with numbers and not enough with people.’
‘And where did he work after that?’ Patrik’s coffee had grown cold, but he kept on taking small sips.
‘He worked at several different places. I’m sure I can find you the names if you like, but for the last four years he was responsible for the finances of a non-profit organization called the Refuge.’
‘What do they do?’
‘It’s a group that helps women who have fled from domestic violence situations, seeing to it that they can rebuild their lives. Matte loved that job. He hardly talked about anything else.’
‘Why did he quit?’
Gunnar and Signe glanced at each other, and Patrik realized that they had wondered the same thing.
‘Well, we think it had something to do with the assault. He didn’t feel safe living in Göteborg any longer,’ said Gunnar.
‘And he wasn’t safe here, either,’ said Signe.
No, thought Patrik, he certainly wasn’t. No matter what had prompted Mats Sverin to leave Göteborg, the violence had caught up with him.
‘How long was he in hospital after the assault?’
‘Three weeks, I think,’ replied Gunnar. ‘It was a shock when we saw him there.’
‘Show him the pictures,’ said Signe quietly.
Gunnar got up and went into the living room. He came back carrying a small box.
‘I don’t really know why we saved these photographs. They’re not exactly the kind that you’d want to show anyone.’ His calloused fingers reached into the box and gently removed the photos.
‘May I see?’ Patrik held out his hand, and Gunnar gave him the small stack. ‘My God!’ He couldn’t hold back his reaction when he saw the pictures of Mats Sverin lying in the hospital bed. What he saw bore no resemblance to the young man in all the photos in the living room. His face, his entire head was swollen. And his skin was various shades of red, with tinges of blue.
‘I know,’ said Gunnar, looking away.
‘They said he could have died. But he was lucky, in spite of it all.’ Signe blinked away her tears.
‘From what I understand, they never caught the perpetrators. Is that right?’
‘Yes,’ said Signe. ‘Do you think this might have something to do with what happened to Matte? The young thugs who attacked him were complete strangers. It was because he told one of them not to urinate outside the door to his building. He’d never seen them before. Why would they …?’ Her voice now sounded shrill.
Gunnar stroked her arm to calm her down.
‘They don’t know anything yet. The police just want to find out as much as possible,’ he told her.
‘That’s right,’ said Patrik. ‘We don’t have any answers yet. We need to build up as complete a picture of Mats and his life as we can.’ He turned to look at Signe. ‘Your husband said that as far as you’re aware, Mats didn’t have a girlfriend at the moment. Did he?’
‘No, or if he did, he kept that information to himself. To be honest, I’d almost given up hope of ever having a grandchild,’ said Signe. But when she realized what she’d said, and that now there was no hope of such a thing, the tears began to fall again.
Gunnar squeezed her hand.
‘I think there was someone in Göteborg,’ Signe went on, her voice thick with sobs. ‘He never said so, but I had a sense there was a woman. And sometimes I could smell perfume on his clothes when he came home to visit. The same perfume each time.’
‘But he never mentioned a name?’ asked Patrik.
‘No, never, even though Signe couldn’t resist asking him a few times,’ said Gunnar, smiling.
‘Well, I didn’t see why it had to be such a big secret. Why couldn’t he have brought her home one weekend so we could meet her? We can behave ourselves if we make an effort.’
Gunnar shook his head. ‘As you can tell, this was a rather sensitive subject.’
‘Did you have the impression that this woman, whoever she might have been, continued to be part of Mats’s life after he moved back to Fjällbacka?’
‘Hmmm …’ Gunnar looked at Signe.
‘No, she wasn’t,’ she said emphatically. ‘A mother knows such things. And I would almost swear that he no longer had a girlfriend.’
‘I don’t think he could ever forget Nathalie,’ Gunnar interjected.
‘What do you mean? That was ages ago. They were just children.’
‘That doesn’t matter. There was something special about Nathalie. I’ve always thought so, and I think Matte … You saw how he reacted when we told him that she was back, didn’t you?’
‘Yes, but how old were they at the time? Seventeen? Eighteen?’
‘I still think I’m right,’ Gunnar stubbornly insisted. ‘And he was going to go out there to see her.’
‘Excuse me.’ Patrick broke into the conversation. ‘But who is Nathalie?’
‘Nathalie Wester. She and Matte grew up together. As a matter of fact, they were in the same class as your wife. Both Matte and Nathalie.’
Gunnar seemed a bit embarrassed to admit that he knew Erica, but Patrik wasn’t surprised. Almost everybody in Fjällbacka knew everyone else, but they also took a special interest in Erica because her books were so popular.
‘Does Nathalie still live here?’
‘No, she moved away years ago. She went to Stockholm, and she and Matte haven’t been in contact since then. But she owns an island near here. It’s called Gråskär.’
‘And you think that Mats went out there to see her?’
‘He might not have had time to do that,’ said Gunnar. ‘But you can phone Nathalie and ask her.’ He got up to get a note that was stuck on the refrigerator door. ‘Here’s her mobile number. I don’t know how long she’s planning to stay. She’s out there with her little boy.’
‘Does she come here often?’
‘No, in fact we were a bit surprised. She’s hardly been here since she moved to Stockholm. Her last visit was years ago. But the island belongs to her. Her paternal grandfather bought it, and Nathalie is the only descendent left, since she doesn’t have any siblings. We’ve looked after the house for her, but if nothing is done with the lighthouse very soon, it’ll end up beyond saving.’
‘The lighthouse?’
‘Yes, there’s an old lighthouse from the nineteenth century out there on the island. And a cottage. In the past, that’s where the lighthouse
