“hi,pappa,”pernillaabrahassonsaid.

    hegavehisdaughteralonghug.

    “whereintheworlddidyouspringfro？”

    “frohoe,ofcourse.i’onywaytoskellefte？.canistaythenight？”

    “ofcourseyoucan,buthowdidyougethere？”

    “maaknehereyouwere.andiaskedatthecaféiftheyknehereyouwerestaying.thewoantoldeexactlyhowtogethere.areyougladtoseee？”

    “certainlyia.ein.youshouldhavegivenesoewarningsoicouldbuysoegoodfoodorsoething.”

    “istoppedonipulse.iwantedtoweleyouhoefroprison,butyounevercalled.”

    “i’sorry.”

    “that’sok.maatoldehowyou’realwaysgettinglostinyourownthoughts.”

    “isthatwhatshesaysaboute？”

    “moreorless.butitdoesn’tatter.istillloveyou.”

    “iloveyoutoo,butyouknow…”

    “iknow.i’prettygrown-upbynow.”

    headeteaandputoutpastries.

    whathisdaughterhadsaidwastrue.shewasostassuredlynolongeralittlegirl；shewasalostseventeen,practicallyagrownwoan.hehadtolearntostoptreatingherlikeachild.

    “so,hoasit？”

    “hoaswhat？”

    “prison.”

    helaughed.“wouldyoubelieveeifisaidthatitwaslikehavingapaidholidaywithallthetieyouwantedforthinkingandwriting？”

    “iwould.idon’tsupposethere’suchdifferencebetweenaprisonandacloister,andpeoplehavealwaysgoocloistersforself-reflection.”

    “well,thereyougo.ihopeithasn’tbeenaprobleforyou,yourfatherbeingagaolbird.”

    “notatall.i’proudofyou,andineverissachancetobragaboutthefactthatyouwenttoprisonforwhatyoubelievein.”

    “believein？”

    “isawerikabergerontv.”

    “pernilla,i’notinnocent.i’sorrythatihaven’ttalkedtoyouaboutwhathappened,butiwasn’tunfairlysentenced.thecourtadetheirdecisionbasedonwhattheyweretoldduringthetrial.”

    “butyounevertoldyoursideofthestory.”

    “no,becauseitturnedoutthatididn’thaveproof.”

    “ok.thenanswereonequestion:iswennerstr？ascoundrelorisn’the？”

    “he’soneoftheblackestscoundrelsi’veeverdealtwith.”

    “that’sgoodenoughfore.i’vegotapresentforyou.”

    shetookapackageoutofherbag.heopeneditandfoundacd,thebestofeurythics.sheknewitwasoneofhisfavouriteoldbands.heputitinhisi,andtheylistenedto“sweetdreas”together.

    “whyareyougoingtoskellefte？？”

    “bibleschoolatasuercapwithacongregationcalledthelightoflife,”pernillasaid,asifitweretheostobviouschoiceintheworld.

    blokvistfeltacoldfirerundownthebackofhisneck.herealisedhowalikehisdaughterandharrietvangerwere.pernillawassixteen,exactlytheageharrietwaswhenshedisappeared.bothhadabsentfathers.bothwereattractedtothereligiousfanaticisofstrangesects—harriettothepentecostalsandpernillatoanoffshootofsoethingthatwasjustaboutascrackpotasthewordoflife.

    hedidnotknowhowheshouldhandlehisdaughter’snewinterestinreligion.hewasafraidofencroachingonherrighttodecideforherself.atthesaetie,thelightoflifewasostdefinitelyasectofthetypethathewouldnothesitatetolabastinmillenniu.hewouldtakethefirstopportunitytodiscussthisatterwithherother.

    pernillasleptinhisbedwhilehewrappedhiselfinblanketsonthebenchinthekitchen.hewokewithacrickinhisneckandachinguscles.pernillawaseagertogetgoing,soheadebreakfastandwentwithhertothestation.theyhadalittletie,sotheyboughtcoffeeattheini-artandsatdownonabenchattheendoftheplatfor,chattingaboutallsortsofthings.untilshesaid:“youdon’tliketheideathati’goingtoskellefte？,doyou？”

    hewasnon-plussed.

    “it’snotdangerous.butyou’renotachristian,areyou？”

    “well,i’notagoodchristian,atanyrate.”

    “youdon’tbelieveingod？”

    “no,idon’tbelieveingod,butirespectthefactthatyoudo.everyonehastohavesoethingtobelievein.”

    whenhertrainarrived,theygaveeachotheralonghuguntilpernillahadtogetonboard.withonefootonthestep,sheturned.

