Ashes to Dust (49 page)

Thóra concurred. ‘My client is
sitting in custody because of her murder, along with the discovery of some
bodies on the Westmann Islands. The nurse, Alda, appears to have had some
interest in Adolf and this particular tattoo. That led me to this girl,
Halldora Dogg. Is there any chance you could explain this to me? I’m in
quite a fix with this case and I’m starting to fear it won’t be
solved, which would be inconvenient for my client.’

Svala clicked her tongue. ‘I
don’t know anything about the tattoo,’ she said. ‘However, I
do know a few things about this nurse and Halldora Dogg.’ She took a deep
breath. ‘Halldora pressed charges against Adolf for rape. He maintains he
didn’t do it, and even though I’ve met a lot of arseholes in cases
like this, who always protest their innocence, I have a feeling he’s
telling the truth. Don’t get me wrong, he’s no angel; far from it.
He’s a nasty piece of work, in fact, but that doesn’t mean
he’s broken the law. Still, everything points towards a guilty verdict,
since the girl is so bloody convincing. On top of that, it seems she was
drugged with contraceptive pills to prevent pregnancy, and a witness has come
forward who says he bought these drugs for Adolf, and not for the first
time
either. It’ll be difficult to get the judge to
believe the purchase was made with good intentions - the man is single.’

‘But how does Alda fit into
this?’ asked Thóra. ‘Did she give him the drugs?’

‘No, no,’ said Svala. ‘She
and Adolf didn’t know each other. She treated Halldora when she finally
checked into the hospital. This Alda was a kind of therapist to her, providing
her with trauma counselling among other things. Alda’s testimony
looks very bad for Adolf. It deflates our argument that the girl’s
credibility is questionable since so much time passed between the alleged rape
and her reporting it. Alda actually gave the police a statement in which she
emphasized how common it was for a rape victim not to come forward immediately.
In other words, she wasn’t the witness I most looked forward to seeing on
the stand.’

‘You got lucky,’ said
Thóra. ‘She won’t be testifying in this case.’

‘No, that’s the problem. She
actually changed her mind suddenly. She got in touch and asked to meet me,
saying she had information that could clear Adolf of the charges.’

‘And what information was that?’

‘I’ll never know,’ said
Svala sadly. ‘She died, or to be precise was murdered, before we were
able to talk. She didn’t want to tell me on the phone, so we’d set
up a meeting for the next day. She was being very mysterious and I didn’t
get much sense out of her, I’m afraid.’

‘What did you ask her?’

‘I was so dumbstruck when she called
that I actually didn’t know how to respond. At first I thought
she’d lost her mind, and I wasn’t even sure if I should speak to
her. Naturally, I tried to get the information out of her, and when that
didn’t work I tried to find out the reason for her change of heart. It was
a complete about-face, because the woman was really quite merciless about Adolf
in her original police statement.
Ruthless, even.’

‘She knew his parents,’ said
Thóra. ‘Maybe she changed her opinion after she realized the rape
suspect was her friends’ son. She even knew him as a child.’

‘If that’s the case, then the
memory of Alda has completely disappeared from Adolf’s mind. He says
he’s never heard of this woman, and would prefer to hear as little as
possible about her.’

‘But he must have been disappointed
that her testimony would never be heard,’ Thóra said. ‘There
was a lot at stake for him.’

‘No,’ said Svala.
‘It’s very strange - he simply shuts down if I try to talk about
Alda or her testimony. I understood from Alda that she had tried repeatedly to
speak to him, but hadn’t been able to persuade him to see her. He
didn’t turn up when they arranged a meeting, and that’s why she
contacted me. That same evening, she was dead.’

Thóra couldn’t work this out.
‘But you’re convinced he didn’t know her? Could it be that
the reason he’s being so stubborn has something to do with an old issue
between them?’

‘No, I’m sure,’ replied
Svala. ‘Maybe his parents knew her, but he didn’t. They’re
both dead, so it’s too late to ask them about it.’

