Margarita Reznik
Glenda
Chapter 2
Glenda had already had time to rest from the overnight flight and, full of energy in western jeans and a Ralph Lauren T-shirt, headed to watch the first version.
Summer in Denmark is as hot as in England. The lunch haze wiped out half of the capital's population. They hid in their air-conditioned apartments, and the most persistent wore hats.
Unfortunately, Glenda did not buy herself a hat or cap, although there was something to match her polo style. Relying on her newly curled curls, she walked boldly along the sunny side of the street.
Half an hour ago, tormented by unbearable doubts, she nevertheless called that number from the hands of a terrible and wonderful stranger. Much to her disappointment, he immediately answered the phone, and to make matters worse, he was right there. Mr. Holstein had just received the customers, and was ready to wait a little for her too. “You are incredibly lucky, Miss Miller, that the house has not yet been sold. This is a wonderful place in the very center of Copenhagen, next to the artificial lake St. Jorgen Se, shops, restaurants, cinema, clubs, and it’s like you’re taking it for nothing.”
The two-story wooden apartment building with its peeling blue paint looked clean and well-kept, just a little worn from time to time. Glenda liked the facade, although old, but cozy, it reminded her so much of home that thoughts of buying it were obsessively spinning in her head.
Mr. Holstein turned out to be an old Jew. Short in stature with a belly as round as a ball, he resembled her grandfather Beer, as his father nicknamed him for his eternal abuse of high-proof drinks, especially beer.
The unpleasant, sly smile hid some kind of trick, but she couldn’t figure out what.
A clean entrance hall, a spacious kitchen and living room, the second floor of two bedrooms simply sparkled from the recent cleaning. The smell was of fresh baked goods from a nearby pizzeria, so it was impossible to comprehend why such magnificent housing could cost so little, and even for a Jew.
– What’s wrong here, admit it right away. – the girl demanded, narrowing her hawk eye.
More recently, she was questioning administration officials in London with the same intensity, looking for clues in suspicious reshuffles in posts and the upcoming election of the British Prime Minister.
– Darling, take it and that’s it. – After a pause, the owner of the house began. He seemed startled by the question, but for a moment, no more. This happens if an actor is poorly trained, and he is thrown off by a dissatisfied exclamation from the director. Then the smile appeared again on the shiny face.
– This will not work. Confess, or I'll go home.
Unable to withstand her pressure, the old Jew nevertheless cried out.
– There are ghosts roaming here!
The thin athletic body shook in feverish laughter. This old guy has completely lost his mind. “God, how lucky I am. I buy a house three times cheaper than the market price, which, due to random circumstances, was inherited from a crazy Jew. Well, we have to take it."
Mr. Holstein laughed timidly along with Glenda, but his hands began to tremble.
– I'm buying.
Surprised by such a sudden change in mood and the pleasant outcome of the meeting, the owner squealed with pleasure.
The new owner of the apartment, when signing the contract, could not help but notice some oddities, but she reassured herself that she had simply overheated her head in the sun.
It seemed to her for a moment that her right big toe was missing, that instead of it there was a bloody stump with dried blood. She closed her eyes and looked again at the well-groomed foot in the sandal, the burgundy polish looked great on her big toe.
After shaking hands after a successful transaction, the man with a check for an enviable amount and the girl with the keys to her own home in the city center went off on opposite sides of the street. Walking proudly along Vesterbrogade, Glenda thought about how quickly she was changing her life to a new one. A new home, although previously she had only rented accommodation in London. A new image, because she had never curled her hair before. All that's left is to find a guy and a job, and it's done.
“Do I want a new relationship so soon after cheating? No I do not want to. I need a new job. For what? To feed yourself? I have a ton of money, I could spend another whole year on a spree and still have some left over, considering my needs. Maybe it’s worth resting a little and surrendering to life as it is, completely, all-consumingly?”
Reasoning in this way, Glenda Miller plunged into a three-day bender. Clubs, parties, new acquaintances and love. That evening, while celebrating the purchase of her first property in Dunkel, she immediately hooked up with the young and handsome Jornas. Rocking out to electro house and tequila, he seemed incredibly attractive to her, and she went with him to her room.
