The Leopard(124)

‘Yes.’

‘So what’s the hurry? I’m seeing you at two.’

‘That was what I wanted to clarify with you, Bellman.’

‘Clarify?’

‘Before we meet the others. Agreeing on the conditions for me to join the team.’

‘The team?’ Bellman laughed. ‘What are you talking about, Harry?’

‘Do you want me to spell it out for you? You don’t need me to ring Australia and persuade a woman to come here to act as a decoy, you can do that yourself without any bother. What you’re asking for is help.’

‘Harry! Really now . . .’

‘You look knackered, Bellman. You’ve started to feel it, haven’t you. You’ve felt the pressure escalate since Marit Olsen.’ Harry sat down on the bench beside him. Even then, he was almost ten centimetres taller. ‘Feeding frenzy in the press every sodding day. Impossible to walk past a newspaper stand or switch on the TV without being reminded of the Case. The Case you haven’t solved. The Case your bosses are nagging you about all the time. The Case that requires a press conference a day where the vultures scream questions into each other’s beaks. And now the man you yourself released has vanished into the blue beyond. The vultures swarm in, some of them cackling in Swedish, Danish and even English. I’ve been where you are now, Bellman. Soon they’ll be talking fucking French. For this is the Case you have to solve, Bellman. And the Case has gone stale.’

Bellman didn’t answer, but his jaw muscles were grinding. Kolkka had packed the rope in the sack and came towards them, but Bellman waved him away. The Finn turned and waddled towards the exit like an obedient terrier.

‘What do you want, Harry?’

‘I’m offering you the chance to get this sorted out one on one, instead of at a meeting.’

‘You want me to ask you for help?’

Harry saw Bellman’s complexion redden.

‘What sort of bargaining position do you imagine you’re in, Harry?’

‘Well, I imagine it’s better than it has been for a while.’

‘You’re mistaken there.’

‘Kaja Solness doesn’t want to work for you. Bjørn Holm you’ve already promoted, and if you send him back to being a crime scene officer he’ll be only too pleased. The only person you can hurt now is me, Bellman.’

‘Have you forgotten I can lock you up so that you can’t visit your father before he dies?’

Harry shook his head. ‘There’s no one to visit any more, Bellman.’

Mikael Bellman arched an eyebrow in surprise.

‘They rang from the hospital this morning,’ Harry said. ‘My father went into a coma last night. Dr Abel says he won’t come out of it. Whatever was left unsaid between my father and me will remain unsaid.’





54


Tulip


BELLMAN LOOKED AT HARRY IN SILENCE. THAT IS, THE BROWN deer-like eyes were directed towards Harry, but his gaze was inverted. Harry knew that a committee meeting was in progress there, a meeting with a lot of dissenting opinions, it seemed. Bellman slowly loosened the strings of the chalk bag hanging around his waist, as if to gain time. Time to think. Then he angrily stuffed the chalk bag in his rucksack.

‘If – and only if – I asked you for help without having anything to pressurise you with,’ he said, ‘why on earth would you do it?’

‘I don’t know.’

Bellman stopped packing and looked up. ‘You don’t know?’

‘Well, it definitely wouldn’t be out of love for you, Bellman.’ Harry breathed in. Fidgeted with a pack of cigarettes. ‘Let’s say that even those who believe themselves to be homeless occasionally discover that they have a home. A place where you could imagine being buried one day. And do you know where I want to be buried, Bellman? In the park in front of Police HQ. Not because I love the police or have been a fan of what is known as esprit de corps. Quite the opposite – I spit on the police officer’s craven loyalty to the force, that incestuous camaraderie that exists only because people think they may need a favour one rainy day. A colleague who can exact vengeance, make a testimony or, if necessary, turn a blind eye for you, I hate all that.’

Harry faced Bellman.

‘But the police is all I have. It’s my tribe. And my job is to clear up murders. Whether it is for Kripos or Crime Squad. Can you grasp something like that, Bellman?’

Mikael Bellman squeezed his lower lip between thumb and first finger.

Harry motioned to the wall. ‘What grade was the climb, Bellman? Seven plus?’

‘Eight minimum. On sight.’

‘That’s tough. And I guess you think this is even tougher. But that’s how it has to be.’