Thirteen, Fourteen... Little Boy Unseen (8 page)

The man repressed a smile. “You could say that.”

“And what does that mean?”

“I saw one…in my childhood.”

Dr. Korner noted that in his notepad. “I see. So, you’re familiar with how this works, then?”

“Believe me. I know how this works.”

“Good. Good.” The therapist ran a hand through his white hair. It had become thinner over the years. The eyes were the same. Only now they were hidden behind thick glasses.

“I take it you wonder about the way I look. That’s okay. Most people do. I usually talk to them about it on their first visit here. Yes, I am an albino. It affects my vision, and I have to be careful when being in the sun. Other than that, I’m perfectly normal. Now, that’s about all I will be talking about myself in this room. Let’s hear more about you, Alexander. What brings you to my office?”

The man stared at the therapist. He could feel the baton in his pocket, pressing against his leg. He had left the uniform at home today, and only brought the toys.

“It’s okay. Take your time. Deciding to see a therapist is a big thing. Opening up and telling your story to a stranger can be hard.”

“Oh, I don’t mind telling my story; the problem is, you already know it,” the man said.

Doctor Korner looked at the man, puzzled. “I’m not sure I quite understand…Have you been here before?”

“No.”

“Then, what do you mean? You know what?” the therapist said. “We’ve gotten off to a bad start. Let’s try from the beginning again. Why have you come here to see me?”

The man smiled again, then pulled out the gun and pointed it at the therapist.

“I have come here to kill you.”

Dr. Korner gasped and jumped up from the chair. He opened his mouth, trying to scream, but the man moved quickly and grabbed him. He pressed a pair of rolled up socks into his mouth so he couldn’t scream. Then, he placed a piece of duct tape over his mouth to keep it in. The therapist screamed, but nothing but muffled sounds came out. He struggled to get out of the man’s grip, but had no success. The man pulled away his glasses and stared into the therapist’s eyes.

“Take a good look at me. You’ve seen these eyes before. You’ve seen these eyes begging you to stop, pleading you to leave them alone, haven’t you? Well they’re not the ones pleading anymore.”

The man forced the therapist to his knees before he pressed the gun to his temple; his hand was shaking in anger. The therapist was sweating heavily and trembling in fear. His eyes appealed for mercy.

I’m not a girl! I’m not a girl. Who am I?
The man heard his sister’s voice plead in his head.

The man was inclined to simply pull the trigger and finish the therapist right here and now. At least he would never be able to hurt anyone else. But the man had a greater plan for him.

“Now, you listen to me, you asshole. You destroyed my sister’s life. Do you know that? You destroyed her. That is why you must die today. That is why I will kill you, but first you have to do as I say. I have a little exercise for you to do. Do you hear me? The faster you do as I tell you, the faster this will be all over, and the less you will suffer. Do you understand me?”

The therapist nodded while trying to speak. He whimpered behind the gag.

“Good. Now, I’ll hand you something, and then I’ll need you to put it on.”

The man opened the backpack while still pointing the gun at Dr. Korner. Looking at him made so many bad memories resurface, and the man’s hands were shaking heavily as he pulled out the red dress and black stilettos. He threw both on the floor in front of the therapist.

I’m an alien. Nobody wants me!

“I want you to put this on,” the man said, fighting the anger filling him up from all the years of being repeatedly humiliated and tormented.

The therapist whimpered again.

“Take your damn clothes off, now!” the man said harshly, just like the therapist had said to him and Alex so many times.

The therapist started undressing himself. He was crying, the wimp. Probably just trying to appeal to the man’s sympathy. But he wasn’t going to fall for it.

I’ll never be good enough as a girl. I don’t know how to be a girl!

“Hurry up!” the man said.

The therapist was now naked, and the man took a picture of him with his phone. Then he told him to put on the dress and the shoes. The therapist did as he was told. The dress was too small, and ripped in places when he tried to put it on. Finally, he succeeded, and the therapist stood in front of the man wearing the beautiful dress and the stilettos. The man smiled. Tears burned in his eyes, thinking about his sister. The man grabbed a mirror from the wall, then placed it in front of the therapist. He used his cell to record a video.

