Page 4 of The Darkness
‘In two weeks.’
‘But … but what’ll happen to me?’ She felt floored by the news.
‘You can go now, straight away. You don’t have much time left anyway. It’s only a question of bringing your leaving date forward by a few months.’
‘Leave? Straight away?’
‘Yes. On full pay, of course. You’re not being sacked, Hulda, you’ll just be taking a few months’ leave, then you’ll continue straight on to your pension. It won’t affect the amount you receive. There’s no need to look so surprised. It’s a good deal. I’m not trying to short-change you.’
‘A good deal?’
‘Of course. It’ll give you more time for your hobbies. More time for …’ His expression betrayed the fact that he had no idea what she got up to in her leisure time. ‘More time to spend with …’ Again, he trailed off mid-sentence: he should have known that Hulda had no family.
‘It’s kind of you to offer, but I don’t want to retire early,’ Hulda said stiffly, trying to control her expression. ‘Thanks, all the same.’
‘It wasn’t an offer, actually: I’ve already made my decision.’ Magnús’s voice had taken on a harder edge.
‘Your decision? Don’t I get any say?’
‘I’m sorry, Hulda. We need your office.’
And to surround yourself with a younger team, she thought.
‘Is that all the thanks I get?’ She could hear the wobble in her voice.
‘Now, don’t take it so badly. It’s not intended as any reflection on your abilities. Come on, Hulda: you know you’re one of the best officers we’ve got – we both know that.’
‘But what about my caseload?’
‘I’ve already allocated most of it to other members of the team. Before you leave, you can sit down with the new guy and put him in the picture. The biggest thing you’re handling at the moment is the hit-and-run on the paedophile. Have you made any progress there?’
She thought for a moment. It would have been satisfying to her ego to end on a high note: case closed, confession in the bag. A woman who had, in a moment of madness, taken the law into her own hands to prevent further children from falling into the clutches of an abuser. Perhaps there had been a kind of justice in the attack, a just revenge …
‘I’m nowhere near solving that one, I’m afraid,’ she said after a pause. ‘If you ask me, it was probably an accident. I’d advise shelving the case for the time being and hoping the driver will come forward in due course.’
‘Hmm, right. OK, fine. We’ll hold a little reception to give you a formal send-off later this year, when you officially retire. But you can clear your desk today, if you like.’
‘You want me to leave … today?’
‘Sure, if you like. Or you can stay another couple of weeks, if you’d prefer.’
‘Yes, please,’ she said, immediately regretting the ‘please’. ‘I’ll leave when the new man starts, but until then I’ll continue working on my cases.’
‘Like I said, they’ve all been reallocated. But you, well, you could always look into a cold case, I suppose. Anything that takes your fancy. How does that grab you?’
She felt a momentary impulse to jump up and storm out, never to return, but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction.
‘Fine, I’ll do that. Any case I like?’
‘Er, yes, absolutely. Anything you like. Anything to keep you occupied.’
Hulda got the distinct impression that Magnús wanted her out of his office; he had more pressing matters to attend to.
‘Great. I’ll try to keep myself occupied then,’ she said sarcastically, and getting to her feet, she walked out without a goodbye or a word of thanks.
V
Hulda stumbled back to her own office in a state of shock. She felt as if she’d been sacked, thrown out on her ear; as if all her years of service counted for nothing. It was an entirely new experience for her. She knew she was over-reacting, that she shouldn’t take it like this, but couldn’t seem to get rid of the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.
