Christian Jungersen - The Exception

The phone rings. Camilla’s strange response to the call distracts Malene. Usually so friendly, she seems hesitant and at a loss for words. ‘If I can see it’s from you … yes. I suppose it’s all right if your name is on the back.’

She catches Malene’s eye and makes a face. ‘I see. Then it’s not … If I mustn’t even mention it to Paul, then … yes, but … All right, I’ll do that. Yes, I promise I’ll destroy it. I understand. I’ll get rid of it. Bye for now.’

Baffled, Malene and Iben stare at Camilla. Anne-Lise turns up at the library door.

‘It was Ole,’ Camilla tells them.

‘Really?’

All three of them are astonished.

‘Yes. You see, Ole wrote a letter to Paul, but now he says it’s vital that Paul does not get it. I’m to take the letter from Paul’s in-tray and shred it. I’m not supposed to read it or tell Paul.’

‘It’s the sack!’ Iben blurts out. ‘Ole got the support of the rest of the board for getting rid of Paul and yesterday he wrote the letter of dismissal. But why change his mind today?’

They all agree that it probably means the boot for Paul. Malene tries to figure out the consequences for herself, but has trouble. Possible scenarios tumble around in her mind. She is too tired and weak to think straight. If the tension between herself and Iben reaches some sort of crisis and one of them has to go, Paul will keep Iben. But if Paul has to leave first and Frederik is still deputy chairman of the board, then the chances are he will have Iben kicked out. But if Frederik is no longer on the DCGI board by then and Gunnar has taken his place? Who would Gunnar prefer?

Malene realises that before she arrived, they must also have been discussing the awkward situation of Paul versus Frederik. Anne-Lise says that her husband has a great amount of experience in this because he’s sat on so many corporate boards. In Henrik’s view, Paul’s attempt to eliminate Frederik was such an outrageous manoeuvre that the board have no option other than to get rid of him.

They discuss who should take over as temporary leader of DCGI — Anne-Lise thinks Iben is the one who should be Paul’s long-term replacement. They talk about what Paul would do next and if his departure would increase the likelihood of a merger with Human Rights. And, of course, they have to wonder why Paul seems so calm about everything, and where he has been these last few days.

Malene has many questions but she can’t make herself talk to Iben or Anne-Lise. She can’t bear even to meet Anne-Lise’s eyes ever since Rasmus died. Instead she turns to Camilla. Does she detect something? Something small. Tiny. As if Camilla is trying to avoid Malene’s glance.

This will get worse, Malene thinks. Less than an hour ago, I comforted her when Iben had upset her. But in front of Iben, Camilla knows who is the strongest and has chosen sides accordingly.

Malene hates Iben for this too.

Malene catches a picture of herself in some suburban street back in Kolding, trotting around talking ineptly to groups of acquaintances, just like her mother used to do when Malene still lived at home. Malene is the ghost at the party, unemployed, dressed in some dull old sack of a dress and complaining, as her mother did. ‘It was as if my old colleagues wanted me dead and out of the way. How can people be like that?’

It seems that nothing she has done, or achieved, has helped her to escape from her mother’s shadow — moving to Copenhagen or getting a university degree. And it’s Iben’s fault.

They must get back to work. Malene is determined not to mention Gunnar.

No more than a quarter of an hour later, Malene smiles at Iben and speaks in the old confiding way, as if she has no idea that there’s been a change in their friendship. ‘Iben, Gunnar spent the night with me.’

‘Oh, he did?’ Iben manages to look friendly and curious, as if the previous week hadn’t happened, as if Malene were talking about any man.

She then hurries out into the corridor, towards the toilet. Malene sighs. She relaxes and smiles at Camilla, who looks questioningly at her. Maybe later Malene will feel bad, but maybe not.

Iben returns. She looks paler than usual. A tiny muscle is twitching beneath the blue skin under her right eye. She sits down. They both carry on reading their articles.

After a few minutes Iben speaks. ‘I can’t concentrate with you staring at me like that.’

‘I’m not staring at you.’

‘Yes, you are.’

‘I’m not!’

Iben gets up again. ‘I have a lot to do.’

‘I know that very well.’

‘So far I’ve spent the whole day on Dragan Jelisic. I need to finish the Turkey issue.’

‘I know.’

‘And you’re staring at me.’

‘No, Iben, I’m not.’

‘Look, I’m not trying to punish you or whatever it is you imagine. It’s just that I can’t get anything done when you just sit there and watch me. I assume that you can’t concentrate with me here?’

Iben is right, but Malene doesn’t reply.

‘We’ll both do better if I work somewhere else. I’m going to move to one of the readers’ desks in the library.’

Malene stiffens and almost shouts, ‘You’re going to sit with Anne-Lise?’

‘That’s exactly how I didn’t want you to take it. I’m not … “going to sit with Anne-Lise”. I’m going to sit somewhere you can’t keep staring at me like you’re doing now.’ Iben starts gathering up her papers.

Everything is happening so quickly. Soon the picture of office life will look utterly different.

Malene watches Iben as she marches off with her bundles of paper. She’s no longer prepared to fight to keep their old friendship.

Near the end of the day Malene goes to the toilet.

When she comes back, Camilla has disappeared. Malene stops in the doorway, calling into the empty air: ‘Camilla? … Camilla?’

No one answers.

In the silence Malene’s thoughts move unhindered. Is Camilla in the library? Is she joining the other two in there? Is the idea to exclude Malene?

Malene listens. She hears a murmur of voices coming out of the library but can’t tell whether it’s two or three.

She goes to the middle of the Winter Garden and then stops. The light from the fluorescent tubes reflects off the large shiny leaves of the plants on the window sills. She has looked after these plants for ages. She turns, but no one is standing behind her.

Again, she calls out: ‘Camilla? Where are you? Camilla?’

Once Camilla eavesdropped on two women sitting behind her in the bus. In the middle of their gossip one of them said, ‘You know, she’s one of these women who always picks men who’re bad for her.’ Camilla has forgotten whatever else they were talking about, but that phrase stayed with her.

She met Dragan almost ten years ago, at a party given by Lena, who’s in the choir. Camilla had turned up in the afternoon to help Lena and Simo, her husband, to arrange the furniture, make the salads and set the food out. By seven o’clock, Camilla was eager to start getting ready for the party. She put on a freshly ironed, dark-blue, loose-fitting shirt and an ankle-length skirt in a shade of light brown that matched her hair — clothes that flattered her figure. Lena had noticed that she was getting flustered and told her not to worry. Simo’s friends always came bumbling along at any old time. Simo was an electrician from Yugoslavia, but had moved to Denmark long before the civil war started in his homeland.

Lena was right. Most of the Yugoslavs turned up really late and their behaviour at the party was something of a shock to Camilla. The drinking was much heavier for a start, the dancing was wilder, and the music louder. And all of them seemed to feel that parties were not only for chatting about this and that, but also an outlet for their emotions.