and positioned outside someone's house as a threat. It has to do with a tremendously powerful magic rite, a curse that is leveled at someone. To place a nidstang constitutes a serious threat against an individual.'
'The excavation leader Staffan Mellgren was murdered a couple of days ago, after he found the nidstang at his house.'
'And the other man who received a nidstang?'
'It's not entirely clear where he is right now,' said Knutas cryptically.
'Really? If I were you, I'd try to get hold of him as soon as possible. In addition, I'd advise you to find out quickly who among the victims' circle of acquaintances is interested in?sir worship.'
As soon as he was through talking to Malte Moberg, Knutas called Susanna Mellgren to find out if her husband had ever shown any interest in the?sir cult. The answer was negative. She'd never heard about anything like that. She admitted that he'd often been gone in the evenings and even on weekends without her finding out what he was doing; she'd taken it for granted that he was meeting with other women.
Knutas received the same answer to his question about?sir worship from Ambjornsson's girlfriend. According to her, Ambjornsson was an atheist.
Knutas summoned the investigative team and reported on his phone conversation with the Stockholm historian who specialized in religion.
'Who the hell would have thought that this had anything to do with religion?' said Kihlgard. 'Although who would worship the?sir gods in this day and age? That seems really odd.'
'Surely it's not any odder than believing in Jesus or Muhammad or anything else,' objected Jacobsson. 'I think it's rather cool to believe in the?sir gods. I like the thought that there are multiple gods, and that the female deities seem to be just as important as the male ones.'
'Now is not the time to be discussing our opinions on various types of religion. We need to talk about this hot new lead that we've got. Hopefully it will help us solve this case,' said Knutas impatiently. 'The perp is most likely here on the island, and I'd be surprised if he's acting alone. He probably has at least one accomplice.'
'Since he seems to have experience in butchering animals or at least in handling their bodies, we've checked out all employees of the Gotland butcher shops. Unfortunately we didn't turn up anything especially interesting,' Jacobsson interjected. 'Or from the veterinarians or their assistants, either.'
Knutas looked discouraged. 'Well, at least we know that the modus operandi of these murders was derived from something called the threefold death, and that it was part of ancient Nordic tradition. Who might conceivably have an interest in something like that?'
'Someone who's interested in the?sir religion and ancient Nordic mythology. The type who's a member of a group dedicated to such things,' Kihlgard suggested.
'Do we have anything like that here on Gotland? Does anyone know?' Knutas tossed out the questions. They all shook their heads.
'I suppose this is something different from the medievalists?' Jacobsson queried. 'There are lots of people who are busy putting together the medieval festival for next week, but they wouldn't be interested in the?sir religion, would they?'
'The Middle Ages came after the Viking Age, at the same time that the North became Christian. I think that was around 1100,' said Knutas. 'Still, it's possible that the two could be linked. We need to start by looking at the groups that are focused on the?sir religion. After that somebody should also talk to the people involved with the medieval festival. Surely they have some kind of formal organization, don't they?'
'I can look into it,' Jacobsson offered.
'I'd be happy to help,' said Kihlgard. 'It sounds incredibly exciting.'
'Fine. Get some others to help you, too. This has to be regarded as a major lead. We need to give it top priority. This whole story started with the decapitated horse out at Petesviken in June. We're going to have to start back there and make a list of all the people who've come into the picture in some way during the investigation. Then we need to find out which of them has ties to the?sir religion or to ancient Nordic mythology.'
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 4
His cover name was Viking Venture, but Johan quickly realized that the contact he'd found via the American Web site was Swedish and presumably lived on Gotland. Though it seemed very unlikely that a Got-lander would be selling ancient relics on the American market. He had been e-mailing back and forth with Viking Venture, presenting himself as an interested buyer who was prepared to pay well for Viking Age artifacts from Gotland. The contact said that he could offer quite a number of rarities that might be of interest. Johan pretended to be a collector from Skane, and after they had exchanged e-mails a number of times, he managed to get the man who called himself Viking Venture to agree to a meeting. They decided to meet on the following Saturday at the indoor ice-skating rink, right outside Visby.
Johan was going to try to get this seller of stolen goods on videotape, using a little camera that they had at the office. On Wednesday Pia had carefully explained to him how to use it. They agreed not to say anything to the police or to the home office back in Stockholm. This was their own project. Johan felt quite excited.
Emma had called him at work, suggesting that they could have dinner together at her house on Saturday and invite Pia Lilja and Niklas Appelqvist. It would be their first dinner party. He interpreted this as yet another sign that Emma was starting to relent. Maybe they were finally on their way to having a real relationship. The management at Swedish TV had decided to keep the team on Gotland for a trial period in the fall, and Pia had been given the camera job. Johan was the obvious choice for reporter, since he wanted the position and had so far done a good job. He was grateful to be able to stay on the island; at least he could stop worrying about that. Besides, he had the legal right to see his child, and it was a right that he wanted to safeguard.
One thing he was sure of. No matter what happened between him and Emma, he would never budge an inch when it came to his relationship with his daughter.
To his great joy, he had noticed a change in Emma's attitude toward him since Elin was born. She was more loving and tended to cling to him more, daring to show her weaknesses. It was as if he had become more important now that he was the father of her child. She would always be dependent on him, in one way or another. The thought appealed to him.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 5
The cruise liner Nordic Star arrived from Riga, Lativa, and majestically slid into berth number eleven in Visby harbor on this Thursday morning. The city couldn't have presented a more beautiful image. The sun colored the facades with a warm, golden sheen, and the temperature had already reached sixty-eight degrees. The American tourists, who had only one day at their disposal to explore Gotland before they continued their journey to Stockholm, were delighted before even stepping off the gangway. The cathedral tower, the ring wall, and the medieval buildings looked fascinating, and a mood of enthusiastic anticipation hovered over the harbor. Ten shiny, air-conditioned tourist buses were parked in a row, ready to swallow up the hundreds of chattering tourists who came streaming off the boat. They wore shorts, T-shirts, and caps, and every single one had a camera around his or her neck. The average age was somewhere between fifty and sixty, although there were a few younger couples. Waiting on the dock, the local guides were clearly visible in their blue vests from the guide association. The buses quickly filled, and one by one they rolled out of the harbor, ready to explore the island.
Matilda Drakenberg's bus was one of the first to leave. The guides had divided up the sightseeing tour so as not to overlap with each other. Matilda's bus was supposed to start outside the city and then proceed inward from there. First stop was the nature preserve of Hogklint, just south of Visby. From there they would have a wonderful view of the city and the sea. Next would be the Botanical Gardens and a stroll inside the wall. The tour would end at the East Gate, when the tourists would be free to have lunch and go shopping on their own.
She welcomed the visitors, and before the bus had even reached the coast road heading for Hogklint, she had already started telling them about Visby's history. The tourist groups were all strangely similar. Americans were
