The Library of Shadows (12 page)

In this way Katherina reconnoitred the library and found several more people strolling about among the books with a purpose other than borrowing reading material. In addition to the man in his forties, there was a couple in their thirties immersed in a discreet conversation at the end of one of the corridors in the stacks, a teenage girl in the comic book area and an Asian-looking man wandering around in the non-fiction section. All of them were directing their attention at something other than what they were reading, and they kept sending searching glances at everyone else.

At closing time the librarian walked around to announce the last call for checking out books. None of the individuals Katherina had noticed responded, but the last library patrons who had actually come to borrow books headed for the check-out counter. Slowly Katherina made her way back to the periodicals room, and she noted that the other remaining people did the same.

Jon was already inside the glass enclosure. He was moving along the far wall, apparently very interested in magazines about fishing. Katherina suppressed the temptation to find out what he was really thinking about.

The librarian had let the last borrower out and locked the front door.

'Now we can get started,' she declared loudly and turned off the lights in the rooms facing the street.

The rest of the participants gradually emerged from the rows of stacks and the reading areas. They nodded to each other with small smiles of acknowledgement and headed for the glass enclosure. One by one they sat down at the tables in the middle, and conversations quickly started up about all sorts of things. The librarian was the last to arrive, but just as she was about to close the door, they heard a loud banging at the front entrance.

'Just a minute,' she said and disappeared again. The conversations stopped and everyone listened to the librarian's footsteps and the rattling of the door. There was a brief exchange of words before they heard the door close again and footsteps approaching.

'Whew, I just made it, didn't I?' said Pau, gasping for breath as he came into the room, his face red.

The librarian carefully shut the door behind her and the last two arrivals sat down. Everyone turned their attention to the man in the wheelchair.

'Welcome,' said Kortmann. The others murmured a greeting in return. 'I'm glad that so many could participate at such short notice. It can be risky to meet in times like these, but recent events have unfortunately made it necessary.' Solemn expressions marked the faces of those around the table.

'Last night Libri di Luca was attacked. Molotov cocktails were thrown at the bookshop, which has suffered significant damage. Iversen is in hospital due to burns and shock. We have Jon to thank that the shop didn't burn to the ground.'

Everyone expressed their approval with subdued whispers and nods towards Jon. Katherina clenched her teeth hard and fixed her eyes on the tabletop in front of her. She had never expected a hero's reception from Kortmann, but he could have at least mentioned that she'd taken part in putting out the fire. Surely the very fact that he was willing to be in the same room with her must mean that he trusted her, so why was he downplaying her role? Maybe he was unaware of how it had all happened. Kortmann had only heard the story from Jon and Pau, and it was impossible to say what version they had told him. She looked over at Jon, who didn't bat an eye.

'As you've presumably heard, Jon is Luca's son,' Kortmann went on. 'It's only recently that we've learned about him, or perhaps I should say that it wasn't until he turned up that we remembered that Luca even had a son. For that reason, it's only now that he has been made aware of the Society's existence, and he is not yet an active Lector.'

Everybody in the room looked at Jon as Kortmann spoke, but his expression didn't change, even when the discussion touched on his relations with his father.

'I'm personally very happy he has returned, especially now when we have need for reinforcements to defend ourselves, and I'd like to ask all of you to give him your unconditional support regarding the task he has agreed to resolve.'

'What task is that?' asked the man that Katherina had seen in the fiction section.

'I'll come back to that in a moment,' replied Kortmann. 'First I think you should all introduce yourselves and explain what sort of work you do, both within the Society and outside of it. We all know Pau, so we can skip over him.' Kortmann turned to his left and nodded at the librarian. She immediately sat up straighter and cleared her throat. Her glasses with the big frames now hung round her neck and a pair of blue eyes stared intently at Jon.

