Finally Tobias nodded, turned on his heel, and rushed downstairs. Erica wanted to jump up and run after him, but Gösta gripped her arm firmly and hissed:
‘Calm down. We need to look out the window first, to see where he’s going.’
‘But Anna…’ she said in despair, trying to pull her arm loose.
Gösta refused to yield. ‘Stop and think before rushing into this. We’ll check outside, then we’ll go downstairs and find whoever it is who just arrived. Probably Patrik and the others, and then we’ll get them to help.’
‘Okay,’ said Erica, as she stood up. Her legs felt wobbly and numb.
Cautiously she and Gösta peered outside, trying to see Tobias.
‘Do you see anyone?’
‘No,’ said Gösta. ‘Do you?’
‘No. He couldn’t have gone down to the dock, because he’d run right into the arms of whoever’s coming here.’
‘He must have gone around to the back of the house. Where else could he have gone?’
‘I don’t see him, at any rate. I’m going downstairs now.’
Cautiously Erica made her way down to the front hall. The house was quiet. She didn’t hear any voices, but she knew that they would be trying to approach as soundlessly as possible. She peered out the open front door and felt sobs rise up in her throat. There was no one there.
At that instant she noticed something moving among the trees. She squinted to get a better look and relief welled up inside of her. It was Patrik, and right behind him were Martin and two other people. It took a moment for her to recognize Josef Meyer. Next to him was an elegantly dressed woman. Could that be Ia Kreutz? She waved so that Patrik would see her and then went back inside the house.
‘We’ll stay here,’ she told Gösta, who had come downstairs.
They took up position close to the wall so that they wouldn’t be visible through the doorway. Tobias could be anywhere, and she didn’t want to risk becoming a target.
‘Where could he have gone?’ said Gösta. ‘Do you think he could still be inside the house?’
Erica realized that he was right, and she glanced around in panic, fearing that Tobias might appear at any second and shoot them dead. But he was nowhere to be seen.
When Patrik and Martin finally came to join them, Erica looked into Patrik’s eyes and saw both relief and concern.
‘Tobias?’ he whispered. Erica quickly told him what had happened when Tobias noticed that someone was coming.
Patrik nodded. Then he and Martin made a quick tour of the ground floor with their guns raised. When they came back to the front hall, they shook their heads. Ia and Josef hadn’t moved. Erica wondered what they were doing here.
‘I don’t know where Anna and Ebba are. Tobias babbled something about needing to guard them. Do you think he’s locked them up somewhere?’ She couldn’t hold back a sob.
‘That’s the door to the basement,’ said Josef, pointing to a door down the hall.
‘What’s down there?’ asked Gösta.
‘We’ll explain later. There’s no time now,’ said Patrik. ‘Stay behind us. And you two stay here,’ he said to Erica and Ia.
Erica was about to protest, but gave up when she saw Patrik’s expression.
‘We’re going down there,’ said Patrik, casting one last look at Erica. She saw that he was just as scared as she was about what they might find.
VALÖ, EASTER EVE 1974
Everything was supposed to be the same as usual. That was what Rune expected. Most of the students had gone home for the holiday, and she had timidly asked whether the remaining boys might have Easter lunch with them, but Rune hadn’t even deigned to answer her. Naturally Easter lunch was only for the family.
She’d spent the last two days cooking: roast lamb, devilled eggs, poached salmon… Rune’s wishes were endless, although ‘wishes’ was not the right word. They were demands.
‘Carla always made these dishes. Every year,’ he’d told her when he handed Inez the list for their first Easter together.
She knew there was no use protesting. If Carla had done it, that was how it had to be done. God forbid she should do anything different.
‘Could you put Ebba in her highchair, Johan?’ Inez said as she set the big roast lamb on the table. She prayed that she had cooked it properly.
‘Does she really have to be here? She’ll only make a fuss.’ Annelie came sauntering in and sat down at the table.
‘What do you suggest I do with her?’ said Inez. After slaving away in the kitchen, she was in no mood for her stepdaughter’s caustic remarks.
‘I don’t know, but it’s disgusting to have her here at the table. It makes me want to throw up.’
Inez felt something snap inside of her. ‘If it’s that difficult for you, maybe you shouldn’t eat with the rest of us,’ she retorted.
‘Inez!’
She jumped. Rune had come into the dining room, and his face was bright red.
‘What did you just say? My daughter’s not welcome at the table?’ His voice was ice cold as he fixed his eyes on his wife. ‘In this family, everyone is welcome at the table.’
Annelie didn’t say a word, but Inez saw that her father’s angry remarks, offered in her defence, made the girl so gleeful that she was about to burst.
‘I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.’ Inez turned and then set the dish of potatoes on the table. But inside she was boiling. She wanted to scream out loud, obey her heart, and run away. She didn’t want to be stuck in this hellish place any longer.
‘Ebba spit up a little,’ said Johan with concern as he wiped his little sister’s chin with a napkin. ‘She isn’t sick, is she?’
‘No, she probably just ate too much baby formula,’ said Inez.
‘That’s good,’ he replied, although he didn’t sound convinced. He’s getting more and more protective, thought Inez, wondering again how he could have turned out so different from his siblings.
‘Roast lamb. I’m sure it’s not as good as Mamma’s,’ said Claes, sitting down next to Annelie. She giggled and gave him a wink, but he pretended to ignore her. Those two should have been bosom buddies, but Claes didn’t seem to care about anyone. Except his mother. He was always talking about her.
‘I’ve done the best I could,’ said Inez. Claes snorted.
‘Where have you been?’ asked Rune, reaching for the potatoes. ‘I was looking for you. Olle unloaded the boards I asked him to get. I need you to help me bring them up from the dock.’
Claes shrugged. ‘I was taking a walk. I can fetch the boards later.’
‘Right after lunch,’ said Rune, although he seemed satisfied with his son’s explanation.
‘It should be more pink,’ said Annelie, wrinkling her nose at the piece of lamb that she’d put on her plate.
Inez clenched her teeth. ‘Our oven isn’t great. The temperature is uneven. As I said, I did my best.’
‘Yuck,’ said Annelie, pushing the meat aside. ‘Could I have some gravy?’ she said to Claes, since the gravy bowl was on his left.
‘Sure,’ he said, reaching for it.
‘Whoops…’ He was staring at Inez. The gravy bowl had landed on the floor with a crash, and brown gravy spilled all over, seeping down through the cracks in the floorboards. Inez looked him in the eye. She knew that he’d done it on purpose. And he knew that she knew. ‘That was clumsy of you,’ said Rune, peering at the mess. ‘You’d better wipe it up, Inez.’