The Stonecutter (10 page)

With an effort Stig turned over in bed and stared blankly at the wall. He had loved the child as if she were his own granddaughter. Naturally he knew she could be difficult and moody, but never when she came up to see him. She had always showed respect for both him and his illness, and in fact she was probably the only one who knew what a bad state he was in. With everyone else, even his wife, he made every effort not to show how great the pain was. Both his father and grandfather had died a miserable and humiliating death in a crowded hospital room, and that was a fate he was determined to avoid. So to Lilian and Niclas he always managed to call up his tiny reserves of energy and put on a relatively controlled façade. And it wasn’t always bad. At intervals he would get better, perhaps feeling a little weaker and more tired than usual, but fully capable of functioning in everyday circumstances. But he always took sick again and ended up back in bed for a couple of weeks. Niclas had begun to look more and more concerned, but thank goodness Lilian had so far managed to convince him that it was best for Stig to be at home.

That woman was truly a gift from God. Of course they’d had their clashes over the past six years, and sometimes she could be a very hard woman, but the best and most tender side of her seemed to come out in caring for him. Since he’d taken ill they had lived in an exceedingly symbiotic relationship. She loved taking care of him, and he loved having her do it. Now he had a hard time imagining that they had been so close to splitting up. In some ways his illness had saved their marriage. There was nothing so bad that it didn’t bring some good with it, he always told himself. But that was before Sara’s death, before the worst of all possible evils had befallen them. There was nothing good in that.

The girl had understood the state he was in. Her soft hand on his cheek had left a warmth that he could feel even now. She would sit on the edge of his bed and tell him everything that had happened that day, and he would nod and listen intently. She appreciated that he didn’t treat her like a child, but as an equal.

It was inconceivable to think that she was gone.

He closed his eyes and let a strong wave of pain carry him away.

7

Strömstad 1923

It was a strange autumn. Anders had never before felt so exhausted, and yet so full of energy. His time with Agnes always infused him with new strength, and sometimes he wondered how he’d been able to make his body function before she came into his life.

His whole life had changed after that first evening, when she appeared at his window. Though they only met at night, he felt as if the sun didn’t shine until Agnes arrived, and it vanished when they parted. The first month, they had approached each other cautiously. She was very shy and quiet, and he was still astonished that she had dared take that first step. It was unlike her to be so forward, and he felt a warmth come over him at the thought that she had made such a departure from her principles for his sake.

He would willingly admit that at first he had hesitated. He could see how impossible the situation was. Yet he needed her so badly that he convinced himself that everything would work out in the end. And she was brimming with confidence. When she leaned her head on his shoulder and rested her slender hand in his, he felt as though he could move mountains for her.

There weren’t many hours when they could meet. He didn’t get home from the quarry until late in the evening, and then he had to get up early to go to work again. But she always found a way to come to him, and he loved her for it. They took many long walks round the edge of town under cover of darkness, and despite the raw autumn cold they always found some dry spot where they could sit and kiss. By the time their hands began venturing under each other’s clothes, it was already far into November, and he knew they had reached a crossroads.

He cautiously brought up the subject of the future. He didn’t want her to get in trouble, he loved her too much for that, but at the same time his physical need for her was overwhelming. He tried to get her discuss it, but she silenced him with a kiss.

‘Let’s not talk about that,’ she said, kissing him again. ‘Tomorrow when I arrive, don’t meet me out front. Instead let me come inside.’

‘But what about the widow—’ She interrupted him again with a kiss.

‘Shh. We’ll be as quiet as two mice.’ She caressed his cheek and went on, ‘Two quiet mice who love each other.’

‘But what about—’ he continued, nervous but at the same time excited.

‘Don’t think so much,’ she said with a smile. ‘Let’s just live in the present. Who knows, tomorrow we could be dead.’

‘Oh no, don’t talk like that,’ he said, pulling her close. She was right. He thought too much.

‘We may as well get this over with right away.’ Patrik sighed.

‘I don’t see the point,’ Ernst muttered. ‘Lilian and Kaj have been fighting for years, but I have a hard time believing that was reason enough for him to kill the girl.’

Patrik was taken aback. ‘It sounds as if you know them. I got the same impression when Lilian opened the door.’

‘I only know Kaj,’ said Ernst sullenly. ‘Some of us old guys get together to play cards occasionally.’

Patrik frowned. ‘Is that something I need to worry about? To be quite honest, I’m not sure you should even be taking part in the investigation under the circumstances.’

‘Bullshit,’ said Ernst sourly. ‘If we couldn’t work on a case because of some minor acquaintance, we wouldn’t be able to investigate shit. Everybody knows everybody else in this town. And I’m quite capable of keeping my work and my private life separate.’

Patrik wasn’t really satisfied with that answer, but he also knew that Ernst was right to some extent. The town was so small that everyone had some connection to everyone else, so that wasn’t a good enough excuse for removing an officer from an investigation. That would only work if it were a considerably closer relationship. But it was a shame. For a second, he had seen a chance for getting rid of Lundgren.

Walking side by side, they approached the house next door. A curtain fluttered in the window next to the door but fell back into place so fast that they couldn’t see who was standing behind it.

Patrik studied the house, the ‘showplace,’ as Lilian had called it. He’d seen it every day as he drove back and forth from his home but had never given it a closer look. He agreed that it wasn’t very attractive. It was a modern design with lots of glass and artificial angles. It seemed that an architect had been given a free hand, and Patrik had to admit that to some extent Lilian had a point. The house was perfect for
Beautiful Homes
magazine, but it fit in as well with the old neighborhood as a teenager at a party for pensioners. Whoever said that money and taste went hand in hand? The town architect must have been blind the day he approved that building permit.

