Twenty minutes later, he turned on to Pålsjögatan again and parked his car in the same spot as before. He took his shoes off on the front steps so he wouldn’t wake Sonja. Once he was inside, he hung up his coat and walked towards the downstairs bathroom without turning the lights on.

It had only been a few hours since his last shower; though he’d thought about it, he hadn’t crossed the line and done anything Sonja or anyone else could find fault with. Even so, he felt dirty and was hoping a long, hot shower would rinse away the worst of it.

‘Why are you so late?’

He turned around and realized someone was on the sofa. ‘Sonja? Is that you?’ She, who never slept downstairs, had stayed up, waiting for him to come home.

‘It’s okay if you don’t want to say, and what difference does it make? As though I even have a right to ask.’

‘I’ve just been working.’ He went into the living room and couldn’t help but feel a jolt of joy that she did seem to care a little. ‘Did something happen?’ He sat down on the edge of the sofa, which instantly made her pull her legs away and sit up.

‘We need to talk.’

‘Sonja, I’m aware I got too angry at Matilda when you came home yesterday. But there’s something off about her, and to be honest, I’m really concerned.’

‘Well, for once, I’m not talking about Matilda.’ Sonja poured two cups of tea from a thermos. ‘It’s about Theodor.’ She pushed one of the cups towards him. ‘He’s told me as well now and given me a slightly more nuanced version than the one you presented.’

‘More nuanced?’

‘Yes, I just think it’s easier for him to talk to me about these things.’ She sipped her tea. ‘About how he fell in love with the girl in that Smiley Gang and was forced to be their lookout and ran into your Danish colleague, Dunja Hougaard.’ She broke off and seemed to have to pause to summon the strength to go on.

‘Did he also tell you he threatened her with that gun and tried to beat her up?’

‘Fabian, listen to me. The things they’ve done seem horrible. Just heinous, I can’t find the words to even begin to describe it. But that’s not what this is about.’ She met his eyes. ‘Our Theodor was never part of it.’

‘No? What do you call being the lookout and threatening people—’