Page 72 of The Sleepwalker (Joona Linna #10)

Hugo has packed his bag and is standing in the corridor outside Lars Grind’s office. He presses the buzzer and waits, but the little WILLKOMMEN sign remains dark. He knocks and tries the handle instead, but the door is locked.

With a sigh, he takes out his phone and rings the doctor’s private number, but his call goes straight through to voicemail.

Hugo presses the buzzer again, holding it down for longer this time, only taking a step back when he sees Rakia approaching down the corridor.

He thinks back to the video he recorded, the moment when she briefly came into view before injecting him, oddly illuminated and with wide eyes and a grubby plaster on her finger.

‘Can I help you?’ she asks coldly.

‘Do you know where Lars is?’

‘At a meeting with the research centre at the hospital.’

‘Ugh, what the hell .?.?.’

‘Why do you need to see him?’

‘I was going to head home, but I need more zopiclone to tide me over Christmas.’

‘I don’t have the authority to give you any.’

‘Can’t you ring him?’

‘He never answers his phone during meetings.’

‘So when will he be back?’

‘Two at the latest, he said,’ Rakia replies as she walks away.

Hugo walks back down the corridor and pops his head into the day room. There are only two people still inside.

Svanhildur is sitting alone at one of the tables, Kasper at another.

Hugo checks the chalkboard and sees that today’s lunch is roast chicken, fried potatoes and pickled fennel.

Svanhildur has only a mug of coffee in front of her.

He walks over, says hello and puts his rucksack down on the floor.

Kasper is sucking on a chicken bone, and he pulls it out of his mouth and uses it as a kind of pen, drawing on the table in saliva.

Hugo goes over to the buffet table and helps himself to some food, then sits down opposite Svanhildur.

‘You off?’ she asks.

‘Yeah, as soon as Lars gets back. Just need my meds first.’

As ever, Kasper is wearing his washed-out sailor’s uniform and the strange shoes with separate big toes. His face is gaunt. He gives Hugo a flicker of a smile and starts sucking on the bone again.

‘You don’t fancy celebrating Christmas here, then?’ Svanhildur asks.

‘Are you?’ Hugo replies as he starts to eat.

‘Nah.’ She grins. ‘I’ll probably end up going to my sister’s place on the twenty-fourth, but other than that I don’t know. Meeting some friends on the twenty-sixth.’

Hugo looks up at her, taking in her pink lips, pale brows and the scattering of freckles across her face. She cocks an eyebrow, and he realises he is staring, quickly lowering his eyes and coating a piece of potato in gravy.

Kasper lets out a fake-sounding laugh, and when they turn to look at him he pulls the chicken bone from his mouth and points it at Hugo with a smile.

Hugo points back using his index finger, then reaches for the jug of water and pours himself a glass before he continues eating.

‘Are you going to see Olga?’ Svanhildur asks.

‘Nah, it’s over.’

‘Oh, when did that happen?’

‘Just now,’ he replies, fiddling with the coin around his neck.

‘Have the two of you talked?’

‘Nope, she’s stopped replying.’

‘And that means it’s over?’

‘Yeah .?.?. Plus all the money is gone.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I just saw. She’s taken all the money out of the account.’

‘Seriously?’

‘I feel so cheated,’ he says with a smile.

‘You think she’s run off with it?’

‘Yeah, for sure .?.?. She must’ve been planning it all along, and I fell for it.’

‘You should call the police.’

‘Nah.’

Kasper gets up and points his bone at Hugo again. The sleeves of his sailor’s outfit are far too short, the collar dirty.

‘Is there something you want to say?’ Hugo asks him.

Kasper slowly moves closer, pausing right beneath the ceiling lamp to suck on the clean bone. His slicked-back hair gleams in the light, and he has dark circles beneath both eyes and pimples on his chin.

Hugo twists a little fennel onto his fork and spears a wedge of potato.

‘You’re really not going to report it?’ Svanhildur presses him.

‘I mean, it’s not illegal. The money was both of ours.’

‘But she took it.’

‘Yeah.’

Svanhildur chews on her bottom lip and absent-mindedly cracks her fingers before looking up again.

‘So what’re you going to do? You need to go to Canada and find your mum.’

‘I’ll think of something. I can always get a job at—’

He stops talking as the lights go out. Neither he nor Svanhildur has time to react before the power comes back on, the bulbs blinking and the ventilation humming again.

Kasper is now just two metres away from their table, brandishing his bone again.

‘OK, bye,’ Hugo mutters to him, a clear note of irritation in his voice.

‘What’s going on, Kasper?’ Svanhildur asks.

He turns to her, jabs the bone in her direction and bares his teeth.

‘Come on, man. Chill out,’ says Hugo.

Kasper takes a step closer, and the lights flicker again, but this time they stay on.

Hugo leans into Svanhildur and continues talking in a low voice.

‘I don’t know. I’ve started to think maybe I should talk to Dad about the whole Canada plan, that he might want to come along.’

‘That sounds like a great idea.’

Kasper moves forward again. He smiles and holds out the bone, stretching as far as his arm will allow, but he pops it back in his mouth when Hugo gets up.

‘Look, what do you want?’ he snaps.

Hugo doesn’t get any reply, and he sits back down, puts his cutlery onto his plate and turns away from Kasper.

He has just started telling Svanhildur about his mother’s family in Québec when he feels something wet on the back of his neck, and he swears and leaps up.

Turning around, he sees Kasper standing with the moist bone in his hand.

‘Leave me the fuck alone,’ Hugo mutters, keeping his voice low.

Kasper backs away, sucking on the bone. He pulls it out of his mouth and points at Hugo, then goes back over to his own table and starts drawing in saliva again.

Svanhildur is trying not to laugh, and her face has turned red. She turns her coffee cup in her hands before looking up.

‘Maybe we could hang out over Christmas?’ says Hugo.

‘I’d love that.’

‘Cool.’

‘We could open a bank account together,’ she says.