‘What did you tell them?’ She leaned across the table.

‘As little as possible. I said we had a good working relationship, and that his laptop wasn’t here.’

‘Is this …’ She hesitated. ‘Is this going to affect us in any way?’

Anders shook his head and for the first time looked at his sister.

‘Not if we don’t let it. He was here last Friday. We talked for a while and resolved a few questions. When we were done, he left, and none of us has seen him since. That’s all they need to know.’

‘You make it sound so simple,’ said Vivianne. She felt apprehension well up inside her. Apprehension and questions that she didn’t dare ask.

‘It is simple.’ He spoke tersely, not letting his voice reveal any emotion. But Vivianne knew her brother all too well. She knew that in spite of the steady gaze of his blue eyes behind his glasses, he was worried. However much he tried not to show it.

‘Is this worth it?’ she asked at last.

He looked at her in surprise.

‘That’s what I tried to talk to you about the other day, but you refused to listen.’

‘I know.’ She raised her hand and wrapped a lock of blond hair around her index finger. ‘I don’t really have any doubts; I just wish that it was over so we could finally have some peace and quiet.’

‘Do you think we’ll ever have that? Maybe we’re so damaged that we’ll never find what we’re looking for.’

‘Don’t say that,’ she told him fiercely.

He had spoken the forbidden words that sometimes came to her in weak moments, the words that crept in when she was lying in bed in the dark, on the verge of sleep.

‘We’re not going to say or think such a thing,’ she repeated firmly. ‘We’ve drawn all the short straws in life, we’ve had to fight for everything, nothing has ever been free. We deserve this.’ She stood up so abruptly that her chair fell over backwards and landed on the floor with a bang. Leaving it there, she fled to the kitchen, needing to occupy her brain so it wouldn’t start dwelling on other matters. With shaking hands she began rifling through the refrigerator and pantry to make sure they had everything they needed for tomorrow’s pre-dedication events.

Mette, who lived in the next flat, had been nice enough to offer to look after the kids for a couple of hours. Madeleine didn’t have any specific plans; unlike most people, her life wasn’t filled with all the errands and chores that she so longed to make part of her days. She simply needed some time for herself.

She strolled along Strøget, Copenhagen’s pedestrian street, heading towards Kongens Nytorv. All the shops were brimming with enticing summertime wares. Clothes, swimsuits, sunhats, sandals, jewellery, and beach toys. Everything that normal people, with normal lives, could buy without realizing how fortunate they were. That didn’t mean she was ungrateful. On the contrary, she was extremely happy to find herself in a foreign city that was able to offer her something she hadn’t experienced in so many years. Safety. Usually knowing they were safe was enough, but occasionally, like today, she longed so desperately just to be like everyone else. She didn’t want to have luxuries or to buy lots of useless items that cluttered up the cupboards, but she would have liked to be able to afford little everyday things, to go into a shop and buy herself a swimsuit because she was going to take the children swimming on the weekend. Or to go to a toyshop and buy a Spiderman duvet cover for Kevin, because she thought he might sleep better if he shared his bed with his hero. Instead, she had to search her pockets for enough Danish kroner to catch the bus into town. There was nothing normal about that, but at least she was safe. Even though so far only her brain was certain of that – not her heart.

She went into the Illum department store and headed straight for the pastry shop with its wonderful aroma of baking and chocolate. She practically started drooling when she caught sight of the Wienerbrød with chocolate in the centre. She and her children weren’t starving, although the neighbours must have noticed what their situation was like, because sometimes they brought over dinner, with the excuse that they’d made too much food for their own families. She really couldn’t complain, but she would have loved to walk up to the counter, point at the Wienerbrød and say to the assistant: ‘Three of the ones with chocolate, please.’ Or even better: ‘Six pieces of Wienerbrød with chocolate, please.’ Then they could really gorge themselves, each of them greedily devouring two pastries and afterwards, feeling a bit stuffed, they would lick the chocolate off their fingers. That would be a real treat, especially for Vilda. She’d always been such a chocoholic. She even liked the chocolates filled with cherry liqueur that came in boxes of Aladdin sweets, the ones that everybody else refused to eat. Vilda would devour them with a delighted smile. He had always brought chocolates for Vilda and Kevin.

She pushed away these thoughts. She shouldn’t be thinking about him. If she did, the anxiety would get so bad that she wouldn’t be able to breathe. She hurried to the exit and continued on towards Nyhavn. As soon as she saw the water she could feel herself breathing easier. She fixed her gaze on the horizon as she passed the beautiful old harbour area, where the outdoor cafés were now filling with customers, and the proud owners of the boats lining the docks were busily sweeping and polishing their vessels. Across the water was Sweden and the city of Malmö. Boats left nearly every hour, but the trip could also be made by car or train across the bridge. Sweden was so close, and yet so far away. It was possible that they’d never go back. Her throat closed up at the thought. She’d been surprised by how much she missed her homeland. She hadn’t really gone very far, and Denmark was deceptively similar to Sweden. But there were so many things that were different, and her friends and family weren’t here. And there was no way of knowing whether she’d ever see them again.

She turned away from the water, hunched her shoulders, and slowly walked back to town. She was lost in her own thoughts when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Panic instantly overwhelmed her. Had they found her? Had he found her? With a scream she turned around, ready to hit, scratch, and bite – whatever it took. A man with an alarmed expression was looking at her.

‘I didn’t mean to startle you.’ The stout, elderly man was so taken aback by her reaction he looked as if he was going to have a heart attack. ‘You dropped your scarf, and you didn’t hear me when I called.’

‘Sorry, I’m really sorry,’ she stammered. Then she began to sob, which alarmed the man even more.

Without another word, she fled, running for the nearest bus, which she knew would take her home. She had to get back to her kids. She had to feel their arms around her neck and their warm bodies pressed against her own. That was the one thing that made her feel safe.

‘Torbjörn’s report is in,’ said Annika as soon as Patrik and Martin came in the door.

Patrik was so full that he could hardly breathe. He’d eaten way too much pasta for lunch at the Lilla Berith restaurant.

‘Where is it?’ he asked as he strode through the reception area and yanked open the door to the corridor.

‘On your desk,’ Annika told him.

He hurried towards his office, with Martin in tow.

‘Have a seat,’ Patrik said, pointing to the chair in front of his desk. He dropped on to his own chair and began reading the documents that Annika had left for him.

Martin looked as if he wanted to rip the pages from his colleague’s hands.

‘What does it say?’ he asked after a couple of minutes, but Patrik merely waved his hand dismissively and continued reading. After what felt like an unbearably long time, he put down the report, looking disappointed.