He returned the book to the bag, pulled on his mittens and leaned back against the sloping stone.

‘Who do you think would be punished most severely by Hege Chin Morell being caught doping?’ he asked, looking her straight in the eye.

He maintained eye contact, something he could never normally do.

‘Jan Morell,’ Selma said, nodding.

‘Who has, in contrast to Hege, of necessity acquired many adversaries, maybe even enemies, while building up a million-kroner company?’

‘Jan Morell.’

‘And who …’

Only now did he look down. In the numerous bags and boxes around him, he knew exactly where to look. He found the same edition of the A-magasinet supplement that he had shown her earlier.

‘Who actually says nothing whatsoever about himself when he is interviewed? In contrast to his daughter that everyone thinks they know all there is to know about?’

An answer wasn’t necessary. Selma pulled off the blanket, which had become so full of static electricity that it had attached itself to her coat. Folding it up neatly, she placed it on a rock.

‘Forget Hege,’ Einar told her. ‘Neither she nor the Federation is affected by sabotaging Hege Morell. It’s the daddy who is the real victim, Mariska. The daughter is young and has loads of possibilities. The father is living out his dreams about skiing through his only child. He suffers most from what has happened. Her dad.’

‘Sleep well,’ Selma said. ‘And thanks. Thank you very much.’

She leaned forward and let him whisper the accustomed words of farewell. In a reassuring voice, she answered as she had done for so many, many years: ‘You did the right thing, Einar. The bastard deserved to die.’

THE MANUSCRIPT

601 INTERIOR, BASEMENT, OSLO, NIGHT-TIME

The MAN is busy building a wall. The basement is spacious and used for storing sports equipment and tools, some wood, spare tyres and a number of cardboard boxes. A gun cabinet is fixed to the outside wall. Ammunition is kept in a smaller cabinet beside a carpenter’s bench, on which sits an old, worn teddy bear. One-eyed and with holes in one foot through which the stuffing is protruding. The MAN has mortar in a big plastic tub. He puts more breezeblocks on the wall, which is nearly complete.

MAN: What do you think, Teddy? Will it work?

The MAN is obviously used to DIY. He handles the trowel and blocks with speed and precision. Portrait pictures of three middle-aged men are hanging above the carpenter’s bench. The MAN pushes the last block on the wall into place. He rubs his hands and goes over to the bear that sits underneath the pictures. Stops and looks at the photos for a while. Suddenly he points at the last of them.

MAN: You’ll get to meet him, Teddy. He’s coming to visit us soon.

The MAN moves his finger to the middle picture.

MAN: This one here will be an easier project.

The MAN shifts his finger to the last picture. Looks at the teddy bear and smiles.