Chapter 15 Chapter fifteen

Salander spent most of Wednesday night and Thursday morning reading Blomkvist's essay and the roughly finished chapters of his book.Since Prosecutor Extron had mentioned that the trial was expected to start in July, Blomkvist set a deadline of June 20, which meant that he would have about a month to complete the manuscript and fill in all the gaps. . She couldn't imagine how it would be possible, but that was his problem, not hers.What she should worry about is how to answer his question. She took out her PDA and logged into Yahoo's "Stupid Desk" community to see if he had put anything new in the past twenty-four hours, but there wasn't.She opened the document he had titled "Core Issues."In fact, the content has long been familiar, but I read it again.

He outlined the strategy Annika had already explained to her.When the lawyer told her, she didn't listen carefully, almost as if it had nothing to do with her.But there were things about her that Blomkvist knew that Annika didn't, so the former spoke more convincingly.She skipped straight to the fourth paragraph. The only person who can determine your future is yourself.It doesn't matter how hard Annika tries and how hard Armanski and Paglan and I and others try to support you.I'm not trying to convince you, you have to make up your own mind.You can turn the judgment in your favor, or you can have them convict you.But if you want to win, you have to fight hard.

She disconnected and looked at the ceiling.Blomkvist wanted her to promise to let him tell the truth in the book.He didn't intend to mention the fact that Bierman had raped her.That paragraph has already been written, and in the vacant part he only said that Biermann lost control because of the failure of the deal with Zarachenko, so Niedermann had to kill him.Blomkvist did not speculate on Biermann's motives. This bastard little detective made her life too complicated. At two o'clock in the morning, she opened Word, created a new document, took out the stylus and began to click the letters on the numeric keypad.

My name is Liz Salander and I was born on April 30, 1978 to Agneta Sofia Salander.She gave birth to me when she was seventeen.My father was a psychopath, a murderer, and a wife beater. His name was Alexander Zarachenko.He was originally sent to work in Western Europe by the GRU, the Soviet military intelligence agency. Braille with a stylus is very slow, and she always has to think twice before writing a sentence, and she hasn't changed it once after writing.She wrote until four o'clock before turning off the computer and putting it in the alcove behind the bedside table to charge.At this point, she has completed about two sheets of A4-sized, single-line spacing.

The nurse on duty had poked her head in twice after midnight, but Salander could hear it from a distance, and was able to hide the computer and pretend to be asleep even before she turned the key. Erica wakes up at seven.Although I slept for eight hours straight, I didn't feel rested at all.She glanced at Blomkvist, who was still fast asleep beside her. She turned on her phone to check text messages.Beckman - her husband - made eleven phone calls.Damn, forgot to call.She dialed the number and explained where she was and why she hadn't come home.he is very angry. "Erica, don't do this again. It's nothing to do with Michel, but I was terrified all night that something was going to happen. You know, if you don't come home you have to call me, This kind of thing must never be forgotten.”

Beckmann didn't mind at all that Blomkvist was his wife's lover, and their affair continued with his consent.Except that whenever she decides to spend the night at the Blomkvists, she calls her husband to tell her. "I'm sorry," she said, "I was really exhausted last night." He grunted disapprovingly. "Beckman, don't be angry with me, I can't handle it now, so I will scold you tonight." He muttered a few more words, saying that he would give her a good scolding when she came home. "Okay, how is Michael?" "He was asleep." She suddenly laughed. "Believe it or not, we fell asleep within minutes of going to bed. It's never happened before."

"This is serious, Erica, I think you should see a doctor." After hanging up the phone, she called back to the office and left a message to Fredliesen, saying that something happened and she would arrive later than usual, and she asked him to cancel the originally scheduled meeting with the cultural editor. She found her shoulder bag, found a toothbrush from it, and went into the bathroom.Then go back to bed and wake Blomkvist. "Hurry up, go wash up and brush your teeth." "What...what?" He sat up, looking around in bewilderment.After being reminded by Erica, I remembered that I was in the Hilton Hotel in Slusen.He nodded.

