‘After earning his baccalaureate,’ she said, looking down at her hands, ‘ he was all set to start at the University of Nantes in September. But then he…’ her voice faltered, and her eyes grew misty. ‘Then he disappeared.’ She searched Gessen’s face. ‘Just like our father. There one minute, gone the next. As if…’ She dabbed her nose with the handkerchief tucked in her sleeve. ‘Do you believe in fate, Dr Gessen?’

‘I do, actually.’ He leaned forward and looked into her eyes.

‘I still get teary when I think about it. Forty years ago, it was. But the pain is as fresh as if it were yesterday. Odd to think he’d be nearly sixty now if he had lived. No doubt with a lovely family of his own. When Vida hit his teens, the girls swarmed around him like bees. He could have had his pick of any of them, but now we’ll never know what might have been. He’s trapped in time, isn’t he?’ Her eyes sought his. ‘Like any young person cut down too soon. He’ll always be that bright and charismatic boy whose future was snatched away.’

She followed his gaze to the photo album on the table. ‘I dug that out of a box in the cellar when I knew you were coming. The face of an angel, Vida had. Would you like to see some photos?’

38

With his pass from Dr Lindstrom clutched in his hand, Vidor felt a renewed vigour as he strode towards the main gate. His minder for the day out, a scrawny fellow with frizzy hair and spotty skin, followed close behind. If Vidor had a mind to flee, he could easily overpower him. But for the moment he was content to have the man believe he was as meek and obedient as a baby lamb. But once they reached the village, he would allow his instincts to guide him. The anticipation of this microscopic taste of freedom, a twenty-minute trip down the mountain by funicular to the small village in the valley, made his blood tingle.

The skies had cleared, though it was still too chilly and grey for anyone to be out on the grounds where the powdery snow was covered with a layer of ice. The high mountains all around them were cloaked in white and the the valley filled with snow. Pretty enough, he supposed, with its fairytale charm, though the thought of spending the winter here made him uneasy. Trapped in close quarters with the others for months. Cut off from civilisation by endless storms, and forced to fend for themselves like rats in a cage. His house attendant had assured him the clinic was well equipped to survive for weeks at a time with no need for outside assistance. A full larder and a backup generator, with plenty of fuel stored in an outbuilding, could get them through the entire winter, if necessary.