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“Keep out of this! ” Roger demanded.

“Like there’s any chance we’re leaving you alone here with the real estate agent! ” Julia snapped.

Affronted, Roger shook all the loose skin on the lower half of his face.

“This apartment isn’t suitable for you anyway! This is going to need someone who’s good at DIY! ”

Julia, far too competitive to let that pass, snapped back: “My wife’s pretty damn good at DIY! ”

“What? ” Ro said in surprise, unaware that there was another wife apart from her.

Anna-Lena thought out loud: “Don’t shout. Think of the baby. ”

Roger nodded aggressively: “Exactly! Think of the baby! ”

Anna-Lena looked happy because he’d heard her, but Julia’s eyes darkened.

“I’m not going anywhere until I’ve bought this apartment, you miserable old goat. ”

Ro tugged at her arm anxiously and hissed: “Why do you always have to argue with everyone? ”

Because Ro had seen that look in her eyes before. On their very first date several years ago Julia was standing outside a bar smoking while Ro was inside ordering drinks. Two minutes later a security guard came over to Ro, pointed through the window, and asked: “Are you with her? ” Ro nodded, and was immediately thrown out of the bar. Apparently there was a delineated smoking area outside the bar, that was the only place you were allowed to smoke, but Julia had been standing two yards beyond the boundary. When the guard told her to go inside the rectangle, Julia started jumping about on the line, mocking him: “What about here? Am I okay HERE? How about if I hold my cigarette inside while I’m standing outside? What about here? If the cigarette’s outside but I blow the smoke into the rectangle? ” When Julia had a bit of alcohol inside her, she tended to have trouble respecting any sort of authority, which might be thought a bad character trait to reveal on a first date, but when Ro was being thrown out, she asked the security guard how he knew she and Julia were there together, and he replied gruffly: “When I told her to leave, she pointed at you through the window and said: ‘That’s my girlfriend, I’m not leaving without her! ’ ” That was the first time Ro had ever been anyone’s girlfriend. That was the evening she went from being hopelessly infatuated to irrevocably in love.

Later on, it turned out that Julia’s personality when she was drunk was exactly the same as Julia’s personality when she was pregnant, so the past eight months had been fairly tumultuous—but life is full of surprises.

“Please, Jules? ” Ro said tentatively.

Julia hissed back: “If we leave now, this apartment could well be sold by the time we come back! How many apartments have we looked at? Twenty? You’ve found something wrong with every single one, and I can’t bear it! So I’m damn well going to have this one, and no one’s going to come along and say I—”

“P-i-s-t-o-l! ” Ro repeated.

“Are you going to be farting a ten-pound monkey out of your uterus any time now, Ro? Well? So shut up! ”

“It isn’t fair to play the pregnancy card every time we have an argument, Jules, we’ve talked about that…, ” Ro muttered, sticking her hands deep into the pockets of her dress, and then Julia realized that she may have gone a bit too far, because Ro’s hands had only delved that deeply into her pockets when the neighbors’ kids killed one of her birds.

The bank robber let out a quiet cough and said: “Excuse me? I don’t want to interrupt, but…, ” then raised the pistol a little higher so that everyone could see it and remember exactly what was going on here.

Julia folded her arms over her chest and repeated, one last time: “I’m not going anywhere. ”

Ro let out a sigh so deep you could have found oil at the bottom of it, then nodded firmly: “And I’m not going anywhere without her. ”

This would obviously have been a very touching moment if Zara hadn’t spoiled it by snorting at Ro: “No one offered you the chance to leave. You’re not pregnant. ”

Ro dug her hands so far into her pockets that she actually punched holes in them, and mumbled: “We’re actually on this journey together. ”

Roger, who had been getting more and more frustrated that no one seemed to be focusing on the most important thing here—that Roger hadn’t been given any accurate information—was now pointing at the bank robber with both hands: “So what are you after, then? Well? Is it the apartment you want? ”

Anna-Lena described a square in the air with her hands like a mime artist trying to say “apartment. ” The bank robber groaned in resignation at the pair of them.

“Why would I… you can’t just… are you suggesting that I’m trying to steal the apartment? ”

Roger seemed to recognize how ridiculous that sounded when it was said out loud, but seeing as Roger was a man who was never wrong even when he was obviously wrong, he clarified: “Now look here! It’s got huge potential for renovation! ”

Anna-Lena stood behind him with an imaginary hammer, waving it in the air by way of illustration.