"Okay, let's go to the bathroom." "Why are you in such a hurry?" "Because I'm going to have sex with you when you come out." She glanced at her watch quickly. "I have a meeting at 11 o'clock. I can't postpone it. I have to make myself presentable. It takes at least half an hour to make up and get dressed. And I have to buy a replacement dress or something on the way to the company. So there are only two hours left to make up for what we lost. that long period of time." Blomkvist then went into the bathroom. Holmber drove his father's Ford to Oth, outside Lambwe in Heinesund, and parked it in the driveway outside the house of former Prime Minister Fielding.He got out of the car and looked around.At the age of seventy-nine, it was almost impossible for Fielding to still be working on the farm, and Holmber could not help wondering who was sowing and reaping for him.He knew that someone was watching him from the kitchen window, which was the habit of the villagers.He himself had grown up in Hildah, just outside Lambwe, very close to the Sand Bridge, one of the most beautiful sights in the world.At least Holmber thought so.

He knocked on the front door. The erstwhile leader of the Center Party has aged, but still seems alert and energetic. "Hello, my name is Yerkie Holmber. We met, but it was many years ago. My father is Gustav Holmber, a party representative of the Center Party in the 1970s and 1980s." "Yes, I know you, Holmber. Hello. You're a policeman in Stockholm, aren't you? We haven't seen each other for maybe ten or fifteen years." "I'm afraid it will be longer. May I come in?" Holmber sat at the table and waited for Fielding to pour them coffee. "I hope your father is doing well. But you're not here because of him, are you?"

"No, my father is fine. He can fix the roof of the cabin too." "How old is he?" "Just turned seventy-one two months ago." "Really?" said Fielding, returning to the table. "Then why have you come to me?" Holmber looked out the window and saw a magpie fly down beside his car, pecking at the ground.Then he turned to look at Fielding. "Sorry for the unannounced visit, but I've got a big problem. I might be fired after our talk. I'm here on business, but my boss, Bao from the Stockholm Violent Crime Unit Inspector Bellanski didn't know I was looking for you."

"Sounds serious." "If the officer knows I'm coming, I'll be in trouble." "I see." "But then again, if something is not done, I'm afraid that a woman will be severely disenfranchised, and what's worse is that this is not the first time this has happened." "You'd better start from the beginning." "It was about a man named Alexander Zarachenko. He was a Soviet GRU operative who defected on the day of the Swedish elections in 1976. He was granted asylum and started working for the secret police. I have reason Trust you know about him." Fielding stared intently at Holmber. "It's a long story." Holmber began to tell Fielding about the preliminary investigation he had been involved in for the past few months. Erica finally rolled over on her stomach, resting her head on her hands, with a big smile on her face. "Mike, have you ever suspected that the two of us are crazy?" "What's the meaning?" "At least I am. I'm infatuated with you, like a crazy girl." "Really?" "But I want to go home and have sex with my husband." "I know a good therapist," Blomkvist laughs. She poked him in the stomach. "Michel, I'm beginning to think that the Swedish Morgan Post thing is a big mistake." "Nonsense, this is your chance. If anyone could breathe life into that dying body, it would be you." "Maybe. But that's the problem. The Swedish Morgan Post is dying and you're dropping this bomb about Bosche." "You have to slow things down." "I know. But the Templer thing is going to be a big problem. I don't know how to deal with it at all." "Me too. But there's always a way." She lay still for a while. "I miss you." "I miss you too." "What does it take to get you to the Swedish Morgan Post as news editor?" "I'm not going no matter what. News editor isn't that... what's his name... Holm?" "Yes, but he's an idiot." "I agree." "You know him?" "Of course. I worked under him for three months in the mid-eighties. He was a nuisance, a provocateur, and . . . " "And what?" "nothing." "Say it." "There was a girl named Wu La or something, who was also a special reporter. She once complained to him about sexual harassment. I don't know if it's true or not, but