Last Rituals

CHAPTER 17

"How do you do? My name's Gunnar Gestvik, head of the history department at the university."

He shuffled his feet in front of them, unsure of himself. His clothes looked well made; he was wearing a smart winter coat from a label that Thora recognized from her ex-husband's wardrobe. Beneath it he was dressed in a suit with a loud, carefully knotted tie and light blue shirt collar protruding from it. His whole manner suggested a calm and collected professional man. But at this moment his calm and collectedness were stretched to breaking point. Gunnar had clearly been caught off guard by this encounter and was desperately calculating his next move. Thora knew this was the man who found Harald's body, or, more accurately, had it thrust upon him. Why he should want to visit his former student's apartment was a mystery to her. Maybe part of the process of acceptance, on the advice of a psychiatrist?

"I was in the neighborhood and decided to see if anyone was here," said Gunnar hesitantly.

"Here? At Harald's flat?" Thora asked, surprised.

"Of course I didn't expect to meet him in person," Gunnar said quickly. "I meant whether the caretaker or someone else was here."

Matthew could not understand a word and left the talking to Thorabut the name registered at once. He slipped past her and flashed his eyes to signal that she should invite the man in. He fished the keys out of his pocket and opened the door.

Gunnar watched Matthew with a strange eagerness. "Do you have access to his apartment?" he asked Thora.

"Yes, Matthew's working for Harald's family and I'm representing them too. We're unloading some of his belongings that we fetched from the police. May I invite you in? We'd be pleased to have a quick word with you."

Gunnar could hardly conceal his glee. He gratefully accepted the offer after glancing at his watch and pretending that he could just squeeze in a visit. He followed Thora inside. In spite of his elegant appearance he was not quite the perfect gentlemanat least, he did not offer to help her carry the heavy monitor upstairs.

Gunnar's reaction was similar to Thora's when she had first entered the apartment. Not even bothering to hang up his coat, he walked in a trance into the living room and began studying the objects on the walls. Matthew and Thora took their time, put down their loads and hung up their coats. When Matthew hung his up he removed the leather wallet containing the letters and took it to the bedroom. Thora stayed to keep an eye on Gunnar. She walked over to him and stood by his side, although she could hardly bring herself to interrupt his appreciation of the old works of art on the walls.

"This is a remarkable collection of art," she commented. She tried to recall what Matthew had told her about the paintings but was unsure that she could do it justice, so she decided not to try to show off.

"How did he get hold of all this?" Gunnar asked. "Did he steal it?"

Thora was astonished. How could the man entertain such a notion? "No. He inherited it all from his grandfather." After a moment's hesitation she ventured: "Didn't you like Harald?"

Gunnar was taken aback by the question. "Oh, yes, goodness me. I was extremely fond of him." His tone did not exactly ring true and Gunnar seemed to realize as much. He quickly tried to rectify this. "Harald was an extremely intelligent young man with a good command of history. His approach to his work was exemplary, which is unfortunately becoming rarer these days."

Thora was still not convinced. "So he was a model student?"

Gunnar forced a smile. "You could say that. Of course his appearance and behavior were rather unconventional, but you mustn't judge young people's fashions. I remember the Beatles and the fashions they started. The older generation didn't think much of them at the time. I'm old enough now to realize that the youthful spirit wears many disguises."

Comparing Harald and the Beatles was pushing it, to say the least. "I'd never thought of it that way." She smiled at Gunnar politely. "But of course I never knew him."

"You said you were a lawyer, so what business are you doing for Harald's familydoes it concern the will? The objects on these walls are worth a pretty penny."

"No, it's nothing like that," replied Thora. "We're double-checking the murder investigationthe family is having trouble accepting the police findings."

Gunnar stared at her, his eyes like saucers. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down. "What do you mean? Haven't they caught the murderer, that drug dealer?"

Thora shrugged. "We have reason to believe that he isn't the killer." She noticed that Gunnar, for some reason, wasn't particularly pleased by this news. She added: "It'll all come out in the end. Maybe we're wrongmaybe not."

"It might not be any of my business, but what is there to suggest that this man is innocent? The police seem convinced they've got the right man in custodydo you know something the police don't?"

"We're not concealing information from the police, if that's what you're implying," Thora snapped. "We're simply not satisfied with some of the aspects of their findings."

Gunnar sighed. "Do forgive me for being so pushy; I haven't quite been myself since this happened. To tell you the truth I hoped it was coming to an end. It's been extremely difficult for me personally and it's tarnished the reputation of the department."

"I understand that," said Thora. "But surely it's not right to convict an innocent man to save the department's reputation, is it?"

Realizing the implication of his words, Gunnar spluttered: "No, no, no. Of course not. One tends to put one's own interests first, but naturally there are limits. Please don't misunderstand me."

"So what brought you here anyway?" asked Thora. She wondered what was keeping Matthew.

