Hidden in Snow (The ?re Murders, #1)(99)

He has just passed the chocolate factory and is on his way to see Amanda’s parents, even though it is almost seven thirty. Maybe they will come up with something fresh about the mysterious Linda when they hear about Amanda’s secret job.

Daniel parks on the street. The house is in darkness, apart from a large Advent star glowing in the kitchen window. He rings the bell and waits. Rings again.

As he is about to leave, Harald opens the door. Daniel hardly recognizes him. It has only been a few days, but Harald looks years older. His face is gray, his cheeks sunken and unshaven.

“What do you want?” he mumbles.

“I need to speak to you—may I come in?”

Harald looks utterly exhausted, but nods and steps aside.

The younger children don’t appear to be home. When Daniel glances into the kitchen, he sees a bottle of vodka on the table, along with a half-full glass.

“Is Lena home? I’d really like to talk to both of you.”

Harald shakes his head. “She’s in the hospital in ?stersund. She . . . took an overdose last night. Sleeping pills.”

That explains why Harald is such a mess.

“How is she?”

“She’s in a coma. The doctors can’t say whether she’ll wake up again . . .” His voice falters, he closes his eyes briefly. “Or if she’ll have brain damage.” He can barely finish the sentence.

“I’m so sorry. It must be incredibly difficult for you. I really hope Lena recovers.” Daniel hesitates; will Harald be able to cope with questions in his current state? “This won’t take long. I want you to know that we’re doing everything we can to find Amanda’s murderer.”

He quickly tells Harald about what they found on Messenger, the fact that she has been cleaning for a woman called Linda and being paid cash in hand.

Does Harald know who this Linda might be?

Harald shakes his head. “Why would Amanda do that?

She knows exactly how I feel about this kind of thing. I’m a full-time politician—it’s unthinkable in our family.”

And with those words he makes it clear exactly why Amanda kept her job a secret. Daniel refrains from pointing this out. Instead he thanks Harald and is about to leave when Harald blocks his path.

“How’s it going with Bergfors?”

Daniel is taken aback by the vicious tone.

“Has he been arrested?” Harald adds.

“The investigation is ongoing,” Daniel replies evasively.

“We have a lot of things to check out before we reach that stage.”

“It must be him!”

“It’s far too early to draw that conclusion.”

“It was Fredrik who poisoned Ludde!” Harald is shouting now.

Daniel hesitates, not knowing what to believe. “Are you sure?”

“Mira told me yesterday.”

Strange—they asked her about the dog, and she insisted that her husband would never do such a thing. If she was lying about that, then maybe she was lying about Fredrik’s alibi too?

He doesn’t want to mention this possibility to Harald, who is already highly agitated.

“Let us do our job,” he says reassuringly. “We’ll look into it, and as soon as we know more, we’ll be in touch.”

He is about to place a calming hand on Harald’s arm but thinks better of it when he looks the other man in the eye.

He is both drunk and furious; the gesture could be misinterpreted.

“Is there someone you can call?” he says. “So you don’t have to be alone?”

Harald’s expression hardens, and he turns his back on Daniel. “Get out and leave me in peace,” he mutters over his shoulder.

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109

Through the glass in the main door, Hanna sees two taillights disappearing down Hjortronstigen. She runs to her own car, starts the engine, and does a U-turn that almost sends her skidding off the road. She drives down Skogsv?gen as fast as she dares.

Where has he gone?

She looks in all directions, trying to spot the other vehicle. She can just make out a dark-colored car in the distance—is that him?

She speeds along the snowy roadway, her thoughts whirling. She only caught a glimpse of the man leaving the apartment, but there was something familiar about him. She searches her memory but realizes she needs to concentrate on her driving. The snow is falling more heavily now; the weather has deteriorated significantly over the past hour.

The windshield wipers are operating at full speed, but visibility is still poor.

She reaches the intersection of Skogsv?gen and Skansv?gen and peers around desperately.

Did he take Skansv?gen? If so, does that mean he’s on his way back to ?re? She swears out loud, knowing that she has only a few seconds. She must make a decision before he disappears and she loses the chance to catch up with him.

Skansv?gen. The lights on the bridge over the river reveal a lone car, heading in the direction of ?re.

It must be him.

Hanna drives onto the bridge, hoping she’s made the right choice.

Visibility is appalling now. The snow is swirling in front of the headlights, creating a mist that hides the blacktop. As the road curves she loses the other car completely, but then she spots two taillights up ahead in the darkness.

She sends up a silent prayer that it’s the same car.