by Viveca Sten
Something clean and beautiful was about to replace everything that was dirty.
She had to step off the sidewalk in order to skirt a pile of gravel. Not far now. She could hear her labored breathing.
She became aware of the sound of an approaching car, much too loud on the quiet street. The speed limit in this residential area was twenty miles per hour, but this driver didn’t seem to care. The roar of the engine grew louder behind her. Mina couldn’t help turning her head.
She knew immediately where the car was going.
It was a silver-gray Mercedes.
It was no more than a hundred yards away when she began to run for her life.
CHAPTER 66
Dino turned onto Trastvägen. He was driving fast; they’d been held up at several red lights, and the journey back had taken too long. There were no other cars around, and he didn’t care about the speed limit.
Andreis had called his lawyer from the car, and was in a foul mood. He’d cursed Ulrika Grönstedt, but she’d come with the highest recommendations from others who’d engaged her services. She was “good,” according to the word on the street.
There was a woman pushing a stroller up ahead. Was she running?
“Look!” Andreis yelled, just as Dino realized who she was. Her hair was tucked inside a baseball cap, and he could only see the back of her, but there was something familiar about her posture, the odd strands of blond hair that had escaped and were blowing in the wind.
It was Mina!
She was pushing Lukas’s stroller; Dino had often seen it in the corner of the living room over the past few months.
What the hell was she doing here? Surely she would have the sense to stay away after everything that had happened.
“Put your foot down—follow her!” Andreis was pointing and waving his arms.
The woman turned and looked back, and in spite of the distance, Dino could see the panic in her eyes. It was definitely her.
“She’s heading for the bus stop—get after her!” Andreis shouted.
CHAPTER 67
Anna-Maria took a walk around the shelter to see if Mina had returned. Her room was still empty, and the stroller was gone. She’d been out for almost two hours; she ought to be back by now.
Anna-Maria stuck her head around the kitchen door and said hi to Sanna and Lori, who were sitting at the table. Lori was thirteen, and Sanna’s only child. Her long, shiny red hair was tied up in a ponytail. Her features were well defined, but her cheeks were pale, her eyes sunken. Her nails were so badly bitten that they were barely visible.
Sanna reached across and patted her daughter’s arm. It sounded as if she was trying to persuade the girl to eat something; Lori was as skinny as a rake, bordering on anorexic.
Anna-Maria left them in peace.
Sanna had left her husband after years of physical and mental abuse. When he attacked her in front of their daughter for the first time, something snapped inside Sanna, and she took Lori and fled. They’d been at the shelter for a few weeks, deeply upset about everything they’d had to leave behind. Sanna was depressed, while Lori missed her friends and wept over the boyfriend she wasn’t allowed to see.
The violence of men against women.
Anna-Maria sighed and went back to her office. She tried Mina’s cell phone again, but just as before it went straight to voice mail.
Something was wrong, she could feel it.
Should she call Leila Kacim? The police officer had left her card, told Anna-Maria to get in touch at any time. Maybe she should contact Herman Wibom as well?
Then again, what would she say? That Mina had gone for a walk, and hadn’t returned after two hours? They’d think she was overreacting. Mina would be back soon. There was no point in worrying about nothing.
CHAPTER 68
Dino put his foot down and shot past the terra-cotta-colored house. He approached the junction, ignoring the stop sign, and was about to turn left when a red Golf appeared, coming from that direction.
It was also driving too fast.
The two vehicles were so close that he could see the other driver’s wide-open eyes and mouth. He slammed his foot on the brake; the seat belt cut into him, and he was flung forward as the car came to a halt.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Andreis yelled.
Dino was waiting for the sound of screeching metal, but the Golf whizzed past with only inches to spare. The woman at the wheel sounded her horn angrily, and Dino gave her the finger.
“There she is—move!”
Mina had almost reached the bus stop, and the bus was pulling in. The doors opened, and Mina almost threw herself on board with the stroller.
Andreis had opened the window and was leaning out. “Stop! Mina, wait! I need to talk to you!”
Dino drew up behind the bus. Andreis opened the door and leaped out while the car was still moving. Mina was shouting hysterically at the bus driver.
“Mina, wait!” Andreis roared again. “Get off!”
The doors were closing as he grabbed hold of the black rubber edging and tried to force them open. He did his best for one endless second, but had to let go. The doors slid shut right in front of him. He started hammering on them with his fists.
“Let me in or I’ll fucking kill you!”
Mina looked absolutely terrified.
Dino got there just as Andreis produced the heavy Glock from his inside pocket and pointed it at Mina.
The bus began to move.
Dino could see from Andreis’s eyes that he’d lost control. He had to do something, and fast.
“Calm down, for fuck’s sake!” he shouted. “You can’t force her off the bus with a gun in your hand.”
“I can’t let her get away again!”
“You’ll be put away for life if you shoot her in front of a bus full of passengers.”
Andreis’s face was bright red; a vein bulged at his temple. Dino had never seen him so angry. He took hold of Andreis’s shoulders.
“There are witnesses on board—they’ve already seen too much. The driver will have called the police. We have to get out of here—right now.”
Andreis was still breathing fast, with his mouth open.
