The Disappeared Read Free Page B

Spencer.’
    There was a click as he switched on the kettle. His back told her everything she needed to know. There was something wrong.
    She had been perfectly happy with their decision not to share parental leave equally. The future had been crystal clear: Spencer would stay married to Eva, and Fredrika would be the main carer for the child they were expecting. But then everything had changed. Spencer had chosen to tell his story little by little. A father-in-law with a hold over his son-in-law. A wife who demanded a lifestyle he couldn’t afford. A mistake in his youth that ended up shaping his entire life. And then – from nowhere – the strength to break free.
    ‘If you want to,’ he had said when she went to visit him in hospital after the car accident last winter.
    ‘If I want to what?’
    ‘If you want to live with me. Properly.’
    For various reasons, she had found it difficult to answer right away. She and Spencer had been an unofficial couple for more than ten years; it would take time to get used to the idea that he could be hers for real.
    Is that what I want? she had asked herself. Do I really want to live with him, or did I just think that was what I wanted when he was unattainable?
    The question made her heart race. I do want to. I do I do I do.
    His disability following the accident had frightened her. She couldn’t bear the idea of him ageing any more quickly than he was already doing. She couldn’t cope with him becoming a burden at the same time as she was taking care of a newborn baby. Perhaps he sensed her fear, because he worked furiously to get better. He was still using a walking stick, but not for much longer.
    The baby woke from her lunchtime nap, and they could hear noises from the nursery. Spencer beat Fredrika to it, and went to fetch Saga. She rarely cried when she woke up, but would lie there talking to herself. Or rather babbling, blowing little bubbles of saliva. She looked so much like Fredrika it was almost spooky.
    Spencer came back into the kitchen with a smiling Saga in his arms.
    ‘You did say you’d want to go back to work.’
    ‘I know, but these things need planning. How long were you thinking of staying at home?’
    ‘A couple of months,’ Spencer replied. ‘No more than two.’
    ‘And then?’
    ‘Then she can go to nursery.’
    ‘We’ve got a nursery place from August, Spencer.’
    ‘Exactly. And before that we’ve got time for a holiday. It would work out perfectly if I stayed at home until the summer.’
    Fredrika fell silent, gazing at his lined face. She had seen the way his love for Saga had taken him by surprise, how amazed he had been at the strength of his feelings for the child. But at no point had he shown any interest in taking paternity leave.
    ‘What’s happened, Spencer?’
    ‘Nothing.’
    ‘Don’t lie to me.’
    His pupils dilated.
    ‘The department’s in a hell of a mess,’ he said.
    Fredrika frowned, recalling that he had mentioned two colleagues who had fallen out. She hadn’t realised that he was involved.
    ‘Same arguments as before?’
    ‘Yes, except it’s worse this time. The atmosphere is terrible, and I feel it’s affecting the students.’
    He pulled a face and put Saga down on the floor. Fredrika could see that the movement caused him pain.
    ‘Can you cope with Saga on your own all day every day? I could go back part time to begin with.’
    He nodded. ‘That’s a good idea. I’ll still need to go over to Uppsala to attend meetings and so on.’
    His eyes flickered to one side, unable to meet her gaze. He was keeping something from her. She could feel it.
    ‘OK,’ she said.
    ‘OK?’
    ‘I’ll talk to Alex. I’ll call in at work this afternoon and see what he says. He might be working on something new.’
    A dismembered body in two plastic bags. Rebecca Trolle, according to Alex. Peder Rydh stared sceptically at the pictures of the body parts. The head and hands were still missing, but Alex recognised the navel