'I'll make time. Have you thought over what happened in Simrishamn?'
'What is there to think over?' his father said. 'I just did what was right.'
'You can't just attack people at the drop of a hat,' Wallander said.
'I'm not going to pay any fines,' his father said. 'I'm not going to prison either.'
'There's no question of that,' Wallander said. 'I'll phone you tonight to find out what's happened to the roof. There might be hurricane-strength gusts.'
'Maybe I ought to climb up on the chimney.'
'What on earth for?'
'So that I can go flying myself.'
'You'll kill yourself. Isn't Gertrud there?'
'I'll take her with me,' said his father, and put the receiver down.
Wallander was left sitting there with the telephone in his hand. Bjork came in at that very moment.
'I can wait if you're going to make a call,' Bjork said.
Wallander put the receiver down.
'I heard from Martinsson that Dr Harderberg has shown signs of life,' Bjork said.
'Was that a question?' he said. 'If so, I can confirm that what Martinsson says is correct. Except that it wasn't Harderberg who phoned. He's in Barcelona and is expected back later today. I asked for a meeting this evening.'
Wallander could see Bjork was put out.
'Martinsson said that he would be going with you,' Bjork said. 'I wonder if that's appropriate.'
'Why shouldn't it be?' Wallander said, surprised.
'I don't mean that Martinsson isn't suitable,' Bjork said. 'I just thought perhaps I ought to go.'
'Why?'
'Well, after all, Harderberg isn't just anybody.'
'You're not as familiar with the case as Martinsson is. We're not going on a social call.'
'If I went with you it might have a calming effect on the whole thing. We agreed we should be careful - Dr Harderberg mustn't be upset.'
Although Wallander was annoyed that Bjork wanted to go with him to make sure he did not behave in a way that Bjork considered inappropriate, anything that might damage the force's reputation, nevertheless Bjork had a point: they did not want Harderberg worrying about the interest the police were showing in him.
'I take your point,' Wallander said, 'but it could also have the opposite effect. It could raise eyebrows if the Chief of Police is there for what's supposed to be a routine inquiry.'
'I merely wanted to put the idea to you,' Bjork said.
'It'll be best if Martinsson goes,' Wallander said, getting to his feet. 'I think our meeting is due to start.'
On the way to the conference room Wallander told himself that one of these days he really would have to learn to be honest. He should have told Bjork the truth, that he did not want him to come because he could not abide his subservient attitude towards Harderberg. There was something in Bjork's behaviour that was typical of the peasant's awe of those in power. He had barely thought about it before, even though he knew it to be true of society at large. There was always somebody at the top who dictated the terms, specifically or by implication, that those below had to accept. As a child he remembered seeing workers doffing their caps whenever one of those who decided their fate went by. He thought about how his father used to bow to the Silk Knights. Caps were still being doffed even today, albeit invisible ones.
I, too, have a cap in my hand, Wallander thought. Sometimes I don't notice it's there.
They gathered around the conference-room table. Svedberg glumly produced a proposal for a new police uniform that had been sent out to all police stations.
'Do you want to see what we'll look like in future?' he said.
'We never wear uniform,' Wallander said as he sat down.
'Ann-Britt's not as negative as the rest of us,' Svedberg said. 'She thinks it could look rather smart.'
Bjork had sat down and dropped his hands on the table as a signal for the meeting to start.
'Per isn't here this morning,' he said. 'He has to try to make sure those twins who robbed the bank last year are convicted.'
'What twins?' Wallander said.
'Can anybody have failed to be aware that Handelsbanken was robbed by two men who turned out to be twins?'
'I was away last year,' Wallander said. 'I haven't heard a thing about it.'
'We got them in the end,' Martinsson said. 'They'd got themselves a basic university qualification in economics and then needed some capital so that they could put their ideas into practice. They had visions of a floating pleasure palace called Summerland that would travel back and forth along the south coast.'
'Not such a bad idea in fact,' Svedberg said, scratching his head ruminatively.
Wallander looked round the room.
'Alfred Harderberg has phoned,' he said. 'I'm going to Farnholm Castle this evening and taking Martinsson with me. There's a slight possibility that his travel plans may change, but I've made it clear that he cannot count on our unlimited patience.'
'Mightn't that make him suspicious?' Svedberg said.
'I've stressed that it's a routine inquiry,' Wallander said. 'He was the one Gustaf Torstensson had been to see the night he died.'
'It's about time,' Martinsson said. 'But we'd better think pretty carefully about what we're going to say to him.'
'We've got all day to do that,' Wallander said.
'Where has he been this time?' Svedberg wanted to know.
'Barcelona.'
'He owns a lot of property in Barcelona,' Svedberg said. 'He also has an interest in a holiday village under construction near Marbella. All through a company called Casaco. I've seen the share brochures somewhere. I rather think the whole thing's run by a bank in Macao. Wherever that is.'
'I don't know,' Wallander said, 'but it's not important just now.'
'It's south of Hong Kong,' Martinsson said. 'Didn't anybody do geography at school?'
Wallander poured himself a glass of water and the meeting proceeded on its usual course. They took it in turns to report on what they had been doing since the last time they had met, each one concentrating on their allocated field. Martinsson passed on some messages he had received from Hoglund. The most important of which was that she was going the following day to meet Borman's children, and also his widow who was over from Spain on a visit. Wallander started by reporting on the plastic container. He soon saw that his colleagues could not make out why that particular detail should be so significant. Perhaps that's no bad thing, he thought. It might help me scale down my own expectations.
After half an hour or so the discussion became more general. Everybody agreed with Wallander that loose ends not directly linked with Farnholm Castle should be left dangling for the time being.
'We're still waiting to hear what the fraud squads in Stockholm and Malmo have to say,' Wallander said as he drew the meeting to a close. 'What we can say for now is that Gustaf and Sten Torstensson were killed for reasons which we have not yet identified. I incline towards robbery rather than revenge. Obviously we have to be prepared to continue investigating all their clients if the Farnholm lead goes cold, but for the moment we have to concentrate on Harderberg and Borman. Let's hope Ann-Britt can squeeze something important out of the widow and the children.'
'Do you think she can handle it?' Svedberg said.
'Why ever not?'
'Let's face it, she's not very experienced,' Svedberg said. 'I was only asking.'
'I have no doubt she will cope in exemplary fashion,' Wallander said. 'If there's nothing else, the meeting is closed.'
Wallander went back to his office. He stood for a while looking out of the window, his mind a blank. Then he sat at his desk yet again and went through the material he had on Harderberg and his business empire. He had read