    “pappa,i’notgoingtoproselytise.itdoesn’tattertoewhatyoubelieve,andi’llalwaysloveyou.butithinkyoushouldcontinueyourbiblestudies.”

    “whydoyousaythat？”

    “isawthequotesyouhadonthewall,”shesaid.“butwhysoglooyandneurotic？kisses.seeyoulater.”

    shewavedandwasgone.hestoodontheplatfor,baffled,watchingthetrainpullaway.notuntilitvanishedaroundthebenddidtheeaningsinkin.

    mikaelhurriedoutofthestation.itwouldbealostanhourbeforethenextbusleft.hewastoouchonedgetowaitthatlong.herantothetaxistandandfoundhusseinwiththenorrlandaent.

    teninuteslaterhewasinhisoffice.hehadtapedthenoteabovehisdesk.

    magda—32016

    sara—32109

    r.j.—30112

    r.l.—32027

    mari—32018

    helookedaroundtheroo.thenherealisedwherehe’dbeabletofindabible.hetookthenotewithhi,searchedforthekeys,whichhehadleftinabowlonthewindowsill,andjoggedthewholewaytogottfried’scabin.hishandswerepracticallyshakingashetookharriet’sbibledownfroitsshelf.

    shehadnotwrittendowntelephonenubers.thefiguresindicatedthechapterandverseinleviticus,thethirdofthepentateuch.

    leviticus,20:16

    “ifawoanapproachesanybeastandlieswithit,youshallkillthewoanandthebeast；theyshallbeputtodeath,theirbloodisuponthe.”

    leviticus,21:9

    “andthedaughterofanypriest,ifsheprofanesherselfbyplayingtheharlot,profanesherfather；sheshallbeburnedwithfire.”

    leviticus,1:12

    “andheshallcutitintopieces,withitsheadanditsfat,andthepriestshalllaytheinorderuponthewoodthatisonthefireuponthealtar.”

    leviticus,20:27

    “aanorawoanwhoisaediuorawizardshallbeputtodeath；theyshallbestonedwithstones,theirbloodshallbeuponthe.”

    leviticus,20:18

    “ifaanlieswithawoanhavinghersickness,anduncovershernakedness,hehasadenakedherfountain,andshehasuncoveredthefountainofherblood；bothoftheshallbecutofffroaongtheirpeople.”

    hewentoutandsatontheporch.eachversehadbeenunderlinedinharriet’sbible.helitacigaretteandlistenedtothesingingofbirdsnearby.

    hehadthenubers.buthedidn’thavethenaes.magda,sara,mari,r.j.,andr.l.

    allofasuddenanabyssopenedasmikael’sbrainadeanintuitiveleap.hereeberedthefirevictiinhedestadthatinspectormorellhadtoldhiabout.therebeckacase,whichourredinthelateforties.thegirlwasrapedandthenkilledbyhavingherheadplacedonsoulderingcoals.“andheshallcutitintopieces,withitsheadanditsfat,andthepriestshalllaytheinorderuponthewoodthatisonthefireuponthealtar.”rebecka.r.j.whatwasherlastnae？

    whatingod’snaehadharrietgottenherselfixedupin？

    vangerhadbeentakenill.hewasinbedwhenblokvistknockedonhisdoor.butannaagreedtolethiin,sayinghecouldvisittheoldanforafewinutes.

    “asuercold,”henrikexplained,sniffling.“whatdidyouwant？”

    “ihaveaquestion.”

    “yes？”

    “didyoueverhearofaurderthattookplaceinhedestadsoetieintheforties？agirlcalledrebecka—herheadwasputonafire.”

    “rebeckajacobsson,”henriksaidwithoutasecond’shesitation.“that’sanaei’llneverfet,althoughihaven’thearditentionedinyears.”

    “butyouknowabouttheurder？”

    “indeedido.rebeckajacobssonwastwenty-threeortwenty-fourwhenshedied.thatusthavebeenin…itwasin1949.therewasatreendoushueandcry,ihadasallpartinityself.”

    “youdid？”

    “ohyes.rebeckawasonourclericalstaff,apopulargirlandveryattractive.butwhyareyouasking？”

    “i’notsure,henrik,butiaybeontosoething.i’goingtohavetothinkthisthrough.”

    “areyousuggestingthatthere’saconnectionbetweenharrietandrebecka？therewere…alostseventeenyearsseparatingthetwo.”

    “letedoythinkingandi’llebackandseeyoutoorrowifyou’refeelingbetter.”

    blokvistdidnotseevangerthefollowingday.justbefore1:00a..hewasstillatthekitchentable,readingharriet’sbible,whenheheardthesoundofacarakingitswayathighspeedacrossthebridge.helookedoutthewindowandsawtheflashingbluelightsofanabulance.

    filledwithforeboding,heranoutside.theabulanceparkedbyvanger’shouse.onthegroundfloorallthelightswereon.hedasheduptheporchstepsintwoboundsandfoundashakenannainthehall.

