If only he’d known there were others who thought the same way. On a smaller scale, admittedly, but the basic principle was the same. It was in the early summer when he’d first realised there was something wrong about Torbjörn Ross and The Sanctuary. He was busy with his own preparations when he began to wonder what Ross wanted with that horrible place. It was pure instinct, he couldn’t explain it. Ross wouldn’t leave him alone, and Peder had found it hard to resist his pleas. He needed The Sanctuary and its unique properties, that was how he’d put it when he contacted Peder, begging for his help to persuade the Solomon Community to let him lease the place. His voice breaking, he had told Peder about the daughter he’d never been allowed to call his, the daughter who was now living with the threat of death hanging over her. Like Peder, Ross had sought alternative methods when he was looking for a solution to his daughter’s problem.

‘I’m the only one who can fix this,’ he’d said. ‘You understand what I mean, don’t you? She’s abroad at the moment, but when she comes home later in the spring, I have to be ready.’

Peder had nodded, and had vouched for Ross’s background and credibility with the Solomon Community.

But then came that nagging feeling that he really hadn’t understood anything at all. Peder had visited the house several times after Ross had taken over the tenancy. He had his own plans to take care of, a timetable he must stick to. He didn’t want Ross dragging him into any of his crap – he had to keep the summer free. The first time he didn’t believe his eyes. He had peeped in through a window and seen a whole family, just as Ross had said. But this wasn’t just any family. Peder immediately recognised Dan Johansson, and his first reaction had been to take action. Ross had gone crazy and kidnapped an entire family.

Fucking lunatic.