Chapter 6 Chapter Six

When Blomkvist woke up just after nine, he called Marlene from the magazine office. "Morning, Editor-in-Chief," he said. "Erica is gone and I'm still in a state of shock that you're asking me to replace her. I can't believe she's gone. Her office is empty." "Then you should move in today." "I feel very uneasy." "Don't worry, everyone agrees that you are the best candidate. And you can come to me or Christ if necessary." "thank you for trusting me." "You deserve it," Blomkvist said. "Just keep working as before. Whenever there is a problem, we can handle it."

He said he would be at home writing all day.Marlene understood that this was reporting to her, just like she had done to Erica before. "Okay, what do we need to do?" "No. Instead... If you have any instructions, call me anytime. I'm still writing Salander's story, trying to find out the truth, but everything else related to the magazine is your turn to decide , is up to you to decide, and I will support you if necessary." "What if I make the wrong decision?" "If I see or hear a problem, I will talk to you, but it must be something very unusual. There are usually no 100% right or wrong decisions. You make your decision, maybe with Ellie The card is different, and I might have a different idea if it were me, but now you have the final say.”

"Ok." "If you're a good leader, you'll discuss everything with others. Go to Kertesz and Christ first, and me next. We'll bring up difficult issues and discuss them at the editorial meeting." "I will try my best." "Good luck." He sat down on the sofa in the living room, with his laptop on his lap, and worked continuously all day.By the end, two drafts had been written, totaling about twenty-one pages, focusing on the deaths of Dag and Mia—what articles they were preparing, why they were killed, who the killer was, and so on.He calculated that to be on the Summer issue, the number of words would need to be doubled.There was also a lot to think about how to describe Salander without violating her trust, because he knew things she absolutely didn't want to reveal.

After eating a piece of bread and drinking a cup of coffee in the cafe of the Forrest Hotel, Gulbe took a taxi to the Cannon Road in East Maugham.At 9:15, he explained his identity through the intercom at the door, and the door opened immediately.He took the elevator to the eighth floor, and was greeted by the new leader of the "team", Pierre Waddencher. When Gulbeau retired, Waddencher was one of the newest members of the group.He wished the decisive Clinton was still around.Clinton succeeded Gulbeau as head of the "team" until 2002, when he had to retire because of diabetes and coronary artery disease.Gulbeau didn't know much about Waddenshire.

"Welcome, Gulbo." Wadencher shook hands with his former boss and said, "Thank you for taking the time to come." "What I have now is empty," said Gulbeau. "You also know how we work. I wish I could find time to keep in touch with my loyal old colleagues." There was something in his words, but Guerbo ignored it, turned left into the former office, and sat at the round conference table by the window.He thought to himself that those reproductions of Chagall and Mondrian should be Vadenshire's idea. When he was still there, the design drawings of the Cronan and Vasa warships hung on the wall.He has always had illusions about the sea. He is actually a navy, but he only stayed at sea for a few short months during his service.There are computers in the office now, but otherwise it's pretty much the same as when he left.Waddencher poured the coffee.

"The others will be here in a minute," he said. "I think we can have a general chat first." "How many people from my time are left in the group?" "Other than me, the only ones left are Otto Halbe and George Newstrom. Halbe is retiring this year, and Newstrom is turning sixty. The others are newcomers, some of whom you may have seen before .” "How many people are there in the 'group' now?" "We rearranged a little bit." "so what?" "There are seven full-time staff, which is downsizing. However, there are thirty-one employees working for the 'team' within the NSA, and most of them never come here. They usually have their own full-time jobs, necessary or opportunity Shicai secretly worked part-time for us."

"Thirty-one employees." "Plus the seven here. You created the system after all, we're just fine-tuning it. There's what's called internal and external organization. When we recruit new people, we give them time off to come to our classes. Hal Bay does the training, the basic course takes six weeks at the Naval Academy. Then they go back to their old jobs at the NSA, only to start working for us after that.” "learn." "It's an amazing system, and most of our employees are unaware of the existence of the others. And our job at 'team' headquarters is basically to receive reports, and the rules are the same as yours. We have to be a single-level organization."

"Do you have an action team?" Waddenshire frowned.When Gulbe was still around, the "Squad" had a small operational team of four, led by the astute Rottinger. "Not really. Rottinger died five years ago. We have a younger talent for field missions, but if necessary we usually use people from outside organizations. Of course, technically, things are more complicated now, for example To monitor phone calls or enter homes, there are now alarm bells and other facilities everywhere." Gulbo nodded. "What about the budget?" "A total of about eleven million a year. One third pays salaries, one third is general expenses, and one third is business expenses."

"So the budget has shrunk." "It's shrunk a bit, but we've also got fewer people, so the operational budget has actually gone up." "Tell me about our relationship with the NSA." Waddenshaw shook his head and said: "The Secretary-General and the Director of the Budget are our people. Of course, officially speaking, only the Secretary-General knows exactly what our activities are. We are so secretive that we don't exist at all. But in fact, two deputies know our activities. Existence. As long as they hear about us, they will try to ignore it."

