Youll do the same once youve been inside, Gunnarsson says, grinning at Joona.
What do we know so far?
We dont know a damn thing. The alarm came early this morning. The therapist in charge here called. His names Daniel Grim. It was four oclock. He was at home on Bruksgatan in Sundsvall. Hed just got a phone call from the place. He didnt know what was going on when he called us, but said the girls were screaming about a lot of blood.
So it was the girls themselves who called him? Joona asks.
Thats right.
They didnt call emergency? They called the therapist in Sundsvall?
Exactly.
Shouldnt there be staff on-site?
Apparently theres not.
But some adult?
We dont know. Its impossible to talk to the girls, Gunnarsson says. He sounds weary.
Which one of them made the call?
One of the older ones Gunnarsson glances at his notebook by the name of Caroline Forsman. From what I understand, she was not the one who found the body, but the crime scenes a mess, several of the girls have looked into the room. One of them got so hysterical they had to take her to the hospital. Let me tell you, its a gruesome sight.
Who were the first officers on the scene? Joona asks.
There were two, Rolf Wikner and Sonja Rask. And I got here around a quarter to six. I called the prosecutor. She must have shit her pants over it, since she called you guys in Stockholm. And now I have you hanging around my neck.
Gunnarsson smiles again at Joona. Its not a friendly smile.
Any suspects yet?
Gunnarsson sighs and then says, as if hes giving a lecture, Ive been at this sort of thing for a long time and my experience tells me to let the investigation take its course. Start from the beginning, find witnesses, secure evidence
May I go inside and take a look? Joona asks, glancing at the front door.
I wouldnt recommend it. Well soon have photos for you.
I need to take a look at her body before its moved, Joona says.
Its blunt trauma, Gunnarsson says. The perpetrator is tall. After she died, the victim was placed on her bed and no one noticed anything until one of the girls had to go to the bathroom and stepped into blood that had come out from under the door.
Was it still warm?
You know, these arent the easiest girls in the world to work with, Gunnarsson says. Theyre frightened and angry all the time and theyve been arguing about everything we say and not listening at all. Theyve been screaming at us. Earlier this morning they tried to cross the police tape to fetch things from their rooms, iPods and jackets and so on, and when we tried to move them out to the smaller building, two ran off into the woods.
Ran off?
Oh, we caught up with them, and were trying to get them to return on their own. Right now theyre lying on the ground and demanding that Rolf give them a piggyback ride.
14
Joona puts on his protective gear and walks up the steps into the big house. Inside the entrance, he can hear floodlight fans humming, and the air is already too warm. Dust motes float through the air.
He walks across the protective mats that have been placed on the tiled floor. A picture has fallen from the wall and the broken glass glitters in the bright light. There are bloody footprints in all directions, to and from the front door.
The home has retained some details from when it was a wealthy farmhouse. The colors of stenciled patterns on the walls are a bit faded, but fanciful vegetables and vines, painted by itinerant painters from Dalarna two hundred years ago, still meander along the walls and around the chimneys.
A technician, who introduces himself as Jimi Sjöberg, is aiming a green light beam at a black chair hes sprayed with Hungarian Red.
Any blood? asks Joona.
Not on this one, answers Jimi, continuing to look for traces of blood.
Found anything unusual?
The Head of Crime Scene Investigation in Stockholm told us not to move even a single piece of fly shit until Joona Linna gives us permission, Jimi replies, smiling.
And Im very grateful.
So, the thing is, we havent really started yet, Jimi says. Weve put down these damned mats and weve taken photos and filmed everything, and Ive taken the liberty of swabbing a blood sample from the hallway so we could send it to the lab.
Good.
And Siri lifted prints in the hallway before they could be ruined.
A second technician, Siri Karlsson, has just removed the brass handle from one of the doors. She puts it in a paper bag and comes over.
This guy needs a look at the crime scene, Jimi says.
Not a pretty sight, Siri says through the dust mask covering her mouth and nose. Her eyes look strained and tired.
So I understand, Joona says.
You can take a look at the photos instead if youd like, Siri says.
This is Joona Linna, Jimi says.
Sorry, I didnt recognize you.
Im here only as an observer, Joona says.
Siri looks away and the mask cant hide her flushed cheeks when she looks back at him. Sorry. Everyones talking about whats happening to you. And I... that is... I dont care about the internal investigation. I think itll be great to work together.
I think so, too, Joona replies.
He stands for a moment longer, listening to the hum of the floodlights. Hes searching for that mental stillness that will allow him to observe and not give in to the impulse to look away.