the union didn't respond at all, and her contract was not extended." Erica checked the time, sighed and got out of bed to shower.Blomkvist didn't move until she came out to dry off and change. "I think I'm going to take another nap," he said. She kissed his cheek and left with a wave of her hand. Figuelaura parked his car on Luntmarca Street near the corner of Via Olof Palme, seven cars away from Morrison's Volvo parked ahead.She watched Mo Tiansen go to the toll machine to pay the parking fee, and then walked towards Svia Road. Figuelaura decided not to pay.If you go to the machine and come back, you will lose people, so you just follow them.He turned left onto King Street and into the King's Tower Café.She waited three minutes before following in and saw him talking to a rather well-built blond man on the first floor.The police, she thought, and recognized that it was the other man Crist had photographed outside Copa's on May 1st. She bought a cup of coffee herself, sat on the other side, and opened the "Daily News" in her hand.Mo Tiansen chatted with his companions in a low voice.Although neither of them noticed her, she took out her mobile phone and pretended to make a call, and took a picture by the way.Although the resolution of the mobile phone screen is only 72 dpi and the picture quality is not good, it can still be used as evidence that the two met. After about fifteen minutes, the blond man got up and left the cafe.Figuelaura cursed secretly.She should have stayed outside just now, she would have recognized him as soon as he went out.She wanted to jump up and give chase, but Mo Tiansen was still drinking his coffee slowly, and she didn't want to attract attention by following his unidentified companion too quickly. Then Mo Tiansen went to the bathroom.As soon as he closed the door, Figuolaura got up and walked to King Street. Looking both ways, the blond man had disappeared. She wanted to try her luck, and hurried to the intersection of Svia, but there was no one there, so she walked down the subway station, still hopeless. She nervously returned to the King's Tower, and Mo Tiansen also left. When Erica returned to where the BMW had been parked the night before, she couldn't help but curse. The car is still there, but some bastard punctured all four tires during the night.Fuck you bastard, she's blown away. She called the garage and told them she had no time to wait and the key was in the tailpipe.After speaking, he walked to Horns Road and stopped a taxi. Salander logged into the hacker republic, found that the plague was also online, and knocked him. The plague stopped for a while. She then explained to him what needed to be done. On Friday morning, Jonathan sat at his desk, facing an irate Officer Fast. "I don't understand." Fast said, "Hasn't Salander recovered? There are two reasons why I came to Gothenburg: one is to interrogate her, and the other is to prepare her to be transferred to the Stockholm Detention Center, which is also where she should go." The place." "I'm sorry to make you come here in vain." Jonathan said, "Actually, I also hope to let her out of the hospital, because there are no vacant beds in the hospital. But..." "Could she be pretending to be sick?" Jonathan smiled politely. "I really don't think so. You know, Salander was shot in the head. I took a bullet out of her head and she had a half chance of surviving. She did and the recovery is very impressive. Satisfied... So my colleagues and I are also preparing to discharge her. As a result, her condition worsened yesterday. Not only did she have a severe headache, but her temperature also fluctuated. Last night she had a fever of 38 degrees and vomited twice. She had a fever during the night Withdrawal, the situation is almost back to normal, I thought it was just a temporary change. But this morning when I took her temperature, it rose to nearly 39 degrees again. This is serious." "So what happened to her?" "Don't know, but her fluctuating temperature means it's not a cold or some other viral infection. I can't say for sure, but it could just be an allergy to a drug or something she was exposed to." He clicked on a screen on the computer, and then turned the screen to Fast. "I took an X-ray of her brain and you can see here, right next to the gunshot wound, there's a darker area. I'm not sure what that is, it could be scar tissue from the healing process, but it could be Microbleeding. I can't release her