When Joona Linna slams open the office door, Carlos Eliasson, head of CID, jumps and dumps too much fish food into the aquarium.
“Why is there no ground search?” Joona demands harshly. “There are two lives at stake and we don’t have any boats out looking?”
“The maritime police make their own decisions, as you well know,” Carlos replies coolly. “They’ve covered the area by helicopter and have decided that the two are either dead or they don’t want to be found … neither of which demands an all-out rush to search further.”
“They have something the killer wants to get his hands on and I actually believe—”
“It’s useless to guess, Joona. We don’t know what happened. Säpo happens to believe these two young people have gone underground and by now could be on a train to Amsterdam—”
“Cut it out,” Joona says forcefully. “You can’t listen to Säpo when—”
“It’s their case.”
“Why? Why is it their case? Björn Almskog has no criminal record at all unless it’s become a felony to disturb the peace! These accusations mean absolutely nothing! Nothing at all!”
“I was talking to Verner Zandén and he’s already told me that Fernandez has some connections to left-wing extremist groups.”
“That may be so, but I’m absolutely certain there’s more going on here. This murder is about something else entirely.”
“Of course! Of course you’re absolutely certain!” Carlos yells back.
“I can’t put my finger on it yet, but the killer I met in Penelope’s apartment was a real pro and not some kind of—”
“Säpo believes that Penelope and Björn were planning some kind of sabotage.”
“You’re telling me that Penelope is a terrorist?” Joona asks, incredulous. “Have you read what she’s written? She’s a complete pacifist.”
“Yesterday a member of the Brigade was caught by Säpo as he was making his way to Penelope’s apartment.”
“I have no idea what kind of organisation the Brigade is supposed to be.”
“It’s a militant movement on the left, loosely connected to the Anti fascist Faction and the Revolutionary Front, but it’s freewheeling. They’re close to the ideology of the Red Army Faction and want to be as operative as Mossad.”
“Though you know that’s not true,” Joona says.
“Maybe you don’t want it to be true, but so what?” Carlos says. “Meanwhile, we will search further for those two. We’re going to chart the currents and determine the direction the boat was drifting so we can start dragging the water or maybe send some divers down.”
“Well, good,” Joona mutters.
“All that’s left is to decide if or why they were killed, or else why they went into hiding.”
Joona opens the door to the hallway. He stops and turns towards Carlos again. “What happened to that man from the Brigade?”
“He was released,” Carlos answers.
“Did they find out why he was there?” Joona asks.
“He was just dropping by.”
“Dropping by.” Joona sighs. “That’s all Säpo found out?”
“You are not going to start investigating the Brigade,” Carlos says with new worry in his voice. “I hope you understand me?”
Joona leaves and pulls out his mobile as he strides down the hallway. Behind him, he can hear Carlos yelling “That’s an order!” and “Don’t tread on Säpo’s toes!” Joona keeps going. He finds Nathan Pollock’s number.
Nathan picks up.
“What do you know about the Brigade?” asks Joona as the lift doors open.
“Säpo has been trying to infiltrate and keep an eye on all the militant left-wing groups in Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö for the past few years. I don’t think the Brigade is all that dangerous, but Säpo seems to believe they have weapons and explosives. At any rate, most of their members have been to reform school and have been convicted of violent crimes.”
The lift is rushing down.
“From what I understand, Säpo hauled someone in for trying to enter Penelope Fernandez’s apartment. Someone with a direct connection to the Brigade.”
“His name is Daniel Marklund,” Nathan replies. “He belongs to the inner circle.”
“What do you know about him?”
“Not much,” Nathan answers. “He has a suspended sentence for vandalism and hacking.”
“Why Penelope’s place?”
The lift stops and the doors open.
“Don’t know. He had no weapon,” Nathan tells him. “Demanded a lawyer when we started asking questions. He answered nothing and was let go later the same day.”
“So we know nothing.”
“Nothing.”
“Where can I find him?” Joona asks.
“He has no home address. According to Säpo, he lives with other members of the inner circle at the Brigade’s main headquarters near Zinkensdamm.”