"That is to say, if something goes wrong, the current top level of the National Security Agency will be surprised. What about the top level of the Ministry of Defense and the cabinet?" "We cut ties with the Ministry of Defense about ten years ago. As for the cabinet, it always comes and goes." "So in case of a major situation, we can only rely on ourselves?" Waddenshire nodded. "That's the downside of this arrangement, and of course the upside is obvious. But our mission has changed. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, there's been a new realpolitik in Europe. We're doing less and less spying, and now Mostly related to terrorism, or assessing the political orientation of a status-sensitive individual."

"That's always been the point." Then someone knocked on the door.Gulbe looked up and saw two men, a well-dressed man in his mid-sixties and a younger man in jeans and a duffel jacket. "Come in... this is Evert Gulbe, and this is Jonas Sandberg. He's been working here for four years, in charge of operations, the one I just mentioned to you. Also There's George Newstrom, you know." "Hi, Newstrom," Gulbo greeted. After they shook hands, Gulbo turned to Jonas. "Where are you from?" "I just came from Gothenburg recently." Jonas said softly, "I went to see him." "Zalachenko?" Jonas nodded. "Sit down, everyone," said Wadenshire. "Bjork." Gulbeau was talking, and he couldn't help frowning when he saw Vadensei lighting a cigarillo.He had hung up his jacket and sat down on a chair by the conference table, leaning his back against the back of the chair.Waddencher glanced at Gulbeau, only to realize that the old man had become so thin. "Last Friday he was arrested for violating prostitution laws," Newstrong said. "Although he has not been formally charged, he has pleaded guilty and slipped home with his tail between his legs. He lives in Smodalal, but Now on sick leave. The media hasn't found out yet." "He was one of the best guys on our team," Gurbo said. "He played a key role in the Zarachenko incident. What happened to him when I retired?" "Björk is one of the very few internal colleagues who leave the 'group' and return to the external business. He's been active before you've even retired." "Yeah, I remember at one point he said he needed a break and wanted to broaden his horizons. So when he was the Intelligence Specialist in the '80s, he took a two-year leave of absence from the 'team'. Since 1976, he's been Like an addiction, clinging to Zarachenko almost 24 hours a day, I thought he really needed a break. He left in 1985 and didn't come back until 1987." "He left the 'team' in 1994, so to speak, and moved to an outside organization. In 1996 he was promoted to deputy head of the immigration team, and the job took up a lot of his time, and the pressure became very high. Of course. , he's been in constant contact with the 'team', so to speak we've been talking to him about every month until recently." "So he's sick?" "It's not serious, but it's painful. It's a herniated disc. It's an old problem that has happened again and again in the past few years. Two years ago, he took four months of sick leave, and he asked again in August last year. He was supposed to come back to work at the beginning of the year, and then it was extended. Time, now, is waiting for the knife." "He's on sick leave and hanging out with whores?" Gulbeau asked. "That's right. He's not married, and as far as I know, he seems to have dealt with prostitutes for several years." Jonas, who barely spoke for nearly half an hour, said, "I've read Darger's manuscript." "Understood. But can someone explain to me what's going on?" "As things stand, Björk is responsible for all this trouble. Otherwise, how can the 1991 report fall into the hands of Bjerman's lawyer?" "Another guy who spends his time with whores?" Gulbeau asked. "Probably not. He is not mentioned in Dag's data. But he is Salander's guardian." Waddenshire sighed. "It can be said that it was my fault. You and Bjork arrested Salander in 1991 and sent her to a mental hospital. I thought she would be locked up for a longer period of time, but I didn't expect that she met a lawyer named Panglan. Bailed her out and arranged a foster home for her. You were already retired by then." "What happened next?" "We watched her all the time, while her twin sister, Camilla, was placed in foster care in Uppsala. When she turned seventeen, Salander began digging through the