Camilla Lackberg Crime Thrillers 4-6: The Stranger, The Hidden Child, The Drowning

‘We … we saw her yesterday. Martin and I,’ said Hanna. Her face was tense as she looked from Patrik to Martin.

‘Yes, I heard,’ said Patrik, nodding in Martin’s direction. ‘It was Martin who identified her. I believe there was some trouble?’ he said, raising his eyebrows, which prompted Hanna to continue.

‘Well,’ she said, hesitating. ‘Yes, it was pretty intense for a while. The other cast members were bullying her, but I could see it was mostly verbal stuff and a few pokes, nothing more. Martin and I stepped in and separated them, and the last we saw of Barbie was when she ran away crying, heading towards town.’

Martin nodded in confirmation. ‘Yes, that’s right. There was some yelling and screaming, but nothing that could produce the injuries we saw on her body.’

‘We’re going to have to have a talk with that lot,’ said Patrik. ‘See what it was all about. And if anyone saw where’ – he hesitated before saying the name – ‘Barbie was going. We have to talk to the TV team as well, and get hold of the footage they shot yesterday and take a look at it.’

Annika wrote down everything as he listed the tasks they would have to deal with. Patrik thought for a few seconds, then he nodded to Annika and added, ‘We have to see about informing her family too. And find out if anyone else observed anything during the course of the evening.’ He paused, then said gravely, ‘When this comes out, and it won’t take more than a couple of hours, the shit is going to hit the fan. This is national news, and we have to be ready for an onslaught from the media – and for as long as the investigation lasts. So be careful who you talk to and what you say. I don’t want a lot of information coming out in the media that I, and Mellberg, haven’t sanctioned.’

To tell the truth, he was worried that Mellberg would be the one to shoot off his mouth. Their chief loved being in the spotlight, and a skilful reporter could probably get Mellberg to blab all about the case. But there wasn’t much he could do about it now. Mellberg was the chief of the station, at least on paper, and Patrik couldn’t put a gag on him. He was just going to have to cross his fingers and hope that Mellberg still had an ounce of common sense in that head of his. Although he wouldn’t put any money on it.

‘This is what we’ll do. I’m going to drive over and talk to that guy in charge of production …’ he said, snapping his fingers as he tried to remember his name.

‘Rehn, Fredrik Rehn,’ Mellberg filled in, and Patrik nodded in gratitude, though he was surprised. It wasn’t often that Mellberg contributed any relevant information.

‘Right, Fredrik Rehn. Martin and Hanna, you two sit down and write a report about what you saw and heard last night. And Gösta,’ he said, trying feverishly to think of something to assign to Gösta. Finally he said, ‘Gösta, you find out more about the people who own the house where the body was found in the rubbish bin. I don’t suppose there’s any connection there, but you never know.’

Gösta gave a weary nod. A specific job to do. He could already feel the weight of responsibility.

‘So, that’s that.’ Patrik clapped his hands together as a sign that the meeting was over. ‘We have plenty to do.’ Everyone muttered something in reply and got up. Patrik watched as they filed out of the room. He wondered if they had any idea what was about to hit them when the news broke and the full force of the media was unleashed.

‘This is going to be fantastic! I can smell success a mile away!’ Fredrik Rehn pounded the technician on the back as they sat in the cramped space in the studio bus. They had gone over the footage from the day before and had begun editing. Fredrik liked what he saw. But anything that was good could always be made better.

‘Could we add a few more boos when Tina is singing? What we have on tape sounds a bit skimpy, and I think her performance was so dire that we should amp up the booing from the audience.’ He laughed, and the editing guy nodded enthusiastically. More booing, no problem at all. A bit more sound added on several channels and he could make it seem as though everyone in the audience was on his feet shouting.

‘This lot are priceless,’ Fredrik said with a smile. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. ‘They’re so damned stupid, but they don’t even realize it. Take Tina, for instance – she seriously thinks she’s going to be a big pop star. And yet she can’t even hit a single note right. I talked to the guy who produced her single, and he told me it took every trick in the book just to get her sounding halfway decent. He said she was so off-key that the loudspeaker almost cracked.’ Fredrik laughed and then leaned over the mixing console in front of them. He turned up the volume. ‘Just listen to this. It’s a fucking scream!’ Even the editing guy couldn’t help grinning when he heard her version of ‘I Want to Be Your Little Bunny’. No wonder the Idol jury had slaughtered her.

An authoritative knock on the bus door interrupted their laughter.

‘Come in,’ called Fredrik, turning to see who it was. He didn’t recognize the man who opened the door.

‘Yes? Can I help you?’ At the sight of the police badge he got a queasy feeling in his stomach. This couldn’t be anything good. Or maybe it could, depending on what had happened and how telegenic it might be.

‘So, what can we do for you this time?’ Fredrik chuckled as he stood up to greet the officer.

The policeman came in and found a place to sit among all the cords and cables. He looked around with curiosity.

‘Yes, this is where it all happens,’ said Fredrik proudly. ‘Hard to believe that we can do a programme from this small space that tops the ratings, isn’t it? Of course, some additional work is done back in Stockholm,’ he admitted reluctantly. ‘But the creative part is done right here.’

The officer, who introduced himself as Patrik Hedström, nodded politely. Then he cleared his throat. ‘I’m afraid I have some bad news,’ he said. ‘It’s about one of your cast members.’

Fredrik rolled his eyes. ‘Okay, who is it this time?’ he asked with a sigh. ‘Let me guess … it’s Uffe up to his old tricks.’ He turned to the editing guy. ‘I told you that Uffe would be the first one to create a little drama, didn’t I?’ Fredrik turned back to the officer, his curiosity rising. He was trying to work out how to get it on tape – whatever it was.

