a protected haven into the cruel
world outside.'
'They've fixed it.'
'How do you know?'
'I checked.' He smiled. 'This afternoon.'
'Have they replaced the whole fence?'
'It looks like it.'
'Looks? Aren't you any more worried than that?'
'I rang the lady in charge, but I couldn't get through.'
'Well I'm going to get through.'
She marched over to the telephone and rang one of
the numbers on a Post-it note stuck to the refrigerator.
Angela bit his knuckle when she felt that he was as
close as she was. He heard a spring complaining in the
mattress underneath them, a noise that could in fact
have come from Lofty on the landing, but he didn't
think of that until afterwards.
They lay still in the silence.
'Could you get me some water, please?' she asked
eventually.
He got up and went to the kitchen. Rain was pattering
on the window overlooking the courtyard. The wall
clock showed a quarter past midnight. He poured out
a glass of water for Angela, and opened a Hof for himself.
'You won't be able to sleep now,' she said as he drank
the beer on the edge of the bed.
'Who said anything about sleeping?'
'I can't come and go as I please like you,' she said.
'I have strict working hours.'
'I can be creative any time of day or night,' he said.
She took a drink of water and put the glass down
on the wooden floor, which seemed to gleam in the glow
coming in from the street lighting outside. A bus could
be heard driving past, tyres on water. Then another
vehicle. No ambulance at the moment, thank the Lord.
A voice perhaps, but it could also have been a bird,
hoarse from having stayed too long in the north.
That thought triggered another: have we stayed here
for too long? Isn't it time we moved out of this stone
city?
She looked at him. I haven't taken it up with him
again. Perhaps that's because I no longer want to move
away myself. You can lead a good life in Gothenburg.
We are not country-dwellers. Elsa isn't complaining.
She's even made friends with somebody on the same
landing. The fence round the day nursery has been
mended. We can always rent a house in the country for
the summer.
She looked again at Erik, who seemed to be lost in
thought. Things between us are better now than they
used to be, a year or so ago. I didn't know for certain
then. I didn't know for certain for some time. I don't
think he knew for certain either.
We could have been in different worlds, or however
you put it. I could have been in heaven, and Erik here
on earth. I think I'd have gone to heaven. I'm not sure
about him. Ha!
I've forgotten about most of the experience. It was
bad luck.
She thought about what had happened during the
months before Elsa was born. When she had been
kidnapped by a murderer. How she had been kept in
his flat. What thoughts had gone through her mind.
I don't think he ever intended to hurt me.
Things are different now. It's good. This is a good
time to be on earth. A good place.
She heard another noise from the street down below,
a brittle sort of noise.
'A penny for your thoughts,' she said to Erik, who
was still sitting in the same position with an introspective
look on his face, which she could make out even
in the half-light.
He looked at her.
'Nothing,' he said.
'I was thinking that we have it pretty good, you and
me,' she said.
'Hmm.'
'Is that all you have to say?'
'Hmm.'
She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him, and he
ducked.
'Elsa will wake up if we start a fight,' he said, putting
down his bottle of beer and throwing his pillow, which
thudded into the wall behind her and knocked a magazine
off her bedside table.
'Try this for size,' she said, hurling his pillow back
at him. He saw it coming.
'We actually found a little decomposing pile of newspapers
outside the entrance,' said Bergenhem, the first
time he'd spoken at the day's morning prayers. 'It was
underneath an even more unpleasant pile of leaves.'
'How come you didn't find it earlier?' asked Halders.
'We weren't looking, of course,' said
world outside.'
'They've fixed it.'
'How do you know?'
'I checked.' He smiled. 'This afternoon.'
'Have they replaced the whole fence?'
'It looks like it.'
'Looks? Aren't you any more worried than that?'
'I rang the lady in charge, but I couldn't get through.'
'Well I'm going to get through.'
She marched over to the telephone and rang one of
the numbers on a Post-it note stuck to the refrigerator.
Angela bit his knuckle when she felt that he was as
close as she was. He heard a spring complaining in the
mattress underneath them, a noise that could in fact
have come from Lofty on the landing, but he didn't
think of that until afterwards.
They lay still in the silence.
'Could you get me some water, please?' she asked
eventually.
He got up and went to the kitchen. Rain was pattering
on the window overlooking the courtyard. The wall
clock showed a quarter past midnight. He poured out
a glass of water for Angela, and opened a Hof for himself.
'You won't be able to sleep now,' she said as he drank
the beer on the edge of the bed.
'Who said anything about sleeping?'
'I can't come and go as I please like you,' she said.
'I have strict working hours.'
'I can be creative any time of day or night,' he said.
She took a drink of water and put the glass down
on the wooden floor, which seemed to gleam in the glow
coming in from the street lighting outside. A bus could
be heard driving past, tyres on water. Then another
vehicle. No ambulance at the moment, thank the Lord.
A voice perhaps, but it could also have been a bird,
hoarse from having stayed too long in the north.
That thought triggered another: have we stayed here
for too long? Isn't it time we moved out of this stone
city?
She looked at him. I haven't taken it up with him
again. Perhaps that's because I no longer want to move
away myself. You can lead a good life in Gothenburg.
We are not country-dwellers. Elsa isn't complaining.
She's even made friends with somebody on the same
landing. The fence round the day nursery has been
mended. We can always rent a house in the country for
the summer.
She looked again at Erik, who seemed to be lost in
thought. Things between us are better now than they
used to be, a year or so ago. I didn't know for certain
then. I didn't know for certain for some time. I don't
think he knew for certain either.
We could have been in different worlds, or however
you put it. I could have been in heaven, and Erik here
on earth. I think I'd have gone to heaven. I'm not sure
about him. Ha!
I've forgotten about most of the experience. It was
bad luck.
She thought about what had happened during the
months before Elsa was born. When she had been
kidnapped by a murderer. How she had been kept in
his flat. What thoughts had gone through her mind.
I don't think he ever intended to hurt me.
Things are different now. It's good. This is a good
time to be on earth. A good place.
She heard another noise from the street down below,
a brittle sort of noise.
'A penny for your thoughts,' she said to Erik, who
was still sitting in the same position with an introspective
look on his face, which she could make out even
in the half-light.
He looked at her.
'Nothing,' he said.
'I was thinking that we have it pretty good, you and
me,' she said.
'Hmm.'
'Is that all you have to say?'
'Hmm.'
She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him, and he
ducked.
'Elsa will wake up if we start a fight,' he said, putting
down his bottle of beer and throwing his pillow, which
thudded into the wall behind her and knocked a magazine
off her bedside table.
'Try this for size,' she said, hurling his pillow back
at him. He saw it coming.
'We actually found a little decomposing pile of newspapers
outside the entrance,' said Bergenhem, the first
time he'd spoken at the day's morning prayers. 'It was
underneath an even more unpleasant pile of leaves.'
'How come you didn't find it earlier?' asked Halders.
'We weren't looking, of course,' said
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