past, going through all the public records she could find. The record wanted to find Zarachenko. Somehow, she found out that her sister knew Zarachenko's whereabouts." "is that true?" Waddenshire shrugged. "I don't know. The sisters haven't seen each other for several years, but Salander tried her best to find Camilla and try to persuade her to tell her what she knew. In the end, the two had a fierce dispute and fought." "and after?" "During those months, we paid close attention to Salander's whereabouts and informed Camilla that her sister was violent and mentally ill. She was the one who notified us of Salander's unexpected visit. Later, we stepped up our investigation. Her surveillance." "So this sister is your eyeliner?" "Camilla is terribly afraid of her sister. Salander has also attracted attention in other ways. For example, she has had several conflicts with people from the Social Welfare Department. According to our judgment, she is still very concerned about Zarachenko's anonymity. A big threat. Plus the accident on the subway." "She attacked a pedophile..." "That's right. She's clearly violent and mentally disturbed. We think it's best to have her re-incarcerated in a nursing home anyway, and she can take advantage of the opportunity to recuperate. Clinton and Rottinger were the first to act, and they again Psychiatrist Tyler Pollian was brought in and, through an intermediary, petitioned the District Court to have her rehospitalized. Paglan stood up for Salander, and the court accepted his offer, completely unexpectedly—except that she had to Under guardianship." "Then how did Biermann get involved?" "Panglan had a stroke in 2002. Salander was still under surveillance at the time, and we would be notified whenever her data came out, so I specially arranged for Bierman to be her new guardian. Don't forget, he Didn't know Salander was Zarachenko's daughter. Bierman's orders were only to inform us if she started talking nonsense about Zarachenko." "Billman is an idiot. He shouldn't have been involved in Zarachenko's affairs in the first place, let alone his daughter." Gulbo looked at Vadenshe and said, "This is a serious mistake." "I know." Vadenshire replied: "But at the time he seemed to be the right person, I never thought..." "Where is her sister now? That Camilla Salander." "I don't know. She packed her luggage and escaped from the foster family when she was nineteen years old, and she has been missing since then." "Okay, let's go on..." "One of my regular officers spoke to Attorney Extron," Jonas said. "Inspector Boblanski, who was in charge of the investigation, believed that Bierman raped Salander." Gulbo stared at Jonas dumbfounded. "Rape?" "Billman has a tattoo on his stomach that says 'I'm a sadistic pig, I'm a pervert, I'm a rapist'." Jonas put a colored post-mortem photograph on the table.Gulbe stared in disgust. "Could it be Zarachenko's daughter?" "It's hard to explain otherwise, and she's not one to show mercy. She's had two tough thugs at the Sulfur Lake Motor Club, and she's had a hard time fixing them." "Zarachenko's daughter," Gulbo murmured again, and turned to Vaddenshire. "You know what? I think you should recruit her into the 'group.'" Due to the shocked expression on Waddencher's face, Gulbeau had to quickly explain that he was only joking. "Well, let's say Bierman really raped her, and she managed to get revenge. Then?" "The only one who can tell the truth is Bierman, of course, and he is dead. But the point is that he probably didn't know that she was Zarachenko's daughter, and there is no record in all public files. But I don't know why. I don't know when Bierman discovered the relationship between the two." "Please, Wadenshe! She knows who her father is, and she can tell Bierman anytime!" "I know. We... I mean I didn't figure it out." "Such incompetence is inexcusable," Gulbeau said. "I've regretted and blamed myself a hundred times. But Bierman is one of the very few people who know of Zarachenko's existence. My idea is that it is better for him to find out that Salander is Zarachenko's daughter than to be caught by other random people." Which guardian finds out well, after all she could tell anyone." Gulborara pulled his earlobe and said, "Okay...continue." "It's all hypothetical," Newstrom said. "But we assume Bierman attacked Salander, so she countered and did this..." He pointed to the tattoo in the autopsy photo. "Like a father, like a