'Well, my name is Birthe,' she began, suppressing a giggle. 'As you've seen, I'm the librarian here. Usually I work at the check-out counter or in the children's section. I love being surrounded by children, and I'm so happy whenever I'm allowed to read to the kids – to sense how they become totally absorbed by the story, letting themselves just—'

Kortmann cleared his throat.

'Er, yes,' said Birthe apologetically and giggled again. 'We can always talk about that later. In the Bibliophile Society I'm the historian, which means that I try to map out the history of the Lectors and their expansion through the ages. I worked very closely with your father, such a lovely man. So full of life and humour.' She giggled with delight. 'Always friendly and helpful and—'

'Thank you, Birthe,' said Kortmann. 'Henning?'

The man from the fiction section leaned forward with his elbows on the table. The light from the fluorescent lamps revealed that his greying hair was very thin on top of his head, and little beads of sweat were visible on his scalp. His eyes kept blinking erratically like defective windscreen wipers, making him appear unnecessarily nervous.

'My name is Henning Petersen. I'm forty-two years old, and I work in a bookshop on Kultorvet.' His dark eyes flickered from Jon to Katherina. 'I'm single, as we say nowadays, and I'm fond of cooking and going to the theatre – in addition to books, of course.' He smiled self-consciously. 'I've been active for over thirty years, and I'm the Bibliophile Society's treasurer.'

He leaned back in his chair and nodded to the next person in line, a woman of about thirty who was holding hands with a man of the same age. Both were a bit stout. They radiated great joy, maybe because they were together.

'My name is Sonja,' she began in a bright, somewhat piercing voice. 'And this is my husband Thor.' She lifted his hand in triumph. 'I met him through the Society almost three years ago. We're both teachers. Thor works at a school in Roskilde, while I'm at Sortedam School right over there.' She gestured with her hand past Katherina. 'We don't have any specific tasks within the Society, but we always show up at the reading sessions, when it's necessary.' She turned to look at her husband. 'Your turn, Thor.'

Thor cleared his throat behind his big, full beard.

'I don't think I have anything to add – after that,' he said and gave a brief chuckle, while his wife chimed in with a shrill squeal.

The next person in line was a teenage girl who blushed bright red and looked down at her hands.

'My name is Line,' she said in a low voice. 'I only became a member a month ago, so ...' She shifted her gaze to the next person, the man with the Asian features whom Katherina had seen in the non-fiction section. Narrow, rectangular glasses framed his dark eyes, which were turned towards Katherina. His Asian features made it hard to guess how old he was, but she thought he had to be in his mid-twenties.

'The name is Lee,' he said with no trace of an accent. 'I'll spare you my first name, since most people can't pronounce it correctly anyway. For my day job I work in the IT field as a software engineer, if that means anything to you. I try as much as possible to help the Society on that front, but it's not as if we're expanding via the Internet or using IT in that way,' he remarked, with regret in his voice. 'So I don't do much other than collecting data. Well, I guess that's all,' he concluded and nodded at Katherina.

She cleared her throat and was about to introduce herself when Kortmann cut her off.

'Thank you for the introductions. Unfortunately, not everyone was able to be here today. You all know Iversen, but we have three additional members in the Copenhagen area who were unable to make it. But they've all been told that Jon and Katherina will be paying them a visit in the near future as part of the investigation.'

'Could we now hear what this is all about, Kortmann?' asked Henning Petersen, clearly annoyed.

'Yes, you can,' said Kortmann, looking at Katherina for the first time that evening before he continued. 'The receivers feel that
we
are the source of what's been happening lately, that in the
best
case scenario we may have a traitor among us.'

From his seat next to Kortmann, Jon had an excellent view of the reactions of everyone present. Lee's expression didn't change and he kept his eyes fixed on Kortmann, as if he were waiting to hear more. The teenage girl, Line, looked as if she didn't know how to react, and her flitting eyes sought help from the faces of the others. But there wasn't much help to be found there. The married couple stared at each other in shock, for the first time without smiles or romantic sentiment, while the librarian looked down at her hands, which were shaking slightly. Only Pau looked unconcerned. The whole situation actually seemed to amuse him.

