One week later, the first time she was allowed out for a walk on her own, she climbed a spruce in the forest as high as she could, tied a rope around her neck.
And jumped into freedom.
Chapter 81
‘I’m so sorry,’ Mia said.
‘Oh, it’s fine. You killed her. And now you’re going to die. It all fits together rather neatly, don’t you think?’
Karen smiled and patted Mia’s hand. She went back to the kitchen and returned with a slice of chocolate cake.
‘Would you like some cake, Mia?’
Mia shook her head.
‘But you have to eat something. It’s really good, I promise. It’s my mother’s recipe.’
Mia glanced sideways at the screen on the table. Marion Munch was lying immobile on the bed in the basement room. Mia saw her stir. Thank God. The little girl was merely asleep. Karen Nylund smiled and ran two fingers across the screen.
‘I look forward to getting her ready. It’s important that children are clean, don’t you think?’
Karen smiled at her. Mia started to feel scared. She had been relatively calm so far, but her terror was taking control of her now. She felt she was in the presence of evil. She had never seen eyes like that before. It was as if the woman in front of her was fully aware of what she was saying and doing and yet was completely devoid of empathy and normal, human emotions.
‘Do you want to know what happens next? Shall we play that game?’ Karen smiled and got up.
‘Can’t we play another game?’ Mia said.
She had to play for time now. For her own sake, but mostly for Marion’s. Her body was aching. She thought about Munch. How he would react if Marion was killed. She couldn’t bear to think of it. It was too unreal.
‘So what do you want to play, then?’ Karen smiled again.
‘Anything,’ Mia said, attempting a smile as well. ‘Perhaps we could talk about Margrete?’
Karen grew more serious now. She frowned and folded her arms across her chest. Mia Krüger tried desperately to read what was going on inside her mind, how this woman was thinking, to find a weakness, but it was impossible to penetrate.
‘Margrete is fine,’ Karen chirped, smiling again now. ‘She goes to school in heaven and has four classmates; soon, she will have five and a teacher.’
‘Classmates?’ Mia said, baffled.
‘Oh yes, they’re about to start school. Haven’t you worked that out?’
Finally, the pieces came together in Mia’s head. ‘I’m travelling alone.’ The satchels. The schoolbooks. The skipping rope. Karen Nylund had some twisted notion of creating a class in heaven where she would be the teacher. That had to be the logic inside the mind of this psychopath. Mia felt a pang of guilt. Why hadn’t she worked this out sooner? If she had, then Marion might not be lying prisoner in a small room in the basement in this house of horrors in the country.
‘She also has a dog,’ Karen continued. ‘A lovely little Alsatian puppy. She loves playing with the puppy. Look how happy she is, Mia, look.’
Karen pointed towards the ceiling and remained standing with a sheepish grin on her face.
‘Mummy is coming soon, Margrete. Not long now.’
Karen winked and blew a kiss towards the sky.
‘Why ten dresses and only five girls?’ Mia tried.
‘What?’ Karen said.
‘You ordered ten dresses, but you’ve only taken five girls?’
‘No girl should have just the one dress, don’t you think? Did you have just the one dress, Mia? Back home in Åsgårdstrand? When you played with little Sigrid?’
Mia bit her lip when she heard Sigrid’s name. She felt the rage tear at her body again, but she managed not to lose her temper.
‘So you’ll stop at five?’ She smiled.
‘Yes.’ Karen nodded pensively as if she was considering whether she should have added more. ‘Best really, small class sizes, so everyone gets a chance to be seen and heard. It’s important, don’t you think, that everyone is seen and heard? Perhaps I should have gone for ten – what do you think? Is five enough?’
‘Oh, absolutely.’ Mia nodded. ‘You’ve done well. I think you’ve done very well.’
‘Do you really?’ Karen frowned.
‘Oh yes, definitely,’ Mia continued. ‘It’s a good idea and a fine plan. Margrete couldn’t go to school alone. I mean, seriously?’
‘Exactly,’ Karen said, sitting down at the table again. ‘It was the least I could do, really.’
‘It was well thought out,’ Mia continued. ‘And incredibly well executed. I mean, we were clueless. You tricked us properly, you’re seriously clever.’
‘Yes, I am, aren’t I?’ Karen smiled and clapped her hands.
‘You’re the smartest person I’ve ever met.’ Mia nodded.
‘I’ve been planning it for such looong time,’ Karen said. ‘Every detail. But in the end it turned out to be so easy, and that’s the worst bit – it was so easy, so easy, you were barking up the wrong tree; it has been a really fun game, don’t you think?’
‘Yes, really fun.’ Mia smiled.
‘And now it’s nearly over. That will be nice.’ Karen sighed. ‘All that needs to happen is that we all die, then we’ll be done.’
‘Yes, that will be good.’ Mia smiled while her thoughts raced around inside her head. ‘Did you say now, Karen? Right now? Who is going to die now?’
‘You first,’ Karen said. ‘Then Marion. No, wait. I haven’t made up my mind yet.’
‘Oh?’ Mia said. ‘I thought you said you had a plan. That’s unlike you.’
‘I know.’ Karen chuckled. ‘But I can’t decide everything, some things depend a little on chance.’
‘Do they? Please tell?’
‘I had a guy who helped me,’ Karen said, sitting down again. ‘Men are idiots, but you know that, don’t you?’
‘Complete idiots.’ Mia smiled.
‘Yes, they are, aren’t they, quite incredibly dense. But this one, he really took the biscuit. He was stupid, very stupid, do you know what I mean?’ Karen laughed.
‘And who was he?’
‘Oh, just some guy, what was his name again, oh yes, William, that was it. He was married, but he fancied me – they do, you know, men are disgusting. He helped rebuild the room. I didn’t want the old room. I wanted a new one.’
‘Because Margrete had lived there?’
‘Yes, it wasn’t nice any more.’
‘I understand.’
‘So he helped rebuild it, and then I thought of something funny.’
‘What?’
Karen could barely contain herself now. She snorted and giggled like a little schoolgirl.
‘We made a film,’ she tittered.
‘A film?’
‘Yes, with his mobile. I laughed so hard afterwards.’
The Kiese film. It was a hoax.
Mia tried to keep a straight face.
‘What kind of film was it?’
‘He pretended to be really terrified.’ Karen laughed. ‘And he gave the wrong coordinates about his location. You know, GPS, the kind of thing they have in cars?’
‘Yes?’
‘He gave the wrong coordinates. Isn’t that funny?’
‘Hilarious,’ Mia said, not quite managing to smile any more. ‘And what coordinates did you give?’ she cleared her throat.
‘Well, that’s the best bit,’ Karen giggled. ‘The coordinates for a house further down the road. Isn’t that brilliant? You did get the film, didn’t you?’
Karen moved very close to her. The unstable woman stroked her face with a cold hand.
‘Don’t think for a moment that you’re pulling the wool over my eyes, Mia. Acting as if we’re friends? Do you think I’m stupid, Mia?’
Mia felt the cold fingers on her eyes and lips.
‘You did get the film, didn’t you? From his wife?’
Mia nodded feebly.
‘I’m not stupid. You know that, Mia. You won’t outwit me. Telling me what you think I want to hear. Why did it take so long for that movie to reach you? To be honest, I thought you would have got it a long time ago.’