Ashes to Dust; A Thriller
-
Upload
yrsa-sigurdardottir -
Category
Documents
-
view
220 -
download
0
Transcript of Ashes to Dust; A Thriller
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 112
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 212
This is a work of fiction All of the characters organizations and events portrayed in this
novel are either products of the authorrsquos imagination or are used fictitiously
983105 983124983112983119983117983105983123 983108983125983118983118983109 983106983119983119983115 983110983119983122 983117983113983118983119983124983105983125983122 983106983119983119983115983123
An imprint of St Martinrsquos Publishing Group
983105983123983112983109983123 983124983119 983108983125983123983124 Copyright copy 983090983088983089983088 by Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir English translation copyright
copy 983090983088983089983088 by Philip Roughton All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America
For information address St Martinrsquos Press 983089983095983093 Fifth Avenue New York NY 983089983088983088983089983088
wwwthomasdunnebookscom
wwwstmartinscom
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
[Aska English]
Ashes to dust a thriller Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettirmdash983089st ed
p cm
ldquoOriginally published in Great Britain in 983090983088983089983088 by Hodder amp StoughtonrdquomdashTp verso
ISBN 983097983095983096-983089-983090983093983088-983088983088983092983097983091-983090 (hardback)
ISBN 983097983095983096-983088-983091983089983090-983094983092983089983095983092-983088 (paperback)
ISBN 983097983095983096-983089-983090983093983088-983088983088983096983090983091-983095 (e-book)
983089 Thoacutera Gudmundsdoacutettir (Fictitious character)mdashFiction 983090 Women lawyersmdash
IcelandmdashReykjaviacutekmdashFiction I Title
PT983095983093983089983091Y983095983095A983096983093983089983091 983090983088983089983090
983096983091983097983094983097983091983093mdashdc983090983091
983090983088983089983089983088983092983091983088983096983092
First published in Great Britain by Hodder amp Stoughton a Hachette UK company
First US Edition April 983090983088983089983090
983089983088 983097 983096 983095 983094 983093 983092 983091 983090 983089
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 312
ldquoYoursquore trying to tell me Markuacutes is just tidying the basement You
canrsquot possibly believe that a pile of rubbish is the reason that he
didnrsquot want anyone to go down there before himrdquo
The lawyer Thoacutera Gudmundsdoacutettir smiled politely at the man
addressing her an archaeologist called Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson but did
not answer his question This was getting out of hand She was
very uncomfortable the smell of smoke and the ash hanging in the
air were irritating her eyes and nose and she was scared that theroof was going to collapse at any moment On their way through
the house to the basement door the three of them had had to make
their way around a huge pile of ashy debris where the roof had col-
lapsed onto the intricately patterned carpet at which point Thoacutera
had adjusted her helmetrsquos elastic chin-strap to ensure that it was
fastened tightly She shuffled her feet and looked embarrassedly at
the clock They heard a dull thud from the basement What exactlywas the man up to Markuacutes had said that he needed a little time
but neither she nor the archaeologist could guess what his definition
of ldquoa littlerdquo was ldquoIrsquom sure hersquoll reappear soonrdquo she said without
much conviction and stared at the crooked door in the hope that it
would be pushed open and this business concluded She glanced
instinctively at the ceiling ready to jump away if it appeared likely
to crash down on them
ldquoDonrsquot worryrdquo said Hjoumlrtur pointing upward ldquoIf the roof wasgoing to split apart it would have done so a long time agordquo He
heaved a sigh and stroked his unshaven chin ldquoDo you know what
hersquos doing down thererdquo
Chapter 983089
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 412
983094 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
Thoacutera shook her head unwilling to discuss her clientrsquos plans with
someone unconnected to the case
ldquoHe must have at least hintedrdquo said Hjoumlrtur ldquoWersquove been dying
to find out about thisrdquo He looked at Thoacutera ldquoIrsquoll bet this has some-thing to do with pornography The others think so toordquo
She shrugged That thought had certainly occurred to her as well
but she did not have a sufficiently fertile imagination to guess what
kind of thing would be too embarrassing or disgusting to show to a
stranger A film of the homeownerrsquos sexual adventures Unlikely
Few people had video cameras in the 983089983097983095983088s and she doubted that
the type of film used back then would have survived the destructionthat had rained down on the Islands Besides Markuacutes Magnuacutesson
who was down in the basement had been only fifteen when the
house had disappeared beneath lava and ash so he probably hadnrsquot
been ready for much in that area Nevertheless there was some-
thing down in the basement that hersquod been desperate to get to be-
fore them Thoacutera sighed How did she keep ending up with these
characters She didnrsquot know any other lawyer who attracted such
strange cases and such peculiar clients She resolved to ask Markuacuteswhat had inspired him to call her little legal firm instead of one of
the larger ones when he decided to demand that the excavation be
legally blocked If he ever returned from the basement She pulled
the neck of her jumper up over her mouth and nose and tried
breathing through it That was a little better Hjoumlrtur smiled at her
ldquoYou get used to it I promiserdquo he said ldquoHopefully you wonrsquot
have to thoughmdashit takes several daysrdquoThoacutera rolled her eyes ldquoDamn it itrsquos not like hersquos going to move
in down thererdquo she muttered through her jumper Then she pulled
it down to smile at Hjoumlrtur It was thanks to him that things had
gone so well until now in that theyrsquod been able to get by without
demanding the injunction In any case that would only have been a
temporary measure since Markuacutes and his family no longer had any
claim on the house The Westmann Islands owned it along with all
its contents and there was little point in fighting this fact eventhough Markuacutes had made a concerted attempt to do so He had
focused particularly on Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson the man now standing
next to Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur was the director of a project entitled Pom-
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 512
Ashes to Dust 983095
peii of the North whose task it was to excavate a number of houses
that had been buried by ash in the eruption on Heimaey Island in
983089983097983095983091 Thoacutera had had considerable contact with him by telephone
and email since the case had begun and liked the man well enoughHe was inclined to be long-winded but seemed reasonable and was
not easily provoked Hjoumlrtur had been seriously tested since Markuacutes
so often acted like a total ass He had refused to give even the slight-
est clue as to why he was opposed to his parentsrsquo house being exca-
vated had gone on and on about invasions of privacy and had
generally complicated the matter for Thoacutera in every conceivable
way After trying to reach an agreement but getting nowhere due toMarkuacutesrsquos pigheadedness in defeat she had asked Hjoumlrtur whether