‘Here’s another strange
thing,’ said Thóra. ‘Alda had a copy of the autopsy report
on Adolf’s mother. I don’t know why; I wouldn’t have thought
anyone would be that interested in that kind of information about their
friends or relatives. I understand the woman died because of some kind of
medical malpractice.’

‘What?’ gasped
Svala.
‘She had the autopsy report?’

‘Yes, in her desk at work. The doctors
she worked for had no idea why. At least, she hadn’t discussed the report
with them, even though they could have explained its contents to her.
It’s not easy to understand at all. I had to get help figuring it
out.’

‘You’re telling me,’ said
Svala. ‘Listen: the report is actually the basis of another case
that I’m working on for Adolf. He’s in litigation with the hospital
where his mother died, and among other things, I’ve had to go through
that same report. It was a medical error, as you said. The woman was given
penicillin, but she had a severe allergy. The staff on duty didn’t
realize it when she was admitted.’ Svala thought for a moment before
continuing: ‘But I have to confess, I’m really confused. Why was
this woman so obsessed with Adolf and his business?’

‘I don’t know,’ admitted
Thóra. ‘But I’m starting to think it’s linked to her
murder.’

‘Oh God, no,’ sighed Svala.
‘It’s more than enough having to get involved in two cases for this
man. For God’s sake, don’t add murder.’

Thóra smiled. ‘But what about
this Halldora?’ she asked. ‘Could it be that she knew or had ties
to Alda?’

‘That I don’t know,’ said
Svala. ‘I think she’s a little cow, actually; not all that bright,
and not good-looking at all.

So she’s got very little going for her.
You know, she’s one of those girls who
goes
around with a bare midriff even though she’s not exactly a supermodel.
She doesn’t want to talk to me at all — I’ve tried to reach
her but she always hangs up
.‘

‘She hung up on me, too,’ said
Thóra. ‘When I mentioned the tattoo, she ended the
conversation.’

‘What is it about this tattoo?
There’s been nothing about a tattoo in Adolf’s case.’

‘Alda had a picture of it in her desk
drawer, a tattoo that says Love Sex. We found the tattoo parlour where it was
done, and they told me Halldora Dogg had had it drawn on her back. But
that’s all I know,’ said Thóra. ‘When I asked her
about it, she responded by putting the phone down.’

‘Do you know when it was done?’
asked Svala. ‘This hasn’t been mentioned in any of the files
I’ve seen, and I think I have everything.’

Thóra reached for the piece of paper
on which she’d written the information. ‘The twenty-sixth of
February, 2007,’ she read. ‘The tattoo parlour is called Mirror of
the Soul, if that helps at all.’

‘What?’ said
Svala.
‘What did you say?’

‘Mirror of the Soul,’ repeated
Thóra, surprised at the woman’s interest in the name.

‘No,’ said Svala impatiently.
‘When did she get this tattoo?’ Thóra repeated the date.
‘And it says Love Sex?’ asked Svala, still sounding surprised.

‘Yes,’ answered Thóra.
‘Not exactly a work of art.’

‘Maybe not,’ said Svala,
obviously pleased.
‘But very good news for
Adolf.’

Tuesday 24 July
2007

In front of Thóra sat the man from the
picture in Alda’s desk, Adolf Dadason. He was older than he looked in the
photo, and even better looking. There was something attractive about him, even
though Thóra knew he was a waste of space. Svala hadn’t tried to
make any excuses for his character; she had even offered the opinion that his
behaviour was typical of the kind of man who put his own interests and desires
before everything else. So his charisma didn’t come from his personality,
only from his physical appearance. Adolf was the living incarnation of a
one-night stand, a man who offered sex without emotion. He would no doubt have
prospered in prehistoric times. Thóra could feel herself attracted
to him in a way, but at the same time she pitied him for existing during the
wrong time period. She hastily directed her gaze elsewhere when he suddenly
looked up at her from beneath his heavy brow, as if he knew what she was
thinking. Before she looked away, she saw one corner of his mouth lift in an
ironic smile. She felt as if he were inviting her to go to some out of the way
place and have a quickie before they went any further. Thóra was
relieved when Svala broke the silence.

