‘I’ve never even had a cat,’ Jack said, overwhelmed by the thought.

‘I suspect a flock of sheep are a lot easier to deal with than a flock of cats,’ Mats said, smiling now.

Jack smiled slightly. ‘I wouldn’t really know.’

Mats handed him a paper. ‘If you choose to sell through us, please fill out this form and email it to me. Or just pop by the office in town. We’re in Haraldsgaten, close by Hotel Saga. Easy to find. Our expenses are clearly marked on the form. You won’t get any nasty surprises from us, I promise.’

Jack took the form. To his relief it was in English. ‘Thank you. Is there anything I should do to make it more interesting for potential buyers?’

‘Tidy up, get rid of personal effects, old furniture that’s not very interesting, all those old magazines and stuff by the walls, and make the place look roomy and light.’

Jack looked around. ‘Do I have to paint the place?’

‘Only if we’re desperate. People who buy places like this are either farmers themselves, and would be more interested in the farmland, or they will be property developers and if that’s the case they will most likely want to build something else. The value is in the land, Jack,’ Mats said.

It was hardly a manor house, Jack thought. ‘Okay.’

‘Also, I’m sure there will be lots of paperwork concerning the business of the farm somewhere. Bank papers, tax forms, those sort of things. If you could gather it up and send it to me, that will give us a much clearer picture of the farm’s value. And you should make a proper inventory list, get that one translated, perhaps, and then let us know as soon as possible.’ Mats put everything else in the backpack.

‘Do I have to do all that before you can give me an indication of the value?’ It sounded like an impossible task.

‘At least before we show the house to anyone. I’ll need your signature on the authorisation form before we talk about all the other things, like registers and so on.’

Mats stood up and handed him the folder. ‘It was really nice meeting you, and I hope we’ll speak again soon. Any questions, feel free to call me any time. My card is in there.’

Jack left the folder on the table and followed him outside.

Mats looked around the yard and smiled. ‘This is a really nice place, Jack. Are you sure you want to sell?’

‘More sure now that I have sheep,’ he replied.

He watched the agent make his way through the gate and shook his head. Sheep. He needed to see this for himself.

On one of the hooks by the door there was a key labelled “båthus”. Close enough. Let’s see what we have, he thought.

***

Ninni ran down the field with Frikk at her heels. The hesjer holding the drying grass were the perfect hiding spot for a dog. Frikk would hide underneath one of them, then jump out and bark at her, being goofy.