daughter." Gulbo said a lot of admiration in his tone. "It turned out that Bierman approached Zarachenko and wanted to get rid of his daughter. We all know that Zarachenko hated the girl for good reason. Then he handed over the deal to the Sulfur Lake Motorcycle Club and the regular Niedermann haunts him." "But how did Bierman find it..." Gulbo swallowed the rest of the sentence.The answer is obvious. "Björk," said Wadenshey, "Björk held the thread for him." "Damn it!" cursed Gulbeau. Two nurses came in the morning to change her sheets and found the pencil. "Oh, why did you come here?" One of them said and put the pencil in his pocket.Salander stared at her with hatred in her eyes. She was unarmed again, but too weak to protest. Her headache was unbearable, so she took strong painkillers.If I accidentally moved or tried to shift the center of gravity, my left shoulder would hurt like a knife stab.She was lying on her back with a neck brace around her neck, which she would have to wear for a few more days until the wound on her head began to heal.On Sunday her temperature was as high as thirty-nine degrees, which Dr. Andlin said was due to an infection in her body.Salander knew this without taking a temperature measurement. She found herself trapped in a hospital bed again, only this time without a strap because it wasn't needed.She couldn't even sit up, let alone leave the ward. Dr. Jonathan came to see her at lunchtime on Monday. "Hi, do you remember me?" She shook her head. "I'm the one who woke you up after the operation, I did the knife. I just wanted to see how you were doing and if everything was alright." Salander stared at him with wide eyes.It should have been obvious that everything was bad. "I heard you took the neck brace off last night." She acknowledged it with a glance as best she could. "There's a reason why you're wearing a neck brace... your head has to stay still while the healing process begins." Seeing the girl's silence, he said, "That's it, I just want to see how you're doing .” When he reached the door, he heard her speak. "Your name is Jonathan, isn't it?" He turned around with a surprised smile. "Yes, since you remember my name, it means that your recovery is better than I imagined." "You took out the bullet with the knife?" "yes." "Please tell me my current situation. No one will give me a reasonable answer." He walked back to the bed and looked her in the eyes. "You're lucky. You got shot in the head, but I don't think the bullet hurt anything vital. The risk now is bleeding in the brain, so that's why I want you to stay still. You have an infection in your body, probably a shoulder wound Caused, maybe another surgery if the antibiotics don't cure the infection, I mean the shoulder. You'll have to suffer a bit in the future as your body recovers, but as things stand, I'm optimistic that you'll be fully recover." "Will this cause brain damage?" He hesitated before nodding. "It's possible, but every indication is that you're over it. Also you could have scar tissue on your brain, which might be a bit of a nuisance... as it could lead to epilepsy or something. But honestly, it's just speculation. Seems fine now, you are slowly recovering. In the future, if there is a problem, we will deal with it. Is this answer clear enough?" She closed her eyes to make it clear. "How long do I have to lie like this?" "You mean in the hospital? It will be at least a few weeks before you can be released from the hospital." "No, I mean how long before you get out of bed and move around?" "It depends on the progress of the recovery. But it will be at least two weeks before you can start physical therapy." She stared at him for a long time before she said, "Could you happen to have a cigarette on you?" Dr. Jonathan couldn't help laughing, shook his head and said, "Sorry, smoking is prohibited in the hospital. But I can order nicotine patches or chewing gum for you." After thinking for a moment, she turned her gaze back to him. "How's that old bastard?" "You mean...?" "The person who entered the hospital at the same time as me." "It seems that he is not your friend. His life was saved, and he can already walk around on crutches. In fact, he is in worse condition than you, and the wound on his face is also causing him great pain. As far as I understand, it is you who carried the axe." Cut off his head." "Because he wanted to kill me." Salander said in a low voice. "That doesn't sound good. I