‘You realize,
Adolf,
that
you owe a great debt to Thóra, and it’s only fair that
you assist her in return. If she hadn’t contacted me, your case would be
hard to win, but now it looks as though we may be able to clear your
name.’ Svala hesitated a moment, but then added: ‘Almost, anyway.
We don’t know how the judge will react to you having drugged the girl
with emergency contraceptives.’

Thóra watched Adolf, whose face
didn’t change as his lawyer spoke. Svala had arranged this meeting at
Thóra’s request, after their phone conversation the night before.
She had been so happy with the information about the date of
Haldóra’s tattoo that Thóra suspected she would have done
even more if Thóra had asked her to. ‘You do understand how
important the tattoo is?’ pressed Svala, when Adolf showed no reaction.

He shrugged his shoulders, looking bored.
‘Yes, yes. It’s all the same to me.’

Svala put her hands on the desk. They were
sitting in her office at the legal firm where she worked. The furniture
appeared to be brand new and very expensive, and even the computer on the table
seemed to be from a different generation to the piece of junk Thóra
used, with its clunky monitor. Freshly brewed espresso fitted perfectly with
the whole image, and it didn’t hurt that it was accompanied by
chocolates. Visitors to Thóra’s firm should be grateful if Bella
had remembered to buy milk for their coffee, or the coffee itself, for
that matter. This was one of the advantages of working for a large legal firm:
decent coffee and better conditions. At the moment Thóra couldn’t
see any disadvantages, although there must have been some. ‘No one goes
and gets a tattoo that reads Sex, much less Love Sex, under forty-eight hours
after they were raped. This strengthens your declaration that the sex with
Halldora Dogg was consensual.’

Adolf sat there silently, expressionless, so
Thóra decided to join in the discussion. ‘It would help me if I
could ask you something about Alda’s role in this,’ she said.
‘As Svala said before, Alda was interested in this tattoo.’

Adolf shifted in his seat. ‘I know
nothing about that woman,’ he said, and glanced out of the window, which
had a wonderful view of the city. ‘She was against me at
first,
and then all of a sudden on my side.’

Svala smiled warily. ‘That’s not
entirely true. She told me she contacted you. You even planned to meet
up.’

‘Yes,’ said Adolf,
then
added after a brief silence: ‘Alda did actually
contact me. But I changed my mind about meeting her.’

‘Do you know why she wanted to talk to
you?’ Thóra asked. ‘She could just as easily have contacted
the police if she only wanted to give them information pertinent to the
case.’

‘No, I don’t know why,’
Adolf replied, still looking out of the window.

‘Didn’t she mention why, when she
called — or did she come to visit you?’ asked Thóra, not
knowing how Alda had contacted the man. When Adolf did not reply, she added:
‘You realize that she knew your parents, don’t you?’

Adolf shifted again in his chair without
saying anything. ‘How about you answer the lady?’ said Svala
testily. ‘These aren’t complicated questions.’

‘I’m not sure I should say
anything about it,’ said Adolf calmly, now looking at his lawyer.
‘It’s not as simple as you think.’ Svala started to say
something, but stopped. ‘As you know, I’m involved in more than one
case right now.’

‘Do you mean the hospital case?’
asked Svala. ‘Are the two cases connected?’

‘No,’ replied Adolf dryly.
‘But I need to speak to you in private before we go any further.’

Thóra did not object. Adolf was
Svala’s client and it was right that his interests had precedence over a
favour for an old university classmate. She nodded consent as Adolf and Svala
left the office together, leaving her with the view. She was happy not to have
had to leave the room, as it would have been awkward to wait outside while they
discussed things. It also gave her space to consider what this meant, and to
try to understand Alda’s connection to the death of Adolf’s mother.
She wanted to ask Adolf if he had any idea why Alda had got hold of his
mother’s autopsy report. Given how long his corridor conversation with
Svala was taking, she was sure he knew the answer. Had Alda also discovered
something that could help Adolf get financial compensation for his
mother’s accidental death? Where could such information have been
found? Had Alda spotted something in the autopsy report that Thóra and
others had overlooked? Thóra had barely been able to get through the
document, so she wouldn’t have been capable of noticing anything unusual.