by Viveca Sten
Herco tried to maintain a neutral expression but didn’t entirely succeed. He blinked, and Leila had a strong feeling that this information hadn’t come as a surprise.
You knew that Andreis Kovač had been over there, she thought. Does that mean you were there, too? “Was it you who threatened them?”
“No.” He shifted position yet again.
“Mina’s mother was so terrified that she had a heart attack.” Leila allowed her words to sink in. “She’s still in the ICU. Do you know what the sentence for unlawful aggressive and threatening behavior is?”
No response.
“Up to four years. If she survives. Otherwise we’re talking about causing the death of another person.”
Herco leaned back, eyes half closed.
“So where were you?”
“I was with my boss, Andreis Kovač. His brother, Emir, was there, too.”
Leila looked up; Herco had made a mistake. “You said you didn’t know each other. Now you’re referring to him as your boss. Interesting.”
“You must have misheard.” His jaws were working.
“I don’t think so.”
Herco wasn’t good at playing it cool. He was trying to adopt a poker face, but it didn’t come naturally. Leila let him sweat.
“Can your boss confirm your whereabouts?” she said after a while.
“Yes.”
“Maybe we should take the opportunity to ask him if he’s aware that it was you who called emergency services a week ago, when he almost killed his wife.” Leila tapped her pen on the table, emphasizing her words.
Herco’s eyes darted from side to side. “I didn’t make the call. I’ve already told you that. How many times do I have to repeat myself?”
“In that case you won’t mind if we mention it to your boss, just to be on the safe side,” Leila said innocently.
Herco went pale. He looked up at the ceiling as if he were hoping an alternative explanation might appear out of thin air. “Don’t do that,” he said eventually.
Leila sat back and waited. She had him now. He’d reacted exactly as she’d hoped. “What’s the problem?” she almost purred. “Talk to me, if you don’t want me to speak to Kovač.”
There was still a possibility that Herco might simply walk out, demand to have his lawyer present before he said another word. Or tell her to go to hell.
Instead he rested his forehead on one hand, the corners of his mouth drooping.
“That will just cause a whole lot of trouble,” he muttered. He was clearly losing heart, much to Leila’s satisfaction.
“What kind of trouble?”
“You don’t know Andreis. He’ll . . . misinterpret the situation.”
“In what way?”
“I can’t explain.”
“I’m guessing he’ll see it as a betrayal, a lack of loyalty,” Leila said, putting words into his mouth.
Silence.
“So what do I get from you if I don’t mention it to Kovač?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you made the call, so you must have seen what happened when Kovač assaulted his wife.”
“Sorry?”
“I want you to agree to testify, so that we can charge him with serious assault.”
Herco’s expression changed with lightning speed. “Are you fucking crazy?” he spat.
Leila tried to hide her surprise. “Surely it’s reasonable to expect you to do something for me, if I’m doing something for you?”
“You think I’d testify against my own brother?”
“He’s not your brother. You’re not related.”
Herco stared at her as if seeing her for the first time. His eyes traveled slowly down her body, returned to her face, and focused on the thick, dark braid, such a contrast to the blond hair of her fellow students at the police academy. “You’re not Swedish either. You know exactly what I mean.”
“Enough.”
Herco’s eyes were full of contempt. “Working for them doesn’t make you any more of a Swede,” he said. “Are you so stupid that you think it’ll change anything? They’ll never accept you—you’re just a dirty foreigner like the rest of us.”
Leila thought he was about to spit on the floor, but he changed his mind at the last minute. She’d been so sure that he was going to go along with her suggestion, but now something had shifted in the room. She had to take back control.
“You think you’re something special just because you’re wearing a police badge.” Herco snorted. “Who are you trying to fool?”
“You leave me no choice but to speak to Andreis Kovač,” Leila said. “Your decision.”
Before she had time to react, Herco lunged across the table and switched off the tape recorder. “Do that and I’ll kill you,” he said hoarsely.
CHAPTER 47
Ulrika Grönstedt felt more than happy once she’d summarized everything for Andreis Kovač. They were in the small conference room, the one with four upholstered chairs around a beautifully polished mahogany table. The view over Strandvägen reminded clients of the firm’s status.
Herman Wibom had been an irritation. She hadn’t met him before, but knew his type. He probably ran a private practice, possibly with one associate, and made a living from the cases allocated to him by the court.
Ulrika wasn’t interested in that kind of client. She’d always known that she was aiming higher, from the day she got her first post with a well-known criminal law firm after passing the bar. She’d been their first female associate, and the skeptical joint owners had called her sweetheart and placed bets among themselves on how soon she would give up.
None of them had won their bet.
“I threatened to file a police report and to apply for sole custody via social services,” she summarized. “That should show your wife that we mean business. I was very clear when I spoke to her counsel.”
Andreis Kovač seemed less than convinced about this new strategy. At close quarters Ulrika could see how bloodshot his eyes were—he’d been crying or partying all weekend.
She suspected the latter.
“She’s going to have to hand Lukas over to you,” she added, smoothing out a crease in her black woolen skirt. It was cut just above the knee, which was the most flattering length for her legs.
