So, there I stood. Or rather sat, wishing that I was somewhere else. This was wrong. I was starting to get very tired of being threatened. I stood up, smiling at him, then I started to walk towards him. He backed as I moved and forcing him back out in the living room I told him.

“You better shot if you want me to stay, because I’m leaving.”

He looked at me as if trying to gauge my seriousness, suddenly he put his piece away, looking almost embarrassed.

“Sorry Olle. You’re right of course, and you’re free to leave if you want. But I was serious in offering you a reimbursement for your services. The person leaving you that bouquet seems to know something that we don’t want to be publicized yet.”

“Yeah? Like what?”

“Sorry, can’t tell you that. But look here.”

He picked up a small laminated card, containing a blurry photo of him, proclaiming him to be an officer of the law. I looked at it, doing my best not to start laughing. The whole thing stunk to the skies. I smiled.

“Sure, I’m Santa.”

I could see that he didn’t like that one. I felt him reevaluate once more as I passed him, walking to the door with a feeling as if my whole back was one big red and white target.

“Wait.”

He came up to me laying his hand on my arm, just as I started to turn the doorhandle.

“Here Olle, take it, and no hard feelings, right?.”

Looking down I saw it was a banknote, one hundred kronor. I nodded curtly and accepted his bribe as he enigmatically smiled at me, saying.

“And mum’s the word, right?”

I gave him my best lopsided smile as I said, drawing out on the syllables.

“No Siree. No hard feelings. None at all.”

As he let my arm free again I once more started to turn the handle. I noticed that he had stood turned to the side the whole time he had held me, shielding his gun arm, but as I opened the door I could hear the door port open downstairs and that seemed to help him make up his mind.

“Well as I said Olle, anything you can find out about that man is of value.” Backing inside the room again, as if not wanting to be seen.

“I know.” I answered. “I’ll see what I can find out Sir.” Trying to sound as if I meant it.

As I walked down the stairs I heard him come back to the door, and I felt his eyes following me, once more giving me that burning sensation at my back. Coming down too the port I wondered why I hadn’t met the person coming in, but thinking of it I decided that it had to had been someone leaving, not coming.

Looking around as I came out everything seemed as normal, nobody showing me any uncommon interest, but as I looked up at the window I thought I could see the drape fall back as if someone just had moved away from it.

As I came home to my empty apartment I wondered what it all had been about. Use a gun on a deliveryman? There had to be some highly strung nerves before you would act like him. As the evening approached I sat in my favorite chair trying to read the paper I had bought. Not that I had that many chairs to choose between, that one and the one on the other side of the table.

It seemed as if the Nazis at last had meet some major draw backs, not a day to soon either of you would ask me, but I found myself more tired than i had thought reading it, deciding in favor of my bed instead, and as I laid there my thoughts went back to the night before.

There was still a lingering scent of her perfume on the pillow, Hypnotique, was it? I decided it was, well knowing that only the most fashionable shops would carry it. Anything made by Max factor had to cost a pretty bundle those days, especially as both the Allies and Axis powers blockaded and sunk most every ship they could, not worrying overmuch from which country they came.

As I started to fall asleep I looked up at Agnes photo, trying to relive my memories of that short time we had had together, holding her inside my mind until sleep at last swept me away.
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