he couldnrsquot just dig up some other house instead There were cer-
tainly enough to choose from But that was out of the question
since Markuacutesrsquos childhood home was one of the few houses in the
area built of concrete and thus was more likely than the others to
have withstood the cataclysm in any significant way The purpose
of the excavation was not to dig down to a house that was now
simply rubbleThoacutera had already started reading up on how she might best
obtain an injunction against the excavation when it transpired that
Markuacutes was only concerned about the basement of the house
Finally they could discuss solutions sensibly and Hjoumlrtur had pro-
posed this arrangement the house would first be dug up and aired
out and then Markuacutes would be the first person allowed down into
the basement where he could remove anything that he wanted Af-ter some consideration he agreed to this compromise and Thoacutera
breathed easier Markuacutes had no trouble at all bearing the cost of
endless litigation since he was anything but badly off financially
His family owned one of the largest fishing companies in the West-
mann Islands and even though Thoacutera would never complain about
being paid well for her work she was upset about working against
her better judgment and toward a goal that would never be reached
She was immensely relieved when Markuacutes agreed to Hjoumlrturrsquos pro-posal now she could start putting the final touches to the fine de-
tails of the agreement over how Markuacutesrsquos visit to the basement
would be conducted how they could guarantee that others would
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 612
983096 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
not be allowed to sneak in before him and so on The agreement
was then signed and they only had to wait for the end of the exca-
vation
So there they stood archaeologist and lawyer staring at a crookedbasement door while a man who had still been a teenager in 983089983097983095983091
wrestled with a terrible secret beneath their feet
ldquoHallelujahrdquo said Thoacutera when they heard footsteps on the base-
ment stairs
ldquoI do hope he found whatever he was looking forrdquo said Hjoumlrtur
gloomily ldquoWe didnrsquot think about the possibility of him coming up
empty-handedrdquoThoacutera crossed her fingers and stared at the door
They watched anxiously as the doorknob turned then incredu-
lously as the door was cracked open only a tiny bit They exchanged
a glance then Thoacutera leaned forward and spoke into the gap ldquoMarkuacutesrdquo
she said calmly ldquois something wrongrdquo
ldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo came the reply His voice sounded
peculiar but it was impossible to tell whether he was excited disap-
pointed or sad The glow from his flashlight shone through the chinkand illuminated Thoacuterarsquos feet
ldquoMerdquo Thoacutera asked flabbergasted ldquoDown thererdquo She looked
back at Hjoumlrtur who raised his eyebrows
ldquoYesrdquo said Markuacutes in the same enigmatic tone ldquoI need to get
your opinion on somethingrdquo
ldquoMy opinionrdquo she echoed When she found herself speechless
she had a habit of repeating whatever was said to her giving herselftime to ponder her response
ldquoYes your legal opinionrdquo said the voice behind the door
Thoacutera straightened up ldquoIrsquoll give you all the opinions you want
Markuacutesrdquo she said ldquoHowever this is how it is with us lawyers we
have no need to experience for ourselves whatever it is wersquore dealing
with So therersquos no reason for me to clamber down there with you
Tell me what this is about and Irsquoll put together an opinion for you
back at my office in ReykjaviacutekrdquoldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo said Markuacutes ldquoI donrsquot need a
written opinion A verbal onersquoll dordquo He paused ldquoIrsquom begging you
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 212
This is a work of fiction All of the characters organizations and events portrayed in this
novel are either products of the authorrsquos imagination or are used fictitiously
983105 983124983112983119983117983105983123 983108983125983118983118983109 983106983119983119983115 983110983119983122 983117983113983118983119983124983105983125983122 983106983119983119983115983123
An imprint of St Martinrsquos Publishing Group
983105983123983112983109983123 983124983119 983108983125983123983124 Copyright copy 983090983088983089983088 by Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir English translation copyright
copy 983090983088983089983088 by Philip Roughton All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America
For information address St Martinrsquos Press 983089983095983093 Fifth Avenue New York NY 983089983088983088983089983088
wwwthomasdunnebookscom
wwwstmartinscom
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
[Aska English]
Ashes to dust a thriller Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettirmdash983089st ed
p cm
ldquoOriginally published in Great Britain in 983090983088983089983088 by Hodder amp StoughtonrdquomdashTp verso
ISBN 983097983095983096-983089-983090983093983088-983088983088983092983097983091-983090 (hardback)
ISBN 983097983095983096-983088-983091983089983090-983094983092983089983095983092-983088 (paperback)
ISBN 983097983095983096-983089-983090983093983088-983088983088983096983090983091-983095 (e-book)
983089 Thoacutera Gudmundsdoacutettir (Fictitious character)mdashFiction 983090 Women lawyersmdash
IcelandmdashReykjaviacutekmdashFiction I Title
PT983095983093983089983091Y983095983095A983096983093983089983091 983090983088983089983090
983096983091983097983094983097983091983093mdashdc983090983091
983090983088983089983089983088983092983091983088983096983092
First published in Great Britain by Hodder amp Stoughton a Hachette UK company
First US Edition April 983090983088983089983090
983089983088 983097 983096 983095 983094 983093 983092 983091 983090 983089
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 312
ldquoYoursquore trying to tell me Markuacutes is just tidying the basement You
canrsquot possibly believe that a pile of rubbish is the reason that he
didnrsquot want anyone to go down there before himrdquo
The lawyer Thoacutera Gudmundsdoacutettir smiled politely at the man
addressing her an archaeologist called Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson but did
not answer his question This was getting out of hand She was
very uncomfortable the smell of smoke and the ash hanging in the
air were irritating her eyes and nose and she was scared that theroof was going to collapse at any moment On their way through
the house to the basement door the three of them had had to make
their way around a huge pile of ashy debris where the roof had col-
lapsed onto the intricately patterned carpet at which point Thoacutera
had adjusted her helmetrsquos elastic chin-strap to ensure that it was
fastened tightly She shuffled her feet and looked embarrassedly at
the clock They heard a dull thud from the basement What exactlywas the man up to Markuacutes had said that he needed a little time
but neither she nor the archaeologist could guess what his definition
of ldquoa littlerdquo was ldquoIrsquom sure hersquoll reappear soonrdquo she said without
much conviction and stared at the crooked door in the hope that it
would be pushed open and this business concluded She glanced
instinctively at the ceiling ready to jump away if it appeared likely
to crash down on them
ldquoDonrsquot worryrdquo said Hjoumlrtur pointing upward ldquoIf the roof wasgoing to split apart it would have done so a long time agordquo He
