Camilla Lackberg - The Lost Boy

He reached for a bun, but after taking a bite he put it back down on the plate.

‘What are these?’

‘Spelt buns.’

‘Oh,’ said Erling, and settled for sipping his coffee.

‘No, I haven’t heard from Matte, so it probably wasn’t important. I’m sure he’ll drop by or give me a ring when he gets a chance.’

‘It’s rather strange, actually. He never showed up at the office yesterday, even though he didn’t call in sick. And I didn’t see him there this morning before I drove out here.’

‘Probably nothing to worry about,’ said Vivianne, reaching for a bun.

‘May I join you, or do you love-birds want to be alone?’ Anders had appeared without either Erling or Vivianne noticing. Both of them gave a start, but then Vivianne smiled and pulled out a chair so her brother could sit down next to her.

As always, Erling was struck by how alike they looked. Both were blond with blue eyes and similar mouths with bow-shaped lips. But while Vivianne was energetic and extroverted, possessing what Erling would call a magnetic charisma, her brother was introverted and quiet. An accountant type was what he first thought upon meeting Anders during his stay at Ljuset. And he didn’t think that was a bad thing. With so much money at stake, it was reassuring to have such a dull numbers-person looking after the finances.

‘Have you heard from Mats? Erling says he had a few questions,’ said Vivianne, turning to Anders.

‘Yes, he dropped by briefly on Friday afternoon. Why?’

Erling cleared his throat. ‘Well, he mentioned at the end of last week that he was concerned about several issues.’

Anders nodded. ‘As I said, he dropped by, and we were able to clear up a number of questions.’

‘Oh, good. It’s nice to know that everything is in order,’ said Erling, smiling happily.

An elderly man and woman stood outside the front entrance, holding on to each other. Patrik assumed that they were the parents of the deceased. They were the ones who had found the body. He and Paula got out of the car and went over to them.

‘Patrik Hedström, Tanum police. Are you the ones who called us?’ he asked, even though he already knew the answer.

‘Yes, we did.’ The man’s cheeks were wet with tears.

His wife kept her face pressed against her husband’s chest.

‘It’s our son,’ she said without looking at them. ‘He’s … up there …’

‘I’ll go up and take a look.’

The man made a move as if to follow, but Patrik stopped him.

‘I think it’s best if you both wait here. The medics will be arriving any minute, and they’ll take care of you. My colleague Paula will stay with you until they get here.’

Patrik gestured to Paula, who gently led the couple aside. Then he entered the building and went up to the third floor, where he found a door standing wide open. He didn’t need to go inside the flat to know that the man lying on his stomach on the hall floor was dead. A big hole was visible in the back of the victim’s head. Blood and brain matter had sprayed out over the floor and walls and then congealed. This was obviously the scene of the crime, and there was no use doing anything until Torbjörn Ruud and his team of technicians examined the flat. Patrik decided that he might as well go back downstairs and have a talk with the victim’s parents.

When he came outside, Patrik hurried over to the couple. They were standing next to Paula and talking to the ambulance medics, who had just arrived. A blanket had been draped over the woman’s shoulders, and she was crying so hard that she shook. Patrik chose to start with the husband, who looked more composed even though he too was crying.

‘Are we needed up there?’ asked one of the medics, nodding towards the building.

Patrik shook his head.

‘No, not for a while, at least. The techs are on their way.’

For a moment no one spoke. The only sound was the heart-wrenching sobs of the elderly woman. Patrik went over to her husband.

‘Could I have a few words with you?’

‘We want to help as much as we can. We just don’t understand who would …’ The man’s voice broke, but after casting a glance at his wife, he followed Patrik over to the police vehicle. The woman didn’t seem aware of what was happening around her.

They sat in the back seat of the car.

‘It says “Mats Sverin” on the door of the flat. Is that your son?’

‘Yes. Although we’ve always called him Matte.’

‘And your name is …?’ Patrik took notes as they talked.

‘Gunnar Sverin. My wife’s name is Signe. But why—’

Patrik placed his hand on the man’s arm to calm him.

‘We’re going to do everything in our power to catch whoever did this. Do you think you could answer a few questions?’

Gunnar nodded.

‘When did you last see your son?’

‘Thursday night. He came over to have dinner with us. He’s been doing that a lot since he moved back to Fjällbacka.’

‘What time did he leave your place on Thursday?’

‘He drove home shortly after nine, I think.’

‘Have you heard from him since then? Have you talked to him on the phone, or had any other sort of contact?’

‘No, nothing. Signe is the worrying kind, and she tried to call Matte all weekend without reaching him, but I … I told her she was being an old worryguts and she should stop bothering the boy.’ Tears welled up in his eyes again. Embarrassed, he wiped them away on the sleeve of his jacket.

‘So no one answered the phone at your son’s flat? And he didn’t answer his mobile either?’

‘No, we just got his voicemail.’

‘Was that unusual?’

‘Yes, I think so. Signe calls him up a little too often, in my opinion, but Matte has the patience of an angel.’ Gunnar again wiped his eyes on his sleeve.

‘Is that why you came over here today?’

‘Yes and no. Signe was getting really upset. I was too, even though I pretended not to be worried. But then I got a call from the council saying that Matte hadn’t turned up for work … And that’s not like him, not at all. He has always been very conscientious about being on time and so on. He gets that from me.’

‘What sort of work did he do for the town?’

‘He’s been the finance officer for the past couple of months. That was after he moved back here. He was lucky to get the job. There aren’t many positions available for economists.’

‘How did he happen to move to Fjällbacka? Where did he live before?’

‘In Göteborg,’ said Gunnar, answering the second question first. ‘We don’t really know why he decided to make the move. But he was involved in a terrible incident not long before he came here. He was assaulted by a gang in the city, and he spent several weeks in hospital. That sort of thing can make a person re-evaluate his life. At any rate, he moved back here, and that made us very happy. Especially Signe, of course. She was overjoyed.’

‘Did they find the gang who assaulted him?’

‘No. The police never caught them. Matte had no idea who they were, and he wouldn’t have been able to identify them afterwards either. He was really badly beaten. When Signe and I went to Sahlgrenska Hospital to see him, we could hardly recognize our son.’

Patrik drew an exclamation mark on the page next to his note on the assault. He needed to find out more about that ASAP. He’d have to contact his colleagues in Göteborg.

‘And you and your wife don’t know of anyone who might want to harm Matte? Any individual or individuals who might have had a score to settle with him?’

Gunnar shook his head emphatically.

‘Matte never quarrelled with anyone. Everybody liked him. And he liked everybody.’