Gunnar turned away from Thora to examine one of the pictures. "I was hoping to get in touch with someone who is dealing with Harald's affairs. I seem to have found the right person."

"Why?"

"When Harald was murdered he had recentlyhow shall I put ityes, recently borrowed a document from the university, a document that was never returned. I'm looking for it." Gunnar did not take his eyes off the picture.

"What document?" Thora asked. "There are hundreds here."

"It's an old letter to the Bishop of Roskilde from around the year 1500. We borrowed it from Denmark so it's important that it doesn't go astray."

"That sounds quite serious," Thora said. "Why didn't you approach the police about it? They could surely have located the document."

"This has only just come to lightI had no idea about it when I was being interviewed, otherwise I would have asked them to let me have it. By coming here I was hoping to avoid having to go to the police and to solve the problem more simply. I don't particularly want to give another statement. That's an experience I've had too much of already. The document is completely unrelated to the murder, I can promise you that."

"Maybe not," said Thora. "Unfortunately, I haven't come across it. But we haven't gone through all Harald's papers yet. It may well turn up."

Matthew hurried in holding some papers in one hand and sat down on the elegant sofa. With a flamboyant gesture he invited them to do the same. Thora sat in the armchair and Gunnar went to the sofa directly opposite Matthew. Thora described Gunnar's business to Matthew, who did little more than repeat almost verbatim what she had saidhe had not come across the document, but that didn't necessarily mean it wasn't there. Then he put the papers on the table. He addressed Gunnar in English: "You supervised Harald's research, if I'm not mistaken?"

"Yes and no, sort of," Gunnar said warily in heavily accented English.

"Oh?" snapped Matthew. "Isn't it clear who supervises which students for their dissertations?"

"Yes, yes. Of course," Gunnar said hastily. "He just hadn't got far enough to need supervision by the department staff. That was all I meant. Thorbjorn Olafsson had agreed to it. I watched from the sidelines, so to speak."

"I see. But I presume he presented an outline or idea for his theme, didn't he?"

"Oh, yes. He submitted an abstract, if I remember correctly, right at the beginning of his first term at the department. We examined the topic and broadly approved it. Thorbjorn followed it up. It was in his field."

"What was the dissertation going to be about?" Thora asked.

"A comparison between witch burnings in Iceland and elsewhere in Europe, mainly in what today is Germany. Witches were hunted most passionately there, so to speak. Harald had previously researched witch burnings, in connection with his dissertation at the University of Munich."

Matthew nodded thoughtfully. "Am I right in believing that the Icelandic witch hunts took place in the seventeenth century?"

"Yes. Actually, there are records of convictions for sorcery before that time, but the witch hunts proper only commenced in the seventeenth century. The first known burning was in 1625."

"That's what I thought," said Matthew, looking puzzled. He spread out the papers he had put down on the table. "I find it odd how little there is in Harald's papers about Icelandic witches being burned, and I can't understand his fascination with events from a much earlier period. Maybe you could enlighten me; you might be aware of a historical context that escapes us."

"What events are you referring to?" asked Gunnar as he reached over to look at the papers, which were photocopied articles from academic journals.

While Gunnar read, Matthew reeled them off: "An eruption in Mount Hekla in 1510, epidemics in Denmark around 1500, the Reformation in 1550, caves of Irish monks in Iceland before the proper settlement, and more of that nature. I can't see a direct connection, but then I'm not a historian."

Gunnar kept reading. When he had digested the subjects of all the papers he finally spoke: "They don't all necessarily have to be directly connected with his dissertation topic. Harald could have obtained these articles for another course he was enrolled in. Actually, the age of settlement is my specialist field and Harald did not attend my classes, which might have explained the article on Irish monks. But I would still conclude that these documents are connected with courses he took alongside his dissertation."

Matthew regarded Gunnar intently. "No, that's not the point. Most of these are from a file labeled Malleusyou're presumably familiar with that name." Matthew pointed to the holes in the margins of the pages. "My conclusion was that he had collected all this in connection with witchcraft, somehow."

"Yes, I know the namecouldn't he simply have put it all in an old file and not got round to relabeling it?"

"Certainly," said Matthew. "But somehow I don't think he did."

Gunnar looked back at the papers. "I must confess it's not immediately apparent. My initial guess would be the link with the Reformationin a sense that was the precedent for witch hunts, just as in much of Europe. Religion began to change and these developments provoked a kind of spiritual crisis. Regarding the eruption and the epidemics, Harald could have been looking into the connection between the persecutions and the prevailing economic landscape. Natural catastrophes and diseases had a great impact on the economy in those days. Still, other eruptions, such as Hekla in 1636, and other epidemics much closer in time to the witch hunts would have been a more normal avenue of inquiry than the subjects of these articles." He tapped the papers on the desk.

"So he never mentioned this to you or Thorbjorn when you met to discuss his dissertation?" asked Thora.

