Misterioso

It’s our social circles that are being threatened, after all.”

“Not just your social circle in general,” said Hultin, in an attempt to regain the initiative. “The Lovisedal board of directors, anno 1991, in particular.”

Lidner again uttered a brief laugh. “What has made you come to such a specific conclusion? Director Strand- Julen was certainly a good friend, but he never had anything to do with the company. You should be looking at the board of Sydbanken instead. All four of them were members for a while in 1990.”

Lidner’s insight into the inner workings of the investigation was astounding. Hultin controlled himself as usual and struck: “As far as I know, Sydbanken hasn’t been in close contact with the Russian-Estonian mafia the way Lovisedal has. Because you’re still refusing to cooperate with the mafia, aren’t you?”

Lidner gave him a somewhat peeved look, the way a person looks at a fly that’s disturbing him when he’s busy with important matters. “Of course,” he said curtly. “They continue to be an annoying element. But if you think that the mafia is behind the murders, then you’re really out of bounds.”

“Why would you say that?” Hultin retorted.

“In particular because of what happened to your private detective in Tallinn.”

Hultin was on the verge of boiling over. He cast a determined glance at Lidner’s bushy eyebrows. “I need to ask how you happen to have such insight into our investigative work, Mr. Lidner,” he said, keeping his tone as neutral as possible.

Pronouncing someone’s name in the wrong way can be just as effective as using the wrong title, but Lidner didn’t seem to let it bother him. Whether the fly shits or not makes no difference; in either case, it’s just as annoying. Until you take out the flyswatter.

Lidner took out his. “You’re free to ask, and I’m just as free not to answer.”

Hultin gave up. “We’re going to bring in our own men as well as detectives from the Stockholm police to give you around-the-clock protection. I hope you can put up with their presence for a few days.”

“As usual, the taxpayers’ money could be put to much more effective use,” said Jacob Lidner, and he turned on his heel and left.

It took almost two full minutes before Jan-Olov Hultin did the same.

25

A week passed in which almost nothing happened. After that came an event that should have been decisive.

The criminal division of the Stockholm police made a routine raid on an illegal gambling club downtown. An alert officer by the name of Akesson recognized one of the gamblers, even though he had affected a trendy goatee, was wearing hornrimmed glasses, and had shaved off all his hair.

The gambler was Alexander Bryusov, the slimmer half of Igor and Igor.

He was now sitting mute in the city jail. The members of the A-Unit were peering through the peephole, one after the other, like curious schoolchildren.

Hultin turned to the officer who had arrested Bryusov. Akesson was looking worn out; he was desperate to go home.

“Not a word?”

Akesson shook his head. “I’ve sat here almost all night trying to get something out of him. He’s pretending to be deaf and dumb.”

“Okay,” said Hultin. “Damned good job, in any case, Akesson. Go home now and get some sleep.”

Akesson left. They hoped he wasn’t planning to drive himself home.

The visiting schoolchildren of the A-Unit stood there, shifting from one foot to the other in the corridor of the jail. The guard was staring at them with a slightly indulgent expression.

“I’ll go in with Soderstedt,” said Hultin, and asked the guard to unlock the steel door. “The rest of you can leave,” he added, and slipped inside.

Soderstedt gave them an apologetic wave and followed.

No one left. They took turns looking through the peephole. The guard’s expression grew progressively less indulgent.

Hultin and Soderstedt sat down across from Alexander Bryusov. He didn’t look much like the police sketch.

It was Soderstedt who did the talking. He repeated each question he asked; first he posed the question in Swedish, then in Russian. But it was a very one-sided conversation.

Bryusov began by demanding a lawyer. The demand was denied with vague references to national security; an infallible excuse. The rest of the questions, including one about the Monk tape, Bryusov answered with an ironic smile. Once he said to Soderstedt, “I recognize you.” Otherwise he remained mute, up until the question: “Where is Valery Treplyov?”

Then Bryusov laughed loudly and said in crystal-clear Swedish, “That, my good sirs, is a profoundly religious question.” After that he said nothing more.

The chief prosecutor didn’t have an easy time of it at the indictment hearing.

Not only was there already an overwhelming lack of evidence. But when the case was presented in famed attorney Reynold Rangsmyhr’s rhetorically elaborated and sarcastic statements, it became downright ludicrous.

The members of the A-Unit were flabbergasted as they sat scattered among the spectators. They were far less concerned with whether one half of the Igor duet was going to be released than with the question of why the most prominent attorney in Sweden, and definitely the most expensive, was defending a Russian booze smuggler.

What they witnessed was a battle royal, Tyson versus Anders “Lillen” Eklund, which logically ended with the judge sternly admonishing both the office of the prosecutor as well as the police authorities for wasting the time and resources of the judicial system with a matter that could end in only one way. And the freed Alexander Bryusov actually managed to go underground while still inside the courthouse. No one even saw him leave the building.

“What just happened over there?” Gunnar Nyberg dared to ask at the afternoon meeting in Supreme Central Command. A thick haze of disappointment hovered over the A-Unit. Through the fog they could just make out their badly lacerated but not yet beaten commander, Hultin, sitting at the end of the table. He was deliberately rolling the shattered lance of his lead pencil between his fingers. Without looking up from this Sisyphean labor, he said grimly, “The question is quite simple. Does the Viktor X group have sufficient resources and contacts within the Swedish judicial system to get Bryusov off so easily? Or what is it we’re actually encountering here?”

The group tried as much as possible to relieve the Stockholm police and take over most of the nighttime surveillance of the Lovisedal board of directors, anno 1991.

Hjelm had spent a night keeping an eye on a man by the name of Bertilsson, and another night guarding a man named Schrodenius. He’d also spent a couple of nights at home in Norsborg.

He’d had no contact whatsoever with Cilla, who was staying at the Dalaro cabin and remained an enigma. Apparently the worst thing he could do would be to try and reason with her. He had seen her loneliness. And Danne and Tova were living their own lives, with Danne spending most of his time in his room. Tova was often with her friend Milla, whose parents had cheerfully promised to look after her but at the same time, it seemed to Hjelm, had given him a number of reproachful looks. He stocked the freezer with food, wondering who was really to blame and for what.

Tova said that she thought the blemish on his cheek looked like an astrological sign, but she couldn’t decide which one. Not until the following morning, just as he was about to leave for work, did she say that it was Pluto she meant-a P with a little line through the loop. He asked her what the significance was. She replied merrily and innocently that she had no idea.

“Are you coming to the closing ceremonies at school?” she asked him. “Mama is coming.”

“I’ll try,” he said, feeling a pang.