It all sounded credible enough. I let the Olesen siblings go, with the assurance that they would be informed of any significant developments in connection with the murder of their late uncle and his will.
The remaining interviews were much swifter. Darrell Williams had viewed the spectacle from his place in the back row with sardonic humour. He was still chuckling when he commented that it was the most exciting reading of a will that he had ever experienced and ‘the greatest show’ he had seen outside the USA. It had all been entirely unexpected to him, but given the reactions in the room, he had immediately sympathized with the beautiful young lady. Andreas Gullestad was of the same opinion, in direct response to the reactions of the Olesens and Kristian Lund. But his sympathies were overwhelmingly with the caretaker’s wife, who had truly earned this acknowledgement after many years of toil and worry. Both Darrell Williams and Andreas Gullestad denied any knowledge of Harald Olesen’s family connections, including the fact that Kristian Lund was his son.
And as for the caretaker’s wife, two hours later she was still overwhelmed by her sudden fortune. She asked me repeatedly if it was true that she was going to get the money and I answered, as Rønning Junior had also done many times, that her share was secure, no matter who inherited the rest. If Kristian Lund won his case, he would receive the lion’s share of the estate, but she would still get her 100,000 kroner. She apologized that she had not noticed the reactions of the other people in the room. But from what had been said, she did not think it was wrong that Sara Sundqvist had been left the money, even though she did not understand why.
I told her in all honesty that I could not say why yet either. Then I congratulated her on her inheritance, which I felt was well deserved after all her years working for others.
I smiled quietly to myself as I watched the caretaker’s wife pass below the window in her worn, grey coat. I realized that she had always walked with heavy steps before, whereas now she was so light of foot that I feared she might suddenly lift off and float away over the city. It was a pleasure to imagine her coming back here with her little red post-office savings book so that the balance could rocket from 48 to 100,048 kroner. If nothing else, the murders of Harald Olesen and Konrad Jensen had helped to make one person happy.
But there was little else to smile about. The day had thrown up a good deal of new information, but still no solutions. Ensconced back in my office, I quickly dialled Patricia’s number. As soon as she heard who had been named the main heir, she invited me to visit her immediately.
IV
‘So, I still do not know who the murderer is, but I am starting to get a pretty clear picture of who J might be.’
The time was twenty-five to six. I had had longer to mull over the case than Patricia, who had just heard my account from the reading of the will, so it was once again disappointing to discover she was ahead of me in the game all the same.
‘No bonus points for this one. “J” is clearly an abbreviation for Sara Sundqvist. I guess that the “J” stands for “Jewish child” or “Jewess”.’
I replied that I had also guessed that, and also come to the conclusion that it had to be one of the two, the latter being more accurate than the former.
‘Of greater interest, and almost as obvious, is the fact that she must have been the small child who was hidden in the caretaker’s flat with her parents until Harald Olesen came to collect them that evening in February 1944. Thus far, the connection is clear. But what on earth happened between then and when she pops up in an adoption agency in Sweden a few months later? This historical mystery is now one of the investigation’s most burning issues.’
I nodded quickly in agreement. I had not thought this far yet, but when she said it, it was of course obvious. Patricia was on fire and continued immediately.
‘Now, who might know more about this? My best suggestion is that you send a telegram to your colleagues in Sweden and ask them to investigate immediately the circumstances surrounding Sara Sundqvist’s adoption. If she arrived as a refugee from Norway during the war, then someone must have carried or driven her across the border. And it must have been registered in some way by the Swedish authorities.’
I nodded. After today’s events, it sounded like a very sensible suggestion.
‘Otherwise, the most interesting thing about Sara Sundqvist’s reaction today was her spontaneous outburst that she did not kill Harald Olesen. What would have been a very logical reaction yesterday morning is now illogical, as everyone assumes that Konrad Jensen is the murderer.’
I had to agree with this too. I also asked myself critically if I had consciously or unconsciously suppressed this uncomfortable fact.
‘It may have been the shock, of course, but what she said to you later, in less fraught surroundings, would indicate that she does not believe that Konrad Jensen is the murderer. In which case, there are only two alternatives: either that she murdered Harald Olesen herself or she suspects that someone else may have done it and does not want to give voice to her suspicions. We have to keep both options open for the moment.’
I rather reluctantly had to agree. My heart rebelled against Sara Sundqvist being a cold-blooded murderer, but my mind insisted that it was a possibility that I had to face.
‘As for the Lunds, there is not much more to learn there, as is true of both Andreas Gullestad and the caretaker’s wife. But today’s events have bolstered my theory relating to Darrell Williams and the Olesen pair.’
I gave her a puzzled looked – and was no doubt unable to hide my surprise.
‘It may of course still be coincidence, but the reaction of the niece and nephew, and what they have said about their uncle, fits remarkably well in terms of chronology if…’
She fell silent and looked at me expectantly. I said nothing and stared back at her expectantly. We sat there in what resembled a standoff. In the end, it was me who gave in.
‘I have no idea what you are implying. What chronology are you talking about?’
Patricia grinned, not without a hint of glee.
‘The war chronology, but a different one from that of Sara Sundqvist. Harald Olesen’s niece would have been eighteen or nineteen years old at the end of the war. Darrell was twenty-two and in Norway. Around this time, he had a Norwegian girlfriend whom he refuses to name, for reasons unbeknown to us. The niece and nephew both said that they had a somewhat strained relationship with Harald Olesen in later years because he had used his authority to interfere with their lives when they were young, among other things in relation to their choice of sweetheart. Therefore it seems natural to assume, first of all, that Darrell Williams’s Norwegian girlfriend was in fact Harald Olesen’s niece, and second, that Harald Olesen played a role in the breakup of that relationship. A dream romance with an American prince whom she subsequently lost might still cause considerable pain to this day, especially given that her later marriage did not last…’