The Nightmare

29

Saga Bauer presses thirteen bullets into the magazine and then shoves it into her large black Glock 21. Säpo is about to storm the Brigade’s headquarters.

Saga is in a minivan parked at Hornsgatan, just outside the Folk Opera. She’s with three colleagues; all are dressed in civilian clothes. In fifteen minutes they’ll head over to Nagham Fast Food and wait for the SWAT team.

For the past month, rumors have come back to Säpo that left-wing extremists are on the move. Perhaps it’s more than rumors, but Säpo’s best strategists have now decided many of these groups have joined forces to plan something really big, perhaps some explosive sabotage. Given the recent theft of explosives from a military facility on Vaxholm Island, they believe it’s a real possibility.

The strategists have also connected the murder of Viola Fernandez and the attempt to blow up Penelope Fernandez’s apartment to this planned attack.

Säpo believes the Brigade to be the most militant and violent of the left-wing fringe groups. Daniel Marklund belongs to their innermost circle, and Säpo’s logic follows that since he tried to break into Penelope Fernandez’s apartment, he might be the assailant who attacked Detective Inspector Joona Linna and his technician.

Göran Stone is smiling as he puts on his heavy protective vest.

“Let’s go get those fucking cowards!”

Anders Westlund laughs but can’t hide his nervousness. He says, “Shit, I hope they resist. I really want to take out one of those communists!”

Saga Bauer is replaying the memory of Daniel Marklund being caught outside Penelope Fernandez’s apartment. Verner Zandén had assigned Göran Stone to the interrogation. Stone had come on strong to startle something out of Marklund, but that strategy had backfired. Marklund had requested legal representation and then clammed up.

The car door opens and Roland Eriksson slides in carrying a bag of marshmallow banana candy and a can of Coca-Cola.

“Damn, I’m jittery. I’ll shoot the second I see a gun,” Roland says, and they can hear the stress in his voice. “Things can go so fast and the only chance you have is to shoot them first-”

“We will follow my plan,” Göran Stone says firmly. “But if shooting breaks out, you don’t have to aim for the legs.”

“Shove it right into their mouths,” Roland yells.

“Take it easy,” Göran says.

“My brother’s face-”

“We know all about it, Roland, shut the fuck up,” Anders says. He’s also very nervous.

“A firebomb right to the face!” Roland repeats in a loud voice. “Eleven operations later and he can-”

“Can you handle this?” Göran asks sharply.

“Sure, what the fuck!”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m fine,” Roland answers quickly. He looks out of the window and scrapes his thumbnail sharply over the lid of his tin of snuff.

Saga Bauer opens the door slightly to let some air into the van. She accepts this is the right time for a raid and there’s no reason to wait. Even so, she still wants to understand the connection to Penelope Fernandez. What was her role in the Brigade? And why was her sister killed? Too much was still not clear. She desperately wants to talk with Daniel Marklund again, look him right in the eye and ask a few direct questions. She’d tried to bring this up with her boss. She wants answers before they go in on this raid. Especially if there is a question about who will be alive afterward.

This is still my investigation! she thinks angrily as she climbs out of the van into the suffocating heat of the sidewalk.

“The SWAT team will go in here and here.” Göran Stone stabs his finger on an architectural drawing of the building. “We’re here and maybe we’ll have to get in through this theater-”

“Where the hell did Saga Bauer go?” Roland asks.

“Maybe she got her period and needed a Tampax!” Anders says with a smirk.