Night Shadows by Eva Björg Ægisdóttir

Author:Eva Björg Ægisdóttir
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Orenda Books
Published: 2022-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

‘We’d like to ask you a few questions about the weekend before Marinó died, specifically about Saturday the seventh of September,’ Elma said. They had called Andri into the police station to take his statement. ‘Do you remember what you were doing then?’

‘I was playing in a match,’ Andri answered promptly. ‘In Akureyri.’

‘How did it go?’ Elma asked with a smile.

‘We lost,’ Andri said, without apparent regret.

‘Sorry about that,’ Elma said. ‘I don’t follow football much but I’ve heard you’re pretty good. Aren’t you going to play for some club abroad?’

‘I’m moving to Sweden. Flying out next week.’

‘That’s exciting.’ Elma sensed that Andri was more relaxed now than when he had first come in.

Andri took a sip of water and glanced around him. There wasn’t much to see: the interview room was very plain and nondescript: cream walls, a birch-wood table and chairs. The curtains were drawn and the window was shut, which made it quite hot in there when the sun was shining.

Elma noticed how still Andri was sitting. She was used to interviewees constantly shifting and fidgeting: shuffling their feet, picking at their nails or rhythmically tapping a hand on their thigh. Since the situation was inherently nerve-racking, such reactions were normal. But Andri sat perfectly still, breathing easily, and didn’t seem remotely concerned.

‘You knew Lise, didn’t you?’ Elma asked. ‘What can you tell me about her?’

‘Not much,’ Andri said. ‘Lise was our au pair. She looked after my sisters.’

‘Weren’t you two friends?’

‘Friends? Mum sometimes made me take her along when I was going out, in the hope that she’d get to know some other people. She’d been with us for months but she hardly left the house.’

‘So, when you got home from the match in Akureyri,’ Elma said, ‘you invited Lise along to your friends’ house because your mother asked you to?’

‘Yes. Well, no.’ Andri took another sip of water. ‘I’d introduced her to my friends before. The girls invited her round to Marinó’s that evening, and she got a lift with me.’

‘I see,’ Elma said. ‘How did you get home that night?’

‘I don’t really remember,’ Andri said, seeming awkward for the first time. ‘I, er … I don’t usually drink, but I did then. I got home quite late.’

‘Why were you drinking?’

‘I…’ Andri shrugged. ‘I don’t know.’

‘Did Lise come home with you?’

‘No, she stayed behind at Marinó’s.’

Elma looked at him searchingly. ‘Why? Why didn’t she come back with you?’

‘She fell asleep,’ Andri said, looking down at the table. ‘She got very drunk, you know, so we thought we’d better leave her to sleep it off.’

Elma said nothing for a while, her eyes meeting Sævar’s. It was possible that Andri was telling the truth. They had already questioned him about the evening Marinó died in the fire, but Elma decided to ask him again; get him to repeat his story and see if it was consistent with the first version.

Andri answered all her questions succinctly. On Saturday, 14 September he had not seen Marinó at all; Andri

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