‘I know. I’m not very good at it.’
‘No.’
‘I’ll try harder. Okay?’
She takes another step towards him. Her eyes are inviting. Thorleif looks at her with reawakened tenderness. He pulls her close and holds her tight for a while.
‘Did you have a good time?’ he says, pushing her away from him.
‘It was great. But I think I might have had too much to drink,’ she says, taking the water glass from his hands.
‘Yes, I can smell it,’ Thorleif says, waving his hand under his nose. He grows serious again, desperate to ask if she noticed anything suspicious or anyone watching them, but he drops it. Instead he looks at Elisabeth gulping water and gasping for air when she has emptied the glass.
‘Poor Hilde,’ she says when she has got her breath back. ‘She was rather embarrassing. She doesn’t get out much these days. And there was this guy who… well, I don’t know-’
Thorleif looks straight at her.
‘I think he fancied one of us. He bought us all a round. Several rounds.’
‘Did he?’
‘I’m sure I’ll pay for it in the morning,’ she says and rolls her eyes.
‘What did he look like?’
‘Eh?’
‘The guy who was buying the drinks? What did he look like?’
‘I can’t really remember. Why do you want to know?’
‘Well, I-’ Thorleif evades her eyes.
‘Calm down, it wasn’t me he was interested in. Chance would be a fine thing.’
‘Hey, hey, don’t talk about yourself like that. I won’t have it.’
Elisabeth smiles through swimming eyes.
‘Did he speak Norwegian?’
‘ Did he speak Norwegian? Why do you keep asking me that?’
‘I don’t think I do.’
‘Yes, you do. Earlier tonight you asked if that journalist from Aftenposten spoke Norwegian. Have you gone mad? Why do you keep asking me if everyone I meet speaks Norwegian?’
‘I-’ He looks down.
‘I don’t think he said anything, so I don’t know. He just sat there, smiling and looking at us, nodding and raising his glass. That’s all I remember. Oh, hang on. He was slightly chubby. Balding. He looked like he thought he could pull, if you know what I mean. Fancied himself. But relax — he’s not my type.’
Elisabeth glances at him and smiles. Thorleif looks at her dark hair which falls loosely over her shoulders when she doesn’t put it up. At her tempting mouth.
‘Seriously,’ he says, pulling her close again. ‘You mustn’t ever say such negative things about yourself. Do you hear?’
Elisabeth closes her eyes and smiles.
‘You’re the best, the most wonderful woman in the whole world,’ he whispers to her.
She opens her eyes again and kisses him on the lips. Her lips taste of stale alcohol. But it doesn’t matter.
‘Thank you,’ she says, tenderly.
Thorleif swallows to make the lump in his throat go away. And he realises as he looks deep into her eyes even though it’s late and they are tired, that his girlfriend has never been lovelier.
Chapter 34
The morning meeting has already begun when Henning rushes into the meeting room on the ground floor. News editor Kare Hjeltland is sitting at the end of the table with Heidi Kjus diagonally opposite him.
‘Hi Henning,’ Hjeltland shouts as Henning arrives. ‘Good to see you. Climb on board, climb on board.’
‘Sorry, I’m late,’ he says. ‘Something… something came up.’
‘Not to worry, not to worry.’
Heidi glares at him as he sits down. Henning spent some time earlier this morning looking for old telephone records because Telenor only stores files online for three months, but he found nothing. Nor would the Data Retention Directive have been much use since he is looking for information that is more than a year old.
‘We were just discussing today’s stories, stories, stories,’ Hjeltland shouts as a twitch takes control of his face. Henning has never got used to the news editor’s Tourette’s. The fact that his hair stands out on all sides does little to lessen Hjeltland’s comical appearance.
‘Have you got something you want to add?’ he yells, looking at Henning.
Henning clears his throat, aware that everyone’s eyes are on him.
‘No, I-’ He looks at Heidi. ‘I don’t mind being on cuttings duty today as well, if the cuttings team is still short-staffed.’
‘Cuttings duty?’ Hjeltland exclaims. ‘Why on earth would you want to be on cuttings duty? You’re going out, Juul. To work. Chasing scoops.’
Heidi’s cheeks redden. ‘All right, I’ll do that then-’
‘Okay. Great,’ Hjeltland says and checks his watch. ‘I’ve another meeting, MEETING,’ he hollers. Henning struggles for a second or two to suppress an involuntary laugh and sees that Iver Gundersen is doing likewise. Hjeltland storms out of the door, closely followed by Heidi. Henning is the last to leave, with Iver right in front of him.
‘He ought to be called Holler,’ Iver jokes. ‘Holler and the Eagle. They would make a great team.’
‘Good film title.’
‘Yes. Starsky and Hutch. Thelma and Louise. Holler and the Eagle.’
They walk back up to the second floor and return to their desks. Henning looks at Iver, who loses himself in the screen. Perhaps Iver can help me, Henning thinks. He’s smart enough. He contemplates asking him for a moment. Then he shakes his head.
*
Thorleif simultaneously loves and hates dropping off Julie at nursery in the morning. He hates it because sometimes she starts to cry when he leaves. And he loves it for the very same reason. At home, Elisabeth is always her favourite. Julie wants Mummy to put her to bed, to read to her. But at nursery she only wants him.
Today, fortunately, she is all smiles. He hugs her for a long time and whispers in her ear that Mummy will pick her up at four o’clock as usual. Then they go through their goodbye ritual.
‘I love you,’ he says. ‘All the way to the moon.’
‘I love you all the way to the sun. No, to Morocco!’
‘Ah,’ Thorleif says. ‘That’s very far away.’
She nods and squeezes him hard until he has to free himself. He waves to her again and again and again. Even when he is back at the car park outside the Ladybird Nursery he has to wave and wave and wave towards the window where she always stands. As usual he blows her kisses as well. And he gets one back. As he always does.
Kids, Thorleif thinks and opens the car door. The only thing they ever care about is the next treat or the next game. The dangers that lurk out there in the real world never cross their minds. All that matters is getting sweets on Saturdays.
He checks the time and sees that he is running late. He is just about to start the engine when the door on the passenger side is pulled open and a man sits down next to him. Thorleif turns in his seat and is about to protest when he realises who the man is.
The BMW man.
Furio.
Thorleif nearly has a heart attack. The man looks unperturbed.
‘Drive,’ he orders him.
‘But-’
‘In’, the man checks his watch, ‘three minutes a friend of mine will enter a school not very far from here. He will sit down in the canteen. At regular intervals he will go to classrooms 38 and 39 where Elisabeth Haaland is teaching today — with the exception of period four when she has a free period. Your behaviour today will determine whether or not she makes it home from work. Do you understand what I’m saying to you? Are you listening?’
Thorleif nods feverishly and swallows hard.
‘Drive.’
Thorleif turns the key in the ignition with trembling fingers. The car starts. Nearly. He makes a second attempt, and this time the engine roars. Thorleif’s cheeks are flushed. He tries to breathe, but it is difficult.
‘Drive,’ the man says for the third time. Thorleif puts the car into first gear. The car jumps when he releases the clutch. He manoeuvres out between the other parked cars and parents with children, spare clothes and lunchboxes in their hands. Thorleif lets the car roll down the hill towards a junction.