Chapter 30 heritage list

Annika and Salander met in the bar at the Sodra Theater at about nine o'clock, and Salander had a beer and was on the verge of his second. "Sorry I'm late." Annika glanced at her watch and said, "There's someone to deal with just now." "It's okay," Salander said. "What are you celebrating?" "No, just wanted to get drunk." Annika looked at her suspiciously, then sat down. "Do you often feel this way?" "I was very drunk when I was released, but I didn't have a tendency to drink. I just thought that for the first time in my life, I could legally get drunk in Sweden."

Annika ordered a Campari. "Okay. Do you want to drink alone, or do you want to have company?" she asked. "Preferably alone, but if you don't talk much, you can sit with me. I don't think you want to go home and have sex with me." "What did you say?" Annika asked in surprise. "Yeah, I shouldn't have thought that. You're one of those deeply rooted heterosexuals." Annika suddenly found it interesting. "For the first time in my life, a client proposed to have sex with me." "Interested?" "No, not at all, sorry. But thanks for the offer."

"Then what is your business, barrister?" "Two things. Either I terminate your appointment right now, or you have to answer my calls. We discussed this when you were released." Salander looked at Annika. "I've been looking for you for a week, calling and writing and emailing." "I went out." "In fact, you can't be found for almost the whole autumn. This is really not good. I said that I will negotiate with the government on your behalf. There are procedures to be run, documents to be signed, and questions to be answered. I I must be able to contact you, I don't want to be like an idiot who doesn't know where you went."

"I was away for another two weeks. After returning home yesterday, I called as soon as I knew you were looking for me." "This is not enough. You have to let me know where you are, and contact me at least once a week until all these compensation matters are resolved." "I don't want any compensation, I just want the government to let me be quiet." "But no matter what you think, the government won't leave you alone. Your acquittal sets in motion a long chain of events that doesn't just concern you. Tyler Pollyan will be prosecuted for what he did to you, You have to testify; Exstrom is under investigation for negligence, and if it turns out he was willfully neglecting his duties at the behest of the 'team', he may be prosecuted."

Salander raised her brows and looked interested for a moment. "But I don't think so, he was lured into a trap by the 'team' and had nothing to do with them. But just last week, some prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation into the Guardianship Service, and several reports were sent to Congressional Ombudsman, and a copy to the Justice Department." "I didn't complain to anyone." "True, but it was clearly a serious dereliction of duty that affected more than you." Salander shrugged. "It's none of my business. But I promise you will be in closer contact, with the exception of the first two weeks. I'm working."

Annika doesn't seem convinced. "What are u doing?" "consult." "I get it," she said. "Another thing, the estate list is ready." "What estate inventory?" "Your father's. Since no one seemed to be able to find you, the legal representative of the government came to me. You and your sister are his only heirs." Salander looked at Annika blankly.Then he attracted the attention of the waitress and pointed to his wine glass. "I don't want to inherit anything from my father. Do what you want." "Wrong. You can do what you want with the inheritance. I'm just responsible for giving you the opportunity to do so."

"I won't take a dime from that pig." "Then donate the money to Greenpeace or something." "I'm not a whale." Annika's tone suddenly became soft. "Liz, if you are going to be a legally responsible citizen, you have to act like you are from now on. I don't care what you do with your money at all. As long as you sign here, you can live in peace and quiet. Get drunk." Salander glanced at her, then down at the table.Annika thought it was a compromising gesture, which should amount to an apology in Salander's limited expression. "How much is the amount?"

"It's not small. Your father's stock is worth about 300,000 crowns, and the market value of Gosseberga's land is about 1.5 million, including a small forest. There are other assets." "What kind of assets?" "He seems to have invested a lot of money. It's not worth much, but he owns a small building with six apartments in Uddevalla, which brings him some rental income. The building is not in very good condition though, and he He didn't bother to maintain it, and was even announced by the rental committee. If you sell it, you won't get rich overnight, but you can make a fortune. He also has a summer house in Småland, worth about 250,000 crowns. There is also a deserted industrial site on the outskirts of Talje."

"What the hell is he buying all this junk for?" "I don't know. But the inheritance is worth more than four million crowns after deducting taxes, it's just..." "Just what?" "The inheritance will be divided equally between you and your sister. The problem is that no one knows where your sister is." Salander looked at Annika without saying a word. "so what?" "So what?" "Where is your sister?" "I don't know. I haven't seen her in ten years." "Her file is classified, but it appears from the records that she is not in the country."

"Oh." Salander hummed. Annika sighed exasperatedly. "I will suggest liquidating all assets and depositing half of the amount in the bank until you find your sister. As long as you nod, I will start negotiating." Salander shrugged. "I don't want anything to do with his money." "I understand. But the reckoning has to be done, and that's part of your responsibilities as a citizen." "Then sell all those messy things, put half in the bank, and give the other half to whoever you like." Annika stared at her blankly.Although she knew that Salander had her own money, she didn't expect that this person was so rich that he didn't take an inheritance of at least one million crowns seriously.Furthermore, she had no idea how much Salander had and where it came from.But in any case, all she wanted was to end all the administrative procedures as soon as possible.

