Where the Shadows Lie (Fire and Ice)

forty million bucks. Feldman was only thirty-one. Not bad going.’
    ‘So he could easily afford an expensive lawyer,’ said Baldur.
    ‘And a room at the Hótel Borg for Steve Jubb.’
    ‘OK. We need to get this guy’s police record, if he has one,’ said Baldur. ‘Can you do that?’
    ‘I could, but it’s probably easier if the request came from the Reykjavík police,’ said Magnus. ‘More official, fewer favours called in.’
    ‘We’ll organize that,’ said Baldur.
    ‘But I could go see him,’ Magnus said.
    ‘In California?’ Baldur looked doubtful.
    ‘Sure. It would take a day to get there, a day to get back, but I might get him to tell me what he and Jubb are up to.’
    Baldur frowned. ‘We don’t know for sure that this is the same Isildur that Steve Jubb is working for. And anyway, he won’t talk. Why should he? Steve Jubb isn’t saying anything, and we have him in custody.’
    ‘Depends how I ask him.’
    Baldur shook his head. ‘It will cost money. I’m not sure I can get authorization for a trip that will probably be a waste of time. Haven’t you heard of the kreppa? ’
    It was impossible to spend more than a few hours in Iceland without hearing about the kreppa . ‘Just an economy fare and perhaps one night in a motel,’ Magnus said. He looked at the bodies around the table. ‘You’re putting a whole lot of resource into this investigation. An airplane ticket won’t make much difference.’
    Baldur glared at Magnus. ‘I’ll think about it,’ he said, giving Magnus the distinct impression that he wouldn’t.
    ‘OK,’ Baldur continued, addressing the group. ‘It looks like someone calling himself Isildur was behind the negotiations with Agnar. If this Lawrence Feldman was that man, he had the cash to back a significant deal.’
    ‘But what could they have been negotiating over?’ said Vigdís.
    ‘Something to do with The Lord of the Rings ?’ Magnus said. ‘Or the Saga of the Volsungs, maybe. I read it again last night. A magic ring plays an important part in both books. There’s a theory that Tolkien was inspired by the Volsung Saga .’
    ‘All the old copies of the saga will be in the Árni Magnússon Collection at the University of Iceland,’ said Baldur. Árni Magnússon was a Danish-educated antiquarian who travelled around Iceland in the seventeenth century gathering up all the sagas he could find. He transported them to Denmark, but they were returned to Iceland in the 1970s, where they were housed in an institute bearing the great collector’s name. ‘Are you saying Agnar had stolen a copy?’
    ‘He might have switched it for a facsimile,’ suggested Vigdís.
    ‘Perhaps,’ said Magnus. ‘Or perhaps he had some wacko theory that he was selling to Isildur. Maybe he was going to do some research for him.’
    Baldur frowned and shook his head.
    ‘It could be narcotics,’ Rannveig said. ‘I know it’s boring, but in Iceland, if it’s an illicit deal, it’s nearly always drugs.’
    There was silence for a moment around the table. The assistant prosecutor had a point.
    ‘Was there anything in Agnar’s papers suggesting what this deal could be?’ Rannveig asked.
    ‘No, I checked most of them myself,’ Baldur said. ‘Apart from those e-mails on his computer, there is nothing about a deal with Steve Jubb. And the files on his laptop are all work related.’
    ‘What was he working on?’ Magnus asked.
    ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘I mean what was he researching when he died?’
    ‘I’m not sure he was researching anything. He was marking exam papers. And translating a couple of sagas into English and French.’
    Magnus leaned forward. ‘Which sagas?’
    ‘I don’t know,’ Baldur said, defensively. He clearly didn’t appreciate being interrogated in his own meeting. ‘I didn’t read through all his working papers. There are piles of them.’
    Magnus restrained himself from pushing the point. He didn’t want to put Baldur’s back up any more than he had to. ‘Can I take a second look? At his working papers, I mean.’
    Baldur stared at Magnus, making no attempt to hide his irritation. ‘Of course,’ he said drily. ‘That would be a good use of your time.’
    There were two places to look: Agnar’s room at the university, or the summer house. There would be more papers at the university, and it was closer. On the other hand, if Agnar had been working on something relevant to Steve Jubb it was likely to be at the summer house where it