of the rest of the building. The front entrance was an attractive arch with its own staircase. Next to it was a classic hospital entrance with big glass doors that would allow an ambulance to drive up and a stretcher to be rolled in.
Sejer went inside. Without noticing, he walked right past the reception desk.
'Excuse me? Where are you going?' a young woman called after him.
'I'm sorry. Police. I need to talk to Dr Struel.'
Sejer showed her his ID.
'You have to go up to the second floor and ask there.'
He thanked her and went upstairs. On the second floor he asked again and was shown into a waiting room with a window facing the garden and woods. The ban on garden watering didn't seem to apply to this area because the huge lawns were as dark green velvet. Maybe they should be using that money on other things. He couldn't imagine that the lawns made much difference to those who lived here. As he thought this, he turned around abruptly because he had an uneasy sensation that someone was watching him.
A woman was standing in the open door.
'I'm Dr Struel,' she said.
They shook hands.
'Let's go to my office.'
He followed her down the corridor and into a spacious room, where she offered him a seat on the sofa. He sat down in a flood of sunlight and at once he began to sweat profusely. The doctor went over to the window and stood there for a moment with her back turned, staring out at the lawn, fiddling a bit with a drooping pot plant that obviously wasn't thriving.
'So,' she said as she turned around, 'you're the man who's looking for my Errki?'
My Errki. There was something very touching about the way she said it. Without a trace of irony.
'Is that how you see him?'
'No-one else wants him,' she said simply. 'Yes, he's mine. My responsibility, my job. Whether he killed the old woman or not, he will still be mine.'
'Who have you talked to about this?'
'Officer Gurvin called. But I really have a hard time believing it,' she said. 'I'm telling you this now so you'll know where I stand. Let him stay out there for a while, and he'll come back on his own.'
'I don't think he's coming back on his own.'
His solemn tone made her realise something was wrong.
'What do you mean? Has anything happened to him?'
'How much did Officer Gurvin tell you?'
'He told me about the murder at Finnemarka, that Errki was seen in the vicinity of the house at what he called a crucial time.'
'Not just in the vicinity. He was at her farm. So you can see why we have to find him. It's a pretty isolated place.'
'It's typical for Errki to head for the woods. He tries to avoid people. And with good reason.'
She was being awfully curt. Sejer felt something rise up inside him. Annoyance.
'Forgive my arrogance,' he said slowly, 'but I actually do have to take the possibility that he is guilty into consideration. It was a vicious crime and a meaningless one, since it seems as though the only thing missing from her house is a wallet containing a few kroner. Whoever did this is walking around free. People living in the area are frightened.'
'Errki is always blamed,' she said.
'But he was seen near her house, after all, and she lived in a remote area. It isn't exactly overrun with passers-by. And since he is mentally ill, we can't ignore the fact that he might have something to do with her death.'
'Do you mean that he's under greater suspicion because he's ill?'
'Well, I-'
'You're mistaken. The most he does is shoplift. Chocolate and things like that.'
'There are lots of stories about him.'
'Just that. Stories.'
'And there's no basis for them? Is that what you think?'
She didn't reply.
'But this is only half the story,' he went on. 'This morning there was a robbery. An armed robbery at Fokus Bank.'
She burst out laughing. 'Honestly, Errki doesn't have enough discipline to carry out anything that requires a lot of effort. You just lost your credibility.'
'I'm not finished,' he said sharply. He didn't like her last remark.
'The bank was robbed by a young man who might be a little younger than Errki. He was wearing dark clothes and a ski mask, which means, of course, that we haven't yet identified him. But the present problem is that he took a hostage. Someone from inside the bank. Using a gun, he forced the hostage into his car and disappeared. This hostage has been identified as Errki Johrma.'
Now Dr Struel was speechless. He could almost feel her embarrassment.
'Errki?' she stammered. 'Taken hostage?' She stood up. 'And you don't know where they are?'
'No, unfortunately. We've set up roadblocks, and we think the car they escaped in is a white Megane, stolen last night. Most likely they've abandoned it somewhere long ago, but we haven't found it. We don't know anything about what sort of man this robber is, or whether he's dangerous. But he fired a shot in the bank, probably to scare the staff, and he seemed quite an unstable character.'
She sat down again, picked up something from the table and held on to it tightly.
'How can I help?' she asked in a low voice.
'I need to know what kind of person Errki is.'
'That would take all night.'
'I don't have that much time. Tell me why you don't believe that he could have killed the old woman. How long has he been your patient?'
'He's been here for four months, but he has spent long periods of his life in one institution or another. The reports and case records on Errki are extensive.'
'Has he ever shown violent tendencies?'
'You know,' she said, 'the truth is that he's incredibly self-protective. Only if he were really backed into a corner would he even think of biting. And I can't understand how an old woman could have made him so angry or provoked him so much that he would harm her.'
'We don't know what happened up there, or what the old woman might have done. We know that she is dead and that her wallet is missing.'
'Then it's definitely not Errki. He only takes chocolate and things like that. Never money.'
Sejer sighed. 'It's nice that you have such faith in him. He surely needs it more than most people. And no-one else is on his side, are they?'
'Now look here.' She stared at him. 'I'm not absolutely certain – I can't stand that kind of over-confidence. But I see it as my duty to believe that he's innocent. Sooner or later I'm going to have to tell him what I think. When he's sitting on the sofa where you're sitting right now and he asks me: do you think I did it?'
Dr Struel was in her mid-forties, fair and angular, her hair cut with a long fringe. Her face was surprisingly feminine for such a strong personality, and she had full cheeks dusted with a light down. He could see it in the fierce sunlight which was blazing through the window. She was wearing jeans and a white blouse, and there were patches of sweat under her arms. Now she ran a hand over her hair to move it out of her eyes, but the fringe fell forward again, like a blonde wave.
Sejer sat up straight on the sofa. 'I'd like to see his room.'
'It's on the first floor. I'll show it to you. But tell me, how was the old lady killed?'
'She was killed with a hoe.'
The doctor grimaced. 'That doesn't sound like something Errki would do. He's such a reserved person.'
'That's what anyone would say who believes in him or feels responsible for him.' He stood up and wiped the