The Darkness Knows

46

The following day, Konrád looked after the twins. As it was a Saturday, this consisted of watching the English football together. Afterwards he took them out for burgers before dropping them off. Húgó tried to persuade him to stay for supper but he made his excuses, saying he wanted to go home. Shortly after that, his sister Beta came by, in rather low spirits.

‘What’s bothering you?’ Konrád asked.

‘Oh, nothing,’ Beta said.

‘Come on, what is it?’

‘I’ve been dreaming about Dad.’

‘Oh?’

‘I don’t like dreaming about him,’ she said. ‘It’s never a good sign.’

‘This time too?’

‘Yes, the dream I had last night was a bad one. You were in it too. You and Dad together. Are you involved in something risky?’

‘You needn’t worry about me, Beta. I promise you.’

‘Dad was standing behind the National Theatre — where they found that girl during the war.’

‘Really?’

‘And there was someone with him who didn’t want to show himself. He was...’

‘What?’

‘There was something sinister about him,’ Beta said. ‘I got the impression he was covered in blood. And even though I couldn’t get a proper glimpse of him, I knew it was you. Are you sure you’re not in some kind of danger?’

‘Absolutely. Don’t worry about me, Beta. Honestly.’

‘Are you planning to do something bad?’

‘Something bad?’

‘Yes.’

‘Beta...’

‘You were hiding in the shadows.’

Konrád shook his head. Beta was staring at him gravely.

‘Are you sure?’ she asked.

‘Of course I’m sure. What am I supposed to do that’s bad?’

‘You don’t know how much of Dad there is in you,’ Beta said, standing up to go.

‘Oh, I assure you I do, Beta,’ Konrád said. ‘I don’t need you to tell me that.’

He woke up to find it was still pitch-dark, turned on the light and went for a pee. This happened once a night and had done for many years. He’d just crawled back into bed and was drifting off, when he unwisely started thinking about what Beta had said about the National Theatre. Although he’d tried not to let it show, the fact was that Beta’s dream had got to him. It had taken a long time for him to relax after her visit and now his old insomnia was back.

Konrád tossed and turned, tense and restless, trying various tricks to find inner peace but without success. Even thinking about Erna, the method he used most often, didn’t work this time. But it was while struggling with his sleeplessness that he finally remembered where he had come across the name Bernhard.

He got out of bed and found the printout Hólmsteinn had given him with the names of the boys who had been roughly contemporary with Sigurvin in the Scouts.

There it was.

Bernhard Skúli Gudmundsson.

After that, all hope of sleep was gone.