The Fire Witness

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Ларс Кеплер

Год написания книги

2019

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‘What made you think that?’

Tuula shrugs her shoulders and looks back at the television.

‘Did she ever talk about someone called Dennis?’

‘No,’ she smiles.

‘Tuula, I really do need to find Vicky.’

She kicks the bedspread and pink satin duvet onto the floor, then turns back to the television.

‘Am I going to have to sit here all day?’ she asks.

‘No, you can go back to your room if you want,’ the support person says.

‘Sinä olet vain pieni lapsi,’ Joona says in Finnish. You’re only a small child.

‘Ei,’ she replies, and looks him in the eye.

‘You shouldn’t have to live in institutions.’

‘I like it there,’ she says blankly.

‘Nothing bad ever happens to you?’

Her neck flushes and she blinks her white eyelashes.

‘No,’ she says bluntly.

‘Miranda hit you yesterday.’

‘Oh, yeah,’ she mutters, and tries to squeeze the cushion.

‘Why was she angry?’

‘She thought I’d been poking about in her room.’

‘Had you?’

Tuula licks the heart-shaped cushion.

‘Yes, but I didn’t take anything.’

‘Why were you poking about in her room?’

‘I poke about in everyone’s rooms.’

‘Why?’

‘It’s fun,’ she replies.

‘But Miranda thought you’d taken something from her?’

‘Yeah, she was a bit cross …’

‘What did she think you’d taken?’

‘She didn’t say,’ Tuula smiles.

‘What do you think it was?’

‘I don’t know, but it’s usually pills … Lu Chu pushed me down the stairs once when she thought I’d taken her fucking benzos.’

‘And if it wasn’t drugs – what might she have thought you’d taken?’

‘Who cares?’ Tuula sighs. ‘Make-up, jewellery …’

She sits on the edge of the bed again, leans back, and whispers something about a studded necklace.

‘What about Vicky?’ Joona asks. ‘Does Vicky fight as well?’

‘No,’ Tuula smiles again.

‘What does she do, then?’

‘I shouldn’t say, because I don’t know her. I don’t think she’s ever spoken to me, but …’

The girl falls silent and shrugs.

‘Why not?’

‘Don’t know.’

‘But you must have seen her when she’s angry?’

‘She cuts herself, so you don’t …’

Tuula stops and shakes her head.

‘What were you going to say?’

‘That you don’t have to worry about her … she’ll kill herself soon, then you’ll have one less problem,’ Tuula says without looking at Joona.

She stares at her fingers, mutters something to herself, then stands up abruptly and walks out of the room.

39 (#ulink_e457d9c0-b081-5a72-9332-950ae9d403fc)

Caroline, the slightly older girl, comes into the room with the man from Victim Support. She’s wearing a long, baggy T-shirt with a kitten on it. She has a runic tattoo, and the scars of old injections glint white in the crook of her arm.