The bank robber coughed quietly again, and could feel the beginnings of a headache, then said: “Can’t you just… lie down? Just for a little while? I wasn’t trying… I mean, I was going to rob a bank, but I had no intention… look, this isn’t what I had in mind! ”

For various reasons the silence that followed was so complete that the only sound was the bank robber’s sobs. That’s never a comfortable combination, someone crying with a pistol in their hand, so none of the others was entirely sure how to react. Ro nudged Julia and muttered: “Now see what you’ve done, ” and Julia muttered back: “It was you who…” Roger turned to Anna-Lena and whispered: “It really does have immense potential for renovation, ” and Anna-Lena replied quickly: “Yes, it really does, doesn’t it? You’re absolutely right! But… isn’t that damp I can smell? Mold, even? ”

The bank robber was still sobbing. None of the others felt like looking in that direction, because, as already mentioned, it’s hard to feel comfortable with armed expressions of emotion, so in the end it was Estelle who cautiously padded over. Either she didn’t know any better, or she most definitely did. It might seem a little odd that Estelle hasn’t been mentioned very often up till now in this story, not because Estelle is easy to forget about, but because she’s very hard to remember. Estelle has what might be called a transparent personality. Eighty-seven years old, with a body as gnarled and crooked as a piece of ginger, she slipped over to the bank robber and asked: “Are you all right, dear? ” When the bank robber didn’t answer, she went on babbling in a singularly untroubled manner: “My name’s Estelle, I’m here to take a look at the apartment on behalf of my daughter. My husband, Knut, is parking the car. It isn’t at all easy to find anywhere to park around here, and I don’t suppose it will be any easier now that the street’s full of police cars. Sorry, now I’ve made you worried. I didn’t mean it was your fault that Knut couldn’t find anywhere to park, of course. Are you feeling all right? Would you like a glass of water? ”

The pistol didn’t seem to bother Estelle, but on the other hand she seemed to be such a kind person that if she were murdered she’d probably have taken it as a compliment that someone had noticed her. Using a paper handkerchief to dry the tears, the bank robber said quietly: “Yes, please. ”

“We’ve got limes! ” Ro called out, pointing at the bowl on the coffee table, full of at least a couple dozen. Limes seemed to be such a popular adornment at apartment viewings that it’s tempting to think that if real estate agents were banned, the surface of the earth would become covered with such a thick layer of limes that only young people with very small knives and an inexplicable fondness for Mexican beer would survive.

Estelle fetched a glass of water, and the bank robber raised the mask slightly so as to be able to drink it.

“Is that better? ” Estelle asked.

The bank robber nodded gently and handed the glass back to her.

“I’m… I’m very sorry about all this. ”

“Oh, don’t worry, dear, it doesn’t matter, ” Estelle said. “I have to say, I think it was smart of you not to have come here to steal the apartment. Because that wouldn’t have been very clever, would it, because the police would have known where to find you straightaway! Was it the bank across the street that you were planning to rob? Isn’t that one of those cashless banks these days? ”

“Yes. Thanks. I noticed that, ” the bank robber replied through clenched teeth.

“Smart! ” Zara declared.

The bank robber turned toward her, losing control altogether and shouting the way you do when the kids start arguing in the back of the car again: “I didn’t know, okay? Anyone can make a mistake! ”

Roger, whose instinct whenever anyone shouted, regardless of context, was always to shout louder, shouted: “All I want is information! ”

So the bank robber shouted: “Just let me think! ”

To which Roger shouted: “You’re not much good at being a bank robber, you know! ”

Whereupon the bank robber waved the pistol and shouted: “Luckily for you! ”

Ro quickly stepped forward and shouted: “Okay, everyone stop shouting now! It’s not good for the baby! ”

Which of course was perfectly true, babies find shouting unsettling, Ro had read that in the same book that had told her that pregnancy was a shared journey. After this pronouncement she turned to Julia as if she were expecting a medal. Julia rolled her eyes. “Really, Ro? Someone’s pointing a gun at us, and you’re worried about a few raised voices? ”

In the meantime Estelle gently patted the bank robber’s arm and explained: “Yes, those two are going to have a baby together, you know, even though they’re from… well, you know. ”

She winked at the bank robber as if that were all she needed to say. It didn’t seem to have worked, though. So Estelle adjusted her skirt and changed tack: “Well, I don’t see why we have to fall out. Can’t we start by introducing ourselves instead? My name is Estelle. You never said what your name is. ”

With a tilt of the head and a gesture toward the mask, the bank robber said: “I… look… that’s not a great question to ask me. ”

Estelle nodded apologetically at once, and turned to the others.

