'I don't know. I didn't see anyone.'
'She was only carrying a handbag? Red fabric. Shaped like a strawberry,' Sejer said. 'Do you remember it?'
'No,' Goran said, wondering. Suddenly he looked unsure.
'You've forgotten it among all the other things?'
'There's nothing to remember,' Goran said. He put the pizza slice down again.
'Perhaps you've suppressed it?'
'I would've remembered something like that.'
'Something like what?'
Silence.
'Perhaps you were far away when it happened. Only your body was present,' Sejer said.
'It was with Lillian. In action. I even remember her bed linen. It was green with water lilies. Let me tell you something,' he said confidentially. 'Older women are much better than young ones. They open up a lot more. Literally. The young ones tend to tense up.'
He pushed off his shoes and kicked them away. Sejer said nothing and scribbled for a long time. Goran was silent. The mood was calm, almost peaceful. The light in the room grew softer and the glow from the lamps became more yellow as the evening proceeded. Goran was tired, but not from everything that was happening to him. His head was clear. In control. He counted to three. But he hadn't been able to work out. A restlessness was building up in him. It was impossible to fight.
'Kollberg's lying in my living room, he can hardly move,' Sejer said and sighed. He put his pen down. 'I don't know yet if he will recover. If he doesn't, I'll have to have him put down.'
He looked across to Goran for a long time. Goran stayed cool.
'No,' Sejer said, as though he could read his mind. 'I'm just mentioning it. I'm at work, but every now and then my thoughts fly away. Sometimes I wish I were somewhere else. Even though I like my job, being here, with you. Where are your thoughts?'
'Here,' Goran said, looking at Sejer. Then down at his hands.
'Did you follow the story in the newspapers?' Sejer said. He put a Fisherman's Friend in his mouth and pushed the bag towards Goran.
'Yes, I did,' he said.
'What was your reaction to what had happened?'
Goran breathed in. 'Nothing much. It was bad, of course. But I prefer the sports pages.'
Sejer buried his face in his hands as though he was tired. He was in fact alert and watchful, but that small movement might suggest that he was about to call it a day. Six hours had passed. Just the two of them. No telephones, or footsteps or voices, not a sound from outside could be heard. You would think the huge building was empty. In fact it was teeming with activity.
'What do you think about the man who did this? I've had a lot of thoughts myself. How about you?'
Goran shook his head. 'No thoughts at all,' he said.
'You have no opinion about what kind of man he might be?'
'Of course not.'
'Can we agree that he would have been in a rage?'
'I've no idea,' Goran said sulkily. 'Finding him is your problem.'
'And in your interests, too, I'd imagine.' Once more this gravity in Sejer's face. The stare was as steady as a camera lens. He ran his hands through the grey hair and pulled off his jacket. He did it slowly and hung it carefully on the back of his chair. He unbuttoned the cuffs of his shirt and started turning up his sleeves.
Goran looked at him incredulously. He had a bed in his cell, with a blanket and a pillow. He was thinking about it now.
'Once, a long time ago, I was on patrol in the streets of this city,' Sejer said. 'It was a Saturday night. There were two of us. There was a fight outside the King's Arms. I got out of the car and went over to them. Two young men, your age. I put my hand on the shoulder of one of them. He spun around and looked me straight in the eye. And then, without any warning whatsoever, his hand shot out in the dark and he plunged a knife into my thigh. He drew a long cut which left a scar I have to this day.'
Goran pretended he wasn't listening, but he was engrossed. Any word, any unexpected story was precious to him, something far removed from all this. A kind of break.
'That was all I wanted to say,' Sejer said. 'We often see stabbings on film and read about them in the papers. Then you stand there with a knife in your thigh, in excruciating pain. I lost my voice. Everything around me seemed to disappear, even the sound of people screaming and shouting. The pain was so fierce. Today I can laugh about it. A simple flesh wound. All that's left is a pale line. But right at that moment it made the rest of the world disappear.'
Goran didn't know where this was going, but for some reason he was worried.
'Have you ever felt great pain?' Sejer said. He was leaning forward now. His face was close to Goran's.
Goran moved back a bit. 'Don't think so,' he said. 'Except when I work out.'
'You push yourself over your pain threshold when you work out?'
'Of course. All the time. Otherwise you don't progress.'
'Where do you need to get to?'
Goran watched Sejer's tall body. He didn't give the impression of being muscular, but he was probably tough. His eyes were unfathomable. They never flickered. All he wants is a confession, he thought. Breathe in and out. Count to three. I was with Lillian. Suddenly he said: 'Do you want to arm-wrestle?'
Sejer said: 'Yes. Why not?'
They got settled. Goran was ready immediately. It came to Sejer that he would have to touch Goran now, hold his hand. He hesitated.
'Not up for it?' Goran teased him.
Sejer shook his head. Goran's hand was warm and sweaty.
Goran counted to three and pushed violently.
Sejer did not attempt to drive Goran's fist down. He was only concerned to hold out. And he managed that. Goran's strength exploded in one violent charge, then it died away. Very slowly, Sejer pushed his fist to the table.
'Too much static training. Don't forget stamina. Remember that in future.'
Goran massaged his shoulders. He didn't feel good.
'Poona weighed 45 kilos,' Sejer told him. 'Not very strong, in other words. Nothing for a grown man to brag about.'
Goran pressed his lips tight.
'But I don't suppose he goes around bragging about it. I can see him clearly,' Sejer said, staring directly into Goran's eyes. 'He's mulling it over, he's trying to digest it. Get it out of his system.'
Goran felt dizzy.
'Do you like Indian food?' Sejer said. He was quite serious. There was no trace of irony in his voice. 'You're not answering. Have you ever tasted it?'
'Er, yes.' He hesitated. 'Once. It was too strong for my liking.'
'Mm,' Sejer said. He nodded agreement. 'You feel like a fire-breathing dragon afterwards.' Goran had to smile at that. It wasn't easy keeping up with Sejer. He caught himself looking at the clock. His body had slumped a little.
'If I have to have Kollberg put down, it will be the worst day of my life,' Sejer said. 'It really will be the worst day. I'll give him two, three days, then we'll see.'
Goran suddenly felt nauseous. He wiped at his brow. 'I feel ill,' he said.
Chapter 21
Deep down, Linda knew that Jacob was beyond her reach. This fact was like a thorn in her foot, it hurt with