heaved a sigh and stroked his unshaven chin ldquoDo you know what
hersquos doing down thererdquo
Chapter 983089
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 412
983094 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
Thoacutera shook her head unwilling to discuss her clientrsquos plans with
someone unconnected to the case
ldquoHe must have at least hintedrdquo said Hjoumlrtur ldquoWersquove been dying
to find out about thisrdquo He looked at Thoacutera ldquoIrsquoll bet this has some-thing to do with pornography The others think so toordquo
She shrugged That thought had certainly occurred to her as well
but she did not have a sufficiently fertile imagination to guess what
kind of thing would be too embarrassing or disgusting to show to a
stranger A film of the homeownerrsquos sexual adventures Unlikely
Few people had video cameras in the 983089983097983095983088s and she doubted that
the type of film used back then would have survived the destructionthat had rained down on the Islands Besides Markuacutes Magnuacutesson
who was down in the basement had been only fifteen when the
house had disappeared beneath lava and ash so he probably hadnrsquot
been ready for much in that area Nevertheless there was some-
thing down in the basement that hersquod been desperate to get to be-
fore them Thoacutera sighed How did she keep ending up with these
characters She didnrsquot know any other lawyer who attracted such
strange cases and such peculiar clients She resolved to ask Markuacuteswhat had inspired him to call her little legal firm instead of one of
the larger ones when he decided to demand that the excavation be
legally blocked If he ever returned from the basement She pulled
the neck of her jumper up over her mouth and nose and tried
breathing through it That was a little better Hjoumlrtur smiled at her
ldquoYou get used to it I promiserdquo he said ldquoHopefully you wonrsquot
have to thoughmdashit takes several daysrdquoThoacutera rolled her eyes ldquoDamn it itrsquos not like hersquos going to move
in down thererdquo she muttered through her jumper Then she pulled
it down to smile at Hjoumlrtur It was thanks to him that things had
gone so well until now in that theyrsquod been able to get by without
demanding the injunction In any case that would only have been a
temporary measure since Markuacutes and his family no longer had any
claim on the house The Westmann Islands owned it along with all
its contents and there was little point in fighting this fact eventhough Markuacutes had made a concerted attempt to do so He had
focused particularly on Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson the man now standing
next to Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur was the director of a project entitled Pom-
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 512
Ashes to Dust 983095
peii of the North whose task it was to excavate a number of houses
that had been buried by ash in the eruption on Heimaey Island in
983089983097983095983091 Thoacutera had had considerable contact with him by telephone
and email since the case had begun and liked the man well enoughHe was inclined to be long-winded but seemed reasonable and was
not easily provoked Hjoumlrtur had been seriously tested since Markuacutes
so often acted like a total ass He had refused to give even the slight-
est clue as to why he was opposed to his parentsrsquo house being exca-
vated had gone on and on about invasions of privacy and had
generally complicated the matter for Thoacutera in every conceivable
way After trying to reach an agreement but getting nowhere due toMarkuacutesrsquos pigheadedness in defeat she had asked Hjoumlrtur whether
he couldnrsquot just dig up some other house instead There were cer-
tainly enough to choose from But that was out of the question
since Markuacutesrsquos childhood home was one of the few houses in the
area built of concrete and thus was more likely than the others to
have withstood the cataclysm in any significant way The purpose
of the excavation was not to dig down to a house that was now
simply rubbleThoacutera had already started reading up on how she might best
obtain an injunction against the excavation when it transpired that
Markuacutes was only concerned about the basement of the house
Finally they could discuss solutions sensibly and Hjoumlrtur had pro-
posed this arrangement the house would first be dug up and aired
out and then Markuacutes would be the first person allowed down into
the basement where he could remove anything that he wanted Af-ter some consideration he agreed to this compromise and Thoacutera
breathed easier Markuacutes had no trouble at all bearing the cost of
endless litigation since he was anything but badly off financially
His family owned one of the largest fishing companies in the West-
mann Islands and even though Thoacutera would never complain about
being paid well for her work she was upset about working against
her better judgment and toward a goal that would never be reached
She was immensely relieved when Markuacutes agreed to Hjoumlrturrsquos pro-posal now she could start putting the final touches to the fine de-
tails of the agreement over how Markuacutesrsquos visit to the basement
would be conducted how they could guarantee that others would
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 612
983096 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
not be allowed to sneak in before him and so on The agreement
was then signed and they only had to wait for the end of the exca-
vation
So there they stood archaeologist and lawyer staring at a crookedbasement door while a man who had still been a teenager in 983089983097983095983091
wrestled with a terrible secret beneath their feet
ldquoHallelujahrdquo said Thoacutera when they heard footsteps on the base-
ment stairs
ldquoI do hope he found whatever he was looking forrdquo said Hjoumlrtur
gloomily ldquoWe didnrsquot think about the possibility of him coming up
empty-handedrdquoThoacutera crossed her fingers and stared at the door
They watched anxiously as the doorknob turned then incredu-
lously as the door was cracked open only a tiny bit They exchanged
a glance then Thoacutera leaned forward and spoke into the gap ldquoMarkuacutesrdquo
she said calmly ldquois something wrongrdquo
ldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo came the reply His voice sounded
peculiar but it was impossible to tell whether he was excited disap-
pointed or sad The glow from his flashlight shone through the chinkand illuminated Thoacuterarsquos feet
ldquoMerdquo Thoacutera asked flabbergasted ldquoDown thererdquo She looked
back at Hjoumlrtur who raised his eyebrows
ldquoYesrdquo said Markuacutes in the same enigmatic tone ldquoI need to get
your opinion on somethingrdquo
ldquoMy opinionrdquo she echoed When she found herself speechless
she had a habit of repeating whatever was said to her giving herselftime to ponder her response
ldquoYes your legal opinionrdquo said the voice behind the door
Thoacutera straightened up ldquoIrsquoll give you all the opinions you want
Markuacutesrdquo she said ldquoHowever this is how it is with us lawyers we
have no need to experience for ourselves whatever it is wersquore dealing
with So therersquos no reason for me to clamber down there with you
Tell me what this is about and Irsquoll put together an opinion for you
back at my office in ReykjaviacutekrdquoldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo said Markuacutes ldquoI donrsquot need a
written opinion A verbal onersquoll dordquo He paused ldquoIrsquom begging you
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 312
