house.
In the yard they can just make out big dark snow-covered shapes that form a strange labyrinth. As they head slowly toward s the house, they move along narrow passageways between these great heaps of snow-covered vehicles- scrap cars, buses, combine harvesters, ploughs, and scooters- their feet crunching on the snow.
Inside the house, they see a figure moving past the window. Some-thing’s happening over there; the movements are rapid, violent. Erik can’t wait any longer, he starts running toward s the house; he doesn’t give a damn about the consequences. Simone runs alongside him, panting. As they close the distance, running across the hard snow, they suddenly hear a muffled scream, followed by rapid, floundering thuds. A figure appears in the window again. A branch snaps off at the edge of the forest. The door of the woodshed bangs. Simone is breathing fast. They stop at the edge of a path that has been shovelled out of the snow, just before reaching the house.
Chapter 105
The person at the window has disappeared. The wind sighs in the treetops. Light snow swirls across the ground. Suddenly the door is flung open, and they are dazzled; someone is shining a powerful torch in their faces. They shade their eyes with their hands and squint in order to try and see.
“Benjamin?” Erik calls out.
When the beam of light is lowered to the ground, Erik recognizes Lydia. In one hand she is holding the torch, in the other, a large pair of scissors. The light illuminates a figure in the snow. It’s Jussi. His face is an icy bluish-grey, his eyes are closed, he is covered in frozen blood, and an axe sticks out of his chest. Simone stands next to Erik in silence. He can tell by her shallow, rapid breathing that she has also seen the body. At the same moment he realizes that Joona is no longer with them. He must have gone a different way, thinks Erik. He’ll creep up on Lydia from behind if I can just keep her busy for long enough.
“Lydia,” says Erik. “Good to see you again.”
She stands there motionless, watching them but saying nothing. The scissors glint in her hand, swinging loosely. The beam of the torch shines on the grey path.
“We’ve come to pick up Benjamin,” Erik explains calmly.
“Benjamin,” Lydia replies. “Who’s Benjamin?”
“He’s my child,” says Simone, her voice half suffocated.
Erik tries to gesture to her to keep quiet; perhaps she sees him, because she takes a step back and tries to steady her breathing.
“I haven’t seen anyone else’s child, only my own,” Lydia says slowly.
“Lydia, listen to me,” says Erik. “If we can take Benjamin, we’ll go away and forget all about this. I promise never to hypnotize anyone ever again- ”
“But I haven’t seen him,” Lydia insists, glancing at the scissors. “There’s only me and my Kasper here.”
Lydia is in the perfect spot right now, Erik thinks feverishly. She’s focused on us and her back is to the house. All Joona has to do is creep around and overpower her from behind.
“I’d like you to leave now,” she says firmly.
“Please, just let us give him his medication,” Erik begs. His voice has begun to shake. Suddenly, he thinks he can see someone moving along the line of vehicles diagonally behind the house. A jolt of relief shoots through his heart. But Lydia’s expression becomes alert, and she lifts the torch and shines it towards the woodshed and out across the snow.
“Kasper needs his medication,” says Erik.
Lydia lowers the torch again. Her voice is cold and harsh. “I’m his mother. I know what he needs,” she says.
“You’re right, of course you are,” Erik says quickly. “But if you let us give Kasper a little bit of medicine, you can show him what’s right and wrong; you can discipline him. I mean, it
Erik pauses involuntarily as he sees the figure behind the house move closer, then disappear from view.
“On Sundays,” he goes on, “you usually- ”
Two people appear around the side of the house. Joona is moving stiffly and reluctantly toward them. Behind him is Marek, with the elk gun pressed into Joona’s back.
Lydia smiles and steps up onto the hard snow from the cleared path.
“Shoot them,” she says tersely. Lydia nods in Simone’s direction. “Start with her.”
“I’ve only got two cartridges,” Marek replies.
“Do what you like, just get it done,” she says.
“Marek,” says Erik. “They stopped me from working. I wanted to help you- ”
“Shut your fucking mouth.”
“You’d started talking about what happened in the big house out in the country in Zenica-Doboj.”
“I can show you what happened,” says Marek, looking at Simone with calm, empty eyes.
“Just get on with it,” sighs Lydia, looking impatient.
“Lie down,” Marek says to Simone. “And take off your jeans.”
She doesn’t move. Marek turns the gun on her, and she backs away. Erik moves forward and Marek quickly aims at him.
“I’ll shoot him in the stomach,” says Marek. “Then he’ll be able to watch while we’re having fun.”
“Do it, already,” says Lydia.
“Wait,” says Simone, starting to unzip her jeans.
Marek spits into the snow and takes a step towards her, but he doesn’t really seem to know what to do. He looks at Erik and waves the gun in his direction. Simone won’t meet his eyes. He points the gun at her, aiming the barrel first at her head, then at her stomach.
“Don’t do this,” says Erik.
Marek lowers the elk gun and moves towards Simone. Lydia steps back. Simone starts to pull down her jeans and underwear.
“Hold the gun,” Marek says quietly to Lydia.
She is moving towards him when a noise comes from among the maze of junked vehicles- a metallic knocking, over and over again. Suddenly, there’s a roar as an engine kicks into life, with the sharp sound of the pistons working. The engine revs deafeningly, the gearbox screams, snow is churned into the air, and a bright light blanches the front of the house. An old bus with a huge tarpaulin over the roof rumbles forward out of the formation, tearing free of the hard crust of snow that covers it and heading straight for them.
Chapter 106
When Marek turns his head to look over at the bus, Joona moves forward with remarkable speed and grabs the stock of the gun. Marek holds on tight but is forced to take a step forward. Joona hits him hard across the chest and tries to kick his legs out from under him, but the powerfully built Marek remains on his feet and, using all the strength in his arms, tries to turn the gun around, the butt grazing Joona’s head and sending him to his knees. But Marek’s fingers are so cold he loses his grip, and the gun spins through the air to land in front of Lydia. Simone rushes towards it, but a snarling Marek seizes her hair and yanks her back.
The bus has run into a fir tree and become stuck, its engine roaring in protest; it is surrounded by a miasma of exhaust fumes and churned-up snow as it bumps stubbornly into the trunk of the tree, scraping off the bark, the wheels spinning without traction. The engine revs once again, the tree sways, and snow tumbles from its dark branches. The front door of the bus opens and closes over and over again with a gentle hiss. Benjamin’s bewildered