until we find the problem, no matter how urgent the police think it is." Fast knew that it was useless to argue with doctors, because they acted as the closest messengers of God on earth.Except maybe the police. "What are you going to do now?" "I've ordered her to be placed on full bed rest and her rehabilitation suspended - exercise therapy due to shoulder and hip injuries." "Understood. I've got to inform Prosecutor Ekkerström in Stockholm. It's a bit of a surprise, what should I tell him?" "Two days ago I was ready to approve the discharge, maybe this weekend. According to the current situation, it will take a little longer. You have to let him be mentally prepared. I am afraid that it will not be decided next week. It may be difficult to transfer her to Stockholm." We'll have to wait two weeks. It depends on how quickly she recovers, anyway." "The court date has been set for July." "If there are no accidents, she will have recovered by then." Boblanski eyed suspiciously the muscular woman sitting across the table from the terrace of a cafe on the Melasteran North Road.Today is Friday, May 20th, and the warmth of May is already in the air.Her papers identified her as Inspector Monica Figuelaura of the National Security Service.She found him just before he came home from get off work and offered to have a coffee and talk, and that was it. He was almost hostile at first, but she admitted straight out that she had no right to question him, and that he could of course say nothing if he didn't want to.He asked her what her intentions were, and she said that her boss had sent her to privately investigate what was true and what was not in the so-called Zarachenko case and the Salander case. "What do you want to know?" said Boblanski at last. "Tell me what you know about Salander, Blomkvist, Bjork, and Zarachenko. How are they related to each other?" They talked for over two hours. Ai Kelinte kept deliberating on how to proceed.After five days of investigation, Figuolaura gave him undisputed evidence of corruption within the NSA.He knew that until he got enough information, he had to be extremely cautious in every move.Furthermore, as far as the constitution is concerned, he is currently in a dilemma because he does not have the authority to conduct secret investigations, especially against his own colleagues. So he must try to think of a reason to justify what he did.In the worst case scenario, he could still say that it was the job of the police to investigate crimes, but that the crime was so sensitive from a constitutional point of view that he could be fired if he made a wrong move.So all day Friday, he was alone in his office, brooding. His final conclusion: As improbable as it may seem, Armansky was right.There are indeed conspiracies brewing within the NSA, and there are individuals who are acting outside of normal operations, or both.Because this has been going on for years, at least since Zarachenko arrived in Sweden in 1976, it must have been planned and approved by the top.As for how high the level of the conspirators is, he has no idea. He wrote three names on the pad. Yoram Mortenson, Bodyguard Team, Criminal Inspector Gunner Björk, deputy head of immigration, deceased (suicide?) Albert Schenk, Secretary of Homeland Security Figuelaura thought that Mo Tiansen from the personal security team should have been transferred to the anti-intermediary team, but he was actually not there. This must be an order from the secretary-general.Mo Tiansen was busy monitoring the actions of reporter Blomkvist, and had nothing to do with counter-information work. A few people outside the NSA have to be added to the list: Peter Tyler Polian, psychiatrist Russ Fosson (Fallon), locksmith Tyler Polian was hired by the National Security Bureau in the 1980s and 1990s to serve as a psychiatric consultant for several specific cases. To be precise, there were three cases. Aikelint checked the reports in the file.The first case was unusual: Counter-intelligence agents had found a Russian informant in the Swedish telecommunications industry whose background suggested he might commit suicide if the operation came to light.Taylor Polian made a very accurate analysis of him and assisted them in recruiting this man to become a double agent.The other two reports were less concerned with important evaluations.The first was about the alcoholism of an NSA employee, and the second was an analysis of the bizarre sexual