I Can See in the Dark (12 page)

She picked at one of her nails. Glanced up at me, deadly earnest.

‘And what about you?’ I asked. ‘What’s preoccupying you?’

‘Is it that obvious?’

‘You’re not your usual sparkling self,’ I said.

‘Well then, I must have lost some of my sparkle,’ she said with a mournful smile. ‘I think about my brother all the time. About Oscar. That he’s lying at the bottom of the lake. I know it’s difficult to find him, that it’s dark and muddy down there. Rubbish and old tree trunks and whatnot. But I thought they gave up so quickly. And then he must have shouted,’ she said, ‘as loudly as he could. But nobody heard him. Think of it, Riktor. To be floundering in a hole in the ice and screaming at the top of your voice. And no one hears you.’

In my mind’s eye I saw the red ski-suit slipping under the water.

‘We don’t know for certain if anyone heard him or not,’ I said. ‘Perhaps someone did hear him but couldn’t do anything about it. I mean, there are people living in the area after all. There are several houses on the shores of Lake Mester, and others on the slopes above. Maybe most of us simply shrug our shoulders if we hear someone screaming and bellowing in the distance. And just get on with what we’re doing.’

‘What do you think went through his mind?’ she asked.

I smiled gently at her.

‘I imagine he thought of you. And he probably struggled as hard as he could. Don’t you think he did?’

She bit her lip.

‘I can’t bear to think about it.’ She began to walk away. Then she turned suddenly, and there was anger in the low voice. ‘I think death is completely intolerable!’

I nodded. Certainly death was intolerable, we were in total agreement about that. I was still leaning against the wall. Anna walked away. The hem of her coat flaring like a white sail in the grey corridor.

RANDERS’ GREEN VOLVO
came up the drive. I could see him from the window. I heard the engine stop and a door being slammed. But no doorbell chimed to break the silence, so I waited. And while I waited my mind worked feverishly. I didn’t feel guilty, I felt betrayed. I had practically acted in self-defence. Arnfinn had dealt me a cruel blow, and my reflexes had taken over, I could explain everything, if only someone would listen. Now he’ll go round to the back of the house, I thought suddenly, he’ll catch sight of the grave, the small mound of earth. There followed several spine-chilling seconds while I couldn’t make up my mind what to do, although I’d been expecting him. I’d known he would return, and I was prepared. But there was no sound of a doorbell. Finally, I went to the front door and yanked it open so abruptly that it made him jump. He was standing on the steps with one hand on the handrail. A broad wedding ring glinted.

‘You could ring the bell,’ I said irately.

He gave his fleeting smile.

‘You were standing at the window,’ he said, ‘you saw me coming. I didn’t think it was necessary. Thanks for your assistance last time.’

He looked around the driveway.

‘We need to talk. It’ll take about ten minutes.’

I pushed my chin forward as I do when I’ve been mistreated.

‘You haven’t asked me if it’s convenient,’ I said sullenly.

‘Is it convenient?’

‘Perfectly,’ I said. ‘It’s just that there are certain norms of politeness. I thought the police understood them.’

He let go of the handrail and took a step nearer, leaning on the wall by the door. I felt his hot breath, it was odourless.

‘Sometimes I forget about the rules,’ he said. ‘They’re so time-consuming.’

I led him into the hallway. Then into the living room and pointed at the corner of the sofa where he’d sat before.

‘You’d better sit down.’

He sat down. I took the initiative.

‘Is this still about a possible murder?’ I asked. ‘Or are you certain now?’

‘I’m certain,’ Randers said, nodding. ‘And we know where to look. What to look for, who to talk to. I enjoy this phase,’ he said, leaning forward slightly, as was his habit. ‘This information-gathering phase. Finding unexpected things. Having suspicions confirmed, forming a picture of what actually happened. And last but not least, why it happened. Because there’s an underlying reason for everything.’

‘Yes, I suppose people who kill do have something in common,’ I said. ‘Isn’t that right?’

Randers considered the question. When he smiled, his eyes narrowed, and his craggy face immediately took on a milder aspect.

‘Occasionally we come across unusual murderers,’ he declared. ‘Criminals who aren’t like the others. With quite special motives. They never cease to astonish us.’

‘In what way are they unusual?’ I wanted to know. ‘You’re a detective. Give me an example, I find this very interesting. How many pips have you got on your shoulder, by the way, when you’re in uniform? I mean, are you senior to the others? You must be senior. I can see things like that right away.’

Randers cocked his head.

‘Three pips,’ he said. ‘But we don’t bother about them much.’

‘Don’t make me laugh.’

