The Circle (Hammer) - By Elfgren, Sara B.,Strandberg, Mats Page 0,45

after a while. ‘Try to find out what’s going on.’

‘If I do anything, I’m going to do it by myself,’ Linnéa answers curtly.

Vanessa takes a drag and tries to hide how disgusting it tastes.

Behind Linnéa she sees one of the drunks who usually hang out in the park. He’s dancing an odd little jig on the greyish-brown grass. Totally gone in the head. But nice, Vanessa knows that because she used to get him to buy booze for her from the off-licence before she met Wille.

Linnéa tosses her cigarette on to the ground and pains-takingly grinds it out with her boot. Suddenly she looks annoyed. Is she afraid that Vanessa’s going to ask to come home with her?

‘I’ve got to go,’ Vanessa says, to make it clear she’s not trying to become best friends.

Linnéa doesn’t answer.

Behind her the drunk is shaking his head. He staggers forward unsteadily, approaching them with jerky movements. ‘Hello!’ he calls.

‘Hi,’ Vanessa shouts back, and hopes he’ll be satisfied with that.

But he continues towards them. ‘Linnéa, the light and joy of my life!’ he calls, in the slurring, broken voice that all drunkards seem to acquire sooner or later.

‘Friend of yours?’ Vanessa asks, with a little laugh.

Linnéa doesn’t answer. She just walks away.

‘Linnéa!’ the lush shouts again.

He stops short in his bizarre dance, rocking back and forth, looking after Linnéa with empty eyes and gaping mouth.

Linnéa speaks to him so softly that Vanessa barely catches what she says.

‘’Bye, Dad.’

15

WHEN ANNA-KARIN OPENS the front door she is met by the smell of freshly baked bread. A smile spreads across her face.

‘Hi, sweetheart, are you back from school?’ her mother calls from the kitchen.

‘Yes!’ Anna-Karin shouts back, as she hangs her jacket on the hook in the hall. She’s barely had a chance to take off her shoes before her mother rushes up and gives her a warm hug. She doesn’t stink of cigarettes because she’s stopped smoking. And the house smells of bread, soft soap and fresh air.

‘How was school today?’ her mother asks, letting go.

‘Good. I got everything right in the history test.’

‘My clever girl!’ her mother says proudly.

Anna-Karin doesn’t feel guilty that she guessed everything, then used her power on the teacher. She has some rules: she avoids manipulating her teachers as far as she can, and never uses her power on the science teachers, only on those who teach unnecessary subjects, like history, German and PE. None of that’s going to be of any use to her as a vet. And what would be the point of learning a load of meaningless stuff just to forget it afterwards?

‘I was baking some scones, and then it occurred to me that I might as well do some cinnamon buns, too.’ Her mother laughs, wiping a floury hand on her bright apron.

Her mother’s smile doesn’t reach her eyes, but Anna-Karin doesn’t mind. Soon her mother will discover how good it feels to live life. Then that smile will become genuine, she’s sure.

Pepper slinks down the stairs and stops at the bottom.

‘Hello, sweetie,’ Anna-Karin says, crouching and holding out her hand. Pepper’s eyes glisten yellow-green. His tail ticks guardedly back and forth. He doesn’t come any closer. She can’t understand what’s come over him. Little Pepper, who used to lie in her pocket and purr. ‘Come on, Pepper.’ Anna-Karin beckons. ‘Kss, kss, kss …’

He doesn’t budge.

Come here, Anna-Karin thinks, as she looks deep into Pepper’s eyes. Come here now. I just want to cuddle you.

Pepper hisses at her and bolts back up the stairs.

‘Forget it, then,’ Anna-Karin hisses back at him.

Just then her mobile rings. It’s Rebecka’s number. Can’t she let it go? None of them understands how much Anna-Karin deserves her new life. And she’s not going to apologise for it.

This will never work, Rebecka thinks. I’ll never manage to bring them together.

She sticks her mobile into her pocket and looks around for Gustaf in the deserted Citygallerian. He left his scarf at Leffe’s kiosk when he was in there buying chocolate. ‘Wait here, and I’ll run back for it,’ he said.

He’s been away for a long time. Far too long.

Rebecka is shifting from one foot to the other, wishing she had something to read. Something other than her biology textbook. She scans the darkened shop windows in which her reflection appears as a shadow. She looks like a ghost inside the empty units. The only light is coming from the newly opened Crystal Cave.

Rebecka moves closer. The window is crammed with brass pyramids, tarot cards, incense,