ldquoYoursquore trying to tell me Markuacutes is just tidying the basement You
canrsquot possibly believe that a pile of rubbish is the reason that he
didnrsquot want anyone to go down there before himrdquo
The lawyer Thoacutera Gudmundsdoacutettir smiled politely at the man
addressing her an archaeologist called Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson but did
not answer his question This was getting out of hand She was
very uncomfortable the smell of smoke and the ash hanging in the
air were irritating her eyes and nose and she was scared that theroof was going to collapse at any moment On their way through
the house to the basement door the three of them had had to make
their way around a huge pile of ashy debris where the roof had col-
lapsed onto the intricately patterned carpet at which point Thoacutera
had adjusted her helmetrsquos elastic chin-strap to ensure that it was
fastened tightly She shuffled her feet and looked embarrassedly at
the clock They heard a dull thud from the basement What exactlywas the man up to Markuacutes had said that he needed a little time
but neither she nor the archaeologist could guess what his definition
of ldquoa littlerdquo was ldquoIrsquom sure hersquoll reappear soonrdquo she said without
much conviction and stared at the crooked door in the hope that it
would be pushed open and this business concluded She glanced
instinctively at the ceiling ready to jump away if it appeared likely
to crash down on them
ldquoDonrsquot worryrdquo said Hjoumlrtur pointing upward ldquoIf the roof wasgoing to split apart it would have done so a long time agordquo He
heaved a sigh and stroked his unshaven chin ldquoDo you know what
hersquos doing down thererdquo
Chapter 983089
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 412
983094 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
Thoacutera shook her head unwilling to discuss her clientrsquos plans with
someone unconnected to the case
ldquoHe must have at least hintedrdquo said Hjoumlrtur ldquoWersquove been dying
to find out about thisrdquo He looked at Thoacutera ldquoIrsquoll bet this has some-thing to do with pornography The others think so toordquo
She shrugged That thought had certainly occurred to her as well
but she did not have a sufficiently fertile imagination to guess what
kind of thing would be too embarrassing or disgusting to show to a
stranger A film of the homeownerrsquos sexual adventures Unlikely
Few people had video cameras in the 983089983097983095983088s and she doubted that
the type of film used back then would have survived the destructionthat had rained down on the Islands Besides Markuacutes Magnuacutesson
who was down in the basement had been only fifteen when the
house had disappeared beneath lava and ash so he probably hadnrsquot
been ready for much in that area Nevertheless there was some-
thing down in the basement that hersquod been desperate to get to be-
fore them Thoacutera sighed How did she keep ending up with these
characters She didnrsquot know any other lawyer who attracted such
strange cases and such peculiar clients She resolved to ask Markuacuteswhat had inspired him to call her little legal firm instead of one of
the larger ones when he decided to demand that the excavation be
legally blocked If he ever returned from the basement She pulled
the neck of her jumper up over her mouth and nose and tried
breathing through it That was a little better Hjoumlrtur smiled at her
ldquoYou get used to it I promiserdquo he said ldquoHopefully you wonrsquot
have to thoughmdashit takes several daysrdquoThoacutera rolled her eyes ldquoDamn it itrsquos not like hersquos going to move
in down thererdquo she muttered through her jumper Then she pulled
it down to smile at Hjoumlrtur It was thanks to him that things had
gone so well until now in that theyrsquod been able to get by without
demanding the injunction In any case that would only have been a
temporary measure since Markuacutes and his family no longer had any
claim on the house The Westmann Islands owned it along with all
its contents and there was little point in fighting this fact eventhough Markuacutes had made a concerted attempt to do so He had
focused particularly on Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson the man now standing
next to Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur was the director of a project entitled Pom-
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 512
Ashes to Dust 983095
peii of the North whose task it was to excavate a number of houses
that had been buried by ash in the eruption on Heimaey Island in
983089983097983095983091 Thoacutera had had considerable contact with him by telephone
and email since the case had begun and liked the man well enoughHe was inclined to be long-winded but seemed reasonable and was
not easily provoked Hjoumlrtur had been seriously tested since Markuacutes
so often acted like a total ass He had refused to give even the slight-
est clue as to why he was opposed to his parentsrsquo house being exca-
vated had gone on and on about invasions of privacy and had
generally complicated the matter for Thoacutera in every conceivable
way After trying to reach an agreement but getting nowhere due toMarkuacutesrsquos pigheadedness in defeat she had asked Hjoumlrtur whether
he couldnrsquot just dig up some other house instead There were cer-
tainly enough to choose from But that was out of the question
since Markuacutesrsquos childhood home was one of the few houses in the
area built of concrete and thus was more likely than the others to
have withstood the cataclysm in any significant way The purpose
of the excavation was not to dig down to a house that was now
simply rubbleThoacutera had already started reading up on how she might best
obtain an injunction against the excavation when it transpired that
Markuacutes was only concerned about the basement of the house
Finally they could discuss solutions sensibly and Hjoumlrtur had pro-
posed this arrangement the house would first be dug up and aired
out and then Markuacutes would be the first person allowed down into
the basement where he could remove anything that he wanted Af-ter some consideration he agreed to this compromise and Thoacutera
breathed easier Markuacutes had no trouble at all bearing the cost of
endless litigation since he was anything but badly off financially
His family owned one of the largest fishing companies in the West-
mann Islands and even though Thoacutera would never complain about
being paid well for her work she was upset about working against
her better judgment and toward a goal that would never be reached
She was immensely relieved when Markuacutes agreed to Hjoumlrturrsquos pro-posal now she could start putting the final touches to the fine de-
tails of the agreement over how Markuacutesrsquos visit to the basement
would be conducted how they could guarantee that others would
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 612
983096 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
not be allowed to sneak in before him and so on The agreement
was then signed and they only had to wait for the end of the exca-
vation
So there they stood archaeologist and lawyer staring at a crookedbasement door while a man who had still been a teenager in 983089983097983095983091
wrestled with a terrible secret beneath their feet
ldquoHallelujahrdquo said Thoacutera when they heard footsteps on the base-
ment stairs
ldquoI do hope he found whatever he was looking forrdquo said Hjoumlrtur
gloomily ldquoWe didnrsquot think about the possibility of him coming up
empty-handedrdquoThoacutera crossed her fingers and stared at the door
