The Shadow District Read online

  ‘No, actually,’ Konrád said, ‘I’m not into genealogy. But I do have an interest in old criminal cases and −’

  ‘Criminal cases?’ interrupted Magnús.

  ‘That’s right. One of the cases I’ve been looking into recently dates back to the Second World War.’

  ‘Really? And that’s why you’re here?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Which case?’

  ‘A young woman who worked as a seamstress was found strangled behind the National Theatre in 1944. Her name was Rósamunda. I should think plenty of older people from Reykjavík would remember the incident.’

  ‘It does sound vaguely familiar,’ said the man, frowning slightly.

  ‘May I ask if you’ve received another visitor recently – he’d have come from Reykjavík like me – a man called Stefán?’

  ‘Stefán? No.’

  ‘He used to go by the name of Thorson; he was from the Icelandic settlement in Canada.’

  ‘No, that doesn’t ring any bells.’

  ‘So he didn’t come here to talk to you about the case?’

  ‘No. I’m not acquainted with any Stefán or Thorson. I don’t get many visitors out here. My daughters both live in Australia. They moved there during the recession in the late sixties and can’t be bothered to fly up to the frozen north that often. What … Why would this man have wanted to talk to me?’

  ‘He came over here during the war – he was in the military police and investigated the death of the girl I mentioned.’

  ‘So? I’m not with you. Where do I come in?’

  ‘He was still making enquiries about the case right up until his death a couple of weeks ago. You may have heard about it on the news. A pensioner was found dead in his home under suspicious circumstances. That was Thorson.’

  ‘I’m afraid I don’t follow the news very closely, and I still don’t understand what all this has to do with me.’

  ‘No, of course, I’m sorry; I’ll try and explain. The girl found by the theatre worked for a dressmaker’s in Reykjavík, quite a large enterprise called The Stitch, which had a wide range of customers – from all walks of life, as you might say. Thorson recently stumbled across a new piece of information – namely that the girl had refused to take any deliveries to a certain house in Reykjavík, whose owners were regular customers of the company.’

  ‘Thorson?’ repeated the man, distractedly.

  ‘Is it coming back to you now?’

  ‘He was in the military police, you say?’

  ‘Yes, that’s right. I assume he would have worn a uniform at the time. He was in the Canadian Army, but as far as I can work out he was seconded to the American forces stationed in Reykjavík and served in the military police.’

  Magnús hadn’t offered Konrád a seat, and they were still standing, face to face, by the door.

  ‘Maybe you’d like to sit down?’ suggested Konrád.

  ‘Yes, I must admit I’m a bit tired after my swim,’ said the man, crossing the room to sink into an armchair. ‘What were you saying about the girl? Which house was it she didn’t want to visit?’

  ‘Your parents’ house, as a matter of fact. It seems likely that she had a bad experience when she delivered something there, and after that she refused to go anywhere near the place.’

  The man didn’t seem to grasp the implication. ‘What are you driving at?’ he asked.

  ‘I imagine that to Thorson, all these years later, it must have suggested that she had reason to be afraid of a member of your household.’

  ‘Afraid?’

  ‘Yes. That might explain why she refused to go round there.’

  ‘But why? What would she have been frightened of?’

  ‘I was hoping you’d be able to answer that,’ said Konrád.

  ‘Me? I don’t know what you’re implying. I can’t imagine what she would have had to fear at our house.’

  39

  Towards evening on the day of his formal arrest, Jónatan was escorted back to the same small room, where Flóvent and Thorson were waiting. He had refused to eat, refused to contact any of his friends or relatives or provide Flóvent with their details. He still seemed to be labouring under the illusion that he would be released at any moment. Although Jónatan had declined the services of a lawyer, Flóvent had gone ahead and made arrangements for a legal representative to meet him later that evening. Flóvent started off by trying to put the young man at his ease, before returning to a tougher line of questioning.

  ‘Where do you go birdwatching?’ Flóvent asked once they were seated.