“So, take a look at yourself, dear Doctor,” he said. “Then, tell me. Are you a woman?”

The therapist shook his head.

“Are you a man?”

The therapist nodded. The man pulled out his baton, then slammed it across the therapist’s face. He made the sound of a buzzer.

“Wrong answer. Try again.”

The therapist was on the ground. The baton had left an ugly mark. It was getting swollen.

“Get up and try again,” the man said. “Remember, this is an exercise based on your own beliefs. What was it you used to say again? Oh, yes. Gender is learned. Gender is something that can be changed in early childhood. Something like that. Am I right?”

The therapist got up on his knees. The man slapped him with his hand. “Answer me when I speak to you. Wasn’t that what you used to say?”

The therapist nodded, while tears ran across his cheeks.

“Good. Now, back to the image you carry of yourself. The image, according to your theories, can be altered with the right influence and exposure to the right things. Tell me once again. Are you a woman?”

The therapist whimpered and looked up at the man.

“Don’t look at me, you idiot. Look at the mirror. What do you see? Do you see a woman? Let me put it differently. Do you see a dress?”

The therapist nodded.

“And do we agree that women wear dresses?”

The therapist nodded.

“So, since you are the one wearing the dress that must mean that you are a woman. Am I right?”

The therapist looked up at the man again.

“Right?” the man said.

The therapist nodded.

The man clapped his hands, then lifted the baton up in the air and let it fall as hard as possible on Dr. Korner’s head. He fell, forcing him to fall flat to the floor with a thud. Then, he leaned over and whispered, “I’m afraid your time’s up.”

22

T
HE INTERVIEW
went well, and Sune and I returned to the newspaper around noon. I wrote my article and we looked at pictures together and chose a series to send over to Jens-Ole. It wasn’t a groundbreaking story, but it was fun to do, and it would make a decent article.

I, for one, enjoyed spending time with Sune, even though I did get the feeling that he was eager to get out of there. I wanted to drink coffee with him and discuss the case of the three bodies and how we could dig deeper into the story, but Sune was in a hurry to get out of there.

“I’m sorry, Rebekka, but Jeppe just texted me that he’s still at the café, and since I’ve already done my job here, then…well.”

I smiled and kissed him. “That’s fine. Go have some fun with your new best friend. Don’t forget to pick up the kids, alright?”

“I won’t.”

“You need me to give you a lift?” I asked.

“Nah. I’ll walk. It’s pretty close.”

“See you later, babe.”

I watched as he rushed out the door. Sara pulled off her headphones and looked at me. “Where was he off to in such a hurry?”

“He had plans,” I said, and went back behind my desk.

“Oh, by the way,” Sara said, picking up a yellow note from the sea of notes and old newspapers flooding her desk. How she ever found anything was beyond my understanding.

“A David Busck called while you were gone.” She handed me the note.

I grabbed it and looked at it. My heart pounded in my chest. I had thought a lot about him since yesterday.

“Is that
the
David Busck? As in the incredible hunk that was captured and held prisoner in Syria last year?”

I blushed. I had no idea why. Maybe it was the way she spoke of him. He was really quite handsome. And so sweet.

“Yeah,” I said, while trying to avoid Sara’s eyes. “It’s probably just something work-related. I’ll call him later.”

I tried to act like I didn’t care about it, and put the note casually on my desk. Sara grunted, then returned to her police scanner and put on the headphones. I grabbed my phone and looked at it. It had been silenced during the interview. David had called twice and left a message. I went to the bathroom and listened to it.

“Hi Rebekka. It’s me, David. I just wanted to say thank you for yesterday. It was great talking to you again. I really enjoyed it. And I needed it. I have been feeling really bad lately, sleeping poorly and feeling anxious over the smallest things, but talking to you helped me a lot. I feel much better today. I was wondering if I could take you out to lunch today? You’re probably working, so…but anyway give me a call when you hear this. Or don’t. It’s up to you. Bye.”

