Chapter 118
Hanna is gripping her gun so tightly that her hand hurts as she makes her way up the last few stairs.
She is moving in a crouched position with her flashlight switched off. It feels safer—with it on she would be a clear target if Erik has changed his mind.
He is afraid and upset, she tells herself. He isn’t going to hurt me.
She tries to cling to those thoughts as she heads for the bar. One stair creaks when she treads on it, and the sound makes her freeze. It seems unnaturally loud in the silence, revealing exactly where she is.
She dare not move in case Erik is hiding in the gloom. Maybe he is lying in wait for her. Maybe she has misjudged his state of mind.
After all, he is a double murderer.
She waits for quite a while, then sets off again.
The smell of gasoline grows increasingly strong the higher up she goes. She stops when she reaches the top step. She can’t see Erik, but she has a strong feeling that she is no longer alone. She senses the presence of another person in the wide loft stretching out before her.
He is there in the darkness, she is sure of it.
Where is he?
Is he going to attack her?
Suddenly a table lamp is switched on in the far corner. Hanna blinks as the light takes her by surprise—then she sees Erik.
He is sitting waiting for her, his shotgun lying across his knees.
The shock now that he is actually right there in front of her is almost overwhelming. And he is armed.
Is he going to shoot her?
But he looks tired, lost. He seems to have aged ten years since their conversation in the foyer at Copperhill a few days ago.
“Hi,” she says slowly. “How are you doing?”
She hides her own gun behind her back so as not to spook him.
He is slumped in a dark-green leather armchair. His eyes are dull; he doesn’t seem aggressive, just resigned, as if the spark within him has died.
Hanna can see that he is holding something in his hand, something small, rectangular, and yellow.
It looks like a lighter.
The sight makes her stomach turn over.
“Don’t come any closer,” Erik says. “Or I’ll set the place on fire.”
His voice is dull, but there is no doubt that he means what he says. He holds up the object so that she can see more clearly. It is indeed an ordinary cheap cigarette lighter. Then she notices the green plastic containers with the caps off at his feet.
The smell of gasoline fills the entire room.
“Get out of here,” Erik says.
Hanna takes a step forward. “Surely we can talk first?”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
She doesn’t know how to interpret his words. Does he mean that Filip is dead, or is he referring to himself?
The adrenaline coursing through her body is making her feel dizzy.
Please don’t let it be too late.
“Where’s Filip?”
Erik waves in the direction of the bar. She can just make out a half staircase, and she thinks she can see a figure slumped on a chair, but she isn’t sure.
“Is he still alive?”
“I think so.”
Erik seems apathetic more than anything, but he is holding the lighter in a firm grip. The yellow plastic reflects the glow of the lamp, shining ominously at her.
So little separates them from disaster.
She can’t tear her gaze away from the lighter. She is breathing too fast, but is finding it difficult to control her body. She is beginning to wheeze; she can’t get enough oxygen into her lungs.
She coughs, playing for time.
What the hell was she thinking? Why did she come running into the hotel on her own instead of letting the SWAT team do their job?
“Let me talk to Filip,” she pleads. “No one needs to die today.”
Erik looks at her sadly.
“Zelda is here,” Hanna says. The dog is her last hope. “She’s waiting for you outside the dining room.”
A glimmer of interest flares in Erik’s eyes. He raises his chin a little, looks at Hanna suspiciously. “You brought Zelda with you?”
At that moment the sound of barking comes from downstairs. She must have heard Erik say her name. She barks loudly and insistently at her master, and when nothing happens she begins to howl.
Hanna realizes that she has to make a choice.
Either she focuses on freeing Filip, or she tries to persuade Erik to come downstairs to see his dog. That means she will be separating him from his victim, which might lead to Filip being saved.
If she makes the wrong decision and Erik becomes so desperate that he uses the lighter, all three of them will die.
She is still holding her gun, but she dare not shoot in the poorly lit room. If she misses, and he gets away with the lighter, everything is lost.
Zelda barks again, and Hanna is counting on the fact that Erik will not start a fire as long as the dog is in the building. He cares more about Zelda than anything else.
He will not sacrifice his dog to the flames.
Hanna prays to God that she is right.