Linda, As in the Linda Murder

70 Stockholm, Wednesday 20 August

The county police commissioner didn’t have to call the Head of National Crime, because on Wednesday morning Lars Martin Johansson called him.

‘I’ll be brief,’ Johansson said. ‘It’s about Bäckström. Unless you have any pressing need for him down there, I’m thinking of recalling him. I can send you some new people.’

‘Ah, I see,’ the commissioner said. ‘Naturally, I’m grateful for all the resources you can spare, but of course if you need Bäckström for more important duties I’d have to accept that.’

‘More important duties?’ Johansson snorted. ‘I’m thinking of recalling him so I can tear a strip off him, and once I’ve finished doing that I’m wondering if he actually ought to have any duties at all.’

‘If it’s that complaint you’re worried about, I think perhaps we shouldn’t be too quick to judge our dear Bäckström,’ the commissioner said, trying to keep his voice calm and steady.

‘I have no idea what you’re talking about,’ Johansson said. ‘What complaint?’

At that point the commissioner had no choice but to explain about the complaint against Detective Superintendent Evert Bäckström which had been reported to the police authority in Växjö two days before.

‘That sounds fairly remarkable, if you ask me,’ Johansson said five minutes later, as soon as his long-winded colleague had finally finished. ‘Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’ve received a complaint from the co-ordinator of the women’s helpline in Växjö, to the effect that Bäckström subjected a female journalist of her acquaintance to what, according to my version of the criminal law, sounds like sexual harassment. Which the female journalist, for reasons unknown, refuses to talk about, still less file a complaint against.’

‘Yes, that’s a fairly comprehensive summary,’ the commissioner agreed. ‘And then there’s the certified statement brought in yesterday by the person who filed the complaint.’

‘I’m getting to that,’ Johansson said. ‘After you contacted the alleged victim and she refused to make a complaint, the woman who filed the report came in with some sort of document signed by her and someone else, purportedly the notes of a conversation which this woman had with the aggrieved party. One simple question. Who is the second witness?’

‘He’s the co-ordinator of the men’s helpline here in town. His name’s Bengt Karlsson. The co-ordinator of the women’s helpline, the one who filed the complaint, is Moa Hjärtén, and—’

‘Okay, now I really don’t understand,’ Johansson interrupted. ‘I thought you said the aggrieved party had only spoken to Hjärtén. So what’s this Karlsson actually put his name to?’

‘Yes, it certainly is a little unclear.’

‘Not in my opinion,’ Johansson said. ‘In my book, this sounds like a completely fabricated certified statement. It’s not my place to give you advice, but if I were you I’d either try to make sense of this report, or write it off altogether before our dear Bäckström has time to cook something up with his friends in the union.’

‘Really?’

‘That man has the capacity to be quite astonishingly troublesome. You’d need a hundred dogmatic legal experts to match one Bäckström. Just so you’re aware of the sort of person we’re talking about here,’ Johansson said.

‘Obviously, I’m very grateful for your help,’ the commissioner said.

‘I’ll ask Bäckström’s boss to get in touch with the head of your preliminary investigation, so that they can sort out the practical details,’ Johansson said.

Bäckström’s immediate superior had no objections. The report which the finance office had copied him in on was unfortunately both troubling and very pointed. But he had of course been on holiday when it all happened.

‘I also heard through the grapevine that a complaint has been made against him, alleging that he exposed himself to a journalist,’ the chief superintendent said with a blush.

‘Yes, you get to hear a lot of strange things over the course of a lifetime,’ Johansson said.

‘When do you want him back, boss?’ the chief asked.

‘As soon as possible,’ Johansson said. ‘By Monday morning at the latest, because I’ve got a gap in my diary that I thought I might squeeze him into.’ To tear him off a strip or two.

‘Do you have any preference about who we should send down to replace him, boss?’

‘Anna Holt and that little blonde, whatever her name is, Lisa Mattei,’ Johansson said. ‘Admittedly, that’s better than they deserve down there, but it’s time to wave the flag and send the A-team out on to the ice.’

‘I’m afraid that might be a problem,’ the chief said nervously.

‘There are no problems,’ Johansson said. ‘In my world there are only challenges.’

‘Neither of them is working for me at the moment,’ the chief explained. ‘Anna Holt is acting superintendent of the national coordination office, and Mattei is on secondment to the analysis group to cover their holidays.’

‘So much the better,’ Johansson said. ‘They could probably do with a bit of fresh air. Just get it sorted. Quick as you like. Oh, and one more thing, which you might like to think about if you want to carry on working for me here.’

‘How do you mean, boss?’

‘I never express wishes when I’m on duty,’ Johansson said. ‘I gave you an order. That’s all there is to it.’

An hour later the chief superintendent had returned to his boss to say that everything had been done, and for some reason he had remained standing in front of Johansson’s desk as he spoke.

‘According to orders,’ the chief superintendent concluded, swearing silently to himself that he hadn’t been brave enough to click his heels as he said it.

‘Thank you,’ Johansson said, giving him a friendly smile. ‘That’s excellent.’

‘Do you want to talk to them, boss? I can ask them to come in at once if you like,’ the chief superintendent said innocently.

‘Good,’ Johansson said. ‘Send them in at once.’

For reasons that remained unclear, Holt and Mattei weren’t happy when they came in to discuss their new roles with Johansson, even though he had asked his secretary to organize coffee, Danish pastries and biscuits. Holt just shook her head when he offered her the plate. She had her hands full with her new job, and wasn’t the least bit amused at having to clean up Bäckström’s mess. Mattei admitted that it all sounded very interesting and exciting, but pointed out that as she was on leave from 1 September in order to complete her studies at university, she might have certain practical problems. Not least considering that she was already on secondment.

‘There’s almost a fortnight until then. A perfectly ordinary murder investigation. You girls will solve it in a week,’ Johansson cajoled, taking another Danish pastry. ‘Besides, it might be nice for you to get out into the fresh air. Put your ear to the ground, put one thing together with something else and come up with two, work out that it fits, go and get the suspect that evening, when it’s just started raining and you have to turn up the collars on your coats when you get out of the car, and see him watching television, totally unsuspecting, already getting used to the idea that he might have got away with it. Then you ring on the door, you hear him heading towards it... We’re from the police. There’s something we’d like to talk to you about,’ Johansson said, with a deep sigh of longing for a bygone age.

‘That’s all very well, Lars, but this really isn’t about us, is it?’ Holt said.

‘So what is it about?’ Johansson said warily.

‘Really you’d like to be able to go yourself,’ Holt said, as if she was talking to a restless child. ‘But seeing as you can’t go, you have to send us instead.’

‘You’re a proper little psychologist, aren’t you, Anna?’ Johansson said with a crooked smile. ‘I may not have been expecting a standing ovation, but a discreet nod of approval might not have gone amiss.’

‘Of course,’ Holt said. ‘Make the best of things, don’t complicate things unnecessarily, and never trust coincidence. Lars Martin Johansson’s three golden rules for every murder detective. Lisa and I are practically down in Växjö already.’

‘Precisely,’ Johansson said. ‘Although in this particular instance, and bearing in mind that it’s Bäckström you’re cleaning up after, there’s a fourth rule that you should also be aware of.’

‘I’m listening, boss,’ Lisa Mattei said, looking like the class swot who doesn’t even have to put her hand up any more.

‘Beware the demon drink, girls. A piece of advice from an old man who’s been around the block a few times,’ Johansson said, grabbing another biscuit from the well-stocked plate.