"Liz, please...can you go through the list of inheritance, so that I can handle things more easily, and you can also solve this matter as soon as possible?" Salander grumbled and complained for a while, then finally nodded and stuffed the binder into her shoulder bag.She promised to tell Annika what to do when she was done, and started drinking beer again.Annika stayed with her for an hour, drinking mostly mineral water. It wasn't until Annika called to remind her about the estate list a few days later that Salander took out the crumpled documents, sat down at the dining table, smoothed the paper, and began to read. The list ran over several pages, detailing all sorts of junk, like china, clothes, cameras, and other personal possessions from Gosseberg's cupboard.What Zarachenko left behind was of little practical value, and had no sentimental value to Salander.She was sure, still the same as she had been when she met Annika in the theater bar.Sell ​​the crap, give the money away, or whatever.She definitely didn't want a dime of her father's property, but she was also sure that Zarachenko's real assets were hidden in places that even tax inspectors could not find. Then she flipped through the land title deeds from Nordtalje. This is an industrial site with three buildings covering a total area of ​​20,000 square meters in the Kedri area between Nordtalje and Limbo. The estate manager seems to have inspected the site, and recorded that it was an old brick factory, which was more or less emptied and abandoned after it was closed in the 1960s. It was only used to store wood for a period of time in the 1970s.The records also state that the building is in "extremely poor condition" and that it is almost impossible to refurbish it for other uses. The "north building" was also described as being in "extremely poor condition", but it had actually been completely destroyed by fire. The "main building" has undergone some restoration work. What surprised Salander was the history of the land.Zarachenko bought the land at a very low price on March 12, 1984, but the person who signed the sale contract was Anida Sophia Salander. So Salander's mother was the real landlord.But her ownership ended in 1987.After Zarachenko bought the land for two thousand crowns, it was abandoned like this for less than fifteen years.The listing shows that on September 17, 2003, KAB Imports hired Norbig Construction Company to carry out renovations, including refinishing the floor and roof, and updating the drainage and electrical systems.The renovation work was carried out for two months without interruption until the end of November.Norbig sent an invoice, and the fee was paid. Of all her father's inheritance, this was the only one that was puzzling.Salander was very confused.If my father wanted the outside world to think that KAB Imports was doing a legitimate business or owning certain assets, ownership of the industrial land would make sense.It also made sense to buy it in her mother's name and then buy it back at a lower price. But why on earth is he spending 440,000 crowns to renovate a crumbling building?And according to heritage administrator records, the building remained completely unoccupied in 2005. She couldn't figure it out, but she didn't intend to waste time thinking about it.She closed the binder and called Annika. "I've read the list. It's the same old saying, sell those rotten things, and you can do whatever you want with the money. I don't want any of his things." "Very well. I'll arrange to have your sister's half deposited into a bank account, and I'll find some suitable recipients for the remainder." "Okay." Salander hung up the phone without further talking. She sat by the window and lit a cigarette, looking out at the salt lake. For the next week, Salander assisted Armansky in an urgent matter of tracking down the identity of a child kidnapper.The suspect was likely employed by one of a Swedish woman who was divorcing her Lebanese husband and fighting for custody of their children.Salander was tasked with checking the emails of the people suspected of abetting the kidnapping.When the two parties resolved through legal channels, the role played by Milton Security also came to an end. On December 18, the Sunday before Christmas, Salander woke up at six o'clock, remembering that she had to buy a present for Pangren.She also wondered if she should also give gifts to other people, such as Annika.She got up and took a lukewarm shower, then had cheese and marmalade and coffee for breakfast. There is no special plan for this day, I spent some time cleaning up the papers and magazines on the table, and suddenly my eyes fell on the binder of the inheritance list.She opened it and re-read the page on the registration of land titles in Northern Talje.She sighed.Well, I