Bolungarvík Engineering’s yard was on the edge of town. They found Jonni dismounting from a snowplough. He was in his early twenties, wiry under his bulky winter clothing, with a toothy smile under a yellow hard hat.
‘Jonni, this is Sergeant Magnús Ragnarsson from Reykjavík,’ Tómas said grimly. ‘He has come to ask you some questions relating to Gústi’s death. We would like you to accompany us to the station.’
Magnus was happy to see the look of concern, verging on panic, that crossed Jonni’s previously cheerful face.
They slung Jonni in the back of Tómas’s jeep for the small trip to the police station, and let him stew. Magnus gave him twenty minutes waiting in the interview room before striding in with Tómas. They turned on the tape recorder and Tómas introduced the interview.
‘Jonni,’ Magnus said. ‘It’s looking increasingly likely that Gústi’s death was murder and not an accident. We believe you have information that will help us determine how he was killed. It’s very important that you answer my questions fully and honestly. Otherwise, if it turns out that this does become a murder investigation, you will be in big trouble. Do you understand?’
‘Yes,’ said Jonni, his voice hoarse. ‘But I don’t know anything about Gústi’s death. I was supposed to come over and help him later on that morning, when I had finished ploughing. But I wasn’t there when he died, I promise.’
‘No. I want to speak to you about the machinery that broke down this summer. When you were guarding the yard overnight.’
‘Oh.’ Jonni threw Tómas a worried glance. In that moment, Magnus knew the man had lied to the constable.
‘You live next door to Rós, don’t you?’
‘That’s right,’ said Jonni.
‘And she asked you to look the other way when she broke into the yard at night to sabotage the equipment?’
‘No,’ said Jonni defiantly. ‘No, no she didn’t.’
Magnus leaned back. ‘You see, this is what I’m talking about, Jonni. You’ve got a big choice right now. You can either stick to the story you told Tómas over the summer or you can tell us the truth. If you tell us the truth, I can’t guarantee that you won’t get in any trouble; lying to the police is a crime. And your testimony is important so we won’t be able to pretend we didn’t hear it. But I’ll put in a good word for you and the trouble shouldn’t be too bad. I know you are not a real criminal and so will everyone else. But, as I said, if you stick with the lie, and we know it’s a lie, you’ll be in big, big trouble. You’ll be going to jail.’
Jonni’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
‘So, I’m going to ask you the question again. And take your time answering. Think about it. Think about it carefully. Did Rós ask you to look the other way while she sabotaged the construction equipment?’
Jonni opened his mouth, but Magnus raised his hand. Jonni shut it again. He put his face in his hands.
Magnus waited. It was only a minute, but it seemed to take forever.
‘Jonni?’ Magnus said.
Jonni breathed in and nodded. ‘Yeah, you are right. Rós asked me to leave the yard for half an hour at two o’clock in the morning, both nights the machines were broken.’
‘Did you see her?’
‘No. No I didn’t. I didn’t see anyone.’
‘Why did you do what she asked? Why didn’t you report it afterwards?’
‘My mother was a good friend of Rós’s. She died about five years ago. Rós used to speak to her sometimes.’
‘Speak to her? You mean after she died.’
Jonni nodded. ‘Yes. There were sometimes messages for me or my Dad, or my sisters. But then Rós said she had a message from Mum that I should leave the yard unguarded.’
‘Why?’ asked Magnus, barely managing to suppress his irritation.
‘Because Mum said that the hidden people were going to sabotage the equipment. And they didn’t want me to see them do it.’
‘Uh huh,’ said Magnus. Until that moment, Jonni had seemed a normal, rational twenty-two year old. But he was serious.
‘So I did what Rós asked. And the hidden people did what they said they would do.’
‘The hidden people did it!’ Magnus could suppress his irritation no longer.
Jonni swallowed. ‘Yes. My mother had spoken to them occasionally when she was alive. And Rós spoke to them all the time.’
‘Didn’t it occur to you that Rós might have sabotaged the machinery?’ Magnus asked.
‘No. Besides, Rós couldn’t have done that. It was complicated stuff, brake pads loosened, problems with the fuel pump. I like Rós but she is completely scatty. She wouldn’t know how.’
‘Did you know that her father owned a garage and she used to help him out with fixing the cars?’
‘Er, no,’ said Jonni. He began to blush. ‘Oh, God. You mean she conned me?’
‘Yes,’ said Magnus. ‘She conned you. I’m not saying that there are or are not hidden people who live in the rocks by the tunnel. What I am saying is that Rós lied to you about them.’
A tear appeared in Jonni’s eye. He wiped it. ‘I’m such a fool. It’s just my mother believed in them, used to talk to them. And she was a good person, and honest person. And what Rós said she was saying to us, the whole family, made perfect sense. Do you think that was all lies too?’
‘I don’t know, Jonni,’ Magnus said, his irritation replaced by sympathy. He had lost his own mother when he was a child. ‘Let’s not speculate here. It’s very important now that you just tell us the truth, say what you know happened, and we’ll figure out the rest.’
5
Magnus studied the woman in front of him. They were in the interview room in the police station, with the tape running. Rós had placed her multicoloured woolly hat on the table next to her, letting her red hair fall around her shoulders. Her lips were pursed, her expression tense, but she was also brave, determined, as if she knew she was in for a hard time and had steeled herself to see it through.
In the States, Magnus would have already read her her rights at this stage, but in Iceland they were allowed to question a suspect for twenty-four hours before getting a warrant from a judge, and lawyers were only for those who insisted on one.
Magnus had patiently explained the case against Rós, the testimony of Davíd, her knowledge of engines and auto parts. It seemed pretty convincing to him.
‘So, Rós, you see we know that you sabotaged the construction equipment in the summer. And that you killed Gústi yesterday morning.’
‘But I didn’t,’ said Rós.
‘OK. Then who did?’
‘It was the hidden people,’ she said. ‘I told you that.’
Magnus took a deep breath. Normally the best tactic to frustrate a detective was silence. No one had tried ‘the elves did it’ on him before, and he didn’t like it.
‘Now, Rós. We know that you asked Davíd to leave his post at the yard for half an hour in the middle of the night. Do you deny that?’
‘No,’ said Rós. ‘No, that’s perfectly true.’
‘And do you deny that you crept into the yard when he had left it unguarded?’
‘Of course I do. I was sound asleep. The hidden people came in, just like I told Davíd they would.’
For a second Magnus was tempted to ask why the hidden people cared whether there was a guard around since they were invisible, but he decided against fighting the battle on Rós’s terms.
‘Rós, you and I both know that’s ridiculous,’ he said reasonably.
A thought seemed to have struck Rós. She frowned.
‘What is it, Rós?’
‘Actually, I might have to plead guilty,’ she said.