'What do you mean, "In the
best
case scenario, we may have a traitor among us"?' Henning Petersen wanted to know. He spoke the words slowly and with his eyes narrowed, as if it were taking all his concentration, but not for a moment did he take his gaze off Kortmann.

Katherina abruptly leaned forward.

'That it's not the receivers who are behind these events,' she replied before Kortmann had time to respond. 'And if it's not the receivers, then it must be you, the transmitters, but since you deny any knowledge of it, you're either lying or there are one or more traitors among you.' Katherina paused to take a breath. Jon watched her from the corner of his eye. She kept her green eyes stubbornly fixed on Henning; her expression was neutral but her breathing revealed how upset she was, and her chin with the little scar was trembling faintly. 'Of the two possibilities, we regard the latter as a more likely scenario than the former.'

Henning stared at her. His eyes blinked involuntarily, as if they couldn't believe what they saw.

'Ah, now I remember you,' he exclaimed. 'You're Katherina, right? The receiver?' He didn't give her time to reply before he went on: 'And one of the best, from what I've heard.'

Jon noticed that Katherina's cheeks turned a bit pink. She nodded and sent a defiant look towards Kortmann before she again spoke.

'That's right. My name is Katherina. I'm a receiver and have been for fifteen years now. Ten of those years I've spent with Luca Campelli and Svend Iversen, and they deserve all the credit if my powers happen to be better than most.'

'Okay, no offence,' said Henning, raising his hand. 'It wasn't meant to be an accusation.'

'No one should have any doubts as to Katherina's loyalty,' Jon interrupted. 'I saw how she fought the flames last night, and she's really the one you should thank for the fact that the bookshop didn't burn to the ground, not me.' Katherina leaned back with her arms crossed as everyone now turned their attention to Jon. 'Kortmann has asked me to undertake an investigation of recent events, including my father's death, and there's no one else I'd rather have helping me than Katherina. Right now she's the only one I trust.'

Looks were exchanged around the table, but most nodded their approval to both Jon and Katherina.

Kortmann cleared his throat.

'As Jon said, he's going to carry out an investigation among us, but also among the receivers. The purpose is to find out who's behind the attacks we've experienced lately – whether we like what he finds out or not.'

'But ...' Birthe began hesitantly. 'Could anyone besides a receiver be responsible for Luca's death? No transmitter would be capable of provoking heart failure like that.'

'I wouldn't say that,' replied Henning calmly. 'A transmitter's powers could very well cause an elevation in the pulse and other physiological reactions in a listener. But no one has yet exhibited powers that are strong enough to kill someone outright in that way. Besides, it would be relatively easy to protect yourself against such an attack.' He shrugged his shoulders. 'All you'd have to do is cover your ears.'

'Forgive my ignorance,' said Jon, 'but is that all? Covering your ears?'

Henning nodded. 'A transmitter's powers depend on having the text heard by a listener. It's the text combined with the emotions that it evokes that open the channel and make the person in question susceptible to the Lector. So the best defence is to cover your ears, or simply walk away.'

'Does that mean we can rule out that it was a transmitter who murdered my father?'

'Well, it's very unlikely that it was done by using a transmitter's powers – unless Luca was tied down, but there was no sign of that, was there?'

Kortmann shook his head. 'It would have left marks.'

'Okay,' said Jon after no one else spoke for a couple of seconds. 'Luca's death indicates that it was the work of a receiver, but it could still be the result of natural heart failure, or possibly poisoning. None of the other attacks points exclusively to a receiver, so I don't want to rule anything out yet.' He scanned the faces of the people sitting around the table. Most of them had a more or less resigned look; only Line displayed something other than dismay. Her eyes shone with fear.

'Maybe we should discuss what the motive might be,' suggested Jon.

