisure is according to that...

Look,..Elly the Empathic. I have been dreaming to see this day… Shane was picking on.

Well, I should be having second thoughts here with anybody having a clean record. Elly was blinking her eye.

The people outside were waiting in the queue patiently. Due to the security checks they were able to enter the Olympic Hall only at the eastern and southern double doors. Despite the bottle neck phenomenon the security check was run swiftly by the guards.

Having been permitted to enter the Hall the fans had the possibility to walk around the outside rim of the arena visiting bars for the beer and perhaps buy some Wurst or other fast food to fill in additional energy before the concert. There was another long queue for the shirt and CD –sales points, since this tour had a special t-shirt, which was only sold in the shops at the concert halls.

At the backstage the atmosphere was getting excited. Reiska the drummer was getting impatient. He walked around the room wearing only the Persian Prince –type of trousers and throwing his arms around in the way that the tattoos in his back and arms were awaken to life. Hanski played his Fender Stratocaster -guitar while sitting on the sofa in the corner. He was going through new ideas for his guitar solos, which were added especially for this tour. Henkka and Thomas were having good time with the couple of fans who had won a backstage meeting in the lottery of the local newspaper, Abendzeitung. The fans enjoyed every moment with their idols in the backstage.

The band did not have any other band to warm up the audience. They did not need one. There was enough heat and energy radiating from the fans as they were all waiting for the boys to enter the stage exactly at 20:00 as previously announced. The guys were not acting as divas; they did not need any special treatment. At least they did not need any other show which would take the attention away from the main thing: The Gig in Munich. There would not be two similar gigs on the tour. Every evening had its specialty and tonight Reiska had prepared an extra-long drum solo at the end of Night Train. Five minutes of hard rock’n roll would extend to nearly double as long. No wonder he had difficulties to stay calm.

Well, well, let’s start moving to the stage. We need to start on time. Thank you fans, you have been reserved nice places in front of the left side. It was really nice meeting you and please tell everybody, how great your evening with the band was.

Jonsson’s nervousness was known to everybody, it was the same procedure before every concert. One could not take it personally. Everybody had their own means to deal with the tension.

"Okay, team one, check, the entries,