The Return of the Dancing Master(131)

“Have we got a time scale?” Larsson said. A question apparently directed mainly at himself.

“It was precisely 4:03 when you phoned me,” Rundström said.

“So this drama must have taken place between 3:30 and 3:45.”

The penny dropped for all of them at the same time.

“The cars,” Larsson said slowly. “Two passed through our roadblock shortly before Wallen called to tell us about the shooting.”

All three realized what that meant. The man who did the shooting could have passed through the cordon already. Larsson looked at Lindman.

“Can you remember? The last two cars to pass through?”

“The first was a woman in a green Saab. Erik knew her.”

Larsson agreed.

“Then there was another car after that woman had gone. Driving rather fast. What was it? A Ford?”

“A red Ford Escort,” Lindman said.

“A young man in a fur hat. Driving back south after visiting some relatives in Hede. The time would fit. First he shoots up this car, and then he passes through our checkpoint.”

“Did you check his driver’s license?”

Larsson shook his head grimly.

“Registration number?”

Larsson called Johansson and explained what had happened. He waited, then put his cell phone back in his pocket.

“ABB 303,” he said. “Erik’s not absolutely certain about the numbers. His notebook got wet and the pages are stuck together. We’re handling this business very badly.”

“Let’s trace that car right away,” Rundström said. “Red Ford Escort. ABB 303, or something similar. We want the owner now, no delays. We yell at Erik later.”

“Let’s try to get clear about what’s happened,” Larsson said. “There are tons of questions that need answering. Just so we don’t overlook something crucial. How could anybody know that Hereira would be driving past in a dark blue Golf at this very spot and at this time? Who stands in the middle of the road and tries to kill him?”

Rundström and Larsson got out their cell phones again. Lindman did the same, but had no idea who to call. A car drew up with the dog handler, two other officers, and Dolly the Alsatian. The dog found a scent immediately. The officers headed into the forest.

Rundström exploded in anger when he’d finished his call. “The stupid computer’s down. We can’t trace the car,” he said. “Why does everything always have to be fucked up?”

“Did it crash or is it a software glitch?”

Larsson was talking to somebody in Ostersund and to Rundström at the same time.

“They’re putting in new data. They claim it’ll be up and running within an hour.”

The forensic officer went past. He had gone to his car to exchange his shoes for rubber boots.

“Have you found anything?” Larsson said.

“All kinds of things, but I’ll give you a holler if I think it’s important.”





It was still dark at 6 A.M. The police officers and the dog returned from the forest.

“She lost the scent,” the dog handler said. “She’s tired as well. You can’t push her beyond her limits. We’ll have to get some more dogs here.”

Rundström was talking nonstop on the phone. Larsson had unfolded the map again.

“He hasn’t got much to choose from. He’ll come to two gravel roads. The rest is nothing but trees. He’ll have to choose one of these two roads.”

Larsson folded the map carelessly and tossed it into the car. Rundström was berating somebody for not “understanding how serious this is.” Larsson took Lindman with him to the other side of the road.

“You think clearly,” Larsson said. “And you are lucky enough not to be responsible for all this. Even so, you can help us by telling us what conclusions you think we should reach.”

“You’ve already asked the most important question,” Lindman said. “How could anybody know that Hereira was going to come down this very road tonight?”

Larsson stared at him for a long while before replying. They were standing in the light from one of the police cars’ headlights.

“Can there be more than one answer?” Larsson asked.

“Hardly.”

“So whoever did the shooting must have been in contact with Hereira?”

“It’s the only possibility I can see. Either directly with Hereira, or with a third party who was a link between the two of them.”

“And then he stakes out this road, intending to kill him.”

“I can’t think of any other explanation. Unless there’s a leak from the police. Somebody passing on information about where we were setting up roadblocks, and why.”