After another few seconds of silence Henning cleared his throat. He shut his eyes tight for a moment before he spoke.

'That's what doesn't make any sense,' he said, clasping his hands on the table in front of him. 'No Lector, either a transmitter or a receiver, has anything to gain from all this. It's simply too risky. The connection between these events may not be obvious to so-called normal people, but if the attacks continue, we're going to be exposed, and none of us wants that.'

'Why not?' asked Jon. 'Why all the secrecy? Couldn't your powers be of use to everyone if they became known?'

'Let me answer that by asking you a question,' said Henning. 'How do you feel about the fact that there are people like us who can influence your decisions and opinions without you having any control over it?'

'Well, everything's rather new to me,' Jon began. 'I haven't really thought through all the consequences, but I have to admit that it does make me uneasy.'

Lee broke in by leaning forward and jabbing his index finger at the table.

'That's exactly the reason,' he said earnestly. 'That's the normal reaction. Maybe in the beginning people would be fascinated. We'd become exhibits in a freak show – wearing brilliantly coloured robes, we'd "mind-read" what the people in the audience were reading, or we'd make people do silly things by reading to them, like in one of those phoney hypnotist shows. But after a while people would start to worry; they'd be afraid of being manipulated, and maybe they'd even refuse to read anything unless they were sure they were alone, or at least among friends.'

Jon saw how Henning and the married couple exchanged glances, and Thor smiled indulgently. But Lee didn't notice, or at least refused to be deterred and went on with his explanation.

'Anyone with powers would become an outcast, as if he were a leper, because people would be constantly on guard around him. The growing paranoia would end up forcing the Lectors to be registered, maybe even wear a special symbol so that people on the street could recognize them and take precautionary measures. Before long, society might come to the conclusion that the easiest and safest thing would be to lock us up, put us somewhere far away from other people, and maybe even prevent us from having any access to books and texts.' Lee stopped his tirade for a moment to allow Jon to catch up.

'Soon new Lectors would try to hide their powers,' Lee went on with a shrug. 'Just like we do now, actually, and regular manhunts would be carried out to find those who weren't registered or those who had managed to escape from the prisons. A great deal of energy would be expended to detect the existence of powers, even in infants, and "bloodhounds", either electronic or in the form of trained traitors, would track us down like hunted animals. Underground movements would be created by those of us who had managed to get away, and before long the groups would be forced to defend themselves using violent means. Wars would break out—'

'All right, thank you,' said Kortmann. 'I think we get the point, Lee.'

Lee blushed. 'I guess I got a bit carried away,' he said apologetically. 'But it was just to illustrate that none of us has anything to gain by becoming known. Neither transmitters nor receivers.' He leaned back in his chair.

'Even though Lee's version may seem a trifle exaggerated, he's right,' said Kortmann. 'We're different, and as such we can expect to be treated differently, and not in an especially good way, if what we're capable of doing ever gets out.'

'Hasn't anyone ever given you away?' asked Jon. 'It seems to me very unlikely that something like this could be kept secret for what – a hundred years?'

'Oh, much longer than that,' exclaimed Birthe. 'We're talking about centuries. Our best guess is that the first Lectors were in charge of the libraries of antiquity long before the birth of Christ. Back then it was considered prestigious to be a librarian,' she added with a touch of bitterness in her voice. 'They were regarded as statesmen and scholars. People who had influence on the development of society, whose opinions carried weight, and who were consulted regarding all sorts of issues. As you probably realize, that would be a prime position for a Lector who knows how to make use of his powers.'

'But there are no instances when you've ever been exposed?'

Birthe shook her head. 'There is very little concrete evidence that points in our direction. During certain periods some suspicion was directed at scholars who could read and write, but that was probably rooted in envy and ignorance rather than any justifiable fear. If we look at more recent times, no one has ever even hinted at the existence of our powers.'

