Run Run as Fast as You Can (20 page)

"Mom, Amalie called me stupid," Jacob said.

"No, I did not. I never said that," Amalie whined.

"
You're
stupid," Jacob said.

"Moooom!"

"Can't you just take your clothes and go dress in your own room?" Christian asked with a groan. He hadn't even gotten out of bed yet. It was, after all, Sunday, was his excuse.

Lisa rubbed her eyes. She was trying to get Margrethe to take the bottle, but she refused. If she was crying because she was hungry, then why wouldn't she eat?

"Mooom!" Amalie yelled again. "Aren't you going to say anything to him?"

Lisa exhaled and looked at her oldest.

"That is so typical," Amalie said, stomping her feet on the floor. "You always take his side. You never hear what I'm saying. You never listen to me. Never!"

Lisa looked at her husband for help, but he had closed his eyes and pulled the covers over his head to shut them all out. Lisa groaned while trying to stuff the bottle into Margrethe's small mouth. She spat it out, then cried even louder. Lisa closed her eyes to calm herself down. Amalie reached her hand out and whacked her brother on the head. Jacob cried out.

"Moooom! Amalie hit me."

Come on, take the bottle. Forget about everybody else, sweetheart, just take the bottle and you'll feel much better. Please stop crying would you? Please? I need you to stop, sweetie.

"Mooom?" Jacob said again. Then he reached over and pulled Amalie's hair till she screamed.

"Mooom!"

Lisa didn't want to lift her head and look at them. She tried hard to focus on her baby and get her to eat. The crying increased and Margrethe was getting red in the face. Christian moaned from the bed. Jacob and Amalie screamed and pulled each other's hair.

Just try and stay calm. Think of a meadow. Think of the ocean, the beach, the forest, anything calm and quiet. Count backwards from a hundred. Picture a field of flowers and you lying in it staring at the blue sky above with nothing to worry about. Just stay calm. Whatever you do just stay calm, for Pete's sake!

"Mooom?" Amalie said, crying.

"Mooom?" Jacob said, crying even louder, holding a hand to his head where Amalie had hit him.

"Lisa?" Christian said. "Could you please get them to be quiet? I need my sleep. I drank too much of that sherry last night. Do you have any aspirin? Lisa?"

Lisa stared at the baby who still refused to take the bottle. Her body was shaking as she tried to stay calm and counted.

"Eighty-nine, eighty-eight," she said, while closing her eyes. But the pictures inside of her head were no longer of a beautiful meadow or a quiet forest; no, they were of blood. Blood rushing out of Christian's body after she had stabbed him with the carving fork she was still carrying in her purse, still smeared in Per Egon's blood from yesterday. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get the picture to go away and replace it with something soothing and calming instead.

"Lisa?" Christian repeated.

"Mom?" the kids both said.

She opened her eyes and looked at them, but saw nothing but a river of blood running towards her and their faces torn in distress and pain.

"WHAT?" she yelled.

There was a knock on the door and they all went quiet. The knocking intensified, then she heard Emma's voice on the other side. "Lisa? I know you're in there, please open the door."

Lisa handed Christian the baby and the bottle. "Here, you try now." He looked baffled, and opened his mouth to complain, but a look from Lisa made him stop. She opened the door.

"What?"

Emma looked furious. She was out of breath as she spoke. "What have you done to her?"

"Done to whom?" Lisa asked.

"Sophia. Where is she?"

Lisa shook her head to make sure this wasn't some stupid dream. "How should I know?"

"I think you did something to her. She is missing. I can't find her anywhere."

"I beg your pardon? Is that any way to treat a guest in your house?" Lisa asked.

The ugly officer Bredballe came running up the stairs, panting. He stood behind Emma. "She's nowhere downstairs, or in the yard."

"That leads us back to you, Lisa," Emma said. "I know you’ve done something to her. I want to know what you did to Sophia. Where is she?"

"This is getting really old," Lisa said. "I haven't done anything to Sophia. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a minor family crisis I have to attend to," she said and turned to look at her family. They were all staring back at her. Except the baby, who had finally accepted the bottle.

