and picked it up with their teeth instead. They hadn’t looked quite so cocky when she’d torn a strip off the top and asked them to do it again. Five rounds later and it was a flat disc on the floor, and they were all splitting their sides laughing.
Now, as Bell sat crouched against the shed wall, waiting to be found, she burrowed her feet into the soft earth. There was no need to bother with shoes out here; the grass was so springy and soft, it was almost like walking on fur.
She closed her eyes and waited as she heard Linus counting up to fifty in English; she was never one to miss a teaching opportunity, plus it bought her a little extra time. He could have counted to eighty in Swedish in the time it took. She dropped her head down, her arms loosely on her knees, glad of the rest. She could have killed for a coffee. They’d been playing flat-out for an hour now and she hadn’t had any breakfast yet.
‘Found you!’
Her eyes flew open as she looked up into the dark, beady eyes of Emil’s terrifying sister.
‘I thought Linus was seeking?’ she spluttered.
‘Oh. Is he?’ Nina shrugged. ‘Well, we can hide together, then. Mind if I join you?’
In those white jeans? Bell wondered as Nina sat down on the cool earth beside her. Hiding in the narrow crack between the potting shed and a rusting lawnmower had seemed like a safe bet for a few minutes’ peace, but now it felt like the most dangerous place on earth. ‘How did you find me?’
‘I saw you disappear into the bushes there. I always used to hide here too, when Emil and I played this game as kids.’
‘Oh. The mower was here back then?’
‘Oh yes,’ Nina nodded, pulling out a pack of cigarettes from her Chanel bag. ‘Nothing ever changes here, although I guess you could already tell that by the decor in the bathrooms.’ She offered Bell a cigarette.
‘No. Thanks. I don’t smoke.’
‘No, neither do I. Well, not officially, anyway,’ Nina said, casting her a sideways look and a sly grin. ‘I suppose it doesn’t look good on the CV, does it? Nanny, smoker.’
‘No. Not really.’
‘D’you mind?’ Nina hesitated before lighting up, the cigarette already perched between her lips. The question was clearly rhetorical, but Bell shook her head anyway. ‘So . . .’ She exhaled a plume of grey smoke. ‘You seem to like your job.’
‘I do.’
‘How long have you been doing it for?’
‘Three years. The Mogerts are the only family I’ve worked for.’ She noticed Nina flinch at the sound of Max’s surname.
Nina’s eyes narrowed, assessing her. ‘But you’re, what – late twenties?’
‘Twenty-six. Before that, I was travelling,’ she said, anticipating the next question.
‘Ah yes. Everyone’s so . . . free-spirited and rootless these days.’
There was bite to the words, and Bell looked away. She didn’t need to explain her life history to this woman. What did she know about life choices or career paths? She was a spoiled, rich stranger who had clearly never had to work a day in her life.
‘And my brother,’ she said, taking a deep drag, holding it for a moment before exhaling with a sigh. ‘How are you finding him?’
What had he said? she wondered. ‘He’s not playing too, is he?’ she replied coolly.
Nina laughed loudly, displaying a set of perfect teeth. ‘Ha! My God, no! Ha, you’re hilarious.’ She had that rich person’s way of showing amusement by speaking her laughter, rather than actually laughing it. She took another drag, enjoying her cigarette, playing with the smoke with her lips and blowing rings; it seemed a somewhat subversive, teenage act for such an elegant woman. ‘I meant . . . is he behaving himself?’
‘We’re not . . . He hasn’t tried anything on, if that’s what you mean.’
Nina laughed harder. ‘Ha! It wasn’t, but –’ She began coughing, she was laughing so hard. ‘Ha! Oh God, honestly? I’d ask you to do him a favour and jump his poor bones, but I’m not sure one can say that sort of thing these days, even as a joke.’ Her smile faded and she sighed, looking suddenly sad. She was quiet for another moment, seeming to sink into her thoughts. ‘You’ve been filled in on the accident, I’m assuming.’
‘Of course.’ Only thanks to Christer, though. Hanna had effectively let her come here blind.
‘So then you know that he’s still not fully recovered, in spite of appearances?’