Read Online The Double Silence (Andas Knutas 7) by Mari Jungstedt - Free Book Online

glass carafe. Almost every centimetre of the table surface was occupied.
    From the gramophone came the gentle tones of Bob Dylan as Andrea reached for a piece of freshly baked bread. The inn was so original and so different from the settings she was used to that she found herself letting go of her need to control everything and actually started to relax. While she filled her plate, she glanced around at the others seated at the table.
    Across from her sat Håkan, Stina’s husband, for whom she’d always harboured particularly warm feelings. He was so endearing, in a subdued sort of way, and his love for Stina was plain to see.
    Stina looked small next to her imposing husband. She was so feminine with her petite figure, and her black shiny hair was pulled into a topknotwith a girlish pink ribbon. She was dressed in a blouse and skirt. Always attired in ladylike way; always pretty even without make-up. Stina didn’t have to make much of an effort to look good. At the same time she seemed so fragile, like a tiny delicate bird. She was eating slowly, with discreet little movements. She generally ate only meagre portions, and she had a habit of moving the food around on her plate before putting anything in her mouth. The various items would change places with each other several times as she poked and stirred the bits of food every which way before finally deciding to take a bite. And then she would study the food on her fork from different angles before she cautiously put it in her mouth.
    Sam used to complain about how odd she was. Her finicky eating habits drove him crazy, but Andrea had persuaded him not to say anything. He could just look the other way.
    Soon after they met, Andrea and Stina had started going for walks together to get some exercise, and eventually the walks had become an essential part of their daily routines. That was when they talked about their problems, gossiped about the neighbours, exchanged advice and tips about everything from home decorating to child rearing. But lately Stina had cancelled or declined to come along when invited, offering all sorts of excuses. Andrea couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed. Something was different about her friend, but she didn’t know what was wrong. She was hoping they’d have a chance to talk during this holiday trip. She missed their long, intimate conversations.
    Next to Stina sat John. He was ten years younger than Beata. They had been the last of the group to move into the development. John was originally from San Diego in California. He and Beata had met in New York when she was working there as a model. John had come into the bar where she and her colleagues hung out every night, and they had started up a romance that ended with him following her back to Sweden. They now had three children, and everything had gone well for them. John had quickly adapted to life in Sweden. He ran a bar in Visby, and he spoke good Swedish, although with a strong American accent. Sometimes he just didn’t feel like making the effort and would switch to English. He was nice in a slightly affected way, bordering on pretentious, in Andrea’sopinion. It was hard to figure him out. They spent a good deal of time together, of course, and talked about all sorts of things, but it was difficult to know where he stood on many issues.
    Beata, on the other hand, was very easy to read – frequently too easy. She suffered from a constant need for attention, which could be terribly annoying. And she was always talking about sex, which was also tiresome. But there were plenty of good sides to her, so Andrea tried to be tolerant. Beata just needed to be seen, as Sam said every time Andrea complained about her friend’s behaviour. He ignored Beata’s innuendos. Everyone in the group was used to them. It was a different matter when they had big parties with new arrivals who weren’t aware of Beata’s idiosyncrasies. She often ended up sitting on the lap of some new neighbour’s poor