    “it’shisheart,”shesaid.“hewokeealittlewhileago,plainingofpainsinhischest.thenhecollapsed.”

    blokvistputhisarsaroundthehousekeeper,andhewasstilltherewhentheedicscaeoutwithanunconsciousvangeronastretcher.martinvanger,lookingdecidedlystressed,walkedbehind.hehadbeeninbedwhenannacalled.hisbarefeetwerestuckinapairofslippers,andhehadn’tzippedhisfly.hegavemikaelabriefgreetingandthenturnedtoanna.

    “i’llgowithhitothehospital.callbirgerandseeifyoucanreachceciliainlondonintheorning,”hesaid.“andtelldirch.”

    “icangotofrode’shouse,”blokvistsaid.annanoddedgratefully.

    ittookseveralinutesbeforeasleepyfrodeansweredblokvist’sringathisdoor.

    “ihavebadnews,dirch.henrikhasbeentakentothehospital.itseestobeaheartattack.martinwantedetotellyou.”

    “goodlord,”frodesaid.heglancedathiswatch.“it’sfridaythethirteenth,”hesaid.

    notuntilthenextorning,afterhe’dhadabrieftalkwithdirchfrodeonhisobileandbeenassuredthatvangerwasstillalive,didhecallbergerwiththenewsthatmillenniu’snewpartnerhadbeentakentothehospitalwithaheartattack.inevitably,thenewswasreceivedwithglooandanxiety.

    lateintheeveningfrodecaetoseehiandgivehithedetailsabouthenrikvanger’scondition.

    “he’salive,buthe’snotdoingwell.hehadaseriousheartattack,andhe’salsosufferingfroaninfection.”

    “haveyouseenhi？”

    “no.he’sinintensivecare.martinandbirgeraresittingwithhi.”

    “whatarehischances？”

    frodewavedahandbackandforth.

    “hesurvivedtheattack,andthat’sagoodsign.henrikisinexcellentcondition,buthe’sold.we’lljusthavetowait.”

    theysatinsilence,deepinthought.blokvistadecoffee.frodelookedwretchedlyunhappy.

    “ineedtoaskyouaboutwhat’sgoingtohappennow,”blokvistsaid.

    frodelookedup.

    “theconditionsofyoureployentdon’tchange.they’restipulatedinacontractthatrunsuntiltheendofthisyear,whetherhenriklivesordies.youdon’thavetoworry.”

    “no,that’snotwhatieant.i’wonderingwhoireporttoinhisabsence.”

    frodesighed.

    “mikael,youknowaswellasidothatthiswholestoryaboutharrietisjustapastieforhenrik.”

    “don’tsaythat,dirch.”

    “whatdoyouean？”

    “i’vefoundnewevidence,”blokvistsaid.“itoldhenrikaboutsoeofityesterday.i’veryuchafraidthatitayhavehelpedtobringonhisheartattack.”

    frodelookedathiwithastrangeexpression.

    “you’rejoking,youustbe…”

    blokvistshookhishead.

    “overthepastfewdaysi’vefoundsignificantaterialaboutharriet’sdisappearance.whati’worriedaboutisthatweneverdiscussedwhoishouldreporttoifhenrikisnolongerhere.”

    “youreporttoe.”

    “ok.ihavetogoonwiththis.caniputyouinthepicturerightnow？”

    blokvistdescribedwhathehadfoundasconciselyaspossible,andheshowedfrodetheseriesofpicturesfroj？rnv？gsgatan.thenheexplainedhowhisowndaughterhadunlockedtheysteryofthenaesinthedate.finally,heproposedtheconnection,ashehadforvangerthedaybefore,withtheurderofrebeckajacobssonin1949,r.j.

    theonlythinghekepttohiselfwasceciliavanger’sfaceinharriet’swindow.hehadtotalktoherbeforeheputherinapositionwheresheightbesuspectedofsoething.

    frode’sbroascreasedwithconcern.

    “youreallythinkthattheurderofrebeckahassoethingtodowithharriet’sdisappearance？”

    “itseesunlikely,iagree,butthefactreainsthatharrietwrotetheinitialsr.j.inherdatenexttothereferencetotheoldtestaentlawaboutburntofferings.rebeckajacobssonwasburnedtodeath.oneconnectionwiththevangerfailyisinescapable—sheworkedforthecorporation.”

    “butwhatistheconnectionwithharriet？”

    “idon’tknowyet.butiwanttofindout.iwilltellyoueverythingiwouldhavetoldhenrik.youhavetoakethedecisionsforhi.”

