Buried Angels. Camilla Lackberg

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СКАЧАТЬ clock. Seven fifteen. For a second he wondered what Annika was doing at the station so early in the day.

      ‘There’s been a fire on Valö,’ Annika repeated patiently. ‘The fire brigade was called out early this morning, and they suspect it might be arson.’

      ‘Where on Valö?’

      Erica turned over in bed. ‘What is it?’ she murmured.

      ‘Police business. I have to go out to Valö,’ he whispered. For once the twins were sleeping past six thirty, so he didn’t want to wake them.

      ‘It’s out at the summer camp,’ said Annika on the phone.

      ‘Okay. I’ll take the boat and head out there. I’ll ring Martin. He’s on duty today too, isn’t he?’

      ‘That’s right. I’ll see you both back at the station later on.’

      Patrik ended the call and put on a T-shirt.

      ‘What’s happened?’ asked Erica, sitting up in bed.

      ‘The fire brigade thinks someone has set a fire over at the old summer camp.’

      ‘The summer camp? Someone’s trying to burn it down?’ Erica swung her legs over the edge of the bed.

      ‘I promise to tell you all about it later,’ said Patrik with a smile. ‘I know it’s one of your pet projects.’

      ‘What a strange coincidence that someone would try to burn down the place now, just when Ebba has come back to live there.’

      Patrik shook his head. He knew from experience that his wife liked to get herself mixed up in things that were not her concern. She was always jumping to outlandish conclusions. It was true that occasionally she turned out to be right – that much he had to admit – but sometimes she also made a real mess of things.

      ‘Annika said they suspect arson. That’s all we know at this stage, and it might not be arson at all.’

      ‘But still,’ said Erica. ‘It’s odd that it should happen now. Can I come with you? I was planning to go out there anyway to have a little talk with Ebba.’

      ‘And who’s going to take care of the kids? Have you thought about that? I think Maja’s still too young to heat up the formula for the boys.’

      He kissed Erica on the cheek and then raced downstairs. Behind him he heard the twins start to cry, right on cue.

      Patrik and Martin exchanged only a few words on their way out to Valö. The suggestion that this could be arson was both unsettling and hard to believe. As they approached the island and surveyed the idyllic setting, it seemed more unlikely than ever.

      ‘It’s so beautiful out here,’ said Martin, lost in admiration as they walked up the path from the dock where Patrik had tied up the boat.

      ‘You’ve been out here before, haven’t you?’ said Patrik without turning around. ‘At least that one Christmas.’

      Martin muttered something in reply. He didn’t want to be reminded of that fateful Christmas when he had been drawn into a family drama on the island.

      A large expanse of lawn stretched out before them. They stopped to look around.

      ‘I have some wonderful memories of this place,’ said Patrik. ‘We used to come here on school outings a few times a year, and in the summertime when I was at sailing camp. I’ve kicked a lot of balls across that lawn. And played a lot of games of rounders.’

      ‘I know. Who hasn’t been to camp out here? Strange how it’s always been called the summer camp.’

      Patrik shrugged and started up the path towards the house. ‘I suppose the name stuck. It was only a boarding school for a short time, and nobody wanted to name the place after old man von Schlesinger who lived here before.’

      ‘Oh, right. I’ve heard about that lunatic,’ said Martin, cursing as a branch slapped him in the face. ‘Who owns the place now?’

      ‘I assume the couple who live here own it. After what happened in 1974, it’s been administered by the local council, at least as far as I know. Too bad that the house has been allowed to fall into such disrepair, but it looks like they’re starting to fix it up.’

      Martin peered up at the scaffolding that covered the entire front of the building. ‘They seem to be putting a lot of work into it. I hope the fire didn’t cause too much damage.’

      They made their way to the stone stairway that led up to the front door. The Fjällbacka Volunteer Fire Brigade were gathering up their equipment, going about their work in a calm, methodical manner. They must be sweating buckets in those heavy uniforms, thought Patrik. The heat was already oppressive, in spite of the early hour.

      ‘Hi!’ Östen Ronander, chief of the fire brigade, came over and nodded a greeting. His hands were black with soot.

      ‘Hi, Östen. So what happened here? Annika said you suspect the fire might have been deliberately set.’

      ‘It certainly appears that way. But we’re not qualified to make that judgement, from a technical point of view. We’re hoping that Torbjörn will get here soon.’

      ‘I phoned him on our way over, and they expect to be here in …’ Patrik glanced at his watch, ‘about half an hour.’

      ‘Good. Want me to show you around, in the meantime? We’ve tried not to disturb anything. The owner had already put out the flames with a fire extinguisher by the time we arrived, so we’ve just made sure that nothing is still smouldering. There wasn’t really much else we could do. Take a look over there—’

      Östen pointed to the front hall. On the other side of the threshold the floor was scorched in a strange, irregular pattern.

      ‘Must have been some sort of flammable liquid, don’t you think?’ said Martin, peering at it.

      Östen nodded.

      ‘I’d say somebody poured the liquid under the door and then ignited it. Judging by the smell, I reckon it was petrol, but I’m sure Torbjörn and his boys will be able to tell us for sure.’

      ‘Where are the people who live here?’

      ‘They’re sitting out back, waiting for the medics, who unfortunately have been delayed because of a traffic accident. They both seem to be suffering from shock, and I thought they could use some peace and quiet. I also thought it would be best if we didn’t let them tramp about inside the house before you had a chance to secure any evidence.’

      ‘Good thinking.’ Patrik patted Östen on the shoulder and then said to Martin. ‘Shall we go and have a talk with them?’

      Without waiting for a reply he headed towards the back of the house. As they turned the corner they spotted a few pieces of patio furniture a short distance away. The chairs and table were shabby, as if they’d been subjected to years of all kinds of weather. Sitting at the table were a man and a woman, both in their mid-thirties, looking lost. When the man caught sight of Patrik and Martin, he stood up and came to greet them, holding out his hand, which was hard and callused, СКАЧАТЬ