Another person who had had to change her plans.

“I’m seeing her first thing tomorrow. We’re keeping her informed.”

As Thomas was leaving, it occurred to him that he ought to get in touch with Kicki Berggren’s friend, the one who had persuaded her to go to Kos. He needed to find out who Kicki had met down there and whether she had said anything about her relationship with Krister. Perhaps Agneta would be able to explain why Kicki had sent that postcard to Krister.

He caught up with Carina in the corridor before she reached her office.

“Can you help me track down Kicki’s friend, Agneta Ahlin? Try and get ahold of a phone number as soon as possible, then call me. I don’t care how late it is.”

WEDNESDAY, THE THIRD WEEK

CHAPTER 28

Charlotte Öhman, the prosecutor, peered at Thomas. Her light-brown hair was fastened at the back of her neck, and she had pushed her glasses up on top of her head. She was rolling a pen between her thumb and forefinger as she tried to grasp the situation.

“If I’ve understood this correctly, we have one deceased cousin where we know the cause of death, but we have no idea if he was killed by someone. Then we have another deceased cousin whom we suspect was murdered, but we are unable to establish that fact at the moment.”

“Exactly.”

The prosecutor made a note on her pad. She was left-handed. She had a furrow of concern on her forehead that resembled a figure eight. Thomas had never seen anything like it.

“And how are you intending to proceed?”

Charlotte raised her eyebrows a fraction. She didn’t seem particularly impressed by the investigation so far. Hardly surprising, Thomas thought, given that they had made so little progress.

He went over the points the team had raised the previous day and outlined the way in which they intended to move the investigation forward. He summarized what they had done so far and the conclusions they had been able to draw.

The room fell silent, and Charlotte leaned back in her chair. She unclipped the barrette holding her ponytail in place, then refastened it—a ritual seemingly designed to give her time to think.

“I’m not sure if there’s much substance to this smuggling idea, but I agree that you ought to look into it. The most important thing at the moment is to track Kicki Berggren’s movements on Sandhamn and find the people she met.”

“I’ve spoken to Inger Gunnarsson, the waitress who served her that Friday evening. According to her, Berggren was in the bar with Jonny Almhult for several hours. They ordered several rounds of beer, and it seemed as if they were getting along well. She certainly didn’t have the impression that Kicki Berggren was in any way afraid of Almhult.”

Charlotte made notes and nodded. “That sounds good,” she said. “Sandhamn is a small island, so it seems reasonable that a number of people must have met her.” She unfastened and refastened the barrette again. “When are you expecting the detailed analysis from Linköping?”

“I expect it will take a few more days; by the end of the week at the earliest, I think. We’ve asked them to give it priority, but they’re short-staffed in the summer, just like everyone else.”

The prosecutor smiled. “I appreciate that it could take a while before we have definite information, so just carry on as best you can.”

“Of course.”

“Keep me informed.” She jotted down a few additional points. “By the way, have you checked on the financial situation?”

“There are no large sums of money floating around. Krister Berggren had a savings account containing a few thousand kronor; Kicki Berggren had a monthly savings plan, but we’re not talking unusual amounts.”

Charlotte nodded. “So if they were making money from smuggling booze, there’s no sign of it in their bank accounts,” she said. “Did either of them have a safety deposit box?”

“Not that we know of, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We’ll keep looking.”

Thomas stood on the steps outside the prosecutor’s office. It was a glorious day, perfect for sitting in the sunshine with ice cream. You could hardly imagine more unsuitable weather for a murder investigation.

He shaded his eyes with his hand and looked at his watch. There was a boat back to Sandhamn after lunch; with a bit of luck he might catch it.

CHAPTER 29

Strindberg’s Café was almost full as Thomas, Erik, and Kalle sat down with cups of coffee.

Just a few yards away a young girl in a white apron was making waffles, using big black old-fashioned waffle irons. They were obviously popular, because they disappeared as soon as they were ready. She had a large bowl of whipped cream in front of her and another of dark-red strawberry jam, both of which she heaped on generously.

Thomas thought they looked delicious, in spite of the warm weather. The golden waffles reminded him of when he was a little boy and used to come over from Harö with his parents. If he were lucky they would come to Strindberg’s.

They were sitting in one of the booths, which was made from a skiff standing on end. A fishing net was draped over the prow for decoration. It didn’t provide much in the way of shade, but it did create an authentic atmosphere.

The name of the café came from the fact that August Strindberg had spent the night there when he’d visited Sandhamn in his youth. When he spent time on the island later in life, during his marriage to Siri von Essen, he had stayed elsewhere, but the café had borne his name ever since.

Thomas noticed that the dish of the day was fried herring with mashed potatoes. What could be better out here in the archipelago?

As Erik and Kalle discussed the forthcoming Stockholm derby between Hammarby and Djurgården, Thomas’s thoughts returned to his conversation with Kicki Berggren’s friend, Agneta Ahlin.

It had taken Carina just a few hours to track her down on Kos, where she was still working, and she had passed on a number where Agneta could be reached. The conversation hadn’t made things any clearer. Thomas had explained what had happened and said that he would like to ask her a few questions. Agneta had become distraught and had wept most of the time. She had been unable to accept that Kicki was dead. She had no idea why anyone would have wanted to kill her friend or Krister, whom she had met only once. The police already knew more or less everything she could tell him about the relationship between the cousins, and she didn’t have much else to add.

Agneta did, however, tell him that Kicki had called her the day she found out Krister was dead. Kicki had been devastated, and they had talked for a long time. Toward the end of the conversation Kicki had hinted that she had an idea why her cousin had been found dead on Sandhamn. She had made some cryptic remark, said that was where the money was, but then she had changed the subject and talked about other things. She hadn’t told Agneta that she was intending to travel to Sandhamn.