gotta go see what the hell he's doing in there. She puts on warm clothes and boots.It was 8:30 in the morning when the burgundy Honda was driven out of the garage downstairs at No. 9 Fiskar Street.It was cold but beautiful outside, the sun was shining and the sky was blue.She passed the Slusen and Clarabel ring road, detoured onto the E18 road, and headed north in the direction of North Talje.She drives slowly.At ten o'clock, I turned into a car gas station shop a few kilometers outside of Shedderry, and wanted to ask how to get to the old brick factory.As soon as I parked the car, I realized that there was no need to ask. From the hillside where she is located, the entire valley across the road can be seen at a glance.To the left in the direction of Nordtalje you can see a paint warehouse, a yard for stacking building materials, and another yard for bulldozers.On the right hand side, at the edge of the factory district, about four hundred yards from the road, was a dilapidated brick building with a towering chimney that had toppled over.The standing factory is like the last sentinel of the whole factory area, a little lonely on the other side of the road and stream.She gazed at the building thoughtfully, asking herself what was wrong with driving all the way to Nordtalje. She turned to look at the gas station, where a long-distance freight truck bearing the IRU badge had just pulled in.It was only then that she remembered that this was the main road leading to Capeschel Wharf, through which Sweden had frequent freight exchanges with the Baltic countries. She started the engine, drove up the road to the old brick factory, parked the car in the middle of the yard and got out.It's sub-zero outside, so she dons a black knit hat and leather gloves. The main building has two floors.All the windows on the first floor were nailed with plywood, and it could be seen that many windows on the second floor were broken.The factory was bigger than she had imagined, and it was unbelievably dilapidated.There are no signs of refurbishment.There was no one around, but someone had left a used condom in the yard, and the exterior walls were covered in graffiti. Why did Zarachenko buy this building? She walked around the factory and spotted the crumbling north building behind it.Disappointed that the doors to the main building were locked, she looked at a side door.The other doors were all locked with padlocks and iron bolts and galvanized steel bars. Only the locks on the gable side seemed to be relatively weak, and they were only roughly fixed with nails.Damn, this is my place.She searched around and found a thin iron pipe among the piles of debris, which she used to pry open the nails holding the padlock. She went into the stairwell, where there was a door leading to the factory area on the first floor.Because the windows were nailed down, it was dark inside, except for a few gleams of light seeping through the cracks in the edges of the planks.She stood still for a few minutes, until her eyes adjusted to the darkness.At this time, she saw a workshop about forty-five meters long and twenty meters wide, supported by thick pillars, filled with a lot of garbage, wooden pallets, old machine parts and wood.The old brick oven seems to have been dismantled, replaced by several large pools, and large traces of mold on the ground.The stagnant stench of the ruins made her wrinkle her nose in disgust. She turned and climbed the stairs.The upper floor was dry and divided into two similar rooms, each about twenty meters square and at least eight meters high.There are some unreachable windows near the ceiling, although they can't see the outside scene, they are full of light.The upstairs was just as full of junk as the downstairs.Dozens of one-meter-high cargo boxes were piled up, and she grabbed one of them, but couldn't move it.On the box was written: Machine Parts 〇-A Qiqi, and the bottom line seemed to be synonymous in Russian.She found a cargo elevator in the middle of the wall in the first room. It's like a warehouse for machinery, but there's no money in leaving machinery to rust. She walked into the inner room, which seemed to be the place where it was renovated.It was still a maze of rubbish, boxes and old office furniture.There is a part of the floor where the concrete bottom is exposed, and a new wooden floor is laid.Salander guessed that the renovation work had come to an abrupt end.The tools, a cross-saw and a circular saw, a nail gun, a crowbar, an iron rod and the toolbox are still there.She couldn't help frowning.Even if the project is interrupted, the craftsman should take the tools with him.This question was answered when she held a screwdriver up to the light and saw Russian written on the handle.The tools were imported by Zarachenko, and probably the