Page 96 of The Sleepwalker

‘In your own words, could you tell us what you were planning to do at Hotell Norrort in Vallentuna yesterday evening?’

‘You lured me into a trap,’ Jenny says, staring down at the table.

‘But what were you planning to do there?’ Joona presses her.

‘Nothing. Meet a guy.’

‘Are you a sex worker?’

‘No.’

‘But you pose as one?’

‘That’s not against the law.’

‘But robbery and assault are.’

‘Buying sex is illegal,’ she says, meeting his eye for the firsttime.

‘You frequently change your alias,’ Joona continues. ‘But always use the same picture, of a young woman – yourself, when you were around twenty.’

‘Twenty-one,’ she replies, unable to hide her surprise.

‘What happened to you then?’

Jenny looks down again. She takes a deep breath, as though she is about to start talking, but doesn’t manage a single word. Tears roll down her cheeks and drip to her lap. She dries her eyes, lifts her head and tries again.

‘When I was seventeen, I met a man through a classified ad,’ she begins. ‘He was Swedish, but he lived in Brooklyn. He’d just started an economics degree there, and he was smart and funny and loving .?.?. He sent a few sexy pictures, so I sent some back. It was all so exciting – it felt like things werefinallyhappening for me – but when I started planning a trip to New York to see him, something changed. I remember wondering whether he was already married or something .?.?. Anyway, by the time I realised he’d been grooming me, it was too late. I was embarrassed, scared, and I tried to break things off with him, but he threatened to share the pictures I’d sent with my school, said he’d send them to my family if I didn’t give him more. That went on and on, and he kept asking for more – and worse. I started thinking about killing myself, but I couldn’t do it because I wanted to live. Not that I would’ve felt that way if I’d known what was going to happen next .?.?.’

She pauses for a moment and dries her cheeks.

Stina passes her a tissue, and she mumbles a thank you, blows her nose and continues.

‘He forced me to go over to his place, and it turned out he wasn’t in New York after all. He lived half an hour away, in Nacka .?.?. And he was a disgusting old man, ugly and aggressive. He made me have sex with him, and he filmed it .?.?. and thiswent on until I was almost nineteen .?.?. That’s when he forced me into prostitution. I would’ve topped myself right there and then, just to get out of it, but he showed me the messages he’d been sending my little sister and said he’d do the same to her if I refused .?.?. so I met a bunch of other men in a small flat by Gullmarsplan. They were literally queuing to get in, and he said they could do whatever they wanted with me as long as he got paid .?.?. After three years of that, he got caught up in a police raid. They found out he’d been grooming a whole load of girls, that he’d forced four of us to become prostitutes, and he was sent down – for two measly months. I wanted ten million in compensation, but I only got eleven thousand .?.?. so now I’m clawing the rest of it back myself.’

As she stops talking, she starts picking at a scratch on the table.

‘So it’s all about money?’ Joona asks.

‘Yes.’

‘And a hatred of men buying sex?’

‘What do you think?’

‘I think your hatred overwhelms you from time to time, and you use an axe rather than an iron rod and a knife.’

‘An axe?’ she repeats, fixing her absent eyes on him.

‘You’re suspected of murder, and you’re going to be remanded in custody,’ Stina Linton explains.

‘Murder?’ Jenny smiles uncomfortably.

‘Your tyres match tracks found at Bredäng Campsite on 26 November .?.?. and we also have a blonde hair from the scene of the murder.’

‘But I haven’t murdered anyone, as far as I know.’

‘We’ll be handing the case over to the prosecutor now, and your custody hearing will start tomorrow at the latest.’