behavior of an African diplomat. Neither Tyler Polian nor Fallon — especially Fallon — held any positions within the NSA.But what are they related by these tasks? The plot was closely linked to the late Zarachenko, who appeared to be a GRU intelligence agent who defected on the day of the 1976 Swedish election, a man no one had ever heard of.How is this possible? Aiklint tried to imagine what he would have been like if he had been the head of the NSA in 1976 when Zarachenko defected.What will he do?Absolute confidentiality, this should be the most important.The defection was only known to a small group, lest the news leak back to Russia, and ... how small a group? A job department? An unidentified operating department? Ideally, he would be under the protection of MI, but they had neither the resources nor the expertise for such an operation.So that's the NSA.If the incident was handled properly, Zarachenko's case should eventually fall to the anti-intermediary team. But the anti-intermediary group has never had him.Bjork is the key, he was one of the people who dealt with Zarachenko, and he has no connection with the anti-intermediary group.Bjork is a mystery. On the surface, he has worked in the immigration team since the 1970s, but in fact he is rarely seen on the team. It was not until the 1990s that he suddenly became the deputy head of the team. But Bjork was Blomkvist's main source.How could Blomkvist convince Bjork to reveal such explosive material?And the target of the exposure is a reporter. prostitute.Millennium is going to expose Björk after he's messing around with some underage prostitutes.Blomkvist must have threatened this. Then Salander entered. The late attorney Bierman worked in the immigration section at the same time as the late Bjork.Zaraqianke is what they are responsible for.But what did they do to him? Someone must make a decision.The defectors who deal with this status must be ordered by the highest level. is the government.There must be government support behind it, otherwise it would be unimaginable. Is that true? Ai Kelinte suddenly felt shuddering.In fact, all this is not difficult to understand.A defector as important as Zarachenko deserved to be treated with top secrecy, and he probably thought so, and certainly so did Fielding's cabinet.This makes sense. But what happened in 1991 was irrational.Björk hired Taylor Polian to imprison Salander in a children's psychiatric hospital under the pretext of insanity, which was a crime, and such a heinous crime made Aiklint feel even more worried. Someone must have made the decision.But never the government.The Prime Minister at the time was Carlson, followed by Bilt, but no politician dared to get involved in such a decision that violated all legal justice. Once discovered, it would cause a huge scandal. If the government were to intervene, Sweden would be no better than any despotic regime in the world. impossible. And what about the events of April 12?It so happened that Zarachenko was killed by a deranged fanatic in Sogenska Hospital, at the same time that Blomkvist's apartment was burglarized and lawyer Annika was attacked.In the latter two incidents, the strange report written by Bjork in 1991 was lost. This information came from Armanski, but it was completely private and they did not call the police. In addition, Aiklint originally hoped to have a good talk with Bjork, but he also chose to hang himself at this time. Aiklint didn't believe that all these things came together by coincidence, nor did Inspector Boblanski, nor did Blomkvist.Ai Kelinte picked up the marker pen again and wrote: Evert Gulbe, seventy-eight years old.Tax expert? ? ? Who is this Guerbo? He tried to find the director of the NSA, but refrained in the end, for a simple reason: he didn't know how high the level of the conspiracy was involved, and he didn't know who to trust. At one point he wanted to find regular police officers.The Nederman investigation was being run by Boblanski, and any information on it would obviously be of interest to him.But purely from a political standpoint, this is absolutely not feasible. He felt a heavy burden on his shoulders. Now there is only one constitutional option left, which may offer him some protection if he ends up in a political storm.What he is doing now, he can only ask his boss to give him political support. It was almost four o'clock on a Friday afternoon, and he picked up the phone to call the Attorney