The Mist

boy. She watched Leó sitting there sipping his coffee. It would have been so easy to slip a couple of her sleeping pills into his cup, so she could rest easier tonight. She regretted not having thought of it before … As it was, she doubted she would shut her eyes at all.
‘Thanks for the coffee,’ Leó said, although he hadn’t finished it, ‘and for the hospitality. I’m very grateful to you both.’
‘No need to rush off to bed,’ said Einar. ‘Erla and I are enjoying having some company for a change.’
‘It’s kind of you to say so, but I’m fading a bit, to be honest. And it is St Thorlákur’s Mass, after all. I expect you had other plans.’ He smiled. ‘Doing the last-minute Christmas preparations and all that.’
No plans at all, Erla thought to herself. She had long ago got everything ready, with no help from Einar, who, despite what he said, was fairly indifferent to the occasion. Most days were alike to him and he could hardly be bothered to vary his routine for Christmas, Easter, or any other high days or holidays, for that matter. They never went anywhere and it was always left to Erla to make an effort. There were times when she’d considered doing nothing at all for Christmas and waiting to see if he even noticed. If he’d say anything if she didn’t ask him to cut down a fir tree; if she just served up blood sausage on the twenty-fourth and didn’t give him any presents.
‘Do stay up a bit longer,’ Einar said. ‘At least finish your coffee.’
‘Thanks, I will,’ Leó replied, though he looked as if he’d rather be elsewhere. His gaze wandered round the room. Erla wasn’t sure if he was looking for something in particular or just trying to work out an escape route from this oppressive threesome.
‘How big’s this house?’ he asked abruptly, as if in a rather desperate attempt to hit on a subject to talk about.
‘Big? How many square metres, you mean?’ Einar asked. ‘Oh, I can’t remember. It’s not something I’ve had to think about recently. After all, it’s not as if I’m planning to sell. We mean to grow old here, Erla and I.’ He threw her a smile, but she didn’t return it.
‘All on the one floor, I suppose?’
‘Yes, that’s right, though we do have a small attic.’
‘Oh, right, a loft for storage, you mean?’
‘Yes, box rooms, and a little room where we put up the youngsters who come to help out on the farm, and the odd paying guest as well.’
‘In that case, why don’t you put me up there? I’d be less in your way.’
‘No, no, out of the question. There’s no radiator up there. You’ll be much more comfortable where you are now. We usually keep it private and put visitors upstairs, but you’ve been through a rough time and we’re not going to stick you upstairs in the cold. We don’t want to risk you catching a chill. It’s our duty to look after people who get caught out in storms or lost on the moors. You could have died of exposure, you do realize that? Going out like that with no proper equipment and unused to conditions in the highlands … I’m sure your friends realize they’re to blame. They should have known better and made sure everyone in the group was equipped with a compass, a map, and so on. It was extremely reckless of them.’ Einar’s voice had thickened with disapproval.
Leó shook his head and said charitably: ‘I wouldn’t want to blame them, they’re good guys. It’s my fault, really. I should have taken more care. After all, I’m responsible for myself. Ultimately, we’re all responsible for ourselves, aren’t we?’
‘I certainly believe that,’ Einar said, but Erla remained tight-lipped.
‘Well, anyway, you’ve got a charming home, very snug,’ Leó went on.
‘Yes, we’re happy here,’ Einar said.
‘I assume you’ve got a cellar as well?’
‘A cellar? Oh, right, yes, a cellar. Anyone would think you wanted to buy the place!’ Einar laughed so hard at his own joke that he almost spilt coffee on his checked shirt.
‘Oh, ha, ha, no, it’s a bit too remote for me. No, I’m just interested. Just making conversation.’
‘There’s nothing of interest down there, just a freezer and food supplies, and so on,’ Erla said in a low voice, glaring at their uninvited guest.
‘Er, OK. I wasn’t actually planning to go down there,’ Leó replied, trying to make a joke of it.
He looked at her searchingly, but she averted her gaze, shifting it to the window instead, where she could see the sitting room mirrored in the glass.
‘Did you stop by at Anna’s house on your way here?’ she asked, apropos of nothing, watching his reflection in the window.
‘Erla, please –’ Einar began, but she cut across him, determined to get to the bottom of this.
‘Did you stop by her place?’ she asked again.
‘Sorry, I don’t understand the question.’
‘Anna, our daughter. I told you she lives in the next house, twenty minutes or so down the road. You passed it on your way here, didn’t you?’ As she said it, she felt a sudden, sickening fear that something might have happened to her daughter, that this stranger might have hurt her somehow …
‘No, I’ve, er, already told you. I came straight here. I didn’t pass any other houses on the way.’
Erla was now convinced that Leó was lying to them about who he was and what he was doing here. She was sure he’d come here to harm them, in one way or another.
‘You’re lying,’ she said fiercely. ‘I saw which direction you came from, Leó. I saw your tracks in the snow. You came past Anna’s house and, if you really were looking for help, you’d have stopped there.’
‘I … I don’t remember seeing any other house, but then I was pretty far gone at the time. Maybe that’s why I didn’t notice it.’
‘Did you knock on her door?’
‘No, I came straight here. Is there any