The killer's art

75

Unsuspecting, Johan picked up the phone. All he could hear at first was a hysterical person crying and screaming as she rattled off a string of words that didn’t make any sense. It took several seconds before he realized it was Emma and that she was shouting something about Elin. When Johan heard the name Elin coupled several times with the word ‘gone’, his blood turned ice cold.

‘Calm down. Tell me what happened?’

‘I… I was in the shower,’ she sobbed. ‘I had put Elin in her cot, and when I came out, she was gone, Johan. Gone.’

‘But have you looked everywhere? Maybe she somehow managed to crawl out.’

‘No!’ she shrieked. ‘No-o-o! She can’t crawl out on her own! Didn’t you hear what I said? She’s gone! Someone must have come in and taken her!’

She burst into such heart-rending sobs that Johan felt his nerves shatter. He could feel himself starting to cry. It couldn’t be true. It just couldn’t be.

Pia was sitting next to him and had heard every word that Emma said.

She cast a glance at the photo on the wall. The picture of Johan sitting in his car outside Erik Mattson’s flat was still hanging there.

Suddenly the threat felt very real.