  ‘The Seltjarnarnes Peninsula usually, that’s the most rewarding spot. Or to Skarfaklettur on Videy Sound. Or Nauthólsvík Cove.’

  ‘Do you always take your binoculars along?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Do you see anything other than birds on these trips?’

  ‘Like what?’

  ‘People, for example?’

  ‘Yes, of course. Sometimes.’

  ‘Soldiers?’

  ‘Yes. They’re quite active along the coast.’

  ‘Do you ever come across any women on these trips?’

  ‘I don’t watch them deliberately, if that’s what you’re implying. I don’t spy on people. I don’t use my binoculars for that.’

  ‘You said you didn’t have any views on the Situation, on Icelandic women fraternising with soldiers – walking out with them, marrying them, you know. What are your feelings about that kind of behaviour?’

  ‘I don’t have any feelings, really – I don’t give it much thought.’

  ‘So it doesn’t make you angry?’

  ‘No. It has nothing to do with me. I can’t understand why you’re bringing it up. Of course … of course it’s an odd state of affairs and I know lots of people are unhappy about it, but I don’t give it a moment’s thought. It really doesn’t interest me. So, as I said, I really don’t understand the point of the question.’

  ‘Did you meet Rósamunda on one of your birdwatching trips?’

  ‘I’ve told you over and over again – I never met her.’

  ‘Not long before she died, she told someone that she’d been attacked and raped,’ said Thorson. ‘Her attacker told her to blame it on the huldufólk. Can you imagine why he would have ordered her to give such an outlandish explanation?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘You’ve gone out of your way to study tales of the hidden people. Why on earth do you suppose this man would have brought them up?’

  ‘I haven’t a clue. I didn’t know the girl. I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

  ‘You didn’t know her?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Did you rape her?’

  ‘No. I … you …’

  ‘Did you put pressure on her to get rid of the baby?’

  Jónatan was speechless.

  ‘Did you assault her, then order her to invent some tale about being attacked by the elves or she’d be sorry?’

  ‘No!’

  ‘You used the same method three years ago on Hrund, didn’t you?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘You forced yourself on her, then told her to blame it on the huldufólk.’

  ‘That’s not true.’

  ‘Can you tell us where Hrund is?’ asked Flóvent.

  ‘Where she is?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘How am I supposed to know that? I never touched her.’

  ‘Did you have any contact with her after she claimed she’d been attacked?’

  ‘No. I’ve told you, I barely knew her. I only ran into her a few times at the petrol station.’

  ‘You knew Rósamunda from the dressmaker’s, of course.’

  ‘No, I didn’t.’

  ‘You took your trousers there to be mended.’

  ‘Yes, but I didn’t know anyone there. Lots of people take their trousers to be mended there. I’m not the only one.’

  ‘You could have struck up an acquaintance with her like you did with Hr
und, without anyone else knowing. You trusted the girls to keep quiet.’

  ‘The only one I met was Hrund – we’d chat from time to time, as I’ve told you repeatedly. But I wasn’t acquainted with this Rósamunda at all. Why can’t you get that into your heads? This is all a serious misunderstanding, and while you’re sorting it out, I’d be grateful if you’d let me go home.’

  ‘It would be a great comfort to her family if you could tell us where you think Hrund’s body is,’ said Flóvent.

  ‘Haven’t you been listening to a word I’ve said? I never touched her. Ever. Look, I’ve got to get out of here. I’m not feeling well. You can’t keep me here. I’m finding this whole business terribly upsetting and utterly incomprehensible. It’s incomprehensible that you would even think I’d be capable of harming another person. Killing someone. It’s … I just don’t understand how such an idea could enter your head.’

  ‘Perhaps you should wait for the lawyer,’ said Flóvent. ‘A lawyer would help you understand what will happen next.’

  ‘I don’t want a lawyer. I just want you to stop this. I want to go home. I’m missing my lectures. This is absurd. It’s complete madness.’

