Quentin Bates - Winterlude

‘Why’s that?’

‘You’re the detective. I’m sure you have a pretty good idea,’ Kjartan said, and his eyes crossed the room to the only picture on display anywhere, a black and white portrait of a boy of ten or eleven, Gunna guessed, grinning at the camera from the pillion of a motorbike while the driver was undoubtedly a younger and happier Kjartan than the impassive, bristle-headed man sitting on a box in front of her, the low winter sunlight slanting through the room’s picture window and glancing off the flat surfaces that he seemed to be made of.

‘You can confirm you weren’t in Reykjavík yesterday, I take it?’

‘I didn’t get back to Reykjavík until five. Four o’clock flight from Akureyri and a taxi home. That’s a perfect alibi, I reckon.’

‘How do you know? Are you aware of when Borgar’s killing took place?’

‘Well, no. Of course not. But it was on the news while we were still steaming home. It was only later I found out it was that bastard getting what he deserved.’

‘You have to understand that anyone who might have had any kind of a grudge against this man could be a suspect.’

‘Except me. I have a perfect alibi,’ he repeated, a hint of satisfaction in his voice. ‘I’ll happily sing and dance and piss on his grave after what he did. I make no apologies for it.’ He paused and Gunna looked into hate-filled black eyes. ‘But I didn’t kill the man.’

Gunna nodded, taken aback by the virulent anger that spilled out of Kjartan’s voice, accompanied by his heavy hands balling unconsciously into fists.

‘You made threats against Borgar Jónsson several times, some of them very specific.’

‘I did. And I stand by them. I’m just sorry that someone beat me to it.’

‘You knew he was out of prison?’

‘I did.’

‘And?’

‘And what? What do you expect me to say? Did you expect me to be waiting outside Litla-Hraun for him as the gate opened? Look, I’ve been away for a while. I’m at sea for two, three weeks at a stretch and this is the first time I’ve been off for more than a couple of days since we went back to sea in September. You get it? I’ve hardly been here. In fact, I’ve deliberately not been here and I’ve been working trips for other people who wanted time off.’

‘Because of Borgar?’

‘Exactly. Because of that piece of filth. I knew that if I were to even see the man I wouldn’t be able to hold back. I was told he was about to be let out, so I decided to make myself scarce,’ he said, the angles of his face sharpening as his loathing became apparent. ‘If I’d seen the man, I’d have killed him. End of story. Except somehow I don’t suppose I’d have been let out with a pat on the back halfway through my sentence to go and live in a luxury hostel.’

‘I understand,’ Gunna said as Kjartan’s mouth opened to speak and he closed it again, his breath coming in sharp bursts.

‘How the fuck can you understand?’ Kjartan replied with scorn in his voice. ‘How can you understand what it’s like to have someone taken away like that? One moment they’re there, the next they’ve been wiped out as if they’d never existed.’

‘You’d be amazed, Kjartan,’ Gunna said softly as a heavy silence followed his outburst. ‘Sometimes it’s best not to make assumptions about people you don’t know. Who told you that Borgar was being released?’

Gunna wondered if Kjartan was wiping tears from his eyes as he kneaded his face with the heels of his hands. ‘My wife told me,’ he said eventually. ‘My ex-wife, considering we went our separate ways after Aron died.’

At the café by the quayside, day was breaking and the chef was banging stainless steel pans into their slots ready for lunch. The place was quiet with the morning coffee break over, as Helgi sipped his drink gratefully and Gunna flicked through her notes.

‘Kjartan Aronsson has an alibi that’s pretty damn fireproof,’ she said morosely.

‘You’re sure?’

‘Absolutely. I phoned the fleet manager at the company he works for. He’s been at sea more or less non-stop since September. His ship docked yesterday and he flew home late afternoon.’

‘Hours after Borgar Jónsson’s body was found,’ Helgi said.

‘And a day after he was murdered. Assuming Borgar was killed the day before his body was found. It could be longer — the hostel had only reported his disappearance on Sunday night. Had he been missing for longer than that? Did you ask Ásrún?’

‘I did. She said he was there for breakfast on Sunday morning and left around nine. He’s been working at a supermarket in Kópavogur these last few weeks, and having that job to go to was what got him out of the nick.’

‘Taking work away from someone else,’ Gunna growled.

‘Depends how you look at it,’ Helgi mused. ‘Borgar wasn’t a hazard to anyone else. It’s not as if he was going to embark on a crime spree. So he’s out of jail and keeping his nose clean instead of occupying a cell needed for someone who could well be dangerous.’

‘That’s a very tolerant viewpoint for a man who’s always been a dyed-in-the-wool Progressive,’ Gunna said with a smile. ‘Not turning into a bleeding-heart leftie, are you?’

‘It’s the kind of opinion you’d expect from a lifelong communist such as yourself,’ Helgi said gently.

‘Communist? What? There have been a few lefties on the side of the family that comes from Ósvík, but it’s not compulsory,’ Gunna retorted. ‘Anyhow, Borgar was alive on Sunday morning, and I’m guessing that the supermarket he was supposed to be working in is your next stop, isn’t it? If we narrow down when he was last seen alive, I’ll see if there’s anything else I can screw out of the neighbours. I want to ask a few questions in the next street and find out if anyone else was aware of any movements. I’m certain Borgar was spending his time there at that unit, considering how it had been swept and dusted upstairs. But the fingerprint results should tell us.’

‘People keep themselves to themselves over there, I reckon. This isn’t like a town where there are people around all the time. Industrial estates like this are a hive of activity from seven in the morning until three or four in the afternoon. After that they’re deserted, and on Sundays. So good luck. If Borgar was about on a Sunday afternoon, I’ll bet you nobody noticed a thing.’

Helgi looked puzzled, frowned and sat back, staring out of the window past Gunna’s shoulder as he absently scratched one ear with a rapid, unconscious movement.

‘What’s bugging you, Helgi?’

‘What?’

‘You’ve been as nervous as a cat all morning and it’s not like you to snap back. What’s bugging you?’

Helgi sucked his teeth briefly and tipped the remainder of his coffee down his throat. ‘Refill?’

Gunna shook her head and Helgi stood up to make his way to the counter, returning with a full mug.

‘It’s those brothers. Kjartan and the rest of them.’

‘What about them? You know one of the younger brothers?’

‘I know them all, but Ingi was the one I knew best. Kjartan’s the eldest and he was long gone from the district when I got to know Ingi and the others. They all wanted to be seamen, and they all gave it a try. But Kjartan’s the only one who stayed with fishing. Össur’s the farmer. Ingi’s a carpenter in Blönduós and Reynir’s an invalid.’

‘How come?’

‘Who knows? But he’s certainly unhinged. Officially he hasn’t worked for years. But I know and everyone else knows that he can drive a tractor as well as anyone, and being on the sick list doesn’t stop him doing a full day’s work when Össur or Ingi need him to help out. Those boys have always stuck together, and I’m just suspicious about this.’