'Could that be the motive? Exposing the Society?' Jon suggested.

'A hell of a complicated way to go about it,' said Henning. 'I mean, why not just expose us outright? The chances are slim that anyone would ever figure out the connection between the actions that have been carried out up to this point. If the intention is to expose the Lectors, only a complete revelation would do it.'

Lee nodded eagerly. 'I agree with that. An exposé could only come from someone who's part of the group, and only by demonstrating the powers. So if that's the motive, we would have already read about it in the newspapers, seen it on the talk shows and gone to the premiere of the movie.'

'So what are you saying?' asked Jon.

Lee looked at Katherina for a moment. 'I think,' he began, casting a glance at Henning before he continued. '
We
think that there's something bigger going on.
Someone
is up to something big, and this is just a preliminary manoeuvre meant to wear us out, confuse us or divert our attention – maybe all three. The question you should be asking now is who this
someone
might be, and for me it's obvious.' Again he looked at Katherina. 'Everything points to the receivers.' He waved his hands towards her, making the gesture seem both dismissive and apologetic. 'I'm not saying that you're involved. It could very well be that you've been kept out of it because of your relationship to Luca.'

'So what's our big plan?' asked Katherina. 'World domination, I suppose?'

Lee studied Katherina for a moment with a hint of satisfaction but then shifted his gaze to Jon.

'I have no idea what they're after, but at least I'm searching for the answer.'

'You're searching?'

Lee nodded. 'Every chance I get. The clues are out there, on the Internet, it's just a question of finding them and figuring out the connections. So far it hasn't produced any result, but it will. It's a little like the wreckage of a ship – something always pops up, even though the beach may have been empty the day before.'

'How long has this been going on?' asked Kortmann in surprise.

Lee shrugged. 'A couple of weeks, I suppose. I didn't think it was necessary to ask permission.'

'No, no, not at all. It would just be nice to know.'

'I didn't realize you wanted to start up this ... investigation,' Lee added. 'And it didn't look like anyone else was thinking of doing anything. So since the Society didn't have any more pressing work for me to do, I permitted myself to show a little initiative.'

Kortmann nodded appreciatively. 'Good work, Lee. I suggest that you continue your searches.'

'That's certainly what I intend to do,' said Lee, his words barely audible.

'And keep us updated,' Kortmann emphasized, pointing to himself and to Jon.

'What about the rest of us?' asked Henning sharply.

'You'll be informed, of course, provided there's some definitive result. The most important thing is that we don't panic or start a lynch mob without having any proof to go on.'

'It sounds more like you don't trust us,' said Henning.

'So we're still under suspicion?' Pau interjected.

Kortmann gestured dismissively. 'As you've all said yourselves, there's no firm proof. All possibilities remain open, even the worst of them.' He glanced briefly at Katherina. 'The possibility that one of us is a traitor.' A murmur of discontented voices arose, so Kortmann had to raise his own voice to be heard. 'But I don't believe that. Even so, we're being forced to take every precaution. This isn't a matter of one person maligning someone else or swiping money from the till. People have been hurt – even murdered. Keep that in mind.'

Everyone stopped talking, and for several seconds it was completely silent in the room. Many avoided Jon's eyes when he looked in their direction.

'I think that we should end the meeting here,' said Kortmann calmly. 'The point was for everyone to introduce themselves and for all of us to understand the importance of this investigation. I hope that's been accomplished. Jon will have access to your names and addresses so he can contact you directly if necessary. That's up to him. As I said, I expect all of you to help as best you can.' He clapped his hands together. 'Thanks for coming.'

Everyone stood up amid the scraping of chairs and parting words offered right and left. When Jon said goodbye to Kortmann, the man took a brown envelope out of the side pocket of his wheelchair and handed it to him.

'Keep me posted,' said Kortmann, giving Jon a wink.

Jon nodded in agreement and headed outside with Katherina. Kortmann remained behind with Birthe.