Strange Shores: An Inspector Erlendur Novel by Arnaldur Indridason

Author:Arnaldur Indridason [Indridason, Arnaldur]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Mystery & Detective, Police Procedural, International Mystery & Crime, Thrillers, Suspense, Noir
ISBN: 9781250074737
Amazon: B00IHCYW16
Barnesnoble: B00IHCYW16
Goodreads: 23637509
Publisher: Picador
Published: 2010-11-01T05:00:00+00:00

31

Ezra did not register the question. His thoughts were far away, reliving that fateful graveyard meeting with Jakob and all the repercussions that followed. The encounter could probably never have been avoided, though coincidence had decided the time and place. Until that day it had loomed menacingly, as inevitable as death itself.

Ezra had broken off in mid-sentence. The cat prowled into the kitchen and stared suspiciously at Erlendur before deciding it was safe to climb into its basket.

Erlendur put his question for the third time and was finally rewarded with a reaction. Ezra looked up from his reverie. ‘What did you say?’

‘What happened next?’ asked Erlendur.

‘He invited me round to his house.’

‘Did you go?’

Ezra did not answer.

‘Did you go?’ asked Erlendur again.

‘There was an ugly note in his voice when he said it,’ Ezra continued at last. ‘But then Jakob was an ugly customer. A despicable man.’

* * *

Jakob took out a packet of cigarettes and offered it to Ezra who refused.

‘Still don’t smoke?’ Jakob asked.

‘Never got the hang of it,’ replied Ezra, trying to smile.

‘I buy them from the British. Pall Mall. Bloody good fags. Stjáni’s kicked the bucket – I expect you’ve heard.’

‘Yes, I’d heard. The funeral’s tomorrow, isn’t it?’

‘Yeah. I’ve got to be done here by then. We’re lucky with the weather.’

‘Mm,’ said Ezra, squinting up at the sun. ‘Well, I’d best make tracks.’ He turned with the intention of continuing on his way.

‘Luckier than my darling Matthildur was,’ remarked Jakob.

Ezra froze. ‘What did you say?’

‘It was good to see you,’ said Jakob, with a note of dismissal, but Ezra did not budge.

‘What was that you said about Matthildur?’

It was not his words that gave Ezra pause. They were commonplace, of no special significance. Jakob had every right to express such a sentiment. But it was his tone that made Ezra prick up his ears. It was not difficult to interpret, perhaps because he was alert to every nuance regarding Matthildur, especially where Jakob was concerned. There was no question: Jakob did not even attempt to disguise it. His tone was accusatory.

‘There’s so much I want to get off my chest about Matthildur,’ continued Jakob, with the same note in his voice. ‘I’d like to have talked to you before but I get the feeling you’ve been avoiding me.’

‘No, I haven’t,’ protested Ezra hastily – perhaps too hastily. He wondered if Jakob would pick up on his agitation, his accelerated heartbeat.

‘Well, that’s how it seems. All those times you were off sick. Then you suddenly quit the boat and go and get a job on shore. As if I’d offended you. As if we weren’t mates any more.’

‘You haven’t offended me,’ Ezra assured him. ‘Of course we’re still mates.’

Was Jakob deliberately turning the tables on him? It was Ezra who had done Jakob wrong: he and Matthildur had gone behind Jakob’s back, betrayed his friendship and his trust. Perhaps keeping his distance had been a mistake. It was true he had been steering clear of Jakob. He

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