The Library of Shadows

23

'Why don't we use Mehmet?' asked Katherina.

They'd gone out to rent a car, a Suzuki minivan, and then driven home to Katherina's place, where she threw together some clothes. Now they were on their way through rush-hour traffic to Libri di Luca. The vehicle was poorly insulated, and they had to talk loudly to hear each other.

'Couldn't he find out what we want to know?' Katherina wasn't wild about the idea of breaking into Jon's former workplace in order to look for information on Remer.

'I'm sure he could,' replied Jon. 'But it would take him a long time. Unlike Tom Nшrreskov, Remer is a master at covering his tracks. The files will at least give us a starting place. Everything the firm knows about him has been collected there – information about his business empire, his properties, addresses, investments, everything.' He clenched his teeth as he shifted gears with unintentional roughness in the unfamiliar vehicle. 'Besides, I want to keep Mehmet out of this for as long as possible.'

They had spent most of the day exploring Jon's transmitter powers. Even with the rather limited selection of literature in his possession, he had still managed to get a sense of his capabilities. Katherina could tell that he now had his powers under control, but they didn't venture outside unless he said he felt confident. She wanted to train him on some of the charged books from the shop, but didn't want to pressure him too much. It was difficult. She wasn't sure whether it was because she'd fallen in love with Jon or because of his powers in general, but when he read, it was as if an unbreakable barrier surrounded them, shutting out everything else. With the right texts, he would be impossible to withstand, at least for her.

Jon himself was more preoccupied with catching Remer off guard. His expression turned cold whenever he spoke of his former client; he reproached himself for not being more suspicious from the start. In his eagerness to pay Remer back, he had decided to carry out the break-in that very night. Katherina had insisted on coming along, even though she knew she wouldn't be able to help him much.

They parked a short distance away from Libri di Luca and hurried through a cloying drizzle to the bookshop. Even though it was more than an hour past closing time, the door was still open, and Iversen was strolling among the bookcases, humming. He popped into view at the sound of the door.

'Oh, it's you two,' he exclaimed, rushing up to Katherina to give her a warm hug. 'How are things?' he asked, studying Jon intently. 'Any problems with…'

Jon shook his head. 'It's going fine,' he said. 'Though I feel a little like I'm back in school.' He nodded towards Katherina. 'Sitting in front of the stern teacher.'

Iversen laughed and then looked from one to the other. Katherina felt heat rising in her cheeks. The old man smiled approvingly and nodded.

'You're in good hands, Jon. You can be sure of that.'

'We need some books that are more suitable for training,' said Katherina. 'Jon's collection of detective novels doesn't offer much finesse.'

'I can understand that,' said Iversen. 'Let's find some…'

The lights in the shop flickered violently a couple of times, then dimmed, only to return to a normal voltage.

'Oh no,' said Iversen. He went over to the stairs leading to the basement. 'Pau is having a look at the electrical fixtures downstairs. He said he'd done it before, but so far he hasn't accomplished much other than blowing a few fuses.'

Jon and Katherina followed him down to the basement.

'Shit,' yelled Pau from the library.

'Did something happen?' called Iversen.

Pau stuck his head out into the corridor.

'No, I'm okay,' he muttered. 'It's these fucking switches that are giving me a hard time.'

'Maybe you should turn off the power in the meantime,' suggested Jon.

'That won't matter – 220 volts doesn't really hurt.' He nodded to Jon. 'The zap you gave me was worse.'

'Well, it looks like you've managed to fix a few things,' said Iversen, stepping past Pau into the library. The lamps above the bookshelves were on, lighting up the multitude of leather-bound spines with a soft, yellow glow.

'What about you?' said Pau, looking at Jon. 'You okay, or what?'

Jon nodded. 'I feel fine.'

'Have you come to your senses?' asked Pau.

'What do you mean?'

'You know, all that stuff about the Shadow Organization,' said Pau. 'Somebody's got to bring the old man back down to earth.' He pointed over his shoulder at Iversen, who was walking along the shelves, gathering a big stack of books in his arms.

