Lars Kepler - The Hypnotist

She finds a deleted message from Aida: I feel sorry for you, living in a house of lies. The message has a large attachment. Simone feels the pulse at her temples beating faster. Just as she is about to click open the file, there is a tentative knock at the front door. It is almost a scraping sound. She holds her breath, hears another knock, and stands up. Her legs feel weak as she begins to walk down the long passage leading to the hall and the outside door.

Kennet sits in his car outside the entrance to Aida’s apartment in Sundbyberg, pondering the strange threat on Benjamin’s computer:

Nicky says Wailord is angry, and that he has opened his mouth against you.

And Benjamin’s response:

Don’t let him go down to the sea.

Kennet thinks about the number of times in his life when he has both seen and heard fear. He himself knows how fear feels, because none of us walks without it.

The building where Aida lives is quite small, only three storeys. It looks unexpectedly idyllic, old-fashioned and authentic. He looks at the photo Simone gave him. A girl with piercings, her eyes heavily made up with black. He wonders why he finds it difficult to imagine her living in this building, eating at a kitchen table, sleeping in a room where posters of ponies have been replaced by Marilyn Manson.

Kennet gets out of the car and is about to creep over to the balcony he thinks belongs to Aida’s family, but he stops when he catches sight of a tall, shambling figure moving back and forth along the path behind the building.

Suddenly the door opens and Aida comes out. She seems to be in a hurry. She glances over her shoulder, takes a pack of cigarettes out of her bag and shakes one out, tucks it between her lips, and lights it without ever slowing down. Kennet follows her toward s the underground station. He will approach her once he figures out where she’s headed. A bus thunders past, and somewhere a dog starts barking. Kennet suddenly sees the tall figure from behind the building rush toward s Aida. She turns around to face him, but rather than frightened she’s happy; her whole face is smiling, and the pale, powdered cheeks and kohl-rimmed eyes are suddenly childlike. The figure jumps up and down in front of her. She pats him on the cheek, and he responds with a hug. They kiss the tips of each other’s noses, and then Aida waves goodbye. Kennet moves closer, thinking that the tall figure must be her brother. He is standing motionless, watching Aida as she walks away; then he gives a little wave and turns. Kennet sees the boy’s face, soft and open. One eye has a significant squint. Kennet stops beneath a streetlamp and waits. The boy heads toward him with long, heavy strides.

“Hi, Nicky,” says Kennet.

Nicky stops and looks at him with an expression of terror. There is a blob of saliva at both corners of his mouth. “Not allowed,” he says, slowly and uncertainly.

“Sure you are. My name is Kennet, and I’m a police officer. Or, to be more accurate, I’m getting on a bit now and I’ve retired, but that doesn’t change anything, I’m still a police officer.”

The boy smiles in surprise. “Have you got a gun, then?”

Kennet shakes his head. “No,” he lies. “And I haven’t got a police car either.”

The boy’s expression grows serious. “Did they take it away when you got old?”

Kennet nods. “Yep.”

“Are you here to catch the thiefs?” asks Nicky.

“What thieves?”

Nicky tugs at the zip of his jacket. “Sometimes they take things from me,” he says, kicking at the ground.

“Who does?”

Nicky looks at him impatiently. “The thiefs.”

“Right.”

“My hat, my watch, my special stone with the glittery edge.”

“Are you scared of anyone?”

He shakes his head.

“Everybody here is pretty nice, huh?” Kennet asks hesitantly.

The boy puffs out his cheeks, hums, and gazes after Aida.

“My sister is searching for the worst monster.”

Kennet nods in the direction of the newspaper kiosk by the underground station. “Would you like a Coke?”

The boy walks alongside him, chatting away. “I work in the library on Saturdays. I take people’s coats and hang them up in the cloakroom, and they get a ticket with a number on it, thousands of different numbers.”

“Good for you,” says Kennet. He buys two bottles of Coca-Cola.

Nicky looks pleased and asks for an extra straw. Then he drinks, burps, drinks, and burps again.

“What did you mean when you mentioned your sister and a monster?” Kennet asks casually.

Nicky frowns. “It’s that boy. Aida’s boyfriend. Benjamin. She hasn’t seen him today. But before he was really mad, really really mad. Aida cried.”

“Why was Benjamin angry?”

Nicky looks at Kennet in surprise. “Benjamin isn’t angry, he’s nice. He makes Aida happy and she laughs.”

Kennet looks at the tall boy. “So who was angry, Nicky? Who was it that was angry?”

Nicky suddenly looks uneasy. He stares at his drink, searching for something. “I’m not allowed to accept things from- ”

“This is different, remember? I’m a policeman. It’ll be fine this time, I promise,” says Kennet. “Who was angry, Nicky?”

Nicky scratches his throat and wipes the foam from the corners of his mouth. “It’s Wailord- his mouth is this big.” He demonstrates with his arms.

“Wailord?”

“He’s evil.”

“Where’s Aida gone, Nicky?”

The boy’s cheeks quiver as he replies. “She can’t find Benjamin; it’s not good.”

“But where did she go just now?”

Nicky looks as if he’s about to burst into tears as he shakes his head. “No, no, no, I’m not allowed to talk to men I don’t know.”

“Of course you’re not. But, look, Nicky, I’m no ordinary man,” says Kennet, taking out his wallet and finding a photograph of himself in his police uniform.

Nicky looks closely at the picture. Then he says seriously, “Aida is going to see Wailord. She’s afraid he’s bitten Benjamin. Wailord opens his mouth this wide.”

Nicky demonstrates with his arms again, and Kennet tries to keep his voice completely calm as he says, “Do you know where Wailord lives?”

“At the sea.”

“The sea. And how do you get there?”

“I’m not allowed to go to the sea, not even close.”

“I understand that, Nicky. But I can go. How do you get there?”

“On the bus.”

Nicky fishes for something in his pocket, whispering to himself, then looks up at Kennet. “Wailord played a trick on me once when I had to pay,” he says, trying to smile. “He was just joking. They tricked me into eating something you’re not supposed to eat.”

Kennet waits. Nicky blushes and fiddles with his zipper. His finger-nails are dirty.

“What did you eat?” asks Kennet.

The boy’s cheeks quiver violently again. “I didn’t want to,” he replies, and a few tears trickle down his face.

Kennet pats Nicky on the shoulder and tries to keep his voice calm and steady. “You know what it sounds like? It sounds like Wailord is really stupid.”

“Stupid.”

Kennet wonders what Nicky keeps fiddling with in his pocket. “I’m a police officer, you know that, and I say that nobody is allowed to do stupid things to you.”

“You’re too old.”

“But I’m strong.”

Nicky looks more cheerful. “Can I have another Coke?”

“If you want.”

“Yes, please.”

“What have you got in your pocket?” asks Kennet, feigning indifference.