The girl shifted some boxes out of the way and brought the case over to him.

‘It’s a cloth covering,’ she said. ‘Although it’s a very strong nylon fabric. But the case alone is almost four kilos, so we’re going to return it. Nobody wants a case this big and heavy these days.’

‘I’ll take this one,’ he said, patting it with one hand and extracting his wallet. The girl stared at him in surprise and looked delighted.

‘That’s fantastic,’ she said. ‘That’s one we won’t have to send back. I can give you a thirty percent discount, but without a guarantee.’

‘That’s absolutely fine,’ Grímur told her. ‘And the discount’s even better. Thanks for that.’

The girl tapped keys on the till, and Grímur saw the price appear on the card reader in front of him.

‘I’m paying cash,’ Grímur said, and the girl apologised, starting again and working out the discount, while Grímur sized up both her and the case. As far as he could see, this suitcase was easily large enough for him to fit someone this girl’s size inside it.

150

61

As she hadn’t brought with her enough underwear for anything more than a long weekend, Áróra knew it was again time to do some washing. She bundled her knickers into the bathroom sink at the hotel, added a generous squeeze of the complimentary shampoo and kneaded thoroughly until there was a healthy amount of foam. Then she rinsed each pair under the tap again and again to wash away what seemed endless froth.

Daníel had gone with her to make a statement concerning Ísafold’s disappearance, and somehow the situation seemed to be more real now that it had become part of an official process, recorded in public documents. The weight had gradually lifted from her shoulders as she had sat in the police station at Daníel’s side, but at the same time she had felt a chill as the female police officer sitting opposite them went through her list of questions, and little by little the possible reasons for Ísafold’s disappearance became plain.

The officer asked about depression, whether Ísafold had mentioned being low or had thoughts of suicide; she asked about her relationship with Björn, whether Ísafold could have begun a relationship with someone else, whether she had worked anywhere else after being sacked from the sheltered accommodation centre, what drugs she had used, whether she had recently been drinking more than usual, whether she had been involved in a dispute with anyone, whether anyone held a grudge against her.