Part 22 (1/2)

Iben hadnt given this a moments thought before, but now things suddenly fell into place. So much would make perfect sense if Anne-Lise were hitting the bottle because of problems at home.

Lea must have pa.s.sed the story on, because there were other vague inquiries from contacts at the university. Iben and Malene both realized that to hint at their misgivings about Anne-Lises possible alcohol problem was the wisest way to make people realize what a difficult and unstable person she was to work with. Throughout this whole unpleasant business, Iben has urged that they should not aim to harm Anne-Lise more than they absolutely have to. It is important to her that she behaves as a good person would, given the circ.u.mstances. So Iben has tried to stick to this approach in spite of Anne-Lises ingratiating herself with Lea, Brigitte, and others in the network, and despite the way Anne-Lise seems unaffected by the unpleasant atmosphere in the office that weighs so heavily on Iben and Malene. Anne-Lise seems prepared to fight on forever, as if shes in her element on the field of battle.

When Iben returns to the rheumatology clinic, Malene is still waiting to see the doctor. Her eyes are fixed on the wall in front of her, and her breathing is shallow and troubled. She keeps her arms tight to her body.

The needle that the doctor will soon use is a ma.s.sive affair, a small tube with a sharply pointed tip, designed to allow viscous fluid to flow in. Iben knows that she should go into the examination room with Malene and hold her hand during the procedure.

She begins to tell Malene about the phone calls but soon gives up: Malene is too distracted to respond. They sit there for almost another hour before the doctor calls Malene. Hes new, but comes across as trustworthy. His neatly trimmed white beard and relaxed movements remind Iben of Ole, only hes younger and some twenty pounds lighter.

Iben and the doctor help Malene onto the couch. He palpates her knee to a.s.sess the extent of the swelling. The pressure inside the joint is so great that a bulge, distended with fluid, has pushed its way between two tendons at the back of her knee. He seems puzzled.

And you tell me everything was fine last night?

Yes.

He slides his hand along her leg below the knee. I see. Well, its most unusual for the swelling to reach this state so quickly.

I know. Its never been like this before.

What did you do yesterday? Any sudden or odd movements?

Iben watches the many little twitches of pain that come and go on Malenes face. She wishes she could do something to help her.

Malene tries to sound pleasant, but her voice is dry and squeaky. Well, I did.

The doctor focuses his entire attention on her knee.

Malene tries to explain. I ran around. Moved faster than I normally do. But I felt fine at the time.

At last he looks up, gazing at her calmly. You certainly managed to damage your knee.

Even though he is addressing Malene, he looks across to Iben, almost as if he thinks she is her friends partner.

What you must always keep in mind is that your joints are no longer what they once were. The bone surfaces are both softer and rougher, and thats why its easier to injure them. Also, because the bone is more exposed, its more p.r.o.ne to cracking. Fragments can come off inside the joint. Your pain may well be due to one of these small local fractures. Which means that Ill have to send you off to X-ray before I aspirate the joint.

But how long will that take?

Ill phone them right away and find out when they can see you. Schedules are tight here, but lets hope theyll be able to fit you in.

He has already lifted the receiver when Malene bursts into tears. Cant you drain my knee now? Just a little?

Im afraid not. It could cause damage.

Please, cant you do something? Take some out. Just a little.

From where she lies on the couch her head is turned toward the doctor. He leans forward across the desk. When I tell you I cant, its not because I want to make you miserable, but because Im doing whats best for you for your knee.

He arranges with the X-ray receptionist that, if all goes well, Malene will be seen in about an hours time.

Ill phone the porters. Theyll send someone to take you across.

Tears are streaming down Malenes face, but she makes no sound.

Ibens voice is shrill. Cant you give her something for the pain? You cant leave her in this state!

Of course. Tell me, Malene, what have you taken so far?

When he hears the quant.i.ties of painkillers that Malene has swallowed this morning, he says it is essential that she wait before taking any more. He promises that by the time shes allowed any more medication, he will already have drained her knee joint.

As Iben helps Malene out of the room, the doctor a.s.sures them that h.e.l.l contact the X-ray department again and try to get Malene in earlier. A porter has come along with a wheelchair and pushes her along the dilapidated corridors. Iben accompanies them, carrying their coats.

Then they wait. Again. The X-ray waiting area is a long, narrow pa.s.sage where patients, attached to their drips, sleep in their beds. Its hard to think of anything to chat about. Iben feels its not right to rattle on about any old thing, but theres not much else to say. It hurts and thats it.

After half an hour Malene finally speaks. Rasmus will be landing soon.

Of course. Its annoying that youre not allowed to keep your cell phone on.

There are drops of sweat on Malenes rigid upper lip. She says nothing, so Iben carries on talking.

He would have phoned. No question about that.

Iben hears Malenes deliberate breathing. In. Pause. Out. Pause. In. Pause. Its maddening not to be able to do something.

Malene, would you like me to pop outside with your cell phone to see if theres a message from Rasmus?

A stranger slowly turns her face toward Iben and nods. Ibens smile feels artificial.

Good. Ill do that.

She takes Malenes cell phone from her coat pocket, still smiling, and heads outside.

Theres a message from Rasmus. Against the background noise of the airport, his low voice is like a caress.

h.e.l.lo, Squidgy b.u.m. I have to board soon. Two seconds. Peter is okay again, just like you thought. Lets make that a dozen USB connections. Thats it, not another word. Youre so smart! Ill be home before you know it and then Ill suck and lick you until you drive the people downstairs crazy and they start banging on the ceiling and the windows crack. But well carry on anyway, without windowpanes, and then the next-door neighbors will give us grief too. But we wont give a f.u.c.k, will we? Sweet Malene. Kiss.

Iben presses the key to save the message for Malene. Then she stands still, the cold piercing her. No one has ever spoken to her like that. No one has ever used that kind of voice, a sweet, s.e.xy voice.

So what?

She thinks of Gunnar. Malene keeps him on hold just in case. Gunnar. Right now, hes presumably sitting in his editors chair in his office at Development. Lord alone knows what he thinks. How much he envies Rasmus, perhaps. Rasmus, who is allowed to leave such messages for Malene.

When Malene met Rasmus three years ago, she thought hed be nothing more than a fling. For weeks she told stories about him, giving away the most intimate details, the weird or selfish things he did, his lopsided c.o.c.k everything. Then, all of a sudden, Malene stopped handing out these tidbits. Iben has a pretty good idea that it is now Rasmus who is learning amazingly personal things about her. Theres no telling what kind of image he has of his beloveds best friend.

When Rasmus is not away on sales trips, Malene often complains that they dont see enough of each other. Most evenings he isnt back from work much before bedtime. She sometimes seems happier when hes away on business because then she can look forward to seeing him again and is able to forget how late he works when hes back home.

Once Malene told her delightedly that she and Rasmus had been talking about having a baby. For a while afterward Iben asked about their plans, but now its been at least a year since Malene mentioned it.