have to go. Shall I come back and see you?" Salander thought for a while, and expressed the hope that he would come again.After the doctor left, she stared at the ceiling.Zarachenko has a crutch, that's what I heard last night. Jonas, the youngest member of the meeting, was sent out to buy meals.He returned with sushi and ale and distributed them along the conference table.Gulbot felt a surge of nostalgic excitement.At that time, as long as a certain operation entered a critical stage, everyone had to stay up late and work overtime, just like now. He found that the difference may be that no one dared to order sashimi before.He wished Jonas had bought Swedish meatballs with mashed potatoes and lingonberries.Having said that, he was actually not too hungry, so he pushed the sushi aside, only ate a piece of bread, and drank some mineral water. They ate and continued their discussion. The situation was urgent and they had to decide what to do. "I don't know Zarachenko at all," said Vadenshey. "What kind of man is he?" "Probably about the same as now." Gulbo replied: "He is so smart that he almost has an unforgettable memory. But in my eyes, he is a pig, and it should be said that his brain is not normal." "Jonas, what did you gain from talking to him yesterday?" Wadenshe asked. Jonas put down his chopsticks. "He wants us to be at his mercy. I've told you about his ultimatum: If this whole thing doesn't go away, he's going to kick the whole 'team.'" "How do we make it go away that all the media is already exposing?" Newstrom said. "The problem is not what we can or cannot do, it's that he wants to control us," Gulbeau said. "In your opinion, will he resort to the media?" Vaddenshey asked. Gulbe wasn't sure. "It's almost an unanswerable question. Zarachenko doesn't just make threats, he does what's best for him, that's to be expected. If it's good for him to go to the media ... if he himself If he thinks he can get a pardon or a reduced sentence, he will do it. Or he feels betrayed and wants revenge." "Reckless?" "The most important thing is to be reckless. His purpose is to prove that he is better than any of us." "Even if Zarachenko speaks, no one may believe it. To prove it, they have to have our files." "Do you want to take your chances? Suppose Zarachenko let go, who's next? What if Björk signs the confession, what do we do? And Clinton with kidney dialysis... If he suddenly becomes Pious, conscience-stricken, what to do? What if he wants to confess? Believe me, as long as one person lets go, our 'team' is over." "So... what should we do?" Everyone was silent.Finally it was Gulbe who started. "This question can be divided into several parts. First, everyone must agree on the consequences of Zarachenko's opening. The whole judicial system is suppressed, and we are ruined. I guess a few members of the 'group' will go to jail. " "Our actions were completely legal ... we were actually acting on the orders of the government." "Don't do this with me," Gulbe said. "You know as well as I do that random papers written in the mid-sixties are worthless now. I don't think any of us can imagine that Zaraqian What happens when Coe speaks." Everyone was silent again. "So the first thing we have to do is to convince Zarachenko to shut up." Newstrom finally spoke. "If you want to convince him to shut up, you have to give him a real benefit. The problem is that he is a volatile person who may destroy us out of pure hatred. We have to figure out how to stop him." "What about his request?" Jonas asked. "He said he wants us to make the whole thing go away and put Salander back in the mental hospital." "We can handle Salander, the problem is with Zarachenko. But that brings up the second part—damage control. Tyler Pollyan's report in 1991 has been leaked, which may As serious a threat as Zarachenko." Newstrom cleared his throat and said, "As soon as I found out that the report was exposed and in the hands of the police, I took some action. I went to the legal counsel of the National Security Bureau Frius, and he contacted the attorney general. The attorney general ordered an investigation. Withholding the report from the police, the report has not been circulated and there is no copy." "How much does the Attorney General know?" Gulbeau asked. "Knows nothing. He's just following the NSA document, which is classified, and the Attorney General has no choice." "Which policemen have read the report?" "There were two