"Since he seems to have experience in butchering animals or at least in handling their bodies, we've checked out all employees of the Gotland butcher shops. Unfortunately we didn't turn up anything especially interesting," Jacobsson interjected. "Or from the veterinarians or their assistants, either."
Knutas looked discouraged. "Well, at least we know that the modus operandi of these murders was derived from something called the threefold death, and that it was part of ancient Nordic tradition. Who might conceivably have an interest in something like that?"
"Someone who's interested in the?sir religion and ancient Nordic mythology. The type who's a member of a group dedicated to such things," Kihlgard suggested.
"Do we have anything like that here on Gotland? Does anyone know?" Knutas tossed out the questions. They all shook their heads.
"I suppose this is something different from the medievalists?" Jacobsson queried. "There are lots of people who are busy putting together the medieval festival for next week, but they wouldn't be interested in the?sir religion, would they?"
"The Middle Ages came after the Viking Age, at the same time that the North became Christian. I think that was around 1100," said Knutas. "Still, it's possible that the two could be linked. We need to start by looking at the groups that are focused on the?sir religion. After that somebody should also talk to the people involved with the medieval festival. Surely they have some kind of formal organization, don't they?"
"I can look into it," Jacobsson offered.
"I'd be happy to help," said Kihlgard. "It sounds incredibly exciting."
"Fine. Get some others to help you, too. This has to be regarded as a major lead. We need to give it top priority. This whole story started with the decapitated horse out at Petesviken in June. We're going to have to start back there and make a list of all the people who've come into the picture in some way during the investigation. Then we need to find out which of them has ties to the?sir religion or to ancient Nordic mythology."
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 4
His cover name was Viking Venture, but Johan quickly realized that the contact he'd found via the American Web site was Swedish and presumably lived on Gotland. Though it seemed very unlikely that a Got-lander would be selling ancient relics on the American market. He had been e-mailing back and forth with Viking Venture, presenting himself as an interested buyer who was prepared to pay well for Viking Age artifacts from Gotland. The contact said that he could offer quite a number of rarities that might be of interest. Johan pretended to be a collector from Skane, and after they had exchanged e-mails a number of times, he managed to get the man who called himself Viking Venture to agree to a meeting. They decided to meet on the following Saturday at the indoor ice-skating rink, right outside Visby.
Johan was going to try to get this seller of stolen goods on videotape, using a little camera that they had at the office. On Wednesday Pia had carefully explained to him how to use it. They agreed not to say anything to the police or to the home office back in Stockholm. This was their own project. Johan felt quite excited.
Emma had called him at work, suggesting that they could have dinner together at her house on Saturday and invite Pia Lilja and Niklas Appelqvist. It would be their first dinner party. He interpreted this as yet another sign that Emma was starting to relent. Maybe they were finally on their way to having a real relationship. The management at Swedish TV had decided to keep the team on Gotland for a trial period in the fall, and Pia had been given the camera job. Johan was the obvious choice for reporter, since he wanted the position and had so far done a good job. He was grateful to be able to stay on the island; at least he could stop worrying about that. Besides, he had the legal right to see his child, and it was a right that he wanted to safeguard.
One thing he was sure of. No matter what happened between him and Emma, he would never budge an inch when it came to his relationship with his daughter.
To his great joy, he had noticed a change in Emma's attitude toward him since Elin was born. She was more loving and tended to cling to him more, daring to show her weaknesses. It was as if he had become more important now that he was the father of her child. She would always be dependent on him, in one way or another. The thought appealed to him.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 5
The cruise liner Nordic Star arrived from Riga, Lativa, and majestically slid into berth number eleven in Visby harbor on this Thursday morning. The city couldn't have presented a more beautiful image. The sun colored the facades with a warm, golden sheen, and the temperature had already reached sixty-eight degrees. The American tourists, who had only one day at their disposal to explore Gotland before they continued their journey to Stockholm, were delighted before even stepping off the gangway. The cathedral tower, the ring wall, and the medieval buildings looked fascinating, and a mood of enthusiastic anticipation hovered over the harbor. Ten shiny, air-conditioned tourist buses were parked in a row, ready to swallow up the hundreds of chattering tourists who came streaming off the boat. They wore shorts, T-shirts, and caps, and every single one had a camera around his or her neck. The average age was somewhere between fifty and sixty, although there were a few younger couples. Waiting on the dock, the local guides were clearly visible in their blue vests from the guide association. The buses quickly filled, and one by one they rolled out of the harbor, ready to explore the island.
Matilda Drakenberg's bus was one of the first to leave. The guides had divided up the sightseeing tour so as not to overlap with each other. Matilda's bus was supposed to start outside the city and then proceed inward from there. First stop was the nature preserve of Hogklint, just south of Visby. From there they would have a wonderful view of the city and the sea. Next would be the Botanical Gardens and a stroll inside the wall. The tour would end at the East Gate, when the tourists would be free to have lunch and go shopping on their own.
She welcomed the visitors, and before the bus had even reached the coast road heading for Hogklint, she had already started telling them about Visby's history. The tourist groups were all strangely similar. Americans were positive, full of questions, and fascinated by anything that was more than a hundred years old. When she told them that the ring wall had been built in the thirteenth century, they all looked amazed.
The bus stopped as close to Hogklint as possible. Americans were not known to be a people fond of walking, and several in the group were seriously overweight. An older man used a cane, and he seemed to have a great deal of trouble getting around.
Mathilda was already dreading the walk through Visby's cobblestone streets. She waited until everyone was off the bus and then led the way up the little hill toward the overlook.
When Matilda later had to recount what she saw on that morning, she had a hard time remembering the order in which everything occurred. She had a strong memory of the cheerful chatter of the group and of the man from Wisconsin who ended up walking beside her, asking a hundred questions about everything from the average income in Sweden to where Ingmar Bergman had lived on Gotland. He also wanted to know who the Swedes thought had murdered Olof Palme. There was always one of those in each group, someone who showed up and asked tons of questions in private, draining her energy. Afterward she recalled how she had tried to evade his questions, explaining to him that she would answer them later in front of the whole group, so that everyone could hear. The man didn't seem to get the message. He kept on asking questions.
The group gathered at the top of the slope and enjoyed the magnificent view of Visby and the dramatic coastline.