‘Do you know what we’ve told everybody in school, Hauger?’
Jan didn’t speak.
‘We said we saw you standing in the shower wanking. Wanking and groaning...’
‘That’s not true.’
‘No, but nobody will believe you.’
Jan took a deep breath. ‘I haven’t said anything. About any of you.’
‘We know that... Because if you do, we’ll kill you.’
‘You will anyway,’ said Jan.
The only response was laughter. It sounded as if there were several boys standing around the phone, with different laughs.
Then there was a click as the call ended.
Jan looked down at his trousers. There was a warm, damp patch just below his flies: he had wet himself.
34
Jan is tired when he gets home from the Dell well after midnight — not physically, but mentally. The visit to St Psycho’s has used up all his energy.
But he sleeps peacefully for the rest of the night; he wakes at half past seven and sets off for work on his bike an hour later.
Everything looks perfectly normal in the playground. The swings are empty and there are a few plastic spades in the sandpit, waiting for the children.
But when Jan opens the door, he can see that something is wrong. Hanna and Andreas are standing in the cloakroom with some of the children — but Hanna isn’t supposed to be here, she should have gone home an hour ago.
‘Morning, Jan,’ says Andreas.
Jan smiles at his colleagues, but neither of them smiles back. He asks, ‘Everything OK?’
Andreas nods. ‘I think so... but we’re having a meeting shortly.’
‘A staff meeting,’ Hanna says.
‘What, a feelgood meeting?’
‘I don’t know... I don’t think so.’
Andreas doesn’t sound remotely curious. Jan tries to look equally unconcerned, but as he is taking off his jacket he catches Hanna’s gaze for a second. Her blue eyes are just as blank and unreadable as usual, and she quickly looks away.
Fifteen minutes later they are all sitting around the kitchen table. All except Marie-Louise, who is standing straight-backed in front of her staff. She adjusts her blouse, clears her throat and presses the palms of her hands together.
‘There’s something we need to discuss,’ she says. ‘Something serious. As we all know, the rules regarding security here at the Dell are particularly important, but unfortunately there has been a breach.’ She pauses, then goes on: ‘When I arrived at about seven o’clock this morning, the security door leading to the basement was open. More or less wide open, in fact.’
She looks at her staff, but no one speaks. Jan makes an effort to prevent his eyes from darting all over the place.
‘Hanna, you and I talked about this before the others arrived,’ Marie-Louise goes on, ‘and you say you have no idea how it can have happened.’
Hanna nods. Her gaze is steady, shining with innocence.
Jan is impressed.
‘No, it’s really weird,’ Hanna says. ‘It was definitely shut when I went to bed.’
Marie-Louise stares at her. ‘You’re absolutely certain?’
Hanna glances sideways, but only for a fraction of a second. ‘Almost.’
Marie-Louise sighs. ‘That door must always be kept closed. Always.’
The atmosphere is oppressive. Jan is sitting next to Hanna, but he doesn’t say a word. He gazes blankly at Marie-Louise, wondering if he was the one who left the door open when he came up from the basement.
Suddenly they hear a bright, cheerful voice: ‘Good morning, fellow citizens!’
Everyone turns to look at Mira, who is standing in the doorway smiling at the adults, with a big gap in her front teeth. Jan knows that she learned the expression ‘fellow citizens’ a few days ago, and she seems determined to use it as often as possible.
‘Good morning, Mira,’ Marie-Louise says quickly. ‘We’ll be there soon! We just need to have a little chat...’
‘But Ville and Valle want to go to bed! We need to get everything ready for them!’
‘Jan,’ Marie-Louise says quietly, ‘could you go and put Mira’s dolls to bed, please?’
‘Of course.’
He is glad to leave the room. This staff meeting is no fun at all; he can feel the thin web of secrets and lies between himself and Hanna, and he is afraid that one of the others might catch sight of it.
‘Good morning, fellow citizen!’
‘Good morning again, Mira.’
She seems pleased that it is Jan who has come to help her. They sit down next to her bed, and he picks up her two dolls and tucks them in under the covers.
Jan is more relaxed in here. He sorts everything out, he makes sure that Ville and Valle are lying comfortably side by side, with their heads on the pillow, and he runs his hand over the sheet to smooth out any creases — but still other thoughts come crowding into his mind.
He is wondering about the open door, of course. If he was the one who forgot to close it last night, he will have to pull himself together. Otherwise a camera will be installed at the Dell, sooner or later.
‘There you go,’ he says. ‘Is that OK, Mira?’
She nods and leans over the bed. Each doll receives a pat on the head, then she backs away.
She picks her nose and looks at Jan. ‘What did the man want?’ she asks. ‘Did he come to take Ville and Valle?’
‘What man?’
Mira removes her finger from her nose. ‘The man who was in here.’
‘There was no man in here.’
‘Oh yes there was,’ Mira says firmly. ‘I saw him when it was dark.’
‘Last night, you mean?’
She nods. ‘He was standing there.’ Mira points at the floor by the foot of her bed.
Jan looks but doesn’t say anything for a moment; he doesn’t actually know what to say. ‘You were dreaming,’ he reassures her eventually. ‘You just dreamed there was a man here.’
‘No!’
‘Yes, you did, Mira. You do have dreams sometimes. You dream about things even though they don’t exist, and you dream you’re playing outside even though you’re lying in bed. That’s true, isn’t it?’
Mira gives this some thought, then nods again. Jan has convinced her, even though he himself is far from convinced. A man in the children’s room?
‘Good,’ he says. ‘Let’s leave Ville and Valle to get some sleep, then.’
They move out of the room, with Mira skipping on ahead; she seems to have already forgotten what she told him.
Jan does not forget. He goes back to the staffroom, but almost everyone has gone. Andreas is rinsing his cup; Jan pours himself a fresh cup of coffee and asks in passing, ‘Is the meeting over?’
‘Yup.’
‘So what conclusions did you reach?’
‘Nothing startling,’ says Andreas. ‘I mean, we all know the door is supposed to be kept shut. So we need to make sure that we close it properly behind us, and check that everyone else is doing the same.’
‘Sounds good.’
Suddenly Jan hears the main door slam, and turns around. Hanna has just left; she is finally on her way home after her night shift.
Jan pulls on his boots and quickly runs after her. He catches up with her by the gate, and calls out quietly, ‘Hanna!’
She stops and turns around, but her expression suggests that they don’t even know each other. ‘I’m going home,’ she says. ‘What do you want?’
Jan looks around; there is no sign of any adults or children in the playground, but still he dare not say too much. ‘Mira’s had a nightmare.’
‘Oh?’ Hanna’s tone is cool and neutral.