workers as well. She flipped the saw switch and the green light came on.There is electricity.She then turns off. The innermost part of the room has three doors leading to a smaller room, possibly an old office.She turned the doorknob of the room on the north side and locked it, then went back to the tool pile to get a crowbar, and it took a while to break in. The room was dark and had a musty smell.She fumbled her hands along the wall, found a switch, and lit an exposed bulb in the ceiling.Salander looked around in surprise. There were three beds with dirty mattresses in the room and three other mattresses on the floor.Dirty sheets were strewn about.There was a two-burner electric stove to the right, and pots by the rusty tap.In the corner stood a tin can and a roll of toilet paper. Someone has lived here.And more than one. Then she noticed that there was no handle on the inside of the door, and a chill ran down her spine. There is a large household linen cabinet at the far end of the room.She opened it to find two suitcases with some clothes in the top boxes.She rummaged through it, picked up a dress with a Russian label, found a handbag, and dumped the contents on the floor. Among the cosmetics and other small things, there was a passport. It was a dark-haired woman. young woman all.It was a Russian passport, and she spelled out the bearer's name as Valentina. Salander walked out of the room slowly, feeling familiar.She had inspected a similar crime scene in one of Hedeby's basements two and a half years ago.Women's clothes.a prison.She stood for a long time, thinking.What bothered her was that passports and clothes were left here.It doesn't feel right. Then she went back to the jumble of tools and rummaged around until she found a powerful flashlight.She checked the battery and found that it was still charged, so she went downstairs to the larger workshop.Puddles of water on the ground seeped into her boots. The closer you get to the workshop, the stronger the disgusting stench, and it seems to be the most stinky in the middle.She went to stand by the base of one of the brick ovens, and saw that the water in it was almost overflowing.She picked up the flashlight and shone it on the black water, but couldn't see anything.Part of the water surface is covered with aquatic plants, forming a green goo.She found a long iron rod on the side, and inserted it into the pool to stir it.The depth of the water was only about fifty centimeters, and the iron rod hit a hard object almost immediately.After a few seconds of her fiddling from side to side, a corpse emerged from the water, face up, a grinning mask of death and decay.Salander exhaled, looked at the face in the light, and saw that it was a woman, perhaps the one in the passport photo.She had no idea of ​​the rate of decay in the cold, stagnant water, but the corpse looked like it had been soaked for a long time. Something seemed to be moving on the water.Maggots or something. She let the body sink to the bottom of the water, continued to stir with the iron rod, and bumped into something by the pool, maybe another body.Instead of picking it up, she pulled out the iron rod and threw it on the ground, then stood by the pool and meditated. Salander went upstairs again and pried open the middle door with an iron bar.The room is empty. She walked to the last door and inserted the iron rod, but before she could force it, the door opened with a crack.It was not locked.She gently opened the door with a stick and looked around. The room was about thirty meters square, with a window of normal height, and one could see the yard in front of the brick factory and the gas station on the hillside.It contained a bed, a table, and a sink stacked with dishes.Then she saw an open bag with bills on the floor.She took two steps forward in surprise, only to notice that the room was very warm, and there was an electric heater in the center, and then she saw the red light of the coffee machine was on. Someone lives here now.There was someone else in the building besides her. She turned sharply and ran out of the inner room door, toward the exit of the workshop outside, but stopped five steps from the stairwell, because the exit was closed and padlocked.She is locked.She turned slowly, looking in all directions, but there was no one. "Hello, little sister." A cheerful voice came from the right. As soon as she turned her head, she saw Niederman's huge figure emerging from behind several cargo boxes. He held a large knife in his hand. "I've been hoping to have the chance to see you again," Niederman said. "It all happened so quickly last time." Salander looked left and right. "Don't worry about it," Niederman said. "It's just you and me, and there's no other way out except the locked door behind you." Salander turned her