Linda, As in the Linda Murder

60

BÄckström’s ultimate superior, Lars Martin Johansson, hadn’t given a thought to looking at the time, even though it was already past three o’clock on Friday afternoon, and a nervous chief superintendent had been sitting outside with his secretary and sweating for the last half hour. He hadn’t even read the editorial in Svenska Dagbladet, since he had spent the past hour trying to get to grips with what Bäckström and his colleagues had actually been doing down in Växjö for the past month.

‘You can send him in now,’ Johansson said over the intercom, and whether it was because it was almost the weekend or for some other reason, it took no longer than ten seconds before the chief super-intendent was sitting in the visitor’s chair on the other side of his large desk.

‘I’ve read the files you gave me,’ Johansson said.

‘I’m listening, boss,’ the chief said.

‘I want someone in the finance office to take a look at them. I’ve indicated the main question marks in red,’ Johansson said, nodding towards the folder lying on the desk between them.

‘When do you want it done, boss?’

‘It’ll be fine if I can have it first thing Monday morning. It is the weekend, after all,’ Johansson said generously.

‘I’d better have a word with them at once. Before they disappear, I mean,’ the chief said nervously, starting to stand up.

‘One more thing,’ Johansson said. ‘I want to take a look at the investigation as well. If I’ve understood correctly, our colleagues in the CP group have copies of most of the files?’

‘And when do you want those, boss?’

‘Quarter of an hour will do fine,’ Johansson said.

‘I’m afraid they may already have finished for the day,’ the chief said, glancing nervously at the time.

‘I find that hard to imagine,’ Johansson said. ‘It isn’t even half past three yet.’

‘I’ll see to it that you get them in quarter of an hour, boss.’

‘Excellent,’ Johansson said. ‘You can give them to my secretary.’