"Is this true, Lisa? Have you done something to Sophia?" Christian asked.

"Mom?" Amalie asked with accusing voice.

Jacob didn't say anything. He stared at his mother with distrust.

"Are you kidding me?" Lisa asked while the fury threatened to explode inside of her. "Are you freaking kidding me here?"

No one in the room spoke for quite a while. Officer Bredballe broke the silence. "Let's not jump to conclusions here."

Not knowing what else to do, Lisa took one last look at her husband, then reached for her purse on the table, grabbed it, and stormed out the room knocking over Emma Frost on her way out and making her fall into the arms of officer Bredballe. The two of them tumbled to the floor and once they were back up, Lisa was long gone.

54

November 2013

I
CALLED MY
dad and asked him to come over and help Maya look after Sophia's kids. He came a few minutes later. I went into Victor's room and pulled off his hearing protection.

"You're coming with me."

Downstairs, Morten was already calling the station. On his way out the door, he turned and kissed me. "We'll comb the entire island to find Lisa," he said. "We'll find her. She can't go far."

"No but she might kill Sophia if you don't catch her," I yelled after him as he sprang towards his car.

I looked at Victor who was standing next to me. "Come on buddy. Let's go."

We walked to my car and drove off. "I need your help with this Vic," I said as soon as we had left our street. "I believe you can hear those bats, and I believe you're hearing them right now, am I right?"

He didn't answer but he didn't protest either. "I'll take that as a yes."

"I know it's a long shot, but I believe Sophia is with those bats and I believe you can lead us to them if you follow the sound. Do you think you can do that? Do you think you can lead me there?"

I turned my head and looked at Victor for some sort of signal that he understood what I was asking him to do. Then he nodded.

"Great. Tell me where to go."

We drove around in the neighborhood for quite a while and I was beginning to lose hope that he’d be able to help me with this, when Victor finally said something.

"Turn right here."

"Are you hearing them now?" I asked.

He didn't answer. Probably thought it was needless. "And now left."

Then he went quiet for a long time and I kept driving, thinking it was odd that we had to go this far away. When we passed the city limit sign I became concerned. "Are you sure about this buddy? We're outside of town now."

He remained quiet. I chose to trust him. After all, he was my only hope now. I looked at my phone to see if Morten had called or texted, but there was nothing. I felt so furious inside that I had let Lisa right into my home like this. She had to be behind it somehow. I just couldn't figure out how. As the landscape changed, I wondered how on earth Lisa would even be able to do this, to kidnap Sophia or any of the others? Her husband didn't seem to be in on it, after all. And, she had a baby.

I shook my head. No it was her. I was certain it was. It had to be. It fit so well. She knew all of the victims, plus she was seen at the library yesterday. Plus I had seen something in her this morning when she opened the door to her room. Some kind of uncontrollable anger that I remember having seen in the eyes of Officer Dan when I just moved here and he tried to kill me and my family. It was in Lisa's eyes as well. A hurt combined with rage. It was in her eyes and had convinced me she was capable of doing this. Of doing things this cruel. Wasn't she?

"Turn left," Victor suddenly said very loudly.

"But Victor, there isn't anything here? Nothing but a dirt road leading to some old farm."

Victor was rocking back and forth now in his seat, holding his hands to his ears. He seemed in distress, in pain even.

"Is it very loud now, Victor?" I asked.

"They're screaming, Mommy."

"You don’t need to say any more," I said and turned up the dirt road. On a mailbox by the road it said
Ellen and Mads Andersen
.

55

November 2013

L
ISA WAS PUNCHING
the steering wheel of her car as she drove across town. Tears of wrath were rolling across her cheeks.

Who the hell does she think she is? Talking to me like that? Someone should teach that woman a lesson. Teach her how to behave towards guests. I have never … how dare she be so rude!

