Read Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All Online
Authors: Jonas Jonasson
Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All (28 page)
T
he priest was standing down the slope from the family's fishing shack one beautiful evening and gazing across the sea. It was almost as smooth as a mirror. Far in the distance, the Oskarshamn ferry glided silently through the water. A lone oystercatcher was strutting across the washed-up seaweed nearby. To her surprise, he found a bug to put in his stomach: that hadn't happened for a long time around there. Otherwise everything was quiet as the sun slowly went down, changing color from yellow to orange.
And then the silence was broken.
“You're not a bad person, Johanna. I want you to know that. No one is bad through and through.”
Was someone there?
No. It was coming from inside her.
“Who's there? Who's speaking?” she said anyway.
“You know who I am, and you know that Our Father is always ready to forgive.”
The priest was astounded. Was it
him
? After all these years? She felt dizzy at the thought of his existence. And irritated. If he did exist, against all odds, couldn't he have put down his foot earlier and stopped Papa Kjellander from terrorizing his family while there was still time?
“
My
father forgave nothing, and I have no intention of forgiving
him. And don't trot out your âIf anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other too.'”
“Why not?” Jesus wondered.
“Because it wasn't you, or even Matthew, who said that in the first place. People have been putting words in your mouth without asking permission for centuries.”
“Hold on a second,” said Jesus, as indignantly as his temperament would allow. “It's true that people make up all sorts of things in my name, but what do you know about whatâ”
That was as far as he got because the receptionist had stepped out of the shack, holding little Hosanna in his arms.
The moment was over.
“Are you talking to yourself?” the receptionist asked in surprise.
At first the priest responded with silence.
And then she was silent for a little while longer. And then she said, “Yes. I think so. But dammit, who knows?”
I
want to thank the entire Piratförlaget family, with senior editor Sofia and editor Anna at the forefront. Especially Anna this time, for her fantastic single-handed rescue work at the last minute.
Thanks also to Uncle Hans and Rixon for always being there with encouraging comments on the very first version of the manuscript. Brother Lars and Stefan in Laxå, too, provided inspiration and instilled confidence at crucial moments.
While I'm at it, I'll remind my agent, Carina Brandt, of what an outstanding professional and friend she is. And speaking of friends: everyone ought to have an Anders Abenius, a Patrik Brissman, and a Maria Magnusson. Together you make my author's life easier.
In a broader sense, but with no less sincerity, I would also like to thank Doctors Without Borders for making a difference in a time when more people than ever fare badly in our world. You care; not everyone does.
Among all of those for whom there isn't space on this acknowledgment page, I would especially like to mention God. Certainly he deserves a thank you for letting me borrow him to use in my story, but at the same time, I think he ought to work harder to convince his most eager supporters not to take him so seriously. So that we can all start being a bit kinder to one another, so that we have reason to laugh more than we cry.
Is that too much to ask? RSVP.
JONAS JONASSON
was a journalist for the
Expressen
news-paper for many years. He became a media consultant and later set up a company producing sports and events for Swedish television before selling it and moving abroad to work on his first novel. He is the author of the internationally bestselling novels
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared
and
The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden
. He lives on the Swedish island Gotland in the Baltic Sea.
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at
hc.com
.
The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden
The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared
Cover design by Sara Wood
Cover photographs: © Mike Monahan/Shutterstock (figures); © Slobodan Djajic/Shutterstock (man)
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
HITMAN ANDERS AND THE MEANING OF IT ALL
. Copyright © 2016 by Jonas Jonasson. Translation copyright © 2016 by Rachel Wilson-Broyles. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
“I rörelse” by Karin Boye, translated by Rachel Wilson-Broyles.
Apart from the exceptions noted below, scripture quotations are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.
The scripture quotation “Drink, thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered. The cup of the Lord's right hand shall be turned unto thee” on p. 172 is from the authorised King James Version.
The scripture quotation “No longer drink only water, but take a little wine for the sake of your stomach” on p. 172 is from the ESV ® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ®), published by HarperCollins publishers © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
FIRST ECCO PAPERBACK PUBLISHED 2016
EPub Edition April 2016 ISBN 9780062458186
ISBN 978-0-06-245817-9
16Â Â 17Â Â 18Â Â 19Â Â 20Â Â Â Â
OV
/
RRD
    10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor
Toronto, ON M4W 1A8, Canada
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive
Rosedale 0632
Auckland, New Zealand
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF, UK
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007