Page 93 of Hidden in Memories
“Anything interesting?”
“There’s a girl from Ljungbyhed who works as a waitress at the hotel. She says she heard the sound of a snow scooter outside the block shortly after midnight on Wednesday.”
“A snow scooter,” Daniel repeats, rubbing a hand over his beard. He remembers the tracks they found on Wednesday when they were searching with Molly the dog for the weapon that killed Charlotte Wretlind. The clear impressions in the snow, indicating that a scooter had been parked on the edge of the forest.
Now it seems as if the same type of vehicle was also involved in the second killing.
“Aada Kuus should have been on her way home after her late shift at that time,” Raffe says.
“That’s right,” Anton confirms. “And we have evidence to suggest that Charlotte’s murderer made his escape by scooter on Sunday. It could be a coincidence ...”
“Or not,” Daniel says dryly.
Paul Lehto could easily have driven home in his car on Wednesday, exactly as he said, then come back on his scooter to strangle an eyewitness who constituted a threat to him.
Hanna’s phone buzzes.
“Look what Nadim has found,” she says, holding up the screen. “Guess whose IP address is the source of the aggressive comments on Facebook?”
She pauses for effect.
“Bengt Hedin’s work computer.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Anton says. “There was something very unpleasant about that guy—online hate posts are just about his level.”
“A search warrant would be useful so we can access his computer,” Raffe suggests.
“It’s too soon,” Anton objects.
Hanna begins to gather up her papers. “Can you guys take care of that? Daniel—we need to leave now if we’re going to get to Storlien on time.”
Daniel realizes she is right. They’ve arranged to visit the mountain hotel, and are meeting the site supervisor. In view of Charlotte’s commitment to the project and the hate-filled outpourings on the Facebook page, they want to see the place for themselves.
Hanna has never been there, and Daniel isn’t particularly familiar with the location.
“Look out for the evil spirits,” Raffe says, half joking and half serious. “They say the old hotel is haunted.”
Daniel is taken aback. “What do you mean by that?”
“Surely you know about all the old stories?”
Daniel shakes his head. He doesn’t have time for this kind of nonsense.
But Anton, who grew up in Åre, has a wary expression on his face. “It’s true. That place gives me the creeps.”
72
It’s a lovely drive,Hanna thinks as she gazes at the snow-covered forest lining the road to Storlien. It takes about forty-five minutes to travel from the police station along the E14, which continues to the Norwegian border just a few hundred yards farther on.
But Hanna has bad memories from this place.
They recently passed Lake Gev and Tångböle, where the murdered skier Johan Andersson was found by the roadside just over a year ago. The investigation was difficult and upsetting, and ended in tragedy. Hanna still finds it difficult to sleep sometimes because of the outcome, when the fatal shot was fired right in front of her before she could intervene.
It was that incident that made her realize how she felt about Daniel. In the midst of her despair he became her rock. He was there and he didn’t let go, in spite of all her tears.
Her phone rings, interrupting her melancholy train of thought. When she checks the display, she sees that Filip Wretlind is calling.
“Hi, Filip—how’s it going?”