'We're going to get the proof tonight, Pau,' said Jon firmly. 'Then we'll see who comes to his senses.'

'Tonight?' asked Pau with interest. 'Wouldn't you like me to go with you?'

'No, thanks,' replied Jon. 'The fewer people, the better, I think.'

'You sure? I'm good at night exercises,' said Pau, grinning at Katherina.

She sighed. 'I think we can manage on our own, Pau. But thanks anyway.'

'Oh well, I'm probably going to be fiddling with the electricity for most of the night.'

Iversen came out into the hall and handed Katherina a stack of books.

'I'll just get you a couple more,' he said and disappeared back into the library.

Katherina noticed the familiar buzzing sensation emanating from the volumes in her arms. It was a completely different experience from holding a mass-produced book, like the ones they had used back at Jon's flat. These were alive.

'Try to feel it,' she said, holding out the stack to Jon.

He resolutely placed his hand on the top book. His fingertips barely touched the surface before he yanked his hand back in surprise, as if he'd received a shock.

'What the hell?' he exclaimed, rubbing his hand on his thigh.

Pau laughed. 'That will teach you,' he said, laughing even louder.

Katherina ignored him. 'These books are charged,' she explained. 'There's a difference in how powerful they are. Most Lectors can feel the energy just by touching them.' She cast a glance at Pau. 'Others have to stick their fingers in an electrical outlet to achieve the same sensation.'

Pau's eyes flashed, but he didn't say a word. He turned round to go back to his work.

'Did it hurt?' asked Katherina.

'No,' replied Jon. 'I was just surprised. It felt like static electricity.'

Iversen appeared with more books, which he handed to Jon. Jon hesitantly took them.

'You can always borrow more,' said Iversen. 'But these will be a good start. There's a little of everything, with varying degrees of power.' He gave Jon a wink. 'But I think we'll save the more powerful ones for a while.'

'Good idea,' said Jon. 'At least I need to be able to hold on to them.'

Upstairs they put the books on the counter, and Katherina told Iversen about the progress they'd made so far with Jon's training.

Iversen nodded pensively. 'Every transmitter has his own way of perceiving his powers,' he said. 'But most have the feeling they have some sort of toolbox or palette at their disposal, which they can use to influence their listeners.'

'For me, it feels as if I'm standing in front of a big mixing console that has endless ways of being tweaked,' said Jon, with a smile. 'It gives me a real feeling of… power. I think I could get used to this.'

Iversen looked at him intently.

'Be careful,' he warned. 'In the beginning you're only allowed to use your powers on other Lectors, and preferably when Katherina is close by.'

Jon nodded.

'Many people are tempted to overdo it the first couple of times,' Iversen went on. 'In your case, it could be downright dangerous, but even for an ordinary transmitter it can have unfortunate consequences. Aside from the emotional effects the text may evoke, the listeners can get headaches or feel nauseated if the transmitter doesn't dole out the accentuation carefully, and always in keeping with the message of the text.'

On a few occasions Katherina had witnessed a transmitter who had carried out such distortions, as they were called. It typically happened if an inexperienced transmitter tried to force the message of the text or actually tried to twist the meaning too far from the original intent. Pau had been one of the worst offenders when he first came to Libri di Luca. Since he'd never been trained, he didn't know the strength or limitations of his own powers, and he had distorted most of his readings, out of either ignorance or impatience. Fortunately his powers were limited – a fact he didn't like being reminded of – so not much happened. After a couple of months of instruction under Luca's supervision, Pau was able to get the distortions under control, but he'd never become a particularly skilful transmitter, like Iversen, nor was he nearly as powerful as Jon.

'We're going to get the information on Remer tonight,' Jon told him. 'Can we meet here tomorrow, before you open?' He stacked up the books on the counter and then stuck them under his arm.

'Of course,' said Iversen. 'I'll be here an hour early.' He gave Katherina a hug. 'Be careful,' he whispered in her ear.