General, whom he had known for years and who had met at departmental meetings several times.It was connected in less than five minutes. "Hi, Aiklint, long time no see. What's the matter?" "Honestly... this call should be to see how reliable you think I am." "Reliable? That's a really weird question. From what I can tell, you're 100 percent reliable. Why do you ask that?" "Because I have a very unusual and important request. I need a meeting with you and the Prime Minister. It is urgent." "that's it?" "I'm sorry, but I'd like to wait until we meet privately to explain in detail. I've had a very shocking incident and I think both you and the Prime Minister should be informed." "Is it related to terrorists or threat assessment?" "No, it's more serious than this. I made this request to you because I bet my reputation and future." "I get it, that's why you're asking about your reliability. How soon do you need to see the Prime Minister?" "Tonight if possible." "You're worrying me a little bit." "Unfortunately you should be worried." "How long is the meeting?" "About an hour." "I'll call you again." The minister called back ten minutes later, asking Aiklint to go to the prime minister's residence at 9:30 p.m.When he put down the phone, Ai Kelinte's palms were sweaty.Tomorrow morning my future may be over. He called Figuelaura. "Fegueraura, come to me tonight at nine. Better dress formally." "I've always dressed very formally," Figuelaura said. The prime minister looked at the head of the constitutional protection team with prudent eyes for a long time.Aiklint felt as if there were gears spinning at high speed behind the prime minister's glasses. The prime minister then turned his attention to Figuelaura, who had been silent during the group leader's report.He saw an unusually tall and strong woman looking at him with a polite and expectant expression on her face.Then he turned to the Minister of Justice, only to see that his face was pale after listening to the report. After a while, the Prime Minister took a deep breath, took off his glasses, and stared into the distance for a moment. "I think we need some more coffee," he said. "Okay, thanks," Figuelaura said. When the minister was pouring coffee from the thermos, Ai Kelin nodded his thanks. "I repeat briefly to make sure that I am not mistaken," said the Prime Minister. "You suspect that there is a cabal within the secret police that is engaged in activities that are not within its constitutional purview and that have committed horrible crimes over the years. Serious crimes." "yes." "And you came to me because you didn't trust the leadership of the secret police." "Not exactly," Aiklint said. "I decided to go directly to you Prime Minister because this kind of behavior is unconstitutional, but I don't know the purpose of the cabal, and I don't know if I misunderstood something. Maybe it's the government. authorized legitimate activity, I could have acted on false or misinterpreted information to sabotage a secret mission." The prime minister looked at the minister, and both of them understood that Aiklint was trying to protect himself. "I've never heard of such a thing. Do you know?" "I don't know at all." The minister replied, "There is absolutely nothing related to this matter in the report given to me by the secret police." "Blomkvist thinks there are factions within the secret police, which he calls the 'Zarachenko Club'," says Aiklint. "I've never even heard that Sweden took in and protected such an important Russian defector," said the prime minister. "You say he defected during Fielding's administration?" "I don't think Fielding would hide something like this," the minister said. "A defection like this is a big deal and should be handed over to the next government." Aikelint cleared his throat with a light cough. "Palme took over Fielding's conservative government. It is well known that some seniors in our NSA have special views on Palme..." "You mean that someone forgot to inform the Social Democratic government?" Ai Kelin nodded. "Please don't forget that Fielding was in power twice. Each time the coalition collapsed. The first time he handed over power to Ulsten, who formed a minority government in 1979. Then the Moderates abandoned it. , the government collapsed again and Fielding came into power in coalition with the People's Party. I guess the government cabinet was in turmoil during those handovers. Maybe only a small group of