bullet was found in the floorboards. Each shot would have been fatal.
“The pastor and his wife were each shot between the eyes. Those shots were also instantly fatal because large-bore ammunition was used, so the damage was extensive. The bullets have been sent to the lab, but Stridner thinks they are of the same caliber. Ballistic tests aren’t complete yet.
“It is interesting to note that Jacob was shot two hours before his parents.”
“What did the killer do between the murders?” Irene wondered.
“Erased the hard drives,” Fredrik Stridh replied.
“
“Chambering a round with a Mauser-type rifle takes less than one second for someone who is trained in its use. I think he shot Sten Schyttelius first and then popped Elsa,” the superintendent said.
“That sounds plausible. But we don’t know for sure,” Tommy agreed.
“It’s the most likely scenario, since Elsa was full of sleeping pills according to Stridner.”
Irene felt some sense of relief. Even if Elsa had been awake in the last few seconds before her death, she would have been too dazed to understand what was happening.
“I’ve checked the license for the rifles. The ones from the gun cabinet belonged to Sten Schyttelius. The Husqvarna under the bed is registered to Jacob Schyttelius,” said Hannu.
“Is there a gun cabinet at the cottage?” Irene asked.
Hannu shook his head.
“Then he must have left his weapon in his father’s cabinet. It was just coincidence that the murderer chose that particular rifle,” said Tommy.
“Very possibly. But that would mean that the murderer took the rifle and ammunition from the rectory, then headed over to the cottage to shoot Jacob. Then he returned two hours later to shoot Sten and Elsa. My question is why didn’t they see the murderer take the weapon, since they were alive and we know that both of them were in the rectory all afternoon and evening,” Irene objected.
“Could he have taken the weapon earlier? Maybe several days ago?” Tommy suggested.
“But I think that would have been a big risk. Sten Schyttelius might have discovered that the weapon was missing. He-”
Irene was interrupted by a knock at the door. Ahlen stuck his round head in.
“Interesting find at the cottage,” he informed them as he entered.
In one hand he held a simple cloth bag made of unbleached cotton. He took a thick clear plastic bag from it. Inside was a book.
“This is a book about Satanism. Written in English. We found it behind some loose boards in the wall of the bedroom. Along with a tin of ammunition.”
He set the book on the table in front of the superintendent and took out another plastic bag. Irene glanced at the tin in the bag and recognized it. Norma 30–06 is the most common type of large-caliber ammunition.
“Was the space behind the panel big enough to hold a large rifle?” Tommy asked.
“Yes. But not several. It wasn’t that big.”
“But there was room for the book,” Irene commented.
She took the thick plastic-wrapped book. The title was
You probably haven’t either, Irene thought. But maybe it was more peaceful at work than at home with all the kids.
“Fingerprints?” the superintendent asked.
“Yes. Jacob Schyttelius’s and a few others. But they are smudged and could have been acquired at the bookstore before it was purchased. Schyttelius left a lot of prints on it. He must have read the whole book; several passages are underlined.”
“Can we keep it?” Irene asked.
“No. We aren’t done with it yet. I’ll bring it back as soon as possible.”
The investigators had to be satisfied. The technician replaced the two plastic bags in his cotton sack and left.
The room was silent after his exit. Then Andersson cleared his throat and said, “This changes things. Jacob may have had a rifle and ammunition hidden at the cottage, as well as a hidden book that some damn leader of Satanists in the USA wrote. Why?”
Hannu was the first one to break the silence. “The rifle may mean that he felt threatened.”
“Yep. Otherwise, according to law, he should have stored the weapon and ammunition in his father’s gun cabinet. You’re forbidden to keep them unlocked as he did.”
Irene nodded. “Since Jacob was shot first, it seems likely that the murderer found the rifle and ammunition behind the panel and used it to kill him. Then he took the loaded weapon with him to the rectory and shot Mr. and Mrs. Schyttelius. How many rounds were still in the murder weapon?”
The superintendent consulted his notes before he answered. “Three.”
Irene went on. “Then he reloaded between the murder of Jacob and the murders of Sten and Elsa.”
She turned toward Hannu. “When did Jacob buy his rifle?”
“In June last year.”
“The moose hunt isn’t until October, right?”
“He may have wanted to practice before the autumn hunt. Or maybe Hannu is right: Jacob might have felt threatened,” Tommy said.
“By whom? And how did the killer know that Jacob had hidden the rifle behind the wooden panel?”
“No idea.”
“We won’t get any farther with the rifle. But I’m sitting here wondering why he hid the book,” Andersson said.
“Because it was pro-Satanic? It wouldn’t have looked good, since he was said to be helping his father trace the Satanists,” said Fredrik.
Irene mused, “Maybe he was trying to understand the Satanists. Maybe it helped him to search.”
“Maybe. But I think we need to question Rebecka Schyttelius as soon as possible,” Superintendent Andersson said.
“I’ve spoken with Inspector Glen Thompson of the London Metropolitan Police. He’s our contact person and is keeping an eye on her. She’s not doing well; after the news was broken to her, she broke down completely. She might be allowed to come home from the hospital tomorrow. Yesterday she told him she had no idea as to any motive for the murders.”
“Have you found any other relatives?”
“Sten Schyttelius had a sister fourteen years older than he.
She’s in a group home for patients with senile dementia in Mariestad. Never married. No children. The middle sister died two years ago of breast cancer. She was ten years older than her brother. The dead sister had two sons. One lives in Stockholm and one lives here, in the city. The one from Stockholm will drive down tomorrow, and then both nephews will come here. I’ve scheduled a meeting with them at two o’clock.”
“And Elsa?”
“She was an only child. There are a few cousins, but I haven’t been able to reach any of them. They all appear to be much older than she was.”
“Okay. Tommy or Irene will have to go to London to interview Rebecka Schyttelius,” the superintendent said.
Tommy looked uncertain. “Could it wait until next week?” he asked.
“Yes. It may be best to let her recover a bit more. Hopefully, we will have more information by then, too. One of you should locate Jacob Schyttelius’s ex-wife first and see what she has to say.”
Tommy leaned toward Hannu and half-whispered, “Have you found out anything about her?”