The next morning, he proposed a relationship with her, and without resisting for a long time, the girl, who had recently realized that she had begun a new round of life, agreed.
They walked around the city for two more days, hanging over their martinis in broad daylight. At night we rode in a limousine with his friends and girlfriends, honked the horn and returned to the hotel in the morning.
But on the morning of the third day, intoxication still covered the young bodies, and pale from poisoning, they sat near the toilets, washing their stomachs.
– Do you believe in ghosts? – suffering from a headache, but with relief after vomiting, Glenda started a sober conversation with Jornas for the first time.
– I prefer to think so, otherwise my brother has actually gone crazy. – The young brown-haired man smiled sadly.
– What, your brother believes in them?
– He doesn’t just believe, he claims that he sees them regularly. That's why my parents gave him to a welfare home when they were still alive.
– House of Welfare? What is this?
– This is such a mental hospital at the church. The nurses and doctors are Lutherans, and the patients are churchgoers. – Seeing his girlfriend’s bewilderment, Jornas corrected himself. – Well, that is, there are many parishioners in the church itself and they are all, of course, healthy, it’s just that only the mentally ill and crippled are sent to the hospital.
– And how do they treat them?
– Peace and quiet, no injections, straitjackets, electric shocks or other torture.
It’s amazing, I didn’t believe it until I saw it. My brother hangs out there, but still talks about ghosts. Nobody believes him except me.
– So you still think that they exist? – Glenda did not let up. For the first time she felt uneasy. Goosebumps ran over my naked body. What if the old Jew is right, and that's why he tried so hard to get rid of this house as quickly as possible?
– Yes, only in the universes of those who see them. And some in the universe have vampires, some have fairies and unicorns. We are all a little dreamers, but we should not be blamed for this, or even less considered sick.
– So you don’t think your brother is sick, you just think that these are his fantasies?
– Something like that?
– Wait, I don’t understand anything, do you believe or not in the other world? – Glenda was already quite angry: she did not like ambiguity and philosophical reasoning, especially on topics as far from reality as this.
– Of course not. Only that there are no crazy people, that people believe what they want! – Jornas turned pink from Glenda’s screams, and he himself became a little angry. – Why are you so wound up?
– Nothing. Just don't say anything stupid anymore, okay? – She jumped up and ran to the bed. There was no more nausea, my head stopped hurting. Irritation mobilized her half-dead body and she again wanted to do something. – Let’s go, I’ll show you my house!
– Would you like to show me your secluded place? – the guy who walked away so easily asked slyly, leaving the bathroom. He is like a dog, after being poked with his nose in the tray, he again saw the disposition of the mistress and happily runs for new strokes.
– And not only in this sense. – Glenda supported the game and patted the sheet with her palm.
Chapter 3
It was a rainy evening in Copenhagen. Cold sea air blew in from the north. The gray street was filled with bright light from windows and shop windows, from city lighting and telephones, which were buried in passers-by who met along the way.
The taxi brought them there quickly; even in the rain there are no traffic jams in Denmark. The car market is expensive here, so bikes get residents where they need to go while also helping them stay fit and healthy.
– Your things, miss. – the taxi driver unloaded his luggage near the porch.
– Thank you Thomas. – Jornas paid and brought the suitcases into the house.
The hand reached for the switch. Click, second, no reaction.
– So. There is no light in the hallway. – the young man concluded displeasedly.
She liked that he behaved so like a boss. “Well, handsome, smart, kind and cheerful, he would be a wonderful husband. But I’m not a match for him at all, I’m eccentric, caustic, it’s unlikely that anyone will change me.”
He went into the kitchen, and then into the living room and into the toilet combined with a bathroom; there was no light there either.
– Maybe there is one on the second floor? – Glenda, as if spellbound, looked at her lover in a brown fitted raincoat. He quickly ran up the stairs, and a second later obscene language was heard and this made her laugh quite a bit.
– Looks like it's time to look for candles in the house, because in the dark I won't get into the electrical unit. We spend the night in a romantic setting.
