NOW SHE WAS truly alone. She had her work as a child minder at a kindergarten in Fårösund, and she got along well with the children and staff alike, but she didn’t have any real friends there. And right now she wasn’t fit for work—and wouldn’t be for a while, since she was struggling to eat and sleep.

She didn’t have any neighbours in immediate proximity either, although she maintained a polite but distant and impersonal relationship with those who were closest. A flock of chickens and two cats were the flesh and blood that were closest to her—at least while she was signed off sick following Karl-Erik’s death. Otherwise, her current company consisted exclusively of fictitious characters in the books that she read.

Kerstin was truly alone, for real this time. It was hard to take in, but that was how it was. That was how it was going to be—possibly forever. When Karl-Erik had been inside, she hadn’t felt as abandoned: even if it had felt distant for many years, there had still been an end to the torment. They had talked on the phone several times a week, and she had visited him monthly. Soon enough he had his weekends on partial release, which hinted that his full release was approaching.

Now there was nothing to anchor herself to, and the absolute loneliness loomed large over her. They had no children, Kerstin’s father had overdosed many years before, and her mother hadn’t wanted to have anything to do with Kerstin since it had become clear that she mixed in criminal circles. Circles that she had left behind long ago, but that had had no impact on her mother’s decision. She had pulled her hand away from her only child once and for all.

Moving back to Stockholm and her old friends was out of the question—that time was behind her. And she couldn’t stay out here in the countryside. She couldn’t afford it, now that she was going to be the sole provider for her needs. What was more, it was far too desolate, too antisocial. Kerstin was essentially a companionable person, even if that wasn’t the initial impression she gave. She thrived among people and would undoubtedly get cabin fever if she had to stay on her own in a little cottage in the country.

That was why she decided to move into Visby, where she could live in a cheap rented flat. She would find it easiest to find a job there, and she would be able to get involved in clubs in order to meet people. What kinds of clubs or people she had no idea, but surely there had to be something she could get into? Some people who could take an interest in her, even if she had stigmatising tattoos that lengthened the odds against her?

BODY FOUND IN WOODS