reports, read by Boblanski, his colleague Inspector Maudy, and finally Inspector Extron, who was in charge of the preliminary investigation. We can assume that there are two more officers . . . Newstrom flipped through his notes and said, "...At least one named Anderson and one named Holmber knew the content of the report." "That means four policemen and a prosecutor. How much do you know about them?" "Prosecutor Extron, forty-two, is considered a rising star. He has served as an investigator for the Department of Justice and has handled many high-profile cases. Driven, keen on publicity, and ambitious." "Social-Democrat?" asked Gurbeau. "Possibly, but not positively." "Then it's Boblanski who's leading the investigation. I've seen him on TV at a press conference and he seemed uncomfortable in front of the camera." "He was older and had a stellar record, but he was also notoriously difficult and stubborn. He was Jewish and quite conservative." "Where is that woman, who is she?" "Sonia Morty, married, thirty-nine, two kids. Climb fast. I spoke to Tyler Pollyan, who described her as very emotional and asking questions." "Next." "Anderson was a tough guy, thirty-eight years old, from Thord's mob squad, who made a name for himself a few years ago when he shot a mobster. According to the report, he was found not guilty. Boblanski sent him to arrest Bjork." "Understood. Don't forget he shot people. Feel free to target this villainous character if necessary to question Boblanski's team. I think we've got something to do with the media. The last one Woolen cloth?" "Holmber, fifty-five, from Norland, can be described as a crime scene investigation expert. There was an opportunity to train as an inspector a few years ago, but he turned it down. He seems to like the job he has now." "Is there anyone who is very into politics?" "No. Holmber's father was a City Councilor for the Center Party in the seventies." "It seems to be a very cautious team. It can be seen that they are very united. Can you find a way to divide them?" "There's actually a fifth officer," said Newstrom. "Fast, forty-seven. I'm guessing he and Bob Lansky had such a disagreement that Fast called sick leave." "How much do you know about him?" "The people I've asked have had mixed reactions. His record is almost impeccable and professional, but not easy to deal with. The disagreement with Boblanski seems to be about Salander." "What kind of disagreement?" "Fast seems to be convinced by a newspaper report about a Satanic lesbian gang. He really hates Salander and seems to take her existence as a personal disgrace. Probably half of the rumors come from him. One Former colleagues told me he couldn't work with women." "Interesting." Gulber said slowly, "Since the newspapers have already written about lesbian gangs, they should be allowed to expand their coverage. This will definitely not help Salander's credibility." "But the police officers who saw Bjork's report are a big problem," Jonas said. "Is there any way to isolate them?" Vaddencher lit another cigarillo. "Well, Extron is in charge of the preliminary investigation..." "But it was Bob Lansky who dominated it," Neustrom said. "Yes, but he can't object to the administrative decision." Wadenshey then turned to Guerbo and said, "You have more experience than me, but there are too many contexts and connections in this whole matter... I think it's best to get the package Bellansky and Maud got away from Salander." "That's right, Waddenshire," said Gulbeau. "That's exactly what we're going to do. Boblanski is investigating the murders of Bierman and Anskid, and Salander has No suspicion, only the German Niederman is concerned. Bob Lanski and his team have to focus on Niederman, Salander is no longer part of their mission. Also Nick Vaughn Investigative work on... three unresolved murders, also related to Niedermann. This case is currently assigned to Sodertalie, but it should be merged, so that Boblanski will have no time for him for the time being. Who You know? Maybe he will catch Niederman. During this time, Fast...do you think he will return to the team? It sounds like he is the most appropriate to investigate Salander." "I understand what you're thinking," said Waddenshire. "The point is to get Extron to divide the case. But you have to be able to control Extron." "It shouldn't be a big problem." Gulbo said and glanced at Newstrom, who nodded immediately. "I can handle Extron," he