Read Online Without a Trace by Liza Marklund - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Liza Marklund
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He handed out copies of the forensic report from the crime scene, then leafed back through his notepad. Nina looked through the seven-page report, trying to block out Lamia’s singing.
‘Who wants to start?’ Q asked, leaning back in his desk chair.
Lamia put down her mug and pushed back her laptop. She adjusted her hair, then began to speak from memory.
‘We’ve had a reply from the mobile operator. According to them, it was the wife, Nora Lerberg, who alerted the emergency services. The trace indicates that she was in the vicinity of Solsidan station at the time. That’s about four hundred metres from the house.’
Nina’s mind instantly flew back to the crime scene, and she saw Solsidan from above, the house at the end of the narrow road, the forest, the footpaths. That was where the wife had called from. Why? Why did she go to the station before sounding the alarm? It must have taken something like five minutes – five minutes that might have been critically important. She must have had an extremely good reason. Clearly she wanted to stay out of the way. Unless she’d thought he was dead.
‘Is there a recording of the call?’ Q asked.
Lamia poured herself some more coffee from a flask. ‘It wasn’t a call – she sent a text message.’
Nina opened her mouth to protest: it wasn’t possible to text the emergency services.
Lamia went on: ‘You can do that if you register your number in advance on the internet. Nora Lerberg registered both her mobile phones about six months ago.’ She gabbled off the numbers.
Johansson was writing quickly. Nina wondered why the woman had memorized them.
‘Why does she have two mobiles?’ Q asked.
Lamia fiddled with her hair.
‘I’ve got two as well,’ Johansson said. ‘One for work, and a private one.’
‘What did the text message say?’ Q asked.
Lamia tilted her head to one side. ‘Help. And then the address.’
‘And Nora Lerberg hasn’t turned up overnight?’
‘Negative.’
‘What do we know about her?’
‘Nora Maria Andersson Lerberg, born on the ninth of September, twenty-seven this year, married to Ingemar for eight years. Gave up studying economics at Stockholm University. Housewife.’
Why would she have a work mobile if she was a housewife? Nina wondered.
‘Okay,’ Q said. ‘Obvious possibilities. Is she dead? Injured? Could the perpetrators have taken her with them? Has there been any sort of ransom demand?’
Lamia shook her head.
‘What about the children?’
‘They’ve been with their aunt, Kristine Lerberg, since Thursday. Ingemar’s sister lives at Grusvägen fifteen in Vikingshill.’
‘Okay. We’ll be treating Nora Lerberg’s disappearance as a separate investigation from now on. Can you put out an alert, Lamia?’
She nodded, blonde curls bouncing. She pulled her laptop towards her and began to feed the command into the system. ‘The risk factor is high,’ she said, still typing. ‘Hospitals and mortuaries were checked yesterday. Nora Lerberg’s computer and one of her mobiles were still in the house. The computer’s with forensics, and we’ve requested the call histories of both mobiles.’
Nina looked at the blonde doll-woman for a moment, then down at her own papers. She leafed through them intently: where was all this information?
‘We’ve requested credit-card records, information from her bank and passenger lists,’ Lamia went on. ‘Our colleagues in Nacka are talking to the neighbours.’
‘We should get their report today,’ Q said, then turned to Johansson. ‘Forensics?’
Johansson finished writing something, which took almost a minute. They all waited in silence. Nina’s hands felt as if they were growing in her lap. Then the man cleared his throat.
‘The upper floor of the house, where the victim was found, is probably also where the assault was carried out. There are traces of blood and saliva in several locations up there, on the landing, in the bedroom, on the
He handed out copies of the forensic report from the crime scene, then leafed back through his notepad. Nina looked through the seven-page report, trying to block out Lamia’s singing.
‘Who wants to start?’ Q asked, leaning back in his desk chair.
Lamia put down her mug and pushed back her laptop. She adjusted her hair, then began to speak from memory.
‘We’ve had a reply from the mobile operator. According to them, it was the wife, Nora Lerberg, who alerted the emergency services. The trace indicates that she was in the vicinity of Solsidan station at the time. That’s about four hundred metres from the house.’
Nina’s mind instantly flew back to the crime scene, and she saw Solsidan from above, the house at the end of the narrow road, the forest, the footpaths. That was where the wife had called from. Why? Why did she go to the station before sounding the alarm? It must have taken something like five minutes – five minutes that might have been critically important. She must have had an extremely good reason. Clearly she wanted to stay out of the way. Unless she’d thought he was dead.
‘Is there a recording of the call?’ Q asked.
Lamia poured herself some more coffee from a flask. ‘It wasn’t a call – she sent a text message.’
Nina opened her mouth to protest: it wasn’t possible to text the emergency services.
Lamia went on: ‘You can do that if you register your number in advance on the internet. Nora Lerberg registered both her mobile phones about six months ago.’ She gabbled off the numbers.
Johansson was writing quickly. Nina wondered why the woman had memorized them.
‘Why does she have two mobiles?’ Q asked.
Lamia fiddled with her hair.
‘I’ve got two as well,’ Johansson said. ‘One for work, and a private one.’
‘What did the text message say?’ Q asked.
Lamia tilted her head to one side. ‘Help. And then the address.’
‘And Nora Lerberg hasn’t turned up overnight?’
‘Negative.’
‘What do we know about her?’
‘Nora Maria Andersson Lerberg, born on the ninth of September, twenty-seven this year, married to Ingemar for eight years. Gave up studying economics at Stockholm University. Housewife.’
Why would she have a work mobile if she was a housewife? Nina wondered.
‘Okay,’ Q said. ‘Obvious possibilities. Is she dead? Injured? Could the perpetrators have taken her with them? Has there been any sort of ransom demand?’
Lamia shook her head.
‘What about the children?’
‘They’ve been with their aunt, Kristine Lerberg, since Thursday. Ingemar’s sister lives at Grusvägen fifteen in Vikingshill.’
‘Okay. We’ll be treating Nora Lerberg’s disappearance as a separate investigation from now on. Can you put out an alert, Lamia?’
She nodded, blonde curls bouncing. She pulled her laptop towards her and began to feed the command into the system. ‘The risk factor is high,’ she said, still typing. ‘Hospitals and mortuaries were checked yesterday. Nora Lerberg’s computer and one of her mobiles were still in the house. The computer’s with forensics, and we’ve requested the call histories of both mobiles.’
Nina looked at the blonde doll-woman for a moment, then down at her own papers. She leafed through them intently: where was all this information?
‘We’ve requested credit-card records, information from her bank and passenger lists,’ Lamia went on. ‘Our colleagues in Nacka are talking to the neighbours.’
‘We should get their report today,’ Q said, then turned to Johansson. ‘Forensics?’
Johansson finished writing something, which took almost a minute. They all waited in silence. Nina’s hands felt as if they were growing in her lap. Then the man cleared his throat.
‘The upper floor of the house, where the victim was found, is probably also where the assault was carried out. There are traces of blood and saliva in several locations up there, on the landing, in the bedroom, on the
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