Page 123 of The Living and the Dead

“Nothing, just, abig deal—yeah, to put it mildly. I’m sorry, I don’t mean any offense. It’s just so crazy.”

The story Siri had shared was all she had, she said, as though in sharing it she had repaid a debt that had weighed on her for a very long time. Maybe that was so. Still, he had insisted on bringing her up here, like the tipster she now was, so that her story could be documented.

“Hemightbe alive,” Siri said. “You don’t know any more than that.”

“For now, though,” Vidar said softly, “we three are the only ones who are aware that this might be the case. We should probably keep it that way, for the time being. Markus is a good boss, but this might cause him a lot of headaches. What’s more, there are family members to consider. Hampus Olsson’s mother is still alive, for instance.”

Siri picked up a recent photograph of the murder weapon and studied the forensic report. Vidar wondered what she was thinking. She hadn’t been this close to solving the puzzle for a long time—or maybe ever.

Also on the desk were copied pages from Filip Söderström’s planner. Vidar considered them for the umpteenth time that day.Funeral SC 12:00 Work 1:30.The number one from June. What had he said about that, Adrian? First day sober. Had Filip started drinking again? Yes, maybe. But if so, shouldn’t it have been noticeable?

Adrian sat up straight.

“What do we do? We can’t label him a person of interest. A dead man. All hell would break loose.”

Vidar stood up and went to the whiteboard.

“Yeah…” he mused. “So what do we do?”

“We might not have much time. If he only showed up because of his father’s funeral, he’ll drop off the radar again soon.”

Vidar studied the board.

“But why did he kill Filip?”

“He probably needed to dispose of a witness,” Adrian said.

“What?”

“Filip discovers Killian, likely around the time of the funeral. Now Filip knows he’s alive, that he’s back. The only solution is to silence him.”

“Hmm.” Vidar blinked. “Maybe. Nothing from Rasmusgården yet?”

“The material is on its way here by car. I got one of the summer interns to go pick it up.”

“Excellent.” Vidar ran a hand over his stubble. More to himself than to anyone else, he said, “And where is he?” He placed a finger on the map. “Here, more or less, this is where he kills Filip.”

“Hypothesis,” Siri reminded him, but Vidar ignored her.

“After that, if we assume Killian returns the spade, that puts him here, at Filip’s house, not far from the scene. But then what?”

“He could be anywhere right now,” Adrian said. “In forty-eight hours, you could walk all the way to Jönköping. If he got hold of a bicycle, he could be in Gävle for all we know.”

“I don’t think he’ll go that far now,” Vidar said. “But we need more information.”

“Who should we ask, though?”

Vidar stared at the board, at the names. “I have a suggestion.”

—

“Siri?” Adrian hissed. He had grabbed Vidar’s arm to hold him back from leaving the room. “You’re takingher? She’s a civilian.”

Vidar stared at Adrian’s clasping hand in surprise.

“I don’t really see any other option. You stay here and wait for the material from Rasmusgården in the meantime.”

Adrian’s eyes grew wide. He let go of Vidar. “Haven’t you noticed what a state she’s in? Depression is practically oozing out of her. You’re looking at this as a chance for her to make peace with some shit from her past. That’s nice, but it’s not okay. That’s not our job.”