Nyberg was right. The macabre string of child murders in Belgium had been linked in unsavoury ways to both the police and politicians. These links were still tenuous, but no one doubted that many dramatic revelations were to come.
Wallander nodded for Nyberg to continue.
'What I'm wondering is how Louise fits into the picture.'
'We don't know,' Wallander said. 'We have to try to proceed in as open-minded a fashion as possible and try to answer all our questions, including who this woman is.'
A certain gloom fell over the group as they divided up the tasks and accepted that they would now be working around the clock. Holgersson would see about bringing in extra personnel. They finished a little after 10.30 a.m. Wallander signalled to Hoglund to remain behind. When they were alone, he gestured for her to close the door.
'Tell me what your thinking is on this,' he said when she had sat down.
'Naturally some thoughts are so repulsive that you try to block them out.'
'Of course. Svedberg was our friend. Now we have reason to speculate that he may have been a criminal.'
'Do you really think so?'
'No, but I have to consider even what seems impossible, if that makes any sense.'
'Then what do you think happened?'
'That's what I want you to tell me.'
'Well, a connection has now been established between Svedberg and those three young people.'
'No, that's not true. A connection has been established between Svedberg and Astrid Hillstrom.'
She nodded.
'What else do you see?' he asked.
'That Svedberg was someone other than we thought.'
Wallander pounced on this. 'And how did we think he was?'
She thought a moment before answering. 'That he was open, trustworthy.'
'But in reality he turned out to be secretive and untrustworthy, is that what you mean?'
'Not exactly, but something like that.'
'One of his secrets involved a woman, who may have been called Louise. We know what she looks like.'
Wallander got up, turned on the projector, and slipped the picture back into the machine.
'I have the strange feeling that there's something wrong with this face. But I can't think what it is.'
Hoglund hesitated, but Wallander sensed that his statement didn't surprise her.
'There's something odd about her hair,' she said finally. 'Although I can't put my finger on it.'
'We have to find her,' Wallander said. 'And we will.'
He put the second photograph in the projector and looked at Hoglund. Again she answered hesitantly.
'I'm quite convinced that they're wearing clothes from the 16th century. I have a book at home about fashion through the ages. But I could be wrong.'
'What else do you see?'
'Young people who seem happy. Excited and drunk.'
Wallander suddenly thought of the pictures that Sten Widen showed him from their trip to Germany, especially the drunken one of himself with the beer bottle in his hand. There was a similarity in the expressions on their faces.
'What else do you see?'
'The boy, the second from the left, is yelling something to the photographer.'
'They're sitting on a blanket with food spread out, and they're dressed up. What does that mean?'
'A masquerade of some sort. A party.'
'Let's assume it's a summer event of some kind,' Wallander said.
'The whole picture gives the impression of warm weather. It could very well be a Midsummer's Eve party, but it can't have been taken this summer, since Norman isn't in the picture.'
'And Astrid Hillstrom seems a little younger.'
Wallander agreed. 'I thought that too. The picture could be a couple of years old.'
'There's nothing threatening in the photograph,' she said. 'At that age, they're as happy as they can be. Life seems endless, the sorrows few.'
'I have such a strange feeling about this,' Wallander said. 'I've never been at the beginning of an investigation like this one. Svedberg is the centre, of course, but the compass needle keeps swinging back and forth. We can't see where we should go.'
They left the room. Hoglund took the envelope with the two photographs to give to Nyberg so he could check them for fingerprints. First she would make some copies of both. Wallander went to the lavatory and then drank almost a litre of water in the canteen.
Everyone set to work on their assigned tasks. Wallander's job was to talk to Eva Hillstrom and Sture Bjorklund again. He sat down in his office and reached for the phone. He was going to start with Hillstrom, but he decided against phoning her first. Hoglund knocked on his door and handed him some photocopies of the pictures. The picture of the young people had been enlarged so that their faces appeared as clearly as possible.
It was around midday when Wallander left the station. He heard someone say that it was about 23degC. He took off his jacket before getting into the car.
Eva Hillstrom lived on Korlingsvag, which was just outside Ystad's eastern border. He parked the car outside the gate and looked at the house. It was a large, turn-of-the-century villa, with a beautifully maintained garden. He walked up to the front door and rang the bell. Eva Hillstrom opened the door and jumped when she saw who it was.
'Nothing's happened,' Wallander said quickly, anxious to stop her from imagining the worst. 'I just have some more questions.'
She let him into a big hall that smelled strongly of disinfectant. She was barefoot and wearing a tracksuit. Her eyes darted anxiously around the room.
'I hope I'm not intruding,' Wallander said.
She mumbled something unintelligible and he followed her into a spacious living room. The art and furniture gave the impression of being valuable. There was certainly nothing wrong with the Hillstroms' finances. He sat down obediently on the sofa that she indicated to him.
'Can I get you anything?' she asked.
Wallander shook his head. He was thirsty but didn't want to ask for a glass of water. She was sitting on the very edge of her seat, and Wallander had the strange impression that she was a runner at the start of a race, waiting for the gun to go off. He took out his photocopies, and handed her the picture of Louise. She looked at it briefly and then up at him.
'Who is this?'
'You don't recognise her?'
'Does she have anything to do with Astrid?'
Her attitude was hostile and Wallander forced himself to sound very firm.
'It is sometimes necessary for us to ask routine questions,' he said. 'I just showed you a picture, and my question is, do you know who it is?'
'Who is she?'
'Just answer the question.'
'I've never seen her before.'
'Then we don't have to say anything more about it.'
She was about to ask him something else when Wallander gave her the other picture. She looked at it quickly, then got up out of her chair and left the room, as if the starting gun had just gone off. She came back after about a minute and handed Wallander a photograph.
'Photocopies are never as good as the original,' she said in response to his puzzled face.
Wallander looked down at the photo. It was the same as the photocopy, the same picture he had found in Svedberg's flat. He felt a step closer to something important.
'Tell me about this photograph,' he said. 'When was it taken? Who are the other people in it?'