The law firm of Hanning, Jensen & Halbech was located on Store Kongensgade in an old building with a majestic facade and a view of the Nyboder district. It was two a.m., but lights were still visible on the floor where the Remer office was located.

'What now?' asked Katherina, both disappointed and relieved at the prospect of having to give up the break-in.

'It could be someone working late,' Jon admitted. 'Or maybe someone forgot to turn off the lights. Or it might be the cleaning staff.' He looked in both directions. At this time of night there was no traffic and only a few windows had lights on. 'Let's find out,' he said.

They crossed the street to the redbrick building. They stopped in front of the heavy oak door, and Jon took another quick look around. Then he took out the key ring with Clever Smurf and unlocked the door.

Silently, and without switching on any lights, they climbed the stairs. At each landing a glass door led to exclusive corporate offices, but the lights were out everywhere until they reached the third floor, which belonged to Jon's former employer.

He peered round the corner through the panes at the reception area, then swore under his breath.

'Anders Hellstrшm is here,' he whispered, letting Katherina see for herself.

Beyond the window was a big, open-plan floor with grey desks and flat-screen monitors at every station. At one of the desks sat a man in his shirtsleeves. He had his back to them, and the desk was covered with ring-binders and piles of documents that threatened to topple to the floor if anyone happened to slam the door too hard.

Katherina concentrated on what the man was reading. She noticed that he was tired – his reading was uneven and unfocused. Images of a bedroom and a comfortable-looking sofa kept popping up in the flow of legal terms, and several times he had to start over on a passage he had just read.

'Where do we have to go?' asked Katherina quietly.

Jon pointed at one of the doors at the very back of the room. There was no way to get there without being seen by the man sitting at the desk. All he had to do was glance up.

'I can distract him,' Katherina suggested.

Jon gave her a look of astonishment but then nodded and selected a key from the key ring.

Katherina again focused on what the lawyer was reading. This time she helped him to concentrate, reinforcing the printed text as she shut out irrelevant images. She sensed the man's feeling of relief and a rising interest in the document lying in front of him. Soon he was so absorbed that she only needed to give him a slight nudge to maintain his focus.

'Now,' she whispered. 'But we have to be very quiet and walk close to the wall.'

Jon nodded and coaxed the key into the lock. The man didn't notice, so they stepped into the room, closing the door behind them. Katherina enhanced the pull of the text even more as they tiptoed along the wall, as she had suggested. Meanwhile, the lawyer kept on reading, paying no attention to anything around him. As they passed the man, Katherina could see his florid face with obvious black circles under narrow eyes fixed on the text. It was apparently a case about a conflict between neighbours, and the documentation he was reading was dry stuff about the homeowners' association's easements and plans.

When they reached the far side of the room, Jon let them into a small office filled with filing cabinets. Only after they had closed and locked the door behind them did they dare speak.

'Whew,' whispered Jon. 'That was certainly effective.'

'In reality he should be thanking us,' said Katherina, smiling. 'He'll never forget what he read here tonight. And hopefully he'll get to bed earlier.'

'I could have used you when I was studying for exams,' said Jon, giving her a wink. 'But he's a good guy, that Anders. So just keep it up.'

Katherina nodded.

Jon began looking through the filing cabinets and studying documents. His scanning of files, summaries, excerpts from reports and rulings in the Remer case got mixed up with Anders Hellstrшm's case, but Katherina muted Jon's reading so she could keep focusing the other lawyer's attention.

There were many filing drawers in the room but Jon seemed to know where to find what they were looking for. He swiftly moved from one cabinet to another, plucking documents from folders.

Maybe he was getting a bit too eager, because suddenly he slammed shut one of the metal drawers with a loud bang.

They both froze, and Katherina noticed that Hellstrшm also stopped reading. She pictured him staring at the door of the room where they were hiding. Holding her breath and closing her eyes, she concentrated exclusively on what was happening inside the main office.