attention to her half-brother. "How's the hand?" she asked. Niederman looked at her with a smile, and at the same time raised his right hand, but the little finger was gone. "Infected, I cut it off." Niedermann felt no pain.That day in Gosseberga, Salander cut his hand with a shovel, seconds before Zarachenko shot her in the head. "I should really aim at your head." Salander said flatly, "What are you doing here? I thought you went abroad a few months ago." He smiled again. Salander asked him what he was doing in the ruined brick factory, and even if Niederman wanted to answer, he might not be able to explain clearly.Because he can't figure it out himself. It was with a sense of relief that I left Gosseberga.He counted on Zarachenke's death so that he could take over the business.He knew he was an outstanding organizational talent. He changed cars at Alinsos, dumped the terrified dental nurse Casperson into the trunk, and drove to Poros.He didn't plan in advance, he went everywhere on a whim, and he didn't think about how to deal with Casperson.It doesn't matter if she is dead or alive, but this is a troublesome witness and I'm afraid it will have to be dealt with.Somewhere outside Poros, it occurred to him that he could use her in a different way.So he turned southward, and found a deserted wood on the outskirts of Segrola.He tied up the nurse and dumped her in a barn, thinking she would escape within hours, and led the police on a southerly chase.If she didn't break free, it didn't matter if she starved or froze to death in the barn, it wasn't his problem. He then drove back to Poros and then east to Stockholm.He went straight to Sulfur Lake, but avoided the club.It's really inconvenient for Lan Ting to be in prison.Instead, he went to the club's "guard" Hua Dali, saying that he wanted to find a hiding place, and Hua Dali sent him to the club's treasurer, Ye Langsen.But he was only there for a few hours. In theory, Niederman need not worry about money.He had left nearly two hundred thousand crowns in Gosseberga, and had remitted much larger sums abroad.The current problem is lack of cash.Yeronson was in charge of the finances of the Sulfur Lake Motorcycle Club, and Niederman easily persuaded him to take him to the cash box in the barn.Niedermann was lucky, and immediately had 800,000 crowns. He vaguely remembered that there was another woman in the room, but he forgot how to deal with her. Ye Langsen also provided a car that the police have not yet begun to search.Niederman headed north, and the general plan was to catch a ferry to Tallinn at Capeschel. After arriving at Capesier, he sat in the parking lot for half an hour, observing the situation nearby.There are policemen everywhere. He continued driving aimlessly, needing a place to hide for a while.Passing North Talje, he remembered the old brick factory.Haven't thought about going here for over a year since the renovations.The Lanta brothers, Harry and Ato, used the brickyard as a warehouse for goods coming in and out of the Baltic ports, but they'd been out of the country for a few weeks since that reporter, Dag, started poking around for prostitution.The brickyard should be empty. He drove Ye Langsen's Saab to a warehouse behind the factory, and the man entered the factory.He pried open a door on the first floor, and the first thing he did was to loosen a plywood on the side of the first floor as an emergency exit, and then replace the broken padlock, and then lived in a comfortable room upstairs. It took a whole afternoon before he heard a sound coming from outside the wall.At first he thought it was a ghost that often lingered around him, so he sat alertly and listened. After nearly an hour, he got up and went outside the workshop to listen more carefully.He didn't hear anything at first, but he stood patiently where he was, and finally heard the rustling again. He found the key by the sink. When he opened the door and found two Russian prostitutes inside, Niedermann was rarely so surprised.Skinny and boneless, the two seemed to have not eaten for weeks, subsisting on tea and water after the last sack of rice was eaten. One of them was too weak to get out of bed, the other was in better condition.She spoke only Russian, but the Russian he knew allowed him to hear that she was thanking God and him for saving their lives.She knelt on the ground and put her arms around his legs.After he pushed her away, he walked out of the room and locked it again. Niederman didn't know what to do with the two whores.He found some tins in the kitchen and warmed up some soup for them, thinking about it.The weaker woman on the bed seemed to have regained some of her strength, and he asked them many questions that night, and it took him a while to realize that the two were not prostitutes at all, but students