Patrik turned to his colleague. ‘What sort of job does Kaj do? Since he’s home on a weekday, I mean? Lilian said something about managing director.’

‘He sold the company and took early retirement,’ said Ernst, still grouchy after having his professionalism questioned. ‘But he also coaches the football team. He’s very good at it, actually. He would have turned pro when he was young, but he had some kind of accident that made it impossible. And I say again, this is a waste of time. Kaj Wiberg is one of the really good guys, and anyone who says different is lying. All this is just ridiculous.’

Patrik ignored him and kept climbing the front steps.

They rang the doorbell and waited. Soon they heard footsteps and the door was opened by a man Patrik assumed was Kaj. He brightened up when he saw Ernst.

‘Hi, Lundgren, how are things? There’s no card game today, is there?’

His broad smile faded quickly when he saw that neither of them reacted. He rolled his eyes. ‘So what’s the old bitch come up with this time?’ He showed them in to the big, open living room and sat down heavily in an easy chair, motioning them to have a seat on the sofa.

‘Well, not that I don’t feel sorry about what’s happened to them; it’s a real tragedy. But it’s incredible that she has the stomach to keep quarrelling with us even under these circumstances. I think that says a good deal about what sort of person she is.’

Patrik ignored this comment and studied the man before him. He was thin, of average height, with short, silver hair and the physique of a greyhound. Nevertheless there was actually something quite nondescript about him—he was the sort of man witnesses would never be able to describe if he decided to rob a bank.

‘We’re going round to all the neighbors who might have seen anything. It has nothing to do with your disputes.’ Patrik was determined not to say anything about Lilian having singled out her neighbor.

‘I see,’ said Kaj in a tone that had a slight hint of disappointment. A clear indication that the feud with his neighbor had become a constant and almost essential element in his life.

‘But why the questions?’ he went on. ‘It’s tragic that the kid drowned, but there can’t be anything for the police to investigate further. Surely there can’t be much else for you to do,’ he chuckled, but quickly altered his expression when he saw that Patrik did not find the situation the least bit amusing. Then something dawned on him.

‘Am I wrong about that? People are saying that the girl drowned, but you know how people talk. If the police are going around asking questions, that can only mean a different cause of death. Am I right or not?’ he said excitedly.

Patrik gave him a look of distaste. What’s the matter with people? How could they view the death of a little girl as something exciting? Didn’t people have any basic common decency anymore? He forced himself to maintain a neutral expression when he answered Kaj.

‘Well, that’s partially right. I can’t go into the details, but it turns out that Sara Klinga was murdered, so it’s of the utmost importance that we find out everything she did that day.’

‘Murdered,’ said Kaj. ‘Wow, that’s horrible.’ His expression was sympathetic, but Patrik could sense, rather than see, that the sympathy did not run very deep.

Patrik wanted to slap this disgusting man in the face. ‘As I mentioned, I can’t go into the details, but if you saw Sara on Monday morning, then it’s important that we find out where and when. As precisely as you can remember.’

Kaj frowned and thought hard. ‘Let me see now, Monday. Yes, I did see her sometime that morning, but I can’t say exactly when. She came out of the house and scampered off. That kid could never walk like regular people, she always bounced up and down like a blasted rubber ball.’

‘Did you see which direction she went?’ said Ernst, speaking for the first time during their visit. Kaj looked at him with amusement; apparently he found it funny to see his card-playing buddy in his professional role.

‘No, I just saw her go down the driveway. She turned and waved at someone before she bounded off, but I didn’t see which way she went.’

‘And you don’t recall what time this was?’ asked Patrik.

‘Not really, but it must have been sometime around nine. I’m sorry I can’t be more exact.’

Patrik hesitated a moment before he continued. ‘I understand that you and Lilian Florin are not on a friendly footing.’

Kaj snorted out loud. ‘No, you could certainly say that. There’s probably nobody who could stay on a “friendly footing” with that hag.’

‘Is there any special reason for this …’ Patrik searched for the right word, ‘antagonism?’

‘Not that there needs to be any special reason to quarrel with Lilian Florin, but I do happen to have a very good excuse. The trouble began as soon as we bought this lot and were about to build a house here. She had objections to the design and did everything she could to try and stop construction. She stirred up a small storm of protest, I must say.’ He chuckled. ‘A storm of protest in Fjällbacka. Can you hear my knees shaking?’ Kaj opened his eyes wide and pretended to look scared, and then burst out laughing. Then he collected himself and went on. ‘Well, we managed of course to take the wind out of that little commotion, even though it cost us both time and money. But since then, it’s been one thing after another. And I’m sure you know the extremes she’s willing to go to. It’s simply been hell all these years.’ He leaned back and crossed one leg over the other.

‘Couldn’t you have sold the house and moved somewhere else?’ Patrik asked cautiously, but the question sparked a fire in Kaj’s eyes.

‘Move? Not on your life! I would never give her the satisfaction. If anyone should move, she should. Now I’m just waiting for word from the court of appeals.’

‘The court of appeals?’ Patrik asked.

‘They built a balcony on their house without checking the building code first. And it sticks out two centimeters onto my property, so it’s against the law. They’re going to have to tear that balcony down as soon as the verdict comes in. It should be coming any day now, and I can’t wait to see Lilian’s face,’ Kaj beamed.

‘Don’t you think that they have bigger concerns at the moment than the existence or non-existence of a balcony?’ Patrik couldn’t help interjecting.