“Well, then, perhaps we should assume that our friend here wants to remain anonymous. But you could tell us all your names, couldn’t you? ” she said, nodding at Roger.

“Roger, ” Roger muttered.

“And my name’s Anna-Lena! ” Anna-Lena said, accustomed to not being asked.

“I’m Ro, and this is my wife, Juli—OW! ” Ro said, clutching her shin.

The bank robber looked at them all, then gave a brief nod.

“Okay. Hello. ”

“So now we all know each other! Lovely! ” Estelle declared, so delighted that she clapped her hands. And for such a slight person she could clap her hands surprisingly hard. Which isn’t a great thing to do in a room in which someone is holding a pistol, seeing as everyone thought that the sudden clap was a pistol shot and threw themselves down on the floor.

The bank robber looked at the prone bodies in surprise, then, with a scratch of the head, turned to Estelle and said: “Thanks. That was very helpful of you. ”

Anna-Lena was lying curled up on the carpet by the sofa, and had trouble breathing for half a minute until she realized that was because Roger, when he thought he heard a pistol shot, had thrown himself on top of her.

Witness Interview

Date: December 30

Name of witness: Estelle

JIM: I really am very sorry about all this. We’ll try to get you home as soon as possible.

ESTELLE: Oh, don’t worry—to be honest, this has all been rather exciting. Not much exciting happens most days when you’re nearly ninety!

JIM: Of course, yes. Well, my colleague and I would very much like to ask you to look at this drawing. We found it in the stairwell and we think it shows a monkey, a frog, and an elk. Do you recognize it?

ESTELLE: No, no, I’m afraid not. Is that really supposed to be an elk?

JIM: I don’t know, I really don’t. To be honest, I’m not sure it really matters. Would you mind telling me what you were doing at the apartment viewing?

ESTELLE: I was there with my husband, Knut. Well, he wasn’t there at the time. He was still parking the car. We were going to look at the apartment for our daughter.

JIM: Did you notice anything particular about the other people there before the bank robber appeared?

ESTELLE: Oh, no. Before then I only really had time to talk to those nice women from… you know… from Stockholm.

JIM: Which ones were they?

ESTELLE: Oh, you know. “From Stockholm. ”

JIM: You’re winking as though I ought to know what that means.

ESTELLE: Ro and Jules. They’re having a baby together. Even though they’re both from, you know, “Stockholm. ”

JIM: You mean that they’re homosexual?

ESTELLE: There’s nothing wrong with that.

JIM: I didn’t say there was, did I?

ESTELLE: That’s absolutely fine these days.

JIM: Of course it is. I haven’t suggested otherwise.

ESTELLE: I think it’s wonderful, I really do, that people are free to love whoever they like nowadays.

JIM: I’d like to make it absolutely clear that I share that view.

ESTELLE: In my day it would have been regarded as quite remarkable, you know, getting married and having a baby when you’re both, well, you know.

JIM: From Stockholm?

ESTELLE: Yes. But I’ve actually always rather liked Stockholm, you know. You have to let people live their lives however they want. I mean, that’s not to say I’ve been to Stockholm myself, I haven’t, of course not. I’m not, that’s to say I’ve never… I’m happily married. To Knut. And I’m very happy with the usual, you know.

JIM: I have no idea what we’re talking about anymore.

When the first police siren was heard from the street, the bank robber ran out onto the balcony and peered over the railing. That was how the first blurry mobile phone pictures of “the masked gunman” appeared on the Internet. Then even more police officers appeared.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, ” the bank robber repeated quietly, then ran back inside the apartment, where everyone except for Julia was still lying on the floor.

“I can’t lie down any longer because I need to go to the toilet! Or do you want me to do it all over the floor? ” Julia snapped defensively even though the bank robber showed no sign of saying anything.

“Not that it would make much difference, ” Zara said, lifting her face from the parquet floor in disgust.

Ro, who seemed to have a lot of experience in being yelled at despite not actually having said anything, sat up and patted the bank robber’s leg consolingly.