who had paid the Lanta brothers to get them into Sweden.The Ranta brothers promised to give them visas and work permits.They came from Capeschel in February and were taken directly to the warehouse and locked up. Niedermann scowled sullenly.The two bastard brothers had managed to make extra money off Zarachenko and had forgotten about the women, but they might have left them to fend for themselves after fleeing Sweden in such a haste. The question is: what should he do with them?There is no reason to hurt them, but they cannot be let go, otherwise the police may be brought to the brick factory.I want to know this too.They couldn't be sent back to Russia, because then they would have to be driven to Capescher, which seemed too difficult.The dark-haired woman, Valentina, had offered to provide sex if he helped them.He had no interest in having sex with girls, but she was a whore too by saying so.All women are whores.It's that simple. Three days later, fed up with their constant begging, nagging, and banging on the walls, and unable to think of anything else, he opened the door one last time and quickly fixed the problem.He begged Valentina's forgiveness, then reached out and twisted the second and third cervical vertebrae of her neck with a little force.He then walked towards the unnamed blond woman lying on the bed.She lay slumped, completely helpless.He carried the two bodies downstairs and dumped them into one of the flooded pits.Finally got a little quiet. Niederman originally did not plan to live in the brick factory for a long time.He thought it would be enough to low-modulate the initial police search.He shaved his head and grew a half-inch beard, and his appearance changed accordingly.He found a pair of work pants from a worker in Norbig that seemed to fit him, put on a Baker Paint baseball cap, and slipped a folding ruler into the side pocket of the trousers.In the evening, he drove to the auto gas station store on the hillside to buy some food, and the money he took out from the Sulfur Lake Motorcycle Club was enough for him.He looked like a laborer who dropped by on his way home, and no one gave him a second glance.He goes shopping once or twice a week, all at the same time.The car clerk was always very nice to him. From day one, he spent a lot of time avoiding the monsters that lived in the building.The monsters lived inside the walls and only came out at night, and he could hear them roaming around the workshop. He shut himself up in his room, and after a few days he couldn't take it any longer, so he came out, armed with a large knife he found in a kitchen drawer, to confront the monster head-on.It must be concluded. In a blink of an eye, he found them retreating.For the first time in his life, he was able to defeat these ghosts.They flinched as soon as he approached, and their deformed bodies and tails could be seen hiding behind crates and cabinets.He roared at the ghost.They run away. He returned to the warm room with a sigh of relief, and stayed up all night, waiting for the ghost to return.They attacked again at dawn, and he faced it again.They run away again. He swings back and forth between horror and intoxication. He had been entangled by these monsters in the dark all his life, and finally felt that he was in control of the situation for one time.He has nothing to do.Sleep, eat, think.It was a peaceful day. Days turn into weeks, spring goes to summer solstice.He learned from the transistor radio and the evening paper that the police hunt for the murderer Niedermann had slowed down, and he read with relish the report on Zarachenko's murder.It's ridiculous.A psychopath solves Zarachenko.In July, reports of Salander's trial rekindled his interest, and he was shocked to see her acquitted.It doesn't feel right.She is free and he is forced to hide. He bought a special issue of Millennium at the auto store and read all the stories about Salander, Zarachenko, and Niederman.A reporter named Blomkvist described Niedermann as a psychopathic murderer.He frowned. It was autumn in the blink of an eye, and he still didn't take any action.When the weather turned cold, he bought an electric heater at the auto store, not knowing why he didn't leave the brickyard. Occasionally a young man would drive up and park in the yard, but no one ever bothered him or tried to break into the factory.A car came in September, and a man in a blue windbreaker got out of the car and tried to open the factory door, poking around.Niedermann watched him from the upstairs window.The man kept writing in his notebook, stayed for twenty minutes, checked around for the last time, and then got in the car and left.Only then did Niederman heave a sigh of relief.He didn't know who that person was and what he was doing here. It looked like he was surveying land and