The Double Silence (Andas Knutas 7)

children wanted to live with my wife when she moved in with her sister, who runs a kennel. The kids love dogs; they always have. Baloo is from there too. I try to see them as often as possible, of course. I’m a freelance photographer, so I can set my own schedule.’
    Jacobsson was surprised by the man’s candour. She hadn’t asked about his personal life. She took a couple more sips of her iced water.
    ‘This sense of community spirit that you mentioned seems to work well around here.’
    The man sitting across from her laughed.
    ‘Well, some people show more community spirit than others.’
    ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘I’m referring to that group over there in the cul-de-sac – because I assume that they’re the ones you’re interested in. And they’ve always been rather extreme.’
    ‘In what way?’
    ‘A lot of us think that they’ve gone a bit overboard. They do everything together and always check with each other before making a decision. Almost as if they have to apologize if they want to have dinner with someone outside the gang, or if one family books a trip without consulting the others first. They just really seem to go too far.’
    Widén had an inscrutable expression on his face that Jacobsson couldn’t read.
    ‘What are you thinking of? Is there something else that I should know?’
    ‘They’re pleasant enough, but it’s a really closed circle. They don’t allow anyone else in.’ He paused for effect. ‘I think they have a lot of secrets.’
    Jacobsson was instantly on the alert.
    ‘What do you mean? What kind of secrets?’
    ‘About a year ago there was a rumour circulating. Well, it was actually more than just a rumour. Everyone was talking about it.’
    ‘About what?’
    ‘People said that the group was interested in … hmm … special arrangements. Whenever they had parties together, they would exchange partners with each other. Swinger parties.’
    Jacobsson nearly choked on the water she was drinking. She could hardly believe her ears.
    ‘Are you sure?’
    ‘As sure as I can be without having been to those parties myself. And I just remembered how the rumour got started. It was on a Sunday, and one of them who’d been at the party, Beata Dunmar, was talking to another young woman here in the neighbourhood who’s not part of the group. Her name is Sandra. Beata told her that they’d exchanged partners. Someone had seen a film on TV in which all the neighbours put their house keys in a basket and then took out one at random and went home with whoever the key belonged to. She said that’s what they’d done on Saturday night.’
    ‘Do you know who participated in these parties?’
    ‘Sam and Andrea Dahlberg, Stina and Håkan Ek, Beata and John Dunmar. Plus a couple who don’t live here any more.’
    ‘What’s their name?’
    ‘Sten and Monica. They lived here for less than a year, but I think they somehow managed to worm their way into that group. For some reason they were allowed in.’
    ‘What do you know about them?’
    ‘Not much. They lived over on Bryggargatan, and they didn’t have any children, as far as I know. They moved away after only a year.’
    ‘What’s their last name?’
    Widén paused to think.
    ‘Hmm … I’m sorry, but I can’t remember. But I’m sure the others would know.’
    ‘How long did these sorts of parties go on?’
    ‘I think there were actually only a few of them. I don’t think it worked out. I heard that the parties got out of hand and somebody was jealous … All I know is that something happened, and then they stopped.’
    Jacobsson stared in astonishment at the man sitting on the other sideof the table. She tried to make sense of what she’d just heard. This was an entirely new lead that cast a different light on the investigation. Could this be the explanation for the murders? The next step was to get hold of the couple that had moved away and then interview the rest of the group again. None of them had ever said a word about swinger parties. Jacobsson stood up and was about to thank Widén when he held out his hand.
    ‘It was nice to meet you. I’d love to see you again, if you’re interested.’
    Surprised, Jacobsson reached out to take the business card he wanted to give her.
    ‘Call me, if you like.’
    He smiled at her, and in his eyes she saw genuine appreciation. She couldn’t help smiling back. It had been a long time since a man had shown any interest in her. She could hardly remember what it felt