They watched anxiously as the doorknob turned then incredu-
lously as the door was cracked open only a tiny bit They exchanged
a glance then Thoacutera leaned forward and spoke into the gap ldquoMarkuacutesrdquo
she said calmly ldquois something wrongrdquo
ldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo came the reply His voice sounded
peculiar but it was impossible to tell whether he was excited disap-
pointed or sad The glow from his flashlight shone through the chinkand illuminated Thoacuterarsquos feet
ldquoMerdquo Thoacutera asked flabbergasted ldquoDown thererdquo She looked
back at Hjoumlrtur who raised his eyebrows
ldquoYesrdquo said Markuacutes in the same enigmatic tone ldquoI need to get
your opinion on somethingrdquo
ldquoMy opinionrdquo she echoed When she found herself speechless
she had a habit of repeating whatever was said to her giving herselftime to ponder her response
ldquoYes your legal opinionrdquo said the voice behind the door
Thoacutera straightened up ldquoIrsquoll give you all the opinions you want
Markuacutesrdquo she said ldquoHowever this is how it is with us lawyers we
have no need to experience for ourselves whatever it is wersquore dealing
with So therersquos no reason for me to clamber down there with you
Tell me what this is about and Irsquoll put together an opinion for you
back at my office in ReykjaviacutekrdquoldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo said Markuacutes ldquoI donrsquot need a
written opinion A verbal onersquoll dordquo He paused ldquoIrsquom begging you
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 412
983094 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
Thoacutera shook her head unwilling to discuss her clientrsquos plans with
someone unconnected to the case
ldquoHe must have at least hintedrdquo said Hjoumlrtur ldquoWersquove been dying
to find out about thisrdquo He looked at Thoacutera ldquoIrsquoll bet this has some-thing to do with pornography The others think so toordquo
She shrugged That thought had certainly occurred to her as well
but she did not have a sufficiently fertile imagination to guess what
kind of thing would be too embarrassing or disgusting to show to a
stranger A film of the homeownerrsquos sexual adventures Unlikely
Few people had video cameras in the 983089983097983095983088s and she doubted that
the type of film used back then would have survived the destructionthat had rained down on the Islands Besides Markuacutes Magnuacutesson
who was down in the basement had been only fifteen when the
house had disappeared beneath lava and ash so he probably hadnrsquot
been ready for much in that area Nevertheless there was some-
thing down in the basement that hersquod been desperate to get to be-
fore them Thoacutera sighed How did she keep ending up with these
characters She didnrsquot know any other lawyer who attracted such
strange cases and such peculiar clients She resolved to ask Markuacuteswhat had inspired him to call her little legal firm instead of one of
the larger ones when he decided to demand that the excavation be
legally blocked If he ever returned from the basement She pulled
the neck of her jumper up over her mouth and nose and tried
breathing through it That was a little better Hjoumlrtur smiled at her
ldquoYou get used to it I promiserdquo he said ldquoHopefully you wonrsquot
have to thoughmdashit takes several daysrdquoThoacutera rolled her eyes ldquoDamn it itrsquos not like hersquos going to move
in down thererdquo she muttered through her jumper Then she pulled
it down to smile at Hjoumlrtur It was thanks to him that things had
gone so well until now in that theyrsquod been able to get by without
demanding the injunction In any case that would only have been a
temporary measure since Markuacutes and his family no longer had any
claim on the house The Westmann Islands owned it along with all
its contents and there was little point in fighting this fact eventhough Markuacutes had made a concerted attempt to do so He had
focused particularly on Hjoumlrtur Fridriksson the man now standing
next to Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur was the director of a project entitled Pom-
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 512
Ashes to Dust 983095
peii of the North whose task it was to excavate a number of houses
that had been buried by ash in the eruption on Heimaey Island in
983089983097983095983091 Thoacutera had had considerable contact with him by telephone
and email since the case had begun and liked the man well enoughHe was inclined to be long-winded but seemed reasonable and was
not easily provoked Hjoumlrtur had been seriously tested since Markuacutes
so often acted like a total ass He had refused to give even the slight-
est clue as to why he was opposed to his parentsrsquo house being exca-
vated had gone on and on about invasions of privacy and had
generally complicated the matter for Thoacutera in every conceivable
way After trying to reach an agreement but getting nowhere due toMarkuacutesrsquos pigheadedness in defeat she had asked Hjoumlrtur whether
he couldnrsquot just dig up some other house instead There were cer-
tainly enough to choose from But that was out of the question
since Markuacutesrsquos childhood home was one of the few houses in the
area built of concrete and thus was more likely than the others to
have withstood the cataclysm in any significant way The purpose
of the excavation was not to dig down to a house that was now
simply rubbleThoacutera had already started reading up on how she might best
obtain an injunction against the excavation when it transpired that
Markuacutes was only concerned about the basement of the house
Finally they could discuss solutions sensibly and Hjoumlrtur had pro-
posed this arrangement the house would first be dug up and aired
out and then Markuacutes would be the first person allowed down into
the basement where he could remove anything that he wanted Af-ter some consideration he agreed to this compromise and Thoacutera
breathed easier Markuacutes had no trouble at all bearing the cost of
endless litigation since he was anything but badly off financially
His family owned one of the largest fishing companies in the West-
mann Islands and even though Thoacutera would never complain about
being paid well for her work she was upset about working against
her better judgment and toward a goal that would never be reached
She was immensely relieved when Markuacutes agreed to Hjoumlrturrsquos pro-posal now she could start putting the final touches to the fine de-
tails of the agreement over how Markuacutesrsquos visit to the basement
would be conducted how they could guarantee that others would
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 612
983096 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
not be allowed to sneak in before him and so on The agreement
was then signed and they only had to wait for the end of the exca-
vation
So there they stood archaeologist and lawyer staring at a crookedbasement door while a man who had still been a teenager in 983089983097983095983091
wrestled with a terrible secret beneath their feet
ldquoHallelujahrdquo said Thoacutera when they heard footsteps on the base-
ment stairs
ldquoI do hope he found whatever he was looking forrdquo said Hjoumlrtur
gloomily ldquoWe didnrsquot think about the possibility of him coming up
empty-handedrdquoThoacutera crossed her fingers and stared at the door
They watched anxiously as the doorknob turned then incredu-
lously as the door was cracked open only a tiny bit They exchanged
a glance then Thoacutera leaned forward and spoke into the gap ldquoMarkuacutesrdquo