“Don’t take the fact that Julia’s shouting at you personally. She’s just a bit sensitive, because the baby’s having a disco in her stomach, you know? ”

“Personal information, Ro! ” Julia roared.

They have a definition for what counts as personal, Julia and Ro, even though Julia is the only one who knows what that definition is.

“I was actually talking to our bank robber. You only told me not to talk to the other prospective buyers, ” Ro said defensively.

“But I’m not really a bank—, ” the bank robber began, but was drowned out by Julia.

“Doesn’t make any difference, Ro, stop making friends! I know how this ends, they tell you their life story and then you feel bad when we have to outbid them for the apartment! ”

“That happened once, ” Ro called after her.

“Three times! ” Julia said, reaching for the bathroom door.

Ro gestured apologetically to the bank robber: “Julia says I’m the sort of person who refuses to eat fish sticks after seeing the dolphins at the sea life center. ”

The bank robber nodded understandingly. “My daughters are like that. ”

Ro smiled. “You’ve got daughters? How old are they? ”

The numbers seemed to catch in the bank robber’s throat: “Six and eight. ”

Zara cleared her throat and asked: “Are they going to inherit the family business, then? ”

Wounded, the bank robber blinked and looked down at the pistol. “I’ve never… done this before. I’m… I’m not a criminal. ”

“I certainly hope not, because you really are shockingly bad at it, ” Zara declared.

“Why do you have to be so critical? ” Ro snapped at her.

“I’m not critical, I’m giving feedback, ” Zara said, by way of offering feedback.

“I can’t imagine you’d be that good at robbing people, ” Ro said.

“I don’t rob people, I rob banks, ” the bank robber interjected.

“And how good are you at that, on a scale of one to ten? ” Zara asked.

The bank robber looked at her sheepishly. “A two, maybe. ”

“Have you even got a plan for how you’re going to get out of here? ” Zara asked.

“Stop being so demanding! Criticism doesn’t help anyone improve! ” Ro said critically.

Zara studied her intently. “Is this what your personality is like? Are you happy with it? ”

“Says you, ” Ro began, then the bank robber tried to calm things down.

“Can you just… please? I haven’t got a plan. I need to think. It wasn’t supposed to turn out like this. ”

“What? ” Ro asked.

“Life, ” the bank robber sniffed.

Zara took her phone out of her pocket and said: “Okay, let’s call the police and get this sorted out. ”

“No! Don’t! ” the bank robber said.

Zara rolled her eyes.

“What are you scared of? Do you honestly think they don’t know you’re here? You have to call them and tell them how much ransom you want, at least. ”

“You can’t call, there’s no signal in here, ” Ro said.

“Are we in prison already? ” Zara wondered, shaking her phone as if that might help.

Ro stuck her hands in her pockets and said, half to herself: “It’s actually not that bad, because I’ve read that children who grow up not staring at screens are more intelligent. Technology stunts the development of the brain. ”

Zara nodded sarcastically.

“Really? Tell me about all the Nobel Prize winners who grew up in Amish communities. ”

“I’ve actually read that there’s research that says mobile signals cause cancer, ” Ro persisted.

“Yes, but what if it’s an emergency? What if you move in here and your baby chokes on a peanut and dies because you can’t call an ambulance? ” Zara said.

“What are you talking about? Where would the baby get the peanut from in the first place? ”

“Maybe someone put some through the mail slot during the night. ”

“Are you really this sick? ”

“I’m not the one who wants my baby to choke to death…”

They were interrupted by Julia, who was suddenly standing beside them again.

“What are you arguing about now? ”

“She started it! I was trying to be friendly, and that’s not the same as me not wanting to eat fish sticks! ” Ro snapped defensively, pointing at Zara.

Julia groaned, and looked apologetically at Zara.

“Did Ro tell you about the sea life center? And dolphins aren’t even fish. ”

“What’s that got to do with anything? Anyway, weren’t you going to the toilet? ”

“It was occupied, ” Julia said, shrugging.

The bank robber pulled at the ski mask with one hand, then counted the people in the room. Then stammered: “Hang on… what do you mean, occupied? ”

“Occupied! ” Julia repeated, as if that were going to help.

The bank robber went and tugged at the bathroom door. It was locked.

And that was how this turned into a story about a rabbit.

Witness Interview (Continued)

ESTELLE: I’d like to make it clear that I’m sure Stockholm is perfectly pleasant. If you like Stockholmers. And I can tell you right now that I don’t think Knut has any prejudices, either, because once when we were younger I was tidying his office and I found an entire magazine all about Stockholm.