"Not to me. Thorbjorn made no mention of it either after he met with Harald on his own," Gunnar said, then added: "As I told you, Harald was still developing his dissertation. His focus seemed to shiftapparently he even implied to Thorbjorn that he was more interested in the impact of the Reformation than in witch burnings, but nothing had been decided when he was murdered."

"Is that normal?" Thora asked. "Changing his mind like that?"

Gunnar nodded. "Yes, it's very common. Students start off zealously, then discover the topic isn't as exciting as they originally thought and choose a new one. We even have a long list of interesting research topics to let students choose from when they're stuck for ideas."

"Considering Harald's interest in witchcraft in general," Matthew said, gesturing at the artwork on the walls, "which he'd fostered from an early age, I doubt that the Reformation would have pushed it all out of his mind."

"Harald was a Catholic, as you undoubtedly know," Gunnar said, and Thora and Matthew nodded dutifully. "One of the main aspects of Lutheranism that fascinated him was the general decline in living standards in Iceland around 1550, especially among the poorest sections of the population. The Catholic Church had kept all its property and wealth in Iceland, but with the Reformation this all passed into the hands of the king of Denmark and the country became poorer as a result. Likewise, the Catholic Church acted as an almsgiver, providing food and shelter to those in greatest need. That was cut off with the switch to Lutheranism. Harald thought that was worth looking into because the Catholic Church is seldom seen in that light. He was also impressed that priests and bishops in Iceland were allowed to take mistresses and have children by themthis wasn't tolerated in other Catholic sees in Europe at that time, and still isn't, in fact."

Matthew seemed unconvinced. "Yes, maybe. But could it be that his meetings with Thorbjorn weren't very detailedperhaps Harald was cooking something up in his research that Thorbjorn, and presumably you, knew nothing about?"

"I wouldn't know about that, obviously," Gunnar replied. "But I didn't get that from my contact with him, at least. That's all I know. Of course he could have examined all kinds of topics without my knowledgeI didn't follow his every move, nor was I supposed to. M.A. students decide most things for themselves and work very independently. But I recommend that you discuss this with Thorbjorn if you want more information. I can arrange a meeting if you like."

Matthew looked at Thora, who nodded assent. "Yes, thank you, we'll accept that," he said. "As soon as you find out when Thorbjorn's free, you can give me a call. Also if anything occurs to you that might be important." He handed Gunnar his card.

Thora produced her card from her bag as well, handing it to Gunnar. "We'll see if the letter you're looking for is among the papers we have."

"I would appreciate thatit's rather embarrassing for the university and I'd prefer not to have to declare the letter lost. Unfortunately I don't have a card on me but you can usually get hold of me by just phoning my office." He stood up.

"About Harald's friends," said Matthew. "Can you put them in touch with us? We'd like to have a few words with the ones who knew him best; maybe they could shed light on what Harald was up to. We tried to contact some of them this morning, but none of them want to talk to us."

"You presumably mean the young people in that society of his," Gunnar said. "Yes, I should be able to. The society is based at our department so I bump into them from time to time. Actually I was hoping that society would fold without Harald. I didn't consider it a great credit to the university and certainly saw no reason to support them by providing facilities. But I don't control everything myself so I'm stuck with the decision. I can arrange a meeting with the two students who are at our department. They should be able to put you in touch with others that Harald associated with."

"That would be much appreciated." Thora smiled gratefully at him. "Why do you think the society is so awful?"

Gunnar seemed to mull over his reply. "There was a minor incident about six months back. I was and still am convinced that it had something to do with that society, but I can't prove it. Unfortunately."

"What happened?" asked Matthew.

"I don't know whether I should say much about it," Gunnar said, clearly wishing he hadn't mentioned it. "It was hushed up and not reported through the proper channels."

"What?" said Matthew and Thora in unison.

Gunnar hesitated. "We found a finger."

"A finger?" Matthew and Thora spoke together again, this time in shock.

"Yes, one of the cleaners found a finger outside their staff room. I can still hear that poor woman howling. The finger was sent for tests at the university's forensic science department and it turned out to belong to an old persona proper sex test wasn't done, but it was probably male. It was gangrenous."

"Were the police notified?" Thora asked, astounded.

Gunnar blushed. "I wish I could say they were, but after our own investigation into the origin of the finger and the reason for its being on our premises, we felt it was inappropriate to notify themsuch a long time after it was found, you know. It was the start of the summer break, as well."

Thora did not think the summer break was much of an excuse. Maybe they ought to be thankful that no one was on maternity leave when Harald's body was found. Or that the history department hadn't decided to investigate the murder itself. "Well, well."

"So what did you do with the finger?" asked Matthew.

"Um, weerthrew it away," Gunnar mumbled. His blush spread up his cheeks and across his scalp. "It was definitely not connected with the murder so there seemed no reason to bring up this dreadful business with the police. They had plenty of other things to think about."

"Well, well," Thora repeated. Fingers, eyes, a letter about severed earswhat next?