‘We’re a team,’ Randers explained. ‘In which everyone has a special task. Young officers are important to us, because they’re receptive to everything. People who haven’t got much experience can often see things that others overlook. They aren’t blinkered, they see possibilities and unconventional solutions. Even if they do only have one pip.’

‘And you must be a very popular chief, Randers,’ I said. ‘A man the others look up to.’

‘Yes I am,’ Randers asserted with self-confidence. ‘A very good leader, even if I say so myself. I’ve never been modest. Modesty isn’t a virtue, it’s a disability in my opinion.’

I kept silent for a moment while I planned my next move.

‘Where did you find the deceased?’ I asked, fixing him with an unwavering expression. My heart was almost palpitating, my cheeks were getting hot again. It was like walking on a knife-edge.

Randers paused before replying. I couldn’t understand what sort of clues he’d unearthed, what stage he’d arrived at, I couldn’t believe that he was sitting in my living room, nor could I comprehend what facts had brought him to my humble red house.

‘We don’t need to concentrate on that,’ he said, ‘we’ll deal with that later. Today I’m more interested in the incentive for taking a life.’

‘Motive, d’you mean?’

‘Yes, certainly. Motive. Why would anyone wish to kill Nelly Friis?’

You could have heard a pin drop in my small living room. What had he just said?

Why would anyone wish to kill Nelly Friis.

I thought I’d misheard, but he really had said Nelly Friis. Nelly had been dead for a week and was shortly to be buried. And I had selected a new victim, Betzy Haugen. She was now receiving the same treatment. The thin skin behind the ear, the hair at the temple. I managed to keep my composure, but it took all the self-control I possessed. My hands lay motionless in my lap. I was dumbstruck, and it took a little while before I found my voice again.

‘She’s going to be buried on Friday,’ I managed to blurt out at last.

‘She’s not going anywhere until we’ve finished,’ Randers stated emphatically. ‘Her body has been taken to the Forensics Lab. She’ll be given a post-mortem.’

Nelly Friis. It couldn’t be true. It had to be a cruel joke, someone was poking fun at me. Randers was having a laugh at my expense, or was it merely a twist of fate? I hadn’t killed Nelly. I didn’t know what he was talking about. Reality seemed to be loosening its grip, everything was topsy-turvy in my addled brain. My thoughts ran on while I searched desperately for words. For some reason I sat staring up at an old ceiling rose, as if the answer to these extraordinary events might be found there.

‘There’s a lot you don’t understand,’ I stammered in awkward incredulity.

‘Of course,’ Randers replied. ‘And bringing the guilty party to book isn’t enough for me. I need to understand.’

‘Some people deserve to die,’ I said, quickly thinking of Arnfinn. ‘There are people like that, I’m sure you’ll agree.’

He shook his head.

‘I’m not getting into that. Right now we’re investigating the death of Nelly Friis. Aged eighty-seven, and totally dependent. Weighed about forty kilos. A thin wisp of a woman in other words. On your ward.’

‘But, she died a natural death,’ I countered. ‘Dr Fischer found her. She was very old and very frail, and only just clinging to life. And she was blind into the bargain.’

‘She didn’t die naturally,’ said Randers. ‘The undertakers raised the alarm, on medical advice.’

I tried to gather my wits. I thought of the game of cat and mouse, it was as if fate was playing a kind of game with me, an absurd game of life and death.

‘What on earth’s given you the idea that it was me?’ I asked. ‘There’s a big staff there. People come visiting. Relations and friends, former neighbours and people expecting to be left something. Lots of people were in and out of that room. Didn’t die naturally? People die in our care the whole time, they drop like flies. They’re all on the verge of death, don’t you realise that?’

I worked myself up a bit. Quite justifiably. I hadn’t killed Nelly Friis, what a ludicrous idea.

‘We’ve found some important clues,’ Randers said, ‘and they point in a definite direction.’ Once again, he bent forward to emphasise his own words. ‘And these clues indicate that we’re dealing with an unusual killer. The sort we spoke of just now. The sort we never forget.’

‘How did she die?’ I asked, struggling to stay calm.

Randers eyes narrowed.

‘I think you know the answer to that. I’m not here to supply you with details, that will come soon enough anyway. How are you feeling, Riktor?’ he concluded. ‘Don’t you feel the need to ease your conscience?’

Now it was my turn to screw up my eyes. There he was, playing his little game, well, I could play it, too.

‘I haven’t got a conscience,’ I said. ‘So there’s nothing to ease. I do my job and I know the routines, and that’s all there is to it. I don’t have to feel something for every single patient. I’m not like that. But you’re levelling serious accusations, I hardly know how to treat them. To tell you the truth I don’t know what’s brought you here, you’re on the wrong track completely.’

