Harry Hole Oslo Sequence 10 - Police

Kalsnes is an interesting exception. He was homosexual, and the people Bjørn and I spoke to at the club in Drammen describe Kalsnes as a promiscuous schemer. Not only did he have deeply infatuated older partners, whom he exploited like sugar daddies, but he also sold his body for sex at the club whenever the opportunity offered itself. He was up for most things if there was any money in it.’
    ‘So someone with the kind of behaviour and line of work that put you most at risk of being murdered,’ Bjørn Holm said.
    ‘Exactly,’ Hagen said. ‘But that makes it likely that the perpetrator was also a homosexual. Or bisexual. Ståle?’
    Ståle Aune coughed. ‘Sexual predators like Valentin Gjertsen often have a complicated relationship with their sexuality. The trigger for such individuals tends to be a need for control, sadism and a desire to push limits rather than the gender and the age of the victim. But the murder of René Kalsnes could also be about jealousy. The fact that there was no sign of any sexual abuse may suggest that. As well as the fury. He’s the only one of the victims from the original four murders who was hit with a blunt instrument in the same way as the police officers.’
    There was a silence as everyone looked at Harry Hole, who had sunk into a semi-recumbent posture in the chair, still with his eyes closed and his hands folded over his stomach. Katrine Bratt thought for a moment he had fallen asleep until he coughed.
    ‘Has anyone found a link between Valentin and Kalsnes?’
    ‘Not so far,’ Katrine said. ‘No phone contact, no credit card records at the club or in Drammen or any electronic trails showing Valentin had been near René Kalsnes. And no one who knew Kalsnes had heard of Valentin or seen anyone resembling him. That doesn’t mean they haven’t . . .’
    ‘No, of course,’ Harry said, pinching his eyes shut. ‘Just wondering.’
    Silence fell in the Boiler Room as they all stared at Harry.
    He opened one eye. ‘What?’
    No one answered.
    ‘I’m not going to rise and walk on water, or turn water into wine,’ he said.
    ‘No, no, no,’ Katrine said. ‘It’s enough if you can give these four blind souls sight.’
    ‘Can’t do that either.’
    ‘I thought a leader was supposed to make his followers believe everything was possible,’ Bjørn Holm said.
    ‘Leader?’ Harry smiled, pulling himself up in the chair. ‘Have you told them about my status, Hagen?’
    Gunnar Hagen cleared his throat. ‘Harry no longer has the status or the powers of a police officer, so he’s been brought in solely as a consultant, just like Ståle. That means, for example, that he can’t apply for warrants, carry weapons or undertake arrests. And it also means he can’t lead a police operation. It is in fact important that we abide by these rules. Imagine if we catch Valentin, have bags full of evidence, but the defence counsel discovers we haven’t proceeded by the book.’
    ‘These consultants . . .’ Ståle Aune said, tamping his pipe with a grimace. ‘I’ve heard they have hourly rates that make psychologists look like dimwits. So let’s make the most of our time here. Say something smart, Harry.’
    Harry shrugged.
    ‘Right,’ Ståle Aune said, with a wry smile, putting the unlit pipe in his mouth. ‘Because we’ve already said the smartest things we can come up with. And we’ve been in a rut for a while.’
    Harry looked down at his hands. And at length took a deep breath.
    ‘I don’t know how smart this is, it’s pretty half-baked, but here’s what I’ve been thinking . . .’ He raised his head and met four pairs of round eyes.
    ‘I’m aware Valentin is a suspect. The problem is we can’t find him. So I suggest we find a new suspect.’
    Katrine Bratt could hardly believe her ears. ‘What? We have to suspect someone we don’t think did it?’
    ‘We don’t think,’ Harry said. ‘We suspect with various degrees of probability. And weigh the probability against how resource-intensive it would be to have the suspicion confirmed or rejected. We consider it less likely that there is life on the moon than on Gliese 581d, which is a perfect distance from its sun, where the water doesn’t boil or freeze. Yet we check the moon first.’
    ‘Harry Hole’s fourth commandment,’ Bjørn Holm said. ‘Start searching where there is light. Or was it the fifth?’
    Hagen coughed. ‘Our mandate is to find Valentin. Everything else is the responsibility of the