Chapter 49
Munch was already waiting outside the hotel when Mia appeared. She got into the black Audi and tried to make herself wake up. The pill she had taken was still in her system, making her slow and lethargic. Munch didn’t look as if he had slept much either. He was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. The brown corduroy jacket with the leather patches on the elbows and a stained shirt. He had bags under his eyes and deep frown lines on his forehead. Suddenly, Mia felt a little sorry for him. He really needed company. A woman in his life. Someone who could take care of him, the way he always took care of everybody else.
‘What have we got?’ Mia said.
‘Isegran Fort.’
‘Where is that?’
‘Fredrikstad.’
Mia frowned. The two other girls had been found near Oslo. In the woods. The killer had changed MO again.
‘Who found them?’
‘A couple of students.’ Munch sighed. ‘I believe the area is fenced off, but they had crept in to make out or something. What do I know?’
‘Who have we got down there?’
‘The local police. Curry and Anette are on their way, they should arrive soon.’
‘And what do we know so far?’
‘Both girls were lying on the ground either side of a stake.’
‘A stake?’
Munch nodded.
‘What kind of stake?’
‘A wooden one. With a pig’s head on the top.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘What I said. The girls were lying on the grass either side of a wooden stake with a pig’s head on the top.’
‘A real pig’s head?’
Munch nodded again.
‘Jesus Christ.’ Mia let out a sigh.
‘What do you think it means?’
Munch turned on the heating and took the tunnel by Rådhusplassen to get out of the city centre.
‘A pig’s head on a stake?’
‘Yes?’
‘It’s hard to say,’ Mia replied.
The heating inside the car made her sleepy. She was in need of her morning coffee but didn’t want to ask Munch to stop.
‘It has to mean something?’
‘Lord of the Flies,’ Mia said quietly.
‘What?’
‘It’s from a book. Lord of the Flies. Some kids wash up on a desert island, no adults present. They think a monster lives there. They place a pig’s head on a spike as an offering.’
‘Christ Almighty.’ Munch sighed. ‘We’re dealing with a monster, is that it?’
‘Could be.’
‘There is a bag of Fisherman’s Friends in there,’ Munch said, pointing to the glove compartment.
‘And?’
‘You need one,’ Munch said as he turned on to Drammensveien.
Mia felt a tad of irritation, but it passed quickly. She opened the glove compartment and took out the bag of lozenges. Took two before stuffing the whole bag into the pocket of her leather jacket.
‘Why Fredrikstad of all places?’ Munch wondered out loud. ‘It makes no bloody sense. And it’s so public.’
‘We’re too slow on the uptake,’ Mia said, taking out her mobile.
‘What do you mean?’
‘The killer is telling us that we’re doing a bad job.’
‘Dear Lord.’ Munch sighed.
Mia found Gabriel Mørk in her list of contacts.
‘Gabriel speaking.’
‘Hi, it’s Mia. Are you at work?’
‘Yep,’ Gabriel sighed at the other end.
‘Tell me what you have on Isegran Fort in Fredrikstad.’
‘Now?’
‘Yes, Munch and I are on our way there. They’ve found the girls.’
‘I heard.’
There was silence at the other end. Mia could hear Gabriel type on his keyboard.
‘Have you found something?’
‘What am I looking for?’
‘Anything.’
‘Right, here we go,’ the young man said, strangling a yawn. ‘Isegran Fort. Fortification on a small island outside Fredrikstad. It divides the Glomma estuary into two. It was built at the end of the twelfth century by the Earl of Borgsyssel, whoever he was. A stone and wooden building. Destroyed in 1287 by some king or other. New fortress built in the sixteenth century. Peter Wessel Tordenskiold used the place as a base during the great Nordic War, whenever that was. The name Isegran means Ö the wise men seem to be in disagreement here, but it could be from the French île grand, the big island. Does any of this help?’
‘Not really,’ Mia said. ‘Is there anything else? Something contemporary? What is it used for today?’
‘Hang on.’
Mia wedged the mobile in between her ear and shoulder and took another Fisherman’s Friend. She could still feel the taste of alcohol at the back of her throat.
‘There’s not much here. Wedding photographs taken at Isegran Fort. It’s a popular destination for pensioners on a day out.’
‘Is that all?’
‘Yes. No, wait.’
There was silence again.
‘What have you got?’
‘I don’t know if this is useful, but a monument will be unveiled there in 2013. Not on the fort itself, but on the seaside promenade.’
‘What kind of monument?’
‘It’s called Munch’s Mothers. Bronze statues of Edvard Munch’s mother and aunt.’
‘Of course,’ Mia muttered to herself.
‘Was that any help?’
‘Absolutely, Gabriel, thank you so much.’
She was about to hang up, but Gabriel stopped her.
‘Is Munch there with you?’
‘Yes?’
‘What kind of mood is he in?’
‘So-so, why?’
‘Please could I speak to him?’
‘OK.’
Mia passed her mobile to Munch.
‘Yes, Munch speaking?’
Munch’s Mothers. She had been right after all.
‘Yes, I understand,’ Munch said on the phone. ‘But don’t worry about it. Like I said, it’s personal; we have other, more important things to do. What? Yes, it can drive you crazy, but I… What? Yes, I got it from a friend online. From Sweden. What? She calls herself margrete_08. Don’t worry about it. Yes, yes, I understand. Talk to you later.’
Munch laughed briefly to himself before handing the mobile back to Mia.
‘What was that about?’
‘Nothing important, just a private matter.’
‘He’s good,’ Mia said.