I gesticulated freely, my hands stressing each word.

‘You’ll be struggling with this case, Randers, I promise you. You’ll be struggling.’

‘We’ll see. I’ve got plenty of good helpers and I’m upholding the law. I have justice on my side.’

‘Your allegations have to be proved,’ I asserted. ‘Beyond reasonable doubt.’

‘In this instance I believe we can convict you on circumstantial evidence alone,’ Randers said confidently. ‘You don’t know how tenacious I am once I’ve made up my mind. I’m strong-willed and I like being right.’

He rose and walked to the door. He turned one last time.

‘Don’t go anywhere. You’re going to be charged. We’ll be coming for you.’

I stood at the window for a long while watching his green Volvo as it drove away. And I was thoroughly dazed. No sooner had the car disappeared, than I nipped out of the door and ran to the back of the house. I had to check Arnfinn’s grave. It still resembled a grave, but fortunately the earth had settled considerably. I decided to buy a rhododendron bush and plant it on the heap of earth, in fact, I decided to leave for the garden centre right away. I went round to the drive again, and stood there staring down the road. I stared until my eyes hurt, but couldn’t comprehend that all this had happened. One thing was very obvious. Someone was playing a game, and I’d been caught out.

I bought a fine, sturdy plant.

With a well-developed root system, strong leaves and stems. I paid through the nose for it, carted it home on the bus, which was straightforward enough; it was wrapped in netting and rested against my legs as I sat rocking to the hum of the warm and welcoming engine. Then I got out the spade and began digging. This time it was easy, the earth had been loosened already, and the rhododendron looked really nice once it was in place. Straight away the small hummock appeared less noticeable, even if it did seem a bit of an odd place to plant an ornamental shrub, but I’d made up my mind. Although there weren’t many callers at the house, I knew that Randers would be back. I finished off by watering the plant with the garden hose, I watered it thoroughly. If only Arnfinn had known that this was all for his benefit. That even a common thief could have a beautiful bush over his final resting place. It felt good. There was a sense of finality about it. I phoned the ward and said I was ill. I couldn’t face looking them in the eyes. If this were a plot, I needed time to work out a strategy. Dr Fischer took the call. He didn’t say much, and he certainly wasn’t sympathetic. I’ll soon be at work again, I declared, because I was quite certain of it, the things that were happening were totally absurd. I asked him to pass on my respects to Sister Anna. Remember, she’s lost her brother, I exhorted, she needs support.

Dr Fischer was abnormally reticent. Not that he’d ever been particularly forthcoming, but I noticed that he’d been affected by what had occurred. I chose to feign ignorance, but I was still feeling giddy from the strange turn my life had taken.

Then I sat down and brooded. I tried to marshal my thoughts, to form a strategy, but I was confused. That night the lorry made a tremendous racket, and simultaneously I developed an almost migraine-like headache. All next day I wandered about ruminating. I stood at the window for long periods and stared out at the road, the road I knew would bring them. I attempted to get some rest, ate some plain food, trudged about the garden, gazed at the lovely plant on the edge of the forest and tried to work out what was actually happening. But no matter how much I pondered, I couldn’t fathom this new chain of events. Someone was making a fool of me. And from deep within I felt a great resentment growing, against the person or persons who’d caught me in a trap.

A TRAP.

A rotten pit into which I’d fallen headlong. The green Volvo arrived a couple of days later.

Once again, I was well prepared, because they’d announced that they were coming, but it was surreal all the same. The two men stood at the top of the steps, their legs and shoulders wide. In case I should make any attempt at resistance, but I wouldn’t have even toyed with the idea, I’m no fool. And besides, I was innocent, and someone who’s innocent is strong, yes, almost indecently strong, chock-full of self-assurance and right on top of the situation. I really was, right on top of the situation. Randers stated his official errand firmly and concisely, his younger colleague tramped boldly past me and went into the house. Peered about everywhere, rummaged through my things. He checked the view from the windows, cast his eye over the contents of the rooms, the furniture, the desk and computer, brushed his hand across shelves and tables as if searching for dust. And dust is all he found. He smiled as he caught sight of my Advent Star in the window, just as Arnfinn had done. What’s wrong with having a star in the window in summertime? Then he put his hands on his hips and pretended to be important. I concentrated on what Randers was saying, even though it was inexplicable. That I was suspected of aggravated murder. I held my hands out to him, palms upwards, a symbolic act to show that I was innocent of the crime. It made no impression. Now at last I understood about all the suspicion at the nursing home. The evasive looks, the personal questions, about how I was doing, and if I was sleeping at night; and no, I wasn’t sleeping at night, I wasn’t sleeping a wink. I lay tossing in torment and misery.