The Return of the Dancing Master(136)
(Silence. The tape was still running. Somebody coughed, the lawyer perhaps.)
Lindman understood why. There was something wrong here. It was pitch-black in the forest. How had she been able to see anything? In addition, Andersson was tied to a tree when he died. Or at least the police had assumed that he was still alive when he’d been tied to the tree. Lindman suspected that Larsson was beginning to wonder about Berggren’s confession, and was asking himself how to proceed. He was probably trying to recall what had been published in the media, and what was known only to the police.
GL: So you shot him from in front?
EB: Yes.
GL: Can you say roughly how far away from him you were?
EB: Three meters or so.
GL: And he didn’t move? Didn’t try to run away?
EB: I suppose he didn’t believe I was going to shoot.
GL: Can you remember what time it was when this happened?
EB: Around about midnight.
GL: That means it was dark.
EB: I had a strong flashlight with me. I made him carry it when we walked into the forest.
(Another short pause. Berggren had answered the first question that had worried Larsson.)
GL: What happened after you’d shot him?
EB: I looked to make sure he was dead. He was.
GL: Then what did you do?
EB: I tied him to a tree trunk. I had a clothesline with me.
GL: So you tied him up after you’d shot him?
EB: Yes.
GL: Why did you do that?
EB: At that time I had no intention of making a confession. I wanted to make it look as if it was something different.
GL: Something different from what?
EB: A murder a woman could have done. I made it look more like an execution.
(The second question answered, Lindman thought. But Larsson still doesn’t really believe her.)
EB: I need to go to the bathroom.
GL: Then we’ll take a break here, at 15:32. Erik can show you where it is.
The tape started running again. The interrogation continued. Larsson went back to the beginning, repeated all the questions, but stopped in connection with more and more details. A classic interrogation, Lindman thought. Larsson is tired, he’s been working day and night for several days, but he’s still in complete control of what he’s saying, step by step.
The tape stopped. Larsson had brought the interrogation to a close at 17:02. The last thing he said on the tape was the only conclusion he could draw.
GL: Okay, I think we can stop there. What has happened is that you, Elsa Berggren, have confessed to shooting Abraham Andersson, intentionally and after having planned it, at his house at Dunkarret on November 3, shortly after midnight. You have described in detail what happened, and stated that the motive was that you and Herbert Molin had been blackmailed, or threatened with blackmail. You also said that you threw the murder weapon into the Ljusnan River from the old bridge. Is that all correct?
EB: Yes.
GL: Is there anything you’ve said that you’d like to change?
EB: No.
GL: Is there anything Mr. Hermansson would like to say?
SH: No.
GL: I must now inform you that you are under arrest and will be taken to the police station in Ostersund. Then a public prosecutor will make a decision about remanding you into custody. Your lawyer will explain all this to you. Is there anything you wish to add?
EB: No.
GL: What you have told us is exactly what happened, is that correct?
EB: Yes.
GL: Then I shall conclude the interrogation at this point.
Lindman stood up and stretched his back. It was stuffy in the room. He opened a window and emptied the half-bottle of mineral water. Thought about what he’d heard. He felt the need to stretch his legs. Larsson was asleep somewhere. He wrote a note and put it on the desk. Short walk, to both bridges and back. Stefan.
He walked quickly because he was cold. The path by the river was well-lit. Again he had the feeling that somebody was following him. He stopped and turned. Nobody in sight. Although—had there been a shadowy figure dodging out of the light? I’m imagining things, he told himself. There’s nobody there. He continued toward the bridge from which Berggren claimed to have dropped her shotgun into the river. Not thrown, dropped. Was she telling the truth? He had to assume so. Nobody confesses to a murder they haven’t committed unless there is a very special reason to protect the real culprit. In such cases, the culprit is usually a child. Parents sometimes accept the blame to save their children. But otherwise? He came to the bridge, tried imagining the shotgun lying there in the water, then turned back. There was one question that Larsson had overlooked. Why had she chosen this particular day to confess? Why not yesterday? Why not tomorrow? Did she only finally make up her mind today? Or was there some other reason?