Page 224 of The Sleepwalker
The night one of the victims was slaughtered at the campsite, she had taken a sleeping pill and was out for the count. And on the day of the murder at the tennis club, Bernard had headed into the city for dinner with his Czech publisher.
Agneta doesn’t want to believe this. It makes no sense. Why has he been talking about writing a book with her? Why has he been trying to help the police?
In order to gain access to the case and remain one step ahead, she thinks.
‘Do you think Hugo will agree to any more hypnosis?’ Bernard asks, making a strange swooping movement with onearm.
‘No, he .?.?.’
The flame flickers, causing shadows to dance across the wall.
Agneta looks down and realises that the elastic band with the little silver clasp is still lying on the desk.
‘You don’t think so?’
‘I’m not sure,’ she replies, looking away. ‘It made him so anxious, both during the session and after, but .?.?. but he also wants to help the police. And you, with the book.’
‘Maybe I should have a chat with him,’ Bernard says with an unfamiliar softness to his voice.
‘Mmm, maybe.’
Agneta can hear her blood pounding in her ears as she reaches for her notepad, scribbles something in it and then puts it down on top of the elastic band.
‘Just to tell him that he’s done enough, that he shouldn’t feel like he has to do any more,’ Bernard continues. ‘That he’s already gone above and beyond.’
Every one of Agneta’s senses is on high alert, and from the slight twitch beneath Bernard’s eye she realises she must be acting strangely. She needs to continue the conversation as she would have prior to her terrible discovery.
‘Yes, he has,’ she says, struggling to keep her voice steady. ‘But .?.?. I mean, heisa key figure in the investigation, whether he likes it or not.’
‘From our point of view, and the book’s, it would be incredible if Hugo’s testimony helped stop the killer.’
‘It’ll be great either way,’ she says softly.
Agneta meets Bernard’s eye. She has no idea whether he noticed the elastic band on the desk before she hid it.
‘The best thing would be if we managed to find the killer before the police,’ he says.
‘True .?.?. but I don’t think that’s something we should beaiming for .?.?. We should just help them as best we can.’
‘So what are you thinking? Who is our killer?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘But what does your gut tell you?’ he asks, lifting her notepad slightly.
‘Nothing .?.?. yet,’ she replies.
He is toying with her, she thinks. She needs to get away.
‘It’s just that I’ve had the sense you’re getting close to solving the puzzle,’ he says, looking her straight in the eye.
‘There are still far too many missing pieces for that, I think,’ she says, trying to make herself smile.
‘Who knows?’ he says, dropping the book.
Agneta might not have the full picture, but she knows that Bernard is involved in the awful murders.
Perhaps he acted alone.