  Flóvent now took out the pages he had found in Jónatan’s room and placed them on the table in front of him. Thorson was already familiar with their contents. Jónatan stared at the pages, his face suddenly blank.

  ‘Are these yours?’ asked Flóvent.

  Jónatan didn’t answer.

  ‘Is this your handwriting?’

  ‘Yes,’ said Jónatan. ‘It’s my handwriting. Where did you get them?’

  ‘From your room,’ said Flóvent. ‘Then you know what these pages contain?’

  ‘Of course I do,’ said Jónatan. ‘I’m collecting material for my thesis. You mean you actually took these from my room?’

  ‘This account is taken from old court records, isn’t it?’ said Flóvent.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I looked up the case. You’ve copied it down almost word for word.’

  ‘Of course I have. It’s a source.’

  ‘Would you care to tell us what the trial was about?’

  ‘You ought to know if you’ve read it,’ said Jónatan.

  ‘It’s a rape case,’ said Flóvent.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Involving a young girl and a farm labourer.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘The circumstances of the case were highly unusual, to say the least. And strangely relevant to our present investigation.’

  ‘I wouldn’t know.’

  ‘Would you like me to refresh your memory?’ asked Flóvent.

  ‘Do what you like. What you do is your affair. I want you to let me go. I’ve done nothing wrong. I’m innocent.’

  Flóvent studied Jónatan in silence for a moment, then began to summarise the student’s notes. The court case dated from the early nineteenth century and involved a young woman, a servant on a farm in the south-west of Iceland, who had grown up with stories of the elves; she had even learnt to identify the local rocks and knolls reputed to be their dwelling places. Once she was dispatched on an errand to another farm some distance away, and as she was coming home towards evening she met a labourer from a neighbouring farm. Their paths crossed near a mound where the hidden people were said to dwell. She was already acquainted with the labourer, who had tried to court her in the past, so when he began to make advances, trying to fondle her and saying he wanted to lie with her, she steadfastly rejected him. When she tried to continue on her way, however, the man seized hold of her, intending to have her in spite of her refusal. A violent struggle ensued. She received several wounds to her face and body and her clothes were torn off before eventually he succeeded in forcing himself on her. The labourer then threatened that she’d be sorry if she reported him – saying he could easily kill her – and when she asked how she was to explain the state she was in, he glanced up at the mound and said that she could blame it on the huldufólk. Afterwards the girl went home and did as the man told her. Some believed her while others did not, among them her own mother, who eventually got the truth out of her. In the end the young woman pressed charges against the labourer, who confessed to the crime and duly received his punishment.

  ‘Have I got the story right?’ asked Flóvent when he had finished.

  ‘That’s just one aspect of my research,’ said Jónatan. ‘The various forms folk beliefs can take. It’s the record of a case I found particularly intriguing.’

  ‘So it didn’t give you any ideas?’

  ‘Good God, no. I don’t understand … I don’t know what I’m supposed to say. This is ludicrous.’

  ‘So you didn’t tell Hrund to blame it on the huldufólk like the assailant in the historical case?’

  ‘No,’ said Jónatan. ‘I did nothing of the sort.’

  ‘And you didn’t repeat the whole thing with Rósamunda?’

  ‘No, this is utter nonsense.’

  ‘Are you telling me that the idea didn’t come from this case?’ asked Flóvent, waving the pages at him.

  ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said Jónatan. ‘You’re confusing me. I just want to go home.’

  ‘This is exactly the same kind of incident as the ones we’re investigating,’ said Flóvent, ‘and we find an account of it in your room. Coincidence? Is that what you’re claiming?’

  ‘I don’t know what I’m claiming,’ said Jónatan. ‘I don’t know what’s going on. Nothing you say makes any sense.’

  ‘We’d like to contact your parents,’ said Thorson. ‘Why won’t you tell us how to get in touch with them?’

  ‘Because this has nothing to do with them.’