Lisa wiped a tear off her cheek and realized she was driving in circles. She had no idea where to go. She couldn't go home, since they would probably look for her there. She couldn't go back to her family, since they all thought she was a vicious killer. It hurt her so deeply that they would think that about her. Yes she had a temper and yes she couldn't always control it, but the people she killed had deserved it. They had it coming and she was doing everybody a favor by removing them. She didn't kill Simone Beaumont, who had, in fact, been Lisa's friend and the one she liked best in the group. Didn't they see her tears when she received the news that she was dead? Didn't they feel her pain? She was sincerely upset when it happened. Didn't they know that? Okay so she had fantasied about hurting Sophia now and then, especially since she was the one spilling coffee all over her car right before the accident, right before they hit that woman in the street and killed her with the minivan. But she hadn't done anything about it. She really didn't plan to either. And whatever happened, Lisa certainly didn't deserve to be treated like that.

Like a common criminal
.

Lisa stopped the car in a parking spot, then got out and started walking up the street. She was really hungry and needed something to eat and drink. Preferably a smoothie or something organic. She walked towards her favorite café. Café Mimosa, where the faces were always smiling and the service impeccable. She pushed the door open and entered. The waitress named Julia smiled.

"Hi Lisa," she said. "You're early today. Grab a table and I'll be right with you."

Lisa took in a deep breath and smiled back. She really needed Julia's friendly smile today. She decided to sit in the back so no one would see her from the street. Julia came out, still smiling. It brought tears to Lisa's eyes.

"So what can I bring you today, Lisa?" Julia said and looked around. "Where is the baby today? Are the rest of your group coming as well?"

Lisa sniffled. "Its just gonna be me today."

"Well that's okay. Nice to have a couple of hours to yourself, huh? So what will it be? Do you need a few minutes to check the menu?"

Lisa shook her head. "No. I know what I want."

"The usual?" Julia asked. "Salad and a smoothie?"

Lisa opened her mouth to say yes, but hesitated. "You know what? Maybe I should try something new for once."

"Sure?"

"Give me a burger. The biggest you have. And put cheese on it. And fries. Oil dripping fries. And bring me a Coke with that. Regular coke with sugar. After that, I'll have a banana split with loads of chocolate sauce. Please make sure none of it is organic or gluten free, would you?"

Julia stared at Lisa like she had just fallen from the moon. Then she shook her head. "Sure. If that’s what you want."

"It is. Thank you."

"No problem."

Julia left and Lisa stared at her own face in the mirrors that were covering the walls. It had been awhile since she last saw herself properly without the fake election smile. She had gotten old.

Well so what? I'm forty-three and have a young baby. I'm entitled to look old. I'm entitled to eat a cheeseburger every now and then if I want to.

When the food arrived Lisa ate greedily. Never had a meal that tasted this good. She stuffed her face with fries and could hardly close her mouth to chew. Other customers arrived and stared at her while she was eating with her fingers, licking the grease off of them and flushing it all down with a Coke. She didn't care that they looked. For once in her life she didn't care what anyone thought of her. She stuck her tongue out at them and laughed. Never had she felt this free.

It wasn't until halfway through the banana split, which she ate with her fingers, that she realized it wasn't only the other customers who were staring at her. So was the strange man she had seen at the café before. He was sitting at a table next to hers, giggling. As she looked into his eyes, she realized she had seen him once before. Eight months ago. When he got up and walked to her table, she remembered how her eyes had met his right before she took that fatal turn while yelling at Sophia, driving straight into that woman.

"Hello Lisa," he said and grabbed the chair across from her. "Finally we meet face to face."

56

November 2013

I
KNEW WE
were going in the right direction just by looking at Victor. He was in more and more distress the closer we got to the house. I parked the car in front of the house and asked him to stay inside of it. The house looked empty. I knocked on the front door and when no answer came I walked inside. Most of the rooms were empty except for an old bedroom where I found women's clothes spread all over the floor. It smelled horrible and stuffy in there, like the windows hadn't been opened for months.

On the walls I found clips from old newspapers taped to the walls. All were articles about some crash in downtown Nordby where a women had been killed. I remembered the accident since Sophia had been in the car when it happened. She had told me all about it and had a hard time moving on. Her entire mothers’ group had been in the minivan with all of their newborn babies. Lisa had been the driver.