– With pleasure, my hero. – Glenda said admiringly, but with some mockery. She, like a stand-up actress, constantly teased him, but now he was angry at her barbs.
– Do you want me to go check the connection?
– No, what are you talking about, suddenly you get an electric shock. – Glenda continued to laugh.
– Okay, I'll go, but if anything happens, it will be on your conscience.
– Good good. I will take upon myself all the sin of the world. – now even she didn’t expect this from herself. “I think it’s a big overkill. It's probably a withdrawal syndrome. Still, drinking for three days is not a test for the faint of heart.” Laughed at myself again. And at this time Jornas went to the shield.
After rummaging through the switching elements, Jornas pressed something, and light illuminated the apartment on both floors.
– Oh, my hero. Forgive me, stupid woman, for joking with you. You have proven that you are brave, and now I am sure I have nothing to fear. – Glenda kissed her boyfriend’s pouty lips, and he broke into a satisfied smile.
Now the house looked like a charming family nest, Glenda even imagined children running around. But then a picture from her bedroom in London appeared before her eyes. Will she ever be able to trust a man again? Will she ever have a happy marriage?
“Besides, I don’t know anything about this guy. Cheerful, with a bunch of party-goer friends,
He’s not poor, he doesn’t do anything wrong on weekdays. Unemployed or what?
– Jornas, dear, tell me about yourself.
“I’m Jornas Kronwood,” the guy began slowly and reluctantly. “I’m a student at Rigshospitalet, fourth year of medical university, I’m going there for an internship at the beginning of August because…
– Because what?
– Because I like this hospital, they promise me a place there.
– Wow. Great. That is, you don’t need to think about where you will work after graduation. Lucky. It took me a long time to break into the Guardian after University. I had to work quite a bit as a courier for yellow newspapers before I made my way to the post of reporter in the temple of the gods of journalism and broadcasting.
– You're lucky, you achieved everything yourself. – the young man muttered gloomily as they sat in the bathroom, touching each other’s naked bodies.
The warm, steamy atmosphere suddenly became uncomfortable.
– How did you achieve this?
– No way. – Yornas muttered, frowning.
– Hey, what does this mean? Why are you offended?
– No. Let's just close this topic. Let's talk about something else.
– Wait, I don’t want to close it. I'm interested in everything about you. What upsets you, I don’t understand?
– Nothing. If you don't stop this now, I'll leave!
– No, you can't leave like that! This is unfair. I didn't offend you in any way.
– I don’t want to sort things out. I'm just asking you to change the topic, what's unclear? This topic is unpleasant for me. Can you understand this? – Jornas casually pushed aside Glenda, who was lounging on him, and left the bath. Having dried himself with quick movements, he began to pull on his clothes.
– Where are you going? – she followed his example and got out of the bath. The wet girl, covered in foam, tried to hug and calm the zealous stallion. But for some reason he pulled back. It looks like something seriously bothered him. – Well, screw you! Do you think that you can just get offended about nothing, without even explaining anything, and then leave as if we were strangers?
– And we are strangers! – he said through gritted teeth and walked towards the exit.
– Well, go to hell and don’t even think about coming back!
While Jornas, eager to leave quickly, was fumbling with the lock, Glenda got ahead of him and quickly pulled back the latch and opened the door in front of him.
– Leave if you haven't changed your mind.
After a second of silence, he crossed the threshold and left.
Closing the bolt behind him, tears flowed from his eyes. The pain of disappointment struck her again with unimaginable force, making her shudder with a roar at the top of her voice.
Only four days have passed since breaking up with her ex-boyfriend, and she has already had a fight with her new one. Break up, or rather it would be said, because she doesn’t even know his number to return.
Suddenly the traffic jams came out again and the lights in the whole house went out.
“Well, great, that’s what I still needed. I certainly won’t get into the damn shield.”
Complaining about an unsuccessful evening and again returning to self-flagellation for unsuccessful relationships, for her unbridled tongue, for the fact that, in principle, no one loved her, Glenda wandered to the second floor and tried to sleep.
Thoughts made me toss and turn and did not allow me to close my eyes. Tears appeared and then stopped little by little, and the body ached from hunger and nausea at the same time. Only now did she remember that she had forgotten to have dinner. “So what, no piece will get into your throat anyway.”
