Mikkel Birkegaard - The Library of Shadows

'They must have had some reason for killing him,' said Pau. 'You said it yourself, Kortmann. The murderer is a receiver.'

'They deny any involvement,' replied Kortmann. 'In spite of the split, we occasionally communicate with the receivers. It used to be done through Luca. Now we're trying to set up a more official means of communication. Right after Luca's death their leader rang me up and assured me that they had nothing to do with the murder.'

'The whole thing stinks to high heaven,' exclaimed Pau. 'I bet they're the ones behind all of it. So who's going to be the next one to be assassinated? You? Me? We should do something before it's too late.'

'Before you start launching an attack,' said Jon calmly, 'shouldn't you rule out that Luca's death was actually from natural causes?'

'We've certainly had doubts,' admitted Kortmann. 'Until tonight. The attack on Libri di Luca has absolutely convinced me that someone wants to destroy us. But your scepticism pleases me, Jon. You'll need it for the task that we're about to give you.'

'Task?' said Jon uncertainly. Images of himself tossing Molotov cocktails at shop windows popped into his mind. Strangely enough, the situation seemed less repellent than he might have expected, as if the circumstances surrounding Luca's death had stirred up something inside him.

'What sort of task did you have in mind?'

'The receivers deny all knowledge of this, but they've agreed to an investigation. Just as we have no idea whether there might be a traitor among us, they're in the same situation. For that reason, both parties are interested in an impartial investigation, carried out by an outsider – an individual who isn't influenced by the milieu, so to speak. You're that person, Jon.'

Jon stared in astonishment at the man in the wheelchair.

'How am I supposed to…' he began without finishing the sentence.

'You're the perfect choice, Jon. The goodwill felt towards your father will help you with both groups. You're still not involved enough in the Society to take sides, and as a barrister you must be used to a certain degree of detective work.'

'But when it comes to Luca's death, you might say that I am anything but impartial,' Jon countered.

'I should think it gives you even more motivation to find the murderer, thereal murderer.'

It was hard for Jon to find an argument against this. His immediate reaction was that he didn't want anything to do with the matter. He should sell the bookshop as quickly as possible, then forget all about Lectors and get on with his own life. He already had plenty of tasks on his desk. Finally a clear career opportunity had presented itself in the form of the Remer case, but on the other hand it took all his time except when he was sleeping. His inbox was full.

And yet he had a feeling that this was his last chance to find some real answers. Maybe the investigation of Luca's death would provide him with the explanation he'd been lacking for so many years: why his father hadn't wanted anything to do with him after his mother's death. As he sat there surrounded by books in the inner sanctum of the Bibliophile Society, bombarded by conspiracy theories, it occurred to him that it was all connected – Luca's death, his own life, and everything that had happened to him over the past twenty years – they were all pieces in a puzzle which until now he'd been too young to put together. 'For ages thirty-three and older,' it might say on the box.

'I'd have no idea even where to start,' Jon objected after no one said a word for a while.

'First you have to meet the rest of the Bibliophile Society members,' said Kortmann. 'Both the transmitters and the receivers. Perhaps the receiver you brought along can be of use. Apparently she enjoyed Luca's trust, so use her if you can. It's possible that she can arrange something with the receivers. After that you can work out a strategy, assuming that they accept you.'

'He'll probably need a bodyguard, don't you think?' suggested Pau, pointing both thumbs at himself. 'Like me, for instance?'

'As I said before,' explained Kortmann with poorly concealed annoyance in his voice, 'it's important for both sides to have faith in the person or persons who undertake this investigation. They have to be as impartial as possible, and we can't exactly accuse you of that.'

'Okay, okay,' said Pau, disappointed. 'Just trying to help.'

'Besides, there's another obvious qualification that Jon possesses, unlike yourself. Jon is not an active Lector.'

Pau shrugged.

'There's no doubt that you have potential,' said Kortmann, turning to Jon. 'But at the moment your powers are dormant. It would be an advantage to keep them that way until the investigation is completed. The people you're going to deal with need to be certain that you're not manipulating them. The disadvantage, however, is obvious – you won't be able to sense when someone is trying to manipulate you.'

'That makes me feel a lot better,' said Jon, unconvincingly.

'It's not that bad. Your advantage is that you know who you're dealing with. If you stick to a few very simple rules, you shouldn't have any problems.'

'And they are?'

'Don't read anything in the presence of a receiver, and avoid any reading given by a transmitter.'

Jon nodded. 'But I'd still feel more confident if I had someone with me. Call it a bodyguard or a guide. As a stranger in this environment, I could use some guidance on how I should act.'

'I understand,' said Kortmann. 'But the receivers would never accept Pau as an investigator.'

'It wasn't Pau I was thinking of,' said Jon quickly. 'I'd like to take Katherina along.'

Pau sniggered while Kortmann calmly clasped his hands and leaned his chin on them. After giving Jon a long, inquisitive look, he laughed. 'You're truly Luca's son. That's exactly the sort of thing he would have done. All right, have it your way. As long as you realize that there are certain places she can't go, and that some people won't be happy with the arrangement, you're welcome to take her along.' His expression turned serious again. 'So, what do you say?'

Jon shifted his gaze to Pau, who stared back with an offended expression. Kortmann sat with his hands clasped in front of him, regarding Jon expectantly. Again a sense of powerlessness slipped into Jon's mind. It was clear what he had to do, even if he didn't want to. He felt he'd been stripped of the right to choose. But what surprised him was that hedid want to do it. The opportunity to find out what had happened in the past countered all sensible arguments about career and unfounded conspiracy theories. Something told him that there had to be a connection between the present events and what had happened twenty years earlier.

Jon sat up straight and threw out his hands.

'Okay, when do we start?'

Even though it was dark, Katherina could see that something was different about the two men as they came walking towards her. Jon came first, taking resolute strides, while Pau scuffed along behind him. They'd been gone for an hour. An hour in which Katherina had roamed around the courtyard in front of the house in the autumn chill. The cold hadn't bothered her, but Kortmann's arrogant dismissal had, and she'd been kept warm by her anger and frustration at not knowing what he was going to say, or what version of the story he would choose.

'Well, what did he say?' asked Katherina when they reached the car. Jon didn't say anything, just got in behind the wheel without looking at her. She shifted her gaze to Pau, who scowled back.

'Congratulations,' he muttered. 'You get to be the tour guide for our friend here.' He opened the car door and threw himself onto the back seat, where he crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

Katherina got into the passenger seat. 'What's that all about?'