Part 28 (1/2)

'Did that agree with your own conclusions?' said Martin Beck.

'Exactly,' said Gunvald Larsson. 'And yours?'

'Yes.'

They were silent for a moment, Martin Beck standing in his usual old place by the filing cabinet, pinching the bridge of his nose between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, Gunvald Larsson over by the window.

Martin Beck sneezed.

'Bless you,' said Gunvald Larsson.

'Thank you. You think Heydt's still here?'

'Certain of it'

'Certain,' said Martin Beck. 'That's a strong word.'

'Maybe,' said Gunvald Larsson. 'But I feel certain. He's somewhere and we can't find him. Not even his d.a.m.ned car. What do you think?'

Martin Beck didn't reply for a long time. 'Okay,' he said finally. 'I think he's still here, too. But I'm not certain.' He shook his head.

Gunvald Larsson said nothing, staring gloomily out at the almost completed colossus outside.

'You'd like to meet Reinhard Heydt, wouldn't you?' Martin Beck said.

'How do you know that?'

'How long have we known, each other?' asked Martin Beck in return.

'Ten or twelve years. Maybe a little longer.'

'Exactly. And that answers your question.'

Another silence, a long one.

'You think a lot about Heydt,' said Martin Beck.

'All the time. Except when I'm asleep.'

'But you can't be in three places at once.'

'Hardly,' said Gunvald Larsson.

'Then you'll have to choose. Which one do you think's the most likely?'

'Oslo,' said Gunvald Larsson. 'They've got a mysterious booking on the Copenhagen boat for the evening of the twenty-second.' 'What sort of boat?' 'King Olav V. Luxury boat.'

'Sounds all right,' said Martin Beck. 'What sort of booking?'

'An Englishman. Roger Blackman.'

'Norway's lousy with English tourists all year round.'

'True, but they seldom travel that way. And this Blackman can't be traced. At least, the Norwegian police can't find him.'

Martin Beck thought, then said, 'I'll take Benny with me and go to Malmo.'

'Skacke?' said Gunvald Larsson. 'Why don't you take Einar instead?'

'Benny's better than you think. And he also- knows Malmo. There are a number of other good men there, too.' 'Really?'

'Per Mnsson's good, for instance.'

Gunvald Larsson grunted, as he often did when he didn't want to say yes or no. Instead he said, 'Which means that Einar and Melander will have to go to Helsingborg. Helsingborg's d.a.m.ned difficult'

'Right,' said Martin Beck. 'So they'll need proper backing. We'll have to arrange for that. Do you want Stromgren to go with you to Norway?'

Gunvald Larsson stared stubbornly out of the window and said, 'I wouldn't want to go for a p.i.s.s with Stromgren. Not even if we were alone together on a desert island. And I've told him so.'

'Your popularity is easily explained.'

'Yes, isn't it?'

Martin Beck looked at Gunvald Larsson. It had taken him five years to learn to put up with him, and equally long to begin to understand him. In another five years, maybe they would like each other.

'Which are the critical days?'

'The twentieth to the twenty-third inclusive,' said Gunvald Larsson.

'That means Friday, Sat.u.r.day, Sunday and Monday?' 'Probably.'

'Why not Christmas Eve itself?'

'All right. Christmas Eve too.'

'We'll have to reckon on full alert,' said Martin Beck.

'We're already on full alert'

'- full alert, plus the five of us from tomorrow evening on,' said Martin Beck. 'Right on through the Christmas holiday if nothing happens before that'

'He'll go on Sunday,' said Gunvald Larsson.

'According to you, yes. But what's Heydt thinking?'

Gunvald Larsson raised his arms, placed his large hairy hands on the window frame and went on staring out into the grey misery outside.