ERNE MIKSON GLANCES at himself in the men’s room mirror and straightens his tie. The collar of his dress shirt is pressing against his tender lymph nodes, but he’s just going to have to deal with the discomfort. The pale blue dress shirt used to fit better; it’s one of three shirts Erne ordered from a tailor. And aside from a few pairs of trousers, they’re the only articles of clothing he regularly takes to the cleaners. Beautiful, expensive shirts that should have stood up better to the ravages of time. He intentionally leaves the frayed cuffs, which once bore an E. M. embroidered in dark blue thread, hidden under the sleeves of his brown blazer.
Erne thrusts the door open and nearly collides with Mikael. “Micke?”
“Great. I found you.”
“I didn’t know I was lost.”
“Yusuf called a little while ago and said that a tall, thin man had been asking Koponen strange questions last night at Savonlinna Hall.”
“Where did this information come from?”
“A guy named Pave Koskinen. He was the event’s moderator. The Eastern Finland PD started looking for this mystery man, but no one recognized him,” Mikael concludes with an enigmatic smile.
“But?”
“There’s a security camera with recording capabilities outside the building.”
“And does this man appear in the footage?” Erne swallows, but the lump in his throat doesn’t disappear.
Mikael nods. “We can even see the car he gets into. And the license plate.”
“Holy hell.”
“Of course, it’s a little early to celebrate. As far as we know, all the guy did was ask a few tough questions and—”
“Shut up, Micke. Who is the car registered to?”
“Torsten Karlstedt, lives in Espoo.” Mikael clicks his tongue against his palate and hands Erne a still-warm printout. It’s a photocopy of Karlstedt’s passport. But the man in the photograph isn’t thin, bald, or in any way odd-looking.
“It’s not the right guy.”
“No. But maybe Karlstedt was driving. Because the camera recording shows the bald guy climbing into the backseat of Karlstedt’s car.”
“So the car was waiting for him?”
“For twelve minutes.”
“Goddamn it. This could be a breakthrough. Did you call Jessica?”
“I tried. She’s on her way to the hospital with Yusuf.”
“OK. Tell Rasse to find out everything he can on Torsten Karlstedt. Make sure he has all the help he needs.”
“Should we bring him in for questioning?”
“Not yet. Let’s do a little digging first. We don’t have anything that actually ties him to the crimes. Just the opposite. When it comes to Maria Koponen’s murder, he has the best alibi one could hope for. But have someone find out where he is. Under no circumstances can we let him escape.”