My heart was racing and I couldn’t stop smiling as I put the phone down. I exited the restroom, only to find Sara standing right outside. She looked at me suspiciously. “You’re usually never this slow,” she said. She looked at the phone. “Hm,” she grumbled, and walked past me into the restroom.

She made me feel really bad, but I shook it the best I could. If Sune was allowed to have a new best friend, then so was I. As soon as I was back at my desk, I called David.

“Hey, gorgeous. You hungry?”

“I am starving. How about Italian?”

“I know just the place.”

23

W
E MET
at the restaurant Mama Rosa at one. I hadn’t been lying on the phone. I was starving at this point. David was already sitting inside when I entered, and the waiter showed me to the table. I had never been to this restaurant before, but loved the atmosphere. It was small, located on a small secluded street, pulled away from the main street. But, best of all, there was no one else in there. I didn’t have to worry about anyone seeing us and telling Sune. It was, after all, a small town, and people started talking very fast. Not that we were doing anything wrong. We were just two friends eating a lunch. After all, Sune was hanging out with his friend as well. I needed someone who understood me just as much as he did.

“So, what’s good here?” I asked, when the waiter had handed me the menu.

“I’ve only been here once, two days ago, but I had the risotto and it was excellent,” David said.

“I think I’ll try that, then,” I said.

David ordered the chicken Parmesan. We both had a beer.

“So, how long are you in town for?” I asked.

David leaned over and smiled. I felt a pinch in my heart. He was so handsome. His eyes felt like they could see right through me.

“I haven’t decided yet,” he said.

“Aren’t you going back to work?”

“I’m looking into it. I just don’t really know what I want, you know what I mean? My priorities have changed. I’m not striving for money and fame anymore. I don’t crave being that big journalist anymore. I just want to enjoy my life. I still want to work; I still have to put food on the table, but I’m not as career-minded as I used to be. I’m not sure it’s worth it anymore.”

“I do know what you mean,” I said, and drank from my beer. “I had to leave my job at
Jyllandsposten
a few years ago for the very same reason. I had to get away from my ex-husband, and I knew my daughter was more important than my career. It was tough saying goodbye to my old life, but it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. I love it here.”

“I have the biggest respect for that; I really do,” David said.

I smiled and drank more from my beer. I looked at his hands and realized even they were handsome. He was just…such a man. I guess that was what I really enjoyed about being with him. He was older than me. He was a real grown-up.

He was everything Sune wasn’t.

“The risotto for the lady,” the waiter said, as he brought us the food. A hot plate landed in front of me and made me even hungrier than before.

“And the chicken for the gentleman.” The waiter looked at us with a smile and clasped hands. “Now, enjoy.”

I dug in as soon as the waiter turned around. David laughed. “You weren’t kidding when you told me you were starving, were you?”

“No.” I spoke with my mouth full, and held a hand up in front of my lips. “I can’t remember when I was last this hungry. Lately, my appetite has been kind of nonexistent.”

I looked at David, while realizing that I had been feeling better too. I had slept really well for the first time in a long while. And now I was eating too? It was like a cloud had been lifted from my face. Like I was waking up.

“I’m feeling it too,” David said. “Spending time with you makes me feel better. It’s like all the bad thoughts disappear when you’re around.”

Could it be? Could it be that David simply made me feel better? That we were somehow good for one another? I couldn’t believe it. Maybe I shouldn’t feel so guilty about spending time with him. I could choose to look at it as therapy.

“So, how is the case going?” he asked.

“The genderless bodies?” I asked.

I had told David everything about the case the night before.

“Yeah. Any news?”

“Not really. I can’t seem to get anywhere with it. I’ve been thinking about the clothes and the mutilations a lot. I mean, there is definitely a statement of some sort. But what is he trying to tell us?”

“You do know that the pastor was known to be very outspoken against the rights of gays getting married in the church, right?”

“No. I didn’t.”

“Well, she was. She talked about it in many interviews and in her sermons. She was the only one who refused to marry gays in her church when they said it was allowed.”