Page 108 of The Sleepwalker
4416 18th St., San Francisco, CA 94114, USA
Phone: +14 158311200
Joona thanks her and ends the call, then immediately dials the number she gave him. He hears it ring, the sound travelling through a fuzzy, pulsing abyss for a moment before there is a click and the connection becomes crystal clear and oddly intimate.
‘Elisabeth,’ a woman says, as though she were standing right in front of him.
‘Hello. My name is Joona Linna, and I’m a detective superintendent with—’
‘What’s happened?’ she asks, sounding panicked.
‘I’m in the process of investigating a serious crime here in Sweden, and I need to ask you a few questions.’
‘What sort of crime?’
He can hear shrieking, laughter and whistles in the background, and realises she must be in a playground or a school yard.
‘Our investigation has thrown up a close match for your DNA, and I was wondering if you have any children .?.?. or a mother or sister who might have been in Sweden over the past few weeks.’
‘I have a sister in Sweden,’ she replies, swallowing hard.
‘No children?’
‘Yes, but they’re five and eight.’
‘Can you corroborate their alibis?’ Joona jokes.
‘I’m not so sure about the little one,’ she replies, a smile in her voice.
‘Noted.’
‘I have almost no contact with my sister, but I’m guessing she still lives on the family farm,’ she continues.
‘Where is this farm?’
‘I call it a farm, but it’s really just a load of junk in a hole called Rickeby .?.?. I grew up there.’
‘Rickeby .?.?. in Vallentuna?’
‘That’s the one.’
‘Could you tell me your sister’s name?’
‘Lotta .?.?. Ann-Charlotte Olsson.’
‘Have you spoken to her recently?’
‘What’s this about?’
‘I’m afraid I can’t discuss an ongoing investigation.’
‘But I’m guessing it must be worse than benefit fraud or moonshine?’
‘Yes.’
Joona thanks Elisabeth Olsson for her help and sits down at the dining table with his laptop in front of him. He searches Ann-Charlotte Olsson’s name and looks up the address. There are five small buildings visible in the satellite images, tucked away at the end of a gravel track between woodland and fields.
‘Stay right where you are,’ he tells them.
