If the times she mentioned are right, she’ll be in Skurup, thought Wallander. She’ll have concluded her business at the bank and be about to set off for Krageholm. But she wants to call her husband first. She’s pleased that everything went well at the bank. Moreover it’s Friday afternoon, and she’s finished work for the day. It’s nice weather. She has every reason to feel happy.

Wallander went back and sat down at her desk once more, leafing through the desk diary. Robert Akerblom handed him a sheet of paper with the details Wallander had asked for.

“I have just one more question for the moment,” said Wallander. “It isn’t really a question. But it is important. What kind of a person is Louise?”

He was very careful to use the present tense, as if nothing had happened. In his own mind, however, Louise Akerblom was already someone who no longer existed.

“Everybody likes her,” said Robert Akerblom straightforwardly. “She’s even-tempered, laughs a lot, finds it easy to talk to people. Actually, she finds it hard to do business. Anything to do with money or complicated negotiations, she hands over to me. She’s easily moved. And upset. She’s troubled by other people’s suffering.”

“Does she have any special idiosyncrasies?” asked Wallander.

“Idiosyncrasies?”

“We all have our peculiarities,” said Wallander.

Robert Akerblom thought for a moment.

“I can’t think of anything,” he said eventually.

Wallander nodded and got to his feet. It was already a quarter to twelve. He wanted to have a word with Bjork before his boss went home for lunch.

“I’ll be in touch later this afternoon,” he said. “Try not to worry too much. See if you can think of anything you’ve forgotten. Something I ought to know about.”

“What happened, do you think?” asked Robert Akerblom as they shook hands.