Kennedy's Brain Page 0,55

them off.

'There are lots of churches in Barcelona, big and small. The nearest to here is Iglesia de San Felip Neri,' she said.

'Come on,' said Louise. 'We're going there.'

'We?'

'You and me. Take those gloves off.'

The fa莽ade of the church was criss-crossed with cracks, but the dark wooden door was standing ajar. The inside was in semi-darkness. Louise paused while her eyes got used to the light. Blanca crossed herself, curtsied and crossed herself again. Right at the front, by the altar, a woman was busy dusting.

Louise gave Blanca Aron's passport.

'Show her the photograph,' she whispered. 'Ask her if she recognises Aron.'

Louise kept in the background while Blanca showed the woman the photo. She studied it in a beam of light from a pretty stained-glass window. Mary with her dead son on the cross. Magdalena with her face averted. A shimmering blue beam of light from the sky.

You can paint a sky. But not a wave.

Blanca turned to Louise.

'She recognises him. He was here yesterday.'

'Ask her when.'

Questions and answers. Blanca, the woman, Louise.

'She doesn't remember.'

'She must remember. Pay her to remember!'

'I don't think she wants money.'

Louise realised that she had offended Blanca who was representing the whole of Catalonian womanhood. But just now she paid no attention. She insisted on Blanca repeating the question.

Blanca said: 'It might have been between one and two. Father Ramon called in shortly beforehand and told her that his brother had broken a leg.'

'What did the man in the photograph do when he came here?'

'He sat down in the front pew.'

'Did he light a candle?'

'She didn't notice that. He looked at the windows. Examined his hands. Or he simply sat there with his eyes closed. She only glanced at him occasionally. Like you look at people you don't really see.'

'Ask her if there was anybody else in the church. Did he come on his own?'

'She doesn't know if he was alone when he came, but there was nobody sitting next to him in the pew.'

'Did anybody come in while he was here?'

'Only the two Perez sisters who come here every day. They light candles for their parents then leave right away.'

'Nobody else?'

'Not as far as she can remember.'

Although Louise could not understand what the woman with the duster was saying in Catalan, she could hear a degree of uncertainty in her voice.

'Ask again. Explain to her that it's extremely important to me for her to remember. Say it has to do with my dead son.'

Blanca shook her head.

'It will make no difference. She's answering the best she can.'

The woman was hitting the duster against her leg without speaking.

'Can she point out exactly where Aron sat?'

The woman seemed surprised, but did as she was asked. Louise sat down.

'Where was she?'

The woman pointed towards the altar and the side of an arch. Louise turned round. From where she was sitting she could only see a half of the entrance door. It was still standing ajar. Somebody could have come in without Aron hearing them, or perhaps been lying in wait outside?

'When did he leave?'

'She doesn't know. She went to fetch a new duster.'

'How long was she away?'

'About ten minutes.'

'And when she came back, he'd left?'

'Yes.'

Louise realised something very important. Aron had left no trace behind because he had had no idea that something was going to happen. But something did.

'Thank her and tell her she has been of great help.'

* * *

They walked back to Blanca's flat. Louise thought carefully. Should she tell Blanca outright that she suspected her of lying about Henrik not having had visitors? Or should she try to win her confidence and wait for her to volunteer the truth? Was Blanca scared? Or was there some other explanation?

They sat down in the living room.

'I'll be frank with you. Aron has vanished, and I'm afraid something has happened to him.'

'What could have happened?'

'I don't know. But Henrik did not die a natural death. Perhaps he found something out he shouldn't have.'

'What could that have been?'

'I don't know. Do you?'

'He never told me what he was busy with.'

'You said last time that he told you about his newspaper articles. Did he show them to you?'

'Never.'

Once again Louise detected a slight tremor in Blanca's voice. She had considered her answer.

'Never at all?'

'Not that I can remember.'

'And you have a good memory?'

'No worse than anybody else's, I would say.'

'I'd like to go back to something you've already answered. Just to make sure that I've understood you correctly.'

'I've got work I must be getting on with.'

'This won't take long.

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