Chapter 61
Amir gives Hanna a dirty look when he walks into the study a few minutes later. He stops by the dark-gray built-in bookcase, and Hanna gestures toward the armchair under the window.
She has brought in an extra chair and placed it next to the desk, so the three of them are seated in a triangle. She has her pen and notepad at the ready.
“Good afternoon,” Daniel begins. “We have a few more questions about what happened on Saturday, if that’s okay?”
Amir makes a small movement with his head as if to show that it is indeed okay, although all three of them know he doesn’t have a choice.
“What do you want to know?” His voice is hoarse. Is he coming down with a cold, or is the tension affecting his vocal cords?
“We believe you and Filippa were among the last members of the group to be in the living room on Saturday evening,” Hanna says.
“Pontus was there too.”
The answer is lightning fast, almost like a reflex. Is Amir trying to hide behind his friend?
Does he need an alibi to prove his innocence?
“Yes, but as we understand it, Pontus had fallen asleep, so he doesn’t count.”
“But he was there,” Amir says stubbornly.
Daniel steps in. “What we’re actually wondering is what happened between you and Filippa during the evening?”
“What do you mean?”
“Everyone has told us that the two of you spent the whole time making out,” Hanna says. “Did she go with you to your room?”
“No, I went to bed on my own.”
Hanna sighs to herself. Not him as well.
Are all the boys going to deny that they had sex with Filippa?
If so, they have a problem.
“We know that Filippa had sex with someone in the hours before she died,” she continues. “We’re assuming it was you, since several witnesses have stated that the two of you were kissing on the sofa.”
Amir shakes his head vigorously. “That’s not true! Well, okay, we were making out a little bit, but I didn’t sleep with her!”
Hanna can see that Daniel is getting irritated too. His fingers are drumming on the desk, and his expression is icy as he looks at Amir.
“In that case please explain why we should believe you. Bearing in mind what your friends have told us.”
“Filippa was way too drunk. She was starting to be hard work.” He runs a nervous hand through his dark hair.
“I mean . . . I know she liked me, and that she wanted to go to bed with me, but she’s not really my type.
Plus she’d really made a fool of herself when that old guy came over, pulling up her camisole and showing him her breasts.
” He leans forward, as if he is seeking their approval. “Who does something like that?”
The way Amir is talking about Filippa bothers Hanna. He sounds way too pompous and self-satisfied. Who gave him the right to decide how Filippa ought to behave?
Can you hear yourself? she would like to say to him. Show some respect. We’re talking about a young woman who came to ?re just a couple of days ago, full of optimism and the joy of life. Now she’s lying dead in the morgue.
But it wouldn’t help at all if she started lecturing Amir. However, she is beginning to see why Olivia has a problem with him.
“So Filippa didn’t accompany you to your room, and the two of you didn’t have sex on Saturday?” she says sweetly.
“No, I’ve told you. I went up to bed in the loft. On my own.” He gives her a defiant look. The dislike appears to be mutual.
“And what did Filippa do then?” Daniel asks.
“She stayed on the sofa, with Pontus opposite her.”
“Pontus, who didn’t see a thing because he’d fallen asleep.” Hanna points out.
“No, yes, I guess he had.”
“You guess he had?”
Amir sighs. “He was asleep.”
Hanna has had enough. “So he can’t confirm what you say. That you went up to your room alone, without Filippa, because she stayed in the living room.”
“Presumably not.”
Silence. They are getting nowhere. Hanna searches for a follow-up question, something that might make Amir contradict himself.
But before she can think of anything, she hears the defiance in his voice:
“It’s your problem if you don’t believe me, isn’t it?”