He shook his head.

‘Best if I sleep at home – I’ve got to be up at five in the morning.’

Lovisa thought about the letter she’d received, the book someone had left on her bike. The shadow hiding behind the bus shelter.

‘That doesn’t matter,’ she said cheerfully. ‘I like getting up early.’

Her boyfriend grinned and pulled on his trousers.

‘Liar!’

Lovisa drew the blanket more tightly around her shoulders.

I don’t want to be alone.

Socks, sweater. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow evening, won’t I?’

He sounded worried; he’d noticed how quiet she’d gone.

‘Of course.’

She got out of bed and went to the door with him, kissed him when he’d put his shoes on.

‘When will you be home from work?’ he asked. ‘I thought I’d come over about four.’

‘I won’t be back by then. Take the spare key and let yourself in.’

‘Okay.’ He slipped the key into his pocket, kissed her and left. Lovisa closed the door and locked it, then padded back to the bedroom. She grabbed her bag and took out the book.

I Am Putting Everything Right

She’d never heard of the author, or the book. There was no blurb on the back cover, no indication of what it was about. The pages were yellowing; apparently the book had been printed in the 1940s.

Lovisa shuddered; she didn’t want it anywhere near her. She pushed it into her bag and sat down on the bed.

Then she heard a key in the lock. Overwhelmed with relief, she rushed into the hallway.

He’s come back! He could tell that I didn’t want him to go!

The relief disappeared.

The sound wasn’t right.

It wasn’t a key – someone was messing with the lock.

Lovisa looked around frantically, desperately searching for an escape route.

Where can I go?

The door flew open and the man she’d thought of as a shadow was standing there. With slow, deliberate movements – he knew perfectly well that Lovisa was trapped – he closed the door behind him.

All Lovisa could think about was the article that had been sent to her.

‘Now,’ he said. ‘Now you and I are going to put everything right.’

INTERVIEW WITH ALEX RECHT
06-09-2016

Present: Interrogators one and two (I1 and I2), Detective Chief Inspector Alex Recht (Recht)