“I want Mina back, too.” His expression was unreadable. “I can’t take care of Lukas on my own.”
Maybe you should have thought of that before you beat the crap out of your wife. “Don’t worry. From what I’ve heard, Mina wouldn’t dream of giving up Lukas—she’ll be home. This is a neat and tidy solution to the whole situation. We avoid any further dispute, and we eliminate the risk of unpleasant testimony in court.”
Kovač still looked doubtful, but Ulrika gave him an encouraging smile. She couldn’t help feeling pleased that she’d found such a constructive way forward, removing a major problem.
“Your wife will be back soon,” she continued. “Herman Wibom will explain the situation very clearly to her. Trust me, he’ll do a good job.”
“Who?”
“Herman Wibom—he’s been appointed as Mina’s counsel by the court. I found out today.”
Kovač’s full lips narrowed until his mouth was no more than a thin line. And yet he was still just as attractive; it wasn’t fair. “Does he know where she’s hiding?”
“I’m sure he does, but that’s irrelevant right now. You need to focus on the upcoming trial.”
“Why?”
“Have you given any more thought to what we discussed last time we met? Whether anyone you know could have leaked information to the tax office?”
Kovač shook his head. “The guys are like my family, my brothers. None of them would betray me.”
“That information has come from somewhere,” Ulrika said. “Nora Linde couldn’t possibly have found out all that without help.” A nearby clock in a church tower struck five. “Let’s go over it one more time. Who has access to those details?”
Kovač fol
ded his arms. “My cousins, and my younger brother, of course. Emir knows more or less everything.”
“Anyone else?”
Kovač fiddled with his coffee cup as he thought. “Dino, my driver. He’s always with me, but we grew up together. He’s my right-hand man.”
“That’s it? You haven’t forgotten anyone?”
“No.”
“Are you absolutely sure that none of them has talked?”
“They’re my own flesh and blood. They would never betray me.”
“Are you related to Dino?” Kovač’s face darkened, but Ulrika didn’t care. He was paying her very well to protect his interests. It was better for her to ask the tricky questions now than to have them come up in court.
“We’ve known each other since we were kids. Dino would take a bullet for me.”
“OK, if you say so. In which case that just leaves Mina.”
“I’ve already told you—Mina has no idea about what I do.”
Kovač got to his feet and went over to the window. His broad shoulders certainly filled his expensive leather jacket.
“She wouldn’t dare,” he said over his shoulder. “She knows what would happen if she betrayed me.”
Ulrika was in no doubt about that. “All I can say is that someone talked. Someone who is very familiar with your business affairs. If you want to walk away without a conviction, then you need to find out who that person is.”
CHAPTER 48
Elin settled herself on Thomas’s lap with her favorite cuddly toy, a rabbit she’d had since she was a baby. A long, floppy ear tickled Thomas’s chin. The rabbit had been white to begin with. Its soft fur was much grayer these days, but it was essential if Elin was to get to sleep at night. It shuttled between Thomas and Pernilla on a weekly basis, just as Elin did.
“Don’t you think it’s bedtime?” Thomas murmured in her ear. The seven-thirty news had just begun.
She shook her head firmly. “I’m not tired.”
“Just a little while longer then. Promise me you’ll go to bed when the news is over.”
Elin made herself comfortable. Thomas felt his shoulders drop and his tense muscles relax as the warmth of his daughter’s body reached his. This might just be the best time of the day.
Sometimes he wished that Elin would never grow up, just like Pippi Longstocking, so that he would always have an eight-year-old who loved to sit on Daddy’s knee. He couldn’t get his head around the fact that she would be a difficult teenager in only five years.
A reporter was talking about the upcoming presidential election in the US. Thomas yawned. He’d had endless meetings and routine tasks to deal with all day, and yet he felt as if he’d achieved nothing.
He had no energy these days. The winter darkness had been more difficult than ever to deal with; the short hours of daylight had vanished as quickly as they’d come, and had never been enough.
“Why are you mad at Mommy?” Elin asked.
Thomas gave a start. The familiar feelings of guilt came flooding back. “That’s a funny question, sweetheart,” he said with a poor attempt at a laugh.
“You and Mommy are always arguing.”
“No, we’re not. I’m not mad at Mommy.”
“You sound mad when you talk to her.”
Thomas had wanted to keep Elin out of his disagreements with Pernilla. It was bad enough that their relationship had broken down; he didn’t want it to affect his daughter, too. But sometimes his jaws ached in the evenings with the sheer effort of pretending that everything was OK. “It’s just because I’m tired when I talk to her. Mommies and daddies get tired when they’ve been at work all day, and that means they can sound a bit mad even when they’re not.”
“Are you tired all the time?”
A child’s logic in one sentence. Thomas had to smile, although he wanted to cry at the same time. He gave Elin a hug. Her hair was freshly washed and still damp at the ends. “No, sweetheart.”
Elin turned her head away. He gently cupped her chin, brought her face around so that he could look into her eyes. They were as blue as Pernilla’s.
