“Well?”

“I have a mark. A mark on my head. I thought it was just a scar but Josefin says it looks like something.”

“Stay where you are, or there’ll be hell to pay,” said Halders.

Aneta was trying to interrogate a child, Bergenhem was trying to interrogate a child, Winter was trying to interrogate a missing child’s father. Halders and Ringmar were in a police car. The heavens had closed again, or opened up if you preferred: Rain was pelting down, whipped up by a northerly wind.

“This is also what I’d call a hell of a long piss break,” said Halders, indicating the rain being swept off the windshield by the wipers.

“Break?” said Ringmar.

“Ha ha.”

Ringmar took a piece of paper out of his inside pocket. Halders saw something that looked like a crude drawing, which is what it was: Natanael Carlström’s sketch of his farm’s symbol.

“Do you think it will be possible to detect a similarity?”

Ringmar shrugged. Halders looked at him, at the streets flashing past them, then at Ringmar again.

“How are you, Bertil?”

“Eh?”

“How are you feeling?”

Ringmar didn’t answer. He seemed to be perusing his notes, but when Halders looked more closely at the piece of paper he couldn’t see any notes.

“You give the impression of being extremely worried about something,” said Halders.

“Drive straight through the roundabout, don’t turn right,” said Ringmar. “It’s quicker that way.”

Halders concentrated on driving. He continued south after the roundabout. They could see the apartment buildings on top of the hill. Josefin Stenvång lived in one of them.

“Perhaps he’s been there the whole time,” said Ringmar.

“No,” said Halders. “The girl has also been uncontactable. You know that.”

“That’s only because we haven’t felt up to looking for her,” said Ringmar.

“ ‘Felt up to looking for her’?” said Halders. “I have.”

“I haven’t,” said Ringmar.

“For Christ’s sake, Bertil. What’s the matter?”

Ringmar put the piece of paper back in his inside pocket.

“Birgitta’s taken off,” he said.

“Taken off? What do you mean, taken off?”

“I don’t know,” said Ringmar. Did Fredrik know about Martin? he wondered. What did it matter? “I’ll have to prepare the Christmas ham myself.”

Halders gave a laugh.

“Sorry, Bertil.”

“No, it’s OK. I think it’s funny too. And I haven’t even bought it yet.”

“So you can relax,” said Halders. “All the good ones have gone. You have to order six months in advance.”

They drove into the rectangular-shaped parking lot. Ringmar unfastened his seat belt.

“Good, that means I can relax,” he said.

Aryan Kaite’s face was shadowed with fear, if that is possible in a face like his, Halders thought. There were scars on the back of his head from his wound. But why not? There were always scars after wounds. This one could be a brand or an owner’s mark, but it could also be part of the natural healing process, as far as Halders could see. Pia Fröberg had better take a look at it. The weapon might have come from Carlström’s farm, but it might not. Still, Kaite has been out there in godforsaken land. Maybe the old coot didn’t like darkies, and so he flew to Gothenburg on a broomstick and dived down from the sky and branded those bastards with his seal. That sounded logical enough, didn’t it? Even if we drop the broomstick part.

There is a connection between these frisky students, Halders had thought in the car on the way there. And the same thought occurred to him again.

Josefin Stenvång was sitting next to Kaite and looked guilty, even more guilty.

“It’s a crime to fail to appear for questioning,” said Halders without bothering to sugar his words.

Kaite said nothing.

“Why?” asked Ringmar. He was standing beside Halders, who was sitting down.

“I’m here now,” said Kaite. He looked up. “I called you, didn’t I?”

“Why?” asked Halders.

“Why what?”

“Why did you call? Why did you get in touch with us?”

“It was these marks, Josefin said that they-”

“Don’t give me that crap about it being because of some marks on the back of your head or on your ass,” said Halders. “Maybe you’re aware that we are busy right now with a case concerning a missing child and we don’t have the time to sit here listening to you feed us a load of shit.” He stood up. Josefin flinched, so did Kaite. “I want to know here and now why you took off.”

Kaite said nothing.

“OK,” said Halders. “You’re coming home with us.”

“Ho… home with you?”

“To jail,” said Halders. “So put on your gloves and your wool hat.” He headed for the door. “You’d better take a piss first, to be on the safe side.” He turned around and looked at the girl, who looked at Kaite. “You too, Miss. You’re coming too.”

She was the one who replied to the big question why. “He was scared,” she said.

“Josefin!”

Kaite started to stand up. Ringmar took a step forward. Stenvång looked at Halders. Halders saw that she had made up her mind. She looked at Kaite again.

“Are you going to tell them, or should I?” she said.

“I don’t want to finger anybody,” he said.

“You’re just being stupid,” she said. “You’re only making things worse for yourself.”

“It’s private,” said Kaite. “It’s got nothing to do with that.”

“Will one of you kindly tell us what this is all about?” said Halders. “If not, we’re going to the station.”

Kaite looked up, at something halfway between Halders and Ringmar.

“I was out there,” he said. “At… At Gustav’s place.”

“We know,” said Ringmar.

“W… what? You know?”

He looked genuinely surprised.

“We’ve been there,” said Ringmar. “We’ve spoken to Gustav’s father.”

Kaite still looked just as surprised. Why does he look like that? Ringmar thought. What’s so surprising about our going to see old man Smedsberg? Or could it be that we have been talking to Smedsberg and still don’t know? What don’t we know?

“He said that you and Gustav had been on the farm. And helped with the potato picking.”

Kaite nodded. His face was different now.

“Is that where you were when you disappeared?” asked Ringmar.

Kaite looked up. Yet another expression: How the hell could you think that?

“What does this have to do with Gustav?” asked Ringmar.

Kaite didn’t answer.

“Is he the one who threatened you?”

Kaite nodded.

“Have you felt threatened by Gustav Smedsberg?”

Kaite nodded again.

“I want to hear an answer,” said Ringmar.

“Yes,” said Kaite.

Ringmar could see relief in the boy’s face now. It was a reaction he’d often seen before. But his face revealed not only relief. There was something else as well. He couldn’t quite make out what it was. He recognized it, but he would have to think more about what it stood for.

“Is that why you’ve been hiding?”

“What?”

“Why have you been in hiding?”

“He was scared,” said Stenvång. “He already told you.”

“I’m asking Aryan,” said Ringmar calmly. Halders glared the girl into silence. “Why did you disappear for three days even though you knew we were looking for you, Aryan?”

“I was scared,” he said.

“Were you scared of Gustav?”

“Yes.”

“Why?” asked Ringmar.

“Something… Something happened out there,” said Kaite.

“Out there? Do you mean at Gustav’s place? At the farm?” Talk about leading questions, Ringmar thought.

Kaite nodded.

“What happened out there?” asked Ringmar. Here it comes, he thought. Now we’ll solve this business, or parts of it.

“He hit him,” said Kaite. “He hit him.”

“What do you mean? Who hit who?”

“Gustav’s dad. He hit Gustav,” said Kaite. “I saw it.”