  ‘They’re bound to be wondering how you are. They might be worrying about you already. Do you write to them regularly?’

  ‘No. I … I don’t want anyone to know I’m in prison.’

  ‘What about your brothers and sisters? Are you in touch with them?’

  ‘I don’t have any brothers or sisters.’

  ‘Are you their only son, then?’

  ‘Their only son, exactly,’ said Jónatan, grinning at some private irony. ‘Will you let me go? Will you stop making these crazy accusations?’

  ‘Why don’t you tell us a bit about yourself?’ said Thorson. ‘Help us understand you better so we can get this over with sooner.’

  ‘What can I possibly say? You turn everything against me. Everything. If I take my trousers to be mended that makes me a dangerous criminal and I’m locked up in prison. What on earth am I supposed to tell you? You both twist everything I say.’

  ‘All right,’ said Flóvent amiably. ‘Have it your way. We’ll track down your parents and get word to them whether you like it or not – before the evening’s over, with any luck. I was hoping you could help speed things up, but have it your own way.’

  Flóvent stood up and summoned the prison guard who came and escorted Jónatan back to his cell at the end of the corridor. They heard the heavy door clang shut just as they were stepping out onto Skólavördustígur. They stood beneath the glass lantern that shone over the prison entrance, discussing their next move. A faint mist of snow was settling on the streets and houses, making the paving stones slippery underfoot.

  ‘He’s going to be a tough nut to crack,’ remarked Thorson.

  ‘Perhaps because he knows he’s in a tight spot,’ said Flóvent, watching three army jeeps drive past.

  He had noticed the ships massing in the harbour mouth, the increased activity among the armed forces. It was all part of the build-up to the long-awaited invasion. If the Allies managed to get a foothold on the Continent and the German retreat continued on the Eastern Front, the end of the hostilities couldn’t be far off. The war might be over in a year or so. The day couldn’t come soon enough as far as Flóvent was concerned: not only would it ease the appalling suffering in Europe and around the world, but there was a chance that Icelandic society might possibly revert to its familiar, pre-wa
r state. But that was wishful thinking. The longer the war dragged on, the more convinced he became that nothing would ever be the same again.

  Thorson seemed to read Flóvent’s mind as he watched the jeeps receding from view.

  ‘The troop movements have begun,’ he said.

  ‘The beginning of the end?’

  ‘Hopefully.’

  ‘Will you be going?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Do you know when?’

  ‘In a couple of days. I received my orders this morning.’

  ‘Will you take part in the fighting?’

  ‘I expect so.’

  ‘Not a very pleasant thought.’

  ‘No, it isn’t.’

  ‘The Germans will put up a hell of a fight.’

  ‘Yes. Though they don’t know where we’ll be landing. Nobody knows. So we …’

  ‘You’ll have the advantage of surprise.’

  ‘That’s the idea.’

  ‘Any plans for what you’ll do after the war?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘I suppose talking about it feels like tempting fate?’

  Thorson shrugged with apparent indifference.

  ‘That’s understandable,’ said Flóvent. ‘I imagine it’s … going to be tough.’

  ‘They’re expecting heavy casualties over the first few days, at the very least. While we’re establishing a bridgehead.’

  ‘Is there any way you can avoid going?’

  ‘Avoid it?’ said Thorson, gazing up into the haze of tiny snowflakes. ‘I asked to be sent.’

  40

  They heard the door of the prison opening behind them.

  ‘Ah, I thought you were still here,’ said the guard who had escorted Jónatan to his cell. ‘He wants to talk to you. Shall I bring him back to the interview room?’

  Flóvent and Thorson exchanged glances.

  ‘What does he want?’ asked Flóvent.

  ‘I don’t know,’ said the guard. ‘He’s got something he wants to say to you. He asked if you’d left already.’

  ‘All right, go and get him then,’ said Flóvent.

  They waited in the interview room without sitting down or removing their coats. Soon Jónatan was brought in and took a seat at the table.