Read Online Light in a Dark House by Jan Costin Wagner - Free Book Online

himself, but then raised his hand. ‘Not quite,’ he said.
    ‘Not quite?’
    ‘No, he said goodbye as well. To the women.’
    ‘Right. He said goodbye. I forgot that bit. In a friendly way, I assume?’
    Seppo nodded. ‘We’re getting each of the women to put together a picture of him,’ he said. ‘Independently of each other. Although they all said they didn’t feel able to do that.’
    ‘We’ll see.’
    ‘One of them asked if she had to paint it herself.’
    Westerberg shook his head. ‘I hope you told her that all that is done by software these days.’ He emphasised the word software , but Seppo didn’t seem to get the joke.
    They heard a uniformed police guard at the door telling someone, ‘You can’t come in here.’ Westerberg took several steps into the room and saw a muscleman standing by the lift.
    ‘The conference is cancelled,’ said Seppo.
    ‘Why?’ asked the muscleman.
    ‘Please go to the breakfast lounge on the first floor and you will be interviewed there,’ said Seppo.
    ‘I’ll be what?’ asked the muscleman.
    ‘Please go to the breakfast lounge,’ said Seppo, and the man actually went.
    ‘There,’ said Seppo, who cut a small and slightly built figure, not without pride.
    Breakfast lounge, thought Westerberg.

19
15 September now
It’s evening. Dear diary. Olli spreads the cards and shuffles them vigorously. His eyes sparkle as he tells me to throw the dice. I throw, and move my counter into the first square. Sunset outside. All an illusion that the sun is moving. The outcome of imagination and limited vision. The earth rotates. Olli and I are passing the border between day and night. Olli wins the game.
‘Yes!’ he cries triumphantly. And then, ‘Another game!’
‘Time to get some sleep, don’t you think?’ I say.
‘Another game!’ says Olli.
Leea scurries by like a shadow. Sometimes in one direction, sometimes in another. She is talking on the phone. Her voice is always there, sometimes near, sometimes far. Although I can hear only her and not the person at the other end of the line, that tells me what they’re talking about.
Henna, Leea’s best friend, is having a baby. Her first. Now, at this very minute. She’s in the hospital – another hospital – and has been walking up and down for hours, waiting for her labour pains to get intense enough. When that moment comes the doctor is going to carry out a Caesarian at once.
Kalle, Henna’s husband, is standing in the corridor outside the operating theatre, waiting to be let in and phoning Leea to calm himself down.
But now they are both agitated and in no condition to keep each other calm.
Olli throws the dice and comments on his move in the game.
At forty-two, Henna is quite old for a first-time mother.
The baby will be called Valtteri, always assuming that, as the doctor has told them, it is a boy.
Leea is on the phone, Olli is throwing the dice, Henna is bringing a baby into the world. I find it difficult to keep those events related to each other.
It’s warm in this house.
‘You’re not paying attention,’ says Olli.
‘Sorry.’
‘You’re not playing properly,’ says Olli.
I stroke his head, my hand passing over his hair. I feel how soft it is. Leea says nothing. She puts the phone back on its charger and looks at me.
‘Your turn,’ says Olli.
‘Henna’s baby is coming,’ says Leea.
Kalevi Forsman. Adviser for software solutions.
‘It’s your turn,’ says Olli.
I throw the dice.
A man dies, a boy begins to live.

20
    IN THE NIGHT, Kimmo Joentaa called Police Chief Nurmela. On the TV screen, a scantily clad presenter was in search of animals with the initial A, and Nurmela’s voice seemed to surface from deep sleep.
    ‘Kimmo here,’ said Joentaa.
    ‘Yes . . . Kimmo . . . just a moment . . .’
    ‘Hello?’ said Joentaa.
    ‘Yes . . . is there . . . anything new?’ mumbled Nurmela.
    ‘I have to ask you something about Larissa,’ said Joentaa.
    Nurmela did not reply.
    ‘Hello?’