she said calmly ldquois something wrongrdquo
ldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo came the reply His voice sounded
peculiar but it was impossible to tell whether he was excited disap-
pointed or sad The glow from his flashlight shone through the chinkand illuminated Thoacuterarsquos feet
ldquoMerdquo Thoacutera asked flabbergasted ldquoDown thererdquo She looked
back at Hjoumlrtur who raised his eyebrows
ldquoYesrdquo said Markuacutes in the same enigmatic tone ldquoI need to get
your opinion on somethingrdquo
ldquoMy opinionrdquo she echoed When she found herself speechless
she had a habit of repeating whatever was said to her giving herselftime to ponder her response
ldquoYes your legal opinionrdquo said the voice behind the door
Thoacutera straightened up ldquoIrsquoll give you all the opinions you want
Markuacutesrdquo she said ldquoHowever this is how it is with us lawyers we
have no need to experience for ourselves whatever it is wersquore dealing
with So therersquos no reason for me to clamber down there with you
Tell me what this is about and Irsquoll put together an opinion for you
back at my office in ReykjaviacutekrdquoldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo said Markuacutes ldquoI donrsquot need a
written opinion A verbal onersquoll dordquo He paused ldquoIrsquom begging you
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 512
Ashes to Dust 983095
peii of the North whose task it was to excavate a number of houses
that had been buried by ash in the eruption on Heimaey Island in
983089983097983095983091 Thoacutera had had considerable contact with him by telephone
and email since the case had begun and liked the man well enoughHe was inclined to be long-winded but seemed reasonable and was
not easily provoked Hjoumlrtur had been seriously tested since Markuacutes
so often acted like a total ass He had refused to give even the slight-
est clue as to why he was opposed to his parentsrsquo house being exca-
vated had gone on and on about invasions of privacy and had
generally complicated the matter for Thoacutera in every conceivable
way After trying to reach an agreement but getting nowhere due toMarkuacutesrsquos pigheadedness in defeat she had asked Hjoumlrtur whether
he couldnrsquot just dig up some other house instead There were cer-
tainly enough to choose from But that was out of the question
since Markuacutesrsquos childhood home was one of the few houses in the
area built of concrete and thus was more likely than the others to
have withstood the cataclysm in any significant way The purpose
of the excavation was not to dig down to a house that was now
simply rubbleThoacutera had already started reading up on how she might best
obtain an injunction against the excavation when it transpired that
Markuacutes was only concerned about the basement of the house
Finally they could discuss solutions sensibly and Hjoumlrtur had pro-
posed this arrangement the house would first be dug up and aired
out and then Markuacutes would be the first person allowed down into
the basement where he could remove anything that he wanted Af-ter some consideration he agreed to this compromise and Thoacutera
breathed easier Markuacutes had no trouble at all bearing the cost of
endless litigation since he was anything but badly off financially
His family owned one of the largest fishing companies in the West-
mann Islands and even though Thoacutera would never complain about
being paid well for her work she was upset about working against
her better judgment and toward a goal that would never be reached
She was immensely relieved when Markuacutes agreed to Hjoumlrturrsquos pro-posal now she could start putting the final touches to the fine de-
tails of the agreement over how Markuacutesrsquos visit to the basement
would be conducted how they could guarantee that others would
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 612
983096 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
not be allowed to sneak in before him and so on The agreement
was then signed and they only had to wait for the end of the exca-
vation
So there they stood archaeologist and lawyer staring at a crookedbasement door while a man who had still been a teenager in 983089983097983095983091
wrestled with a terrible secret beneath their feet
ldquoHallelujahrdquo said Thoacutera when they heard footsteps on the base-
ment stairs
ldquoI do hope he found whatever he was looking forrdquo said Hjoumlrtur
gloomily ldquoWe didnrsquot think about the possibility of him coming up
empty-handedrdquoThoacutera crossed her fingers and stared at the door
They watched anxiously as the doorknob turned then incredu-
lously as the door was cracked open only a tiny bit They exchanged
a glance then Thoacutera leaned forward and spoke into the gap ldquoMarkuacutesrdquo
she said calmly ldquois something wrongrdquo
ldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo came the reply His voice sounded
peculiar but it was impossible to tell whether he was excited disap-
pointed or sad The glow from his flashlight shone through the chinkand illuminated Thoacuterarsquos feet
ldquoMerdquo Thoacutera asked flabbergasted ldquoDown thererdquo She looked
back at Hjoumlrtur who raised his eyebrows
ldquoYesrdquo said Markuacutes in the same enigmatic tone ldquoI need to get
your opinion on somethingrdquo
ldquoMy opinionrdquo she echoed When she found herself speechless
she had a habit of repeating whatever was said to her giving herselftime to ponder her response
ldquoYes your legal opinionrdquo said the voice behind the door
Thoacutera straightened up ldquoIrsquoll give you all the opinions you want
Markuacutesrdquo she said ldquoHowever this is how it is with us lawyers we
have no need to experience for ourselves whatever it is wersquore dealing
with So therersquos no reason for me to clamber down there with you
Tell me what this is about and Irsquoll put together an opinion for you
back at my office in ReykjaviacutekrdquoldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo said Markuacutes ldquoI donrsquot need a
written opinion A verbal onersquoll dordquo He paused ldquoIrsquom begging you
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 612
983096 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
not be allowed to sneak in before him and so on The agreement
was then signed and they only had to wait for the end of the exca-
vation
So there they stood archaeologist and lawyer staring at a crookedbasement door while a man who had still been a teenager in 983089983097983095983091
wrestled with a terrible secret beneath their feet
ldquoHallelujahrdquo said Thoacutera when they heard footsteps on the base-
ment stairs
ldquoI do hope he found whatever he was looking forrdquo said Hjoumlrtur
gloomily ldquoWe didnrsquot think about the possibility of him coming up
empty-handedrdquoThoacutera crossed her fingers and stared at the door
They watched anxiously as the doorknob turned then incredu-
lously as the door was cracked open only a tiny bit They exchanged
a glance then Thoacutera leaned forward and spoke into the gap ldquoMarkuacutesrdquo
she said calmly ldquois something wrongrdquo
ldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo came the reply His voice sounded
peculiar but it was impossible to tell whether he was excited disap-
pointed or sad The glow from his flashlight shone through the chinkand illuminated Thoacuterarsquos feet
ldquoMerdquo Thoacutera asked flabbergasted ldquoDown thererdquo She looked
back at Hjoumlrtur who raised his eyebrows
ldquoYesrdquo said Markuacutes in the same enigmatic tone ldquoI need to get