JIM: Great.

ESTELLE: I didn’t think so at the time. We actually had quite a row about it, Knut and I.

JIM: I see. So, you were talking to Ro and Julia when the bank robber came in?

ESTELLE: They keep birds. And they argued all the time. But in a cute way. Of course, the other couple were arguing, too, Roger and Anna-Lena, but that was nowhere near as cute.

JIM: What were Roger and Anna-Lena arguing about?

ESTELLE: The rabbit.

JIM: What rabbit?

ESTELLE: Oh, it’s quite a long story, if I’m honest. They were arguing about the cost of the apartment, per square foot, you see. Roger was worried that everyone was pushing the price up. He said the housing market was being manipulated by bastard real estate agents and bastard bankers and Stockholmers.

JIM: Hold on, was he saying that homosexuals were manipulating the housing market?

ESTELLE: Homosexuals? Why would they be doing that? That’s a terrible thing to say! Who’d say a thing like that?

JIM: You said Stockholmers were doing it.

ESTELLE: Yes, but I meant Stockholmers. Not “Stockholmers. ”

JIM: Is there a difference?

ESTELLE: Yes. One’s Stockholmers, and the other’s “Stockholmers. ”

JIM: Sorry, but I’m confused now. Let me try to write this down in chronological order.

ESTELLE: Take your time, as much time as you need. I’m not in a hurry.

JIM: I’m sorry, but I think perhaps it would be best if we went back to the first question?

ESTELLE: Which one was that?

JIM: Did you notice anything particular about the other prospective buyers?

ESTELLE: Zara looked sad. And Anna-Lena didn’t like the green curtains. And Ro was worried the closet wouldn’t be big enough. But it’s one of those walk-in closets, as they’re called these days. I didn’t know that until I heard Jules call it that.

JIM: No, hold on, that can’t be right. There’s no walk-in closet on the plans.

ESTELLE: Maybe it looks smaller on there?

JIM: The plan must be to scale, though, surely?

ESTELLE: Oh, must it?

JIM: On the plans, the closet isn’t even two square feet in size. Can I ask how big this walk-in closet is?

ESTELLE: I’m not very good at measurements. But Ro said she wanted to use it as a hobby room. She makes her own cheese, you know. And grows flowers. Well, some sort of plants, anyway. Jules isn’t very happy about that. Once Ro tried to make her own champagne and made a mess of Jules’s underwear drawer. Ro said that caused “a hell of a fight. ”

JIM: Sorry, but can we try to focus on the size of the closet?

ESTELLE: Jules was insistent that it was a walk-in closet.

JIM: Is it big enough to hide in?

ESTELLE: Who?

JIM: Anyone.

ESTELLE: I suppose so. Is it important?

JIM: No. No, probably not. But my colleague was keen that I should ask all the witnesses about possible hiding places. Would you like some coffee?

ESTELLE: A cup of coffee would certainly be very nice, I wouldn’t say no to that at all.

The bank robber stared at the bathroom door. Then at all the hostages. Then asked: “Do you think there’s someone in there? ”

Zara countered in a way that could have been taken as sarcastic: “What do you think? ”

The bank robber blinked so many times that it looked like Morse code.

“So you do think there’s someone in there, then? ”

“Did your parents by any chance have the same surname before they met? ” Zara asked.

Ro took offense on behalf of the bank robber, and snapped: “Why do you have to be such a cow? ”

Julia kicked Ro’s shin and hissed: “Don’t get involved, Ro! ”

“You’re the one who’s always saying we’re going to teach our child to stand up to bullies! I’m not going to stand here and let her talk to—” Ro protested.

“Talk to who? A bank robber? Is that bullying? Heaven forbid that someone who’s threatening us with a gun should feel offended! ” Julia said with a groan.

“I’m not—” the bank robber began, but Julia raised a warning finger.

“You know what? You’re the one who’s caused all this, so you can just shut up. ”

Zara, who was looking at the dust on her clothes and couldn’t have appeared more disgusted if she’d just climbed out of a pile of manure, noted: “Good that your kid’s got at least one mother who isn’t a communist. ”

Julia spun around toward her: “And you can shut up as well. ”

Zara did actually shut up. No one was more surprised by that than Zara herself.

