As the cup landed on the black floor tiles, Helgi heard the sound of it smashing, but he didn’t glance down, just stared, stunned, at the woman in the doorway.
Somewhere in the flat he became aware of music playing. Oh yes, he had put a record on the stereo. But hehad been so distracted by his thoughts that he had tuned it out. Now, though, to his suddenly acute hearing, it seemed amplified. Deafening even.
‘Can I come in?’ Bergthóra asked in an ominously flat, cold voice. It dawned on Helgi that he had probably never known Bergthóra. Not truly. He had lived with her and put up with her violence and drinking, but it seemed she had been hiding something else behind those problems.
‘What?’ Helgi said to win time, trying to grasp what was going on. Come to terms with the fact that it was Bergthóra, not Aníta, standing there in the doorway. He felt totally disorientated. Aníta was due any minute. The two women mustn’t meet again; that was unthinkable.
‘I asked if I could come in,’ Bergthóra repeated, in a loud, clear voice, as though nothing could be more natural than for her to be there.
‘No. We have nothing to discuss, Bergthóra,’ he said, after a brief hesitation. ‘Nothing at all. What the fuck are you doing here?’
‘I just wanted to talk to you.’ There was a look in her eyes that made his blood run cold. As if she wasn’t really addressing her words to him. As if she was looking through him, talking into a void.
‘You’ve got to leave,’ he said firmly, taking a step backwards.
How the hell was he going to get rid of her?
He wasn’t afraid of her; that wasn’t the problem. She had used violence against him in the past, more than once, but he had usually managed to defend himself. Hewas stronger than her and she wouldn’t be able to take him by surprise this time.
She must be drunk.
He was confident that he could contain the situation. She had already shown him her worst side in their relationship, so nothing she did now could take him by surprise.
He told himself he wasn’t a victim any more. He didn’t owe her anything – whereas she owed him rent.
But he had to get rid of her as quickly as possible.
The only question was whether he would be able to persuade her, whether she would come to her senses.
‘Bergthóra, you have to go,’ he repeated, when she continued standing there.
‘No, I’m not going anywhere,’ she answered coolly. ‘I’m not budging an inch, Helgi.’
He stepped outside, pulling the door to behind him, wanting to deal with her in the open. Under no circumstances was he going to invite her into his new home. The air was raw out here and the rain that had been getting on his nerves all day long showed no signs of abating. He stood there in nothing but his shirtsleeves, braving the cold and trying to stay in the shelter of the shallow porch.
His thoughts flew to Aníta, who had chosen to go out in this. He peered into the darkness, trying to see if she was coming down the street. He didn’t have much time.
‘We have nothing to say to each other, Bergthóra. You’ve got to leave me alone. You should be grateful I didn’t report you to the police.’
She smiled. ‘Report me? What for? An accident? Allcouples have rows.’ She was soaked to the skin, but this didn’t seem to bother her. She just stood there, immovable.
‘Shall I call you a taxi, Bergthóra? You need to go home.’
‘My home is with you, Helgi. And I don’t need a fucking taxi. I drove here.’
‘What?’
‘I said: I drove here!’
‘Just what is going on with you?’ This was neither the time nor the place for a showdown, yet he was burning to bring up her visit to Aníta’s workplace, the incident on the bus, and more. And not just to bring them up but bawl her out. Castigate her so savagely that she wouldn’t dare repeat her behaviour.
‘You – cheating on me like that.’
‘I did not cheat on you. I finished with you, Bergthóra, after you tried to kill me.’ He immediately regretted this reply. Getting into an argument with her was the worst thing he could do when she was in a mood like this. He had no hope of winning.
‘If I’d meant to do that, I’d have succeeded,’ she said menacingly.
‘OK, now I’m calling the police.’