people knew about Zarachenko, Prime Minister Fielding didn't Really informed, so there is nothing to hand over to Palme." "Then who is responsible?" asked the Prime Minister. Everyone except Figolaura shook their heads. "I think the media will hear about it," the Prime Minister said. "Blomkvist and "Millennium" are going to publish it. In other words, we are caught in the so-called dilemma." Aikelint deliberately used the word "we". The Prime Minister nodded in agreement.He understands the seriousness of the situation. "Then I have to thank you for coming to tell me this so soon. Usually I would not agree to this kind of meeting without prior arrangements, but the minister said that you are a cautious person. Since you did not meet me through normal channels, it must be There's something important." Aikelint breathed a sigh of relief.In any case, the prime minister's anger will not spread to him. "Now we have to decide what to do about it. Do you have any suggestions?" "Maybe it can be counted." Ai Kelinte said tentatively. Then he was silent for a long time, and Figuelaura had to clear his throat and say, "May I say a few words?" "Please," said the Prime Minister. "If the government really didn't know, then this operation is illegal, and the person in charge of the operation is a criminal public servant because he overstepped his authority. If we can confirm all of Blomkvist's claims, it means that there is a group of police officers in the NSA have been engaged in criminal activities for a long time. Then the question will be divided into two parts." "What does it mean?" "First we have to ask: How could this happen? Who is responsible? How could such a conspiracy develop in a well-organized police agency? Could it last this long? How is this operation concealed and funded?" "Go on," said the Prime Minister. "Many books will probably be published in the future discussing this first part. But it is clear that they must have funds, and I am afraid at least several million crowns a year. I have checked the budget of the secret police and I have not found anything like that allocated to ' Zaraqianke Club'. But you also know that some secret funds are controlled by the Secretary-General and the Budget Director, and I have no access to information." The prime minister nodded grimly.Why is managing the secret police always such a nightmare? "The second part is: Who was involved? Or more specifically, who should be arrested? In my opinion, the answer to all of these questions depends on the decisions you make in the next few minutes." She Tell the Prime Minister. Ai Kelinte couldn't help but gasped.He would have liked to kick Figueraura in the shin if he could.She completely omitted the euphemistic polite words and pointed out that the Prime Minister himself should be responsible.He himself intends to come to the same conclusion in the end, but he will have to go full circle beforehand. "What decision do you think I should make?" "I think our concerns are the same. I have been with the Constitutional Security Unit for three years and I think this unit is very important to the Swedish democracy. The secret police have been working properly within the constitutional system in recent years, and I certainly do not Hopefully the scandal reaches the NSA. It's important to know that this case was a crime committed by a small number of individuals." "There is absolutely no way this kind of action was sanctioned by the government," the minister said. Figuelaura nodded and thought for a few seconds. "In my opinion, the most important thing is not to implicate the government in this scandal, but if the government tries to cover it up, it may be implicated." "The government did not cover up crimes," the minister said. "Yes, but hypothetically, just hypothetically, the government may want to do this, and it will cause great public outrage." "Go on," said the Prime Minister. "Our constitutional safeguards team has to carry out an operation that is inherently illegal in order to investigate this matter, which also complicates the situation. So we hope that everything will be legal and constitutional." "We all hope so," said the prime minister. "Then I suggest that you, as prime minister, instruct the Constitutional Guarantee Group to clarify this matter as soon as possible." Figuelaura said: "Decree in writing and grant us the necessary authority." "I'm afraid your proposal is not legal," said the minister. "Absolutely