In the meantime Roger cautiously rose to his feet. He helped Anna-Lena up, she looked him in the eye and he didn’t really know where to look, they weren’t used to touching each other without turning the lights out first. Anna-Lena blushed, and Roger turned around and started knocking absentmindedly on the walls in an attempt to look busy. He always knocked on the walls at apartment viewings, Anna-Lena wasn’t entirely sure why, but he said it was because he needed to know “if you could drill into them. ” That was important to Roger, this business of drilling, and it was just as important to know if the wall was load-bearing. If you remove a load-bearing wall, the ceiling collapses. And apparently you could hear that if you knocked on the wall, at least you could if you were Roger, so he did it everywhere at every single viewing, knocking and knocking and knocking. Anna-Lena sometimes used to think that everyone gets a few moments that show who they really are, tiny instances that reveal their entire soul, and Roger’s were this knocking. Because sometimes, so fleetingly that no one but Anna-Lena would even notice it, he would stand motionless immediately after a knock, looking at the wall in anticipation. The way a child might. As if he were hoping that one day someone would knock back. Those were Anna-Lena’s favorite Roger moments.

Knock knock knock. Knock. Knock. Knock.

He suddenly stopped right in the middle of a knock. Because he was listening to the conversation between Ro and Julia and Zara about the locked bathroom door. A shiver ran down Roger’s spine when he realized that the most terrible thing of all might be hiding in there: another prospective buyer. He therefore decided to take charge of the situation at once. He marched straight over to the locked bathroom and had just raised his hand to knock when Anna-Lena cried out: “No! ”

Roger turned around in surprise and looked at his wife. She was shaking all over, and was blushing right down to her fingertips.

“Please… don’t open the door, ” she whispered, and Roger had never seen her so frightened, and had absolutely no idea what might be the cause. Zara was standing alongside them, looking from one to the other. Then, predictably, she walked to the bathroom door and knocked on it. After a short pause someone knocked back.

By then tears were running down Anna-Lena’s cheeks.

Witness Interview

Date: December 30

Name of witness: Roger

JACK: Are you okay?

ROGER: What sort of question is that?

JACK: Your nose looks like it’s been bleeding.

ROGER: Yes, well, it does that sometimes, the quack says it’s “stress. ” Never mind that, just ask your questions.

JACK: Okay, then. You went to the apartment viewing with your wife, Anna-Lena?

ROGER: How do you know that?

JACK: It’s in my notes.

ROGER: Why have you got notes about my wife?

JACK: We’re interviewing all the witnesses.

ROGER: You shouldn’t have notes about my wife.

JACK: Just stay calm now.

ROGER: I’m perfectly freaking calm.

JACK: In my experience, that’s what people who are anything but calm say.

ROGER: I’m not going to answer any questions about my wife!

JACK: No, okay, fine. Can you answer some questions about the perpetrator, then?

ROGER: How can I answer that until you’ve asked them?

JACK: To start with: Where do you think he’s hiding?

ROGER: Who?

JACK: Who do you think?

ROGER: The bank robber?

JACK: No, Waldo.

ROGER: Who’s that?

JACK: You don’t know who Waldo is? It’s the title of an old kids’ book, Where’s Waldo?. Forget it, I was being sarcastic.

ROGER: I have no reason to read kids’ books.

JACK: I’m sorry. Can you tell me where you think the perpetrator is hiding?

ROGER: How should I know?

JACK: I hope you’ll forgive me pressing you for an answer, but we have reason to believe that the perpetrator is still in the apartment. I thought perhaps you might be able to help, because your wife says you do exhaustive research before each viewing. And that you check all the measurements on the plans.

ROGER: You can’t trust real estate agents. Some of them couldn’t even measure a ruler using another ruler.

JACK: That’s exactly what I mean. Did you discover anything special about this particular apartment?

ROGER: Yes. The real estate agent is an idiot.

JACK: Why?

ROGER: There were three feet missing from the measurements, between the walls.

JACK: Really? Between which walls? Can you show me on the plan?

ROGER: There. You can hear it if you knock. The gap.

JACK: Why would it be there?

ROGER: Probably because this apartment and the one next door used to be one single larger apartment once upon a time, when people around here had more money and apartments were cheaper. Now the whole housing market’s being manipulated to screw ordinary people. It’s the real estate agents’ fault. And the banks’. And people from Stockholm. Driving the prices up and everything. What the hell are you rolling your eyes for?

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