“Is that how it seems to you?”
“Mmm.”
He kissed her forehead. “Mommy and I love you very much, even if we don’t always agree about everything.”
Elin’s lips trembled. A tear rolled down her cheek, followed by another. Thomas gently wiped them away with his index finger.
“Don’t get upset, honey.”
“Is it my fault?” Elin mumbled.
Thomas could see the news anchor’s mouth moving, but he had no idea what she was talking about. Elin’s words echoed inside his head as she buried her face in her rabbit. “Whatever gave you that idea? Of course it’s not your fault.”
“You always fight when you talk about me.”
Thomas stroked her hair. “You must never, ever think that. None of this has anything to do with you. Mommy and Daddy love you. You’re the best thing we have.”
A sob shook Elin’s body. “I want Mommy to come back home! I want her to be here all the time!”
The news was over; the logo filled the screen, then the next program began.
That’s what I want, too.
He held his daughter close. She curled into his chest but didn’t stop crying. She was so precious to him, and it was his fault that she was sad. She was only eight years old, and he could no longer protect her.
“Time for bed,” he said firmly, turning to routine in the absence of a solution. “How about coming in with Daddy tonight? Would that make you feel better?”
Elin nodded, and he carried her into the bedroom. He settled both her and the rabbit on Pernilla’s side—or rather what used to be Pernilla’s side—and sat with her until she fell asleep and her breathing slowed. One last sob passed through her body, and she clutched the rabbit a little tighter.
Thomas stood up and crept out of the room, weighed down with guilt.
What should he say to Pernilla? He knew exactly how she’d react if he told her what Elin had said. She would accuse him of upsetting Elin, insist he was to blame for the fact that the child felt this way. If he hadn’t been so unreasonable, the three of them would still be together. He could already hear her hissing: What did I tell you?
He rarely drank alcohol during the week, but he went into the kitchen and took out a beer. He opened the bottle and took several swigs before putting it down on the counter and returning to the living room.
The television was still on—yet another idiotic reality show about people looking for love with complete strangers. How the hell could anyone bring themselves to do that kind of thing?
Pernilla thought it was his fault they’d separated. That he was the one who’d left her. But she’d let him down—he didn’t understand why she couldn’t see that.
CHAPTER 49
Dino parked in front of Andreis’s house and got out of the car. He opened the back door and took out the pizzas Andreis had ordered. Three boxes, which meant that Emir was there, too. That didn’t make him feel any better.
He’d hardly slept over the past forty-eight hours. The thought of Andreis finding out what he’d done had kept him awake until the small hours, and today’s interview had made things so much worse.
He knew that threatening a police officer was crazy, but that girl had left him no choice. If she contacted Andreis about the phone call, he was a dead man. And testifying against Andreis would be like signing his own death warrant. Whatever he did, he was in deep shit, and it was his own fault for meddling in something that had nothing to do with him. If only he’d driven away a few seconds earlier, before he saw Mina’s bloodied face at the window. Then this situation would never have arisen.
Someone waved to him from inside the house; was it Emir or Andreis, smiling broadly? For a second it was like being back in Nyköping, when he’d ring the Kovačs’ bell to collect his friend on the way into town to check out the girls on a Friday night.
Life had been simple then,
even if it was always Andreis who picked up the prettiest girl.
Dino tried the front door, but it was locked. He rang the bell and Emir appeared.
“Pizza delivery!” he shouted with a grin, then headed for the kitchen without bothering to say hi. Dino would have liked to punch him hard, but instead he followed him.
The kitchen looked worse than on Saturday. Crumbs on the floor crunched beneath his feet, and yet more dirty dishes were piled up by the sink. There was a terrible stench coming from one corner, as if no one had taken out the trash for quite some time.
Andreis was sitting at the table. His face was in shadow, his expression unreadable. He was holding a black pistol, slowly rotating it between his fingers.
Dino almost shit his pants.
He knows. The police have been in touch.
His brain worked feverishly. Should he try to explain himself before it was too late? Admit everything, then throw himself on the floor and beg for mercy? Would Andreis forgive him if Dino reminded him of what they’d been through together?
His hands were so sweaty that the boxes almost slipped from his grasp, but he couldn’t say a word. He felt as if something were stuck in his throat, and he tried to cough.
Andreis put down the pistol, but continued to stroke the black barrel with his fingertips. The light glinted ominously off the metal. Dino recognized the model—it was a Glock. He had learned how to handle guns a long time ago, and knew his stuff.
This was it. The pizzas had just been a ruse to get him here. He’d walked into the trap like a sacrificial lamb to the slaughter.
Andreis caressed the Glock; any second now he would pick it up and point it at Dino.
Dino was screaming inside, but kept his face expressionless. There had to be a way out of here . . . He glanced around the room. Emir was standing between him and the door. Would he be able to force his way past? No chance, Andreis would take him down before he got anywhere near.
Plus it was two against one.
His knife was in his back pocket as usual, but by the time he got it out to defend himself, it would be too late. Emir would regard it as a bonus if he got the chance to smash him over the head with something. Dino got ready to react.