buildings.Niedermann did not expect that after Zarachenko's death he would have to investigate his estate. He kept thinking of Salander, and though he never expected to see her again, she bewildered and frightened him.He was not afraid of any living people, but this sister, this half-sister, was so impressive to him.No one had ever beaten him the way she did.Despite being buried by him, she was resurrected and returned to haunt him.He dreams of her every night and wakes up in a cold sweat, aware that she has replaced his usual ghost. In October he resolved not to leave Sweden until his sister had been found and destroyed.He has no specific plans, but at least his life now has purpose.He didn't know where his sister was now, or how to track her down. He just sat in the room above the brick factory day after day, week after week, staring out the window. One day, a burgundy Honda parked outside the factory, and completely unexpectedly he saw Salander get out of the car.God is merciful, he thought.Salander was going to keep company with the two women he had thrown in the sink downstairs.The wait was over and he could finally move on with his life. Salander assessed the situation and found that it was completely out of her control.She was thinking fast.Tap, tap, tap.She still held the iron rod in her hand, but she knew that this weapon was too weak for a man who didn't feel pain.At this time, she was locked in a space of about 1,000 square meters, and there was a vicious robot from hell. When Niederman suddenly moved towards her, she immediately threw out the iron rod, but he easily dodged it.Salander was agile.She stepped on the pallet, leaped onto a cargo box with all her strength, and then continued to climb up two cargo boxes like a monkey, before stopping to look down at Niederman four meters below.He was looking up at her too, waiting. "Come down." He said patiently, "You can't escape. The end is inevitable." She wondered to herself if he had a gun.If there is, it will be troublesome. He bent over and picked up a chair and threw it at her, but she ducked and ducked. Niedermann was getting annoyed.He stepped on the pallet and climbed up behind her.She waited until he was about to climb to the top, then took two quick run-up steps, jumped over a passage, and landed on the top of another cargo box, then turned around and jumped off the ground, grabbing the iron rod with one hand. Niederman is not really bulky, but he knows that he can't take the risk of jumping off the high-stacked cargo boxes, otherwise he may break his ankle.He had to climb down carefully and step firmly on the ground.He had always had to move slowly and regularly, and he had spent a lifetime getting used to his body.Just as he was about to get down to the ground, he heard footsteps behind him, and when he turned around, he blocked the blow of the iron bar with his shoulder, and the knife in his hand fell to the ground. After swinging the iron rod, Salander immediately let go. Although she didn't have time to pick up the knife, she kicked it away along the plank. Seeing his huge fist swinging backhand, she quickly dodged it cleverly, and at the same time jumped back to the other side of the passage. on the cargo box.Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Niederman reaching out to grab her, and then drew back her feet at lightning speed.There were two rows of containers, three stories high along the central aisle, and two stories high along the outer aisle.She jumped and landed on two floors, leaning her back against the cargo box behind her, pushing her feet back with all her strength.The cargo box must have weighed two hundred kilograms.She felt it move, and fell down the central aisle. Seeing the cargo box fall, Niederman hurriedly threw himself aside. His chest was hit by a corner of the cargo box, but he didn't seem to be injured.He stood up again.She is still struggling.He started to follow her up, and just poked his head out of the third cargo box when she kicked her, her boot slamming on the forehead.He grumbled, and then struggled to stand on the top of the cargo box.Salander sprinted away and jumped back onto the crate on the other side of the aisle.She jumped off the edge and disappeared from his sight in an instant.He could hear her footsteps and glimpsed her running through the doorway into the inner workshop. Salander looked around and weighed.clatter.She knew she had no chance.As long as she can avoid Niederman's giant fist and keep a distance, she can survive, but if she makes a mistake, she will die, and it is only a matter of time.She must escape from him.Once caught by him, the fight is over. She needs weapons. pistol.submachine gun.rocket missile.Anti-personnel mines. Anything goes. But there was none at hand. She looks around. no weapons. Only tools.clatter.Her eyes fell on the circular saw, but it was impossible for him to lie on the saw table obediently.clatter.She saw that an iron rod could be used as a spear, but it might be too heavy for her to wield it well.despair.