your opinion on somethingrdquo
ldquoMy opinionrdquo she echoed When she found herself speechless
she had a habit of repeating whatever was said to her giving herselftime to ponder her response
ldquoYes your legal opinionrdquo said the voice behind the door
Thoacutera straightened up ldquoIrsquoll give you all the opinions you want
Markuacutesrdquo she said ldquoHowever this is how it is with us lawyers we
have no need to experience for ourselves whatever it is wersquore dealing
with So therersquos no reason for me to clamber down there with you
Tell me what this is about and Irsquoll put together an opinion for you
back at my office in ReykjaviacutekrdquoldquoYoursquove got to come down hererdquo said Markuacutes ldquoI donrsquot need a
written opinion A verbal onersquoll dordquo He paused ldquoIrsquom begging you
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 712
Ashes to Dust 983097
Just come down hererdquo Thoacutera had never heard Markuacutes sound so
humble Shersquod only heard him being haughty and opinionated
Hjoumlrtur scowled at Thoacutera unamused ldquoWhy donrsquot you just get it
over with Itrsquos completely safe and Irsquom keen to finish up hererdquoShe hesitated What in the blazes could be down there She ab-
solutely did not want to go down into even darker and fouler air
On the other hand she agreed with Hjoumlrtur that they had to settle
this here and now She roused herself ldquoAll right thenrdquo she conceded
grabbing Hjoumlrturrsquos flashlight ldquoIrsquom comingrdquo She opened the door
wide enough to step through and saw Markuacutes on the stairs look-
ing pale as a corpse His face nearly matched the white helmet thathe wore on his head Thoacutera tried not to read too much into it since
the only light was coming from their flashlights giving everything
an otherworldly glow She gulped The air there was even more
stagnant dustier ldquoWhat do you want to show merdquo she asked
ldquoLetrsquos get this over withrdquo
Markuacutes set off down the stairs into the darkness The beam from
his flashlight was of little use amid the dust and ash and there was no
way to see where the steps ended ldquoI donrsquot know how to describe itrdquosaid Markuacutes in a strangely calm voice as he went down the stairs
ldquoYoursquove got to believe me when I say that this is not what I came here
looking for But itrsquos clear now that you have to get an injunction
against the excavation and have the house covered over againrdquo
Thoacutera pointed her light at her feet She had no wish to trip on
the stairs and tumble into the basement head first ldquoIs there some-
thing bad here that you werenrsquot aware ofrdquoldquoYes you could say thatrdquo he replied ldquoI would never have al-
lowed the excavation to go ahead if this was what I wanted to hide
Thatrsquos for certainrdquo He was standing now on the basement floor
ldquoI think Irsquove got myself into a really bad positionrdquo
Thoacutera stepped off the final stair and took her place by his side
ldquoWhat do you mean by lsquothisrsquordquo she asked shining her light around
The little that she could discern appeared completely innocent an
old sled a badly dented birdcage numerous boxes and miscella-neous rubbish scattered here and there all of it covered with dust
and soot
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 812
983089983088 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
ldquoOver hererdquo said Markuacutes He led her to the edge of a partition
ldquoYou have to believe memdashI knew nothing about thisrdquo He pointed
his flashlight downward
Thoacutera peered at the floor but couldnrsquot see anything that couldhave frightened Markuacutes that much only three mounds of dust She
moved her flashlight over them It took her some time to realize
what she was seeingmdashand then it was all she could do not to let the
flashlight slip from her hand ldquoGood Godrdquo she said She ran the light
over the three faces one after another Sunken cheeks empty eye
sockets gaping mouths they reminded her of the photographs of
mummies shersquod once seen in National Geographic ldquoWho are thesepeoplerdquo
ldquoI donrsquot knowrdquo said Markuacutes clearly in shock himself ldquoBut that
doesnrsquot matter Whatrsquos certain is that theyrsquove been dead for quite
some timerdquo He raised one of his hands to cover his nose and mouth
even though there was no smell from the corpses then grimaced and
looked away
Thoacutera on the other hand could not tear her eyes away from the
remains Markuacutes hadnrsquot been exaggerating when he said that thislooked bad for him ldquoWhat did you want to hide then if it wasnrsquot
thisrdquo she asked in astonishment ldquoYoursquod better have an answer
when this gets outrdquo He appeared on the verge of protesting and
she hurriedly added ldquoYou can forget about the house being buried
again as if nothing ever happened I can promise you that thatrsquos not
an optionrdquo Why was nothing ever simple Why couldnrsquot Markuacutes
just have come up from the basement with his arms full of old por-nographic pictures She aimed her flashlight at him
ldquoShow me what you were looking forrdquo she said her anxiety
heightened by the nervous expression on his face ldquoSurely it canrsquot be
worse than thisrdquo
Markuacutes was silent for a few moments Then he cleared his throat
and shone his light into a nook right next to them ldquoIt was thisrdquo he
said not letting his eyes follow the flashlightrsquos beam ldquoI can explain
everythingrdquo he added nervously looking at his feetldquoOh Jesusrdquo cried Thoacutera as her flashlight clattered to the floor
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 912
ldquoTo tell you the truth I donrsquot know whether I should be happy or
not that your bizarre discovery of human remains should have oc-
curred before I retiredrdquo The police officer looked from one of them
to the other Thoacutera Hjoumlrtur and Markuacutes all smiled awkwardly
They were at the police headquarters in the Westmann Islands
where theyrsquod been made to wait for a very long time for the chief
inspector who now sat before them Hersquod clearly taken his time in
the basement had wanted to see the evidence with his own eyesbefore speaking to them ldquoMy name is Gudni Leifsson Irsquom almost
retiredrdquo he added ldquoafter a career of nearly forty yearsrdquo He clasped
his hands together ldquoIrsquod like to see others do betterrdquo Thoacutera did her
best to appear interested in his remarkable career with limited
success what she wanted most was to ask what time it was since
she couldnrsquot miss the last plane to Reykjaviacutek What a waste of time
this wasldquoBut thatrsquos the way things gordquo The police inspector shook his
head slowly and clicked his tongue ldquoI have never seen anything like
thisrdquo He smiled wryly ldquoMaybe itrsquos fate playing games with the
authorities in Reykjaviacutekrdquo
Thoacutera raised her eyebrows ldquoWhatrdquo she inquired although she
had no desire whatsoever to prolong this conversation ldquoHow do
you meanrdquo
ldquoIrsquom not surprised you have to ask A lawyer from Reykjaviacutek couldhardly be expected to keep up to speed with what happens out here
in the sticksrdquo The old man looked at her reproachfully but Thoacutera
ignored him ldquoItrsquos only been a short time since the detectives we had
Chapter 983090
Monday July 983097 983090983088983088983095
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1012
983089983090 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
stationed here were moved to the mainland in order to cut costs
