The Sandman

66

Saga takes Nathan Pollock’s comprehensive character profile into a pink bedroom with pictures of Bella Thorne and Zendaya on the walls. Fifteen minutes later she returns to the kitchen. She walks slowly, and stops in the middle of the floor. The shadows of her long eyelashes dance on her cheeks. The men fall silent and turn their heads to look at the slender figure with the shaved head.

‘My name is Natalie Andersson, and I’ve got a schizophrenic personality disorder, which makes me a bit introverted,’ she says, sitting down on a chair. ‘But I’ve also had recurrent psychotic episodes, with some extremely violent outbursts. That’s why I’ve been prescribed Trilafon. I’m OK at the moment with eight milligrams, three times a day. The pills are small and white... and they make my breasts so sore I can’t sleep on my front. I also take Cipramil, thirty milligrams... or Seroxat, twenty milligrams.’

While she’s been speaking she has secretly pulled the tiny microphone out of the lining of her trousers.

‘When I was really bad I used to get injected with Risperdal... and Oxascand for the side effects...’

Under cover of the tabletop she removes the protective plastic from the glue and sticks the microphone under the table.

‘Before Karsudden and the verdict from Uppsala District Court, I escaped from a non-secure ward at Bålsta psychiatric unit and killed a man in the playground behind Gredelby School in Knivsta, then, ten minutes later, a man in the drive of his house in Daggvägen...’

The little microphone comes loose from the table and falls to the floor.

‘After I was arrested I was put in the acute psychiatric unit of the University Hospital in Uppsala, I was given twenty milligrams of Stesolid and one hundred milligrams of cisordinol injected into my backside, I was kept strapped up for eleven hours and then I was given a solution of Heminevrin... it was really cold... and I got all bunged up and had a really bad headache.’

Nathan Pollock claps his hands. Joona bends down and picks the microphone up from the floor.

He smiles as he holds it out to her. ‘The glue needs four seconds to firm up.’

Saga takes the microphone and looks at it as she turns it over in her hand.

‘Are we agreed about this identity?’ Verner asks. ‘In seven minutes I’ve got to enter it on the National Judiciary Administration database.’

‘I think it sounds good,’ Pollock says. ‘But this evening you need to memorise the rules at Bålsta, and learn the name and physical characteristics of the staff and other patients.’

Verner nods in agreement to Pollock, then stands up. In a deep voice he declares that an infiltrator needs to know every detail about their background off by heart in order not to be uncovered.

‘You have to become one with your new identity, so that you don’t have to think before reeling off phone numbers and imaginary family members, birthdays, past addresses, dead pets, ID numbers, schools, teachers, workplaces, colleagues, their personal habits, and—’

‘I’m not sure that’s the right line to take,’ Joona interrupts.

Verner falls silent with his mouth open and turns to look at Joona. Carlos nervously sweeps up some crumbs on the table with his hand. Nathan Pollock leans back and smiles expectantly.

‘I can learn all that,’ Saga says.

Joona nods calmly and looks her in the eye. His eyes are dark as lead now.

‘Seeing as Samuel Mendel is no longer alive,’ Joona says, ‘I can say that he had remarkable knowledge of long-term infiltration techniques... serious undercover work.’

‘Samuel?’ Carlos says sceptically.

‘I can’t explain how, but he knew what he was talking about,’ Joona says.

‘Was he Mossad?’ Verner asks.

‘I can only say that... when he told me about his method, I realised he was right, and that’s why I’ve remembered what he said,’ Joona said.

‘We’re already aware of all the methods,’ Verner says, sounding stressed.

‘When you’re working undercover, you speak as little as possible and only in short sentences,’ Joona says.

‘Why short sentences?’

‘To sound authentic,’ Joona goes on, addressing Saga directly. ‘Never pretend to feel things, never pretend to be angry or happy, and always mean what you say.’

‘OK,’ Saga says warily.

‘And the most important thing,’ Joona continues. ‘Never say anything but the truth.’

‘The truth,’ Saga repeats.

‘We’ll make sure that you’ve got your diagnoses,’ Joona explains. ‘But you need to claim that you’re healthy.’

‘Because it’s true,’ Verner whispers.

‘You don’t even need to know about what crimes you committed – you need to claim that it’s all lies.’

‘Because that wouldn’t be a lie,’ Saga says.

‘Bloody hell,’ Verner says. ‘Bloody hell.’

Saga’s face flushes as she realises what Joona is saying. She gulps, then says slowly:

‘So if Jurek Walter asks me where I live, I just tell him that I live on Tavastgatan on Södermalm?’

‘That way you’ll remember your answer if he asks more than once.’

‘And if he asks about Stefan I tell the truth?’

‘That’s the only way you’re going to sound genuine, and remember what you’ve said.’

‘What if he asks what my job is?’ she laughs. ‘Shall I say I’m a superintendent with the Security Police?’

‘In a secure psychiatric unit, that would probably work.’ Joona grins. ‘But otherwise... if you’re asked a question that really would give you away, you can always ignore it... seeing as that would be a perfectly honest reaction – you don’t want to answer.’

Verner smiles as he scratches his head. The atmosphere in the room is suddenly buoyant.

‘I’m starting to believe in this now,’ Pollock says to Saga. ‘We’ll give you your psychological evaluations and criminal record, but you just answer any questions honestly.’

Saga gets up from the table and her face is quite calm as she says:

‘My name is Saga Bauer, and I’m perfectly healthy, and completely innocent.’