All the lights have been turned off, even in the kitchen and the two bathrooms. Now, the only source of illumination is a couple of dozen large candelabra that set the brick walls aglow. Karen suspects electric lights would reveal things her hosts don’t want her to see. When she was waiting to use the bathroom earlier, the man ahead of her had furtively run his index finger under his nose when he finally emerged. She had suppressed the impulse to run her finger across the closed toilet lid. She doesn’t want to know.

Out in the garden, behind a lit bar, two young men in old sheepskin coats and fingerless gloves are mixing drinks, their breath like clouds. Large infrared heaters are apparently making conditions tolerable out there, because some of the guests are lingering by the bar instead of scurrying back inside with their glasses.

Karen recognises several of them. Some she has bumped into at Kore’s production company, KGB Productions, which he co-owns with the Swedish-Doggerian brothers Gordon and Brynn Englund. Others she knows from newspapers and TV. Musicians for the most part, but also an acting couple, the female half of which recently landed a roll in a big Hollywood production while her partner hasn’t been cast in anything for years. The rising star, surrounded by of a gaggle of admirers, tilts her head back and laughs uproariously. The gossip rags have been speculating about the marriage being on the rocks and, judging by the looks the man is giving his wife, Karen is forced to conclude the rumour must be true.

She walks up to one of the sheepskin-clad bartenders, orders a gin and tonic and turns her back to the bar while she waits. Aylin and Bo are walking toward a dark corner of the garden. He has a very firm grip on her upper arm but removes his hand when he notices Karen watching. They stop and seem to be discussing something. Bo is looking back and forth between the bar and Aylin, who is listening with bowed head. Karen turns her head but continues to watch them out of the corner of her eye. After a few minutes, they walk back toward the house. Bo has put his arm around his wife’s shoulders and smiles when they pass Karen. Aylin looks away.