“Come on.” Dino half pushed, half dragged Andreis toward the Mercedes, listening for the sound of sirens. He opened the passenger door and managed to push Andreis into the seat, then he ran around to the other side, jumped in, and started the car.
The tires screeched as he drove away.
Andreis seemed to be in shock. He couldn’t believe that Mina had actually defied him. That she’d dared to go home, against all odds.
“I’m going to kill her for this,” he said quietly. “As soon as I find her, I’m going to kill her.”
CHAPTER 69
Nora heard Leila’s rapid footsteps approaching along the corridor.
“Has something happened?” she asked when her colleague appeared.
“It’s Mina.”
Nora’s stomach flipped. Had her mother died? Or had Kovač managed to track Mina down? She had no illusions about what he was capable of. “Go on.”
“She left Freya’s Haven this morning and went back to her house, but her husband saw her.”
“Is she still alive?” Nora exclaimed.
Leila raised her hand. “She’s fine. She managed to get away at the last minute, and she isn’t hurt. Not physically, anyway.”
“Where is she?”
“On a bus, hysterical and terrified. Kovač came after her, but she just made it on board and the bus driver took off. She called me two minutes ago, crying so hard that I could barely make out what she was saying.”
“She’s still on the bus? What if he comes after her in his car?”
“I don’t think he’ll dare—too many witnesses. I’ve sent a patrol car to pick her up, then I’ll go back to Freya’s Haven with her, make sure she stays there.”
Nora tried to digest the information. “Where’s Lukas?” she said. “Tell me
he’s at the shelter, safe and sound.”
“He’s with her.” Leila’s face hardened. “I don’t know what she was thinking. How could she take such a risk?” She checked her watch. “I have to go.”
Nora got to her feet. She couldn’t sit at her desk reading legal cases about tax fraud. “I’ll come with you,” she said, pulling on her coat.
CHAPTER 70
Leila was driving an unmarked police car, a Volvo V70 she often used when she didn’t want to attract attention.
Mina and Lukas had been taken off the bus by the officers in the patrol car without further incident. They were safe, although Mina was very upset, according to the report.
Nora was able to breathe a little more easily.
“Where are we meeting them?” she asked when they reached the freeway heading toward Gustavsberg. “In Stavsnäs?”
Leila shook her head. “That would be too obvious. They’re taking her to Mölnvik. I told them to wait behind the helicopter hangar; it’s quiet there.”
Nora ran a hand over her hair. It felt oddly stiff. She hadn’t had time to wash it this morning, but had used a new dry shampoo that made it resemble old hay. At least it didn’t look greasy. “Have you spoken to anyone at the shelter? Do they know what’s happened to Mina?”
Leila slowed down as two lanes merged into one. “I haven’t got around to it, I’m afraid.”
“I’ll do it.”
Anna-Maria answered right away, and Nora explained the situation.
“I knew it! I had a feeling something was wrong when she didn’t come back,” Anna-Maria exclaimed.
Nora switched to speakerphone so that Leila could hear. “We should be with you in about forty-five minutes. Could someone pick us up from the jetty? I’m not sure if Mina will be in any shape to walk, even though it’s not far.”
“No problem.”
Leila reached the roundabout, skirted a McDonald’s, and continued toward the helicopter base. The façade, with its huge panes of glass, looked dirty and gloomy in the sunshine.
There was a police car by the wall, with a uniformed officer waiting by the driver’s door. Leila parked beside him, got out, and showed her ID. Mina was sitting in the back with her son in her arms.
Leila opened the door and Lukas’s screams filled the air. Nora could have wept, too, when she saw Mina’s shocked face. Instead she went over and collected Mina’s things from the other officer. Leila helped Mina out of the car.
“How are you doing?” she asked.
“He tried to shoot me,” Mina whispered. “He had a gun.” She staggered, and Leila put her arm around her, providing much-needed support.
“OK, let’s get you back to Freya’s Haven,” she said.
CHAPTER 71
Ulrika was at her desk when the door to her office flew open. Andreis Kovač was standing there, shoulders hunched, his normally slicked back hair standing on end. He was clutching his cell phone.
Behind him Ulrika could just see the receptionist, looking distressed. “I asked him to wait while I called you, but he wouldn’t listen,” she said.
Ulrika got to her feet and smiled. “It’s fine.” She pointed to the visitor’s chair and turned to Kovač. “Please take a seat.”
For a moment she thought he was going to kick the armchair, but then he sat down. Ulrika returned to her place behind the desk and consulted her schedule. “Did we have a meeting today?”
Kovač was breathing hard.
“Have I missed something?” Ulrika continued. Why was he so worked up? He looked as if he were about to kill someone.
“I want to get a hold of my wife!”
Ulrika tried to gather her thoughts. She’d already explained the situation to him, several times. She’d given Wibom until tomorrow to respond, and there wasn’t much they could do before then. “I’m afraid that will be rather difficult to organize at the moment, but as I said this morning, I expect both Mina and Lukas to be home soon.”
“I need to see Mina. Make it happen—you’re my fucking lawyer!”
Ulrika clicked her pen, fighting to remain calm. “That’s not possible.”