said. "I guess he's wishing he'd never heard of Zarachenko. As soon as the NSA came out, he handed over Bjork's report and promised to cooperate." Any request related to national security issues." "What are your plans?" Vadenshire asked. "Let me give you a rough idea first," Newstrong said. "I think we need to gently tell him what he should do to avoid ruining his career." "The third part is going to be the biggest problem," Gulbeau said. "The police didn't get Björk's report themselves ... but a reporter. And as you're probably all aware, the media is a big problem. "Millennium." Newstrom turned a page of notes. "Michael Blomkvist." Everyone at the meeting had heard of the Wennerstrom incident and knew the name. "Darger, who was killed, was a special correspondent for Millennium. He was writing a report on the illegal sex trade. It was also because of this that he accidentally discovered Zarachenko. Blomkvist not only found Dag and The dead body of his girlfriend, also knew Salander, and always believed that she was innocent." "How did he know Zarachenko's daughter...it's a coincidence." "We don't think it's a coincidence." Wadenshey said, "We believe that Salander can be said to be the key to connect all these. As for the connection, we don't know yet." Gulbo kept drawing concentric circles on his notes, and it took him a while to raise his head. "I'm going to have to think about it. I'm going for a walk and I'm going to resume the meeting in an hour." Gulbe walked for almost three hours this way.In fact, he only walked for about ten minutes before he found a coffee shop serving many kinds of coffee that he had never seen before.He ordered a cup of black coffee, sat in a corner near the door, and spent a long time thinking carefully, trying to dissect the various layers of his current predicament, occasionally scribbling summaries in his pocket journal. An hour and a half later, plans began to take shape. The plan is not perfect, but after weighing all the possibilities, he believes that drastic measures must be taken to solve the problem. Thanks to the availability of personnel resources, it should be possible. He got up and went to the telephone booth and called Waddenshire. "The meeting time will be pushed back a little bit," he said. "I have to do something, so can we move it to two o'clock?" Gulbe came to Storplatz, hailed a taxi, and told the driver an address on the outskirts of Bromma.After getting off the car, walk south through a street, and ring the doorbell in front of a small double-family house.The woman who answered the door was about forty years old. "Hi, I'm looking for Frederick Clinton." "excuse me, you are?" "An old colleague." The woman nodded and invited him into the living room. Clinton, who was originally sitting on the sofa, was slowly standing up.He was only sixty-eight, but he looked much older.Poor health has cost him dearly. "Gulbo!" Clinton exclaimed. The two old operators stood looking at each other for a long time, and finally reached out to hug each other. "I really didn't expect to see you again." Clinton then pointed to the photo of Niederman on the front page of the Evening News and the news headline "Police Killer May Flee to Denmark", adding: "That's why you should have come." "How are you?" "I'm sick," Clinton said. "I can tell." "If I don't get a kidney transplant, I'm afraid I'll die soon. But the chances of finding a kidney in this People's Republic are very slim." The woman had just appeared in the parlor foyer and asked Gulbe if he wanted something to drink. "Coffee, please, thank you." After she left, he turned to Clinton and asked, "Who's that?" "My daughter." It's amazing how, despite working closely together in the "group" for many years, I barely see anyone in my spare time.Gurber knew the tiniest personal traits, strengths, and weaknesses of each of his colleagues, but little about their family lives.Clinton, who was probably Gulber's closest colleague for two decades, knew that he was married and had children, but he didn't know the name of his daughter, his late wife, or even where Clinton usually took vacations.It's as if everything outside the "group" is sacred and not to be discussed. "What do you want me to do?" Clinton asked. "Can you tell me what you think of Waddenshire?" Clinton shook his head. "I don't want to get involved." "I'm not asking you to get involved. You know him, he's worked with you for ten years." Clinton shook his head again. "He's the head of the 'team' now, and it doesn't matter what I think." "Can he handle it?" "He's not stupid." "But what?" "He was an analyst, very good at solving puzzles, very intuitive, and a brilliant manager who could balance budgets in ways we didn't think were possible." 