她接着瞄向门外，发现尼德曼已经爬下货箱，距离不到十五码，正再度朝她走来。她马上从门边移开——在尼德曼到达前大概还有五秒钟。她又瞄了工具堆最后一眼。 武器……或者藏身处。 尼德曼不慌不忙。他知道妹妹出不去，迟早会落到他手中。不过她很危险，这点毫无疑问。她毕竟是札拉千科的女儿。他不想受伤，所以最好让她自己跑得精疲力竭。 他站在内室的门口，眼神来回望着那堆工具、家具与半完工的木质地板。不见她的踪影。 “我知道你在里面。我会找到你的。” 尼德曼定定站着仔细聆听，却只听见自己的呼吸声。她躲起来了。He smiled.她在挑战他，她的来访顿时变成一场兄妹的游戏。 下一刻他听见房间中央传出不小心擦撞的声音。他掉转过头，但一时分辨不出声音来处。随后他又笑了。中间地板上摆了一张五米长的木质工作台，与其他杂物稍微隔开来，台子下方有一排抽屉和柜子滑门。 他从旁边走向工作台，很快瞄了一下，确定她没有躲在背后试图愚弄他。结果什么也没有。 她躲在柜子里面。真笨。 他拉开最左边的第一道门。 立刻听见柜子里有动静，在中间的部分。他快速上前两步，带着胜利的表情打开中间的柜门。 empty. 此时又听到一连串像发射手枪般的细碎爆裂声，由于离得太近，听不出来自何处。他转头去看，左脚却忽然感觉到一股奇怪的压力。他不觉得痛，但低头往地上一看，刚好看见莎兰德的手正握着钉枪移往他的右脚。 原来她在柜子下面。 接下来几秒钟他仿佛麻痹似的站立着，莎兰德则趁机将钉枪枪口对准他的靴子连打五枪，让七寸长的钉子直接穿透他的脚板。 他试着要移动。 他花了宝贵的几秒钟才发觉双脚已被牢牢钉在新铺设的木板地上。莎兰德又拿着钉枪移回到他的左脚。听起来就像机关枪不停扫射。她又打了四根钉子作为强固之用，他才回过神来有所反应。 他弯下身去抓她的手，但随即失去平衡，好不容易撑着工作台才稳住身子，却同时听到钉枪“咔嗒、咔嗒、咔嗒”地响个不停。莎兰德又回来钉他的右脚。他看见她斜斜地将钉子从他的脚跟打进地板。 尼德曼登时发出愤怒的嘶吼，并再次出手去抓莎兰德的手。 莎兰德从柜子下方的位置看见他的裤管往上溜，表示他试图弯身。于是她松开钉枪。尼德曼看见她的手像蜥蜴一样迅速消失在柜子底下，差一点就被他抓到。 他伸手想拿钉枪，但指尖刚碰到，莎兰德就从柜子下方把它拉开了。 柜子和地板间的缝隙约有二十厘米，他使尽所有力气将柜子往后推倒。莎兰德瞪大双眼往上看着他，脸上满是气愤。她拿起钉枪瞄准，从五十厘米外发射。钉子打中他胫骨正中央。 下一瞬间她放开钉枪，如闪电般地从他身边翻滚开来，直到滚到他够不着的地方才起身，接着又倒退两米后才停住。 尼德曼仍试图移动，又差点失去平衡，身子前后晃动，两只手臂也不停挥舞。他稳住后，狂怒之余再次弯下身子。 这回终于抓到钉枪。他瞄向莎兰德扣下扳机。 没有动静。他惊慌地看看钉枪，接着又看看莎兰德。她也面无表情地回望着他，同时举起插头。他勃然大怒，把钉枪朝她丢去。她侧身闪开了。 接着她重新插上插头，抓着电线把钉枪往回拉。 他与莎兰德四目交会，她那毫无感情的眼神令他惊愕。她打败他了，她是超自然的生物。他下意识地想抬起一只脚。她是怪物。他的脚才抬高几毫米，靴子就碰到钉头了。钉子以各种不同角度钻入他的脚，若想挣脱，双脚非得血肉模糊不可。即使以他近乎超人的力量也无法让自己松动。他前后摇晃了几秒钟，像在游泳似的。接着看见两只鞋子之间渐渐形成一摊血泊。 莎兰德坐到一张凳子上，观察他的双脚是否有松脱的迹象。他没有痛觉，所以就看他力量够不够大到用脚把钉头拔起。她静坐不动地看着他挣扎了十分钟，眼神一片木然。 过了片刻她起身走到他背后，举起钉枪对着他颈背正下方的脊椎。 莎兰德很认真地思考。这个男人不分大小规模地走私女人，并且下药、凌虐、贩卖。他至少杀害了八个人，其中包括哥塞柏加的一名警员、硫磺湖摩托车俱乐部一名成员和他的妻子。她不知道还有多少人命得算在这个同父异母的哥哥头上，不管他是否问心有愧，但也拜他之赐，她才会成为三起命案的嫌犯，被全瑞典的警察疯狂追缉。 她的指头用力地按着扳机。 他杀死了记者达格与他的伴侣米亚。 他还和札拉千科联合谋杀她，把她埋在哥塞柏加。现在又再次出现打算第二度谋杀她。 这样的挑衅实在叫人忍无可忍。 她想不出任何理由再让他活命。他痛恨她的程度，她甚至无法想象。如果把他交给警察会有什么结果？开庭审判？无期徒刑？何时会被假释出狱呢？他会多快逃出来？如今父亲终于走了，她还得提心吊胆多少年，时时回头留意哥哥会不会倏地再度出现？她感觉到钉枪的重量。她现在就能把问题解决，一了百了。 risk assessment. 她咬咬嘴唇。 莎兰德天不怕地不怕。她发现自己缺乏必要的想象力，这也足以证明自己的脑子不对劲。 尼德曼恨她，她也同样恨他入骨。他和蓝汀、马丁·范耶尔、札拉千科以及其他无数混蛋都一样，在她认为他们根本没有资格活在世间。如果能把他们全放到孤岛上再投下一颗原子弹，她就会心满意足。 可是杀人？does it worth?如果杀了他，她会怎么样呢？不被发现的几率有多高？为了一时痛快最后一次扣下钉枪扳机，她得准备付出什么样的代价？ 她可以说是为了自卫……不行，因为他的双脚被钉在地上。 她忽然想起那个也曾受父兄虐待的贱人海莉。她想起先前和王八蛋布隆维斯特的对话，当时她以最严苛的字眼咒骂她，说她哥哥马丁之所以能够年复一年地杀害女人，都是海莉的错。 “如果是你会怎么做？”布隆维斯特这么问她。 “我会杀了这个禽兽。”她回答时，冰冷的灵魂深处充满自信。 此时此刻她的处境就和当年的海莉一模一样。如果放尼德曼走，他还会杀死多少女人？她已拥有公民权，必须为自己的行为负起社会责任。她打算牺牲自己多少年的人生？海莉当时又打算牺牲多少年？ 钉枪忽然变得太沉重，无法再这样握着对准他的脊椎，甚至连拿都拿不住。 她放下武器，感觉仿佛重返现实。她发觉尼德曼不知喃喃自语些什么，说的是德语，好像说有魔鬼要来抓他。 她知道他不是在跟她说话，他好像看到房间另一头有什么人，她转过头顺着他的视线看去，什么也没有。她感觉到颈背的寒毛竖了起来。 她转身抓起铁棍，走到外面房间找自己的肩背包。弯身拾起背包时，瞥见了一旁的刀子。此时她手上还戴着手套，便连同武器一块拾起。 她踌躇了一会儿，才将刀子放在货箱堆之间的中央通道的显眼处。接着花了三分钟才用铁棍将挂锁撬开，人才得以出来。 她在车里思索许久，最后打开手机，花了两分钟找到硫磺湖摩托车俱乐部的电话。 "Hey?" “尼米南。”她说。 "Wait a moment." 她等了三分钟，硫磺湖摩托车俱乐部的代理首领尼米南才接起电话。 "Who are you?" “这你不必管。”莎兰德把声音压得很低，他几乎听不清她说的话，甚至分不出是男是女。 “好吧，你想干什么？” “想知道尼德曼的消息吧？” "Have it?" “少给我废话。到底想不想知道他在哪里？” "I am listening." 莎兰德把北泰利耶郊外砖厂的地点告诉他，并说如果他动作快一点，应该还来得及在那里找到人。 她关上手机，启动引擎，把车开到马路对面的汽车加油站后停下来，从这里可以清楚看到砖厂。 她等了两个多小时。直到下午快一点半的时候，才看到一辆面包车慢慢驶过下方道路，来到岔路口时，停了五分钟没动，然后才往砖厂开去。在这十二月天里，暮色已逐渐笼罩下来。 她打开仪表板下方的置物箱，取出一副美能达16×50的望远镜观察面包车停车后的情形。她认出尼米南和华达利，另外有三个人她不认得。新血。他们得重建组织。 当尼米南与同伴发现敞开的侧门时，她再次打开手机，发了一条短信到北泰利耶警局。 杀警凶手尼德曼在榭德里郊区汽车加油站旁的旧砖厂内。即将遭尼米南与硫磺湖摩托车俱乐部成员杀害。一楼池内有女尸。 她看不见工厂里的任何动静。 她等待着时机。 这段时间她取出手机的SIM卡，用指甲剪剪成碎片，摇下车窗丢出车外。接着再从皮夹拿出一张新的SIM卡安装入手机。她用的是Comviq预付卡，几乎无法追踪。她打到Comviq为新卡充值五百克朗。 短信发出十一分钟后，一辆警车从北泰利耶方向快速地驶向工厂，没有鸣警笛只是闪着蓝灯，驶进院子后，停在尼米南的面包车旁。一分钟后又来了两辆警车。警察们商议之后，一起朝砖厂前进。莎兰德拿起望远镜，看见一名警员以无线对讲机通报尼米南那辆车的车号。其他警察分站在一旁等候。两分钟后，莎兰德看着另一个小队急速赶到。 一切终于都结束。 从她出生那天展开的故事在这座砖厂结束了。 她自由了。 当警员从车内取出突击步枪、穿上防弹衣，开始包围工厂区，莎兰德走进商店内买了杯咖啡和一个玻璃纸包装的三明治。她就站在咖啡柜台旁吃了起来。 她回到车旁时天已经黑了。正当打开车门时，忽然听见远方传来两声巨响，她猜想是马路对面的手枪声。接着看见几个黑影，应该是警察，紧贴在工厂建筑一侧的入口旁。这时从乌普萨拉方向又来了一辆警车，她还听到警笛声。有几辆车停在下方的路旁凑热闹。 她启动本田，转上E18公路，一路驶回家。 当晚七点门铃响了，莎兰德觉得厌烦之至。她正在泡澡，水还冒着热气。现在真的只有一个人会出现在她家门口。 起先她想置之不理，但响到第三声时她还是叹了口气跨出浴缸，拿浴巾裹住身体。她不快地撅起下唇走到门厅，水一路滴在地板上。她将门打开一条缝。 “嗨。”布隆维斯特说。 她没有应声。 “你听到晚间新闻了吗？” She shook her head. “我想你也许会想知道，尼德曼死了，今天在北泰利耶被硫磺湖摩托车俱乐部的一群人杀死的。” “真的吗？”莎兰德说。 “我问过北泰利耶的值班警员，似乎是起内讧。听说尼德曼遭到凌虐，被人用刀子开膛剖腹。他们在工厂里找到一只袋子，里面装了几十万克朗。” “天哪。” “硫磺湖那帮恶棍被捕了，但好像经过一番激烈枪战，警方还向斯德哥尔摩请求支援。飞车党在六点左右投降。” "yes?" “你的老友尼米南阵亡了。他像发了疯似的开枪，企图杀出重围。” "That's fine." 布隆维斯特静静站着没有再出声。他们俩透过门缝互望。 “我打扰你了吗？”他问道。 She shrugged. “我在泡澡。” “看得出来。想要人作伴吗？” 她以嘲讽的表情看着他。 “我说的不是泡澡。我带了一些贝果来。”他说着拿出一个袋子。“还有一些浓缩咖啡。既然你有一台优瑞X7咖啡机，至少应该学学怎么用。” 她挑起眉来，不知该失望还是放心。 “只是纯作伴？” “只是纯作伴。”他强调。“我只是以好朋友的身份来探望好朋友，如果你欢迎的话。” 她有些迟疑。两年来，她总是尽可能躲布隆维斯特远远的，而他却有如黏在鞋底的口香糖似的巴住她不放，不管是在网络或实际生活上。在网络上还好，他也不过就是电子和语词。至于实际生活，此刻站在门外的他依然是迷人得要命。而且他们彼此都知道对方全部的秘密。 她看了他好一会儿，发现自己对他已没有感觉。至少没有那种感觉了。 过去一年，他确实一直是她的好朋友。 她信任他。Maybe.她所信任的极少数人之一竟是自己想方设法要躲避的人，想想真叫人生气。 紧接着她下定决心。要假装没有这个人存在，太荒谬了。如今见到他，她已不再难过。 她敞开大门，让他再次进入她的生活。 (Finish)