The trivial crimes committed here didnrsquot justify the expenserdquo He
smiled broadly ldquoUntil nowrdquo He looked at Markuacutes meaningfully
before continuing ldquoThree bodies and one headrdquo He tutted againldquoYou were always up to mischief as a boy Markuacutes but isnrsquot this
taking it a bit too far Itrsquos quite a leap from stealing rhubarb to
mass murderrdquo
Markuacutes leaned forward his expression open and sincere ldquoI swear
that I know nothing about these bodies Theyrsquore nothing to do with
merdquo He sat back again seemingly satisfied and brushed dust off
the arms of his jacketThoacutera sighed deeply and decided to interrupt Markuacutes before he
got the chance to say that hersquod only had something to do with the
head ldquoBefore we go any further I would like to ask where this is
going Is this a formal interrogationrdquo She thoughtmdashbut did not
saymdashthat if it were it would be ridiculous to interview Markuacutes and
Hjoumlrtur together Their interests were completely at odds ldquoIf so I
wish to state that as Markuacutesrsquos lawyer I question your proceduresrdquo
Inspector Leifsson pursed his lips and sucked air through histeeth as if trying to clean between them ldquoIt may be that you work
differently in Reykjaviacutek Madam Lawyerrdquo he said coldly ldquoThere
you presumably go lsquoby the bookrsquo as they say although one never
actually knows which book they mean Here on the other hand Irsquom
in charge If I want to speak to you as for example I do now then
I shall do so It canrsquot hurt anyone can it Least of all your client
Markuacutesrdquo He smiled at Thoacutera but it did not reach his eyes ldquoUnlessyou think hersquos got something on his consciencerdquo He looked at
Markuacutes ldquoThe bodies appeared to be quite old Perhaps he killed all
of them back when he was a spotty teenagerrdquo He paused regard-
ing her levelly ldquoBut my heart tells me it isnrsquot so I think wersquoll find
some sort of logical explanation for this mess which I was hoping
we could just clear up without having to go through formal chan-
nels And Irsquom happy to take the blame for thatrdquo
Thoacutera placed a restraining hand on Markuacutesrsquos shoulder ldquoI wishto speak with my client before we go any further and afterward we
will go by this famous lsquobookrsquo so that everything is aboveboardrdquo
Gudni shrugged He seemed to be in good shape for a man his
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1112
Ashes to Dust 983089983091
age as far as Thoacutera could tell fairly trim and with a good head of
hair She couldnrsquot shake the impression that he looked like Clint
Eastwood and she had an overwhelming desire to stick a toothpick
in the corner of his mouth to get the full effect He stared at her fora moment as if he knew what she was thinking before turning to
Markuacutes ldquoIs that what you want Markuacutes my friendrdquo he asked the
other man who sat mutely at Thoacuterarsquos side
Markuacutes squirmed uneasily in his chair In front of him sat the au-
thority figure of his youth who remembered him stealing vegetables
from peoplersquos gardens or whatever it was that the old police officer
had mentioned at the start of their conversation ldquoI havenrsquot doneanythingrdquo he muttered glancing sideways at Thoacutera ldquoIs there re-
ally any reason why we have to go through all this official stuffrdquo
Thoacutera drew a deep breath ldquoMarkuacutes my friendrdquo she said calmly
hoping that the words would have the same effect on him as when
the inspector had used them ldquoIn the basement you asked for my
help and now Irsquom giving it to you Come out into the corridor here
with me for a moment where we can speak privately Afterward
you can decide what you want to do In other words yoursquoll be freeto go home with Inspector Leifsson and let him question you at his
kitchen table in the presence of his wife and catrdquo
ldquoMy wife is deadrdquo Gudni said coldly ldquoAnd I have a dog No catrdquo
Throughout all of this Hjoumlrtur had been waiting on the sidelines
quietly following the conversation Now he finally spoke up but
what he said made Thoacutera think that he was the type who hated con-
flict even as a silent observer ldquoWouldnrsquot it be best for everyone if youtwo went off on your own for a bit Then I can tell you about the
things that concern merdquo he said glancing hopefully at Gudni ldquoIt
would really help me if we could do this quickly If I donrsquot get back to
my office soon my colleagues will think something has happened to
me They know that I was in the house that yoursquove cordoned off and
they must have heard somethingrsquos going on thererdquo
Gudni stared at Hjoumlrtur without replying These silences must be
his secret weapon during interrogations thought Thoacutera Perhaps hehoped that people would start speaking to fill the embarrassing
pause The archaeologist did not fall into his trap There was a
brief silence then Gudnirsquos face broke into a chilly smile and he
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo
832019 Ashes to Dust A Thriller
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullashes-to-dust-a-thriller 1212
983089983092 Yrsa Sigurdardoacutettir
said ldquoFine I donrsquot want your colleagues pulling out their pens and
writing obituaries about you my dear Hjoumlrturrdquo He looked from
the blushing archaeologist to Thoacutera ldquoSuit yourselves No one will
disturb you in the corridor outside the officerdquo He waved them tothe door ldquoWersquoll be here if you decide to honor us with your pres-
encerdquo As Thoacutera and Markuacutes reached the door they heard him say
to their backs ldquoBut yoursquoll not be coming to dinner at my houserdquo
ldquoWhat are you thinkingrdquo muttered Thoacutera through gritted teeth
once they were outside the office ldquoYou go there to fetch a severed
head and then think you can sit and chat with the police without
having any idea of your legal position Do you realize how muchtrouble you could end up inrdquo
Markuacutes looked angry for a second then his anger gave way to
resignation ldquoYou donrsquot know how things work here This man is
the law in the Islands Him alone There might be other policemen
but hersquos the one who calls the shots He often settles cases without
making any trouble for those involved I think it would be best for
me to just talk to him and after hersquos heard what I have to say hersquoll
make things easier Especially since I didnrsquot do anything wrongrdquoThoacutera wanted to stamp her foot in frustration but she clenched
her fists and settled for knocking lightly on the wall for emphasis
ldquoThis case will soon be taken out of Gudnirsquos hands Corpses and
severed heads arenrsquot a matter for small police departments no matter
how powerful particular officers may be in their own jurisdictions
He might be able to solve cases his way when they concern stolen
rhubarb but this is another matter entirely Itrsquos my understandingthat in the light of the seriousness of this case and because of the
unusual circumstances it wonrsquot go to the Criminal Investigation
Department in Selfoss which usually handles such cases here in the
Islands Itrsquoll go straight to the Reykjaviacutek police and their Crime Lab
and you can be sure that they wonrsquot conduct themselves like Gudni
So itrsquos all the same to me what you do but itrsquoll work out much better
for you if things are done in the proper way When yoursquore being
questioned informally he can use everything that you say in courtAnd to make matters worse Hjoumlrtur would be able to confirm every-
thing that you said Itrsquos completely crazyrdquo