She inserted some coins and pressed the button for a Snickers to drop down into the slot. A 'King Size' just for good measure.

She considered gobbling down the whole thing before she went back, but knew she would just get sick if she ate it too fast. So she restrained herself and went back to the waiting room where Lilian was sitting. Quite right. Her mother's eyes went straight to the candy bar in her hand, and she gave Charlotte an accusing look.

'Do you know how many calories are in one of those? You need to lose weight, not put on more pounds. That thing will go straight to your behind. Now that you've finally managed to lose a few pounds…'

Charlotte sighed. She'd heard the same old song her whole life. Lilian had never permitted any sweets in the house, yet she was one of those women who always weighed the same, and she never had one ounce more than necessary on her body. Maybe that was precisely why sweets had been so tempting to Charlotte, who had eaten them in secret. She stole change out of her parents' pockets and then sneaked off to the Central Kiosk to buy chocolate balls and assorted boiled sweets, which she voraciously devoured before she went home. By middle school she was already overweight, and Lilian had been furious. Sometimes she'd made Charlotte take off her clothes and stand in front of the full-length mirror so she could mercilessly pinch her spare tyres.

'Look at yourself. You look like a fat pig! You don't really want to look like a pig, do you?'

Charlotte had hated her mother at those moments. But Lilian had only dared do that when Lennart wasn't at home. He would never have allowed it. Pappa had been Charlotte's salvation. She was grown-up when he died, but without him she felt like a helpless little girl.

She regarded her mother sitting across from her. As usual she was impeccably dressed, a sharp contrast to Charlotte who hadn't brought a change of clothes from home. Lilian, on the other hand, had managed to pack a small overnight case and had changed her clothes and put on fresh make-up this morning.

Charlotte defiantly stuffed the last bit of the large chocolate bar in her mouth, ignoring Lilian's disapproving glance. Imagine that she would bother to worry about Charlotte's eating habits when Stig lay fighting for his life. Her mother never ceased to amaze her. But considering what Grandmother was like, maybe it wasn't so odd.

'When are we going to get to see Stig?' said Lilian in frustration. 'I don't understand it. How can they keep the relatives out like this?'

'I'm sure they have their reasons,' said Charlotte, trying to sound reassuring, but for an instant she pictured the strange look on the doctor's face. 'We'd probably only be in the way.'

Lilian snorted and got up from her chair to pace demonstratively back and forth.

Charlotte sighed. She was really trying to hold on to the sympathy she'd felt for her mother last night, but Lilian was making it damned hard. Charlotte took out her mobile to make sure it was turned on. It was a bit odd that Niclas hadn't rung. The display was dead, and she realized that the battery had run down without her noticing. Damn. She got up to ring from the pay phone out in the corridor, but almost ran into two men. She was surprised to see that it was Patrik Hedström and his red-haired colleague who grimly peered over her shoulder into the waiting room.

'Hello, what are you doing here?' she asked, but then the thought struck her full force. 'Did you find something? Something about Sara? You did, didn't you? What is it? What…?' She glanced eagerly and yet with a feeling of dread from Patrik to Martin, but got no reply.

Finally Patrik said, 'At the moment we have nothing concrete to tell you about Sara.'

'But why…?' she said in bewilderment without finishing her sentence.

Astonished, Charlotte stepped aside when they signalled that they would like to get by. As if in a fog she saw the other people in the waiting room tensely watching the drama as the police officers went over and took up position before Lilian, who was standing with her arms crossed and looking at them with raised eyebrows.

'We would like you to come with us.'

'I can't do that, as I'm sure you understand,' said Lilian belligerently. 'My husband is fighting for his life and I can't leave him.' She stamped her foot to emphasize her point, but neither of the detectives seemed to take any notice.

'Stig is going to pull through, and unfortunately you have no choice. I'm only going to ask politely one time,' said Patrik.

Charlotte couldn't believe her ears. The whole thing must be a gigantic misunderstanding. If only Niclas were here, she was sure he could calm everybody down and straighten it all out in no time. She herself felt at a loss what to do. The whole situation was so absurd.

'And what is this regarding?' Lilian snapped. She said out loud what Charlotte had just been thinking. 'There must be some kind of misunderstanding.'

This morning we exhumed your husband Lennart's body. The medical examiners are in the process of taking samples from his remains. Samples from Stig have already been analysed. We have also conducted a search of your house today, and…' Patrik glanced at Charlotte but then turned back to Lilian, 'we made a few other discoveries. We can discuss them here if you like, in front of your daughter and everyone else here, or you can come with us to the station.' His voice was devoid of any emotion, but his eyes contained a coldness that she didn't think he was capable of.

Lilian's eyes met Charlotte's for a moment. Charlotte understood nothing Patrik was saying. A brief glimpse at Lilian's eyes increased her confusion and made an icy chill spread down her spine. Something was definitely wrong.

'But Pappa had Guillain-Barre syndrome. He died of a nerve disease,' she said, both as explanation and inquiry, directed at Patrik.

He didn't reply. Soon enough Charlotte would find out more than she ever wanted to know.

Lilian turned her gaze away from her daughter and seemed to make a decision. Then she said calmly to Patrik, 'All right. I'll go with you.'

Stunned, Charlotte stood there, unsure of whether to stay or go with them. At last her indecision settled the matter. She watched as the officers and her mother vanished down the corridor.

HINSEBERG 1962

It was the only visit to Agnes she intended to make. She no longer thought of her as Mother. Only as Agnes.

Mary had just turned eighteen, and she had left her last foster family without looking back. She didn't miss them, and they didn't miss her.

Over the years the letters had arrived frequently. Thick letters that smelled of Agnes. She hadn't opened a single one. But she hadn't thrown them out either. They lay in a trunk waiting to be read one day.

That was also the first thing Agnes asked her. 'Darling, did you read my letters?'

Mary looked at Agnes without answering. She hadn't seen her in four years, and she needed to learn her facial features again before she could say anything.

It surprised her how little the time in prison seemed to have affected Agnes. She couldn't do anything about the clothing, so the elegant dresses and suits were only a memory, but otherwise she seemed to have taken care of herself and her appearance with the same ardour as before. Her hair was newly coiffed, now in a beehive that was the latest style. Her eyeliner was also fashionably thick, and her nails were just as long as Mary remembered them. Now Agnes drummed them impatiently as she waited for an answer.

It took another moment before Mary spoke. 'No, I haven't read them. And don't call me "darling",' she said, then waited with curiosity for the reply. She was no longer afraid of the woman facing her. The monster inside her had gradually devoured that fear as the hatred had grown. With so much hatred there was no room for fear.