ELLEN

9.50 A.M.

It took a few seconds before she understood what was happening on the screen. ‘Turn it off!’ she yelled when she saw herself. And Didrik. In the water, by the shore at Örelo. The little bastards had filmed it. She closed her eyes, but the sound from the video penetrated into her head, and suddenly she saw strange images in front of her. ‘Turn it off, please. Can you just close that clip?’

Internet nervously fumbled with the phone as the act escalated and the sound filled the whole room.

She tore the phone out of his hands and turned it off.

‘Are you okay?’ he asked after a while.

Ellen rested her head in her hands and just wanted to sink through the floor and disappear forever.

Internet placed a hand on her shoulder. She shook it away. It was humiliating enough that he’d seen her like that.

‘How long is the clip?’

‘Long enough …’

‘Have you watched the whole thing?’ she asked, but didn’t want to know. ‘Where did you find it?’

‘It was posted in several different places. I’ve been keeping track of both you and Bea Bosängen, because a lot of hateful things have come in directed at both of you, starting with the murder of Liv Lind. I think I’ve removed most of it, and the police have also been involved, of course. We contacted them.’

‘Who’s “we”?’ Her stomach knotted up. ‘Who else has seen this?’

‘If you mean besides anyone who’s watched it online, then … Not that many.’ He understood what she meant. ‘Jimmy has been in charge, but we’ve kept it close so no one here at Four would see it.’

The muscles all over her body tensed, and it felt as if she were standing on a train track and the train was approaching. How would Jimmy have reacted when he saw the clip?

‘Not that it’s any of my business, but is that your boyfriend?’

‘No, quite right, it isn’t any of your business.’ Once again, she rested her head in her hands and just wanted to vanish from the surface of the earth.

‘I don’t know anything about it, and I don’t have the right to say anything, but …’

‘Don’t then.’

He was silent a little while, but then he continued anyway. ‘Is he nice to you? It looks like you aren’t really into it.’

Ellen closed her eyes.

‘Like I said, it’s none of my business, but … I think Jimmy is going to talk to you about it.’

‘Just be quiet, please. I was in on it. It’s like a game …’

‘It doesn’t look that fun.’

‘Look, I don’t know, we were drunk. Did I ask you for your opinion?’ She glared at him, but quickly softened when she saw the worry in his eyes. ‘Sorry. It’s not your fault. So Jimmy has seen the video?’

‘Yes, it was unavoidable. Jimmy and two girls in the security department. I thought he’d talked to you? He said he would and told me to review it with you.’

Ellen kicked at a chair. ‘Can I be alone for a moment?’

‘Definitely.’ He stood up quickly, as if she’d frightened him. Before he went out the door, she asked him to email her the link to the video.

‘Is that a good idea? Why would you want that?’

‘Didn’t you take it down everywhere?’

‘Yes, but we’ve saved it as evidence, and it may pop up again — those kids are creating new accounts all the time. It’s on a server. You need a log-in to access it.’

‘Why did they do this to me?’

He shrugged. ‘Little shits. It’s probably part of those games. Games can be dangerous.’

She stared ahead at the wall. ‘Can you turn off the light when you leave, please?’