Im very sleepy. I
I feel very sorry for you, she says in total seriousness.
Axel shakes his head.
I just need to sleep, he says. All at once, he feels as if hell burst into tears.
He stands up again and picks out a nightgown in pink cotton.
Please, Beverly, why dont you wear this one?
Sure, if you want me to.
She pauses to look at a large oil painting by Ernst Billgren. A fox is wearing clothes and sitting in an armchair in some upper-middle-class home.
I hate that picture, she says.
You do?
She nods and starts to undress.
Cant you change in the bathroom? he asks.
She shrugs and as she pulls off her pink top, Axel moves away so that he wont see her nude. He walks over to the painting of the fox, looks at it, then takes it down to set it, facedown, on the floor.
Axels sleep is stiff and heavy, his jaw clenched. Hes held the girl very tightly. Suddenly he startles awake and lets her go. He sucks in air like a drowning man. Hes sweating and his heart is pounding from fear. He turns on the lamp on the nightstand. Beverly sleeps as relaxed as a child, mouth open and a little sheen on her forehead. Axel starts to think about Carl Palmcrona again. The last time theyd met, they mingled with the nobility at a meeting in Riddarhuset. Palmcrona had been drunk and aggressive. Hed gone on and on about the UN weapon embargoes and finished his tirade with those strange words: If everything goes to hell, Ill pull an Algernon so I wont reap my nightmare.
Axel turns off the lamp and lies down again while he tries to understand what Palmcrona meant by saying pull an Algernon. What was he talking about? What kind of nightmare was he thinking about? And did he really say that strange I wont reap my nightmare?
What had happened to Carl-Fredrik Algernon? It was a mystery in Sweden. Up until his death, Algernon had been the military-equipment inspector for the Foreign Office. One January day hed had a meeting with the CEO of Nobel Industries, Anders Carlberg. Hed told Carlberg that their investigation had turned up information that one of the members of the conglomerate had smuggled weapons to countries in the Persian Gulf. Later that same day, Carl-Fredrik Algernon had fallen in front of a subway train in Central Station in Stockholm.
Axels thoughts slip away and become increasingly blurred, circulating around accusations of arms smuggling and bribery concerning the Bofors Corporation. He sees a man in a trench coat falling backward in front of an oncoming train.
The man falls slowly, his coattails flapping.
Beverlys soft breathing catches him up, calms him, and he turns toward her to wrap his arms around her again.
She sighs as he pulls her closer to him.
Sleep comes to him in the softness of a cloud. His thoughts fade away.
For the rest of the night, he still sleeps restlessly and wakes again at five in the morning. Hes been holding on so tightly to Beverly, his arms are cramped. Her stubbly hair tickles his lips. He wishes desperately that he could take his sleeping pills instead.
42
At seven in the morning, Axel walks out onto the terrace he shares with his brother. He has that eight oclock meeting with Jorgen Grunlicht in Carl Palmcronas old office at the National Inspectorate of Strategic Products.
The air is already warm but not yet humid. His younger brother, Robert, has opened the French doors to his apartment and come out to sit on a lounge chair. Robert hasnt shaved yet and just lies there with his arms hanging limply. Hes staring up into the chestnut trees foliage, still damp from the morning dew. Hes wearing his worn-out silk bathrobe, the same one their father used to wear every Saturday morning.
Good morning, Robert says.
Axel nods without looking at his brother.
Ive just repaired a Fiorini for Charles Greendirk, Robert says in an attempt at conversation.
Hell be happy, Im sure, Axel says. He sounds down.
Something bothering you?
Yes, a bit, Axel admits. I might be changing jobs.
Well, why not? Robert says, though his thoughts are already elsewhere.
Axel looks at his brothers kind face with its deep wrinkles, and at his bald head. So many things could have been different between them.
Hows your heart? he asks. Still pumping away?
Robert puts his hand on his chest before he answers. Seems to be.
Thats good.
What about your poor old liver?
Axel shrugs and turns back into his apartment.
Were going to play Schubert this evening, his brother calls out.
How nice.
Maybe you could
Robert falls silent and looks at his brother. Then he changes the subject.
That girl in the room upstairs-
Her name is Beverly.
How long is she going to be living here?
I dont know, Axel says. Ive promised her that she can stay until she finds a student apartment.
You always want to rescue birds with broken wings.
Shes not a bird, shes a human being, Axel says.
Axel opens the tall French doors to his own apartment and watches the reflection of his face glide past on the curved glass surfaces as he steps inside. Once behind the curtain, he silently observes his brother. He watches Robert get up from his lounge chair, scratch his stomach, and walk down the stairs from the terrace to the small garden and workshop. As soon as Robert is gone, Axel returns to his room and gently wakes up Beverly, who is still asleep with her mouth wide open.