    “perhapsweoughttorthepolice.”

    “no.atleastnotwithouthenrik’sblessing.thestatuteofliitationshaslongsincerunoutinthecaseofrebecka,andthepoliceinvestigationwasclosed.they’renotgoingtoreopenaninvestigationfifty-fouryearslater.”

    “allright.whatareyougoingtodo？”

    blokvistpacedalaparoundthekitchen.

    “first,iwanttofollowupthephotographlead.ifwecouldseewhatitwasthatharrietsaw…itightbethekey.ineedacartogotonorsj？andfollowthatlead,whereverittakese.andalso,iwanttoresearcheachoftheleviticusverses.wehaveoneconnectiontooneurder.wehavefourverses,possiblyfourotherclues.todothis…ineedsoehelp.”

    “whatkindofhelp？”

    “ireallyneedaresearchassistantwiththepatiencetogothrougholdnewspaperarchivestofind‘magda’and‘sara’andtheothernaes.ifi’rightinthinkingthatrebeckawasn’ttheonlyvicti.”

    “youeanyouwanttoletsoeoneelseinon…”

    “there’salotofworkthathastobedoneandinahurry.ifiwereapoliceofficerinvolvedinanactiveinvestigation,icoulddivideupthehoursandresourcesandgetpeopletodigfore.ineedaprofessionalwhoknowsarchiveworkandwhocanbetrusted.”

    “iunderstand….actuallyibelieveiknowofanexpertresearcher,”saidfrode,andbeforehecouldstophiself,headded,“shewastheonewhodidthebackgroundinvestigationonyou.”

    “whodidwhat？”blokvistsaid.

    “iwasthinkingoutloud,”frodesaid.“it’snothing.”i’gettingold,hethought.

    “youhadsoeonedoaninvestigationone？”

    “it’snothingdraatic,mikael.wewantedtohireyou,andwejustdidacheckonwhatsortofpersonyouwere.”

    “sothat’swhyhenrikalwaysseestoknowexactlywherehehase.howthoroughwasthisinvestigation？”

    “itwasquitethorough.”

    “diditlookintomillenniu’sprobles？”

    frodeshrugged.“ithadabearing.”

    blokvistlitacigarette.itwashisfifthoftheday.

    “awrittenreport？”

    “mikael,it’snothingtogetworkedupabout.”

    “iwanttoreadthereport,”hesaid.

    “oheon,there’snothingoutoftheordinaryaboutthis.wewantedtocheckuponyoubeforewehiredyou.”

    “iwanttoreadthereport,”mikaelrepeated.

    “icouldn’tauthorisethat.”

    “really？thenhere’swhatisaytoyou:eitherihavethatreportinyhandswithinthehour,oriquit.i’lltaketheeveningtrainbacktostockhol.whereisthereport？”

    thetwoeneyedeachotherforseveralseconds.thenfrodesighedandlookedaway.

    “inyoffice,athoe.”

    frodehadputupaterriblefuss.itwasnotuntil6:00thateveningthatblokvisthadlisbethsalander’sreportinhishand.itwasalosteightypageslong,plusdozensofphotocopiedarticles,certificates,andotherrecordsofthedetailsofhislifeandcareer.

    itwasastrangeexperiencetoreadabouthiselfinwhatwaspartbiographyandpartintelligencereport.hewasincreasinglyastonishedathowdetailedthereportwas.salanderhaddugupfactsthathethoughthadbeenlongburiedinthepostofhistory.shehadduguphisyouthfulrelationshipwithawoanwhohadbeenaflaingsyndicalistandwhowasnowapolitician.whointheworldhadshetalkedto？shehadfoundhisrockbandbootstrap,whichsurelyno-oodaywouldreeber.shehadscrutinisedhisfinancesdowntothelast？re.howthehellhadshedoneit？

    asajournalist,blokvisthadspentanyyearshuntingdownrationaboutpeople,andhecouldjudgethequalityoftheworkfroapurelyprofessionalstandpoint.therewasnodoubtthatthissalanderwasonehellofaninvestigator.hedoubtedthatevenhecouldhaveproducedaparablereportonanyindividualpletelyunknowntohi.

    italsodawnedonhithattherehadneverbeenanyreasonforhiandbergertokeeptheirdistanceinvanger’spresence；healreadyknewoftheirlong-standingrelationship.thereportcaeupwithadisturbinglypreciseappraisalofmillenniu’sfinancialposition；vangerknewjusthowshakythingswerewhenhefirstcontactedberger.whatsortofgaewasheplaying？

    thewennerstr？affairwaserelysuarised,butwhoeverwrotethereporthadobviouslybeenaspectatorinco