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Authors: Karin Fossum
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away."
"Are there any people of ethnic origin living in Elvestad?" he asked her.
"Two families. One from Vietnam and one from Korea. The Thuans and the Tees. They have lived here for years. Everybody knows them. But it couldn't be any one of them."
"It couldn't?" he said.
"No," she said firmly, and shook her head. "It couldn't be."
She stared again at the meadow. "Imagine that I thought it was a bag of trash."
***
Gunder was still in his chair long after the sun was up. He had fallen asleep in an impossibly awkward position. He jerked awake when the telephone rang, sprang up, and snatched at the handset. It was Bjørnsson from work.
"So, are you working from home today as well?"
"No, no," he said, "it's not that." And he had to support himself against the desk. He had gotten up too quickly.
"Are you unwell?" Bjørnsson said.
Gunder looked at the clock, startled at how late it was. Something was throbbing in his head.
"No. It's my sister," he said. "She's in the hospital. I have to go there now," he went on without actually meaning to because everything in his head was in chaos and he had no idea how to confront this day.
"I'll call and let you know more later."
Then he staggered into the bathroom. Peeled off his clothes. Showered with the door wide open so that he would hear the phone if it rang again. But it did not ring. After a while he called the hospital himself. There was no change. She was still in a coma, but her condition was stable, they said. Nothing is stable anymore, thought Gunder miserably. He could not face eating, but brewed a pot of coffee. Sat in his chair again, waiting. Where had Poona spent the night? Why did she not call? Here he was, like an abandoned dog. He sat by the phone like this for a long time, more asleep than awake. Marie could wake up at any moment and there would be no one by her bedside. Poona might ring any second and say, "I think I'm lost. Please, would you pick me up?" And then her laughter at the other end of the phone, a bit embarrassed perhaps. But time passed and no one phoned. I have to call the police, he thought in despair. But that was as much as to acknowledge that something was wrong. He switched on the radio, but went to his desk and stayed there. He listened while all the misery in the world was quietly summed up on the radio. The volume was low, but he still caught every single word,
without them making any sense to him. When suddenly he raised his head, it was because he heard the name Elvestad. Loud and clear. He got up and walked over to the radio. Turned up the volume. "Woman of ethnic origin. Beaten to death."
Here, in Elvestad? thought Gunder, exasperated. And then an inspector: We don't know the woman's identity. No one has reported her missing. Gunder listened intently. What were they saying?
Woman of ethnic origin. Beaten to death.
He collapsed across the desk, trembling. Just then the shrill ring of the telephone cut savagely through the room, but he did not dare answer it. Everything was swimming before his eyes. Then finally it settled. He tried to straighten his body. Felt stiff and weird. He turned his head and looked at the telephone and it occurred to him that he should ring Marie. He always did when something was wrong. But now he couldn't. He went into the hallway to fetch his car keys. Poona was probably at some hotel in town. The other one, the woman they had referred to on the radio, had nothing to do with him. After all there was so much crime everywhere. He would write a note and stick it on the door, in case she arrived while he was out. My wife Poona. He saw his own face in the mirror and was shocked. His own eyes stared back at him, wide with naked fear. Just then the phone rang again. Of course, that would be her! No, he thought, it's the hospital. Marie's dead. Or perhaps it's Karsten from Hamburg, wanting to know how she is; he is on his way to the airport to catch the first available flight. It was Kalle Moe. Gunder remained
"Are there any people of ethnic origin living in Elvestad?" he asked her.
"Two families. One from Vietnam and one from Korea. The Thuans and the Tees. They have lived here for years. Everybody knows them. But it couldn't be any one of them."
"It couldn't?" he said.
"No," she said firmly, and shook her head. "It couldn't be."
She stared again at the meadow. "Imagine that I thought it was a bag of trash."
***
Gunder was still in his chair long after the sun was up. He had fallen asleep in an impossibly awkward position. He jerked awake when the telephone rang, sprang up, and snatched at the handset. It was Bjørnsson from work.
"So, are you working from home today as well?"
"No, no," he said, "it's not that." And he had to support himself against the desk. He had gotten up too quickly.
"Are you unwell?" Bjørnsson said.
Gunder looked at the clock, startled at how late it was. Something was throbbing in his head.
"No. It's my sister," he said. "She's in the hospital. I have to go there now," he went on without actually meaning to because everything in his head was in chaos and he had no idea how to confront this day.
"I'll call and let you know more later."
Then he staggered into the bathroom. Peeled off his clothes. Showered with the door wide open so that he would hear the phone if it rang again. But it did not ring. After a while he called the hospital himself. There was no change. She was still in a coma, but her condition was stable, they said. Nothing is stable anymore, thought Gunder miserably. He could not face eating, but brewed a pot of coffee. Sat in his chair again, waiting. Where had Poona spent the night? Why did she not call? Here he was, like an abandoned dog. He sat by the phone like this for a long time, more asleep than awake. Marie could wake up at any moment and there would be no one by her bedside. Poona might ring any second and say, "I think I'm lost. Please, would you pick me up?" And then her laughter at the other end of the phone, a bit embarrassed perhaps. But time passed and no one phoned. I have to call the police, he thought in despair. But that was as much as to acknowledge that something was wrong. He switched on the radio, but went to his desk and stayed there. He listened while all the misery in the world was quietly summed up on the radio. The volume was low, but he still caught every single word,
without them making any sense to him. When suddenly he raised his head, it was because he heard the name Elvestad. Loud and clear. He got up and walked over to the radio. Turned up the volume. "Woman of ethnic origin. Beaten to death."
Here, in Elvestad? thought Gunder, exasperated. And then an inspector: We don't know the woman's identity. No one has reported her missing. Gunder listened intently. What were they saying?
Woman of ethnic origin. Beaten to death.
He collapsed across the desk, trembling. Just then the shrill ring of the telephone cut savagely through the room, but he did not dare answer it. Everything was swimming before his eyes. Then finally it settled. He tried to straighten his body. Felt stiff and weird. He turned his head and looked at the telephone and it occurred to him that he should ring Marie. He always did when something was wrong. But now he couldn't. He went into the hallway to fetch his car keys. Poona was probably at some hotel in town. The other one, the woman they had referred to on the radio, had nothing to do with him. After all there was so much crime everywhere. He would write a note and stick it on the door, in case she arrived while he was out. My wife Poona. He saw his own face in the mirror and was shocked. His own eyes stared back at him, wide with naked fear. Just then the phone rang again. Of course, that would be her! No, he thought, it's the hospital. Marie's dead. Or perhaps it's Karsten from Hamburg, wanting to know how she is; he is on his way to the airport to catch the first available flight. It was Kalle Moe. Gunder remained
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