legal. The government has the power to take a wide range of measures where there is a risk of unconstitutionality. If a group of soldiers or police starts to implement an independent foreign policy, Sweden has effectively had a coup d'état." "Foreign policy?" The minister was puzzled. The prime minister suddenly nodded. "Zarachenko betrayed a foreign regime," Figolaura explained. "According to Blomkvist, he gave information to foreign intelligence agencies. If the government doesn't know, it's tantamount to a coup." "I understand your argument," said the Prime Minister. "Now let me give my opinion." He stood up and walked around the table, finally standing still in front of Aiklint. "You have a very talented colleague. She hits the nail on the head." Ai Kelinte swallowed and nodded.The prime minister then turned to the justice minister. "Bring your Secretary of State and Director of Justice. Tomorrow morning, I will see a document that specifically authorizes the Constitutional Guarantee Group to deal with this matter. Their task is to confirm whether what we have just discussed is true or not, Gather evidence of how far-reaching it is and find out who is responsible or involved. Documents must not state that you are conducting a preliminary investigation, I may be mistaken, but I thought only the Attorney General could in this case Appoint the person in charge of the preliminary investigation. But I can authorize you to conduct a personal investigation, so you will make a formal public report, you understand?" "I understand, but I want to state that I've been a prosecutor myself before." "We asked the Secretary for Justice to look at the correct wording. In short, the investigation is yours alone, but you can choose the assistants you need. If there is evidence of a crime, it must be passed to the Attorney General, who decides prosecution." "I'll have to find out what the applicable clauses are, but I think you'll have to inform the Speaker of Parliament and the Constitutional Committee ... the word will get out soon," the minister said. "In other words, we are moving faster," the prime minister said. Figuelaura raised his hand to signal to speak. "What's the matter?" asked the Prime Minister. "There are two more issues: first, the publication of Millennium conflicts with our investigation; and second, the Salander trial is just a few weeks away." "Can you tell me when Millennium is going to be published?" "You can ask," Aiklint replied, "but the last thing we want is dealing with the media." "As for this girl named Salander..." the Minister of Justice started, then paused for a while. "It would be horrible if she was treated as unfairly as Millennium said. Is it really possible?" "I'm afraid it's true," Aiklint said. "Then we have to make up for the harm she has suffered, and especially we must not allow her to suffer unfair treatment again." The prime minister said. "How to do it?" asked the minister. "The government cannot interfere with a case that has been prosecuted, otherwise it is illegal." "Can I speak to the prosecutor?" “不行，”艾柯林特说：“您身为首相，绝不能影响司法程序。” “换句话说，莎兰德只能上法院碰碰运气。”部长说：“只有当她打输官司后上诉，政府才能插手，或是特赦她或是要求检察总长审查是否可能重新开庭。但这也只有在她被判徒刑时才适用，假如她被判入精神疗养院，政府便无计可施。那是医疗问题，首相无权判定她是否正常。” 星期五晚上十点，莎兰德听到门上钥匙转动的声音，立刻关掉掌上电脑并把它藏进床垫底下。抬头一看，约纳森正要关门。 “晚安，莎兰德小姐。”他说：“今天晚上感觉怎么样？” “头痛得要命，好像还发烧。” “听起来不太好。” 莎兰德似乎并不特别因为发烧或头痛感到困扰。约纳森花了十分钟替她作检查，发现晚上这段时间她的体温又急剧窜高。 “你过去几个星期复原情况那么好，现在却得强迫卧床休息，真是遗憾。很可惜你至少还得多待两个星期才能出院。” “两个星期应该够了。” 从伦敦到斯德哥尔摩陆路距离约一千九百公里，理论上开车约需二十小时，实际上二十小时只能到达德国北部与丹麦交界处。星期日天空乌云密布，当化名“三一”的男子来到连接丹麦与瑞典的俄勒海峡大桥中央，天开始下起倾盆大雨。他于是减慢车速，启动雨刷。 三一发现在欧陆开车真是要命，因为路上每个人都坚持开在错误的一边。他在星期五上午将行李装上货车，从多佛搭渡轮到法国加来，然后经由列日横越比利时，在亚琛通过德国边界后，由高速公路北上汉堡，再继续前往丹麦。 他的同伴“巴布狗”在后座睡觉。他们轮流开车，除了有几次暂停一小时休息外，一直都维持九十公里的时速前进。这辆车已是十八年的老车，开不了更快。 虽然从伦敦到斯德哥尔摩有更便利的方法，但要带着三十公斤的电子仪器上飞机似乎不太可能。他们总共越过六个国界，却一次也没被海关或护照查验人员拦下。三一是欧盟的热情支持者，他们的规定让他造访欧陆的行程简化许多。 三一出生于布拉德福德，但从小就住在伦敦北区。他没受过良好的正规教育，后来上职业学校拿到一份通讯技师的证书，满十九岁后，在英国电讯公司当了三年工程师。当他了解电话系统如何运作，也明白该系统已经老旧得无可救药之后，便转行当私人安保顾问，为人安装警报系统防范盗窃，还会为特别的客户提供监视录像机与电话窃听设备。 现年三十二岁的他熟知电子与计算机理论，而且远远超越该领域的任何教授。他从十岁就与电脑为伍，十三岁便成功侵入第一部计算机。 他从此胃口大开，十六岁已经进阶到足以与世界顶尖人士相抗衡。有一段时期，他只要醒着就待在电脑前面写自己的程序，在网络上散布垃圾邮件。他还入侵过BBC广播公司、英国国防部和伦敦警察厅，甚至曾经成功地(短时间)支配一艘在北海巡逻的核子潜艇。好在三一只是好奇，而非恶劣的电脑掠夺者。一旦破解了电脑防线，入侵后得知了秘密，他也就不再着迷。 他是黑客共和国的创建人之一。而黄蜂则是共和国的公民。 星期日晚上七点半，他和巴布狗已逐渐接近斯德哥尔摩。经过凯尔岛孔根斯库瓦的宜家家居时，三一打开手机拨了他背下来的电话号码。 “瘟疫。”三一叫道。 “你们在哪里？” “你不是说要我们经过宜家家居的时候打电话？” 瘟疫已经在长岛的青年旅馆为英国的伙伴们订了房间，于是他便向三一报路。因为瘟疫几乎从不离开住处，他们说好第二天早上十点在他家碰面。 瘟疫决定破例作一番努力，洗了碗、大致打扫一下并打开窗户，迎接客人到来。