The Quarry

5

‘Are you OK?’ asked Per for the sixth or seventh time.

Jesper nodded.

‘No broken bones?’

‘Nope.’

They were back in the car. Ten metres away, the Audi was disentangling itself from the broken sand box. Per could see that the spoiler was cracked, as was the right headlight.

The Audi swung around and pulled out on to the main road. The driver kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, but the woman beside him caught Per’s eye for a second before looking away. She had a narrow, tense face, and she reminded him of someone. Regina?

He looked at his son again, his arm around his shoulders. Jesper seemed calm, but the muscles at the back of his neck were trembling.

‘No pain anywhere?’

‘Just bruises,’ said Jesper, with a fleeting smile. ‘I threw myself out of the way of the wheels, but it was really close.’

‘It was horribly close... It’s a good job you’re so quick.’

Per’s smile was tense. He removed his arm from his son’s shoulders, placed his hands on the wheel and exhaled. The anger was gone now, but just a few minutes ago he had knocked another man off his feet, and had been quite prepared to punch him. He would have happily thumped just about anybody, to be honest. As if that would make anything better.

It also occurred to him that Jesper had just smiled at him, the first smile for ages. A sign of spring?

He saw the Audi pick up speed, shining traces of blood still showing on the bonnet. It shot off northwards.

The big car made Per think about all the flashy cars his father had driven — a long series of vehicles Jerry had imported from the USA. In the mid-seventies he had driven Cadillacs, switching to a new model almost every year. People had turned their heads when Jerry came roaring along, and he’d loved every minute of it.

‘What was that move?’ asked Jesper.

‘Sorry?’

‘That judo throw?’

Per shook his head and turned the key in the ignition. He had trained in judo for less than two years and had only got as far as an orange belt, but Jesper seemed impressed nevertheless.

‘That wasn’t judo... I just pulled him down, like tripping someone up,’ he said. ‘You could have done that too if you’d carried on training.’

Jesper didn’t answer.

‘Well, you’ve packed it in as well,’ he said eventually.

‘I haven’t got anybody to train with,’ said Per, pulling out of the car park. ‘I’m thinking of taking up running instead.’

He looked out at the flat landscape beyond the road. The ground looked lifeless, but there was a lot going on beneath the surface.

‘Where will you run, Dad?’ asked Jesper.

‘Just about anywhere.’