“She was at the house today, but she took off. Fucking whore! She had Lukas with her!”
This was followed by such a tirade of swearing that Ulrika seriously considered asking him to leave.
“She came to the house behind my back! She was in my house with my son! Do you understand?”
He was almost spitting. The conversation was spiraling out of control. Ulrika took a deep breath. “To be honest, there are other things you need to focus on right now,” she said. “We’ve decided on a strategy. Have patience.”
Kovač leaned across the desk and grabbed Ulrika’s left arm, his fingers digging into her flesh. “I have a right to speak to my own wife, for fuck’s sake! Don’t tell me to be patient, or I’ll—”
“Let go of me!”
He immediately released his grip. Ulrika glared at him as she rubbed her wrist. Red marks were clearly visible on her skin.
“If you do that again, you can find yourself another lawyer. Is that clear?”
At least Kovač had the sense to look ashamed of himself. Ulrika poured herself a glass of water and took a few sips, keeping her hand steady to show that she was unmoved by what had just happened, in spite of the fact that her heart was racing.
She had to keep her composure.
“OK, let’s move on,” she said, reaching into the drawer for his file. “There are other things we can discuss today. The leak within your organization, for example.”
Kovač was already on his feet. “I’ll take care of it.” He walked out before she could say another word. Ulrika sat there with the file in her hand. She’d had many ruthless clients charged with serious crimes over the years, but Andreis Kovač made her feel more than uncomfortable.
Her arm was still painful.
She was starting to wonder whether she ought to withdraw from the case. The Swedish Bar Association wouldn’t like it, but . . .
A court order would be required for her to be relieved, because she was Kovač’s designated public defender. Better to grit her teeth and go through with the trial. It would be easier to step away before the case went to appeal.
She put down the file and rubbed her arm again. She really needed to give this some thought.
CHAPTER 72
Nora could see Anna-Maria through the window as the ferry slowed down. The crossing took only five minutes, but they’d chosen to sit on a sofa in a quiet corner. Leila had managed to get Mina to take a few sips from a can of Coke, but the girl was still dangerously pale, except for the half-healed sore above her left eyebrow glowing an angry red.
“Have a little more,” Leila cajoled her.
Mina drank a mouthful.
“Next stop Styrsvik,” the captain’s voice boomed from the loudspeaker.
“This is us,” Nora said, gently touching Mina’s arm. Mina stood up and held on to the handle of the stroller. Lukas had fallen asleep from sheer exhaustion.
Mina hadn’t said much during the drive to Stavsnäs. She should really have gone to the hospital to be checked over, but after a brief conversation with Anna-Maria, Leila had decided it would be better for mother and son to return to the safety of the shelter. They had trained staff who could take care of her. She was badly shaken; it didn’t take medical expertise to realize that she was at the breaking point.
Anna-Maria had ordered a taxi. Ten minutes later they pulled up in front of the old wooden building, where Siri was waiting anxiously in the doorway.
The idyllic setting should have been reassuring, but for Nora the contrast was too stark, given what Mina had been through. The beauty of the archipelago merely served to highlight the ugly reality.
“Mina has a visitor,” Anna-Maria said when they got out of the car. “Herman Wibom is here. He arrived about an hour ago.”
She placed a gentle hand on Mina’s shoulder.
“Do you feel up to talking t
o him? I know it’s been a difficult day, but it sounded important—otherwise he wouldn’t have come all the way out here. He said it wouldn’t take long.”
Mina’s eyes widened. “What’s wrong? Is it Mom? Has she gotten worse?”
Anna-Maria bent down and picked up a cigarette butt. She carefully wrapped it in a tissue and put it in her pocket. “I think it’s best if you talk to him. He didn’t tell me what it was about.”
Mina turned to Leila and Nora. “Will you come with me?”
“Of course.” Nora suspected she knew why Wibom was here. Ulrika Grönstedt’s threat of a custody battle was bad news for Mina. There was a risk that she might break down completely when she heard what Grönstedt had cooked up. If she did, it would give Grönstedt even more ammunition, and Nora knew she wouldn’t hesitate to use it.
Mina had to stay calm and show that she was more than capable of looking after her child; otherwise social services would step in with a temporary care order.
Or give him to his father.
As long as Kovač hadn’t been convicted of anything, he was still eligible to be granted custody of Lukas. The rule stating that a child had the right to both parents was open to absurd interpretations in the Swedish courts. Even fathers who were palpably unsuitable, including some who were actually in jail, had been given custody when the mothers were out of the picture.
Anna-Maria picked up Lukas and adjusted his pale-blue hat. He blinked in the sunlight, only half awake. He opened and closed his mouth like a little fish; he was obviously hungry. He’d start screaming again at any minute.
“I’ll go and find this little man something to eat,” Anna-Maria said. “Don’t you worry about him.”
CHAPTER 73
Herman Wibom was already waiting in the common room. As soon as they’d all sat down, he leaned toward Mina. “Your husband, or rather his lawyer, Ulrika Grönstedt, has been in touch with regard to Lukas.” He paused, as if he wasn’t quite sure how to continue. “He claims you’ve taken his son without his permission.”
