‘What did he do?’
‘How did he make a living, I mean?’
‘I have the feeling that you already know.’
‘It would be simplest if you just answered the question,’ Erlendur said sternly.
‘He was an estate agent.’
‘Was he successful?’
‘No, extremely unsuccessful. He was facing bankruptcy when he died, from what Maria told me. Leonora mentioned the fact too.’
‘But he didn’t go bankrupt?’
‘No.’
‘And they were his beneficiaries? Leonora and Maria?’
‘Yes.’
‘What did they inherit?’
‘It didn’t amount to much at the time,’ Baldvin said. ‘They managed to hold on to this house because Leonora was shrewd and tough.’
‘Anything else?’
‘A plot of land in Kopavogur. Magnus had accepted it in some settlement, as a down payment or something, and ended up owning it. That was two years before he died.’
‘And Leonora held on to it over the years? Even when she needed to save the house?’
‘Where are you going with this?’
‘Since then Kopavogur has grown faster than any other community in Iceland and more people have moved here than anywhere else in the country, including Reykjavik. When Magnus acquired the land it was so far out of town that people could hardly be bothered to drive there. Now it’s almost in the centre. Whoever would have believed it?’
‘Yes, it is incredible.’
‘I checked the price at the time Leonora sold it – what, three or four years ago now? She got a very decent sum for it. According to the calculations of Kopavogur Council it was around three hundred million kronur. Leonora was good with money, wasn’t she? She didn’t boast about the fact, probably wasn’t particularly interested in money as a rule. So the bulk of it sat in her bank account, accumulating interest. Maria was her mother’s heir. You were Maria’s heir. No one else. Just you.’
‘There’s not much I can do about it,’ Baldvin said. ‘I would have told you about it if I’d thought it had the slightest bearing.’
‘What was Maria’s attitude to the money?’
‘Attitude? I… no particular attitude. She wasn’t very interested in money.’
‘For example, did she want you both to use the money to get more out of life? Did she want to spend it on luxuries? Or was she like her mother and preferred to avoid thinking about it?’
‘She was well aware of the existence of the money,’ Baldvin said.
‘But didn’t spend it?’
‘No. Neither she nor Leonora did. You’re right. I think I know why, but that’s another matter. Who have you been talking to, if I may ask?’
‘That probably has no bearing at this stage. I imagine that you would have preferred to enjoy the good things in life. All that money just sitting there, no one using it.’
Baldvin took a deep breath.
‘I have no interest in talking about the money,’ he said.
‘What sort of financial arrangement did you and Maria have? Did you have a prenuptial agreement?’
‘Yes, we did, as it happens.’
‘What kind of agreement?’
‘She would keep the land or any money raised from its sale.’
‘So it was in her name?’
‘Yes. She would keep the lot if we divorced.’
‘Right,’ Erlendur said. ‘Then there’s question number two. Do you know a man by the name of Tryggvi?’
‘Tryggvi? No.’
‘Of course, it’s a long time since you met but you ought to remember the circumstances. He has a cousin by the name of Sigvaldi who lives in the States. His girlfriend was called Dagmar. She’s on holiday in Florida at the moment but she’ll be back in a week or so. I’m going to try and catch up with her then. Do those names ring any bells?’
‘Sort of… What…?’
‘Did you study medicine with them?’
‘Yes, if we’re talking about the same people.’
‘Did you take part in an experiment on Tryggvi, during which his heart was stopped for several minutes?’
‘I don’t know what-’
‘You and your mate Sigvaldi and his girlfriend Dagmar?’
Baldvin stared at Erlendur for a long time without answering. Then, apparently unable to sit still any longer, he sprang to his feet.
‘Nothing happened,’ he said. ‘How did you dig that up? What are you trying to do? I was only an onlooker, it was Sigvaldi who was in charge. I… nothing happened. I just stood there, didn’t even know the bloke. Was his name Tryggvi?’
‘So you do know what I’m referring to?’
‘It was a stupid experiment. It wasn’t meant to prove anything.’
‘But Tryggvi died briefly?’
‘I don’t even know. I left the room. Sigvaldi had wangled some ward at the hospital and we went over there. That guy Tryggvi was a bit of a weirdo. Sigvaldi was always making fun of him, long before this happened. I’d just started medicine. Sigvaldi was very bright but a bit wild. It was his responsibility, his alone. Well, and maybe Dagmar’s. Most of the time I wasn’t even in on what they were planning.’
‘I haven’t spoken to them yet but I intend to,’ Erlendur said. ‘How did Sigvaldi go about stopping Tryggvi’s heart?’
‘He lowered his body temperature and gave him some drug. I don’t remember what it’s called, or if it’s still on the market. The drug caused his heart to slow down gradually until it stopped. Sigvaldi timed the cardiac arrest and after a minute he used the defibrillator. It worked immediately. His heart started beating again.’
‘And?’
‘And what?’
‘What did Tryggvi say?’
‘Nothing. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t feel anything, didn’t feel any pain. He described it as being like a deep sleep. I don’t know why you’re digging this up. How far back are you looking? Why are you investigating me and my life so thoroughly? Just what do you think I’ve done? Is it normal for the police to investigate suicide in this way? Are you persecuting me?’
‘Just one more thing,’ Erlendur said, without answering. ‘Then I’ll be on my way.’
‘Has this become an official inquiry?’
‘No,’ Erlendur said.
‘What, then? Do I actually need to answer these questions?’
‘Not really. I’m only trying to find out what happened when Maria took her life. Whether anything unnatural occurred.’
‘Unnatural? Isn’t suicide unnatural enough for you? What do you want from me?’
‘Maria went to see a medium before she died. She referred to the medium as Magdalena. Know anything about that?’
‘No,’ Baldvin said. ‘I know nothing about that. We’ve discussed this. I didn’t know she’d been to a psychic. I don’t know any medium called Magdalena.’
‘She went to a medium because she thought she saw her mother here in the house, quite some time after Leonora died.’
