The Double Silence (Andas Knutas 7)

hollow-eyed and visibly nervous man in his fifties. Sweat was running down his forehead, and he kept on wiping it off with a handkerchief.
    The heat was oppressive, and there was no air conditioning. A pitcher of iced water stood on the table. Håkan Ek kept taking sips from his glass. He was squinting. Knutas switched on the tape recorder; then he leaned back and studied the man on the other side of the table.
    ‘When did you last hear from your wife?’
    ‘Yesterday morning. I got a text message from her.’
    ‘What did it say?’
    ‘That it was damn hot and she was longing for home.’
    ‘This whole thing about her job definitely seems surprising. Can you tell us exactly what happened when you found out that she had to cut short her holiday and go back to work?’
    Håkan shook his head.
    ‘I can’t believe I was stupid enough to throw away my mobile.’
    Knutas blanched.
    ‘What did you say?’
    ‘My mobile. I got so mad when I realized that she’d been lying to me that I threw it in the water.’
    ‘Where?’
    ‘At the harbour in Klintehamn, when we arrived by boat last night.’
    Knutas and Jacobsson exchanged glances.
    ‘I know it was idiotic. Everything was on it. The time when she sent the message, everything. But I saw red when I heard that she wasn’t expected at work after all. That none of it was true.’
    ‘Try to think back,’ Knutas admonished him, speaking in a gentler voice. Jacobsson sat in the background, studying Håkan Ek in silence.
    ‘OK. Let me see. Right. We were on Fårö, and Stina was on call, so we knew that she might have to go in to work at any time—’ As he said these words, he broke off. ‘What am I saying? Maybe she wasn’t on call. Or … I forgot to ask her. Maybe she wasn’t. Maybe it was all a lie. Did she make up the whole story?’ He gave the two police officers a pleading look.
    ‘Let’s move on for a moment,’ said Knutas. ‘Just tell us your version of what happened, what your response was, based on the information you had at the time.’
    Håkan moved restlessly on his chair, nervously picking at a scab on his hand. He took several more gulps of water. His gaze swept over the cold white walls – there was nothing on which to fix his eyes. Nothing that might interrupt the conversation. He stopped picking at his hand and seemed to gather his thoughts.
    ‘We left on Friday and got there in time for the opening ceremonies of the Bergman festival, which were held at Fårö church. It was a really splendid event, with a lot of people and plenty of celebrities among the guests. Afterwards a film was shown, and then there was a rock concert at Kuten. We had a great time. I think everybody would agree with that.’
    ‘And how did Stina seem?’
    ‘In a good mood, I think. She hasn’t been that happy and relaxed in a long time. I think both Stina and I were glad to get away from home and have some time off, without any kids or obligations.’
    ‘Why’s that? Was there any special reason why you needed to get away?’
    ‘Not really. But this spring has been hard for both of us. Stina has had to do a lot of overtime. There always seems to be a shortage of staff at the airline. And I’ve had a lot on my plate too. For one thing, my daughter from a previous marriage has been having problems. I’ve been running back and forth between Stockholm and Gotland.’
    ‘OK. So you and your wife have been busy lately. How has that affected your relationship?’
    ‘Hmm … I suppose it’s been sort of a stalemate lately. We haven’t had any fights, but not much contact either. Not like usual.’
    ‘Any other problems in your marriage?’
    ‘I don’t think you could say that. Although Stina is not an easy person to live with. It doesn’t take much for her to feel off balance.’
    ‘Let’s go back to Fårö and what happened there. Try to remember everything you can. The slightest detail could be important. When was the last time you saw Stina?’
    ‘On Saturday when we took a bus tour, following in Bergman’s footsteps. The tour ended with lunch at Lauters restaurant, and later we were supposed to go swimming, but Stina didn’t want to come along. Instead she decided to go for a bike ride.’
    ‘And that was the last time you saw her?’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘Did she say where she was going?’
    ‘No, she just wanted to ride around the island.’
    ‘Did you see which direction she headed?’
    ‘Only that she turned left up on the main