She’s forgotten writing down most of these dreams. She pores over them now like a scholar deciphering ancient text, encountering the hasty cursive of her own hand as though they’re stories written by someone else. Why would anyone dream such violent, chaotic things? Hormones, she thinks, but still – she always held that dreams originated from reality. If you dreamed about something like divorce, it was because somewhere in the depths of your brain you were contemplating it. She hasn’t been contemplating divorce, at least not in any serious way. But yes, she has felt vulnerable after Coco’s birth. Not just the addition of another child – the physical effects left her vulnerable. The construction of a brand new home. Somehow, she understands that building their holiday home here in Norway has mirrored the building of a marriage. Their marriage. She’s been surveying the construction of their own relationship, brick by brick, and with each setback she’s felt as though they too might be as easily broken.

   36   

THE NOTE

Then

He wakes at dawn. The space in the bed beside him is empty, but there is nothing unusual about it. He can hear Gaia murmuring next door, presumably chatting to her mother, who has probably spent another night on the floor beside Gaia’s bed in an attempt to get her to sleep through.

Glorious sunlight fingers its way through the heavy curtains, and he sees the tall spines of the trees. Beyond that, clean blue sky. He sits up in bed and glances at his phone. Just after seven. He’s surprised how much better he feels after talking with Aurelia. Yes, they have wandered together through the ruins of their dreams. Yes, the destruction of Basecamp is one of the worst things he has ever faced. But he feels closer to her than ever. Financially, he’s ruined. His business will suffer. And there’s the logistical matter of the clear-up. Glass, metal, and even plastic is scattered all over the site, probably floating in the fjord, too. So much for his painstaking efforts to save the environment. Cheers, Mother Nature. What a payback.