“But that was very good, wasn’t it?” said Waltin, nodding and leaning back. Lying with all the practice that the profession had given them, he thought, and now it was crucial to just be rid of them before the natural stupidity that qualified them for this same profession also made a mess of things for him.
“I have a special assignment for you gentlemen,” said Waltin. “A very urgent one, abroad, might take a week, maybe two. The thing is that the ministry of foreign affairs needs help with a little discreet surveillance of a somewhat mixed delegation of politicians, people from the foreign ministry and the military, and I have to have a couple of lads that I can really rely on. Through thick and thin,” he added gravely.
“Yes,” said Göransson. “We’re listening, chief.” The thought of a fat foreign per diem had put life into his tired eyes.
“Abroad,” said Martinsson, who was younger, had a harder time concealing his enthusiasm, and was already packing his bathing trunks.
“We can be at Arlanda in two hours, packed and ready,” Göransson agreed obligingly.
“That won’t be necessary,” said Waltin dryly. “It’s good enough if you can be at the central train station before six o’clock.” For further transport to a place where there aren’t any hamburgers and where it’s guaranteed that you’ll be freezing your asses off, thought Waltin, but he didn’t say that.
“Train,” Göransson burst out, and the light in his eyes had gone out.
“Train,” echoed Martinsson, who seemed so taken aback that he forgot to check his reaction in Waltin’s mirror.
“I think it’s going to be a very interesting journey,” said Waltin, nodding with conviction, “and you’ll receive further information accordingly and on a need-to-know basis.”
It will be a fantastic journey, he thought. In the middle of a bitterly cold winter on one of those fine old Russian trains and with all the service that has made their hosts famous among their Western visitors.
“He who makes a journey always has something to tell,” said Waltin, smiling amiably. “In addition the ministry of foreign affairs has arranged passports for you, so you don’t need to mess around with visas,” he added consolingly.
In the afternoon Waltin made quiet inquiries about how it was going with the Stockholm Police Department’s investigation of Krassner’s death. According to his contact, who had spoken with the head of the after-hours squad, the investigation was already done. A few practical details remained that the local precinct at Östermalm would take care of.
“Seems to be a rather typical suicide. However it is that you can jump from the sixteenth floor-but he was after all some sort of student, so he was high, of course,” Waltin’s contact summarized.
That was nice to hear, I guess, Waltin thought sympathetically and decided that the rolls of film that Hedberg had taken could wait until after the weekend. So could contact with Berg, who was out of the country meeting important people and was only to be disturbed if something happened that was even more important, and in Waltin’s ledger Krassner didn’t merit an entry. Finally, thought Waltin, who had more essential things on the program.
Assistant Detective Jeanette Eriksson had done her part as well. Daniel had called her right before lunch and as usual he was friendly and obliging, and this time also worried about how she was doing. Jeanette had said the things she was expected to say. That it felt sad despite the fact that she didn’t know Krassner and had mostly perceived him as a very strange character who hadn’t even been particularly nice. Whatever the case may be, it was still a strange feeling since she’d said hello to him as recently as a few days ago. One thing was important; she absolutely did not want anything to do with the police. True, she hadn’t said anything to Daniel earlier, but her previous experiences with the Swedish police were far from good. Despite the fact that she’d never done anything criminal.
“They treat all people like criminals, even if you’re completely innocent,” said Assistant Detective Eriksson.
According to Daniel she had no reason to be concerned. She could trust him unconditionally. He would really not drag her into anything if the police were to come around again. This Krassner was truly a strange person and Daniel himself was certain that he’d also been a racist. And as far as the Swedish police were concerned, he had unfortunately been struck by the fact that they were obviously like the South African police, and he couldn’t even bear to go into his experiences regarding the latter.
“It’s a particular kind of people who become police officers,” Daniel maintained. “It doesn’t seem to matter where they come from, and I’ve never met one who seemed normal and humane.”
Because Jeanette would as usual be meeting her sick mother over the weekend, one of her early lies and the emergency exit she made use of most often, they decided that they would talk after the weekend, perhaps meet in town and have lunch together.
Okay then, thought Assistant Detective Jeanette Eriksson as she put down the receiver. And now she could finally start planning her evening.
Okay then, thought Waltin as he strode into his apartment on Norr Mälarstrand. High time to plan the evening.
[MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25]
When Waltin came to work on Monday morning he felt sharp in mind, strong in body, and with a pleasurable weight in his crotch. He had spent the last thirty-six hours with Jeanette Eriksson, and they hadn’t even set foot outside the door. With the exception of a few brief meals and a few hours’ sleep, he had also been for the most part screwing her the entire time, and everything had gone according to plan. Women were naturally submissive. Waltin had known that for a long time from his own extensive personal experience, but with many women-and strangely enough this often concerned those who were a little younger-there might still be problems stemming from the rampant delusions spread by certain media and groups on the left fringe. Something that in its turn might create mental blockages that prevented them from full enjoyment in what was for a woman the obvious way.
Little Jeanette had, however, responded in a natural way to the signals he’d given her, although it was still mostly a matter of intellectual influence, and her physical qualifications were extraordinary. The slender boyish body, her closed eyes when he was working his way through her erogenous zones, the pathetic little attempts to hold back her reactions before she achieved orgasm. The only thing that bothered him now was the black triangle of tightly curled hair that covered her little womb, but that was a detail he looked forward to being able to attend to the coming weekend.
High time to tighten the thumbscrews, thought Waltin contentedly, and just then his red telephone rang.
Berg had spent the weekend together with some colleagues at Constitutional Protection. The meeting had taken place at an exceedingly comfortable spa hotel twenty or thirty miles outside Wiesbaden, and for once he’d had the opportunity to bring his wife along. The Germans had arranged a charming ladies’ program so that he and his colleagues had been able to work completely undisturbed while their wives visited various attractions along the Rhine, and in the evenings they had taken their meals together. Exceedingly nice parties where the host had escorted his wife to the table for the somewhat simpler and more informal welcome buffet on Friday evening, and Berg himself had been given the place of honor at the gala dinner on Saturday.
You can really count on the Germans, thought Berg. They were a people who were careful about both content and form in their relationships with their fellow human beings.
…
On Sunday evening he and his wife had taken the flight to Copenhagen. His wife had continued with a connecting flight to Stockholm because she had classes at the school where she worked on Monday morning. He himself had taken the hydrofoil to Malmö, checked in at the Savoy, eaten a simple dinner at the hotel, and gone to bed early.