‘So you worked with Mats?’ Patrik leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and with his hands clasped.

‘Yes, I started here soon after Mats did, so it’s been almost four years now.’

‘Did the two of you spend any time together outside of work?’ asked Patrik.

Thomas shook his head. He had brown eyes and a calm manner. He answered without hesitation.

‘No, Matte was a very private person. I’ve no idea who his friends were, except for Leila’s nephew. Even they seem to have lost contact.’

Patrik sighed. It was the same thing everyone had said about Mats.

‘Were you aware of any problems he might have had? Either personal or on the job?’ interjected Gösta.

‘No, nothing like that,’ replied Thomas at once. ‘Matte was always just … Matte. Incredibly calm and stable. He never got upset. I would have noticed if anything was wrong.’ He met Patrik’s eye without blinking.

‘How did he handle the situations that you deal with here?’

‘All of us who work here end up being deeply affected by the lives that we come in contact with. At the same time, it’s important to keep our distance; otherwise we’d never be able to keep doing this kind of work. Matte handled it all extremely well. He was warm and compassionate without getting too involved.’

‘How did you end up working here? From what I understand, the Refuge is the only women’s crisis centre that employs men. And Leila said that both male employees had to go through a careful screening process,’ said Patrik.

‘Yes, Leila has taken a lot of shit because of me and Matte. Maybe you heard that Matte got the job through Leila’s nephew. My mother is one of her best friends, and I’ve known Leila since I was a kid. When I came back to Sweden after doing volunteer work in Tanzania, she asked me whether I would consider working here. I’ve never regretted my decision even for a second. But it’s a big responsibility. If I make any mistakes, it will just add more grist for the mill for those people who are opposed to men working at women’s crisis centres.’

‘Did Mats have more contact than usual with any particular client?’ Patrik studied Thomas’s face to see if he might be holding back, but his expression remained as calm as ever.

‘No, that’s strictly forbidden, especially because of what I just told you. We have to maintain a professional relationship with the women and their families. That’s rule number one.’

‘And Mats followed that rule?’ asked Gösta.

‘We all do,’ said Thomas, looking offended. ‘An organization like this depends on its good reputation. The slightest misstep could be disastrous. For example, the social services offices might stop working with us. And in the long run, that would hurt the very people that we’re trying to help. As I’ve been trying to explain, we men have an even greater responsibility.’ His tone was growing sharper.

‘These are questions that we have to ask,’ said Patrik, trying to smooth things over.

Thomas nodded.

‘I know. I’m sorry for sounding upset. It’s just so important not to have any shadows cast on our work, and I know that Leila is deeply worried about the effect all this might have on the organization. Sooner or later, someone is going to think that there’s no smoke without fire, and then everything could start to fall apart. She has risked so much to set up the Refuge, and to run it in her own way.’

‘We understand. At the same time, we have to ask some uncomfortable questions. For example, this one.’ Patrik paused and then went on. ‘Did you see any sign that Mats was either using or dealing drugs?’

‘Drugs?’ Thomas stared at him. ‘I read the papers this morning. We were outraged by the bullshit they wrote. It’s completely insane. The idea that Matte would be mixed up in that sort of thing is absurd.’

‘Have you come across IE?’ Patrik forced himself to go on, though it felt more and more as if he was picking at an open wound.

‘The Illegal Eagles, you mean? Yes, I’m sorry to say that I have come across them.’

‘We have a witness who says that it was members of that biker gang who put Mats in the hospital. And not a bunch of kids, as Mats claimed.’

‘You’re saying it was IE who beat him up?’

‘That’s what we’ve been told,’ said Gösta. ‘Have you ever had any dealings with them?’

Thomas shrugged. ‘We have offered help to some women connected with members of that gang. But we’ve never had more problems with them than with other idiotic boyfriends and husbands.’

‘Was Mats the contact person for any of those women?’

‘No, not as far as I’m aware. The assault must have been a case of unprovoked violence. He was probably just in the wrong place at the wrong time.’

‘That was his version of the incident too. The wrong place at the wrong time.’

Patrik could hear how sceptical he sounded. Thomas ought to realize that this type of criminal gang didn’t target people for no reason. Why was he trying to make out it was random?

‘Well, that’s all for now. Do you have a phone number where we can reach you if we have any other questions? Then we won’t have to keep running over here,’ said Patrik with a wry smile.

‘Of course.’ Thomas scrawled his phone number on a piece of paper and handed it to him. ‘Did you want to talk to Marie too?’

‘Yes, please.’

The two officers had a brief conversation as they waited. Gösta seemed to have accepted everything Thomas said as the truth and found him to be completely trustworthy. Patrik had his doubts. Thomas had certainly seemed honest and forthright, and he had answered all of their questions. Yet several times Patrik thought he detected some hesitation, although it was more a feeling that he had rather than anything he’d actually observed.

‘Hi.’ A young woman came into the break room and shook hands with them. Her palm felt slightly clammy and sweaty, and she had red patches on her neck. Unlike Thomas, she seemed very nervous.

‘How long have you worked here?’ Patrik began.

Marie was fidgeting with her skirt. She was pretty in a doll-like way. A small, turned-up nose, long blond hair that kept falling into her eyes, a heart-shaped face, and blue eyes. Patrik judged her to be about twenty-five, but he wasn’t sure. The older he got, the harder it was to estimate the age of people who were younger than him. Maybe that was a form of self-preservation, so that he could continue to picture himself as twenty-five.

‘I started here about a year ago.’ The red patches on her neck grew brighter, and Patrik noticed that every once in a while she swallowed hard.

‘Do you like the job?’ He wanted her to relax, to let down her defences. Gösta was leaning back in his chair, listening. He seemed to have decided to leave the interview to Patrik.

‘Yes, I love working here. It’s such important work. Of course, it’s tough too, but in an important way, if you know what I mean.’ She was stumbling over her words and seemed to be having trouble formulating her thoughts.

‘What did you think of Mats as a colleague?’

‘Matte was just so sweet. Everyone liked him – everyone on staff, and the women too. They felt safe with him.’

‘Did Mats ever get too involved with any of the women?’

‘No, no, that’s rule number one. Never get personally involved.’ Marie shook her head vigorously, making her blond hair fly.

Patrik cast a quick look at Gösta to see whether he too thought this seemed to be a sensitive topic for her. But Gösta’s face had suddenly gone rigid. Patrik took another look at him. What on earth was wrong?

‘Er … I need to … Could I have a word with you? In private?’ He reached out to tug on Patrik’s sleeve.

‘Of course. Should we …?’ He motioned towards the door, and Gösta nodded.

‘Would you excuse us for a moment?’ Patrik said. Marie looked relieved by this interruption in the conversation.

‘What’s wrong? We were just starting to get somewhere,’ snapped Patrik when they stepped out into the corridor.