The Sandman

125

When Corinne was talking about the scientists who were sent to the test facility in Kazakhstan, Joona was suddenly reminded of his conversation with Susanne Hjälm in the police car. Just before her daughter started shouting from the ambulance, he had asked if Susanne could remember the address on Jurek’s letter.

She had said it was a PO box address, and was trying to remember the name when she said it wasn’t Russian.

Why had she said the name wasn’t Russian?

Joona shows his ID to the guard and explains who he wants to see. They walk through the women’s section of Kronoberg Prison together.

The well-built guard stops outside a thick metal door. Joona looks in through the window. Susanne Hjälm is sitting motionless, eyes closed. Her lips are moving, as if she is praying under her breath.

When the guard unlocks the door she starts and opens her eyes. She begins rocking her upper body when she sees Joona come in. Her broken arm has been fixed up, and the other is wrapped round her waist, as though she were trying to hug herself.

‘I need to talk to you about—’

‘Who’s going to protect my girls?’ she asks desperately.

‘They’re with their father now,’ Joona tells her, looking into her anguished eyes.

‘No, no... he doesn’t understand, he doesn’t know... no one knows, you have to do something, you can’t just leave them.’

‘Did you read the letter Jurek gave you?’ Joona asks.

‘Yes,’ she whispers. ‘I did.’

‘Was it addressed to a lawyer?’

She looks at him, and starts to breathe more calmly.

‘Yes.’

Joona sits down beside her on the bunk.

‘Why didn’t you post it?’ he asks quietly.

‘Because I didn’t want him to get out,’ she says, sounding distraught. ‘I didn’t want to give him the slightest chance. You could never understand, no one could.’

‘It was me who arrested him, but—’

‘Everyone hates me,’ she goes on without listening. ‘I hate myself, I couldn’t see anything, I didn’t mean to hurt that police officer, but you shouldn’t have been there, you shouldn’t have been trying to find me, you should—’

‘Do you remember the address on the letter?’ Joona interrupts.

‘I burned it, I thought it would end if I did, I don’t know what I thought.’

‘Did he want it sent to a law firm?’

Susanne Hjälm’s body is shaking violently, and her sweaty hair hits her forehead and cheeks.

‘When can I see my children?’ she wails. ‘I have to tell them I did everything for them, even if they never understand, even if they hate me—’

‘Rosenhane Legal Services?’

She looks at him, wild-eyed, as if she’d already forgotten he was there.

‘Yes, that was it,’ she slurs.

‘When I asked you before, you said the name wasn’t Russian,’ Joona says. ‘Why would it have been Russian?’

‘Because Jurek spoke Russian to me once...’

‘What did he say?’

‘I can’t bear it any more, I can’t bear it...’

‘Are you sure he was talking Russian?’

‘He said such terrible things...’