The cool bed pleasantly cooled the body that had been hot from the swim, sleep gradually began to take its toll, and Glenda dozed off for a while.
Ting, ding.
The girl, exhausted by sleep and a cozy bed, opened her eyes.
Tzyyn.
She lifted her head from the pillow.
"Jornas is back!"
Ding, ding, ding, ding.
– I'm running!
Joyful, wrapping her robe around her, she rushed downstairs to quickly open the door to her beloved.
Going down the stairs through the windows curtained with transparent tulle, she did not see anyone on the porch. “Has he really left? I've been running for so long." But before she could begin to reproach herself, the doorbell rang again. She glanced at the porch again.
Right there on the stairs, goosebumps ran across her skin.
There's no one at the door.
“Maybe these are the tricks of the neighbor’s kids? Is there a twig glued to the button or is someone short hiding behind the wall?”
Glenda overcame her fear and continued to descend.
– Darling, call the police. It seems that some prankster is asking for a serious fine. – she shouted to someone in the bedroom.
“Let them think that I’m not alone. At school, this is exactly what we were taught to do to scare criminals.”
Ring. Ring.
– Well, it's not funny anymore.
Glenda furiously unlocked all the locks and swung the door open. There is no one behind her. She looked out onto the porch and looked around. There is no one below, nor above, nor along the edges of the porch, nor on the entire street. Deserted like a village.
She looked at the doorbell button. There was no twig or other devices on it. And there was such a deep silence that she couldn’t believe it was a metropolis. Cars, bicycles, even homeless people should have created noise, even if it was far away. But here it’s as if everyone has died out.
"Strange. This only happens in the creepiest movies."
Glenda entered the house again, trembling with unpleasant excitement.
And as soon as she slammed it, she became numb with horror.
A scream as if from fiery hell itself, the cry of a person or people dying a hellish death was heard right in the middle of the hall, one might say, a meter from her face.
But there is no one in the house.
The light from the windows perfectly illuminated the space of her new home. There's no one in it. It's just her screaming.
Horror shook Glenda's entire being, she suddenly realized that she needed to run, that she hated this damned house. That Mr. Holstein is an old scoundrel who should not have sold his property, but burned it.
Whoever it is, a ghost or someone else, she doesn't want to share four walls with him. It's time to get out of here and quickly.
The scream stopped, and like a hare, escaping a predator in one leap, she ran away along Helgolandsgade.
My legs carried my body, wet with fear, and before my eyes stood an empty but alive room.
Suddenly, out of breath, Glenda noticed that the lights behind her were slowly going out one by one.
She turned around and saw blackness. The street became dark without artificial light, and the stars and the moon were not visible because of the bright lamps directly above it.
“These don’t go out. Strange".
Was it possible to surprise her with something else now? It turned out that yes.
Barefoot, she took another step forward. Nothing. A couple more steps, again nothing, then another, until she was halfway to the lamppost in front.
Well, this one went out too.
Aware that the darkness was pursuing her, but somehow wildly and feignedly softly, a cold, all-pervading fear again took over her. She ran, accelerating more and more, until she was exhausted after four blocks, and was about to give in to the face of death or the horror that was chasing her so frantically, when suddenly she saw people, and again the noise of cars, the lights behind her turned on, as if in no way what never happened. Life said: “everything is fine, everything seemed to you,” ironically and even mockingly.
“What the hell was that! Is it really all a dream, and this is my sick fantasy?”
She rested her palms on her knees and tried to keep her breathing even. After catching her breath for a couple of minutes, Glenda noticed someone’s legs sticking out from under the bushes on the evenly trimmed lawn. She looked closely and saw they were wearing boots exactly like Jornas.
“Someone probably got drunk and didn’t make it to his apartment.”
Curiosity still got the better of her and the girl came closer. The pants turned out to be the same as her boyfriend's. She parted the branches of the bushes and screamed out loud.
Jornas lay dead with a small hole in his forehead, along which small splashes of blood were scattered, lifeless and with a sad expression on his face.