古尔博点点头。克林顿没有说出最重要的特质。 “你准备再回来工作吗？” 克林顿抬起头，犹豫了好一会儿。 “古尔博……我每隔一天就得到医院洗肾九小时，上楼也上气不接下气，我实在没有体力，一点也没有了。” “我需要你，最后一次任务。” "I can not do it." “你可以，而且你还是可以每隔一天去洗肾，上楼可以搭电梯，必要的话，我甚至可以派人用担架抬着你往返。我需要的是你有心。” 克林顿叹了口气。 "Tell me about it." “目前我们面临一个极度复杂的情况，需要好手参与行动。瓦登榭手下有个乳臭未干的小伙子，名叫乔纳斯。整个行动部门只有他一人，我想瓦登榭不会有动力做该做的事。在预算方面耍花招他也许是天才，但他不敢作行动决策，也不敢让'小组'采取必要的实地行动。” 克林顿虚弱地笑了笑。 “行动得分两头进行。一头是札拉千科，我得想办法和他讲道理，这我大概知道该怎么做。另一头要从斯德哥尔摩这边下手，问题是'小组'里面没有能真正负责的人。我要你来带头，最后一次任务。乔纳斯和纽斯壮可以跑腿，你来发号施令。” “你根本不知道你在说什么。” “我很清楚，只是你得下定决心要不要接这个任务。我们这些老人若不插手尽点力，再过几个星期，'小组'可能就不存在了。” 克林顿将手肘靠在沙发扶手上，用手撑着头，思考了一两分钟。 “说说你的计划。”他最后说道。 古尔博与克林顿展开一番长谈。 两点五十七分，克林顿紧跟在古尔博身后出现时，瓦登榭不敢置信地瞪大双眼。克林顿简直有如……一副骷髅。他好像连呼吸都很困难，一手还搭着古尔博的肩膀。 “这到底是……”瓦登榭说道。 “继续开会吧。”古尔博用轻快的语气说。 于是大伙重新围着瓦登榭办公室的桌子入座。克林顿重重跌坐在旁人推给他的椅子上，未发一言。 “克林顿你们都认识。”古尔博说。 “没错。”瓦登榭应道：“问题是他来做什么？” “克林顿决定重回工作岗位，并将领导'小组'的行动部门直到这次危机结束。”古尔博眼看瓦登榭就要出声抗议，立刻举手制止。“克林顿很疲倦，所以需要助手，他还得按时回医院洗肾。瓦登榭，你派两个人协助他处理实际事务。不过我先把话讲清楚……关于这次事件，行动决策将由克林顿负责。” 他暂停片刻，无人出言反对。 “我有个计划。我想我们可以成功地解决这件事，但动作要快，以免错失良机。”他说道：“一切全看你们在'小组'这段日子以来的决心了。” “说来听听。”瓦登榭说。 “首先，警察方面我们已经讨论过，接下来就这么做。我们试着以冗长的调查工作绊住他们，利用搜寻尼德曼一事转移他们的目标。这个由纽斯壮负责。无论发生什么事，尼德曼都不重要。我们要安排让法斯特来调查莎兰德。” “这主意恐怕不太好。”纽斯壮说：“何不让我直接去找埃克斯壮密谈？” “万一他很难搞……” “我想应该不会。他有野心，也一直在寻找任何有利于升迁的机会。若有需要，我也许能动用一点关系。他一定很不想被卷入任何丑闻。” “那好。第二步是《千禧年》和布隆维斯特，这也是克林顿归队的原因。这需要采取非常手段。” “我想我不会喜欢这种做法。”瓦登榭说。 “也许吧。但你无法用同样直截了当的方式来对付《千禧年》。话说回来，这个杂志社构成的威胁只在于一点：毕约克在一九九一年写的警察报告。我猜想现在有两个地方，也可能是三个地方有这份报告。报告是莎兰德发现的，却不知怎么到了布隆维斯特手中，也就是说莎兰德逃亡期间，这两人还保持某种程度的联系。” 克林顿竖起一根手指，这是他抵达后首度开口。 “这也透露出对手的一些特质。布隆维斯特不怕冒险，别忘了温纳斯壮事件。” 古尔博点点头。“布隆维斯特将报告交给总编辑爱莉卡，爱莉卡再转交给包柏蓝斯基，所以她也看过了。我们必须假设他们复印了副本加以保管。我猜布隆维斯特有一份，还有一份在编辑办公室。” “听起来合理。”瓦登榭说。 “《千禧年》是月刊，所以不会明天就登。我们还有一点时间——去查一查下一期确切的出刊时间——但一定要扣住这两份副本。这件事不能通过检察总长。” "learn." “所以我们所说的行动就是潜入布隆维斯特的住处和《千禧年》办公室。这你应付得来吗，乔纳斯？” 乔纳斯瞄了瓦登榭一眼。 “古尔博……你要明白……我们已经不做这种事了。”瓦登榭说：“现在是新时代，我们做的大多是侵入电脑和电子监控之类的事，我们无法提供资源给你心目中的行动单位。” 古尔博身子往前倾。“瓦登榭，那你就得尽快给我想办法弄出一点资源来。去雇几个人，雇几个南斯拉夫黑手党的混混，必要时可以把布隆维斯特痛扁一顿。但无论如何那两份副本都得拿到手。只要他们没有副本，就没有证据。如果连这点小事都办不好，你干脆用拇指插住屁眼坐在这里，等宪法委员会的人来敲门。” 古尔博和瓦登榭互瞪了好一会儿。 “我做得来。”乔纳斯忽然出声。 "are you sure?" 乔纳斯点点头。 “很好。从现在开始，克林顿是你的老板，你得听他的命令。” 乔纳斯点头答应。 “这会牵扯到不少监视工作。”纽斯壮说：“我可以建议几个人。外部组织有一个叫莫天森的，在国安局担任贴身护卫工作。他天不怕地不怕，前途十分看好。我一直在考虑要带他进来，甚至想过有一天让他接我的位子。” “听起来不错。”古尔博说：“克林顿可以决定。” “我担心可能还有第三份副本。”纽斯壮说。 "Where?" “今天下午我发现莎兰德请了律师，名叫安妮卡·贾尼尼，是布隆维斯特的妹妹。” 古尔博思考着这个消息。“你说得没错，布隆维斯特会给他妹妹一份副本，一定给了。换句话说，在有更进一步的指示前，爱莉卡、布隆维斯特和安妮卡这三个人都得监视。” “不必担心爱莉卡。今天有个报道说她即将接任《瑞典摩根邮报》的总编辑，已经不待在《千禧年》了。” “还是查一下的好。只要和《千禧年》有关的人，住处和办公室都要电话监听并装窃听器，要检查他们的电子邮件，要知道他们见了哪些人、和哪些人说过话。我们需要知道他们的计划策略。最重要的还是拿到那份报告的副本。总之事情很多。” 瓦登榭语带怀疑地说：“古尔博，你现在是要我们对付一家颇具影响力的杂志社和《瑞典摩根邮报》的总编辑，对我们来说那应该是最冒险的事吧？” “大家听好了：你们别无选择。要么你们卷起袖子准备开工，要么就该换人接手了。” 这句挑战性的话仿佛一片乌云笼罩在会议桌上空。 “我想我能处理《千禧年》。”乔纳斯终于说道：“不过这一切都解决不了基本问题。札拉千科该怎么办？只要他泄漏一字半句，我们作再多努力也没用。” “我知道，那部分由我负责。”古尔博说：“我想有个论点可以说服札拉千科闭嘴，不过需要稍加准备。今天下午晚一点我会前往哥德堡。” 他停下来环视众人，最后目光停留在瓦登榭身上。 “我不在的时候，一切行动由克林顿决定。”他说。 直到星期一傍晚，安德林医师在与约纳森医师商量过后，才认定莎兰德的情况已经够稳定，可以会客。首先，让两名巡官问她十五分钟的话。警官走进病房，拉了椅子坐下时，她只是静静地看着他们。 “你好，我叫马克斯·埃兰德，是哥德堡暴力犯罪组的刑事巡官。这位是我的同事，从斯德哥尔摩警局来的茉迪巡官。” 莎兰德默不作声，表情毫无变化。她认得茉迪是包柏蓝斯基团队的警员之一。埃兰德淡淡一笑。 “听说你不太和官方人士沟通。我先声明你可以什么都不说，但如果你能听我们说，我会很感激。我们有些事情想和你讨论，只不过今天的时间不够，以后还有机会。” 莎兰德依然一声不吭。 “首先，我想让你知道你的朋友布隆维斯特告诉我们，有一个名叫安妮卡·贾尼尼的律师愿意为你辩护，她知道案情。布隆维斯特说他曾经在其他事件中向你提过律师的名字。我需要你证实这的确是你的意愿，我还想知道你要不要安妮卡到哥德堡来为你辩护。” 安妮卡。布隆维斯特的妹妹。他在一封电子邮件中提过她。莎兰德没有想过自己会需要律师。 “很抱歉，但我必须听到你的答案，只要回答愿不愿意就行了。如果你同意，哥德堡的检察官会联络安妮卡律师。如果你不同意，法院会为你指派一名辩护律师。你比较喜欢哪一个？” 莎兰德考虑了一下。她猜想自己可能真的需要律师，但要找王八蛋小侦探布隆维斯特的妹妹，她实在难以忍受。但话又说回来，让法院随便派个陌生律师来可能更糟。她张开嘴发出粗嘎的声音，只说了一句： “安妮卡。” “好，谢谢你。现在我有个问题要问你。在律师到达以前，你可以什么都不用说，不过在我看来，这个问题并不会影响你或你的权益。警方正在找一个名叫罗讷德·尼德曼的德国人，他因为杀警而遭到通缉。” 莎兰德登时皱起眉头。她全然不知自己朝札拉千科挥斧头之后发生了什么事。 “哥德堡警方很焦急，希望尽快逮捕他归案。我这位同事也想讯问他有关斯德哥尔摩最近发生的三起命案。你应该知道，你已不再是那些案子的嫌犯，所以我们想请你帮忙。你知不知道……你能不能提供任何协助，让我们找到这个人？” 莎兰德心有疑虑，目光在埃兰德和茉迪之间游移。 他们不知道他是我哥哥。 接着她开始思考要不要让尼德曼被捕。其实她最想做的是在地上挖个洞，将他活埋。最后她耸耸肩。实在不该这么做的，因为左肩立刻又是一阵疼痛。 “今天星期几？”她问道。 “星期一。” 她想了想。“我第一次听到尼德曼这个名字是在上星期四。我跟踪他到哥塞柏加。我不知道他在哪里或会到哪去，不过他会尽快想办法逃到国外。” “为什么他会逃到国外？” 莎兰德又想了想。“因为尼德曼忙着挖洞准备埋我的时候，札拉千科跟我说事情闹得太大，他决定让尼德曼出国避避风头。” 打从十二岁至今，莎兰德从未和警察说过这么多话。 “札拉千科……也就是你的父亲？” 好啊，至少他们发现这点了。恐怕还得归功于王八蛋小侦探布隆维斯特。 “我必须告诉你，你父亲已经正式向警方指控你企图谋杀他。案子已经进了检察官办公室，他得决定要不要起诉。不过你拿斧头砍札拉千科的头，已经因重伤害罪遭到逮捕。” 这次她沉默了许久。后来茉迪向前弯身，低声说道：“我只想告诉你，我们警方并不太相信札拉千科的说辞。好好跟你的律师讨论一下，我们稍后再回来找你谈。” 两名警员一同起身。 “谢谢你提供尼德曼的消息。”埃兰德说。 莎兰德很惊讶警察竟以如此得体且近乎友善的方式对待她。她想着茉迪警官说的话，心想她必定别有居心。