For a couple of seconds she received nothing, but then texts began turning up, words that could be notices on a bulletin board or product names. They appeared in brief flashes, and she tried as best she could to pique his interest in everything he was reading unconsciously. She noticed that he hesitated but also that the little flashes kept changing, new words and sentences showed up, which meant he was either shifting his glance or he was on the move.

Katherina caught Jon's attention and pointed anxiously at the door. Jon nodded and cautiously stepped towards it to switch off the light. The next second the door handle rattled and the door shook. After a moment of silence, they could hear the lawyer mutter to himself outside the door and then move away.

Only when Katherina began receiving images from Hellstrшm reading yet another summary from a general meeting did she whisper to Jon that he could continue his search. The light came on again, and Jon histrionically ran his palm over his forehead.

'That was close,' he whispered, giving her a quick kiss before he went back to looking through the filing cabinets.

After half an hour Katherina noticed that the lawyer outside their door was so tired even she couldn't hold his attention any longer. If she pressed him any harder, he might faint, and he wouldn't wake up until the next day with the worst headache of his life.

'He's almost worn out,' she whispered to Jon.

He nodded and tossed a few more pages onto the stack of documents he'd collected on the desk.

'Are we just going to take them with us?' asked Katherina softly.

'They'll never notice anything's missing,' Jon whispered back. 'This case is so massive that a couple of pages here or there isn't going to make any difference.'

Katherina estimated there were more than five hundred pages in the pile Jon had gathered.

'Besides, he deserves it. I think we have what we need. Let's get out of here.'

Katherina made sure the exhausted lawyer kept his attention fixed on his papers as they left the office and sneaked back through the main room along the wall. Anders Hellstrшm's eyes were staring with obvious strain at the documents, and Katherina and Jon could see that his hands were trembling ever so slightly.

After they had passed him they picked up their pace, moving as fast as they dared across the last section of the office to the door. Jon locked up as Katherina released her hold on the lawyer's attention. She saw his body crumple in his chair, but then with a jolt he straightened up and looked around. He rubbed his eyes, stood up and stretched, at the same time yawning so loudly they could hear it outside the door.

'Sleep tight,' said Jon.

The next morning they arrived at Libri di Luca just as Iversen was unlocking the door.

'How'd it go?' he asked.

'Fine,' replied Jon. 'I think we have what we need.' He held up the plastic bag containing all the documents.

'I don't want to know how you got those,' said Iversen, shaking his head. 'We can sit in the basement. Pau fixed all the lights yesterday.'

They went inside and headed down to the basement. In the library Jon and Iversen divided up the pile of papers. Jon took the ones dealing with Remer's extensive corporate structure while Iversen went through the press clippings and background information dealing with the man himself.

Katherina felt useless as she roamed around among the bookshelves while the others worked. She was receiving their perusal of the documents, but it was mostly lists of companies and personnel, so she quickly lost interest. Instead, like so often before, she used the time to admire the countless books in the library. She never tired of studying all the exquisite illustrations and the workmanship that had gone into each volume. A few books had been so damaged by Jon's activation that they had been unsalvageable, but the quick action of Iversen and Pau had prevented the major disaster that might otherwise have resulted.

Next to the light switch inside the door was a big scorched patch, and charred sections of the carpet bore witness to the violent event several days earlier. There wasn't much chance that anything would go wrong by reading the papers Jon was now looking at, but with his activation in mind, Katherina directed all her attention to what Jon was reading. Everything proceeded without drama. Jon read the lifeless texts without adding any emotion, and judging by the images that occasionally turned up, he wasn't especially focused. Katherina blushed when she discovered some of the images were of herself.

'Stop,' she exclaimed suddenly, pointing at Jon.

The two men looked up at her in surprise.

'What are you reading?' she asked.

Jon looked down at the documents. 'A list of board members at one of Remer's companies. Why?'

'Read the names again,' said Katherina.

Jon looked again at the page and slowly worked his way down the list. About halfway he opened his eyes wide.

'W. Kortmann,' he said in astonishment.