Patrik cleared his throat again and then said softly, ‘Unfortunately one of your cast members has been found dead.’ It was as if a bomb had exploded in the cramped space. The only sound was the hum of the equipment.

‘What did you say?’ asked Fredrik at last, beginning to regain his composure. ‘One of them was found dead? Who was it? And where? How?’ Thoughts whirled in his head. What had happened? And already parts of his brain were forming a media strategy. Nothing like this had ever happened in the middle of shooting a reality show. Sex – yes, followed by the age-old consequences: pregnancy – the Norwegian Big Brother had broken ground with that. Marriage proposals – yes, there the Swedish Big Brother had had a smash hit with Olivier and Carolina. And that attack with the iron pipe on The Bar had been good for several weeks of headlines. But a death! That was something completely new. Absolutely unique.

‘It’s the girl called Barbie. She was found this morning in a …’ Patrik hesitated a moment before he continued, ‘rubbish bin. All indications are that she was killed.’

‘Killed?’ repeated Fredrik. ‘You mean murdered? Was she murdered? Is that what you’re saying? Who did it?’ He probably looked as confused as he felt. This wasn’t on the list of scenarios that had popped into his head.

‘We have no suspect as yet. But we’re going to start interviewing straight away. Beginning with your cast. The officers who observed your party last night reported that there was a lot of arguing between the murdered woman and the other cast members.’

‘Yes, there were some harsh words and a bit of argy bargy,’ said Fredrik, recalling the scenes they had just watched. ‘But nothing that seemed serious enough for anyone to …’

‘We also need your tapes from yesterday.’ Patrik’s tone was curt as he looked Fredrik straight in the eye.

Fredrik stared back. ‘I’m not authorized to let you have any tapes,’ he said calmly. ‘Until I receive a warrant directing me to hand over the material, all of it stays here. Anything else is unacceptable.’

‘You do realize that this is a murder investigation?’ Patrik snapped. Though he had hoped for a different response it came as no surprise.

‘Yes, I realize that, but we can’t just turn over our material. There are many ethical principles involved.’ He smiled, pretending regret. Patrik merely snorted. They both knew that ethics were not the reason for his refusal.

‘But I presume that you will cancel the broadcast immediately in view of what has happened.’

Fredrik shook his head. ‘We absolutely cannot do that. We have programme slots booked for the next four weeks, and shutting down production now … no, it’s simply impossible. And I don’t think Barbie would have wanted that either; she would have wanted us to continue.’

One look at Patrik told him that he’d stepped over the line. The officer’s face was bright red, and he seemed to be fighting to hold back a couple of choice epithets.

‘You don’t mean to tell me that you’re actually considering –’ He broke off and interjected, ‘What was her real name? I can’t keep calling her Barbie. That’s too degrading. And by the way, I’m going to need all her personal data and contact details for her next of kin. Would you be willing to give us that information, or is that also a matter of ethics?’

The last word was dripping with sarcasm, but his anger had no effect on Fredrik. For some reason the reality-show format seemed to engender hostility; he was accustomed to dealing with it. Calmly he replied, ‘Her name is Lillemor Persson. And she grew up in foster homes, so we have no record of a next of kin. But you’ll be given all the information we have. No problem.’ He smiled suavely. ‘When are you starting the interviews? Is there any chance we could film them?’ It was a long shot, and the murderous look he got from Patrik was a clear enough answer.

‘We’ll be starting the interviews immediately,’ Patrik said curtly, getting up to leave the bus. He didn’t even bother to say goodbye before slamming the door behind him.

‘What a fucking stroke of luck,’ said Fredrik breathlessly, and the technician could only nod. This was their chance to take real drama directly into Sweden’s living rooms. For a second he thought of Barbie. Then he picked up the phone. The management had to hear about this. Sodding Tanum goes CSI. Jesus, the ratings would go through the roof!

‘How should we do this?’ Martin asked. He and Hanna had decided to stay in the break room and work, and he reached for the coffee pot to refill their cups. Hanna poured in milk and stirred. ‘Should we each write our own account first, do you think, or should we write it together?’

Hanna thought for a moment. ‘I think it would be more complete if we wrote the report together and compared notes about what we remembered as we work on it.’

‘Okay,’ said Martin, opening his laptop and booting it up. ‘Shall I type, or do you want to?’

‘You type,’ said Hanna. ‘I still type with two fingers, and I’ve never built up any speed.’

‘Okay, I’ll do the typing,’ Martin laughed, entering the password. He opened a new Word document and got ready to start filling the screen with words.

‘The first I noticed of the commotion last night was when I heard loud voices behind the building. How about you?’

Hanna nodded. ‘Yes, I hadn’t noticed anything before that. The only thing we had to deal with earlier in the evening was that girl who was so drunk she couldn’t stand up. What time could that have been? Midnight?’ Martin typed while Hanna talked. ‘Then I think it was around one when I heard two people yelling at each other. I called for you and we went behind the building and found Barbie and Uffe.’

‘Mmm,’ said Martin, still typing. ‘I checked my watch and it was ten to one. I came around the corner first and saw Uffe holding Barbie by the shoulders and shaking her violently. Both of us ran over to them. I took hold of Uffe and dragged him away, while you took care of Barbie.’

‘Yes, and Uffe was so aggressive that he tried aiming some kicks at the girl while you were holding him.’

‘We defused the situation,’ Martin continued, ‘and separated the individuals. I talked to Uffe and told him that he’d have to come down to the station if he didn’t cool it.’